jacksonianmarch

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2014/03/28/a-timeline-of-mlbs-drug-testing-rules/7024351/ It's the best I can get, but many sites including http://baseballssteroidera.com/2003-steroid-list-anonymous-survey-testing.htm use PED's rather than steroids. A ton of PED's were not on the list, including the most frequently used one, HGH. Amphetamines were not tested for. Drugs of abuse were not tested for. Most supplements weren't on the list, including Ephedra.

The point is, both are cheaters. And while Clemens is speculation (strong, strong, nearly ironclad speculation), Ortiz FAILED A TEST. And Ortiz was notified in 2004 that he tested positive, and didn't confirm it until the story leaked. So once the story leaked, all of a sudden, he felt the need to find out what he took? Where was the urgency a decade prior? And the testing that was performed was for PED's, not masking agents like HCG or building blocks like Andro. They were testing for anabolic steroids. Ortiz was doing steroids in 2003.

I highly doubt they deal anything of value for an OF. Their offense can carry Holt in LF and Vazquez at C. The team cannot carry two dead weights in the rotation. And the team cannot continue to send Koji out there in tight spots. The rumor now is the sox are looking at Teheran and Vizcaino in Atlanta. I hated giving up Arodys for Vazquez years ago and after some injury, the kid is lights out. Teheran is finally putting it together as well. And Atlanta wont need now talent and both guys are under control for awhile. My guess is you'd have to part with prospects that hurt to get it done, but you wouldn't hurt the talent you have on the field

When Clay looked done in 2014, his FIP and xFIP were much better than his actual ERA. He's been mediocre at times, brilliant at times and for one season, very unlucky. This yr, he is actually lucky to be as bad as he's been. Big difference to me. I wonder if he is just being the pouty little bitch he is and needs a change of scenery

how is that two extremes? Clay isn't unlucky. He isn't running into s*** luck. He's allowing an inordinate amount of homeruns. His walks are WAY up and his K's are way down. If anything, he's been lucky to be where he is. His BABIP is .262. Think about that, he should be worse. His xFIP and FIP all peg him as an over 5ERA guy. This isn't some fluke here. He's pitching like dogshit. Anticipating that to continue isn't all that far fetched, especially for a guy who hasn't made it out of July healthy in a long time. And on to Wright, if he was a guy with top shelf stuff, I'd be a believer. But he throws the knuckler. He is so successful because he has the stuff to be a pro without the knuckler. That being said, the knuckler can be fickle. Add to that his numbers. BABIP of .246, HR to FB rate of 0.37 and an xFIP of 4.28 and you have a guy who is primed for some sort of regression. Maybe he pulls a Dickey and wins a CY before falling back to earth. Maybe it starts tomorrow. Who knows, but the likelihood that he remains able to avoid hits on balls in play and keep the ball in the yard at the rate he is with a pitch that is very hard to control is not likely.

Trout is a generational player. You don't move a generational player for a bunch of high end prospects who haven't spent a day in the bigs

Nice comeback. Otherwise known as no comeback. You flip flopped in 2 pages. He failed a test. He cheated. Clemens never failed a test, but we all know he cheated. They are both cheaters, so trying to parse out either one doesn't matter. It's akin to parsing out who between ARod or Tex suck the worst this season. They both suck is the right answer.

You just said my post was the stupidest thing you've ever seen, and then you explained a point that I was basically trying to make. Really?

Buchholz is done. His stuff has taken a nosedive and he's never been the one to have brass balls out there to fight through anything

Beware the Drew Pomeranz. The kid has been dominant in pitcher's parks but his walk rate is insane. And he is basically a two pitch pitcher. Bringing him to Fenway is probably a good way to get a poor return on investment. Also, the guy is a walking DL stint

There is a point to where diminished velocity eventually kills you. He's down in the 86 range. It's just slow enough that hitters can fight it off so the hitter can sit splitter. And if the splitter isn't locating, then you sit dead red and tee off. I think he's done. When he's giving up taters, he's useless

My point is that your offense is aided to a tremendous degree by your DH hitting like he is. He won't be there next year. If you're to take advantage of his immense offensive impact, you should probably make some moves to strengthen your team. Your offense will still be good, but right now, I'm insinuating that your offense is immortal

It seems like there's an epidemic of illiteracy

Sigh. Read what I said again. Your offense becomes far more mortal when your DH isn't OPS'ing 1.100. Are you going to disputed that?

I would think a guy like Sonny Gray would make sense, as he is starting to find it again. I also think that the big pipe dream should be Chris Sale. I honestly think he is about to be available, and the sox are one of a few teams that could actually get it done

Just heard Schilling on EEI walking about the sox. His exact words were "this is not a championship team, at least with this rotation". When the playoffs come, good teams will slow your lineup. You will run out Wright, Price and Porcello. Nobody has a clue as to whether Wright will keep this up. Price is pretty terrible in the postseason. Porcello conjures up no confidence at all in the playoffs, lets be honest. This is Papi's final year, and with his offense gone, this team looks much more mortal offensively, even if you snag Bautista in the offseason. The time is now. If you are to ascend the ranks and prove that the sox are championship contenders in 2016, you must nab a top of the rotation guy

So Cash and Hal have come out saying that we have a "path" to the playoffs and are looking to be buyers at the deadline. f***ing really? We have more teams in front of us for a wild card spot than we have behind us. In run differential, we are only better than MIN, OAK, and LAA in the AL. We have a team of underachievers and old broken down f***s who cannot play anymore. Our lineup aside from Beltran and Didi to some extent is a barren wasteland of suck. Our rotation aside from a suddenly resurgent CC and steady Masahiro is a crapshoot. We have an elite pen, but cannot get anything to them. We are 25-2 when we lead after 6 innings, but we have played 70 games and have only led after 6 in 27 of them. What are we going to upgrade? Seriously, this is the f***ing year to tank. I want it badly. Next year's draft is supposed to be a top tier draft in terms of talent. The higher the draft pick, the higher the pool and hopefully we can sneak into the top 10 and get a protected pick just in case Hal decides he really f***ing needs Neil f***ing Walker. I know they have to say this to keep fans coming, but who are they fooling. We are down 2K fans a game for a reason. We'll continue to drop on that number as we continue to blow goats.

He very quietly has moved his OPS up to the devil number at .666. His May and June have been typical for him.

He's fine on a team with good offense. He is a difference maker defensively. If the offense cools, he's a liability because he is an absolutely terrible hitter

Guys, trying to vindicate Ortiz is like trying to vindicate Clemens. He's a cheater in a league of cheaters

exactly. We allowed our talent to blossom while dealing off some talent for pieces around a core.

Hugh, you don't play too much hardball with a guy like Groome, unless something shows up on the physical. You ask him his price, then you try to meet it. He isn't one of those 4 yr commits who is lost for 3 yrs, he is entering JuCo and can return to the draft next yr. I assume the sox got a reasonable number prior to drafting him. As a true top 5 talent, I assume his asking price is around $4 mil. And with how the sox drafted after #1, I assume they should have that kind of money to make it happen

The shittiest thing as a Yankee fan is watching you guys bring up home grown talent, giving it time to blossom, and turning that talent into a force to be reckoned with. Your offensive core of Bogaerts, Bradley and Betts is insane, both defensively and offensively. Add in Shaw, who is looking like a true big leaguer and Vasquez, who is looking like a true defensive catalyst, and you have the offense/defense combo to be a force at least until free agency comes along.

Hugh, talented guys like him have fallen before and signed. The issue usually is signability or injury. He fell because of a maturity issue at age 17? That sounds bogus to me. Groome has a TON of leverage. He's going JuCo, so he could come out next yr if he wants to pull a Brady Aiken, but the risk of injury for a pitcher is very real. He is definitely going to want overslot, so the question remains, how much will you give him?

Took 3 of 4, but Eovaldi is back in a bad streak. The guy is the streakiest pitcher on this team. He'll go 15 starts looking like an ace then have 5 in a row where he could get beaten by the Bad News Bears. Once again, this team is not ready for prime time. I want to SELL at the deadline, f*** it, sell NOW.