moonslav59

We should try this v RHPs: 1. L Yoshida LF 2. L Devers 3B 3. R Turner DH 4. L Verdugo RF 5. R Kike SS 6. L Casas 1B 7. L McGuire C 8. L Tapia CF 9. R Arroyo 2B vs LHP 1. L Yoshida LF 2. R Kike SS 3. R Turner DH 4. L Devers 3B 5. R Refsnyder CF 6. L Verdugo RF 7. R Arroyo 2B 8. L Casas 1B (Dalbec?) 9. R Wong C

I'm not excited about the fangraphs numbers, but they have us at a 19.7% chance at making the playoffs. (1 out 5.)

I'm disappointed by the offseason, too. I don't want to sound like I'm making excuses for Bloom or Henry, but it kind of irks me that the one winter we decide to spend big, the prices for the best FAs went through the roof. I'm not sure we'd have signed Rodon, Bogey, Judge or any other real big name FA, anyway, but still... I am not letting Bloom & Co. off the hook, this season. I'm just not letting the first 17 games cause me to jump the gun on final judgments. Sure, I'd like to have seen better results, out of the gate, but it's way too early. It looks like Bloom did fine with the Duvall signing, except to know he'd get hurt. (I know- I know, the guy was injury prone, so he should have expected it.) Turner and Kluber have yet to light the world of fire, and maybe they never will. Jansen has started out well. Martin is now on the IL, along with Joely, Mondesi, Mills & Story- all recent Bloom signees. I can see why people are down on the team, and even if everyone was healthy, we'd still have some questions to be answered. I know I'm in the minority, but I think our rotation will end up being fine, and maybe even more than fine. We may be fine, even without Sale being a force. As i've said before, I like the fact that we have 6 SP'ers to choose from, and I'm counting Houck for the pen. I think Mata or Walter may be helpful, later on, and guys like Houck, Wink and Crawford are solid long men who can spot start, from time to time. We need to avoid major injuries, beyond what we've already had, especially all at once, like what happened, last summer. Having so many question marks is usually viewed as a bad thing, but it also means we have so many options among players with promise that we don't need them all to do great or even all that well. We just need enough to do well. I'm staying optimistic, for now.

True, but maybe leading him off would take advantage of that. With Duvall out, he has the 4th best OBP (.340) among starters. The guy is brand new to the country and culture, missed some of ST'ing and had less than 45 PAs to his name in MLB.

The Whitlock first start had people talking, too. We need to give the kid some slack.

Any signing at more than $10M and 2 years is "risky" for us. Apparently, the scouts have wanted this guy for a long time. Only time will tell. I'm not concerned over any player's 2 week sample size, and more so with a guy adjusting to a whole new culture.

The same size is too small to be "very" anything, IMO.

Again, it is just one game. Very few decisions should ever be made over one game.

Too many squandered chances.

Crawford doing a fine Winckowski impersonation.

He needs to lead off.

Now, Kike's line shot finds an opening.

Several other hard out, today, too.

Duran on base 2 in 3 tries! Milagro!

Just don't call it "piggy-backing," but yes, having 3 guys that can go 3-4 IP every 4-5 days really takes the stress off the short guys. In theory, if you have Sale, Kluber, Paxton, Bello and Pivetta starting, we could add Whitlock and make it 4 long guys: 5 SP 4 Long Men (Whitlock, Houck, Wink, Craw) 4 Shortmen (Jansen, Martin, Schreiber, JRod/Brasier)

Heard this B4.

Pablo Lopez extended for 4 years at $73.5M by the Twins.

Stanton out 4-6 weeks.

Somehow avoiding a run scored.

Some soft makeup hits for the line out by Kike with the bases jammed.

Maybe someday he can use his speed to makeup for his shortcomings, but I think you are right: slightly below average might be his ceiling on D, and that might be a couple seasons away. With Duran, his offense needs to carry him.

We deserve a windblown double after that!

I love watching games at Fenway, and the experience is unmatchable. That being said, the seats are uncomfortable, too narrow, and too many down the RF line face CF and not the diamond.

Bello's first season was last year. Pray all you want: it ain't changing.

There was a lot of changeover in players under Theo, too. Winning helps people get over those sorts of things. I remember posters complaining about losing so many players from the 2004 team, and that was after several posters complaining about trading Nomar during the 2004 season. The 2013 team bore just about zero resemblance to the 2007 team and even the 2011 and 2012 teams, but that was fun as hell to watch, right? If we start winning again, it will mean players are doing well, and will be liked by fans. We have a lot of players under team control for 3-4 or more years. Once they prove themselves, I think those craving stability will be okay. It has been a whirlwind, for sure.