SoxFanForsyth

JHC Gonzo. That ball was right down the f***ing middle. He's throwing 85-87. Christ, sit on offspeed you can react to a fastball. That's f***ing pathetic.

Lets go do some damage!!! By the way is the audio way off on NESN for anyone else??

Nice bunt!!

That's not true at all. Consistent playing time in AAA is much, much more valuable than playing once every 2-3 days in the MLB.

No chance. When the Guardians acquired Ubaldo in 2011, not only was he coming off of a stellar campaign in 2010, but the biggest thing is that he was under control for 3 years. He had signed a team friendly 4 year, $10mm contract that expired in 2012 with club options in 2013 (5.75mm) and 2014 (8mm). Garza, on the other hand, is only under team control for 1 more year, and he's already making $9.5mm this year, and will go to arbitration next year. The reason the Rockies got such a haul for Ubaldo was because of the cost effectiveness and years of control. The Cubs have about 1/3 of the control and about 1/3 of the cost effectiveness. A deal centered around Lavarnway would be a good haul for the Cubs.

Chris Mellen of SoxProspects.com just said via twitter that Jackie Bradley's defense is actually even better than Lin's defense. That's a big, big statement.

Looked at the Cubs prospects. Let me first say, their current big league catchers are hitting a combined .191 with an OPS under .550. They have a guy named Welington Castillo, their 6th best prospect per Keith Law. Don't think he's much to talk about considering the depleted depth on the Cubs right now. He's also 25, has had a couple cups of coffee in the bigs, and didn't fare too well. I could see a deal involving Lavarnway + Coyle + a mid-to-low level guy for Garza working out. I think the Sox have a bit of an advantage because of how well Theo and Hoyer know the Sox farm system. They could even go with a guy like Frank Montas who throws the ball 100 mph, but is very rough and raw on the mound right now to stick in the trade. Perhaps the Sox settle for a couple B level prospects for Youk, or a high ceiling, low floor/level prospect and a B level guy that the Sox could include in the deal. I've read a lot that the Sox are really looking for SP right now, so Garza would fit the bill. He's a guy who isn't afraid to go out there and go right after guys rather than nibbling all the time. A rotation of Lester Beckett Buchholz Garza Doubront, bullpen of Bard, Aceves, Bailey (eventually), Miller, Melancon, Albers, Padilla, and Atchison (until Bailey comes back). Then you have a lineup of: Ellsbury Crawford Pedroia Ortiz Gonzalez Middlebrooks Salty Ross/Sweeney Aviles You pull the deal on a trade for Garza, and you get healthy. Now all of a sudden you're making a very, very serious run at the AL East, not just a WC.

I just noticed - Lavarnway is going to be 25 in August. How often do you see a 25 year old in AAA and think "This guy could be something special"? Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying he's not going to be special - I think he is. I'm saying it's ridiculous for the Red Sox to sit here and watch him rot away at AAA because we have a bit of a log jam in Boston. So that brings me to my next point. Lavarnway would be a 20-25 HR catcher with a .360+ OBP. That's a pretty rare commodity coming from behind the plate, especially at such a young age. If you could build a deal around Lavarnway for Matt Garza, would you do it? How much faith do you have in Salty? He seems to really be taking flight this season, although has been struggling mightily over his past 10 games. Point is this. We've roadblocked Lavarnway. The team obviously believes in Salty, and rightfully so, he's going to be a guy who OPS's over .800, the majority of which comes from his SLG. Lavarnway, however, is going to be a guy who probably will have a higher OPS because of a higher OBP, but slightly lower SLG (likely around a .280/.360/.490 line, and yes, the more I type, the more I'm talking myself out of this). But what do you think. Since the Sox have Swihart (ranked 72 in BA top 100) about 3-4 years away, do you keep Salty going and really bolster your pitching staff with a guy like Garza? He could very well be the difference between a PS berth this year or playing golf in October, especially if we get him early.

So there is a Middlebrooks thread, a Bogaerts thread, and a Jackie Bradley Jr thread. I think it's about time we make a Matt Barnes thread. This kid looks like he's the real deal. So far this season (game going on right now) 71.2 IP, 7 ER, 94 K's, 12 BB's. That would be a 0.89 ERA, 11.8 K/9, 1.50 BB/9, 7.83 K:BB. Shouldn't be much longer until he's promoted to Portland. It wouldn't surprise me if he started 2013 in Pawtucket, and potentially was called up as a late season spot starter toward the end of next season if his stuff continues to dominate.

God I can't wait for Crawford to come back and be the guy we thought we signed, and really boost this team to the PS. Then everyone will absolutely love Crawford. Kind of like people who absolutely loved Gonzo now absolutely hate him.

Lets be honest. For the most part, the ASG is a popularity contest. That's why Jeter made the ASG last year, and until he dropped out, Asdrubal Cabrera wasn't starting. I don't think Pedroia deserves the votes this year, don't get me wrong. He could get white hot and go on a 25 game tear where he hits .455/.530/.620 with 6 HR and then he's got a case, but not right now. And to be honest, that's fine if he doesn't make it. I'd much rather see Pedroia at home resting for the 2nd half. I'd rather have a healthy, rested Pedroia for the 2nd half than a tired Pedroia that made the ASG.

Better now than in a 1-2 run game.

Then why didn't he start the inning?

We are playing match ups in an 8 run game. I repeat. We are playing match ups in an 8 run game.

Nick Punto had 2 hits in 25 games. Now he has 2 in 1 inning.

People have always seen Buchholz as an ace. By people, I mean the FO. They turned down a Buchholz for Lee straight up deal back in 2009 because they thought so much of him. And that was before he developed his splitter. According to Buch, he picked up his splitter on his May 16th start. From that start on, he's had a 2.61 ERA. Brooks Baseball has it at around 86-88 with more arm side movement than his change. Velocity on the left, movement on the bottom. I can't ever remember X vs Y axis. Anyway, it's from the view of the catcher, so arm side would be left side. Circles are dif pitch: Orange, Split; Red, Change; Green, Curve; Black, FA; Pink, Cut. Dan Brooks of Brooks-Baseball.net actually tweeted this to me yesterday. Pretty cool. Looks like that's going to be a good pitch for him.

Wrong. Why potentially take a chance of getting the run in from 3rd? If Pods gets thrown out, you only have 2 shots to get Punto home. That 1 run is more important than risking it for 2.

Hey remember when I said I wanted Podsednik to leadoff, and people hammered me for it? I do.

That would be back-to-back outings from our SP which was 7 IP, 9 K's.

Atta boy Doubie. Give me 7 IP, 2 ER every day of the week.

Yeah I agree. The only reason I even knew was bc I was having to keep up on the MLB app on my phone while I was at dinner, so it constantly had the box score up.

Are you just now noticing this?

f*** yeah!!!! Double CF bitches!!! Eat THAT shift, Maddon!! We even put our shift on our lineup card, bitch!

5 ER, not 6. And averaging over 7.2 IP per start.