Maxbialystock

Devers is the 10th ranked thirdbaseman in MLB in terms of DWAR. His is + .4. If Dalbec can't handle 1b, which is a much easier position, I sure wouldn't trust him at 3b.

Six in a row and 50 wins in 81 games! mvp 78 is well named.

Appropriately, the Orioles are on a 3 game winning streak.

so true

One more time, the case for bringing up Duran ASAP is weak because-- He's an outfielder, and the Sox outfield of Verdugo, Hernandez, and Renfroe is playing well both at bat and in the field. The Sox have the 2d best record in MLB, the 2d most runs scored, and the 3d best team OPS. They are flourishing without Duran, who has yet to face MLB pitching. Why mess with success?

The Sox rotation has entered a brave new world, not only the Commish's dictum against foreign substances on the ball, but also starting for a winning team with higher expectations than at the beginning of the season. There is no real ace on this team, but there 5 pitchers who have each started 15 or 16 games with from 3 to 6 quality starts by each of them and ERA's ranging from 3.67 to 5.83. Since we are almost halfway thru the season, that's lot of starts by just 5 guys. Lately, just about every Sox starter seems to be on a roller-coaster. Richards looked awful last week and night before last until something clicked with 1 out in the 2d inning: after giving up 5 runs, he pitched 4.1 innings of shutout ball. Pivetta pitched 6.2 innings of no-hit, shutout ball 6 days ago and gave up 6 runs in 4.2 innings last night. And so on. Meanwhile, it does not help that the Sox defense leads MLB in errors, to say nothing of hits that might have been outs. The bullpen and the hitting--and the occasional good defensive play-- are key to all those come from behind wins. Kimmi has said that a team that wins a lot but does not have a big run differential is, according to the experts, in peril. And that's our Sox with their 49-21 (.613) record, best in the AL and 2d only to the Giants, but a run differential of + 44, which is lower than the Rays +84, Jays +84, White Sox +82, Astros +130, Giants + 97, Dodgers +106, and Padres +78. The experts say a team like ours is just lucky, but most of us who might agree with that also point out that we have a heckuva manager, particularly with respect to his sometimes erratic pitchers. Without question Cora, like all other managers these days, relies heavily on computer data, but, unlike a lot of managers, he also has fingerspitzengefuhl, a long word meaning a finger tip feel for the game as it is being played and in the context of that series, that part of the season, and the season as a whole.

Fine.

Once again the nattering nabob of negativism. Scratch that. Insert cockeyed optimist--as always. I frankly don't see 100 wins, but then, back in early April I barely saw 80 wins.

Let's assume everyone else agrees with every point you have raised, but especially the desirability of getting both Arroyo and Duran onto the big club. Given that, wouldn't it be worthwhile to explore why Bloom and Cora, who have been monumentally successful retooling this team this season, have chosen not to do so? I am very possibly the least expert contributor to talksox, but even I can identify a couple. One is that these Sox are on a five game winning streak and have the highest winning percentage in the AL and 2d highest in MLB. Don't mess with success. And they are doing this despite some issues with the rotation, which neither Duran nor Arroyo can fix. I also don't see other one improving the sometimes spotty defense significantly. That leaves hitting, and right now the Sox the Sox are 2d in MLB in scoring and 3d in OPS. That said, I too would probably rather see Duran or Arroyo in the batting order than, say, Santana or Gonzalez or even Chavis. And my guess is that Arroyo is a good bet to return when he is healthy and ready. As for Duran, however, I kind of like the outfield of Verdugo, Hernandez, and Renfroe, whose WAR's, in order, are 1.6, 1.4, and 1.5. In a very small sample of 3 games, Hernandez just might have solved the leadoff problem--he's 6 for 12 with a walk. None of the above is intended to say Arroyo and Duran should not get to Boston this season, but only that waiting a while longer doesn't look very risky. I leave to others the larger considerations of salaries and other GM-related issues.

WEEI guys said before the game Pivetta pitches better on the road than at Fenway. It's also possible the heat was affecting his command. He threw some fat pitches. All that is of course contradicted by the success of the bullpen, especially Barnes, who struck out all 3 batters he faced in the 9th.

5 straight by the indomitable mvp78!!! He only needed a little help from the Sox.

3 K's, and one gigantic save by Barnes, to say nothing of a win and holds by the amazing Sox bullpen!

WEEI guys have talked a lot about the heat and humidity, which caused the players to minimize their time on the field before the game. Makes sense. Pick on JDM again for running into that out at 2b.

On second thought, at 10 pitches per inning, he should be good for at least 3 more innings.

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.