@BOSSportsGordo
Red Sox projected salary arbitration numbers (via @mlbtraderumors):
Nick Pivetta: $6.9M
Alex Verdugo: $9.2M
Luis Urias: $4.7M
Reese McGuire: $1.7M
John Schreiber: $1.3M
The Urias amount is high. The others seem fine IMO. Verdugo's is small enough to deal away.
No, he's not ready to be a MANAGEMENT guy. That's what Chaim's job was. The CBO needs to manage the organization and all the people below him. It's much less about baseball than the GM position.
Yeah, everyone is moving to Florida. This is not really news? Tampa already has a local fanbase that is younger (per demographics) and watches the games (per tv ratings).
Casas is a yes. Bello is a no. He's a 3rd starter most likely. Some people were saying he was a future ace, but I don't see it. I think his CEILING is a #2. Per fWAR, he was tied for 99th place for starters (Gray and Taillon).
Rays viewership is about league average per tv ratings. The fanbase is there.
Tampa's Hillsborough County is only 15% 65 or older, which is even less than a typical New England demographic. The county I live in is 32%.
I think DD wasn't fired because of the contracts, he was fired because there were no in house replacements for the self sustaining contender than JH wanted since the Theo days. The 30th ranked farm system is what pushed him out the door.