Maxbialystock

I think you mean "at the very most."

WEEI guys exclaiming about horrible baserunning, first JDM and now Dalbec. They are right.

Home plate umpire is kind of piling on there.

Dr Jekyl and Mr. Hyde.

Sure looks like the Royals love his fastball.

This team may not be rolling, but it has performed way beyond any reasonable expectations. Every time they seem to be doing a nosedive--like losing 4 of 6 last week to the Royals and Rays--they also bounce back. Our rotation ain't so great, but even ERod, who has struggled, and Richards, who looked dead in the water before last night, have battled. So right now I'm happy with the battlers and await the return of Chris Sale. The hitting is actually pretty good so far. 3d most runs scored in MLB, also the 3d best OPS, and Arroyo, currently on the IL, has been part of that, whereas Duran has yet to see a MLB pitch at a time when the divide between minors and majors is bigger than ever. Most of all, however, I like how Bloom and Cora have worked together to create a competitive team when none was expected. It they are slow to bring up Houck or Duran, fine with me. Same applies if both show up tonight or tomorrow.

Before the ERod vs. Cole caper of 2 nights ago, I opined the Sox were underdogs, and moonslav said, au contraire, it's often the mismatches that provide the surprises. And that proved to be the case. The Sox stomped on Cole, and ERod pitched tough. Tonight Pivetta--and his 6.2 innings of no-hitter last time out--goes against Keller, ERA 6.39. Here's to no surprises.

I think you're right, but am surprised. I know the WEEI guys regularly dun slow pitchers. They also point out that Rays team policy is for their pitchers to slow things down. And there are other teams or just individual players who believe that it's advantageous to keep stepping out of the batter's box if the pitcher is pitching both quickly and effectively.

Finally, an advocate for letting pitchers continue to doctor up the ball any way and as often as they want to.

That would seem to settle that. Good sources.

Sox are 48-31, ditto the Astros, but the Giants are 50-28. Devers has the highest WAR, 2.9, on the Sox, but I see the team more than the individuals. I think Cora has the biggest effect on wins.

A very timely winning streak, but aren't they all? This one, however, comes after going 2-4 vs. the Royals and Rays and during the brand new enforcement of not allowing pitcher to doctor up the ball.

Beyond question Sale is the man based on his track record in the past and spot reports on his recovery this year.

Meh. I think Bloom and Cora both would counter with, "slow down. This team is a work in progress." Yes, the hitting is good and could be better with Arroyo and Duran, but for now I like Hernandez leading off and playing CF. Plus we don't know Duran at Worcester will hit that well at Boston. These days that gap is larger than ever. Rotation has been way better than expected, but 1-3 it has not been. Team ERA is ranked 15th in MLB, mostly because of the rotation. I given Cora and his pitching coach a ton of credit for how they have managed/coached the pitching staff. However, what should make all of us nervous is the Commish's dictum banning foreign substances on the ball. It clearly has affected Richards, and I think Barnes as well. Probably Perez. Probably not Eovaldi, Pivetta, and ERod who who just maybe weren't "using" much anyway.

Exactly.

I think Girardi over-reacted and had to pay the price of looking like a fool. I was delighted to learn that his target, who has in fact been very effective getting hitters out and being paid handsomely to do so, either wasn't using foreign substances or learned very quickly how to pitch without spotrac or whatever. Or put it this way. The Commish gave everyone fair warning he was going to do this, and then he did what he said he would do--via inspections by the umpires. So far, it sure looks like a problem solved in an efficacious manner. But not effectively enough for one manager. He challenged not only the pitcher, but also the umpires and the Commish--and lost.

Completely disagree. The Commish warned everyone in spring training this was going to happen. And there is no effective way to check pitchers for foreign substances without physically inspecting cap, glove, belt, whatever on the field of play. Indeed, the reason why pitchers flouted the rule all this time is they weren't being checked. I thought the umpires were going to catch a bunch of guys, but so far it looks as though: 1) almost all pitchers are abiding by the rule; 2) most of them are discovering they can still get hitters out without spotrac or whatever it's call. Even the worst of the worst, Garrett Richards, went 4.1 shutout innings last night after getting hammered for 5 runs in the first 1.1 innings. Plus, I don't know about anyone else, but I kind of liked how Joe Girardi went completely ape trying to get Kershaw--who had to submit to three inspections--nailed for using foreign substances and failed completely and got thrown out of the game.

Agree on Cora--of course. Everyone agrees he is a difference maker. But I think you give him too little credit on his decision-making, both during games and in terms of who plays on which days. Last night he stayed with Richards, who delivered 4.1 innings of shut out ball after giving up that final dinger by the Royals to give them the 5-0 lead with 1 out in the 2d inning. But Friday against the Yankees he pulled Perez after 3.2 innings when he had only given up 3 runs. In that game he decided he was going all in for the win. Last night, down 5-0, he stuck with Richards both to save his bullpen (worked hard recently) and to give Garrett an opportunity to show he can still pitch. He got two wins because both times he used his bullpen just the right amount. Oh, and he pulled Pivetta when he had a no-hitter going, another good decision that secured a win in a game in which Pivetta was very unlikely to be able to go 9. In fact, Pivetta, was smiling when he came off the mound. You have cited experts who say that run differential is a vital stat in determining the overall talent/worth of a team, which means the Houston Astros are absolute world-beaters, talent-wise, because theirs is an amazing +140. Next best are the Dodgers at +104. Meanwhile, the Sox are at a meager +43. Yet they are just 1/2 game behind the Astros. The experts say that just shows the Sox are lucky, but I'm thinking just maybe Cora knows what he is doing. Or he is what Napoleon used to say he preferred--a lucky general rather than a smart one. I can say all this now because of course the proof of the pudding is the postseason. As you have said, the big run differential teams tend to do better then.

On paper--his MLB track record--I wouldn't think so. But Bloom has done pretty good finding/picking up players. As for leading off, it's a simple fact that no Sox player has done that well this year. Indeed, I think most or all of them don't want to lead off. So, Kike's recent and modest (short term) success leading off is a veritable bonanza.

Probably. Youk was a third baseman who moved to 1B and did great immediately. Why? Because 1b is a much easier position to play.

About Bobby Dalbec. JBJ, a terrific defensive outfielder, inherited the starting CF position in 2014 after Ellsbury went to the Yankees. He started and stopped (meaning he was sent back to AAA) several times that season because his hitting stunk. Then, somehow, in August he finally started to hit. But over the next 5 years he would have greater fits and spurts than most players. He was an improvement over Ellsbury--despite Jacoby's incredible 2011 season--because he was a better defensive centerfielder and not excessively prone (as Ellsbury was) to season-ending and career-ending injuries. Bobby Dalbec, on the other hand, is a defensive liability (DWAR -1.1) while playing the easiest infield position. Thus, despite being 5th on the Sox in dingers (11) and RBI's (40), his overall WAR is -.9. He also leads the position players in strikeouts with 86 in 213 AB's. What keeps Dalbec on the big club is in fact his hitting and the lack of it from guys like Chavis, Gonzalez, Cordero, Santana, etc.

Too bad you couldn't watch the game last night and decided to look up spin rates instead. If you had watched, you would have noticed that command in the first 2 innings was a bigger problem than spin rate. Both dingers were off pitches--a fastball and a slider--in the geometric center of the strike zone. After the second one, Richards pitched 4.1 innings of shut out baseball and kept the Sox in the game long enough to get the score to 5-5 with 2 outs in the top of the 6th inning. In terms of bullpen usage, this game had disaster written all over it.

Pitchers, especially starters, care.

Absolutely. In this case justice was served. Besides, Richards' 3.2 shutout innings give him something to build on. His big curve did not look half bad tonight. And that 93 mph fast ball has a nice bend to it. A changeup is still too much to ask.

Stunning win, beginning with Richards reversal after giving up 5 runs. He then went 3.2 unscored upon. Slumping Dalbec was benched in favor of hitting Dalbec. Rike continues to act as though he belongs in the leadoff position, which we all know to be impossible. The only non-surprise: bullpen 3.1 scoreless innings for the win, hold, and save. Dever's continued defensive prowess not so surprising. 4 in a row--wild applause, mvp78--when backs were to the wall after losing 2 of 3 in the Trop, which I swear bothered out players as much as the Rays prowess did. Sox 1 up on the Rays, 6.5 on the Jays, and 7.5 on the Yanknays. And just 1/2 game behind the Astros with their astronomical (pun intended) run differential of +142. Kimmi keeps reminding us that the experts say winning by just one run is luck, not merit. Tonight did not look like luck to me, especially--and I have to admit it--Garrett Richards gritty comeback after giving up 5 runs in 2 innings.