Maxbialystock

If you go over to the Beeks thread, you will find universal enthusiasm for starting him tonight. Even I said it would be fine. But this kid threw way too many fastballs and got killed.

I think he said something yesterday about balancing his pitches and not relying too much on just one. Right now he is relying on his fastball and so are the Tigers. They love his fast ball. He threw one curved into the dirt and probably won't throw another until sometime next week.

I almost never have the sound on, so I'm fine with the espn feed because otherwise it's mlb.com on line, which can be sporadic.

Meh. The risk is minor and worth it if JDM fills a need which he sometimes does. As for the Tigers, they win 46% of the time, on par with Tampa, Toronto, etc. So a sweep is by no means a sure thing. Even on the road they win 1/3 of the time. We were lucky catching them after they played a double header vs. the Yankees.

Mookie was supposed to take batting practice today pursuant to a real game at Pawtucket tomorrow and activation on Saturday. Anybody at Fenway? Anyone?

Darn. Ok, JDM is in RF and not at DH. So the dogs living with cats thing still applies.

Throw me in the briar patch, please. The problem is the stats guys keep saying the best option is to go over the shift, not away from it. One of the first shifted against--by Lou Boudreau of the Guardians--was Ted Williams. He did experiment with going the other way of course, but in the end decided he was better off just making solid contact, which basically meant pulling the ball. He did hit .388 when he was 38.

And DL the stone cold dead arm who half the time won't cover 1b on a grounder to the right side.

Beni CF Bogaerts SS Martinez DH Moreland 1B Nunez 2B Travis LF Devers 3B Vazquez DH !!!!!! Swihart C That lineup reminds me of the lines from Ghostbusters: "Real wrath of God type stuff. Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling! The dead rising from the grave! Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together . . . mass hysteria! Will these Sox ever be the same after tonight?

Swihart fans, guess what? He's catching and batting 9th tonight.

What a knuckler works, it works very, very well. Even better than a great splitter which actually depends on also throwing a fastball (which need not be great however). I do remember Wright in 2016 and was dazzled Tuesday night--and even think that moonslav's theory about the after effect in the next game well be true.

some say the little old three game series in 1951 was dramatic. Nah. Couldn't have been with only 3 games. bobby Thompson? Never heard of him.

Wait a minute. the seven game series only become dramatic when they go to 7 games. Nothing dramatic about a 4 game sweep--unless you are Sox fans in 2004 and 2007.

NOAA map says no problem for tonight. Well, other than the Tigers.

I beg to differ. The genius of March Madness is single game elimination. And the problem with the 162 game schedule--which I am fine with--is that it magnifies small differences. A team winning 50% of their games is mathematically almost as good as team winning 60%, but in the standings they are 16 games apart--a huge, insurmountable difference. So the postseason is often a crap shoot even with 5 and 7 game series. The rationale for a 5 game or 7 game series in the postseason is money, pure and simple.

I find that last line fascinating in view of your continual support for Pom and regular trotting out of his 2017 and even 2016 stats. What has changed your mind? Do you think he is injured? I have no issues with your Wright assertions. I do think the knuckler can be a fragile thing, but also think good command of a fast ball and/or curve isn't always readily at hand. See Chris Sale last year.

I love disagreeing with S5Dewey, but on this one I emphatically agree because I think this trend reflects the other trend to go for dingers first, last, and always. Yes, you score as much, but to me the entertainment value is less. I like the action of a struck ball in play--an out, a single, a double, a triple, a great defensive play, a GIDP, whatever. K's can be cool, but don't lead to involvement by other players. Same goes for dingers, which can of course be fantastic, but also don't lead to involvement, action, etc. Scoring does decide who wins and who loses, but the fun part is how you get those runs and/or prevent them. On another thread we discussed whether MLB should outlaw those shifts, which are definitely preventing hits and encouraged teams/players to go fr the fences, which to me is a lesser game. So right now I kind of like the notion of limiting how much you can shift because I resent how statisticians and sabermetrics can take over our national pastime.

You're an FNG, so a word to the wise. Just because the thread title has Mookie's name in it does not mean it's about some rightfielder named Betts. You watch: if Mookie returns on Saturday, this thread will continue.

Two lefties tonight--just like last night. I don't see Beeks having ERod's success, but hope our guys are hitting and that Beeks only gives up 3 or 4 runs in at least 5 innings--no mean feat in his first MLB start.

Agree on Johnson--he can start. Definitely agree on ERod, who this year seems to have an especially good repertoire and actually is tied with Porcello for the second best WAR, 1.8, on the pitching staff. He still needs a lot pitches to go on average 5 1/2 innings, but he is also 7-1. He was better in May, ERA 3.18, than in April, 4.78, and is likely to be even better in June, 1.59 ERA in one start. To me ERod and Wright are evidence that the Sox just might have the best five starters on a single team in MLB. Our ace Sale is not as good as others aces so far, but the average performance of those five is pretty darn good and likely to get better.

As I just told A700hitter, I have done my share of griping this year (of all years when things have gone so well).

Meh. I happen to gripe quite a bit myself. See my posts on Pomeranz, also on Hanley, Wright, JBJ, Nunez, Holt, and Porcello. Maybe more. And I did all of that this season when the Sox have been going great guns.

I honestly don't think the Sox need Beeks to start tonight because by my reckoning the Sox currently have six viable starters--Sale, Porcello, Price, ERod, Wright, and Velazquez--on the roster right now. Nevertheless, I do like this decision because it keeps Velazquez handy for long relief now that Wright is starting--and it gives the Sox a look at someone who just maybe can do the job. Oh, and it also gets Sale another day of rest, which could prove useful.

Guilty as charged, except for one thing. I am fine with Swihart on the active roster precisely because he brings some versatility--especially as a 3d catcher even though he hasn't been used there--and some hitting (and switch-hitting) potential. My harangue, if such it is, is based on my complete support for the way Cora is managing this team right now. He seems to me to be pushing all that right buttons, and that includes who he puts in the lineup on any given day. And lately his biggest problem is dealing with the absence of Mookie Betts, a legit contender (if he can stay healthy) for AL MVP this year. To date the Sox are 11-4 without Mookie in the lineup or in 2 cases when he was taken out after 1 at bat or none. To me that 11-4, small sample size though it is, suggests that not only has Cora managed things very well, but also that the Sox actually have pretty good depth despite the complaints on talksox that they don't. So, yes, Swihart is a good guy to have on the active roster. But I am more than fine with him sitting on the bench if that is what Cora thinks will help the team win.

Could not agree more with you and mvp78. We gotta have something to gripe about. Devers is definitely a work in progress, but the potential is obvious, Cora sends him out there every day, and the Sox keep winning.