cp176

sk - you know that you can spin that one anyway you want to. If he was that much quicker than other second basemen at getting to those balls then their official scorer would suck too I think. I want him to succeed for sure but this franchise is starting to actually become known for moving players from position to position while just assuming that they will be able to field them all if they can field one. But also understand that I still think that wins and losses by starting pitchers is a solid stat to use as well as earned runs allowed as well as RBI's. i am also willing to go on record as saying that bringing Hanley Ramirez to Boston was a much greater risk than bringing Sandoval on board. See what you are dealing with here? I also believe that the people who studied the statistics and suggested that certain moves be made are as responsible as the current coaches for this franchise's failings. That small space between the ears of the players brought in was not studied adequately. Everyone shares the blame. No one gets a free pass. Looking good and actually being good are often two very separate things.

Don't agree - they don't tell the whole story obviously but that many at second base over that many games is reason to suspect that improvement in some area is needed.

Depth is important. No one questions that. The fact remains that winning teams play their best players. They sometimes make difficult decisions not based upon spending when it comes to doing this. If Rodriguez and or Owens and or Wright are outperforming any other starting pitcher it would make no sense to have them start the year in Pawtucket.

As things currently stand - If you had one game that you had to win, who would you start - Porcello, Miley, or Rodriguez?

I sincerely hope that pitching and defense become their priorities from here on in.

If that is all it takes - How great would that be. Eck would love that.

A canard - - really - glad I am just a simple man. People have been tying to make the game of baseball just a little bit more than it should be these days. It is not that complicated. Just so you know - I consider Sandoval and Ramirez both to be players who are professionals but not leaders by any stretch of the imagination. Surround them with good players and they probably will succeed. I do not believe that this belief is all that unusual at all. As a matter of fact, most people realized that there was a great risk involved particularly with the Ramirez signing. I understood the signing of Sandoval. I did not understand at all the Ramirez signing and still believe that this team will be held back to a certain extent until he is either gone or dhing.

I didn't mean to quote you there 700. I was just stunned that someone even suggested that Rodriguez be moved to the bullpen.

Papi we can live with. Ramirez not so much. When you have to wonder how you can hide a player in your lineup, you are going a little too far. They hoped that he could field a position. He can't. They don't want to move him or he doesn't want to move. If he was playing for someone else, he would not be missed. He is a dh and Cherington forgets that there is already someone filling that position. The last thing this team needs is one more player that someone wants to convert to another position in the field.

If Ramirez balks at a position move, they would be a lot better off without him than they are with him. If the front office spouts the company line that they won't consider moving him then that is just an example of the incompetence that is becoming much too common place for this team. You would like to think that they might try to rectify some of the mistakes that they have made. They signed him with too many assumptions.

Just out of curiosity - How could anyone who truly wants to see this team be successful suggest that Rodriguez goes to the pen? If I had to pick one guy that had to start for this team ahead of everybody else that they have yarded out to the mound it would be Rodriguez. He is better than the rest.

If their plan is to develop a farm system and a core of young players while at the same time staying competitive year in and year out, they have failed terribly. Pitching - defense - offense - in that order. They failed to address the first two and made mistakes with respect to the third it looks like. They should be in rebuild mode.

they signed the wrong guys. Stats looked good but a lot more to it than that. they need to be surrounded by high performing professionals which they are not.

Read a glowing report of Moncada possibly moving up. He is starting to hit (.287) but 18 errors at second base in 59 games has to be a concern. Want the best for the kid but you can't sugar coat that stat. It is what it is.

It remains a very difficult question to answer. Everyone involved with the recent moves should share in the blame. No one can hide.

I think they tried to do the job. It just didn't get done. Everyone shares in the blame. It does not all fall onto the shoulders of the coaching staff. I would not be opposed to seeing a change at the top but if anyone truly thinks that that alone will solve the problems then they need to get their heads out of the sand and take a look around. The talent has not produced what people expected because it isn't as good as we all expected it to be.

That really is the issue here.

Not the point I was trying to make at all. I don't think it is a bad thing to play any of the kids at this point. Lets see - Napoli who won't be with us next year or take a look at something different. Nah - what the f*** right. Makes no sense. This organization has a great plan. Showcase Napoli and maybe if we are lucky we can pick up another Rutledge for him.

You already know how I feel about this one. As a franchise, they should be competitive every year. Personally, I think that the pitching issue that this team has will not be that difficult an issue to fix. Obviously they need some help, but I still like their young guys. The problems with the rest of the bunch - offense,defense,playing people out of position - are going to be tougher puzzles to piece together for them.

same here on that one

We have signed journeymen infielders and journeymen outfielders who someone in their infinite wisdom thinks should be getting the playing time that some younger players are getting.

If he stays healthy, I don't think anybody can predict how good he might be. Might be more mental than physical. He throws hard, he is very young, and he looks like a good sized linebacker when compared to most of our pitchers. He could be very good.

Based on what we have seen this year, it is just a guess as to what Nava will do. If all indicators seem to say that he should hit , maybe he will. It is just a calculated risk - low budget - that they are taking. Good for him and good for them.

If they just focused on the actual game of baseball, it would be good enough for me. It would make sense from a purely baseball move to see what he can do throughout the rest of the season. Maybe it just makes to much sense.

Just a guess on my part but I am thinking that maybe Craig should be given at least a look right now as they fish around for a first baseman type guy for next year.