mvp 78

Thanks Boston media.

Maybe? Maybe Jays turn it around quickly? Can the A's step up with their ace out? If the Jays blow this season after getting Semien, Berrios, Springer, Matz and Hand, they have bigger problems to fix.

Houck isn't a starter. He needs to go to the pen.

The fastest guys per Statcast: Dalbec (one of the fastest 1b in the league) Arroyo Xander Kiké Devers

MLB has said they want to get back to exciting baseball with action on the bases and balls put in play. In 2021, they definitely didn't fix that. Should they go back to 1980? IDK. I do have a fondness for that style of game as that was part of what I grew up with. Aside from the base slogging Red Sox, I loved following Ozzie Smith, Tim Raines and Tony Gwynn. Those mid 80's Cardinals teams were just great to watch (Pendleton, Smith, McGee, Coleman). I don't believe they should go back to putting carpet over blacktop and call it a ballfield, but those games were a lot more interesting that the product we have now.

https://www.billjamesonline.com/the_closer_by_committee/ That was the third step in this debacle: 1) We decided to save money in the bullpen, 2) We signed several inexpensive relievers, and 3) Somebody in our organization directly or implicitly Okayed the use of the term "Closer by Committee". On opening day of the 2003 season, the Red Sox in Tampa Bay, the Red Sox went into the bottom of the 9th with a 4-1 lead. Alan Embree gave up a single, a homer, and a single. Chad Fox got two outs but then gave up a walk and another homer. We lost, 6-4. In the second game of the season we were up 8-6 going into the bottom of the eighth. Bobby Howry gave up a single and a homer, and the game went into extra innings, although the Red Sox eventually won it. In the fifth game of the season, playing Baltimore, we went into the bottom of the 9th with an 8-3 lead. Ramiro Mendoza gave up six hits and four runs, and the Red Sox escaped with a one-run victory. In the sixth game, Pedro Martinez pitched eight sterling innings, and the game was tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the ninth. Chad Fox walked in the losing run with one out. In the eighth game, although the bullpen was never presented with a lead, they gave up three more runs in two and two-thirds innings, denying the offense a fair chance to come back and win the game. In the tenth game of the season the Red Sox led 8-4 going into the bottom of the ninth. Mike Timlin gave up three runs, and the Red Sox escaped with another one-run victory. The Red Sox haven’t even gotten to Fenway Park yet, and the bullpen has had SIX meltdowns. In Game 13, finally back in Fenway, the Red Sox led 5-1 through seven innings. Ramiro Mendoza gave up four runs without getting an out. We had, in fact, made a very serious mistake. Whether that mistake was failing to designate a Closer or whether it was deciding to save money in the bullpen or whether it was signing Ramiro Mendoza or whether it was gambling on Chad Fox to come back from an injury. . .what difference does that make? But among you there are a few baseball historians, and there are a great many younger people, some of whom who will be writing books about baseball history when Grady Little and me are six feet under and Theo still isn’t talking about it. I thought I owed it to you, at some point, to explain what had really happened. The Closer by Committee wasn’t Grady’s idea, it wasn’t Theo’s idea, and it wasn’t mine. Like the Great Fire of Chicago and the tilt in the Leaning Tower of Pisa, it wasn’t anybody’s plan for this to happen. It wasn’t anybody’s idea; it was just something that happened. ​ Interesting read on 2003 situation by Bill James who took a lot of flack at the time.

I think Seabold, Bazardo and Feltman are the closest to contributing. The better influx of talent could be in 2023 and 2024.

It's a different game now. In 1980, 10 players had 50+ SB's. Since 2013, only 10 players have had 50+ SB's. Excluding 2020, this could be the worse year yet for SB's per game.

03 Sox just took too long to get to Scott Williamson. Chad Fox only got 3 saves that year, none after April. Lyon got most of the saves until Kim fell out of the rotation and back into the pen. Kim was great as the closer in the regular season, but he just turned to a puddle in Game 4 and 5 of the 2001 WS. The problem wasn't that a committee couldn't work, just that the committee wasn't very good. There were pieces of a good pen like Timlin, Embree (started season slow) and Kim at the start of the season, but they weren't in the right position to succeed. Williamson was really good down the stretch and into the playoffs. He just made that pen work a little better. It didn't help that the Sox signed Ramiro Mendoza and he just fell flat on his face after leaving the Bronx.

I think I'd want him working directly with Vaz/Plawecki/Dave Bush rather than going down to AAA and working with new guys.

Just keep Barnes as the 8th inning guy. He's been fine there in the past. Just put Houck as closer for next year.

If they went that direction, it'd be Seabold I guess.

No, not closer by committee. Just that if the situation calls for it, you can have Whitlock out there for a longer appearance and staying in the game to finish. Richards would be the one inning guy. Whitlock is the fireman. Richards is the closer.

Dump Perez and call up either Feltman or Ort. See if you can get lightning in a bottle.

Dick Radatz approves.

Closers in FA: Jansen NOT LEAVING LA Rosenthal TORN LABRUM PLUS THORACIC OUTLET SURGERY Hand NO Iglesias OK Kennedy NOT GOOD SINCE TRADE

A pen with Houck and Whitlock would be pretty good.

I agree that a large part of me not wanting Whitlock to be a traditional closer is that I don't want to mess with him. Maybe you can have him do a couple of 2 inning saves here and there?

There's no use in having 3 long relievers. One of Whitlock, Richards and Perez should be the closer for the time being. It's not Perez. I think Whitlock has the stones to close out games even though his future is in the rotation. All the advanced stats lean towards Whitlock (Exit Velo, xwOBA, xSLG, Barrel, etc.). Richards' xwOBA since going to the pen has been great. His FB is about as straight as Schiraldi's, but he has a really good CB with an outstanding spin rate even after the crackdown. He's probably due for some regression with his bullpen numbers. I think I'm ready for the Garrett Richards experience. Let's do it.

Whitlock last 5: 8.1IP, 37TBF, 7H, 4BB, 14K, 4ER, 1.32 WHIP, 4.32 ERA

Perez last 5: 4.1IP, 23TBF, 8H, 0BB, 5K, 4ER, 1.86WHIP, 8.31 ERA

Richards since going to the pen (3G): 8IP, 31TBF, 6H, 1BB, 10K, 1ER, 0.87WHIP, 1.13 ERA

Ottavino last 5: 4.1IP, 22TBF, 4H, 6BB, 1K, 1ER, 2.32WHIP, 2.08 ERA

Sawamura last 5: 3.1IP, 16TBF, 4H, 2BB, 4K, 2ER, 1.82WHIP, 5.40 ERA

Austin Davis last 5: 4IP, 16TBF, 3H, 2BB, 5K, 2ER, 1.25WHIP, 4.50 ERA