moonslav59

I'm wondering how close Sox brass thinks Jh Garcia is from the big dance. He's looking very impressive, of late.

On soxprospects.com, Jordan moved up from #32 to #24. Tolle is at #5. Sandlin dropped from #8 to 13. Jh Garcia jumped from #14 to #7. Tibbs joined at #8. Romero dropped from #6 to 10. Clarke jumped from #18 to 11. Cespedes fell from #9 to 16. Monegro jumped from 27 to 19, but I think he's on the IL, now. Enddy Azocar made the biggest leap from #51 to 21, along with Uberstine from #54 to 26. Z Ehrhard jumped a lot, too (47 to 26) D Reyes with a big drop (21 to 31)

Breaking the mold!

What's the odds we sit Bregman down and talk about how much we want him back in 2026, then trade him and bring him back? (It wouldn't really be tinkering, since he's under contract with him, now.) He could still be a piece to build a young team around starting in 2026. It's not like our best young players are in single A.

The biggest difference is that we had nobody really good to trade. The better ones were hurt. In theory, Bregman could be traded, but I'm all for extending him. Chapman is a better trade chip than Jansen was in '24. Wilson maybe better than Martin. While Duran is not a FA to be, he'll bring way more back than O'Neill might have brought us. I'm not sure about rumors of teams wanting Buehler, but so be it. Gio should being more than Buehler. Ref won't bring much, but someone might really need a top 10 MLB batter vs LHPs. We could get enough prospects from trading these guys to make a nice winter trade. I know, I know, why should we expect we do well on winter trades and signings, this time around? What's the alternative? Just give up? I know, I know, the mob wants a complete blow-up and start over. Not me.

I did in 2023. I think I wanted us to buy in '24- just not top prospects. I'm not happy having to repeat myself. This sucks for all Sox fans from all sides of the spectrum.

I absolutely am disgusted to be for a firesale. Kicking the can sucks. I don't see anyway we can added 3-4 pieces and get back in this thing, so every trade should be about maximizing the assets we can have this summer to trade and spend to fill the biggest needs we have. Assuming we keep Bregman, trade Duran, Campbell, Casas, Arias & Sandlin for Skenes and trade all of FAs to be for prospects that can be flipped in a winter trade, this would be the framework: SP: Crochet, Skenes, Sandoval, Bello, Dobbins RP: ______, _____, Slaten, Whitlock, Houck, Crawford, Fitts, Weissert C: Narvaez, Wong or _____ 1B: ______ (Toro) 2B: Story or Mayer (DHam) SS: Mayer or Story (Romero) 3B: Bregman (Grissom) LF: Anthony (Refsnyder) CF: Rafaela (Garcia) RF: Abreu- Refsnyder (Garcia) DH: Garcia-Romy (Yoshida)

I'm not totally sold on any prospect pitcher.

Whoever Cora picks, it's Cora's fault.

Jh Garcia hit his 9th bomb, tonight and is at .983. Maybe the big 3 was really the big 4. Campbell went 1-2 w 2BBs in the 4-2 loss. Uberstine was not good. POR is down 2-1, late. Song let up the runs. GRE & SAL had rainouts or suspended games.

We have our 3 hits. Does that mean we are done for the night?

He needs to be back, next year. Anything beyond is great. Get it done!

It worked, once. That is proof? He yanked many a pitcher early, when they needed to be yanked, and they were way below 90 pitches. I agreed on some times I wondered why he pulled a guy that seemed to be doing well, but stated we don't and didn't have all the facts. Maybe, they noticed something we didn't. Maybe even the pitcher said something we didn't hear, or the catcher commented that the guy was losing it. Maybe the guy was on a pitch count for a good reason, we didn't know about. Maybe Bello is still pitching well, precisely because we yanked him early a few times. We just don't know all the facts and what ifs. I do know that during the game threads, I see a lot of , "Cora should have yanked ____," said right after a homer of bases loaded walk. We also see many times a pitcher looks horrible, then pitches 3-4 nice innings after some were screaming he be yanked. We forget about those choices made more than we remember the choices that did not work out. I have no issues with Cora's in game pitching choices. I question some moves, but not any more than other managers, and probably less. He's had to start our 8th, 10th and 12th slotted SP'ers way too often. He was handed a highly questioned pen, and they have the 4th best fWAR in MLB. To me, how he's handled the staff is his strongest point in favor of not being terminated. We just have to agree to disagree. Yes, he's made mistakes. He'd agree, too. To me, he's done more good than bad, and the team just hasn't responded, key players were hurt or traded away. If I gotta blame someone, it's the players, JH and then maybe Brez. Cora is way down on my blame list.

He's not signed for 26, nor do we have an option. We can trade him and then sign him in 2026. It's rare, but we could, From the sounds of many here, what sort of chance do we have, in 2025, even if we became all-in buyers? By all in, does than mean trade 2 of the top 3 prospects plus guys like Arias, Garcia, Tolle, Bleis and Cespedes? Ro two of the top 3 and 3 of the next 5 or 6? The worst choice, to me, is another half way choice.

Trading for a pitching prospect is different than a Crochet-like deal. I'm not against trading for Abel or Painter. A trade centered on Duran might get it done, but they may ask for Arias and Tolle, too, if not a big 3. Would you trade Duran, Campbell and Mullins for Abel or Painter?

Nobody likes trading good players for crap. Some see the Devers trade as a salary dump and or clubhouse issue deal, and that's why we got crap. The salary savings being spent wisely is something we all doubt- both in terms of actually being spent and the "wisely" part. The Betts trade is beyond further debate, but we all hate that it happened. My point is this: we don't look like a winning team, unless we go full buy mode at the deadline and trade away several good and maybe some top prospects, and even then, nothing is guaranteed. We can play it half way and sell moderate prospects that look blocked for moderate and short term gains that likely get us nowhere near a ring. Or we sell. We trade every free agent to be, except maybe Bregman, who we extend, and we make a strategic choice on which excess OF'er to trade. As much as I hate to see Duran traded, I think he makes the most sense, and a deadline trade means for prospects, unless we involve a third team and get a pitcher. (But, most likely only pitcher rentals are available- not the Crochet type of trade.) I know it sucks, but to me, it might be the only way we can get a quick turn around and be winners in 2026.

The thing is, generally, trading for rentsls happens at the deadline. Trading for controlled pitchers happens in the winter. Trading Duran and Chapman would be for prospects, not some solid SP'er, because the team acquiring these two will be a playoff bound team in need of said pitcher. Maybe a three way deal can get it done: Duran & Chapman to team A, prospects from team A and us to team B, and a solid Sp'er to us.

You make some great and insightful comments, Max. I know, I often respond only to the ones I disagree with, but I agree with more than not.

Our SP'ers have not been getting the job done just as much as the pen. In fact, our pen ranks higher than our rotation. Crochet leads the league in IP, and the word was he needs to have his innings managed, due to no previous large IP seasons. Cora got flack for leaving Crochet in a game too long, a few starts back. While I was curious why he yanked some SP'ers, when he did in several games, we don't have any idea to what all the facts involved were for each decision made. Hell, one could easily argue he left Houck, Buehler, Newcomb, the early Gio and other selected in hindsight pitchers in one, two or three batters too long. You want me to go back and find all the instances? The fact is Cora has been working with the 6th, 9thand 12th slotted SP'ers more often than we expected. His preseason #2, #3, #4 and #5 SP'ers have sucked, been injured or both. Our fWAR rotation ranking is 17th. One could call that miraculous. Our pen fWAR ranking is 4th, when every single poster on this site was upset to irate over the lack of pen building over last winter. Am I lying? Am I being overly selective with cherry-picked stats? I didn't even mention the effect our defense has had on a staff expected to get 4-5 outs in way too many innings. Should Cora have put on the cleats and played 2B for the team?

Well said, and I greatly respect notin's opinions, as well. I disagree on this one, but am not of the mind to think if we fire Cora, it would be a horrible thing. (Who we replace him with might be.) I agreed with notin on Bregman, the Sale trade and many other issues. I don't think firing Cora is the answer, and besides, he won't be fired: he'll be promoted.

Max, a lie is intentionally telling someone something you know to be untrue. Bloom likely meant what he said. Bloom was replaced. it's not a lie, when Brez has a different idea on where Devers should play. Plus, we've been through this idea of yours about Devers being gone the minute we signed Bregman. You even admitted you did not think that, at the time, and that the decision was not made that day,

He didn't blame Bloom, when He said "he's not here, anymore."

I don't disagree, but conversely, what is our team record, when we we allow 2-3 runs, 4-5 runs, and 6 or more runs? (I can't find that info on B-R, anymore.)

If the deadline was tomorrow, I'd sell on every FA to be, except Bregman, and I'd trade Duran. My hope, and that is all it is, would be that we use the assets and "savings" to make Crochet-like trades (emphases on the plural) and signings to make us a clear top 5-6 team in MLB for 2026 and beyond. I do think it is possible, but we can't swing and miss with Buehler type signings. We might get away with one or two moves that backfire, but we have to hit more than miss. We will also be placing our hopes in the hands of prospects and younger players, but we should have enough depth to handle a few short-comings, quickly and efficiently. They key, as always, will be how we upgrade the pitching staff, but also what second or third big bat we get to replace Devers, and to a lesser extent Duran and who plays 1B and DH?

IMO, a hard choices have to be made, and maybe the deadline is not the right time to make it. 1. We absolutely have to make sure Bregman returns for at least 2026. Somehow-someway: make it happen! 2. I do think teams often overpay more at the deadline than during the winter, so deciding on which vets we want to stick with and who should go is a very important decision to be made. IMO, we should not trade top prospects, and we have logjams at some positions, so it makes sense to do it this summer, even if just for valuable prospects that could be used to acquire vets this summer or this coming winter. (See below.) 3. Decide which prospects are most likely to be impactful and trade some that seem blocked by vets and or other prospects that we have above them. 4. Decide if we need to make changes to our coaching staff and medical staff. Who should we extend or trade? My opinions... Extend Bregman, Mayer and Anthony Trade a vet OF'er: As much as I view Duran as our 3rd or 4th best offensive weapon, I like Abreu, Rafaela & Anthony better. I also think Refsnyder, Jh Garcia and Campbell offer enough depth to cover for the loss of Duran. (My second choice would be Abreu.) Trade 2-3 mid level prospects, but this is tricky, since we should not just hand them away: I'm thinking Romero (blocked by Mayer, Campbell, Story and Arias, although Romero is closer to being ML ready than Arias) Bleis (blocked by Anthony, Garcia, Campbell and the vets, even if we trade Duran, we still have Rafaela, Abreu, Refsnyder and Masa) and Cespedes (has no true position, but is blocked by the same OF'ers and IF'er listed above) and a pitching prospect or two who could be added to a package that returns a better pitcher (maybe Mullins, Sandlin, Monegro, Uberstine, Wehunt or one of our very young and promising pitchers.) I'm just not sure their trade value is high enough to get back what we need. Trade Vets that will be free agents, after this year, which means we totally give up on 2025: Chapman, Wilson, Buehler, Giolito, Hendriks, Refsnyder and any vets who do not seem to fit into our future scheme. I doubt anyone wants Yoshida or Story at their costs, but maybe this winter, we can find a taker or just exchange salary dump contracts. Including a prospect or valuable vet in the deal may help, but dumping salary only works, if we spend the savings. trading guys like Houck, Crawford and Murphy probably don't bring back what we need and would risk another result that Sale exemplified, of course on a smaller scale. Trading DHam, Grissom, Weissert, Kelly, Guerrero and the like are not going to be difference-maker trades. Anyone have any better ideas?