Dipre

Jonathan Papelbon 2006 season: 0.92 ERA, 0.77 WHIP, 9.9 K/9, 5.77 K/BB, 517 ERA+ Mariano Rivera 2006 season: 1.80 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 6.6 K/9, 5.0 K/BB, 252 ERA+ Seems to me like Papelbon was the best reliever that year. And 2007 was a no-brainer, being one of Mariano's weakest statistical seasons (if there is such a thing) and perhaps Papelbon's best regardless of ERA (1.85). You did miss the years when Papelbon was "far and away" the best reliever in baseball. Pay attention.

Exactly because he's never been through the rigors of an entire MLB season and hasn't even managed to stay healthy for an entire MLB season is why i don't think he should just be "handed" the position. There's nothing to be surprised about, since you stated yourself you don't think he's going to stay healthy for a whole season as a regular. So, logically: By having him man a regular spot you risk injury or getting exposed. By having him man a bench spot you keep him fresh, healthy and productive while getting him the necessary AB's to constitute himself as a regular if that is indeed his ceiling.

I forgot to outline that Richardson was insurance in the minors and put a * on his name.

Which is the crux of the argument. I believe that, over a full season, a healthy Scutaro outproduces a healthy Lowrie. Scutaro put up a .716 OPS on basically one arm this year.

I'm just working with what you're giving me. You're prone to overvaluing the abilities and production of prospects you like: Hunter Jones, Yamaico Navarro, Daniel Nava, and the list goes on and on and on. Bottom line, it's a gamble, and if the guy can produce as a super-sub and you already have a regular SS, it's a no-brainer to keep him in the super-sub role where you can keep him healthy and productive. He hasn't proven he can be a ML regular, and Scutaro has. And don't get me wrong, i don't like Scutaro, and despised the signing, but the guy's a gamer, and his production was marred by injuries, so until Lowrie proves he can effectively relieve him of his duties, then let him be a Jack-Of-All-Trades until he does. I'm not down on Jed, i simply have realistic expectations.

Neither Werth nor Crawford is gonna command a 20 mill salary IMO. 15 million probably gets you Soriano plus a lefty, but i think the Sox should also explore bringing Bill Hall back, since he was so productive this year. Also, you need to consider that the Sox could, if they deemed it necessary (and it certainly seems necessary) increase payroll for next season. Dipre's ideal 25 man roster: C: V-Mart, Tek. IF: Youk, Pedey, Beltre, Scutaro, Lowrie. OF: Drew, Werth, Cameron, Ellsbury. Super-sub: Bill Hall. DH: Ortiz/Dunn. SP: Lester, Buch, Lackey, Beckett, Dice-K. RP: Papelbon, Bard, Soriano, Scott Downs, Okajima (now a Loogy), Atchison, JJ Putz, Dustin Richardson. *Ideal is bolded because it's very diffuclt that happens.

I don't think Lowrie's getting worse. What i think is that, as a regular, a .740 OPS guy is what he is, while he could be much more productive and useful (while staying healthy) in the super-sub role. I don't look at players on an "I-like-you" basis, which is what usually clouds Doiji's objectivity. I see them while evaluating their importance to overall team construction. Scutaro has proved he can endure the rigors of a full season playing through injuries and being productive, and unfortunately, the Red Sox don't have the luxury of throwing Lowrie out there as a project for starting SS or 3B when he could be best deployed as a super-sub, maximizing his actual value to the club. If there's something the 2010 season should have taught us, it's that a strong bench is a really important but overlooked aspect of a ballclub, and Lowrie's ability to play multiple positions could be golden in the event something happens (and something probably will happen).

Am i the only one who thinks Werth is a better overall fit on the Red Sox than Crawford?

The "aggregate sample" consists of 164 games. Never more than 81 games in a season. If he wants the position, he needs to earn it and show he's healthy. Marco Scutaro demonstrated this year that he can be productive even while dealing with major injuries. Lowrie hasn't demonstrated that he can produce consistently or stay healthy. Liking a player doesn't make him the better option. I stand by the opinion that Lowrie's best deployed in a super-sub role until he proves he deserves to be the starter at SS. Feel free to think otherwise.

@ Doiji: You're making things up again. Lowrie has never proved in a large sample size that he's a superior player offensively and defensively than Scutaro. If he wants to be the starting shortstop, he'll have to earn it, and no amount of campaigning for him is going to change that. @Palodios: They have the money, and i think they're going to spend it specifically because of the reasons you mentioned. They need to stay competitive to keep their sellout streak and keep bringing in the money. They'll at least have a similar payroll to this year.

Two Bud Lights, final offer.

Why am i not allowed to want Theo fired? I am tired of his of his poor bullpen-building skills and his shenanigans! That is my personal opinion, and i have not put words in anybody's mouths. That being said, Theo needs to be fired for his incompetence and i am currently petitioning around campus for said goal. So far i have three signatures, a pack of gum, and two Bud Lights, so i am doing well in the road to reaching my objective , which is to get rid of that s*****-bullpen building slacker!

Ah, the excellence that was the Javier Vasquez deal. Stat line: 5.32 ERA (career high), 1.7 HR ( career high, gee, who would've guessed? 32 Homeruns allowed for the total), 7.1 K/9 (Career low). And to recap: Jacko's claims: "He will have an ERA in the mid 4's, near 200 K's, and pitch more than 200 innings". ERA: 5.32 FAILED. K's: 121 in 157.1 IP. FAILED. IP: 157.1. FAILED. Feel free to counter with a "The Sox didn't make the playoffs" post. That doesn't mitigate the fact that Vasquez (like everyone else foresaw) absolutely sucked ass.

Combined WS titles of the "very succesful teams that have not had bottom three bullpens during Epstein's tenure": Zero. I'm not even going to go on discussing the year-to-year volatility of bullpens because it would be futile. Theo needs to be fired for this ********. I want his head. Also, for the record, you were all for extending Beckett.

Neither option. The Sox have enough money coming off the books to keep both Beltre and V-Mart and sign an OF while fixing the bullpen and possibly retain Ortiz depending on how many bullpen pieces they are able to acquire through trade or fix internally/for the league minimum. They should retain Hall, and have him and Lowrie as super-subs, because as this season has shown us, injuries can quickly decimate a team, and "depth" is the name of the game, and to me, Lowrie is the best kind of depth, but he shouldn't be handed a starting position when questions about both his health and production over a season exist. For the record, i don't think Lowrie's and .800 OPS guy, which is why i made the prior comparison, he has the On-Base skills, but the power he's shown this season in limited time is flukey. I don't think that, over a full season, he'd be able to maintain the mid-400 SLG% necessary to keep his OPS over .800. I think my stance makes sense on the basis that it's a two-fold benefit from and for Lowrie, since it avoids him getting exposed, thus maintaining his numbers, and keeps him fresh and healthy, which is the most important part.

I'll accept no excuses. Theo needs to be fired.

I demand that Theo be fired immediately. His s***** bullpen construction and lack of WS titles on a yearly basis has made me sick of his shenanigans! And don't any Theo apologists make any excuses like players spending twice as time on the DL for this team than Yankees and Rays players combined, or the unexpected decline of many members of the rotation/bullpen, or the fact that dumbass Theo wasn't willing to pay anything of value for a volatile reliever who may end up being the next Gagne so we can all bitch about that too! Get rid of him now!

I usually see those types of comments as negotiating ploys to put pressure on the team's FO. He is a Boras client after all.

I see Varitek as the type of guy who feels as such a big part of the Sox organization that he either keeps playing for them or hangs them up, but that's just my opinion. Dude can still hit lefties, so he'd be useful to the Sox next year.