jung

To the there is no problem in dipping into the stock of prospects when necessary. That should be a long way from building a team by emptying the farm. That was the problem with the way Theo did things. Theo fell in love with the idea of particular players signed with his team....making up his team and he would have sold his mother if it got him there.

OCC 3, Red Sox 0

I am more concerned that most of them are two strike, two out situations. He does seem to lose concentration with two outs....almost like he is out of trouble for a rally since it is difficult to rally with two out and he lets up. The two strike thing is disconcerting in a similar way again because just like his penchant to give it up with two outs it is so damned prevalent and frustrating. He will get to two strikes and will then just pump one down Main St....as if he just does not want to be out there and can't wait to get back to the dugout. In truth, he often looks like he does not want to be out there and can't wait to get back to the dugout. I would love to know what Jon is thinking out there. Most pitchers want to perform and as a pitcher you have to be out there to perform. Jon almost looks like "OK I am a pitcher but the only way they can hurt me is when I am out here. So let me get the hell outta' here and back to the safety of the dugout."

At least Napoli' shot to the power alley actually had a chance to get out and he only has one swing. Iggys shot to LF was just too funny. He muscles up and gets it....about 30' short of the fence and foul.

Replaying that tremendous play by Pedey last night to start the DP just one example of how one super defensive play or conversely one bone headed defensive play can really be critical in this hell hole.

While last night, the A's actually fell victim to their own ballpark, tonight we see why they are so f***ing hard to beat in this f***ing dungeon of a ballpark. Napoli's ball too much into the power alley where nothing gets out because of that stupid fence out there. Reddick tracks down Nava's hit in the gap in RC preventing Nava from getting to 2nd and Ortiz from getting home. Meanwhile the A's pump one out to LF. This place totally blows.

Jeez is there a way to get a ball outta' this dungeon to left center? If that was not getting outta' here nothing is.

Saw a little of WMB batting tonight. He was hitting against a LH pitcher that is actually going to the AAA All-Star game so a pretty good pitcher. While a night of a few AAA swings against maybe some of the best competition that league has to offer is a pretty small sample size, I would say WMB still has work to do. Swing looks disjointed. Honestly I was a little surprised at how his swing looked as it was hard for me to detect any improvement at all. As for pitch recognition, while it looked like he was not swinging at some of the junk he was swinging at when he left here, he was letting some pitches go by that he really needs to hit. Would I be totally surprised if they or somebody finally decided that they had to break down his swing and rebuild it....No....would not be surprised based on what I saw tonight. Seems to me that if he was going to keep the swing he has, he would have to become truly committed to being a guess hitter. I think he might just strain a muscle or break a bone, trying to react to a pitch. Most of his swing is committed and gone before the pitch is halfway to home plate. Maybe he needs a swing element that helps him stay back more. Sometimes a hitch or a knee bend or a leg lift that sets a guy's swing in motion is just that, an element in the swing that forces the hitter to stay back longer and commit later. I sure as hell don't know what needs to happen to get him fixed. I do know a disjointed swing when I see one.

Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics Saturday, July 13, 7:05 PM PDT, O.co Coliseum, 10:05 Eastern Jon Lester, LHP 8-5, 4.60 ERA Lester regressed in his last outing, allowing the Mariners five runs over five-plus frames Monday. Since May 20, the lefty is 2-5 with a 6.49 ERA in 10 starts. The workload may be wearing on the veteran, who is No. 5 in pitches in the AL since 2008. A.J. Griffin, RHP 7-6, 3.94 ERA After allowing seven runs in his previous start, Griffin rebounded nicely Saturday, allowing the Royals two runs on five hits -- including two home runs -- and one walk with four strikeouts in five innings for the win. OK so we were able to undo Mr. Reddick and his vengeful nature last night and we will do the same tonight. Tonight, I invoke the spirit of Faneuil Hall as my non-sports reference. Ah yes Faneuil Hall…historical yet packed with our favorite yummy goodies. When my time comes, I might just decide to start at one end of Faneuil Hall and work my way to the other end, finally collapsing, arteries entirely clogged. For my sports reference, I choose the spirit of Doug Flutie to Gerard Phelan in the 1984 Orange Bowl against Miami, one of the most remembered college football plays of all time. Can you imagine how many Jesuit Priests were actually saying Hail Mary's at the time! A lotta' that good s*** is still bouncing around out there in the cosmos to help pull us through tonight.

Just goes to show how few players do wind their way through the process and finally make it to the bigs. Clearly with so many players in an organization, guys have got to progress. They can't stand still. Too many players competing for too few spots and too much history to suggest that standing still is just the precursor to going away. Also suggests that the Red Sox have a stronger organization top to bottom than the White Sox and no time to waste on guys that are not making progress.

It is a shame that Miller went down as that is what got the Sox angling after a lefty. I don't think there is a snowballs chance in hell the Sox do this if it were not Miller that got injured. But Miller did go down and I am not at all convinced that the Sox had enough left from the left side in that pen. So, I just look at it as having been put in a very tough spot with no really super answers. It will be easy for us to pick this one apart but to me this is one of those deals where the FO is stuck looking at a reduced field of candidates trying to make a deal that can be done.

So I just checked and the one pitch I thought was a slider from Bailey was recorded by pitchfx as a Change. Not sure if that is accurate but that is what they have. I usually try to see if I can recognize the grip for the Change. Didn't think that is what he threw but that is what they have. One change, six cutters and ten FB's. That was a pretty scary half inning.

Lackey gave up a few walks although I thought he went through some periods when he was getting squeezed. Went through a brief period (2nd inning I think) where he looked a bit unsettled. Not sure if he and Salty were on the same page as Lackey slowed down, had Salty run through the signs a few times. Got through it though. Beyond the walks, he hung tough in a game where the opposing pitcher was mowing down Sox hitters. Looked much like he has the last couple games save a few walks (he had three.... maybe four). Even the HR he gave up came at the very start of an inning after an inning where I thought he was getting squeezed something fierce. The HR ball was thrown exactly where he aimed it. IMO that was a reaction to being squeezed.

Farrell sounded like he is going to keep Wright around for at least one more stint. Would be great if he could stick. I really wish Farrell would bring somebody else to get out of a jam and then bring to start a clean inning. I think getting Thornton was a really good deal for us. I don't think BC is done either. One thing that should make it worthwhile to bring guys to drive to the finish line is that this Sox team is not disadvantaged in parks that are the opposite of Fenway. They can play anywhere and the way Lackey has pitched, if we can get Buch back we really have very good starting pitching bordering on outrageous starting pitching.

Actually for once, this park bit the A's in the ass. Making a couple errors in the field here is deadly. Love to see the Sox able to play well enough to win out here against a team that is tailored to this park.

Big win...is a spot where the Sox have a very tough time. Can you believe that Napoli shot stayed in the park? What a crummy place for hitters. Ueh does it again.

Not any more but at one time it was one of the most important pitches in his arsenal. The point is he has to throw either a curve or a slider with his FB. His cutter is nothing. It won't give him anything that will keep hitters from just sitting on that nothing FB.

First one was a slider....I am almost sure...have to check pitchfx tomorrow. Did throw at least two cutters. He can throw the cutter without pain but has very little confidence in it...with good reason. it was never an out pitch for him. I don't think he threw a single curve but I could be wrong. Have to check tomorrow. It is still the same dif regardless. Bailey is like a fighter just waiting for the opponent to delivery the Sunday punch and drop him. This is really more a matter of time than anything else.

I don't think I am being too dramatic in saying that if this does not work...Bailey is likely on his way out of baseball. He does not have enough of a FB to get it by hitters expecting it. Can only hope he can throw the slider and curve without either hanging too many or damaging the elbow too much. As you can see..he hangs quite a few. But if the hitter is expecting the FB, it is meat. Sox have got to try to get the most out of him they can. Pen is depleted and they own him...last team left holding the bag in his case.

Slider from Bailey...hung slightly but he has to throw it...has no choice. While he has pitched well the last couple times we should realize that this is an all or nothing effort on his part. We know it hurts the elbow to throw the slider and the curve. He has thrown them more lately because that is all there is left to do. He has no choice but to try to throw them and see if the elbow holds.

f*** ya' Pedey. Now we gotta' hope Vic does not have a busted finger.

Excellent AB Naps...why bring a bat to the plate at all. This is one night where their usual patience at the plate is a bit of a hindrance. Parker has been strike 1 all night and the better pitches to hit have been early in counts. Sox should have adjusted cause they have done nothing with Parker hitting this way.

Hopefully Lackey can get through this next half inning at least. This ump is missing some of his pitches. Sometimes the home plate ump is just not well positioned to pick up a pitch. However this guy is missing pitches where his ugly mug is lined up with the pitch and the plate...still missing it....f***ing blind. Just as I said that...John grooves one. However he was aiming it there which suggests to me that John felt like he was being squeezed...he was.

That was one of the few really bad plays Vic has made in RF this year. Clearly he was trying that stupid toss to First Base cause there was no other reason to rush like that and he bobbled it. Pedey bails his ass out with the DP. By his own admission, Vic has NEVER caught anybody with that toss to First Base. When you start making errors trying something with a 0 success rate, it is time to rethink it.

What the f*** ump. Really finally saw a strike there did ya'