Red Sox vs. Orioles at 6:05 p.m. on NESN:
K. Hernández 2B, Verdugo CF, Renfroe RF, Bogaerts SS, Devers 3B, Gonzalez 1B, Cordero LF, Chavis DH, Plawecki C
Pitchers: Eovaldi, Sawamura, Ottavino, Taylor
@JeffPassan
MLB's attempts to crack down on foreign substances are outlined in a memo obtained by ESPN. Among the plans:
- Increased monitoring by compliance officers
- Inspections of baseballs taken out of play that will use a third-party lab to check for substances
- Spin-rate analysis
Compliance officers will monitor dugouts, clubhouses, tunnels, batting cages and bullpens. They will take a random sample of balls, and the lab will search not just for the substances themselves but the type being utilized. Statcast data will compare spin rate to career norms.
The memo, first reported by @Joelsherman1, says: “Players are subject to discipline by the Commissioner’s Office for violating the Official Baseball Rules regardless of whether evidence of the violation has been discovered during or following a game.”
How about cracking down on umps that can't call strikes? How about cracking down on a broken tv blackout system?
If I had to guess, the Sox would go with 14 pitchers including Brice and Brewer and the bench would include Arroyo and Gonzalez (add Chavis if Cordero is on IL).
It's the same bench as they would have had back in the 25 man days when they'd go with 13 pitchers (which would happen most often at the start of the year).
Sox have over and over stated this offseason that they grabbed Marwin and Kiké for their versatility and that they want to go with a 2 man bench.
https://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2017/4/6/15186624/chris-sales-velocity-experiment-fastball-red-sox-mlb
He has a history of not always throwing as hard as physically possible. Maybe we can't attribute the change in velo entirely due to health.
Pitched 17 regular season innings after 8/1/18.
Pitched 15.3 in the postseason.
ALDS Game 1: 5.1 innings, 93 pitches
ALDS Game 4: 1 inning in relief (touted as "well, it was going to be his bullpen day anyway")
ALCS Game 1: 4 innings, 86 pitches
WS Game 1: 4 innings, 91 pitches
WS Game 5: 1 inning in relief
He was clearly not 100% that postseason.