Spudboy

This is probably exactly what is happening. One thing that concerns me is that Tazawa appears to be the only one that is most likely to do what he has always done. I'm not sure what we will get from each of the others. Even Koji is somewhat of a question mark.

Fred you are correct. Building a pen is almost always a crap shoot as relief by nature are the bottom rung of the pitching ladder. They can be good and they can be bad. Of course there are some pitchers that are better bets. The hope is that our team will build a pen that will come in and close the door and even stem the bleeding. That is a lot to ask of most of these guys. I keep mentioning Burt Badenhop. I think that he remains unsigned. The Sox still need one or two arms in the pen. He did the job last year so why not bring him back? My guess is that the Sox are seeking cheaper arms. And I think that they believe that they can get that type of guy in the free agent market or will use some of the minor league depth ( not unlike Layne ) to fill the pen out.

Your experience when joining Talksox is sort of similar to my own. I joined for the same reasons as you. At the time there were many very young and immature people on board who would say anything to anyone at any time. No filter at all. No regard for who they may offend or hurt. I did not understand how people could interact this way as it is counter intuitive and 180 away from how I was raised. I got crapped on many times in my first few months. I am not saying that this is normal or that you should have to endure the same foolishness. I guess to some extent this is what happens on the internet. Although that does not make it right. Naturally you will come to be more comfortable with some posters and possibly become irritated with others. I say stick around and say what you have to say. Just be aware that if you happen to say anything at all about the game that you can not substantiate with facts and stats it is very likely that your post will be called out by someone. I see this as helpful sometimes as I learn. But other times I see it as some ass-hat trying to compensate for his own insecurities and small penis. Whatever. Welcome to Talksox.

I like Layne too. Although I have never met him. I like the way that he pitches. I saw him pitch a few times for Pawtucket. He was close to or lights out. He has some mileage on him. But maybe he can be used successfully as a Miller replacement.

Good and timely post. I've been wondering about Lee as well. I do not know the specifics. It seems that the Phillies are waiting for Lee to demonstrate health this spring so they can move him.

I count 3, maybe 4 total at most. What's your point? You do not speak for the entire board, Fred. I thought that you said that you would not continue to engage in all this crap. Why not just drop it? It's boring.

The acrimony is surprisingly mild? I just logged on. The first two threads have been loaded with it. I don't understand how this all started since I was not on the board when the "villain" did something to piss you all off. Oh well. It's talksox.

Typical Talksox.

Paps biggest problems is that he gets paid Starter money to pitch only 50-75 inning each year. You have to be really spectacular to be worth what he makes. Simply, he makes to much money for what he offers his team.

Not to the Phillies. They have no need for an expensive closer now. But they seem to be stuck with him now.

I have no idea what you are talking about. I was the one that pointed you towards fangraphs when you asked what some new metrics meant. I was and am only attempting to help you. However, if you feel that I am picking on you it will be a talksox first since I am usually not involved in such things and in this case it is clear that I am not. Whatever dude. At least you appear correct with regard to superior intellect.

Not sure how to interpret that stuff on fg. But Castillo is projected to hit only .217? Oye. I hope that he hits above .250 at least.

Oye. XB is a newb, he's 22 and playing a high leverage position in MLB. Give the kid a chance.

You may need to explain what a strawman is to cp176.

Then Price could be assigned a locker next to Papi. That would be fun.

I just read that there is some reason to believe that the Padres may deal Will Myers to Philly for Cole Hamels. I am not a fan of the 'bring Cole to Boston" idea so if this deal happens I won't be crying.

I think that it will be great if Boras screws-up Scherzer's contract situation the way he did Drew and Morales. I still think that he goes back to Detroit or the Yamkees step in and snag him.

I remember watching that game and exhaling once the 7th was over as Pedro was gassed. Hitters were getting good wood on the ball. Pedro should have been pulled. Grady pulled a major boner there.

The latest projection for Scherzer is $189. mil. Whatever.

Maybe if they had not been complicit in raising the average MLB player salary close to 13% to about $3.8 mil/yr they would not have done this? Nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

Well there does not seem to be much to talk about now that the biggest signings and deals seem to be in the rear view mirror. Scherzer and Sheilds not withstanding. I have been thinking of the Sox signing Hanley. It kind of came out of the blue and seems to be a head scratcher at first. I really don't buy the idea that Hanley is the LF designate going into the 2015 season. Sure, he could and probably will play that position at least part of the time. I really think that Hanley was signed to be the replacement for Papi at DH when Ortiz hangs them up in about two years. The guy is an elite bat with pop. He has had some injuries in recent seasons ( not sure how significant they are ). But having Hanley fill in for Papi at DH in 2015 and 2016 and playing some games in Left and at SS seems to make sense, I guess. One way or another, the Sox grabbed an impact bat, even if it came with some warts. Offensive talent like Hanley is at a premium. Most people outside of Boston seem to think that the Sox got a bargain signing Hanley at 4/88. I hate big contracts but 22 mil/yr for Hanley's bat is not objectionable given what he COULD contribute. I believe that the Sox are still fully committed to XB at short at least in the near term. No one sees Hanley as a good SS defensively. But I think that if XB struggles, gets injured, traded, or just needs a day off, Hanley will be playing SS with little if any drop off in defense. I'm not sure that Napoli will be 100% back to 2013 performance and he is not a sure thing to be back in 2016 either. So I think that Hanley could have opportunities at 1st. If I were to be slotting Hanley into a starting everyday role with the Sox it would be at 1st since he is an infielder and is certainly mobile enough to cover the ground at 1st. Yes, I still have some uneasy feelings about Hanley / Panda being Gonzo / Crawford part ll. The Sox sure spent a bunch of money on these two guys. Especially since Panda is a tub of goo and may degenerate physically before his contract expires and of course Hanley is currently a very highly paid utility player ( without an obvious starting position ). Oh well!!! The Sox have done something unexpected in signing both of these guys. I am very anxious to see how it all unfolds.

Merry Christmas.

Good post. Also, I saw interviews with Ortiz and Prince Fielder before the 2014 season started. Both said that the shift is much more of an effect on their BA / OBP / OPS. Ortiz says it means about 30-50 points lost. Fielder says that it is not so easy to become good at hitting against the shift. Personally, while I see it as an obvious thing to do especially with computers making it so easy, I hate the shift. I like seeing singles and doubles not ground outs to right field. Shifts can definitely have an impact on a defensive player as well. That should be obvious, too.

Maybe and maybe not. He is not eye candy for the bulk of Sox fans. But he does seem to have a better rapport with the players and coaches. I can recall a nice dugout interview he did with Mookie Betts in 2014. That is just one example of his good work. I don't think that sideline reporters are an essential part of the game. I don't like the fluff stuff they have to squeeze in during each telecast. But it is now part of the entire game experience and I just have to accept it. Tina Cervasio was my favorite. She seemed genuine and was pretty good talking to players.

Yup. I have been critical of XB's defense noting his footwork and range to his left as deficiencies. He is below average defensively in my book. However, I can see him playing nearly well enough that he will not be a dramatic shortcoming for the Sox. Also, I do not buy into the idea that IF he has big offensive numbers that his defensive shortcomings would somehow be negated. He has to improve both parts of his game to be a good player. He is still very young so If he has the desire and the determination to work hard I see no reason that he won't achieve success eventually. I still think he will eventually be a 1st baseman. He has the body for it and he will not have the demands on his arm there.