SoxSport

The other factor is Lee. The Phillies should sell high on Lee--he'll never go higher. Maybe they'll come to their senses at the last minute. He's the one guy the Red Sox would give a high prospect for.

The WSx will drop their asking price on Wed. I hope the RSx pass. Middlebrooks and Bogaerts at 3B and SS would look good right now against LHP.

I'd like to see Middlebrooks and Bogaerts at 3B and SS facing Price tonite, but that's wishful thinking.

They're not getting Peavy--and I doubt Lee. They don't want to give up top prospects for Peavy. In Lee's case, doubt he's available.

The last 24 hrs you might see surprise deals that slipped under the media radar. This could be one. My guess the Red Sox will deal for a reliever who hasn't been mentioned.

Everybody has said no, it's not them, except As and Dodgers. Tweets suggest NL team. Braves , Cards say no. Has to be Dodgers. Not worth the climb. Don't trade the prospects--play them.

Lee would certainly cost them Bradley--and more. I'd prefer they trade Ellsbury for Lee, not Bradley. Bradley can be as good or better than Ellsbury. Two guys they should not trade are Bradley and Bogaerts. They should be untouchable. I'd rather they give up less and add more relief pitching.

They should have a statue just for that '67 triple crown year. Dick Williams said that was the best year he ever saw a player have.

Iggy has been victimized by being constantly under a microscope, and by having to play out of position at 3B. The media is even counting how many infield hits he gets--not paying much attention about how he is using his speed to get on base. Hitting .400 , he was bound to have a cold spell. Normally it is something nobody would comment on, but this is a guy the media has said CAN'T HIT, and they are out to prove it. Fortunately, the FO is not the media. They know he has shown enough to play SS next year. He could be another Visquel or Aparicio--who was a similar player. HOF guy, who Ted Williams always said was the best he saw. Ted would have liked Iggy.

I don't know if Peavy is worth the climb. He's too close to Dempster, and Dempster is a 4-5 starter right now. Not the "innings eater" he was supposed to be. What they need is Buchholz. This guy is one big pain in the neck. He could cost them the season.

Doesn't mean much to the Angels, thanks to their Fox TV contract which is paying Pujols' salary. They'll just go out and buy somebody else, though Moreno is a bit more stingy than those Dodger owners.

Missed that first post. Thought this was a serious thread. The biggest difference this year is everybody in the organization is swimming in the same direction.

Ben still has to show he can slug it out at the trade deadline with other competing GMs. He strikes me as a quiet, patient, methodical guy--maybe a lot like the owner Henry. Lucchino seems to be the opposite--in between them in the organization charts. He did take a dig at Ben at the press conference, in the remark about Ben liking to hold onto to his prospects. I have no problem with holding onto prospects, but I would like to see more of those prospects given the opportunity to help the parent team right now, rather than lead Pawtucket to the IL playoffs. For example, it makes no sense to me to be expending resources for a declining player like Michael Young, when you are deep in third baseman in AAA--Middlebrooks and Bogaerts--who have more power than Young and may be better defensively at this point. Young has surged a bit in the NL after a bad year in Texas, but the AL east may be worse than Texas for him. Farrell has shown an ability to juggle lineups. I just wish he had some more of that AAA talent to juggle. Better to focus on pitching at the trade deadline--they are going to the well too often with B, T, and U.

Drew finally showed some offense tonite, taking some pressure off the left side of the infield. Iggy gets a hit and a SB, but he's a lite hitting SS in reality, and needs a heavy hitter next to him on the left side--whether he's playing SS or 3B. Carp had a good night at bat as well. Can't expect Nava to be hot all the time. Different guys have to step up every game. Dempster pitched OK, but they need him to go 6-7 innings to take the heat off the BP.

Time for some of those prospects to be in Boston. Iggy and Bradley gave the Sox a boost starting the season. Time for another boost.

I am mystified about Loney. This guy has turned into Cinderella at TB after being a pumpkin in Boston and LA. Imagine 10 HRs and .300 BA . Makes you suspect the hitters are ahead of the testers.

I have a hunch we'll see Bogaerts at 3B shortly. I also think the money at SS will stay there, unless it's traded or DLed. Iggy not hitting has no value at 3B, maybe better at SS with a hitter at 3B. Middlebrooks is 50/50 to get traded for pitching. If they don't trade him, he should be playing 3B and Bogie SS. Both are hitting about .280 with 8HRs in Pawtucket right now. Bradley about the same. All these guys would boost their offense. The FO is way too patient in a pennant race. That's their nature.

They should bring up Bogaerts to play SS and Middlebrooks to play 3B. Both hitting about .280 right now in Pawtucket with 8HRs. That's better than Iggy-Drew. They should also bring up Bradley who is also hitting well. They have too many good players sitting in Pawtucket right now. The FO needs to be faster on the draw.

Drew-Iglesias has to change. Between DL trips, they have been much too patient with Drew.And Iggy isn't getting on base right now.

They're making big money in their new stadium. Doubt their TV deal will match the bigger markets. I think they'll re-sign Halladay for less money and may trade Lee for some hitting.

Lee could very well be traded now--to the Red Sox. The Red Sox were runnerups in getting Gonzalez.

It ain't over yet. Last year, they didn't collapse until August. The year before, September. Right now they're in a rut, and they could use some reinforcements.

I'd like to see a change in the left side of the IF for more hitting. Whether it's Bogaerts or Middlebrooks or both, it can't be worse than what they have now. Middlebrooks is hitting decent in Pawtucket. OPS .836 , BA .278. 8 HRs.

Lee is in the picture, but the Phillies will want a lot for him. It will cost more than Peavy. Their hitting has become an issue of late as well. They can't go with both Iggy and Drew on the left side for much longer, if both don't hit.

With Iggy and Drew both not hitting now, you wonder how long can they put up with lite hitting at both 3B and SS. That is certainly one of their hitting problems. Time to consider Middlebrooks again, and Bradley in the OF. For offense.