SoxSport

I remember one year, '71,Joe won the batting title hitting .363. Funny I remember him as a 3rd baseman, not a catcher, for the Cardinals. He did both. Also 1B. He was a good hitter--lifetime in the .290s and over .300 for the Cardinals in his prime. .365 OBP. Not a big HR hitter, but good rbi guy. I think he'll make the HOF. He was an above average player and manager. He managed the Yankees to a title. He has a cushy executive job in MLB now. He is the consummate insider.

Drew's $14M salary last year was the easiest $14M made last year in baseball. He never even had to try. Lowell got a nice freebie year his last year too, along with Schilling. The money excesses in baseball are mind staggering--rivaling those Wall St swaps swindlers.

I would agree. And I hope you're right about Ben. The Boston media never liked Duquette--One reason is he got on Gammons shitlist for not giving him the Manny Ramirez signing story, which was a huge story at the time. The Duke doesn't get enough credit for the Sox '04 championship. However, Harrington opened his pocketbook only when he was going to put the Sox up for sale--to increase their assets. I remember Fenway as rundown and dirty under Harrington. It was revived by Henry. But I read this morning the Red Sox raked Boston over the coals with the leasing of Lansdowne street. The City leased it for a pittance without a % of the profits, and the Red Sox have made millions on concessions and the Monster overhang outside of the Park. Your taxes at work.

I wonder how many great players even tried to be managers. Not many. Babe Ruth always wanted to be a manager. He never got to manage the Yankees or the Braves later in his career. I believe he was disappointed not being invited to manage the Braves.

You're right. He left the Rangers after one year because he didn't like Texas. That's what I read. He did like Johnny Sain--who preached the same strike zone philosophy to pitchers what Ted preached to hitters.

No offense intended. Some of my best friends are saber-nerds. "Walks and power" by the way was a Beane quote in Moneyball. That's how he drafts his young players.

Glad somebody brought this up. The Globe reported Tito was playing around--Heidi or Hazel or both. Hazel disappeared from the MLB channel (Millar's show) abruptly when Tito left the Red Sox. I saw her last show when she threw her notes up in the air, and abruptly left the set. Millar had no comment. The question is whether Tito's breakup with his wife had anything to do with his playing around. Or did it occur after he broke up with her? Did it affect the team's performance in September? That Hohler article in the Globe revealed a lot of behind the scenes stuff the beat writers probably knew and wouldn't touch.

I saw some comments about Rice's hitting philosophy today. He always disagreed with Williams who told him to go for the walks and OBP. Rice said that he was up there to drive in runs, as the 3rd or 4th batter. Mantle said exactly the same thing. Ted had tremendous plate discipline. Ignored the situation. Men on base, etc. Refused to swing at a pitch off the strike zone. That's how he and Ruth (and later Bonds) built up their OBP and OPS--walks. The saber nerds consider walks and power the only criteria to judge a hitter. I guess maybe another stat might settle it--like runs produced or bases produced. James has been using the runs produced stat for years. Steve Winters (math wiz) has come up with bases produced (google 'bases produced' for home page). All these stats pretty much correlate with the best hitters. I'll say this: If you have a Williams batting 3rd, and a Mantle batting 4th. You like Williams getting walks. If you reverse the batting order, you like Mantle getting the walks.

Youks and Ells are two of the best players on the Red Sox. They will have to get along, because neither is going anywhere. Beckett, too.

Why is there a thread on J.D.Drew? He is no longer a Red Sox player, and he doesn't stand a chance in hell of being resigned.

The Red Sox live and die on their pitching. Get somebody else's best pitcher without giving up yours. That's how the Yankees do it.

From MLBRumors: The Os are about to hire Dan Duquette as GM. Apparently has established good Latin and Asian connections. The guy doesn't get enough credit for bringing in most of the players who the '04 championship. Never got along with the media. Not an issue in Baltimore--or most places outside of Boston and NY. The Giants are an excellent trading partner for the Red Sox, with their need for outfielders and an abundance of starting pitching. Vogelsong for Reddick or Kalish? The Phillies are after Cuddyer--still another RHd OF bat. The Sox could have an advantage with the DH/RF platoon option.

I dunno about this one. Ellsbury just had a monster year. Do they want to sell high? Lincecum is coming off a down year--for him.

Tell it to the Cardinals. Maybe it's time for the Red Sox to get lucky again.

Kaat had 9 lives--and about 3 careers. Maybe that's why his nickname is Kitty.

I think Cherington is on a shorter leash than Epstein was the last few years. Translated, that could mean a manager with more independence. I figure Lucchino is back to having a bigger say in player dealings and manager choices. That may not be bad, considering Epstein's inconsistent performance the last few years. The media is saying Sveum now is a favorite for manager. I don't know as I believe that, but it's disturbing they would seriously consider an ex-coach who left with a bad rep as 3B coach. I think they want a break from the past here, much as letting Tito and Theo go. Sveum apparently still has friends in the FO--but they need a fresh face. If they don't see that, they might be in trouble. LaRussa, a traditional manager, has just won a World Series. The Cardinals GM is a sabermetrics nerd. Maybe there's a message for Henry there.

It happened in Monterrey, a long time ago. I met her in Monterrey, in old Mexico. Stars and steel guitars and luscious lips as red as wine. Broke somebody's heart, and I'm afraid that it was mine. It happened in Monterrey, and without thinkin' twice, I left her and threw away the keys to paradise. My indiscreet heart longs for the sweetheart That I left in old Monterrey. Let Papi walk, get the draft picks, and sign Wilson or Buerhle with the money saved. You know the Yankees are going after Wilson.

I don't think Hunter was better. Their numbers were similar. And Kaat may have been better than both of them. Tiant is like Kaat--he didn't play for the Yankees. And the Yankees play in Mediatown. Agreed on that. Anybody posting this thread should have seen Tiant, Hunter and Kaat pitch.

Looks like they are letting Papi test the market--they could get him on the cheap if he has the same experience as Guerrero. Or maybe they just sell high and walk away, taking those two draft picks. Papi and Berkman both had great comeback years. How did they do it? Well, they lost a few inches on their waistlines. Baseball Prospectus referred to Berkman last year as fat and out of shape. He looked pretty trim in the World Series. So did Papi this year. Losing weight and conditioning does wonders for these guys over 30.

I'm for pitching as the priority. So I should be for a trade like this. They can always add hitting if they need it. Top pitching is harder to get. Lincecum did not have a great year, but has a favorable contract --I think. Ellsbury had his contract year. Superstar year. Can he do it again? Who knows. But I wonder if the Giants want to take on a guy who will be a FA of Boras next year? They might not want a contract that big.

Reading Cafardo today, I think the manager issue boils down to FO game control--does Cherington want to manage games, like Beane does (and probably Epstein did with Tito), or do they want the manager to have game independence? The answer probably lies in what Lucchino/Henry think is best for the team at this point. From, the interviews, it looks like they want a guy the FO can micromanage. Maybe. I hope they recognize that it's about pitching. In which case, Maddux should have the inside track. But what if they want a guy who has the experience to handle a bunch of beer-drinking millionaires, and who can manage in-game? Cafardo says Valentine is the guy. I've heard Henry likes him, too, and Henry is the supreme sabermetrics guy on the Red Sox. Valentine may well be lurking under the radar. This may well be the best approach, because sabermetrics is much more important in the FO, picking the right players. You want a manager that is good in-game and has the players' respect. The other thing is , apparently Cherington's manager list was compiled with Epstein while Theo was still in Boston. That means the Cubs manager search list is probably the same as the Red Sox. If so, Cherington may have to act quickly to get his man.