Maxbialystock

Imagine if the Sox led MLB in runs scored and OPS. Wait. They do.

Betts RF Benintendi LF JD Martinez DH Moreland 1B Bogaerts SS Holt 2B Devers 3B Vazquez C JBJ CF 5 lefty bats.

Let's see now. I count 6 eggs in this basket. That's six chickens, which will each produce at least 20 more eggs, which means 120 eggs which will of course become 120 chickens, and each of them . . . . Right now it's enough for me to know the Sox have 160 wins, and the Yankees and Mariners both have 156 wins. Where's jacksonianmarch when you need him?

One of the few plays I did see last night. Stunning. Sale is both a great athlete and a focused one. As soon as the ball is released he is getting ready to play defense--more so than any other Sox pitcher. One of my favorite plays--ultimately an unsuccessful one-- occurred maybe 2 weeks ago when somebody laid down a beautiful drag bunt between the pitcher and first base--a sure hit if Sale didn't get it. So what does Sale do? He dives for the darn thing and almost gets it. He did not then do as Wright or Pom or a couple of others would have done--laid there in the grass begging for sympathy, three medics, the trainer, and maybe an orthopedic surgeon or two. Nope. He jumped back up and was ready to make the next play. I do not remember any other Sox pitcher with the focus and athleticism of Chris Sale. And in fact he is one of the reasons why I continue to be dismissive of Pomeranz who is the exact opposite. ERod sometimes too.

We can be. I myself have been, but I also enjoy coming back later at pointing to a bad call I made, especially with starting pitchers. Last night Sale gave up 1 run in 6 innings, and the bullpen gave up 4 runs in 3 innings. Not a lot to cheer about there, but absolutely perfect timing--be lousy with a big lead as long as you keep the lead, which they did.

Meh. I live in Fairfax County and occasionally will be on the road when a game is on and end up listening to I think WEEI in Boston. One of the announcers lost weight on a program and regularly touts it during play by play. Used to be commercials were between half innings and the rest of the radio air time was about the game and baseball. It is off-putting to have those plugs intrude. NESN is I believe owned by the Sox, John Henry.

I watched almost none of last night's game because three of our kids were here and it was great to talk to them. However, I did keep the mlb app tuned in to the game and realized after 2 innings it was in the bag. A quick check revealed the Yankees were going down at Toronto--giving the Sox a 2 game lead. The Yankees now have the same number of wins, 56, as the Mariners. I wonder how jacksonianmarch is taking that. I note too that Cora is unlikely to bring Wright back before the All-Star Game and said again he thinks his policy of resting guys is working. About Pomeranz he said he has another AAA start coming up, hopefully for 4 innings, "and we'll go from there." Pretty noncommittal, which he should be. The real point is that the current rotation is pretty good, especially if Price gets his head out of his ass. Johnson is a typical 5th guy except that he has pitched pretty darn well if not a lot of innings.

Price, lefty, vs. Keller, righty I apologize for misplacing the game thread yesterday and must confess that this morning I looked for it in vain until I discovered it in the talk sox forum. Hopefully, at some point YOTN will move it over here. As for tonight, it sure looks a mismatch. On the surface the $30M arm should make mincemeat of the rookie starting for team with 25 wins vs. a team with 60 wins. But the harsh reality is that Price gave up five dingers in his last start (at Yankee Stadium) and Keller has been sensational since being called up in late May. Thus it's nice to have a two game lead what with Severino going for the Yankees tonight.

Good stuff. Thanks.

Back to the present and 'a realistic view of 2018." The hitting seems to be holding up pretty well. The bullpen ain't lights out but is decent. The rotation had some rough spots in June/July--Wright on the DL, Price and ERod tanking, etc. But ERod looked darn good against the Nats, and Price says he will turn things around and Wright can't stay on the DL too much longer. Thornburg a nice addition to the bullpen--we hope. Best of all are the most wins and highest winning percentage in MLB while being tied for most games played and having played more away than home games at just past the mid-point of the season. Realistically, at this point it's OK to smile.

Meh. Manny was pretty key in 2004 and 2007--just ask Ortiz. Manny was WS MVP in 2004 and Mike Lowell in 2007. Plus don't forget the pitchers both years. In 2013 Big Papi was finally the WS MVP, but the pitching was important there too. Great, however, that Pedro was pushing management to get Ortiz because he absolutely was a steal and thrived in Boston where many don't.

I have the same memory and same question, now that you mention it. I've always liked KC after they stopped being the Yankees farm club. I liked Bo Jackson a lot, also George Brett.

I'm just hoping Sale can do 3 innings tonight. Royals can be tough on first Fridays in July in even numbered years, and Sale really extended himself vs. the Yankees. I do agree with whoever says the AS starter will likely only go 2 innings. I also think Severino has the inside track for AL starter.

Sale, lefty vs. Hammel, righty On the surface, the Sox have a big edge with Sale on the mound, but Sale has had bad luck this year on run support and maybe tonight Hammel will be more like Hamels in his prime. Plus Kansas City itself has a rowdy reputation. Bad vibes. Kaufman Stadium can get very hot this time of year--I know, I've been there while posted across the Missouri River in Kansas. Nearby is the beginning of the Santa Fe Trail.

Some pretty good comments about Pedro on both sides of the argument. In the end, I find I can tolerate what Pedro has done. In fact, I can live with Severino being a better pitcher and actually the ace for the Yankees. Makes for better competition at a time when I was almost feeling sorry for the Yankees. Plus, if it's true that Pedro's coaching helped Severino, that makes what seems not to have happened with our pitchers more glaring. They got the same advice and even more coaching, but Pomeranz--my favorite whipping boy--still refuses to learn how to throw a changeup and relies way too much on that big knuckle curve and a so-so fastball. What makes Severino so tough is that sharply breaking stuff--to the right and to the left and always down--he is throwing. Why can't Pom do that? And why does ERod sometimes get away from doing that?

Really? In 2011 Theo was offered a very good contract ($18.5M for five years) to go to the Cubs and made President of Baseball Operations or something. The Ricketts family, who bought the Cubs in 2009, were determined to spend whatever it took to win a WS. I believe they were willing to outbid John Henry. Since Theo left Boston, the Cubs have won one WS, and the Sox have won one WS. I think Cherington made key moves to get the 2013 title, but then made some mistakes like letting Lester go, hiring HanRam and Pablo, etc. DD has made some good moves and some not so good, and right now the Sox have a pretty good team but a difficult future because of the salary cap.

Agree completely with Bellhorn04 that critics of the John Henry era are idiots. He not only broke the 86 year curse but won two more and I believe the three WS wins, 2004 to the present, are as many or more than any other team in MLB and certainly more than the Yankees.

I agree with the others. You have supposed a hypothetical decision that is very unlikely--being able to pick the starter for game 163 after finishing in a tie for the first 162. By the 163d game, the Sox would almost certainly have been expending all pitching resources just to avoid the tie which would lead to having to play not one but two single elimination games to get to the ALDS. The other part is that we still have almost half a season to play and something could happen to Sale, Severino, Sabathia, or the others from both rotations. Oh, and we do get it that in the last two series the Yankees took 4 of 6 and that your OP is simply a reminder that not one but two Yankee starters have the Sox number right now. That could change.

I looked and could find nothing. Plus he played 3b for 2 more innings.

I always worry about tipping pitches.

Yes. 11 am started in 2012.

Happy Fourth of July, everyone. Drive safely too--especially moonslav.

Nice win, nice series. Best the Yankees can do is stay 1 back. Sox retain best record in MLB more than halfway thru the season. Porcello and ERod both looking good vs. the Nats. But especially ERod.

ERod stunningly good today, and we definitely needed him to be. Trust me when I say it is really hot out there and we are coming up on 3 hours.

Thanks for the hydration reminder, S5Dewey. I'm a 72 oz/day guy mostly because I have to be--made a little easier by doing 24 oz on the way to work and 24 oz on the way home. Today taking a son and daughter and their spouses to visit their grandparents at ANC, which is getting crowded but is still beautiful and overlooks the National Mall, from which you can also see ANC--across the Potomac and Memorial Bridge. That link and that Mall are reminders that America does not forget our veterans because we are, in the end, a nation made by wars. I hope that I am anti-war. I do believe that the Declaration of Independence was and is far less important than the Constitution written and passed 11 years later in 1787 and finally ratified in 1789. Since that date all veterans have sworn, upon entry into our armed services, to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America." And, quite honestly, I can't think of a better way to celebrate the 4th than by attending and/or watching our national pastime. Whether true or not, I like the Walt Whitman maybe-quote in Bull Durham: "I see great things in baseball. It's our game, the American game. It will repair our losses and be a blessing to us."