Kimmi

It is the GM's responsibility to address the issues and to try to correct them, but I don't think he can be held responsible for the way the players have underperformed. If Ben had signed Clayton Kershaw last offseason, and then for some inexplicable reason he had an ERA of 6 this season, would that be Ben's fault? I know that Kershaw would be a much more extreme case, and I know that our pitchers had more question marks, but the underlying point remains the same. I don't think Ben was gambling on everything working out in the Sox favor, but nor was he expecting almost everything to work against us. The staff was not supposed to be great, but mediocre. They have been worse than that. I don't think the staff is the biggest reason why this team is in last place. I still say that if the offense had been performing to expected levels all season, the Sox would be leading the division. Some analysts might have thought the team was poorly constructed, but most that I read thought the Sox would be competitive. More analysts had the Sox winning the division than any other team. The computer models all favored the Sox. On paper, this team should be leading the division.

I have no problem with the fans voting, per se. However, as long as the fans are voting, it is not truly an "All Star" game, but more like a "Fans' Choice" game. The biggest issue that I have with the fans voting is that the game determines home field advantage in the WS. That is just ludicrous, as Bellhorn already stated.

There is no phantom debate. I think he deserved to go, but I'm not heartbroken that he's not. Personally, I prefer that all Red Sox players take the few days off and get ready for the second half.

He is well worth the risk at $13 mil for one year. At $26.5 mil for one year plus maybe 2 months, I don't think so. With Clay being as fragile as he is, his recovery/rehab will likely take longer than average. If Clay needs TJS, the FO will go another route this offseason.

Bogaerts should be there. As long as the fans are voting, they will be doing the ASG "wrong". They are not going to vote for the true All Stars, they are going to vote for their Fan Favorites. I don't think even the managers, coaches, and players would get it completely right. They need the saber guys voting.

If he needs TJS, there would be no point in picking up his option for next year. If the MRI comes back clean, I say most definitely yes on picking up the option.

The reasoning was not faulty. They aren't the most talented bunch, but even with that, with the exception of Buchholz, they are all performing below their talent levels, most by a large degree. It's the underperformance of the players, which lies mostly on the shoulders of the players themselves, then on the coaching staff. Ben is not responsible for what happens on the field. He is responsible for trying to fix the problem, but he is not responsible for the problem itself.

No, not if he needs surgery. If he need TJS, he'll be out the entire season. Yes, provided that he is healthy and able to pitch next season. I understand that he is fragile and inconsistent, but for $13 million, he's worth the risk, even if he can only give us half a season. To date, he's been worth 3.1 WAR, which is worth well more than $13 mil.

Moot point on him getting traded now. The question now becomes whether the Sox want to pick up his option for next year or not. I say yes.

Regardless of exactly what the injury is, I don't expect to see Buchholz back anytime soon.

This game was bad in every way possible. I really wanted to win the first game of the series to take some of the pressure off. We've lost 8 of the last 9 games at Fenway to the Yankees, which really pisses me off. We have to hope that we can win the next two.

If the team plays well between now and the deadline, I am confident that the FO will add some pitching. I think what happens in the Yankees series could be huge if there is a sweep either way. I don't want the Sox to empty the farm, especially for a 2 month rental. That said, the price of good starting pitchers was not that high last deadline. I think we have enough pieces to get a good pitcher at a reasonable price.

It's a good thing you put a smiley after that statement.

He might be able to handle the position decently, but I would be reluctant to try him out there while the team is in the midst of fighting for its playoff life. A good first baseman will save his infielders a lot of errors by being able to scoop those errant throws. I don't have confidence in Hanley to be able to do that without a lot of practice.

Very nice post Dojii. First base might be the one of the easiest positions to play, but that doesn't mean that it won't take its toll on a player physically. Add to that the fact that Papi is in his late 30s and his body is not used to the physical demands of playing the field everyday, asking him to play 1B regularly would likely be a recipe for disaster.

They are very exaggerated indeed. No one likes to finish in last place, but I don't think the FO did a poor job in either of those offseasons. The talent was there for the team to contend. Things just didn't go according to plan. It might be a different story if I didn't think the FO was trying to contend every year, but I honestly believe that they are. Either way, my Reds fans neighbors would be thrilled to have a championship sandwiched in between two last place finishes. I think fans of most teams would be.

Cubs fans and fans of most other teams would LOVE to have 3 championships in 10 years, regardless of how brutal the periods in between are.

I am not a Lucchino fan, but I really don't have anything against Ben. I think he gets a lot of undeserved criticism. That said, Ben is no Theo. I have had an interest in the Cubs since Theo went there, though I don't follow them that closely. Honestly, I find it a little odd that you would choose a Cubs avatar over a Red Sox one.

CP, you can't look at it as a simple De Aza over Shaw offensive decision. IMO, the defensive upgrade was more of a factor in the decision than the offense. Farrell has stated that he really likes the speed in the outfield that he gets with De Aza, Betts, and Victorino. That said, as I posted before, Ortiz cannot play first base regularly. I would guess that Farrell's decision was also partly based on the off day today which would give Papi a chance to rest.

LOL Yes! He absolutely looks like a Goober!

It's hard to believe he is only 22. He is still learning, developing, and making adjustments. It will be fun to watch him, hopefully, get even better over the next several years. I am impressed that he took it upon himself to train in Arizona during the offseason. That training has made a huge difference for him defensively. Kudos to him for that.

Here's a fun little stat the I just read: It's not so much about the hits as it is about the ability to score runs off of those hits, and the Sox have been able to do that recently. Granted, they've scored a lot of unearned runs which isn't likely to continue, but as a whole, the offense has been much, much better than it was in the putrid month of May.

You're a goober.

LOL Smileys let you get away with saying a lot of crap that otherwise would not be tolerated.

Bogaerts is finally living up to the hype that we heard about him before last season. I have heard that the FO has always been really high on him, leading them to trade Iglesias a couple of years ago and also making him an untouchable this past offseason, despite having a less than stellar rookie season. We are now seeing what the FO saw in him. He is not overrated.