SoxSport

OK. I took a look at the data again. First of all, both these guys suck. That the Red Sox would consider either of them is an indication of where they are right now. Anderson has more minor league hrs--76 in 6 seasons. Smoak has 24 in 5 seasons. Anderson has about 3x PAs, so HR/PA are slightly higher for Smoak, 36 vs 42. OPS is a standoff .801 vs .788. Smoak also has 47 HR in 3 major league seasons. Anderson has almost no major league PAs. Smoak's OPS of.683 in the majors is not up to standards for the position. I doubt the Mariners want to trade Smoak, oddly enough. I guess they figure he will turn into Babe Ruth now they have pulled in their fences. But they have a logjam at DH with Morales and Montero, so he might be expendable--but for what price? They have him as their first baseman right now. The one thing Anderson has going for him is he was the Red Sox best looking hitter in Ft Myers last spring. A kid looking to break out finally? But no place for him at the time. They can get this kid for nothing right now, so he looks like the better bargain. At least they don't know what he can do in the Majors. Defensively? I don't know where they stand. Maybe a standoff.

If the kid is a monster in ST, which is the premise, it would indeed be doltish to assign him to AAA, especially considering their current rotation.

the whole career.

that top 4 should do it. Ells, Vic, Pedey, Papi. If Ells shows power again, they should consider dropping him to 3rd.

Switch Vic and MBrooks. Salty lower. Vic always batted 2nd in Philly. MBrooks is a key player in the middle of the lineup this year. He has to hit for power and a decent BA. If Vic doesn't bat 1st, 2nd or 9th, it will be a sign the Red Sox won't be using his speed properly. Don't be surprised, though Farrell likes speed.

One of the main reasons I don't like the Red Sox organization is because they place too much importance on offense-I mean, big ball offense. Not enough importance on pitching, defense and small ball--including stolen bases. For a few years, they even got away from OBP and walks--which made them even worse. Look at Ellsbury. The guy leads off, and doesn't know how to take a walk. He's never been taught. I still see them as basically a one dimensional team--which is why nobody in baseball likes them right now. Farrell will have to change that to succeed.

yeah. check the stats.

I just mentioned this in another thread. Anderson was the best hitter in Ft Myers for the Sox last spring, but they stashed him in AAA because of AdGon and then let him go. The DBacks I guess got him from Cleveland, but they have Goldschmidt and another power AAA guy at 1B, so they don't need him. They are creating roster space with the Upton trade. A lefty hitter with power. Good pickup for the Sox. Good defensively, I believe. A lot better than Smoak, who has never shown power at any level (except that freak month last Sept). Anderson has been in the minors a long time, and has never shown consistency in BA. Sometimes, these guys break out late if given a chance.

And the dolts will still assign him to AAA.

His career got sidetracked by a green GM who didn't know what he was doing. One of the dangers of the Peter Principle.

This ring has special value for Red Sox fans because the '04 team was the first Red Sox World Series championship team since Babe Ruth played for them in the WWI era. The 04 Championship was probably the greatest thrill for most Red Sox fans --certainly mine. I just watched the highlights of that 04 Series on MLB TV, and was reminded of what a great team that was--Pedro, Schilling, Manny, Papi, Damon, Nixon, Tek, Millar, etc. A team that beat a favored Cardinal team 4 straight--after beating the Yankees 3 straight to win the AL Pennant. Wow. I remember that Series well, because I called it--at a Florida airport, just before the start of the series. I ran into two well known TV baseball journalists there--one I knew because he went to my old high school. The other guy just won the Spink award this year. I asked them who they thought was going to win the Series. They both said "Cardinals in 5". Not giving the Red Sox any chance. I said "The Red Sox will win it--they have much better pitching." Neither of those guys can write any better than me, either.

I see Lars Anderson just got released by the DBacks, who are deep at 1B with Goldschmidt and another guy in AAA. Anderson was one of the top hitters in ST for the Sox last year, and they let him go because they had AdGon. Well, they could certainly use Anderson now. He fits their needs, being a LHd hitter. They should grab him while they can. Trading for Smoak makes no sense. He has no power.

Pedro is arguably the greatest living pitcher. Sure Gibson and Koufax are there, too, but none better. When Pedro is on the field in Ft Myers, those Red Sox players should treat him like royalty, because that's what he is. Reporting to Ben? Should be vice versa.

One inning pitchers are basically throwers--flame throwers.

I guess it took Farrell to discover Bard had lost his arm slot. How many pitching coaches did they pay last year?

Napoli will have to hit a ton at Fenway to justify the signing. 1B is a power position. The Red Sox need a power bat there to be effective, especially with their mediocre pitching. Even in the good years when they had Pedro and Schilling, they had some power at 1B to go with Manny and Ortiz in the middle of the lineup. In my view, and others, they blew it by not filling the middle of that lineup with an impact hitter like Hamilton--who would affect other hitters as well around him. Manny did that, even if he didn't know the signs.

The FO had a bug up their ass about Napoli, and when that happens even a degenerative hip couldn't sway them off course. They are taking a gamble, and will get criticized in the media if it backfires. They'll be after Ben's scalp if his moves don't pan out this year. Last year was not a good year for him.

http://www.csnne.com/football-new-england-patriots/patriots-talk/Napoli-opens-up-about-avascular-necrosis?blockID=826041&feedID=3352 This story by Maureen Mullen quotes Napoli as saying he didn't know about his hip condition in advance. I saw a tweet previously, from, I believe, Jen Royle, that said he did know. Royle is supposed to be a friend of Napoli's. I don't know what the real situation is, but the Red Sox are taking a $5mil gamble that Napoli will hold up through the season. AND he will hit like they think he can hit at Fenway. If Nap doesn't pan out, they appear to think they can fall back on Gomez, unless they think they can trade for a first baseman with Salty or Ellsbury. We''ll see how this all plays out, but they have gotten themselves older with all these short term free agents they've signed. And older means more injury prone.

I've read that Napoli said he knew he had the hip problem last season. That means he must have had some medical diagnosis of the problem. Maybe from the Rangers' medical. Apparently, Napoli went to free agency knowing he had the problem. I still can't figure why the Red Sox would want to stick with this guy even for a rental. That doesn't solve their 1B problem.

Pirates may want too much for Jones. The guy they are looking at now is Smoak, but he has no power--and 1B is a power position.

Forget about him catching with a degenerative hip. They want to prolong his season, which means playing 1B exclusively, and maybe DHing if Papi goes down. They'll be lucky if they get 100 games out of him at 1B. He's basically a one year rental--for $5mil guaranteed. You read about the possibility of steroids causing this, and you look at that spike year he had two years ago. That's a flag--it happens all too frequently in baseball these days. The money is so incredible you do almost anything to get those millions. Can't blame those guys at all. Most would do the same--even at a health risk. Not saying that's the situation, mind you. Just circumstantial evidence. Right, ARod? I'm surprised they signed Napoli under the circumstances. You wonder if anybody else would have. I hear they are also looking at Smoak--a guy who has never hit for power in the minors--at a power position.

With the balance in the AL east, I would be surprised if any team wins much more than 90 games. Don't these teams still play each other 20 times during the season? That's a killer schedule, and is almost unfair to these teams compared to the schedules in some of the lesser leagues.

Anybody reading that soap opera at the Globe masquerading as the Shaughnessy-Francona book on the Red Sox? The implication is the ownership wanted to spend big money on "sexy" players, not to win, but to increase TV ratings. At least that's what the marketing people (call them marketeers) told them for $100,000. First of all, I find it easy to believe that baseball owners are interested in anything that increases the revenue stream. Especially when you consider they are spending millions in salaries to even average ballplayers. Where do you think that money comes from, Henry's piggy bank? It comes from the fans. And they have to put an interesting product on the field in terms of quality players and in terms of winning games, if they expect to maintain or increase fan interest. Which brings me to the second point, about winning games. Seems to me that's where the manager and the coaching come to the forefront--along with the players. From what I saw the last few years, it looked to me as though Tito was going through the motions through most of the season--waiting for September when the season presumably would begin, and they would get serious about making the playoffs. I saw too many throw in the towels by Tito down 5 or 6 runs, and far too many "fielders indifferences." One wondered sometimes whether this guy was playing to win half the time--seemed far too casual--which maybe was infectious with the team. Ultimately, of course, the lax behavior did them in. Cmon, Tito. Maybe the main problem with the owners is they let the whole organization become too complacent--including yourself and the team.

I don't think they're sold on any rush to judgement with Iggy yet. They probably want to wait and see how he hits in AAA. Hasn't had enough seasoning at that level yet at 22-23. They have $8 mil invested in him and he's a talent defensively. If they were going to trade him to the Pirates, they would have done it in the Hanrahan+ deal. Though Napoli's hip condition may have come into play at that time, affecting their thinking on 1B.

load it on the back end.