jung

if WMB and Pedey have to spend any real time on the DL at least from what I can see, now they are the two guys out of the lineup that are likely to be two guys to many. If they do have to spend time on the DL even Ells and CC really cannot come back and replace what WMB and Pedey do. They have faced pretty good pitching the last several games. Nava will likely hit better than he has most recently but I don't see him going back to being as hot as he was. Aviles might be another story. Pitchers have found out how to pitch to him and he is really struggling. AGons simply can no longer drive the ball for whatever reason. With WMB and Pedey out of the lineup if the opponent fields a RH pitcher, we are in real trouble right now. Ross is meat to RH pitchers, Aviles has been basically figured out and Pedey and WMB are not there right now. I wish the Sox could have given Kalish a little more time. He is struggling but I really think he has simply been put in a very tough spot. He had a clean game in he field today. I hope that if the Sox are going to continue to use him as he tries to find his way back that today's game at least helps him to feel more confident with his play in the field. Think he is going through the same issues at the plate.

I was surprised to see Cook come back for the 7th. He was leaving a lotta' pitches up in the zone, seeing to many balls head for the outfield. He did do his usual very professional job even without his best stuff though. Team as constructed does not play well in these close, tight low scoring games. Need better defense. Aviles is now only hitting 264 with a 700 OPS and both continue to fall. While Iggy is not trying to hit ML pitching, Iggy is at 250 and 588 and plays much much better defense. You need starting pitching, defense and situational hitting in games like this. The Sox today do not do any of that well. The Sox as they are today are not even competitive in games like this. Of these seven games, they played one typical Sox game and won it...not a surprise. They played six games like this and lost five of them to go 2-5. Not at all sure they will get another arm but whether they do or not this group of players is not going to play better in close tight low scoring games. Ells and CC will help some but as the season wore on last year and Sox had more close, tight low scoring games the Sox did not fair will then either and they had Ells and CC. Our starting pitching is a bit better than it was last year but is still the major weakness on this team. We need to field a lineup that is at least competitive in these pitching dual kinds of games. The difference now between Aviles offense and Iggys offense is no longer great enough to afford Aviles defense in the most important defensive position in baseball especially given the makeup of this team with its various strengths and weaknesses and especially now that we are getting into the second half. We don't even compete in games like this. It looks like we are because they are low scoring games but in truth we are not even competing in games like this. Are you going to tell me we are going to leave Iggy in Pawtucket and keep Punto on this team? Punto is an empty uniform. At least Iggy gives V some flexibility to field a more defensively oriented team. May not work but I have resigned myself to the fact that in close tight low scoring games the team as configured now does not work.

Agons gets an RBI!!

Actually both of these pitchers are competing for "I can throw more belt high pitches than you can" honors. Issue is clearly still in doubt.

Way ta' go David. 400 is finally in his rear view.

I thought that was a play that had Mike been prepared could have been made. By the time he saw what was happening he really did not have a chance but it should not have been that way.

Cook is starting to grow leery of throwing that Sinker in or near the zone to a LH hitter anyway

Damn....Cook up again

I wonder if Cook would have been better served today starting the way he started against the M's. He threw FB after FB against them painting the corners with it and then worked that sinker in very much like Jerjjins had done to the Sox in his start against them. Maybe Cook did not feel like he could throw his FB today based on his warm up. Really kinda' struggling with that sinker so far today.

Was just going to beg Cook to start getting the ball down....to late

Glad for Gomez. Hope Cook does not get squeezed like that though...that would be really tough on Cook.

Ya' gotta' believe that Kalish will eventually end up being the better keep for the Sox when you consider how much the Sox have seen both players and how patient the Sox have been with Kalish. He has struggled though something like the way CC struggled last year. Hopefully only a matter of time. Not sure a rook should be deciding to try to steal 3rd when he is already on second with two outs in a tight late inning ball game. Sounds like V was really frustrated with that and is just going to hold him up instead of allowing him to decide for himself if he will steal.

Now you are onto why as fans we really kinda' wish we would hear less about the sellout streak from Sox management. County Stadium is huge relative to its actual market size...especially when you consider the Giants right across the Bay. Fenway is small relative to its market size and Sox management gradually adds capacity to Fenway. The other side to the equation is that each team gets to determine how many seats it will sock away for giveaways and those seats are cut aside from the sell out numbers. The Sox cut 800 seats per game aside.

Really looking forward to Cook today, not because I have any expectations for Cook when he sees AL East teams or teams with better offense generally. But because he seems to be an incredibly professional pitcher and real fun to watch.

All major league teams get to determine and announce their official capacity. Oakland could actually kill more sections of they wanted to do so.

I think the Sox should cut him some slack...he is just not quite ready yet.

There are fun things to watch...Cook today should be interesting although this is still not the kind of offensive team we would really like to see him pitch against. The way the Sox fail in close, low scoring games is very difficult to watch. The Sox seem so stubborn to play the game the way they want to play it and nobody can really play that way....it is not just them....nobody is that good....you really have to take what you can and hold down the opponent as much as you can. While Salty is fun to watch at the plate...Salty behind the plate is like chaulk across a blackboard. I am really worried about Kalish. While he has his "no excuses" theme going, he does not look confident at all either in the field or at the plate....been wearin' that please don't hit the ball here look lately and seems like he is walking through a maze on the way to......and then back from a plate appearance.

Great I just know I am going to wake up screaming from a nightmare of thumbs....hundreds of them.....thousands of them all marching straight at me....I am trying to run away from the marching thumbs but in my nightmare, I run like Agons.....even the marching thumbs are catching up to me.....HELLLLPPPPPPP!

Along with all the other absurd blunders that the Sox once again made in a close, low scoring game that needed to be tightly played (something the Sox have not done for two seasons now) apparently, Kalish went on his own making that failed attempt to steal third with two outs in the ninth...for what? He was already in scoring position. V commented that he was not looking for Kalish to steal there and said in the future he will have to hold Kalish if he does not want him to go. Obviously V was completely surprised by the move and with good reason..there was no rational for attempting a steal there...just none. While Kalish looked safe without the benefit of replay apparently the A's 3rd baseman blocked the plate allowing him to get the tag down before Kalish could reach it. Lady luck usually frowns on the stupid and trying to steal there was stupid. Team simply does not have the starting pitching, timely hitting or the defense to win close, low scoring ball games which is why they are now 4-32 in games where they score fewer than 4 runs. How can you win in the post season even if you get there if you can't win close, low scoring ball games? Ells and CC will likely help some but this team is so bad in so many facets of the game when it comes to close low scoring contests it is hard to see how their efforts whenever they get back and whatever they do won't be overwhelmed.

I think it is Cook going today if I am not mistaken. Should be interesting to see how he does although this is yet another team that is not very scary offensively. He does a very professional job on the mound though and that alone makes him interesting to watch.

It is more than the pitching but everything in baseball starts with starting pitching and we just do not have enough. Beyond that we do not play tight, baseball. We play lose defensively and rely to heavily on offensive explosions to win games. We need better starting pitching....plus defenders in the key defensive positions instead of insisting on putting defensive liabilities in those positions, especially when we expect a close low scoring contest and we must be able to manufacture runs instead of always relying on some sort of offensive explosion.

Heavy lifting or no we have to come to terms with the fact that the Sox DID divert Bard from the closers path and DID go out and pay to bring in a closer instead of elevating him to that role when Paps was gone. i just don't think you can ignore that particularly in light of the way Bard losses focus in high intensity situations. His problems as a starter are one thing. But you could see him frazzle at the edges when things get tight and that has nothing to do with being a starter or not. I think the Sox made him a starter because the reward if it worked was great and they no longer had enough confidence in him to believe that they were risking much if it failed. The risk/reward is what created Bard as a starter, combined with the ability for BC to go to his bosses and say..."see boss, I gottcha' covered. I know you don't want to spend any more money this year what with the money we are already committed to. So here it is, all tied up with a pretty Red bow....we move Bard to the 5th starter...if it works we have a starter on the cheap....if it doesn't we aren't risking much. We use him there until dice is ready and then move him back to the pen for the remainder of this year" We can argue about whether the Sox were wrong in their appraisal of Bard as a pitcher that they should be careful with and cherish so to speak but I do not think we can argue that they do not think he is a pitcher of that calibre. In my view they did very little to help him as he began to struggle with the starters role. I simply do not believe they think they have much in Bard. I think they will try to bring him back into some sort of middle relief or set up role. But to be honest the whole notion of an elite set up man is ******** to begin with and I do not think you will ever see Bard close for the Red Sox. I am not arguing whether that is right or wrong I am just saying I don't think the Sox will move in that direction. As I have said before, with all due respect to grocery baggers everywhere, there are tons of guys out there that "could" throw the ball 96 mph for some period of their lives that at the end of the day had no idea where the ball was going that are currently bagging groceries. It happens. I hope they can get him back on track to perform middle relief duties as you can never have enough pitchers even if they end up being somebody to trade.

Actually I still believe that the Sox diverted Bard from the closers path they had them on because they knew he could not close. It will have to be Bailey as soon as he is ready.

We have been saying it for awhile now...Kalish is not ready....they need to send him back to Pawtucket before he really losses confidence in himself. I don't even think I would do it right now if only because that might really do the kid in...bad game...immediately back to Pawtucket. But they have to sit him I think and then send him down when one of the other outfielders is ready. Kalish has looked like this for the entire period he has been up here and from what I saw even the people on this board have been saying that he has to go back for at least a week or two now. He has got that deer in the headlights, please don't hit the ball here look and has had it now for days. At the plate you can see him going back to the dugout asking himself what the f*** happened that time. However this is the Sox...give them a chance to put a defensive liability player at a position that just about demands a defensive plus player and they cannot stick the liability player in their fast enough. The three most important defensive positions on the field are SS, C and CF with SS and C far more important than C. Aviles has two failings that are glaring....balls hit right at him and balls hit to his right. Tonights error....right at him. Two games in Seattle, Salty fails to catch the throw from the outfield twice in two games....losses both. Kalish is simply not ready to play ML Center field.....he just isn't. I just hope the kid is not destroyed....but this team is a mess. I am really worried that as a forum we are just not calculating for how much more difficult the second half of the year will be...how many more close, low scoring games there will be, games that involve pitching and defense to a much higher degree and I just do not think this team will even give itself a chance in many of those games. Give me Iggy now if healthy....get me a pitcher now.....move Mike to 3rd while WMB heals...get Punto the hell out of here.

The Sox are 4-32 in games where they score less than 4 runs.