Hitch

Sweet Jesus! I did not realise it was that low!

I think we're actually in a 3rd spot - Trading to buy for next year. This year is done, they aren't good or consistent enough and we have some very interesting pieces for teams. Add to that, short of trading Duran AND Abreu and going out and signing Tucker, there's little on free agent market out there to help us next year. So hopefully, we have courage (because I think it will piss a lot of fans off) to sell our best pieces available for players that can help us next year. I don't mind getting older either because we could do with some veteran leadership to say the least. We've got the exciting youth, we need the pieces around them now.

Like all GM's there's risk. Breslow traded for Crochet, Narvaez and O'Neil. But he also traded for Grissom and Danny Jansen and the bullpen boys last year. There's always a risk.

My biggest concern with Campbell - even more so than his defence - his inability to pull the ball. He's pulling at half the rate of league average.

I go back and forth on the Duran thing all the time. I love the speed he brings and I do think he's a better hitter than we've seen this year. He was decent in CF, but he's poor in left, doesn't take good routes and I hold my breath every time anything is hit to him. I really like the kid and would love to see him lead off here and do the business, but I am starting to shift towards getting pitching for him and go with the other (younger) players we have here. We can't keep all our position players, and he is starting to be come the obvious trade piece.

We all know the injury history, but the only justifiable reason was the money? And yes, that's why I'm saying he went in the main. Because the guy with his back ground was earning $30m a year while we had other players earning far too much for what we are getting from them and Breslow was working to a strict budget. .

But I'm saying he was working within a framework of money. He came into to a team with holes everywhere, a starting pitching lineup of Bello (opening day), Houck, Whitlock, Crawford, a seemingly broken Sale, ($30m contract) Wincowski. AND Story's contract who went down early, and Yoshida's contract. Was Gio a great signing? No, obviously not, it hasn't worked out with injury, and do we wish he'd got more in? Sure. But we know the ownership had spending limits and he saw a way to lose some of the money on a pitcher who had done nothing of note for 5 years while addressing other areas. The whole has to be taken in. The budget, contracts, who's available, orders from above, everything. Sale's previous years: 2019 - 25 starts. 4.40 ERA 2020 - covid - didn't start a game through injury. 22021 - 9 starts 2022 - 2 starts 2023 - 20 starts. 4.30 ERA To go back to MVP's point that if we'd traded Blaze for a CY winner we'd be in rapture over. Of course, but we don't have looking glasses into the the future. If we'd given up prospects for that stat board in another player, the board would have been up in arms screaming bloody murder at ownership.

A well thought of prospect. I don't deny part of it was to do with money. but he probably looked at Sale and thought - injured often these past two to three years, was downright poor last year, and I also have Story and Yoshida's ridiculous salaries on the books. I have to make some savings somewhere to bring people in. Judging these things individually makes zero sense.

That's fine - I've said in every post, he's got stuff wrong, too. But the time for judgement about the fruits of all his moves is still to come. Especially with what he was starting with.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. He had a struggling, often injured starter on his team that almost everyone agreed shouldn't have been given the extension. As I said, I remember no evaluator called it a terrible deal. As I mention a lot - you can make the right move in baseball and still get it wrong.

I think people are starting to talk themselves into it. Totally agree with the last point.

Nobody, absolutely NOBODY in the game saw Sale winning a CY or getting near it at the start of last season. He had achieved 2.5 war over the three previous seasons. Combined. And a 4.30 ERA in the season before he was traded. It hasn't worked out for us but there were no evaluators saying that was a terrible trade the days after it was made. Saying he traded a CY winner is peak revisionism. Yes, I'd like us to be further along. I also have much more patience than some of you. He took over a team that wasn't in a great place, lumbered with terrible contracts (and still are to a degree). He's made good moves, and some questioning ones. I don't expect perfection, but like you I do expect progression, Next year is when judgement for his body of work will be best judged. If it's still this level, he will deserve all the spotlight that will settle on that.

He's still at outfield though ins't he? I don't think he's been getting reps at 1st yet (could be wrong). If not, get him over there. I heard an interesting take yesterday - players that zip through the minors like Campbell (and now The Password) don't stay at levels long enough for the leagues to adjust to them. So when they come to the MLB and that happens, it's something they've never experienced before and can knock them.

So far. He's had a year and a bit and took over a team that was not in a good place. He's done A LOT of good. Some bad as well, but such is the life of a GM. We should not be considering sacking him at all right now.

This is how I see it, too. For this season at least.

I'm really not so sure it's that clear cut. I think Breslow thought they could stay around the play off spots (which is true) until they could make moves to bring in a big bat. The next few weeks may well knock us clear of this idea and if it does I hope he;s got the courage to sell. Hard to do that when you've categorically stated your buyers twice since the Devers trade but we'll see.

But worth more than Beuhler.

I did. I only found things that doesn't really back this up one way or another. According to almost all reports. Cora was happy enough for this to go through, so I don't doubt friction had grown between them to the point trust had been broken. Not sure on this eye roll thing though, especially as Cora came straight out and said it was a groin issue.

Is there any video of this?

I mean, what do you want from people? Some of us are pissed the guy was willing to sacrifice the team over his own ego. Some of us are not particularly impressed by his "ill play anywhere - they're the boss" comments the moment he's at a new club. Some us are a bit annoyed by his "I haven't been this happy in a long time" comments, or his offering himself up for post match interviews when they couldn't get a sniff when he was at the Sox. And we can be all this and still be annoyed with the FO for how they handled things on their end. I'll miss his bat. I won't miss him even a little bit.

Depending on where they are with the luxury tax (in case of a sell off), I think they'd be prepared to eat it all for a lottery ticket.

I can't judge that. I just don't have enough evidence either way so I don't think on it. I can see all arguments being true when it comes to this particular aspect.

I would normally agree 100% - yet that's all I see are reports from people saying someone will give up a lottery ticket for Buehler due to his post season work. I find it doubtful too, but seeing it said enough that I'm starting to consider it possible. Regardless, it would be not much of a piece so not worth considering in terms of what the rest could bring us.

Agreed to a point. I think we have plenty of good to build on, but plenty of building left to do. And of course, trusting them to get the re-tool done correctly takes a big leap of faith. But sadly, it does feel the correct course.

Devers made the move palatable to some fans because he wouldn't do what was right for the team. End of story. People can be angry at the way the FO (mis)managed this whole thing, and still be angry at Devers for his selfish behaviour.