Spudboy

Why would the Sox say anything at all that would diminish a player's value while shopping him? That makes no sense. I suspected this guy would not be around very long. I wonder what the Sox can salvage from this whole mess? Interesting to see so many people mentioning his "poor D".

I think that these are legitimate points Ted. It's very interesting to not that the current Royals squad is not as good as the 2013 Sox and now they are in the World Series and that Sox were a very distant last place in their own division. It's crazy they way things have shifted in MLB. I wonder how many of the young Royals have reached their performance ceiling? Which ones will get better? I wonder how their front office will treat the off season?

That team is flawed but so are the Giants. Looks like the Royal's year.

^^^^^

Kind of a surprise. I wonder what he has cooking? Another manager gig? Retirement?

Trout is 5 tool. But he is the exception. A Ken Griffey Jr. type.

No one is untouchable except for Betts. But again, I advocate building a rotation through free agency first and trade only if necessary.

So you think that at 29-30 he will learn better plate discipline? How to judge a fly ball? How to cut a ball off? How to hit the cut-off man? I have said that I like his power and little else. If he wants top $ to resign ( and he has said that he wants to go to F.A. ), I say move on. To bad about losing that power bat, though.

Good!!! Do you see Harper as a 5 tool player? I don't. He's not Trout level in any case.

Glad it's just speculation.

Bryce Harper is one dimensional. When he does not hit for power he's just another player. I say pass. Stanton or bust!!!!

A while ago I read that the Cubs were seen as strong contenders in a trade for Stanton as well. In any case, it is probably not a good idea to assume that if the Sox do want Stanton that he will be playing for Boston. Other teams have needs and assets too.

The best thing for both Swilhart and Cechini is to remain in Pawtucket through 2015 or until they have developed the ability to hit consistently at the AAA level. As of now they are just two more prospects. The proof is in the pudding.

There is power and there is power. Vasquez may not have shown HR power to date but he has shown the ability to hit doubles. He was brought up out of need not because he was a finished product wasting away in AAA. I think that he just has to hit .230 and with an OBP at or slightly above .300 to be worth throwing out there everyday while he makes his chops with the bat. We could do much worse than to have him as our starting catcher. I don't see the Sox making a long term commitment to someone like Russell ( who is likely going to get 3/27 -3/33 or more ) and who is on the wrong side of thirty years old. Two years ago David Ross was seen as the premiere back-up catcher in MLB. He is older and has had some unfortunate injury issues. And he is Mendoza level at the plate. Still, he loves it here, wants to come back and can occasionally run into one. His maturity and knowledge can only be a good thing for a team stocked with so many young pitchers and fledgling catchers. The Sox have depth in AAA with Lavarnway, Butler, and the highly regarded Swilhart. If Ross will sign for one year at a minimal contract I say bring him back until Swilhart has shown that he can hit consistently in AAA. I say let Swilhart stay in Pawtucket through 2015 and avoid bringing him up too early.

I want the Royals to prevail. But I see the Giants taking it in 6.

I think Vasquez will be the starting catcher in 2015. The Sox don't perceive a need to upgrade now. There are two assumptions that I do not understand or agree with. 1.) Vasquez will never hit and only be a defensive catcher. 2.) Vasquez is here only as a place holder for Swilhart. This is all conjecture and foolish at that. No one here knows with certainty that Vasquez will never hit. And no one knows that Swilhart is the blend of both offense and defense that will enable him to be number one catcher in Boston going forward. I do see some room for improvement defensively for Vasquez. He allows too many pitches in the dirt to get behind him and he makes some unwise throws to first. I also see him having good at bats most of the time. I do not believe that is is a forgone conclusion that he will not develop into a decent hitter.

So he refuses to work on his defense? Imagine that! I wonder why the Sox wanted him to wok on his defense?

I bet someone would bite on Buchholtz. Especially if the Sox had to pays some of his tab. Sure, his value is lower than it was in the first half of 2013. But he has demonstrated dominant stuff in spurts. That is always tantalizing to teams.

Triple Post Warning!!!! For Pal: http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/40923/red-sox-offseason-primer-outfield?ex_cid=espnapi_public "I expect Cespedes to test free agency. I've seen a little regression in his game since he first came over from Cuba, and I don't think he's a good corner outfielder. A lot of his highlight plays came out of misplays. His whole effort level, to me, was greater when he first came here. He'll produce offense in real good spurts, but I'm not buying the total package. I guarantee you there will be no hometown discounts. For me, a lot of yellow flags."

After I made my post I sort of regretted it because I did not want you to think that I was attacking you or your opinions. It's just how I feel. Was it Herb Washington? I seem to remember the Washington part along with the white shoes!!!!! I too believe that Ortizzle will get into the hall and I hope that he can play in 2016 so he surpasses the 500 HR mark. I don't know if that will get him into the Hall because Martinez is still not in and many people are of the opinion that Ortiz was not a "complete" player as a DH. Screw that. Starting pitchers play only every 5 days and they are elected to the HOF. I hope that we are cool!!

No offense Pal but I have seen him make a ton of poor plays. And as you know I do not subscribe to some of the advanced defense metrics. I don't care to get into a discussion about UZR. I do understand how it is derived and I think that it is inaccurate and subjective. So as long as a stat is based on subjectivity I will trust my own eyes and judgment. As far as me being one of the few who see his defensive flaws, that may be so on this board. But as recently as yesterday Gordon Edes talked about his overrated defense and how sloppy his play is. I do like the offense he brings to the Sox lineup. Otherwise I see Cespedes as little more than Gomes "Warmed Over" ( to borrow a Fredism! ) with a strong and mostly accurate arm. So there is your answer my Pal!

I kind of feel this way too. But I realize that some team will do it eventually. I'm just glad that the Cards were eliminated. While I believe that that organization seems to be able to field a very competitive team most years and I admire that, I also believe that they have a bunch of what you may call chokers on the team. It seems that whenever I watch them on tv one or more of their esteemed players boots a ball or otherwise makes a mistake on a routine play. I saw this last year during the World series and again while watching them this year up through the playoffs. For this reason I think that they are somewhat overrated by the media. The real reason I am glad that they are on the outside looking in is that I can not stand the self-righteous, towel waving Stepford fans that are so devoted to them. They are about as bad as Jets fans as far as I am concerned. With the exception of our Carter, of course. He is nice, fair, and honest. So............... GO ROYALS!!!11!!1!!

This is how I feel. The two teems seem to be evenly matched. The series should be fun to watch.

Fred, while I agree with almost all of what you have said, I think Mujica had a decent season overall. He sucked pond water for a good portion of the early season but then seemed to turn it around and actually contribute later. I'm not sure he did enough to warrant bringing him back but he did not totally suck like the others mentioned.

I don't see a defensive specialist as a requirement on a MLB roster. I doubt teams want to waste 1 of 25 spots on someone who is limited to performing only one aspect of the game. That would be like having one player designated to be the base stealer in tight situations. Charley Finley tried that. It did not work. Players that ascend to the highest level of play should have all the skills to play in any situation. I have no idea what Bradley's problem is and what it will take to fix it. I say start him in Pawtucket and let him play and hopefully hit there for all of 2015. If he can do that he could be very useful. Presently, I'm more concerned about what the Sox will do with Victorino and Craig. And I would be shopping Cespedes too. If he is moved I'll miss the power and nothing else. He sucks in left field and most Sox fans are reluctant to acknowledge this for some reason. The Sox outfield is still a mess. Hopefully Betts will still be here in April.