Dojji

If we had Youkilis on the field neither Lavs nor Lowrie would have been in position to hit 5th. Since we didn't, who else are you going to put there? Scutaro? Reddick? You can't fire the manager for doing things he had no choice about.

Define "affordable." I'm of the opinion that the team is probably going to be looking to cut payroll next year. They went out on a limb financially and didn't get the playoff revenue to make up for it.

I disagree. Scutaro is a short term solution for a fundamentally long-term problem. Our issue right now is that we're too topheavy. Too many big contracts restricting the freedom of the roster to adjust to problems as they arise. It removes the flexibility our farm system is supposed to be granting us in the first place. If I didn't think that was the problem, I would be all out screaming for the team to go get Jose Reyes.

I go ahead and pen Reddick in as the everyday right fielder next year, with Kalish on hand as a viable Plan B I don't think the franchise needs to devote resources to ANOTHER expensive, aging, not-very-good free agent RF rather than letting the youngster improve in place. Lavarnway and Saltalamacchia are my tandem at catcher, with Lavarnway getting some at bats at DH. Youkilis is my everyday DH, and I go into the offseason looking for an everyday 3B, which Youk just loudly demonstrated he really is not. (in his proper role, as an everyday 1B who can back up third, Youk is still very valuable, but he is not a 120+ game third baseman) I would sign Coco Crisp as the 4th outfielder. He provides a nice combination of speed off the bench, defense in center, and a certain proficiency against lefthanders. The fact that he's a blast from our WS-winning past probably helps too. He is a man who can make himself useful here if he puts his mind to it. I also hold onto Aviles. He's as good as you're going to get for a utility guy, and he, Lowrie and Youk can probably work out 3B between them if we can find no one better. Position by position, here's how I look at things 1B: Gonzo (162)* 2B: Pedroia (140) Lowrie (22) SS: Iglesias (130) Aviles (20) Lowrie (22) 3B: Aviles (60), Youkilis (60), Lowrie (42) LF: Crawford (130), Crisp (32) CF: Ellsbury (120), Crisp (42) RF: Reddick (130), Ellsbury (32) C: Saltalamacchia (90), Lavarnway (72) DH: Lavarnway (81), Youkilis (81) Total games: Goinzo 162 Lavarnway 153 (but a lot of it at DH) Ellsbury 152 Pedroia 140 Iglesias 130 Crawford 130 Reddick 130 Lowrie 86 Salty 82 Aviles 80 Crisp 74 *If we need a backup 1B, Youk is available, and Salty has some nominal experience at the position. I doubt we will though.

I do not bring Big Papi back. I suspect that this team is heading for a pretty serious downswing as we try to live down some of the recent signing disasters. A move like the Lackey signing is significant enough to hurt us badly, and Crawford's signing is even worse so far. Anyway, point being, we won't be as competitive as we could be for awhile, and that means we need to stop regarding ourselves as peak contenders, probably for the duration of those two contracts.

I think your sacrificial lambs are going to be Bogar and Ortiz. The Red Sox ran themselves out of the playoffs, and if there's one material thing you can look at and say, OK, the coaches did that and it hurt us, it's Bogar's job as the 3B coach.

Not quite yet. I think he gets at least one more year to right the ship. It's hard to deny, though, that he's in a certain amount of disgrace this morning, and will have to answer some hard questions to his own bosses.

Mm. I'm remembering what Bard looked like the last time he started. In A-ball. Nah. Find another answer.

A few injuries can absolutely make a difference between a team being great and being awful. Especially if one of those injuries is to Youkilis, who not very long ago was our best player.

Offense is down so much that a guy who can log a low 5 ERA isn't worth what he used to be. I think the decline in offense is masking the decline in Wakefield, and he really needs to hang 'em high.

This is all just another form of pink hattery. The real die-hards? Those are the ones who know that there really always is next year. They are the ones that are still pretty comfortable in their own skin while this is going on. Because they actually have this thing called "perspective." They've seen the seasons roll by and remember that low points have happened in every single one of them. And they're informed by that as they watch this September unfold. Heck, I can't think of a single September that has been the friend of the Red Sox in a long time, that was true in 07, and IIRC it was true in 04 as well. This means nothing as long as we get in. And if the absolute worst happens? God that feels lame to even say, a sports team does not get doomsday scenarios. A failure to make the playoffs in 2011 will not bring on the zombie apocalypse, except perhaps on the sports call shows that absolutely love to sensationalize setbacks. The die hards know we're not going to spend every year having a team even as good as this one. Heck, even the disaster in 2006 won more games than it lost, do you have any idea how few teams have this many years of consecutive winning seasons? Not many. There are fans of at least 24 teams that would kill to be able to field this squad in its entirety, warts and all. And the money still favors us making the playoffs where, as the dogma goes, anything can happen. As far as the playoffs themselves go -- we still have Lester, we still have Beckett, and I roll the dice with Bedard as my #3 and count on him to give me 5+ good innings. That's three starters that are debatably ace caliber (when healthy, in Bedard's case, obviously) We're not that badly off once the time comes to shorten the rotation. Chemistry is the single hardest thing for a general manager to control, and there does seem to be a gap in the team's chemistry. There's some element missing that was there in 04 and 07. But let me hasten to add, that there were definitely points in both 04 and 07 that were as low as this, too. Those years were not hallmarks of perfection from game 1 to game 162. SCM could have made this entire rant at several points during the 2004 and 2007 seasons and been as justified as he is right now. And in fact more than a couple did. So take that for what it's worth as well.

I'm man enough to say it. If the Yankees winning is good for the Sox, GO YANKEES. It's all about what's good for the team.

BOO!!!

Yep. Take a miracle to stay out of the blown save.

That's the sound of an arm exploding.

Wouldn't take more than a couple lucky bounces for the Bruins to repeat. They have a very good team. Comes down to what we get out of Segs.

As someone else said, subscribe to Redsox.com and keep an eye open for something called the virtual waiting room.

Well we're close enough and I didn't see one, so here we go. News: Marchand FINALLY gets off his duff and re-signs. 2 years, 2.5M AAV. Will be RFA when contract is up. Sweet.

Which jersey he likes is kinda down to his personality, but I've found it's hard to go wrong with Pedroia or Lester. Home whites, it's the only kind of jersey to have IMHO. And if you want to get actual Red Sox tickets, and don't want to have to pay a scalper for them, good luck -- it's a really competitive market thanks to the rabidity of the fanbase. (not really a surprise -- popular team + highly populated region + a lot of money in the region + MLB's single smallest ballpark = lots and lots of unsatisfied demand) Little pro's tip for you -- if you're from out of region, and it sounds like you are, you may be well advised to buy a ticket for a Sox road game instead. It's complete luck of the draw trying to get tickets in the waiting rooms and there's usually open seats for Sox fans when the team's on the road playing less popular squads (pretty much anyone but NYY really). Camden Yards is a particular favorite as the Orioles run a good ballpark but a bad team, so their stands are rarely filled with their own supporters. If hubby is a bit.. ahem... broad in the beam, he might thank you for leaving him out of Fenway's seating anyway, which was designed for early 20th century backsides. Just a thought.

High payrolls fix everything though. Just ask the Cubs.

The Bruins won their championship with a far more restrictive cap, and did so in a way that sets themselves up to contend for multiple seasons of the future. Julien's system is one of the best in the league in terms of the results it gets (top 5 in goals for, bottom 5 goals against) with the talent he has (the Bruins are kinda underrated, but if you were to pick the top 5 most talented teams in the NHL, not too many would pick the Bruins). In short, that was a team that won the Cup on its system, and the job done by its coach and general manager to get the best out of their players (which obviously includes a multiple-record-setting goaltender, but we don't take points off Belichick for Brady either) so I'm not shy about putting the Bruins right up there with the two big championship squads, considering that of the three teams the Bruins would have by far the most difficulty spending their way there. And when you consider how little Tyler Seguin contributed to that championship run (basically just the one good game against TBL) you have the seeds of something truly impressive over the next couple years of Boston hockey. They have continuity lined up for a decade at their key positions between Hamilton for Chara, Seguin for Krejci, and Rask for TT. (thank you, Leafs!)

So anyway, the question with Lavarnway is, are you prepared to put up with really bad defense for a year or two until he gets up to speed, and probably only mediocre defense after that, in order to get that bat into a skill position. He's got a good arm, and he's a Yale guy so he's got a good mind, it's a question of his athletic talents and lateral quickness, and his ability to gain from reps over time. He'd be an ideal player to ship to a small market for something you really want that they have. A player like that whose best need is reps in the majors is a great fit for any team who has a few seasons to throw away before they're expected to win anythig. That would allow Lavarnway to either prove out as a catcher in the lost seasons and by the time the small market was ready to win, Lavs would be ready to help them -- or to DH or play first for them and live off his bat, whichever he proves. Verdict; Trade him to Florida with a couple other decent prospects for Hanley Ramirez. A potentially elite offensive catcher is one of the few things you'd be able to get in the door with in a Hanley trade discussion. Of course the Marlins would need to believe he's actually a catcher, otherwise just keep him, we have a spot open for a C/DH type anyway coming right up.

And Jacko with the countercurse. Thanks man!