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I know Arroyo had a minor hot streak last season, but I think the Sox should/will consider upgrading the slot and keeping Arroyo (and Munoz) on the team as depth, especially since both have experience at multiple positions. There are several available 2b options available in free agency who would be upgrades that don’t break the budget, including Hernandez, Villar and Schoop. And there may be others once the non-tenders become available...

I only heard Benintendi's name in that capacity...

I assumed they just had their friends pass notes at recess ..

Or a train reference...

I am not so sure Betts was the difference make in Boston that he was in LA. If the Dodgers' team leaders in IP last season were Martin Perez, Nathan Eovaldi, and Ryan Weber instead of Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May and Julio Urias, do you think they still win a title?

Wow. Then they are very close to a deal. I've never heard of a free agent contract falling apart once the negotiations went telepathic...

I did not know Devers came up in that deal, but I heard Benintendi did in place of Moncada. So if Devers was in the White Sox asking price, do we know if he was in place of Moncada or Kopech, or in addition to them?

Oh I think it is possible neither of them sees MLB this year. But even with their low ceilings, both still have more potential than the fungible pitching crowd the Sox used last season...

Yes, but he would still remain on the 40 man roster. The issue until ST is 40 man roster spots, not 26 man roster spots...

We really don't know what if any limitations Henry has put on the budget. but we do know he does on occasion allow it to get very high. And exactly how good was the foundation of the 2012 Red Sox? They had Pedroia, Ellsbury and Ortiz in the lineup, and Lester in the rotation. (And Lackey coming off TJ.) The starters expected back included Middlebrooks and Saltalamacchia. Thay had vacancies at 1B, SS, LF, and RF. The rotation lost Beckett and Aaron Cook. (Yes, Aaron Cook). And the best reliever was Junichi Tazawa, although Andrew Miller was pretty good, too. But this was not a team that looked one season away after the Gonzalez/Beckett trade.. The Sox did have Bogaerts, but the only other rookies of note that year were Iglesias, Workman and Bradley (although this was long before JBJ learned how to hit). The 2020 Red Sox arguably had a better lineup than the one that ended the 2012 season. And while Lester/Lackey was a formidable pair in front of the rotation, ERod/Sale can be one as well. This team definitely needs more pitching, but will also have fewer holes to fuill in the lineup, possibly just 2B and CF, and might be able to do so amidst a stretch where many MLB teams are not spending. THere is no reason to write off 2021 just yet. At least not until we see what Bloom actually does....

While it is only speculation, DD's history certainly does indicate it was strongly possible. While we do know he did not trade Devers, what we don't know is if he tried to. I would not be surprised if Devers name came up a few times...

I'm not as down on Chatham and Aybar as you seem to be. Chatham might not have a high ceiling, but he at least has some MLB potetnial and all his options left. Aybar is young and relatively new to pitching and deserves more of a shot than a lot of the fungible crowd that the Sox used this season, many of whom have had multiple opportunities already. Wilson does strike me as a guy with a 4th outfielder ceiling, and likely not even to reach that. Arauz is a bit redundant, but at least has the "very young" qualification that should buy him some time. Not sure why the Phillies were so down on Grullion, especially with Realmuto in his last season and their fairly barren organizational catching depth. Grullion might be nothing special, but he still might have been the second best catcher in the entire system above A ball (behind Realmuto)...

The Blue Jays and George Springer are reportedly "beyond talking" about a deal. No one seems to have any idea what this means. Foreplay, maybe? Are they under his jersey?

Mazza might not be so secure either. He might have been the best of the Reclamation Project Pitchers from last year, but he was still a reclamation project. If Weber can clear waivers untouched, Mazza stands a good chance to as well. And Valdez looks fairly borderline to me. He did outpitch his peripherals last year...

The Sox really did not have the chance to have Price for $16mill per year. Keeping him meant he was on the books for $31mill/year. In his last 2 seasons, Price threw 283 IP and was worth 4.7 fWAR. In 2019 alone, Morton was worth 6.1 fWAR in 194 IP. Now Morton is 2 years older, but if he is only worth $15mill/yr, Price is not worth anywhere near $31mill year anymore. and if Price continues his trend of being a 2.3-2.5 fWAR pitcher, it was time to unload what the Sox could get. In that time frame, he has been worth fewer fWAR than several current free agents, including not only Bauer, but also Jake Oridizzi, Mike Minor (who just signed with KC for 2 years at an undisclosed amount), Jose Quintana, James Paxton, Corey Kluber, and Masahiro Tanaka along with Morton, and just 0.1 fWAR more than Jon Lester. He's also posted fewer fWAR than several reportedly available pitchers including Joe Musgrove, Jon Gray and Matthew Boyd and barely ahead of Jameson Taillon and non-tender candidate Reynaldo Lopez. Price's deal is replaceable at this stage of his career...

Mike Minor is off the board. Bound for Kansas City...

I’ve always linked Rizzo with Jed Hoyer. Hoyer was with the Sox when he was drafted, and was the GM in both San Diego and the Cubs when each team acquired Rizzo. Could be a coincidence, but they were my thoughts at the time...

So you think 2017, a season in which Price made 11 starts and threw 74 IP, should count for one in which he “stayed healthy and pitched well?” 2017 was the season that ruined his Red Sox contract..

And you're only using the people already in-house. They hired Ron Roenicke to take a beating. They fired Roenicke, so the beating is over. They reset, and used it as a marketing tool. That means additions. No idea who (although I have theories and wish lists), but there should be some improvements to this team. Thy might not (likely won't) win a WS title in 2021, but I expect a markedly improved team, one that is at the very least, still playing for post-season games in September (assuming 162 game schedule)...

If Price had been able to stay healthy and pitch well for a two season stretch, he might never have been included in the first place...

Downs and Vazquez head the list...

Why can’t they become competitive in one year? The Sox have gone from “worst to first” TWICE in the past 8 years...

Not at all. In that movie set in the old West, Clint Eastwood gets revenge on the lynch mob that tried to hang him by trading them to the Dodgers, thus resetting the tax...

Well, not one we wanted to keep anyway...

The thing is, fans and the media always say things like a team is “1-2 away from competing” and I have no idea why. Nearly every team in MLB will win at least 40% of their games and less than 60% of their games, and the teams that fall outside that range don’t do so by much. So any team can become competitive in one season if they make the right moves. None of them are really that far removed from it. And in some cases, the most limiting factor isn’t what you have or need, just how much you can spend...