moonslav59

He did say "could."

or continue the run we are on. We've won 3 straight and 14 out of 21. (3 of those 7 losses were by 1 run, and even in the Yankee games, we had our chances.)

They haven't been hiding him. He's been injured. He had shoulder surgery and then a major setback during rehab. I had always been high on Marco, but after so many injuries and setbacks, even I gave up on him. I'm glad to see him doing well out of the gate. He's a better fielder than what we have, which may not be saying much. His offense has shown promise, but he's had some bad numbers, too. I'm pulling hard for him. I, too, like the way he plays the game.

Clearly WTF management!

Of course it will come down to the comps and costs of who is available. Who knows, we may even decide to fill the 5 slot from within the system, assuming we have faith in Eovaldi being a starter in 2020. Johnson Wright Velazquez DHern Shawaryn Fill in the blank _____ We'll have a limited budget and many holes to fill: 1B 2B Closer Set-up 5th Starter OF depth SP'er depth

I don't disagree, but the AL has more exciting teams while the NL is wallowing in mediocrity.

We're 2.5 down on TB ( 2 in the loss column) We're 2 down from CLE (3 in the loss column) Only 2 NL teams have a better winning% than the Sox.

True, but he was on the IL and by the process of elimination, he's the only one left. He also pitched the 9th 2 games ago, but it wasn't a save situation by 1 run.

If you really think errors tells the whole story on defense, then you are right, there's no sense bringing this up again. Here's what soxprospects has to say (not that they are the top scouting experts around): Dalbec: Field: Hands work well and footwork is usually reliable. A little stiff and has some trouble getting down on ground balls when charging the ball. Doesn't have great range, but makes up for that somewhat with his length, allowing him to cover more ground than his feet would normally allow. Has made great strides since he joined the Red Sox and now projects as an above-average defender at third base. Arm: Plus-plus arm strength. Touched the mid-90s off the mound in college. Plenty of arm for third base, able to make all the throws including balls fielded on the foul line...has the potential to become an everyday regular at third base with good defense. Plus, there is this to ponder... Red Sox Minor League Defensive Player of the Year (2018) Chavis: Field: Not the most fluid defender. Footwork is choppy and lets the ball play him at times. Hands work and has average range in the field. Has more range to his glove side than when going to his right. Has the raw tools to be at least a fringe-average defender. Started playing first base in the 2017 Arizona Fall League and second base during Spring Training 2019. Played shortstop initially after signing, but was moved off the position to third base very soon thereafter. Arm: Above-average arm, able to make all the throws from third base, including deep against the foul line. Accuracy suffers at times due to sloppy footwork...Needs to make major strides defensively

The pen is a major problem, but they have NOT been responsible for more losses than the starters. They have also contributed to more wins than the starters. I'm waiting for someone to prove I'm wrong. I'm open to any analysis that shows otherwise. I have wanted a pen arm since day one, so I'm not sure if you are talking about me, but I don't think it's anyone else. Our pen has lost us more games than other pens. No doubt. That does not mean they have been MOST responsible for our low position in the standings. I never said the pen "would be fine." I knew we would need help and hoped it would be okay until we traded for help. It was not horrible until recently.

He just needs to drink more from the clubhouse PED infused water fountain.

I'm on record as saying I don't think bringing Porcello back makes sense, unless he goes along with a significant hometown discount on years and money. I will say that I'd rather have a starter with a 5.00 ERA have 12 games at 3.30 and 2 at 12.75 than all 14 at 5.00, or whatever it is.

I'd settle for 2019, but hell yeah! Let him, Chatham and Lin fight it out. (Maybe Chavis plays some 2B when not at 1B.) Teenie tiny sample size, but his OPS is now at .933.

We have enough budget space to trade for a legitimate closer. That could be all we need, especially if Eovaldi can contribute. Our marginal pen guys get bumped down to more manageable roles, and the worst two get bumped off the 25 man roster.

So many runs were let up, it was hard to keep track. Really just 4 pitchers allowed most of the damage: Game 1 0.1 IP 6 ER Porcello 1.1 IP 8 ER Shawaryn 7.1 IP 3 ER Others Game 2 0.0 IP 4 ER Walden (maybe who you were thinking of) 0.1 IP 3 ER Barnes 8.2 IP 5 ER Others

Is Hembree now the de facto closer?

Nope: 2 games 1 IP 0 ER 0 H 0 BB 1 IP 1 ER 3 H 0 BB

He had actually begun to show signs of turning things around before today: Last 12 games: 12.1 IP 1.46 ERA 15 H + BB 1 SV- 0 BS 5 Holds .682 OPS Against He had not let up an ER in 19 of his previous 24 games pitched.

Tampa uses a pitcher to pitch the first inning often enough to skew the numbers, but we are top 6 in pen IP: 416 TBR 408 LAA 373 TOR 369 SEA 365 MIL 347 BOS Other Pen rankings: 6th SIERA 3.92 8th xFIP 4.22 11th K/BB 2.60 12th ERA- 93 14th HR/9 1.27 (same as Yanks) 18th WHIP 1.39

Josh Taylor is really solidifying his spot in the pen.

You totally missed my point!

They're paid well. They've been babied and pampered all ST'ing and first 89 games. They have good to great resumes, especially when looking at their last 3 seasons combined. It's time the rested millionaires start to carry the load and pick up the slack for others. Our offense may not always hit this well.

Nice game by Price. 99 pitches in 5 IP is somewhat ERodesque, but I'm not complaining. It's just another game where our pen is asked to go 4+.

Kind of strange no Groome in the top 30, but I guess they just rank players that are actively playing. Thanks for the alternate view.

You crack me up!