Emp9

Acid might be cheaper ... be all Song of the South and shite. Lol

Lol... Did I jump the shark on that last post .. Er?

Well, Philly loved Swihart before, but wanted the best of both worlds w/ Hamels. And don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not sold on either Nola or Eickhoff, they're simply just more in line with what the basics of what we'd need back for one of our blue chips. Nola vs Tor tonight, one of our primary competitors, so maybe we can steal a glimpse.

Virtual Reality is getting better and better. Maybe some kind of VR glasses the HP Ump could wear thats transparent but shows the actual Strike Zone outline and so-forth. Come on Google... Give us the Ump Goggles already.

I've been causally looking for who could be available later this year, however remotely. Even if Jose Fernandez was get-able, let's pretend he is for a second, its questionable he'd be available for a post-season run. He's at 80 innings pitched now and Miami is starting to skip his starts. Just something to keep in mind. Quintana has been looking more human these past couple weeks, but not enough to effect his value I'm sure. Both these teams are still in the thick of it anyhow. Sonny Gray's (back injury) stock has tumbled, but I don't know enough about his troubles this season to have a definitive opinion yet. Could he help us or hurt us? I like Philly's Aaron Nola, Eickhoff, SD's Pomeranz, Atl's Teheran, TB's Odorizzi are also intriguing, if available. We should probably put together some kind of list of possibles, including long shots. A clearly stated 'Spitball list' so nobody gets their panties in a bunch, but with the goal to eventually reach a realistic conclusion. Hmm... Not it!

If the Sox are trying to win a WS this year, and fail to upgrade their SP in a meaningful way, I see them looking at a LF upgrade. I suppose 3B (if Shaw continues to struggle) may be an option instead. I have more faith in HanRam than Young, Shaw, Holt, and Castillo combined... Which is a rebutal of what Bowman said.

" I think we have more than decent OF depth. Young is playing like a monster. Swihart looks fine in LF. We'll have Holt coming back at some point, and maybe Castillo will surprise us. All of our starting OF'ers can play CF, so I think we are more than fine until Benintendi is ready, which could be much sooner than 2 years. We may also see Moncada switched to the OF, if a need at 3B evaporates." I meant not enough depth to give up Betts or JBJ in a trade any time soon. We don't have that much depth to replace either of them this season and next year is questionable as well.

I'm more worried about Shaw than Hanram. And holding on to the future has worked out for the most part. Only now it might be time to make a move. I could see the Sox taking on some team's salary dump like say Braun (although I'd prefer less of a commitment like say CarGo), plus some mid-prospects (although mid-tier prospects are very limited in our system). However, I agree with many here that SP & BP are THE priority. Two seasons & two message boards later and I'm still saying it, Sox need to try out Kelly in the BP. Even as a future trade candidate. If Kelly does well enough we could keep him or trade him. If Kelly thrives in a BP role we may not need to trade for another reliever. If he builds enough of a track record, we could deal him next season when Smith comes back ( however unlikely). Actually, I have to wonder if other teams at this moment see Kelly having enough things going for him for them to consider turning him into a reliever on their own time? Stranger things have happened. I don't see Dombrowski dealing that much from our starting 9. XB is untouchable. I think both Betts & JBJ are safe as well due to our lack of OF depth (atleast for the next two years). Swihart & Devers have the most value and are the most expendable. Hernandez. Holt. Kelly as a reliever may have some value. Paying half of Castillo's salary in the right trade may have some value. Again, stranger things have happened. If we can only muster a #3 SP or lower out of a trade, I would definitely look to add a bat for LF. If we happen to trade for a #1 or solid #2, I'd be inclined not to worry about LF.

• Andrew Benintendi (Red Sox's No. 3) hit his second homer at the Double-A level, helping Portland come away with an extra-inning victory against Bowie, 5-4. The No. 21 overall prospect went 2-for-4 and has driven in at least one run in four of his past five games.

Sorry, I was talking more about the Amica Strike zone. Having MLB Premium on my phone, I never really use the Gameday feature. I'd rather just watch the game.

That's a good question. Setting aside a catcher's pitch framing, i've seen where both the umps & Pitchfx may rely too heavily on where the pitch ultimately ends up. I always find myself asking, was that pitch at any point a strike? Of course the height & width of the strike zone would have to be hit, but I'm talking more about the depth.

I have to admit, Wright striking out a batter for the 3rd out and having two runs score due to it being a passed ball/wild pitch is one of the most frustrating things I've ever had to endure as a fan. If I had to complain about something, there it is. After that, everything else regarding Wright this season has been pure gold.

I 2nd that.

"His fastball is already there, he already has a big league change up, and he has a feel for a change up." That by itself is somewhat rare, no? I caught parts of the draft and it was mentioned that most HS pitchers develop a Change Up later on in the minors or to a varying degree don't have one at all. I've no idea was his timeframe would be though. I'd be ecstatic if it were 3 yrs.

Hanram is at least walking some, getting on base, hitting the occasional sac fly. He's definitely contributing in small ways during his undeniable slump. Slumps are always more tolerable when others are hot and carrying the team. When others start to cool down, hopefully the cold bat starts to wake up. Hope he snaps out of it soon, or snaps out of it when we really need him to, ideally. He was looking really good the first quarter of the season not focusing on HRs. I'm pretty confident he'll start to come around again.

Story on Mike Shawaryn, SP, 5th Rd Pick: http://m.mlb.com/news/article/183252026/red-sox-draft-maryland-pitcher-mike-shawaryn -------------------------------------------

Lol. I don't think he needed anything new to complain about, old stuff worked just fine.

Really hoping one of Ceuvas, Owens, or Elias can get their s*** together one of these days and soon. We need some QS from our #5. All these up & down/Good&Bad starts at AAA, as soon as the thought enters your mind that maybe theres a chance... BOOM!

Even if Trey Ball took another 2-3 years and if he comes close to his potential I'd be seriously fine with that.

Last time I checked, draft picks (The player not the pick) could be traded after the World Series. Am I wrong on that or has that changed in any way?

Shaun Anderson, Florida Gators, 4 pitches, Couldn't fit Florida's rotation, guess tge sox cld see him as set-up BP guy or stretch him out to see him as a starter.

Perhaps he will sign? http://www.thescore.com/news/1041169 -------------------------------------------

I'd like to get something out of that Miley trade this year. Elias' last outing: CG, 1 ER (HR), 6 H, 2 BB, 8 K

I remember thinking the player to be named later for Doubront I mean ... Hernandez took an awfully long time to appear at all. I thought the league was gonna have to step in at some point lol

Yeah, I thought Ian Anderson was who we would wind up drafting and both him and Groome had some Vanderbuilt connection .. But Groome wouldn't be close to our pick. What are the chances he signs?