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Bogaerts hired Scott Boras to represent him, knowing full well that Boras' primary tactics are to get to free agency and then ask for lots and lots of money. That's how Boras operates. I know it. You know it. And certainly Bogaerts knows it. I do not think any of us knows Bogaerts well enough to know where money falls on his list, but we do know he hired Boras to be his agent, so it is certainly a priority for him on some level. If Bogaerts had any interest in a cheaper deal, there would have been no need for the opt out clause, which was absolutely not put in there so that he could take less money instead of reaching free agency at age 29. If Bogaerts extends, it will be or money similar to what Correa/Seager/Baez/etc. will be getting this off-season. And all of them will be benchmarking something in the neighborhood of Francisco Lindor's extension (10 years $341mill). They won't all get it, and maybe none will, but that will be the starting point. The most likely bargain of the bunch is probably Baez, who is the same age as Bogaerts and started the season off struggling heavily (although he has been flat out thumping since being dealt). But his right-handed pop bat would play well in Fenway and he does bring extremely strong defensive play that you just don't get from Bogaerts...

Duran over Verdugo?

Because he is very likely to opt out of his contract after 2022. And this is the ideal off-season to find a replacement shortstop with Correa, Baez, Story, Seager, Crawford, and Simmons all reaching free agency...

That’s a pretty weak thing for the Mariners to complain about. They knew where Seattle was when they put the team there…

I seriously doubt Bloom would trade Devers simply because a better team has some platoon at 3b. If Devers does get dealt, the most likely cause is his refusal to sign an extension…

And THAT is what happens when you’re facing the heart of the order but don’t play “no extra base hits” with your outfield. Bad non-call by Cora…

AKA 10-9 with 0 starts from Chris Sale…

It suggests to me that the last two games were against a LHP to start. He did not start Tuesday against Rasmussen, which he shouldn’t have after his awful Monday. But Wednesday and Friday were against McClanahan and Rodon, both southpaws…

Did you know the Sox won the season series vs the Jays this year?

I’m rapidly boarding the Dalbec Train. Dalbec has a career OPS of .823 in MLB. Casas has an OPS of .885 in AA. It’s not time to trade Casas and dedicate 1b solely to Dalbec, but I think it buys Dalbec some time and keeps Casas in the minors a bit longer…

I think those are very reasonable expectations. Acquiring said impact starter is naturally very difficult, but not impossible. Thoughts on Richards?

Story does post stellar defensive metrics at SS and is probably worth keeping there. There have been some longstanding rumors that the Rangers will go heavily after Irving, Texas native Trevor Story…

Your auto correct was apparently no fan of Blake Swihart…

Someone is a bit overprotective about Duran. I don’t recall being called out the other day for saying Verdugo was safe from COVID because even if he was exposed, he’d just misplay it…

Aaron Boone wouldn’t cure you. He’d leave the virus in too long until it gave up the lead…

Relax. He was just resting the bullpen…

Back to the present, if the Sox did acquire Montas (whom Oakland is likely to move due to the large amount of arbitration-eligible players this winter), they could keep Iglesias and maybe bring back JB Wendelken, reuniting all the survivors from a midseason trade made 9 years previous…

They are helped by never having to face Vlad Jr…

I actually didn’t think Senzel was that fast or threw similar to Duran. But then he rarely gets into games because he can get injured by the mere act of being added to a lineup…

It might actually be true. There aren’t many in MLB faster than Duran. The one guy who leaps to mind is Jorge Mateo, but he has a cannon for an arm…

Actually at the time they acquired Peavy, Workman was in the rotation. But having Peavy in the postseason pushed Doubront into the pen where he pitched quite well in limited action…

Maybe Duran should just run the ball back to the infield. His running speed and throwing speed are probably closer together than any other player in the majors...

I don't think so. They needed an arm badly. If for no other reason than to bump Doubront out of the rotation...

I agree. BTV right now has Verdugo with a higher surplus value. But after this year, he is eligible for arbitration, so I would expect that to drop as he will be making more money. Duran, as the minimum wage player, will have a stronger appeal around the league. I still think a Duran/Montas swap is possible. But Dave Forst is not answering my texts right now...

I love that lineup offensively, but there should be no arguing that it is much worse defensively...