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They're all into Squid Game right now..

But he didn't go drop $18mill on a closer!!!

It is possible that a roster spot can be considered a "hole" despite having a player occupying said role. JBJ has been frequently called such by a lot of fans. Chavis always really deserved that title as well. You listed Ryan Weber, for example. I would argue all day that is a hole in the roster right there...

Umpire discretion as to whether or not the batter offered at the pitch. Some check swings involve a batter spinning out of the way of a pitching riding up and in on them. If you make a "head of the bat breaks the plane of the plate" rule, some of those might be considered swings and therefore strikes. Does that make sense?

But they shouldn't. There are no rules to determine a swing beyond "an offering at any pitch that is not a bunt." Giving the robot umps that type of power would necessitate a rule change. The job of the umpires is to interpret and enforce the rules, not to write them...

And how many blank checkbooks has he been handed? Don't forget when he took over, the Sox had some $300 million tied up in Price, Sale and Eovladi, and the oft-injured Eovaldi was looking like the healthiest of the three. Not to mention the whole Betts situation, where he was reportedly adamant aboiut not signing any extension that didn't break some sort of record. And after all that, there were still 21 (now 22) other roster spots to fill. And all this for a team that won 84 games and missed the post-season. (And was only 6 games better than Cherington's last place 2015 team.) Was he supposed to keep pumping money into it and hope it all somehow came together? Not to mention, the whole narrative of "he has only managed small market teams and doesn't know how to manage big ones" is patently false. Not one small market GM in MLB history has gone to a large market team and kept his small market budget (without being told to do so). When Dan Duquette came over from Montreal, did he keep spending like he still ran the Expos? (If anything, one could argue that what Duquette did not know how to do was spend responsibly.)

There probably are, but the main reason to not bring the technology in is there re no clear rules defining a check swing. The Wilmer Flores check swing that obviously inspired all this was, unfortunately, not an incorrect call per the rules. But that doesn't mean MLB shouldn't embrace technology for other aspects. They already employ instant replay, and while they do misuse it IMO sometimes (primarily reviewing slides into bases to see if the runner eer broke contact with the base), they otherwise do use it to fix a lot of otherwise bad calls. Unlike in the NFL, however, a lot of MLB calls being retroactively changed via instant replay just don't work in MLB, mostly because of where to put baserunners. Thats why fair/foul calls are limited to home runs. So before we go using slippery slope arguments, MLB and other port have implemented technology to ensure proper officiating calls are made at a higher rate. Have any of these implementations lead to slippery slope situations?

I think the idea of signing someone like Baez or Semien is a saeguard against Bogaert opting out, which makes sense as he is very likely to. However, there still does remain the extremely slim possibility that he doesn't, and the more possible scenario that he extends. If they eschew looking at major investments in middle infielders, I can understand that. I would have zero problem with the Sox gong forward with Bogaerts and doing whatever it takes to maintain that status quo beyond 2022. Get a 2B who is more durable than Arroyo, and give Jeter Downs another year in Pawtucket to bounce back...

I do have my doubts they go all in for for Schwarber, Baez and Stroman, who could tack on an annual AAV of $60 mill or so. I think the best case scenario might be Stroman and one of the two. Of course, a lot depends on how Bloom evaluates Stroman vs other FA options...

Stop ruining his Tampa Rays North Conspiracy Theory!!!

Yes I think slippery slope arguments are the way to go here…

It's ridiculously difficult. No other sport has any official, referee or judge who has to to what an umpire calling balls and strikes does. As I have said before the job entails deciding if a rapidly moving projectile touches any part of an invisible box. It makes a ton of sense to help them along...

So… rewrite the rule book? Newsflash - they use custom strike zones for every player now, which is why pitches at Jose Altuve’s eyeball level are still strikes to Aaron Judge…

But for those type, we need a new thread called “A Fantasy Look at 2022 - Part I”…

Is this supposed to be a serious question? Why are you assuming this has to be all manual? We have software and apps like M Tailor and Sizer and TailorGuide that can use your camera on your phone to measure you for custom fit pants! Pretty certain the same idea can be used to make a strike zone for a hitter…

If we were able to use software to make a realistic looking velociraptor in 1996 and also use software to put Peter Cushing in a movie some 20 years after he died, I think we can write some software that finds a batters knees...

Spin rate is down for a lot of pitchers. It wouldn't surprise me if Folty was Spidering up the ball. But a lot of pitchers on the market will be. Like I said, at best he is a candidate for MiLB contract. I would have no problems with that...

Brantley's OPS vs RHP was .924. His OPS vs LHP was .575. I can see choosing Perez here...

To face Brantley, who had a .575 OPS v LHP this year. Taylor had already pitched, and Darwinzon Hernandez and his haphazard control is not the best solution with the bases loaded...

Probably why we don't have your kids head out to the mound and brush their teeth during close games...

Or any other MLB game, for that matter...

Not even Brasier?

I got the Eovaldi move. If he needed to go 3 or 4 innings, he was the guy to save the bullpen like he did in 2018. And if they won, the 3-1 would have been a massive difference.

I doubt it. The Sox bullpen didn't put in anywhere near the innings the Astros bullpen did. If anyone needs to go 6 tonight, it's Framber Valdez...

Have they turned tio slop or are they just not being set up the same with the reduced velocity on his fastball? At best, he is a minor league contract candidate anyway..