Elktonnick

Businesses cave into public pressure all the time. In this case I do agree Ben has to go. I'd fire him first and leave it up to the new GM as to whom he brings in as manager. If it were my decision Farrell would be gone also.,

Fans are the customers. If customers stop buying your product because your management teams makes or is responsible for a poor product it isn't poor leadership to fire them. It is smart business.

I agree but it isn't only the coaching staff. The whole baseball operations group and organizational philosophy has to be re-evaluated. Clearly baseball has changed, I don't think the Bosox have adapted very well to these changes.

If the downward slide continues at this pace fan pressure will force Henry to make a dramatic change at both GM and field manager. The rating slide in NESN alone will push him to make a move even if he personally may be reluctant to do so.

Who knows we are just speculating. However, I am suggesting that money wouldn't be that big an issue. It would be the type and quality of player the Sox would hope get in return if they were to trade Sandoval. Any playoff contender wishing Sandoval is more likely to balk at the player they would have to give up than the money IMHO. In any case, a trade involving Sandoval is very unlikely. It just idle speculation on our part because this team is so disappointing.

Sandoval's value isn't in the regular season. His reputation was made by the way he played in the playoffs and world series. He would be an attractive addition to any team which needed a bat for a playoff or world series run. While I still wonder why Cherrington signed him, I wouldn't want to trade him without an equitable return preferably a good arm. I just don't see that happening. I think the Panda will be in Boston next year.

What's the point indeed you would just misconstrue, misquote or misinterpret it anyway. "Vaya con dios"

I never said that what I said was both the Sox and San Francisco were reluctant to sign these two guys for different reasons, one age the other physical conditioning. Sandoval had a similar reaction to SF's demands as Lester had to Boston's lowball offer. The fact that both got irritated with their former teams doesn't alter the fact that both teams had a reluctance to sign these guys when they had the opportunity to do so. Some folks on this board just like to quibble for quibble sake.

Here is one of the reports I was referring to. Judge for yourself the similarities to the Lester situation. Boston had issues with Lester's age SF with Sandoval's physical conditioning,: "After speaking with two sources, here’s what I’ve been able to put together: The Giants offered Pablo the same contract given to Hunter Pence, five years at $90 million. Sandoval wanted that deal last Spring when Giants were justifiably suspicious about Pablo’s physical condition. But when that offer came after the World Series, Sandoval countered by asking for a seven year deal. Sandoval was in Boston yesterday where I am told there is a 90 percent chance that he will sign with the Red Sox. The other 10 percent goes to the Toronto Blue Jays. So what happened with the Giants? I’m told they were never his first choice, which is why he asked for seven years — a request the Giants were highly unlikely to accommodate. If the Giants want to get back in the race, they will have to up the ante, which team officials are considering." Dennis O' Donnell CBS sports anchor in San Francisco. Like a I said SF had similar concerns that Boston had with respect to Lester. SF's reluctance led to Sandoval moving on just like Lester only Lester is a classier guy than Panda whose later comments were seen as dissing his Giants team mates as he left.

SF had the same reluctant attitude toward Sandoval that Boston had toward Lester but for different reasons. If one reads the sports reporting out of SF at the time you will see their reluctance. They were concerned about his physical conditioning. In any case he is playing for the Red Sox now. The question for Boston is how to best utilize his talents. If he continues to make game costing errors at third the Red Sox will be forced to face some hard choices and third base won't be an option.

Porcello has no one to blame but himself. He has lost command. How else do explain the number of batters he has hit or the number of gopher balls he has thrown. How many times has Porcello failed to have a shut down inning after the Sox have given him the lead. He loses focus. He hasn't been just a little bad he has really sucked. He may be another Erik Bedard, a pitcher with great talent but one who lacked the mental toughness to be a consistent big league starter or he could be another Daniel Bard. One day you have it then you don't. It happens.

That's why I have had him on permanent ignore for more than a year. Based on past experience, nothing he posts is ever worth reading.

Neumeier should stick to horse racing, a sport he knows something about. His role on the baseball show is provocateur. Like all of his ilk I wouldn't take anything his says seriously except when it comes to handicapping the ponies.

Gracias

Porcello querer decir porqueria en italiano.

It is interesting to rermember since Lester and Buchholtz the Red Sox farm system has failed to develop a true major league starter. There is something amiss in their player development and evaluation process IMO

No he can't, he drop them like he drops everything else.

While I can agree with about Hanley especially since he is DH in waiting, the Sandoval deal then and now makes little sense. Sandoval defensive skills were sliding before the trade hence SF's reluctance to sign him. His size and weight means that his defensive skills as a third baseman will likely deteriorate more rapidly then someone with a different height and weight. Given his likely poor future conditioning he is a poor candidate for 1st once his 3rd base skills deteriorate. His future DH role is unlikely if one envisions Ramirez in that position in 2016 and beyond. Furthermore there was ample reporting about Sandoval being well known for having relative poor regular season hitting numbers. Where he really shines is in the playoffs. The Sandoval signing only is rational if Cherrington believed he was an essential piece for success in the playoffs. Given the current total dysfunction that is this club, such thinking can best be described as delusional on Cherrington's part. Which is perhaps why so many now question Cherrington competence to be a Major League GM.

With a last place manager who has lost the dugout.

I think you and Wyo-sox have hit the nail squarely on the head. I also believe there is a systemic problem which Henry alluded to when he talked about baseball changing and the team may have to change its approach. This is something one can't fix overnight. My question is whether the Red Sox have the right people in Cherrington and Farrell to over haul their thinking. I suspect at some point Henry will have to face that question as well.

I wonder if the veterans will ever show leadership. How long before even Henry loses patience. They say one can\ measure the team you are going to have after fifty games. Well the Sox have played more than fifty games. This team could be the worst team that Boston has fielded in more than fifty years. It shouldn't be. They have the talent so something must be wrong in that clubhouse for this team to play as badly as it has been.

I was wrong when I posted that they were striking out at an increasing rate (it only seemed that way of late) It is clear that the shift has probably affected the club greatly. Although last night they seemed to hit an inordinate amount of weak ground balls.

While I was thinking the same thing, it is their collective approach to hitting that has me concerned. They are taking too many good pitches and swinging at too many pitches later in the count that are out of the strike zone. That isn't explained by being warm weather guys.

In summation they stink!!! They can't hit lefties, they can't hit off speed pitches. They take too many pitches that are strikes and swing and miss at too many pitches out of the strike zone. Right now these guys aren't good enough to be merely mediocre.

One has to wonder how a smart business man such as John Henry who is data driven is reacting to Cherrington's getting totally hosed by the Cards on the Craig deal. 25 million is a heck of a lot money to pay for a triple A outfielder. The only way this deal will pay any dividends for Boston is if Craig can get his swing back and perhaps replace Napoli at 1st should Napoli continue to slide. Given Boston's over crowded outfield, it makes no sense to see Craig as even a fourth outfielder given their other better options there. The odds are quite long that Craig will return to Boston soon and even longer that he would return to play either left or right field IMHO.