Maxbialystock

Ahem. Kike's 2018 WAR with the Dodgers was 3.2 with an OPS of .806 (lifetime .737). Also, he played in 140 games for the Dodgers in 2017, 145 in 2018, and 130 in 2019--the same three seasons when the Dodgers finished 1st all three times in the AL West. So maybe you could ease up on characterizing him as a shmuck. Last year his WAR was 4.9 and his OPS.786. His lifetime OPS is .737, and if he can get back just to that level, he will be a good addition to the lineup. I don't see Kike as the savior of western civilization as we know it, but I do see an underperforming Sox outfield: JBJ's WAR is +.2, Cordero's + .1, Duran's -.1, Verdugo's -.3, Arroyo's -.8. Oh, and Kike's having a lousy year so far, but his WAR is nevertheless +.3. Sheesh.

Monstrous.

Meh. Only the Royals (.354) and Athletics (.338) can truly be called soft spots. And only the Yankees (.742) and maybe the Astros (.621) can be called hard spots. In between those extremes (two good and two bad teams) are a dozen AL teams, including our Sox, who can fairly be said to be competitive with each other. Yes, of course the Sox stunk it up April 8 thru May 8 when they went 10-19 and lost series to the Yankees, Jays (twice), and Rays, but they also lost that series to the Orioles (currently at .441, 30-38). Since May 8th the Sox have gone 26-12 while playing the A's 6 times (winning 5) and the NL's Reds (.348) twice. The other 30 games were against competitive teams, reasonably defined as any team at .400 or better. Thus have the Orioles at .441 won 5 of 8 vs. the Sox to date. In the 36 games from June 24 to Aug, the Sox do play the Yankees 7 times and the Astros 3 times. They've already taken 2 of 3 from the Astros, so of those 10 games, I would hope the Sox can win 3. And be competitive in the other 26 games. I expect the Sox to have an overall winning record in those 36 games. It would be nice, for example, if there were no more key injuries and Whitlock, Eovaldi, and Sale could somehow manage to come off the IL--oh, and Kike too. Of course, this is baseball, especially MLB, and anything can happen.

Winckowski was lousy May 28 vs the Orioles and good Jun 15 vs. the A's. He's gone 8 innings total with 4 ER's, 4 BB's, and 7 K's. Not too shabby for 23 yrs old. Once more into the breach with 5 lefty bats vs. righty Faedo.

Look at those two IP numbers (260 for the bullpen and 339 for the starters) and then compare them to the combined WAR's of bullpen (+1.7) and rotation (+6.1). They are not proportional. Plus, as I said, relievers don't go through lineups 2 or 3 times like starters do.

I like what it means, but not the name itself.

It's absolutely about options--and salaries.

The 5 Sox starters' (Pivetta, Eovaldi, Wacha, Hill, and Whitlock) combined WAR totals +6.1. The relievers combined WAR (including plusses and minuses) is +1.7. And don't forget, the starters normally have to face opposing hitters at least twice in a game. Relievers usually (Houck has been an exception) don't. Then, as Old Red likes to remind me, there's the little matter of 14 saves out of 28 save opportunities. Almost laughable is that in the two wins vs. the Cardinals, there were no blown saves even though the Cardinals scored 4 runs in the 9th (to get the score to 6-5 with 2 on and 2 out before that final out) in one win and 3 in the 9th (final score 6-4) in the other win. Maybe my "lousy" is short of your "dire," but my opinion, which ain't worth much, is that Alex Cora is on his way to some pretty important decorations (see Slim Pickens in Dr Strangelove) for bravery.

Of course it isn't. I like jacksonianmarch, but he is capable of blather.

On behalf on the entire talksox nation, I want to thank you, most sincerely, for choosing that moniker. You embody all that was great about Blake Swihart.

I honestly don't think paring our lousy bullpen from 14 to 13 is worthy of its own thread.

Agree. In this series, the three starters gave up 6 runs 17.1 innings. The bullpen gave up 14 runs in 9.2 innings. But, as you said, playing a good team like the Cards and winning 2 of 3 is a big plus. This was mostly a Pivetta/Vazquez win.

Target hit.

Not bashing Cora at all. Nine different pitchers on this team have had save opportunities. I thought Houck was valuable as a long reliever, but he's closing now because no on else has been able to.

Well, you know something? I completely agree with you. I too think that just maybe Whitlock could get 1 out with no one on base and a 2 run lead.

Hmm. Tying run at the plate.

Really tough situation for Houck here. This is going to require great pitching and tons of guts. He's coming in with nobody on base, 2 men out, and a 2 run lead. If he gets this save, think he's a shoo-in for the All-Star Game.

The Sox outfield stinks, period. If Refsnyder can continue to hit and field, he will be the only one.

So of course he K's with 2 men on.

Good thing here is that JDM can't hit into his 10,000th GIDP.

I disagree. Refsnyder is bad fit for this outfield. He can field and hit, and none of those other guys can.

Refsnyder needs more innings/games. Sox outfielders this year can't field and hit, but Refsnyder can--so far, anyway.

I'm going to remember this on Pivetta's next start.

Dumb, dumb pitch for JBJ to swing at, but he definitely came up with chicken salad.

Sox really need this win. I want this win a lot. But the bullpen needs to earn their pay. I'd like to see, for example, if Houck has half the guts of Pivetta.