jacksonianmarch

The AFL guys are Chavis and two minor league washouts? Wow, your system is thin

Plus or minus. We have seen pitchers have a hot month with a stinker mixed in. It's just about what their stuff is like that day. Regardless, I think Fister goes to long man in the playoffs or is left off altogether. Price may come back as a pen arm per Farrell, although I think he has another setback and sees the business end of a knife. I think your 4 for the playoffs is Sale, Pom, Porcello and ERod.

It's all about adjustments. We saw it with Judge. We saw it with Sanchez. You'll see it with Beni, Devers, etc. Beni is a damn good ball player.

Your pen has over performed for sure, and a significant part of that is your starters ability to stay in games. You've got one of the lower pen workloads in baseball. If that continues going forward, then you'll continue to perform

Stanton is going nowhere. Jeter is taking over and I don't think he will want his major assets sold off from a team that is close to contention

I would LOVE that rotation as a Yankee fan. I have limited faith in Pom. He's been an injury risk for his whole career. He allows a fair amount of hits, a higher than normal homer rate and a high walk rate, yet he's kept his ERA down due to a high K rate. If he's pencilled in as your #2 from day 1, I'd be ecstatic. Coming into 2017, he didn't even have a guaranteed spot. If he reverts to a 4ERA pitcher that his xFIP predicts, then you'll be sunk. Porcello has shown what he is when his BABIP isn't .269. He's a mid to back end pitcher who can get hot for stretches. ERod has the most potential, but I also think he'll be coming off surgery. His knee is a risk to sublux until they tighten it up and I feel they'll likely do that. Whether he takes the next step into a reliable pitcher remains to be seen. Johnson is garbage IMO. If Price goes down and the plan is for ERod to get his knee fixed, there's no reason at all why the sox wouldn't acquire someone to fill the void. Wright isn't the answer unless he comes out smoking. And for a team that relies on pitching, I think the above would put us as the preseason ALE favorites

Gray goes 7 and allows five hits, I cannot complain. You get into the 8th against boston with 4 runs allowed and that's usually a win. I have liked Gray since his acquisition. We need some offensive help this offseason to stabilize the kids growth and be less reliant on young talent to be consistent

I'm not even sure why you're worried about it frankly. You've split the last two games and have Sale going tomorrow. You're up 5 in the L column and if your team takes care of its business the rest of the month, you'll clinch with a week to go. He deserves some games for sure. Knocking out someone for 4 games during the final month of a pennant race for the most popular team in baseball may not be the best idea from an organizational perspective but so be it. He was a bozo and deserves his punishment.

That team has been coasting for a long time. Now, they get Verlander, who has been an ace over the last few months. Keuchel is healthy, and after a few blips on the radar, had been solid prior to his start two days ago. He's an ace as well and should round into form with another month to go. McCullers is the WC. He has the best stuff of the three and if healthy, could end up being the most dominant pitcher. He is coming off the DL now. If those three are healthy and rolling with their pen and their insane offense, they should be the prohibitive favorites in the AL. I think Cleveland has the goods to give them a run for their money, but with Salazar down, I don't think they have the goods on the mound to shut down that offense. Then again, Carrasco and Salazar were down then Bauer hit a drone and they went to extras in game 7 of the WS. I still think the sox win the East, but aside from Sale and Kimbrel, I am not terribly impressed. I think the sox are in for a rough first series against the Guardians. And if we take the WC and win vs the Twins/Angels/Baltimore, we will likely go down quickly to the stros. That team is our kryptonite and Keuchel eats us alive

You had a different team then and were being chased by a different team. That Rays team was good and was seasoned with their WS run 3 years prior. Your team in '11 had Lester and Buch, but nothing else really on the hill and your offense was the main catalyst. Your offense went cold, Buch was hurt and your pen dissolved. I don't see that happening. Your offense has been weak all year and you're still on pace for 92 wins. Your team is built on pitching, which is a more consistent way to win as the pitcher controls more of the game of baseball than any other player in any other sport (aside maybe from goalie in hockey). You are also being chased by a team that's a year too early. The Yankees have pitching but the offense is so hot and cold that I don't think we can consistent win in September enough to make up a 4 game loss column lead at this point. I know a lot of people look at old man CC and his victory last night and think the sky is falling, but it's not.

I don't think you're resurrecting his career. I think he retires at seasons end regardless due to his chronic knee condition

Our offense is in disarray. Judge has sputtered. Sanchez was hot and is now ice cold. Frazier has sucked. Castro has finally returned. Holliday is out and who knows if he can return to being productive. Gardy has trailed off. We are a young, talented team with significant potential on offense. Our youth has made the hot and cold tendencies more pronounced.

Jaime Garcia is doing his best Jeff Weaver impression

Let's play 2

Betts was leading off ahead of a prime Pedroia. Behind Pedroia was Xander who saw a TON of fastballs hitting in front of vintage Ortiz. Behind Ortiz was a resurgent Hanley. With Ortiz gone, Hanley isn't hitting with runners on as much. This means less fastballs and more problems for Hanley. Betts is hitting lower in the order and isn't seeing as much fastballs as he had been. He is a fastball killer, but as the 3 hitter, he only sees them when he's ahead in the count and he swings so much, that he doesn't work counts. Pedroia being out doesn't allow for the pesky 2 hitter with power to flow into the next part of the order. We can talk about roster construction and lineup construction until we are blue in the face, but those who think it doesn't matter and players will play are wrong. Pitchers pitch differently when a star is in the on deck circle. Pitchers pitch differently out of the stretch than they do in the windup. Pitchers pitch the stars tighter and more cautiously when they aren't adequately protected.

A well coached team will make physical errors. A well coached team seldom makes mental ones. Farrell has had the benefit of a Cy Young favorite and a Cy Young contender on the staff in Sale and Kimbrel. Pomeranz has been just good enough to win a lot of games. Porcello had been turning the corner. You had a rotation of 3 guys pitching at their top level with ERod coming on and a pen that has been remarkably good outside of the expected excellence of Kimbrel. That staff has kept you in first and if you win the division, it will be the major reason beyond a surprising resurgence from your boring offense

I have a feeling the sox brass will address the major problem facing the sox this offseason. You are all seeing what happens when you replace a HOF level talent/production with replacement level production and don't upgrade anywhere else. Everyone suffers. I forsee a JD Martinez signing this offseason. HanRam will have to move to 1b or Martinez will move into the 1b role. That offense in that park will stretch your lineup out and take some pressure off the guys currently not producting

Tanaka since July 1 57IP 48H 21ER 9BB 65K 1.00WHIP 3.31ERA 7.2K/BB The ace is back. The HR allowed is still too high in that span (8) but he has been rolling since the weather warmed up. Severino, Gray, Tanaka and CC is a damn good top 4 for a playoff rotation.

Pom is always one pitch from disaster yet somehow is able to walk the tightrope. He also gives no length. He's a mid rotation starter. You cannot enter the PO's with him as your #2. You need either Price to return or ERod or Porcello to finish strong.

Betances doesn't deserve any. He didn't mean to hit McCann. That was a two seamer that ran in. The others, who knows. I don't see a 7-8 gamer there. At most 3-4

It was started by Detroit. You cannot hit Sanchez after hitting a homer, that's petty. Kahnle clearly retaliated, but little bitch Cabrera couldn't handle not getting hit. Betances' ball I truly believe wasn't intentional.

Sounds like a Dave Roberts circa 2004 move.

The Kraken has started to be unleashed. Man he has been hot

Encarnacion averaged a 4WAR for his last 3 seasons in Toronto as a no D 1b. As a DH, his WAR would have been higher. EE in Boston would have been devastating. I'm glad he's in Cleveland.

Against Gray. We should have won last night too.