Maxbialystock

Wrong. It's blather. No way, no how should the 2004 Sox with all that talent be compared to the 2024 Sox. 2004 led MLB in runs scored and OPS (.832). And the pitching staff had Schilling, Pedro, Wake, Lowe, Arroyo, and closer Foulke. And let's not forget that in LF the Sox played Manny with his DWAR of -1.8 and in CF Damon with his DWAR of -0.6. Mueller at 3b DWAR was -0.4. In 2004 Boston was ranked 25th in errors committed with 118. Oh, and in 2005 Renteria was the Sox SS for 153 games and with a DWAR of -0.5. In 2006 the Sox had two good SS's in Alex Gonzalez and Alex Cora--and finished 86-76. So much for good defense.

The play was in short left field because the infield was drawn in. Moreover, it sure looked as though both the 3B coach and Cora were in agreement Duran should take a lead on the pop fly.

I'll bet. I took a couple of business trips to Houston and found out they do the same thing in hot weather that Montreal does in cold weather--facilitate walking indoors.

I see this game a little differently. The Giants just finished a 10 game homestand, which means they are playing their first game on the east coast against the Sox. Going west to east is always tougher than going east to west. The Giants defense may be better--17 errors vs 24 errors--than the Sox, but their team ERA, 4.43, is ranked 25th in MLB to the Sox 1st. And they've scored 116 runs, ranked 21st in MLB, to the Sox 139, ranked 12th. On the other hand, I completely agree with anyone who says a starting pitcher can make a huge difference, and Webb has thrown 8, 7, 7, and 7 innings in his last 4 starts, giving up a total of 3 runs. He is not a K guy, but is apparently terrific at getting outs. His ERA of 2.33 is his best ever, and tonight he is going on 7 days rest.

Wow. I thought that might be the case, but am happy you saw it (on replay or live). So, given that reality, Duran's huge lead was justified.

If memory serves, Jansen is not nearly as good in the 8th inning as he is in the 9th, and he is especially not good when he comes in with men on base. I could be wrong about that, but don't think so.

True. But starters can eat innings. Last year Pivetta started as a starter and went to the bullpen before finally returning as a starter. Crawford, Houck, and Whitlock all came from the Sox bullpen. I do not have any good response to your point. In fact, I think you have nailed a key point about MLB managing.

According to spotrac, the Sox are paying Sale $17M this year. That's more than the total salaries, $14M, of the Sox original rotation--Bello, Pivetta, Crawford, Whitlock, and Houck--this season. I have no doubt the Sox have 6 years of team control, but effectively right now they are paying Grissom $17M. Wasn't he selected in the 11th round? I know he looked very good at AAA last year.

Martin got the last man out--with 2 men on--in the 7th inning on a little dribbler Wong picked up and threw to 1b. So of course Martin should have pitched the 8th inning. Yes, he gave up 2 singles and a dinger in the 8th--bad--but then he K'd 2 Cubs and got the last out on a fly. Tauchman's 3 run dinger to dead center was on a 94 mph cutter low in the zone, which I think was a good pitch but a better swing by the batter. Then in comes the Ancient Mariner, Jansen, who gets 3 quick outs in the 9th with basically nothing but his 93 mph cutter which he threw to good spots. I have maligned Jansen regularly this season and don't like his salary ($16M), but he has been effective. Overall, I can't complain about any of Cora's decisions, including leaving Martin in, last night.

Duran had an overall good game, obviously, including the BB in the 9th and then getting to 3b on Devers' line drive single to LF. But not tagging up on the pop could have been a disaster because, had it been caught, the Cubs get a double play and are then likely to escape the 9th without giving up the winning run. I have not looked at a replay to see what the heck the 3b coach was doing.

Meanwhile, the Sox are paying a big part of Sale's salary while he has made 5 starts, 31 IP, and ERA 3.69 for the Braves. Have I got that right? Grissom for Sale, with the Sox paying Sale to pitch for Atlanta?

Terrific win by the Sox despite Martin's horrible 8th inning.

Agree--he screwed up. And so did the Sox 3d base coach.

I like the 3 batter rule and have absolutely no sympathy for Martin. He screwed up royally, period.

Excellent list.

That's a very good point. Again, it's worth remembering what the John Henry actor says to the Billy Beane actor near the end of the movie Moneyball. JH wanted Beane because of the cost per win the A's had in 2002 was so much lower than the cost per win for the Yankees. You need smart guys throughout your system to recognize and develop talent. Funny the subject of Cora came up because--on top of my ongoing support for him since he arrived--I too think this latest chapter underscores his value. In 2018 he showed what he could with a ton of talent. And this year he's shown what he can do with what at times has seemed to be a neighborhood pickup game.

Casas claims he'll be back in 9 weeks at the latest. However, it's also painful for him to breathe, so some significant healing is needed.

Ian Browne of mlb.com says all three will be back by 15 May.

I did watch the game--enough to see clearly it was a matter of one pitcher having good stuff and the other not. End of story. Except that Imanaga reminds a whole lot of Koji Uehara, especially in 2013. Uehara had just two pitches, a pretty nasty splitter and a kind of a nothing 4 seamer that rarely topped 88 mph. But he had great control and, even more important, confidence, and was unbelievably effective, especially in the postseason. This guy Imanaga relies heavily on the same two pitches, but his fastball is around 90-93 mph and his splitter is just as wicked as Koji's. So instead of 1 or 2 innings, he went 6.1. Plus he made that fantastic play on a truly excellent drag bunt by Duran--caught it backhanded and then made a perfect flip with his glove to beat the runner. I'm not sure I would have plunked down a ton of money for a two-pitch repertoire, but there was no doubt last night he had our guys in his hip pocket.

Sal Romano, good baseball name. Who cares that his cumulative WAR is negative?

This season it seems about the only thing the Sox can do safely, with minimal risk of injury, is breathing. Story is out for the season because he dove for a ground ball. Casas swung the bat too hard, tore a cartilage in his rib cage, and could be out for months. Pivetta, Whitlock, and Bello are on the IL because they threw baseballs. At least Devers and O'Neill can say they collided--heads, in fact. Giolito is missing the season because he too was foolish enough to throw a baseball in ST. And Dalbec, whose OPS is the lowest in the history of baseball--at any level--is a regular for the Sox because his defense is pretty decent and because he is healthy.

Guys like you. You write good stuff.

Agree I can be silly, boring, repetitive and don't forget long-winded. Simply stated, I think the Sox record, 14-12, is astounding given their injury list, abysmal fielding, so-so hitting and baserunning, and up and down bullpen. They could easily be 10-16 or worse--except that the original rotation of Bello, Pivetta, Crawford, Whitlock, and Houck are/were so doggone good. The Sox still have the lowest ERA in the MLB. And lately the defense has looked better, to say nothing of the Sox being 2d in MLB in dingers (but 17th in OBP and 12th in runs scored).

Blaaaat!!!! Yoshida and Dalbec are from different dimensions and therefore never compete for innings/games. Dalbec right now is our best fielding first baseman and not half bad at 3b, but can't hit a lick. That's why he has played 17 games. The exception can of course be a righty reliever with the Sox behind, maybe men on base, 5th or later inning, and Dalbec coming to bat. Yoshida could pinch hit. Yoshida can't field at all, especially in comparison to the other outfielders available. So he has to DH or PH. Unfortunately, as DH he loses to Devers every time. If it's a lefty starter, he also loses to O'Neill, Duran, Wong, and McGuire, all of who have better OPS' vs lefties than Yoshida.

Cherry-picking, I see. There's skillful cherry-picking, and then there's yours. You cite the Mariners as "good" when they are 13-12, plus you've forgotten the Mariners and Sox so far are 2-2 in games. Of the other two good teams, I completely agree the Orioles pretty much dominated the Sox, 3 games to 0 at Fenway Park. But the Sox, now 2-5 vs the Guardians, played Cleveland tough in 3 of those 5 losses. Then there's the terrible awfuls, the Pirates, who just happen to be 13-13 right now, which is almost as good as the wonderful wonderful Mariners. I guess you assume that, if the Sox sweep a team, that team has to be the pits. But the numbers just don't agree with you. Agree the Angels and A's aren't so hot at 10-15 and 10-16, but both are ahead of the Astros, 7-19. And didn't the A's just finish a 4 game series @ the Yankees which they split, 2-2? I do agree with the talksox consensus, which is that the 2024 Sox are probably awful. But to me that is all the more reason to be amazed and even delighted that they are still 2 games above .500 despite now having lost 3 of their 5 initial rotation, plus Story, plus Casas, et al. Or this. DALBEC THE HORRIBLE has now played in 17 games, the same number as Wong and O'Neill and more games than Devers, Story, or Refsnyder. Valdez, whose WAR right now is -0.9, has played in 23 games, and Abreu, WAR +1.3, has played in 21.