Maxbialystock

Agree it's long, disagree we have a whole new team. The pitching and defense have been there from the beginning of the season and are the heart of this team's success. Breslow has added two good bats, but both are on the IL. Instead, we have seen Contreras's OPS stay over .900 all season long, Rafaela improve at the plate, Abreu up and down at the plate, Durbin, decent at the plate, Duran (despite an OPS of .602) having the 4th most total bases, tied for 2d in rbi's, and just 5th in runs scored. Monasterio stunk through June and went lights out in July (OPS 1.044). All 6 of those players have been together all season. So have Yoshida, Wong, and Narvaez. Do I think this team has morphed from also ran to definitely in the hunt? Absolutely. Someone else said their secret is old fashioned baseball--solid pitching and defense and some hitting enhanced by bunts and good hitting with RISP. They are doing this without their two best players from last year--Crochet and Anthony--who have both been on the IL for 3 or more months. And who gets the lion's share of the credit for this metamorphosis? Breslow.

I think pitching, defense, and small ball (specifically, the bunt) can be counted on. But timely hitting comes and goes.

What you provide from fangraphs is the polar opposite of the "sniff test."

Exactly what I was thinking. Outfield, 1b, and 3b are covered, especially when/if Anthony returns. SS/2b have a ton of options. Only problem with your brand new All-Star catcher is he is on the IL along with Crochet, Anthony, Story, and that other new big bat Mead he had 2 at bats before going down for what looks like the season.

The sniff test??????????? That ain't cutting it.

Huge bunt single by Duran made that possible.

Swept the Dodgers in Chavez Ravine. Not too shabby.

Agree. Rotation is young. Lineup and bullpen aren't. Completely agree with chemistry.

If there is one clear thing about this season it's that Breslow has made a lot of good moves to overcome the injuries to Crochet, Anthony, and Story. He kept Duran who has came in handy despite his lousy OPS (.600). Good leftfielder , leads team in SB's, tied for 2d in rbi's, and 2d in runs scored. As for the guy they passed on, he plays 1b.

And it's the players who provide all the excitement.

Very well said because last night we saw pitching, defense, and semi-miraculous hitting. As I keep reminding everyone, if you are right, Breslow and Tracy have made a difference.

I would not limit this game comparison to this season. The Dodgers are hands down the best team in MLB and Yamamoto is their temporary ace until Skubal joins them and Ohtani returns. The game was played in Dodger Stadium (Chavez Ravine). So forget this season and go back 8 seasons to 2018 for a comparison when the Sox beat the Dodgers 4 games to 1 in the WS. The two dingers by Rafaeli--the Sox only two hits until the 8th inning--were out of this world. Meanwhile the Dodgers were getting 9 hits, including a dinger, but scoring just 2 runs in 6 IP against Tolle. The Dodgers had him on the ropes in the 2d inning when with 2 runs in and runners on 2d and 3d Tracy gave Ohtani an intentional pass to 1b followed by Pages grounder for the 3d out. Tolle pitched 4 more innings without giving up another run. Along the way he was helped when red hot Freeman GIDP'd. Then Slaten, Guerrero, and Chapman gave up 1 hit and 0 runs to nail down the win (thanks to the 8th ibnning run). Slaten==yes, Slaten--gets the win. While the players have to get the lion's share of the credit, I think Breslow gets credit for building an unprecented Sox team (great pitching, good fielding, and so-so hitting) and Tracy for being an effective manager. The Intentional pass to Ohtani in the 2d was huge. Saving Whitlck for tonight was also neat. Sticking with Duran and his crucial bunt single in the 8th made it possible for Wong's GIDP to bring home the winning run.

Aptly said. Tolle was a tad lucky but that's fine with me. Bullpen terrific. Rafaela out of his freaking gourd against a truly excellent pitcher. Plus a heckuva Durbin double in the 8th. No rbi for Wong, but I'm fine with the GIDP and the winning run scoring.

But a terrific win which I stayed up for. 😃

😁 I don't know about believing but do think this has already been a terrific season. Best hitter and best pitcher on the IL for 3 months already. Breslow makes a smart deal for a good righty bat and he gets his wrist fractured on his 2d at bat. Story and Yoshida, pricey carryovers from Chaim Bloom era, not helping much. What I think we are seeing is that Breslow's approach works even when things go awry. You can't have too much good pitching. You can lose Devers and Bregman and still have a lineup. Despite Monasterios's recent shenanigans, good defense helps good pitching. Fires Cora @ 10-17 (37%) and replaces him with Chad Tracy with a 47-34 record (58%). And my goodness what a change in Bello (9.2 IP worth).

Once again I have to say this simple chart is hugely informative. Thanks.

Astounding win with those 2 crucial dingers.

Three reportedly are retiring after this season.

The guy who said it was smart enough to be an instructor pilot in WW II, fight jets in the Korean War, and to manage the Washington MLB team. Besides, squarely is the exactly word to describe round on round being the difficult.

Thanks very much for the correction. I was guessing. That makes it even tougher on hitters.

The hardest thing in sports is to hit a round ball with a round bat squarely--thrown from 66 feet away with speed and spin.

Monasterio's OPS is freaking .779. It was .756 last season with the Brewers. Historically the Sox have preferred good hitting SS's over good fielders.

I think we're are seeing changes based on challenges this year. The bad umps can't hide from successful challenges. Three have already said they plan to retire at the end of the season. I think protecting union members is endemic to all unions. That also applies to the players union. One heckuva finish. The errors were infuriating, but the pitching was excellent and that 2 run dinger blew me away. Sox hitting with RISP has not been good in Sacramento. AL East is once again the toughest Division in MLB.

WAR 2.5

This is a neat table which I have routinely ignored. Thank you.