SoxFanForsyth

In 897 innings he has a UZR/150 of 1.1. I'm not sure how you can say he can't play SS. He's not going go be a gold glove winner but he can certainly play defense well enough that he's not a liability there

What? You can't possibly be serious. Not every prospect is going to go Mike Trout on the league. You should check this out. https://twitter.com/redsoxstats/status/513051660542025728

My projected 2015 roster (additions in bold): SP: Lester - Shields - Buchholz - Kelly - RDLR Bullpen: Koji - Taz - Miller - Layne - Workman - Badenhop - Webster C: Vazquez; Soto 1B: Napoli; Craig 2B: Pedroia SS: Bogaerts; Holt 3B: Beltre **Give up Eduardo Rodriguez OR Henry Owens + Ranaudo + Cecchini LF: Cespedes; Holt CF: Castillo; Betts; Victorino; Holt RF: Betts; Victorino; Holt DH: Ortiz Lineup: Betts, RF Pedroia, 2B Beltre, 3B Ortiz, DH Cespedes, LF Napoli, 1B Bogaerts, SS Castillo, CF Vazquez, C

Very interested to hear what the package is that gets Hamels. Presumably it doesn't include Betts as he's in your roster. Swihart & Owens? Personally, I say save the prospects for a mid season deal unless you can get Hamels for a reasonable price.

Lets be honest. Who cares about 2014. What are the moves that we make for 2015?

Fred - I think, more than anything, they're trying to give JBJ every single opportunity possible to prove that he belongs because his defense is really that good. In my honest opinion, from everything I've read, JBJ seems very stubborn in that he's not willing to change his swing to make the adjustments to big league pitching. He needs to shorten up, bad. His swing is very very long as is. He'll probably be a piece that is moved this offseason. As for the 2015 outfield, I'm not making any judgements on Rusney right now because he hasn't played in 1.5 years, so I am holding off on my judgement of him. I think the lineup will have Cespedes in LF, Castillo in CF, Betts in RF. If the Sox trade Betts, I'll vomit unless it's for Chris Sale or Stephen Strasburg. Other than that, Betts looks like an absolute keeper, given his ability to hit and his versatility on the field. Tough to judge Farrell in September given that he's got about 36 guys on his roster. This season is obviously in the toilet, so try to figure out exactly what you've got going into the offseason (though I can't imagine that 2-3 more games of JBJ is going to change any opinion at all whatsoever.)

Too many tourists that go to Sox games to ever end the wave or sweet caroline.

There's no denying that he needs to adjust both his swing and his approach. To give up on him this early would be foolish, but certainly he needs to change some parts of his game offensively. That said, he's the best defensive outfielder I've ever seen. So here's to hoping that he can find the adjustments he needs to make. He certainly wouldn't be the first player that had a tough adjustment to MLB pitching.

Bogaerts is going to be fine. Your assessment of him is extremely premature. JBJ has been a big disappointment and doesn't have the bat speed, at least not yet. Middlebrooks doesn't have the plate discipline, at least not yet. Bogaerts has both. He'll be very very successful, I can promise you that. Since 6/4, when Bogaerts bad streak started, he's had a .196 BABIP. Based on his batted ball percentages (line drive rates, etc), his expected BABIP is .284. If his BABIP was .284, he would have 14 more hits, which would put his average and OBP at .264/.357. Whats worse, his BABIP with RISP is .156. So, I see a lot of hope for Bogaerts, and this is why.

bahaha. that was an absolute frozen rope.

this is wrong on so many levels.

There is actually a 0% chance of this happening. No chance at all, whatsoever. The Sox will acquire two of these three pitchers this offseason: Lester, Hamels, Shields. I would guarantee they get AT LEAST one of Lester and Hamels, and then compliment that with a Shields, Cueto, Zimmerman type. The Sox rotation going into 2015 will be Lester/Hamels - Hamels/Shields/Cueto/Zimmermann - Buchholz - Kelly - RDLR. Depth will be Henry Owens, Brian Johnson, Ranaudo, Barnes. Bullpen will include both Workman and Webster, along with Taz, Uehara, Badenhop, Mujica, and a lefty (Miller?). Solid pen.

Would certainly expect the Sox to sign Cespedes. Can't imagine you dish Lester for him unless you know you're resigning him.

He failed a test for taking a substance that wasn't even banned at the time. And we don't even know what the substance was.

So what are we doing with Buchholz again?

The deal that will get Hamels will be: 1 of Betts/Owens + 1 of Ranaudo/Webster/Barnes + Middlebrooks I would rather give up Owens than Betts unless the Sox sign Rusney Castillo, who would be the CF of the future.

Good eye on the Olney thing - I didn't see that. That only confirms my belief that the Sox will get Lester back. The one thing I was worried about was the years. But if they already were willing to go 6 years, then it's basically a done deal. I could see them going 5/120 ($24mm AAV) with a $20mm option for a 6th year to make it 6/140 and I think Lester signs that in an instant. That's where I think this ends up. That's still a hometown discount, given that Cliff Lee virtually signed that same deal 5 years ago. As for the Hamels part - I do think the Sox would pay for Hamels and Lester. They've got $75mm to spend this offseason, and that's only bumping into the luxury tax threshold. They may well be willing to go over it since they haven't gone over in a couple years, and the penalties really stack up once you go over. Also - If the Phillies want prospects (which they do), I'm sure they'll eat around $5mm annually of Hamels contract, so that sets him down to a more reasonable price. Finally - in 2016, the Sox only have $22mm committed. So even if they get close to the lux tax threshold in 2015, they've got plenty of room in 2016.

http://bostonherald.com/sports/red_sox_mlb/boston_red_sox/2014/08/color_of_money_won_t_determine_jon_lester_s_future So, so, so many good quotes in there. You can't read that article and not think he's coming back to Boston. Sign Lester, trade for Hamels. You heard it here first.

I love Nap! But the monster does help his average on balls in play. .365 BABIP at home, .330 on the road.

I certainly hope not. He's a pull hitter and balls don't leave Fenway in RF very often. Plus, low average, high K's. He's Napoli from the left side without the monster to help his BABIP. EDIT: His K% is lower than I thought (22%) but the past 2 years it's been over 28%. Pass.

Listened to a podcast yesterday with Alex Speier (who is excellent). He said he has had discussions with Xander and asked him if his offensive woes correlate to getting moved around the infield. XB continues to deny that being the reason and said that his top hand isn't coming through the zone like it always has, and so he's not striking the ball like he always has. Sounds, at least to me, like a bit of a mechanical flaw. The good news is that mechanical flaws tend to always work out. XB has the bat speed and plate discipline to become a star. JBJ has the plate discipline but the bat speed is lacking. WMB has the bat speed but the plate discipline is lacking. XB can (and will) work his way out of this funk. I do pin some of his struggles on Colbrunn, although that's not really fair given his medical conditions. Either way, his mechanics will get worked out and he'll be fine. Bat speed and plate discipline, though? Those are things that either you have or you don't, and it's excessively difficult to coach and implement these areas. XB will be fine, guaranteed. JBJ and WMB? I'm very, very concerned.

I had heard this as well, and finally found the tweet. Supports what the friend of a friend told you, as well. Lets hope this whole "friend of a friend" thing holds true with the Red Sox. Honestly, it makes entirely too much sense for it not to hold true, but you never know.

True or not, it certainly makes a lot of sense that they would do that. Trade Lackey, resign Lester, trade for Hamels, and have a pretty filthy 1-2 of Lester-Hamels for 4 years.

I would love to see the Sox sign Rusney Castillo, but with my luck, he would be the one Cuban player that sucks. I won't be surprised in the least to see JBJ sent down before the Reds series and Mookie brought up to play CF. I'd like to see what Mookie can do on an everyday basis while JBJ goes down to AAA to try to figure out his swing a little bit.