Kimmi

I don't think Ben and company had any intention of building a team that would merely stay in the race by playing .500 ball. The underperformances on this team are staggering, pretty much from 1-25. Sure, you have to expect some underperformances. At the same time, it's not unrealistic to expect some overperformances. It's not working out at the moment, but IMO, it was a sound approach. I don't necessarily agree with it 100%, but it was sound nonetheless.

For all the criticism Ben has received over the Lackey trade and his other moves, if Rodriguez turns out to be half as good as we hope he can be, then he will have been a steal. I realize it's only been one start, but even if Rodriguez ends up not being good, in theory, trading him for 2 months of Miller is a good move every time. I wonder why Ben gets no credit for that.

Of course Ben is brighter than most people give him credit for. The idea that some on here think they know more and could do a better job as GM is ludicrous. Your first sentence hits on the main point of Ben's offseason moves, which is something that fans often tend to forget. A GM has to build a team with both the short and long term goals in mind. As I posted before, the short term is not working very well right now, but think about the potential of this team over the next few years. That's not to say that the FO blew this year off. I don't think they did. They put together a team that should be competitive (and is still only 3 games out), and would be looking much better if they were just performing to expectations.

Rodriguez is getting the start on Wednesday. The Sox will stay with a 6 man rotation through one more turn. After that, who knows? Farrell is not a fan of the 6 man rotation.

That seems to be exactly the case, and as of now, the trade off is not a good one. Porcello was having success as a contact/groundball pitcher. I don't think there was a need to improve his K rate. The idea of throwing more fastballs might have some merit, but perhaps Porcello has taken it to an extreme. He has decreased his sinkerball usage by almost 20%. That sounds like a lot to me. He might be able to improve his K rate and keep his groundball rate high with a better mix of those pitches.

The speculation goes something like this. Porcello was originally a pitcher that relied heavily on his 4 seamer. Being called up at such a young age, he was having trouble locating the 4 seamer, and Detroit felt he would be better off throwing more 2 seamers, which he could command better. So, Porcello became a sinkerball pitcher. He had some success with that for a few years, but he did not have a very high strike out rate. Detroit, and subsequently Boston, thought that he could be an even better pitcher if he went back to his roots and started throwing his 4 seamer more to improve his K rate. His K rate is up, but so are his hard hit balls. I don't know why he has been unable to locate that fastball consistently. I also don't know if this is the correct approach or not, but I guess time will tell. Also, this is just speculation from some writers and commenters, and has not been confirmed by anyone in the know. IMO, if he was successful as a groundball pitcher, I don't see the need to improve his K rate, particularly if it's going to take away what used to be his strength.

I was reading an article on why Porcello's home run and line drive rates are up this year, and his ground ball rate is down. In the past, Porcello has thrown his sinker close to 50% of the time. This year, his sinkerball usage is down to 31%. He's throwing his 4-seam fastball more, which is resulting in more strikeouts, but also more hard hit balls. The question is why? Was this a Red Sox philosophy or something that he started in Detroit? Someone commented on the article saying that the Sox are banking on this approach eventually paying off, once Porcello can locate the 4 seamer better.

I have no disagreement with this.

Like most young pitchers, he will most surely go through some growing pains. Like you said, it'll be a matter of how he adjusts back.

One down, 7 or more to go in our minimum 8 game winning streak. Don't stop now team, we've only just begun. Let's do it!

That's pretty much it in a nutshell.

The Sox are undefeated in the Peguero era. Just sayin'....

Speaking of positives, Wouldn't it be nice if he could regain his stroke from a couple of years ago?

Well, I'm not always so positive when our pitcher gives up a 3 run bomb. You would not want to watch games with me. LOL That said, I have stay positive about the season long outcome and keep my hopes alive. As many members here do, I live and die with this team.

Rodriquez was a breath of fresh air last night. Fun to watch. Let's keep in mind, though, that it has only been one start. While we all hope and think that he will continue to pitch well, we shouldn't overreact to one start.

I think the Sox need to keep Kelly in the rotation for at least a couple more starts and get a clearer picture of what he can do. Rodriquez definitely earned himself at least another start. I can see the Sox sticking with a 6 man rotation for a couple of turns through the rotation. That will allow them to get another look at both guys, and help a little with Rodriquez' pitch count.

I understand and agree. I don't like to hear players making excuses either. I'm just trying to share some positives.

According to a Fangraphs article, Schilling did suggest that Kelly throw his 4 seamer more often, and to throw it high, changing the batter's eye level. This would supposedly result in more strikeouts. The coaching staff is now suggesting that Kelly throw his curveball more often, the rationale being that the slow speed of the curveball will make his fastball more effective.

I read an interesting article about those "weak" ground balls. Many of his grounders are coming off his bat at 100 mph, according to Statcast. The grounders are slowing down after the first bounce. The point being, he is not making weak contact. Someone pointed out that a ball coming off the bat at 100 mph at a +25 angle is a homerun. A ball coming off the bat at 25 degrees in the other direction becomes a "weak" grounder.

None of us likes losing. Believe me when I say that I take the losses as hard as anyone. Gotta keep the faith though.

I do not have team rankings. I posted the individual rankings mostly in response to a couple of posts regarding Ortiz. Maybe his bat speed has slowed down some, but his batted ball velocity has still been good. His K rate is about the same as it was last year, and his line drive rate is up 4% over last year. He BABIP is a very low .227. The fact that he is not hitting better is an ........ wait for it..........enigma.

Because I like you, I am going to withhold my snarky response.

Also, Papi will supposedly sit a few games.

We need some SoxHop sustained winning mojo - like 8 games in a row, or more. I'm tired of this losing crap. Let's go!

Nava has been DL'd. Robbie Ross was recalled.