cp176

I would be curious to know who would have made adjustments and how many they made? When was the last ml game Swihart played in? Regardless of what he might do going forward, there is no way anybody can guess at what he might be capable of doing. His experience factor isn't very high. We might all be pleasantly surprised.

I can buy someone thinking whatever Slasher about JF.. I get that but I sure wish that our team was stuffed to the brim with guys who approach the game like Chris Sale does. We need more not fewer guys like him. They shut their mouths and do things the right way. I didn't really enjoy this team much after the Pedroia/Price garbage - not two of my favorites by the way. Guys like Sale although we don't have many of them kept me interested.

Yes - Leon = "minor trade chip" As a part of a package, he becomes more valuable.

"Seems to be like" - probably a good way to say it because none of us has any idea as to how all of the coaching changes will amount to anything at all.

It would be an incredibly ugly precedent for future ballplayers. There is 0 chance that it could ever happen. If owners thought for one minute that at the back end of a contract there was a chance that they would get some of their money back... I realize that all professional athletes are over paid but the people paying them are some of the wealthiest people in the world. If Dustin Pedroia never plays in Boston again, John Henry's cash flow will not be affected. Why would he give it back and the better question might be why should he?

Although I did lose a great deal of respect for Pedroia throughout the course of this season, I do agree that he has and will still probably try to give all that he has to give if and when he comes back. My concern with him is how much he will have to give! You don't get a free pass with father time. Ultimately Hernandez might be the better option at second. He likely won't be mvp material but I'm not buying the fact that Pedroia is coming back magically healed.

I'm not surprised at all with the Sox trying to move Leon. i've felt like this could happen for a while now. His reputation as a solid major league catcher makes him a potential minor trade chip. He has value. Vazquez wants to be recognized by more than just the folks here as the number one guy. He wants to catch more games. Leon is too good to be considered as just a backup for Vaz.

IMO there is 0 chance that he leaves any money behind even if he is unable to play. It isn't a precedent any of them would ever want to set. Whether we like these contracts or not, most were signed in good faith. As for him thinking about doing that just because he is a nice guy - really? He plays hard and that's it. He is no leader and proved it this year. His play is enough and it has always spoken for itself but I would stop short of trying to make him out to be something that he just isn't.

When you have the best player on the court, you always have a chance to win. K. Irving Watching Tatum and Brown have a chance to develop makes the trades look all that much better. They needed more than just 15 minutes per game.

I agree. Something that really should be common knowledge, is that what he spends in maintenance year to year, based on what he paid for the franchise and what he will be able to get for it if he ever sells, think he will more than make up any money that many of us worry about him spending on things like free agency and luxury taxes etc. It is good to be able to be in control of the "budget" and even better if you have a fan base that thinks you have a real one.

I know what you mean! No business man wants to ever lose money for sure. That being said, I don't think that making money right now on the day to day workings of his team really means all that much to John Henry. Now that is just my opinion.

I find this to be a very interesting comment. I've jokingly referred to the Red Sox budget being limitless over the years. Although I think that in fact they do have a supposed budget, my guess would be that no one posting here has any idea to what heights it might sore. It is all simple guess work. I was one of the few who felt that signing EE or someone like him was necessary. I still feel that way. Our offense is anemic and needs a boost. I feel very comfortable with my opinion that decisions to improve our offense will not be determined at all by what some here think that budget might be. Talking trade is a different story. Trading away players is entirely different than signing a free agent. I don't think that it will matter at all whether it is Boras or any other agent. The best will be paid and the Sox can and likely will be doing some of that paying. I don't think budget restraints of any kind have really ever been of much interest to Mr. Henry. Oh I understand all about running a business and what we see as his need to stay financially stable. I don't think billionaires look at things the way I tend to though.

About Smart - he looked god awful offensively the other night for sure. Good thing that Defense counts. Ultimately, he winds up helping his team. Pretty to watch - he ain't. Glad he plays for us though.

Bet you can guess where that cp176 comes from now!

I liked the way Barkley played, but after hearing him last night, i'm thinking that there is something he missed about what it takes to win and win big. Maybe he should have a conference call with Mr. Russell just to look at the 11 rings. It is a game that isn't always about pretty. As bad as smart looked last night, there were very few maybe even just one of his teammates who had a better plus/minus line. Sometimes you just got to keep on working.

Oh baby now I get to take you back - Wally Jones, Hal Greer (one of the best), Chet the Jet Walker, Luscious Luke Jackson, and of course that big guy in the middle - can't remember his name (just kidding) . that really was one hell of a team. They were just good enough one of those years too. Great great players who could have played in any era. Except for that one little bump in the road the C's weren't bad either over that 11 or 12 year span. Havlicek did steal the ball too!

If the plan is in fact to use Brentz as our 4th outfielder replacing Young, it kind of feels as though Santana might be the target DD has his eyes on. A solid first baseman.

Never good to hate Moon.(lol) I thought a lot of Dandridge as well but my favorite on that team was of course "the Big O" . Another one of the greats of all time. Ange played for us. Pretty much means I loved him. I was sad to see Notre Dame get squashed by Miami!

Actually I always liked Kareem. Obviously not as much as Bill but he was a great player.

Any manager who isn't willing to accept helpful information of any kind, should not be managing. I know of no managers who flat out refuse the help of specialists in analytics. Some probably use analytics to a greater extent than others but that is just the way it is.

It's a New England thing. Over rating our own guys. If we wait without adding, for our young guys to become stars that take us to the title, we might be waiting a long time. We have needs that have to be addressed.

They play hard! Maybe that's the part that Barkley doesn't get. They might not look pretty but they are NBA players. They are all pretty good. Celtics just look like they play harder than other teams. Watching Brown develop is going to be a rea; thrill ride. Sometimes just being talented isn't enough!

I like Martinez first

I agree with you very much here Bell. Sadly, I think that in today's world compromise is nothing more than verbiage. In my world, it is possible to believe in the best parts of arguments for both sides. Very few people - perhaps even none - are either right or wrong 100% of the time. I'm guessing that if you can take the best of the two combined - old school/new school - you might get the right school.

And that is absolutely ok.