SoxSport

Granderson says the Red Sox almost signed him after Ells signed with the Yankees, but decided to go with Bradley in CF. That may tell you a lot about their plans. The Mets got a good deal at 4/60 for him. Yankees made a big mistake letting him go for that money and signing Ells. Tailor made for Yankee Stadium, and a good guy. If Ells doesn't hit 25HRs next year, the Yankee fans will be hollering about signing Gardner II for $20+M. http://fullcount.weei.com/sports/boston/baseball/red-sox/2013/12/10/curtis-granderson-explains-red-sox-interest-the-newest-met/

Cafardo said in an interview they are happy with what they have. He said there is always the chance they will do something big--like Kemp--if the opportunity develops.

Roger Angell on the Red Sox and the '13 World Series. Imagine. 3 WS victories in 10 years. 2 against the Cardinals. http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/sportingscene/2013/10/papi-and-after-sox-beat-cardinals.html

Agreed about Trumbo. Not strong defensively in the OF for their needs. RHd power for DH or 1B, where Nap resides. Not a great fit.

I doubt the Sox are in the market for a starting pitcher. They have 6 or 7 right now, if you include Workman, plus 2 or 3 prospects close in the minors. They are probably looking to finding a taker for Dempster--to free up salary. Maybe even Peavey in the right deal.

What about this kid Hassan, in Pawtucket. RHB, high OBP/Avg last year, Duke grad. Listed as left fielder. Can he play defense? Hazelbaker down there stole a bunch of bases, but lower avg, OBP.

I saw the Angels GM on MLB TV, and was unimpressed. Looks like a high school kid. Didn't seem all that bright. No wonder the Angels are underperforming. Signing downhill FAs long term and neglecting pitching. Owner doesn't have a lot of baseball smarts, either.

The rumors are full of crap. Davis signed with the Tigers. You never know what's going to happen at these meetings.

I would not be surprised if the Yankees jump in and buy Choo and Drew. Boras clients. The Cashman brakes on spending have been removed by the higher ups. They can make more TV money contending in the playoffs than they can lose on the luxury tax. That point has been made somewhere on the tweets or MLB TV. I see they just announced the Spink award to Roger Angell. Legitimate sports writer and book author. Not one of those TV pundits peddling rumors. Which is what Gammons became after he left the Globe for ESPN. The guy that won the Spink award last year is a sports columnist in Philly. Forget his name. He told me in '04 just before the World Series the Cardinals would beat the Red Sox in 5 games. I said no way. The Red Sox have much better pitching. There is an element in the media with a snotty attitude about the Red Sox.

If you believe Cherington, they are not about to make a big splash like Choo. Not the type of contract they want at this point. Plus it would change their outfield picture--pushing Bradley to the bench. And probably send them over the cap. They are probably looking for cheaper role options for the OF and SS. I think they'll play a waiting game, and see who hasn't been signed--maybe get a bargain for short change. I see the Tigers signed Davis for 2 yrs. The type of platoon player that might fit--but I heard they didn't like his hitting against RHP? Doesn't make much sense to me if they want a platoon guy. Same situation for Drew. They hope he won't get a multi year. Still a chance Yankees will bite for him. That would send them another draft choice from NY--which number? They are giving away quite a few draft picks trying to buy their way back into contention. Amazing how the Red Sox signed so many guys last year on short term deals w/o giving up draft picks. And most of them worked out.

Kemp's contract is very un-Red Sox these days. Plus his injuries make him an unnecessary risk. Drew is still a possibility to fortify the left side of the IF, or somebody else. It's a wonder the Yankees aren't interested in Drew, but getting Jeter to move to 2B or 3B is a real predicament. He likely wishes to retire a SS. I would not, however, be surprised if they bid up Drew, considering his agent has been made rich by the Yankees over the years.

Well, keeping Nap, improving the BP and improving catcher defense. Agree about the speed--maybe they'll do something about that at the meetings. Bradley won't steal 50, but he might steal 20--and hit 15-20HRs. It's the time to be optimistic.

Somewhere I posted some results from an analysis at SOSH which showed Salty to be an inferior pitch framer/caller compared to Ross, McCann and others--AJP excluded in analysis. That was evident to me just watching games caught by Salty and Ross. I don't know about the rest of the defensive stats. Salty's errors led to 2 World Series losses. That surely made a big impression on the management.

I guess you mean Ells, Drew and Salty. They have JBJ, X and AJP replacing them. I almost forgot about AJP--an upgrade over Salty defensively. JBJ and X deserve their day. You know X will be an upgrade--at least offensively. They want him in the lineup for his RHd bat. JBJ is a question. The kid deserves a solid shot, and he just might make it now. Think Cardinals. That's the Red Sox model--and vice versa. Ben has signed AJP, Mujica, Nap and Bodenhop. Improved there. JBJ only question. You have to like the pitching--especially with AJP and Ross behind the plate.

Don't see that here. Ben has made some excellent signings so far. Mujica looks like a steal if he's healthy. He got his key guy, Napoli, signed. And that other reliever looks good, too. You hope he stays level headed. That may be his strength, and he is in a good position now. In contrast, you don't see that in NY. Joel Sherman, excellent NY writer, questioned the Ellsbury signing on MLB TV, and wondered if Granderson wasn't a better fit for the Yankees. I agree there. He also felt Cano was more important to sign than Ells. Agreed again. The Yankees cut a hole in their lineup letting Cano go. Not replaceable, considering his position. They should have shown him the money. I can't say the same about Ells with the Red Sox--not with JBJ and Vic there. Ells just isn't the superstar Cano is. And Grandy is tailor made for Yankee stadium--nowhere else. Yessir, Sox in a position of strength for winter meetings.

I don't know if they have $3M to pay Raj, at this point. The kind of guy they probably want--role player. Plus does he cost a draft pick? I don't know. Doubt Kemp, unless they can unload Dempster for him. I don't know if they want to unload Peavy. Interesting "expose" on the "incompetent" Mariners FO on the tweets today: http://seattletimes.com/html/mariners/2022420240_mariners08xml.html You have to be suspect about Wedge's motives--the fired manager. This type of thing doesn't happen in baseball very often--disagreements stay internal. You wonder if Cano's signing has anything to do with this. I guess the GM was "incompetent" enough to steal Cano from the Yankees, by using Yankee methods--outbidding them. This has been picked up on the tweets by the NY based media. Now the Mariners are incompetent for signing Cano. LOL.

That's the way I read it. Screw Boras. Let him get the Yankees to overpay for Drew. Cherington & company are sticking to a script. It says no draft pick compensation, short term signings, targeted needs. Exact opposite of the Yankees. LOL. Mujica, Bodenhop (or whatever his name is), and Napoli are targeted needs which didn't cost them a draft pick. They have kept the core chemistry together signing Nap (Ells was never part of that, as a Boras client), and Mujica --legitimate closer/setup insurance. They have improved their pitching depth. Now Ben & Company are going to the meetings feeling pretty good about themselves and the Sox. They should. What might they do? Well, they need somebody defensive at SS to back up X. They also need somebody defensive to play RF in case Vic has to play CF or his back kicks out. Somebody mentioned Raj Davis--but he might be pricey and cost a draft pick? That doesn't go with their script. Possible they might deal with the Dodgers for Kemp or Ethier. But Kemp is an expensive risk. Ethier will cost less, but maybe push Bradley out of the picture too soon.Plus the Dodgers will want good players or prospects. The answer is probably a deal or deals for role players. Defensive guys at SS and RF. I'd be surprised if they go after any FAs requiring compensation. Plus they're close to the cap, and won't spend much--unless they trade salary. That's where Dempster and Peavy come in. Maybe they can swap one of those guys for a Dodger outfielder or some other role players.

OK. Who should the Sox get next? Drew? Another outfielder? I wonder about Logan Morrison. Just became expendable with Marlins signing Garrett Jones. It took the Sox 10 minutes to inquire about him.

Cano is a HUGE loss for the Yanks. They sign Ells, who is pretty much another Gardner. They sign McCann who is coming off the type of injury that affects your power. They re-sign Kuroda, a 39 yo pitcher who faded last year. And now they've given Beltran 3 years--a 37yo with DH written all over him. Maybe now they'll begin to address their needs. LOL.

Ha. He sure did melt in that 3 game series in Yankee stadium to begin last season. So did Iglesias. He looked very good in September callup, and was the next guy on the playoff roster. They've also got Vic for CF. My guess is they add another outfielder. Some of the NY writers think Grandy was a better sign than Ellsbury for the Yankees. I agree. Ells is too much like Gardner.

Yankees signed Beltran for 3 yrs. He had to show them his birth certificate, to make sure he was over 35.

A must sign. Core Red Sox player. Now we can relax again and laugh at the MFY.

Bingo. Their attendance has dropped in half the last 10 years. They figure to recoup some of Cano's salary in an attendance bump. Seattle is a rich town. Plenty of upscale potential season ticket holders--kind of like Boston. They aren't through yet--Cano will attract other names.

I said POWER stats. Cano has 16 more HRs and 64 more RBIs at home in 9 seasons--679 home games--16 fewer than road games. SLG% .507 home vs .503 road. Cano is an excellent natural hitter (though his stats are slightly lower against LHP), so the park disparity isn't as great as it is for Granderson. Grandy isn't a 40 HR hitter away from Yankee stadium. But ANY LHd power hitter is going to benefit from hitting in Yankee stadium--a park built for Babe Ruth and all the LHd hitters who followed him. MLB TV has spent most of the day trying to figure out what the Yankees should do now. LOL. Media power.

I understand this guy "Jay Z" is a Yankee fan--somewhat like that Hollywood guy who sits next to the Knicks bench every game wearing his team gear. Could be what happened is Cano called him up and said "Man, what the f--k are you doing? Take the money--now!"