Kimmi

It has been pointed out that our OF defense is really very good. Messing with a good thing in an attempt to improve it could end up backfiring. Believe me, I understand the desire to improve. But I also believe in the mantra "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" when things are going so well.

The AL West has the Astros. Outside of that, the AL East > the AL West. I will grant you the tougher competition against the NL West than against the NL East. OTOH, it could be said that the NL West looks so strong because they have such weak competition against the AL West.

I really don't think we are going to see any big deals before the deadline. Sale and Houck will be our starting pitching acquisitions. Duran will likely be called up at some point, but it doesn't seem as imminent now as it sounded a few days ago. IMO, we add a reliever and maybe a left handed bench or platoon type player. I can't see them exceeding the luxury tax limit or trading away prospects unless they find a player that not only makes sense for this year, but also for several years more years. Any big moves will be made only if they make sense for the long term goals.

Ha. Seriously, I intended to post "Thanks Dave!" at the end of that post, but I forgot. I have always defended Dave for this extension, outside of it being a year too long, which is my feeling about most contracts. I do not have a whole lot of issues with Dombrowski's moves post 2017.

Exactly. They are also 18-7 (.720) in one run games (unsustainable) and 6-17 (.261) in blowouts. That tells you pretty much everything you need to know.

It will be interesting to see how his outing goes tonight. Cora has stated that his spin rates are still very good. He still has best spin rate in MLB on his curveball and the spin rate on his fastball is in the top 4%. IMO, Richards has to get out of his own head.

I get that a lot is left to the discretion of the umpires. This is a different situation, IMO. It's something that can be proven or disproven and doesn't have to be left to the discretion of the umpires. MLB does regular drug testing. They should be able to test gloves.

Fair enough. I don't think the process would have to be quite as elaborate as what you're suggesting, but fair enough. I still think that they should test the gloves.

Kike 'Freakin' Hernandez That is all.

At least the Yankees haven't lost the past 2 days.

I don't know if this was posted elsewhere, but it's time to give Eovaldi some love. Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats Eovaldi has 3.2 WAR now, 4th in MLB behind deGrom, Wheeler, and Burnes. An estimated value for that WAR is $25.9 million. If he's healthy, he's well worth his contract.

Nice story Nick. Have a wonderful 4th of July weekend!

IMO, a big factor is that the team has never let itself have a sustained low period. If I'm not mistaken, we're one of 3 teams that hasn't lost more than 3 in a row. They have a tough game or a tough series, and they're right back on it the next time out. Again, I think Cora is a huge factor in the way the team responds to adversity. Call it grit, call it resiliency, call it whatever, the team is better than the sum of its parts. It should also be mentioned that we have been very fortunate health wise.

The Seattle Mariners have been extremely lucky, wouldn't you say? I only point that out because of the 'tougher division' comment.

He does have a ridiculous .514 BABIP.

West coast trips are always tough, even when the west coast teams stink. I will be okay with a split, but am hoping for 4 out of 6. Oakland is opening to 100% capacity for this series. Should be fun!

My feeling on Devers remains that we leave him alone. Don't do anything that might possibly mess with his mind or his confidence. I'm not just talking about this year, but next year and beyond as well. He's more than fine at 3B.

I have been as critical of Cora and the leadoff spot as anybody, but the bottom line is that Cora and Bloom know what they're doing. The success of this year's team should be proof of that. We may not agree with it, but they have valid rationales for doing what they do. In Bloom and Cora we trust. If they don't think Duran should be called up yet, I'm good with that.

They aren't calling him up if he's not going to play everyday.

I understand the desire to call Duran up and to strive to improve the team. But I tend to agree with you Bell. The Sox really don't see any need to call up Duran when the team is playing so well. There is no sense of urgency like there was when Devers was called up. Patience.

Amen. If the team is winning, the fans will be there, regardless of whether we have a Mookie Betts or not. Fans will easily fall in love with other players on the team, and they don't have to be superstars.

Most in game decisions, in and of themselves, don't change the win expectancy of the game very much. That's a fact. That said, I do agree that Cora makes some good in game decisions based on the knowledge of his players. I think that he knows how to put his players in the best position to succeed. Those two statements might seem contradictory, but they really aren't. It's more about managing the players than it is about managing the game. As far as run differential goes, would it surprise you to know that the Astros are 7-8 in one run games while the Dodgers are 11-14? Both below .500. Meanwhile, those teams are 21-5 and 16-5, respectively, in blowout games. You can tell more about a team's true talent level by looking at their records in blowout games than you can by their records in one run games. Like it or not, the outcome of 1 run games is largely random. I'm not saying the Red Sox aren't good. They are very good. But they've also had a bit of good fortune on their side. There's nothing wrong with that.

Fair point, but there are several other things to consider along with just having your 1B hitting in the #9 hole. One of them is cost control, another is overall team offense. It's not like the offense is a weak spot on the team.

I think it is absolutely ridiculous that Santiago's glove was not tested. Why leave this up to the discretion of the umpires, which then leads to the pitcher appealing, when it should be simple enough to test the glove to see whether there was a foreign substance on it or not? Testing the glove would leave no room for uncertainty and would eliminate the need for an appeal. It's not only a pitcher's reputation and suspension on the line, but the rest of the team is affected by the possible suspension as well since they are not able to replace the player.

I don't know if this is Richards making more excuses or not, but he said that he was unaware of this message from the commissioner. It seems that the warning from Manfred might not have been communicated too well to pitchers.