Maxbialystock

A note to Alex Mayes-- These daily articles are terrific, including the ones I disagree with. They almost never fail to get a good discussion started because they are about good topic, fairly well researched, and usually well written.

Disagree on "every single FA" because to me dumping Bregman is a showstopper despite his quad issue and his huge salary. As for the rest, no problem. In fact, I love "pitching, pitching, and pitching." While I agree with dumping Story and Yoshida, I don't want to do that and pay their freaking salaries. Better to keep them. I like all four rookies--Narvaez, Mayer, Anthony, and even Campbell. Same goes for Rafaela and Abreu. Plus Bregman. If Campbell can both hit and play 1b, that's a pretty good lineup even with Story as SS/2b. Agree also on "spend big," which JH used to do but hasn't lately. Did you notice that the attendance for the Jays series was over 35,000/game?

Agree. Such is the nature of fandom.

Maybe in my decrepitude I've become more optimistic than you. The Astros active payroll is $168M to our $105M. You know why I like our defense, which will get even better when Bregman returns: Abreu, Rafaela, and Anthony in the OF, Bregman, Mayer, Story, and whoever at 1b, and Narvaez/Wong catching. And you seem unaware that opposing teams have done some egregious baserunning. Yesterday with the bases loaded, 2 outs, Buehler in a meltdown on the mound, and Bichette at the plate, Heinemann got picked off!!!!!! There have been a bunch of other miscues against us. Also errors. I do agree the hitting and pitching are both lacking, but I see the hitting and defense improving with the return of Bregman, especially, but also Yoshida. The tricky part is whether rookies Anthony and Mayer will get better, and I think they will. I see nothing comparable in the pitching staff although Dobbins return should help the rotation. On June 8 and 14 he went 11 IP vs the Yankees giving up 3 runs. Back to the IL. I definitely left out the likes of Crawford, Houck, Slaten, and Winckowski, all of whom were very useful last season. To Breslow's credit, both Crochet and Chapman have been excellent. Also this. We are finally seeing Campbell, Mayer, and Anthony, all highly touted. Narvaez is also a rookie, so Cora has been managing 4 rookies this season, all of whom have started. I'm optimistic about all 4, but believe, as you no doubt do, they are not yet where they can be. The Sox are 3 under .500 and 3 behind the last AL wild card, Seattle. Up ahead are 13 games against Cincy, @ the Nats, Rockies, and the Rays before the All-Star break. I think the Sox can go 7-6 and stay in the field competing for the postseason. When Bregman, Dobbins, and Yoshida return, they should be able to make a good run over the final 64 games.

No doubt. But the simple fact is that the Sox are ranked 18th in team ERA, 8th in runs scored, and 7th in team OPS. Plus to me it's significant that in the 6 game losing streak the Sox scored 16 runs, and in the 6 game winning streak they scored 17 runs with Devers still in the lineup. The Sox active payroll is $105M, 19th in MLB. Total payroll is $192M, 12th. When I look at the injured list, I see two bats, Bregman and Yoshida, who should make a difference in July and after. moonslav pointed out that Yohshida/Ref could be a heckuva DH combo. And all I see among the IL pitchers is Dobbins. I also like the defense with Abreu back and Bregman soon to return. Anthony, Rafaela, and Abreu in the outfield, Narvaez/Wong catching, and Bregman, Mayer, Story, and Gonzalez/Toro/Campbell in the infield.

Exactly.

You are so full of it. Kike has been in MLB for 12 years, and 8 of them with the Dodgers. But his best year ever was 2021 with the Sox, which happens to have been the year the Sox made it to the ALCS. 2018 was the best season in Sox history, and the most games by any Sox player was 150 by JDM. The superstar AL MVP Betts only played 136 games. The very next season, 2019, with basically all the same players, Devers played 156, Bogey 155, Betts 150, etc. That team didn't even make the postseason. As for the callups, I suspect it's a combination of Cora, the CBO, and probably the pitching coach when pitchers are involved. But, hey, this is the Red Sox we're talking about--the team that has always had to trade for pitching because they are terrible at developing it.

We all love a winner, especially a winning team. And it can be painful rooting for a team below .500.

The contract may have changed Devers, but I think what changed him was losing 3b when Bregman arrived. That said, there have been zillions of prima donnas in MLB whose skills still made them valuable. Devers played 121 games on the 2018 Sox and 11 games in the postseason with 9 rbi's, 4th most on the team. I think we do miss Raffy, but have no problems with the trade. He was too pricey for a DH, especially when Yoshida can only be a DH. Plus I kind of like the lineup when Bregman returns. My biggest concern is the pitching.

MLB Draft is much more of a crapshoot than for the NFL or the NBA. I do not see Devers departure as the end of this season. Bregman and others on the IL can help this team. I believe Mayer and Anthony will improve this season. Rafaela already is. Story hard to tell, but he has led the Sox in rbi's this month. Toro/Gonzalez are better than Casas was before he ended his season by running to 1b. m, I like this lineup, offensively and defensively: Bregman 3b, Story/Mayer SS; Mayer/Story 2b; Toro/Gonzalez 1b, Narvaez/Wong catcher; Anthony LF, Rafaela CF, Abreu RF, and Yoshida/Ref/Duran as DH. Crochet, Bello, and now Giolito are now looking like 3 pretty good starters. When Dobbins returns, that's a decent 4th. The big question mark to me is the bullpen. Back to Devers. Since he joined the Giants, they are 4-7 and the Sox are 3-8. 9 of the Sox games were on the west coast. The Giants played 9 at home. I'm not saying the Sox have turned it around. How could I? But I am saying this season is not hopeless.

Hit it hard, right to Jays third baseman. Up to Toro not to waste Duran's triple.

Thanks. Still pretty awful.

Interesting. You call yourself FredLynn, but you prefer rooting against the Sox,

He's on a 2 year contract? Are you serious? Major blunder by Breslow.

Given what we've seen this season, I would label Buehler as the worst possible choice to pitch multiple innings.

Keep him at $21.5M?

Command is part of it, I agree. But in his case too many of his strikes can get hit hard. No question he was a vast overpay by Breslow, a former MLB pitcher for 10 years.

If find it amusing that he occasionally says "we" when referring to Sox.

He's what we've got right now, today. Last start he was worse. Plus today the Sox seem to be hitting a good Jays starter. Statistically, you are dead right. His ERA stinks. He is vastly over paid.

Of course it sucks, but at least he was trying to throw strikes. The 4th inning shows the re-emergence of bad Buehler. Looks like Narvaez just saved him from calamity.

I disagree about today. The first dinger was off a slider low and inside and not in the strike zone. The second dinger, granted, was off a fat pitch. Plus, guess what? No walks in 3.2 IP. And you claim that nothing has freaking changed?

Well said! On the sour side, I'm listening to the NESN TV announcers and am hearing very few real insights, but plenty of platitudes. When they interviewed Breslow, they implied that Devers was the key guy in the 6 game winning streak. Wrong!! I didn't hear them mention that Bregman's on the IL or that the bullpen has been struggling. Not all that impressive a lineup today. Missing Bregman and Raffy of course. Mayer's out. A lefty starter for The Jays, so as many righty bats as Cora can cram in there. Given Buehler on the mound, this game should be over after 3 innings, but it is definitely not that. Great grab by Rafaela!!!!

I'm convinced Cora loved having Raffy as his full time DH because his hitting was excellent, he never missed a game, and he never made an error fielding. But I also think Breslow had a good reason for wanting Raffy to play 1b. And guess who makes the deals/trades? I also think Raffy dug in his heels because he was promised he could stay at 3b. So far he has just DH'd for the Giants, and it's very unlikely he will regain 3b. This looks to me like a pretty good deal for the Giants, some short term pain for the Sox, but also in the end the right move. Bregman needs to stay off the IL and Mayer and Anthony need to develop as reliable MLB lefty bats. Meanwhile, the money saved--and then some--can be spent on pitching.

Manny left in 2008 because he was 36 and wanted one more juicy pay package. The manny being manny stuff was just an extra reason to say goodbye.

Great line, great movie. Paddy Chayefsky, 3 oscars for screenwriting--Network, Marty, and The Hospital.