Spitball

This is true...

She is a German Shepherd. She is a big dog, but she still has some filling out to do. I don't worry about getting robbed.

Thanks! She is only seven months-old but already an incredible dog. She is powerful and extremely intelligent.

There have been many successful transitions from infield to outfield...Mickey Mantle, Robin Yount, Juan Beniquez, Eric Davis, and Mookie Betts. There is no way to accurately predict Ramirez's ability to play the outfield, but he is athletic enough to be successful.

Merry Christmas, Talk Sox fans!

I like the trade for Hanigan. Middlebrooks had little value, and now the Sox have two of the best pitch framers in baseball with Christian Vazquez and now Ryan Hanigan. Interestingly, Hanigan has now replaced David Ross twice. He was called up to the majors in August of 2008, after David Ross was DFA by the Reds.

This is an interesting article on Fangraphs to support our argument. "Three Things the Red Sox Will Do For Rick Porcello" by Scott Spratt The Red Sox will improve his defensive support, earn him extra strike calls, and limit his home runs. http://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy/three-things-the-red-sox-will-do-for-rick-porcello/

I don't think we need to compare the current Tiger infield defense with the Red Sox infield. Porcello had a very good 2014 with the current Tiger infield. He pitched more innings than ever before and had career best numbers inWHIP, H9, HR9, BB9, and his ERA was about a full run better than his career mark prior to last season. The Red Sox are better defensively than the Tigers, but that need not be the argument. He pitches better with a better defense. The Tigers ranked within the 10 worst defenses of 2013 and 2012, and had the 12th worst defense in 2011. Porcello should continue to be improve in 2015.

Suarez was the other kid the Tigers played at shortstop this past year, and he was not bad defensively. The Tigers were not a great defensive team last year, but they were a lot better than when they had Cabrera and Peralta at third and short in 2012 and '13. Those two could not benefit a sinkerballer Like Pocello. With the upgrade last year, Pocello had a career year. Lets hope he continues into 2015.

He is not a number one, but he is possibly a number two starter. He will thrive if/because the Red Sox defense is significantly better than Detroit's.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/12/19/red-sox-really-need-get-ace-pitcher/mSX30HHA8zMnh1jVd0XGmO/story.html "According to Steamer, Porcello ranks 14th among starting pitchers in terms of FanGraphs’ wins above replacement (fWAR)," this according to The Boston Globe. He is probably more than a number three.

When healthy, he has been very good at not making outs. In Cincinnati, his OBP were .364, .367, .361, .405, .356, and .365. Damn, those are not bad numbers for a catcher capable of playing excellent defense! I have always liked Ryan Hanigan and am happy the Sox got this guy.

I am responding to this thread although I have not read much of it. What is a fan? Is it someone who switches from team to team depending on the current situation? I don't think so. I have been a Red Sox fan from the early 1960s. There were some bad teams in the early days...but they were my team. The 1967 season was so sweet because of the bad years. The championship of 2004 was such a blessing because my family and friends had been loyal and endured through the incredibly long wait. Jumping to the Cubs at this point is sad. They have fans who have endured through the tough times. They are true and loyal fans. They will not share an endured pain with you if they win.

Rick Porcello is more than a fair return for Cespedes.

I just don't see how he can get enough playing time to bounce back unless someone gets hurt. Napoli is at first, and Ramirez is in left. Castillo is surely the right fielder, but I doubt Craig could handle right in Fenway on a regular basis.

Allen Craig will not bring back much of a starting pitcher or much in return at all. He is owed $25,500 million through 2017. The Sox took on a bad contract. As it stands now, Cherington made a mistake.

I believe Cespedes has limited trade value at this point. He is not a disciplined hitter, and his walk rate has slipped to well below league average. His OBP is in steadily getting worse. His power has peaked and is starting to decline. He has experienced regression in home run power and batted ball distance. With the acquisition of Hanley Ramirez, every team realizes the Red Sox have to unload Cespedes. Left to right in the outfield, the starting three has to be Ramirez, Betts, and Castillo. That leaves an expensive Cespedes, Craig, and Victorino on the bench. Of the three on the bench, Cespedes is the most likely to be a negative influence on team chemistry. He has to go. It is true the Red Sox need a number one and a number two starter...but Cespedes alone is not enough talent to bring either to Boston. If he can bring a Rick Porcello or Mike Leake, we should celebrate. Both were number 4 or 5s last year, but both were in among the best starting rotations in baseball. After the Lester and Lackey trades, both would have been the best pitchers on last year's Red Sox team.

I would be ecstatic to get either Rick Porcello or Mike Leake for Cepedes. The Sox gave up a couple of months of their ace for a couple of months and a whole season of Cespedes. They can't expect to get an ace back in return unless a lot more is added to the package. Cespedes for a season of a 3-4 starter is probably the best he can bring.

That is saying, "The guy has a position on this team, and we don't have to unload him." That translates to, "We have Mookie Betts and have to unload this guy."

I hope this means the Sox want Ramirez to play third and are out on Sandoval.

The Cards got Heyward and reliever Jordan Walden from the Cards for Shelby Miller and a minor leaguer. It is a curious trade. Heyward and Miller both were once considered top ten prospects. I believe Heyward is a free agent after this year which makes me wonder about Miller's health. Of course, the Cards have so much young pitching, I guess Miller was expendable.

Fred, what did you teach?

I totally agree...except there is a shortage of power in baseball. There are teams desperate for a power hitter to plug into their lineup. The A's apparently undervalued Cespedes's value. They dropped from an elite team before the trade to just a pretty good team the rest of the way. I think Cespedes has value...though it might not be deserved.

Right...One of my favorite players, Carl Yastrzemski, was considered a hard player to manage early in his career. He was credited with the firing of at least one Red Sox manager. White Sox manager Eddie Stanky said he was an all-star from the neck down. Dick Stuart was a selfish player. George Scott could be volatile. Roger Clemens had questionable character. Carl Everett was a hard player to manage. Josh Beckett was a problem. Louis Tiant was wonderful. Mike Lowell was a great team player. David Ortiz will always be a Red Sox favorite. Athletes are often pampered, revered, and full of their own importance. I am not sure it is about race or origin.

Well, this was only a half serious suggestion. I love Cueto's impersonation of one of my all-time favorites, Luis Tiant. That said, it is absolutely not a "no f***ing way" suggestion. Between David Price (at one year plus two-plus months) and Jon Lester (at two-plus months), the market for aces may have been set. If so, the returns have changed. It is no longer about major league ready prospects, but about major league proven players. Price particularly seemed to bring back a lower than expected return. Drew Smyley is a nice pitcher but will not likely be a top of the rotation pitcher. Nick Franklin is probably a marginal major leaguer. The prospect appears to be just okay. Cepedes would fill the Reds' desperate need for more offense in their pitiful line-up and a power-bat in left field to bat between lefties Joey Votto and Jay Bruce. They really need more on-base skills than Cespedes would provide, but he might be the best player from a team with a need of what the Reds need to move. Cueto has one year left on his current contract and Cespedes has one year left. That part is a wash. The thing that handicaps the Reds is they have four starters plus Arnoldis Chapman scheduled to be free agents after next season. They want to be competitive and move forward while rebuilding their rotation. Homer Bailey will be back. Alfredo Simon may be re-signable. Cueto, Mat Latos, and Mike Leake will probably be too expensive for the Reds. They will need pitchers capable of filling in their rotation. They have Tony Cingrani and Robert Stephenson in the wings, but they will need more starting pitching depth. Allen Webster and Rubby De La Rosa may be the most major league ready the Reds can acquire. Mat Latos might be a more likely starter to substitute in this deal, but I don't think he is healthy. He has had surgery on his arm and has seen his velocity drop this season. We never truly know what will happen, but my suggestion was not a "no f***ing way" suggestion.