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That's been my point much of this offseason. I do think they are not done. Obviously any pending move with Sawamura would indicate as much. And they need to resolve an OF issue one way or another. But there is no denying Tampa has taken steps back replacing Blake Snell and Charlie Morton with Chris Archer and Michael Wacha. Toronto has improved their pitching, but by how much? The only real newcomers are Kirby Yates and Steve Matz. And the Orioles insist on using a rotation with John Means and a slew of players most people have never heard of. I think they're recruiting pitchers using the same method the court system uses to find jurors. You get a letter in the mail telling you to report to Camden Yards on a certain day, and then you go out there and pitch. The big problem with the "everyone else is cutting back" logic is it allows teams to also think "Well, i everyone else is cutting costs, I can dial back my own spending and still compete" (which is to goal of every GM - make the best team possible for the least amount of money). Until the Arenado trade, the entire NL Central was operating on this logic...

Being that close still makes him a better option than Kyle Hart. But then, I think I'd prefer to see Kevin Hart out there on the mound over Kyle Hart...

While the Sox were among the league leaders in blown saves that year, the overwhelming bulk of them came in the 6th, 7th and 8th innings. Workman was actually extremely solid in the 9th inning role. Didn't he come close to setting the MLB record for consecutive hitters retired that year? Setup seemed to be a bigger issue than closer...

If we get down to needing Kevin Hart, the season is over. Hopefully the Sox will employ the opener strategy if it gets to that point. Or promote Thad Ward or Frank German...

Or Uxbridge, MA native Tim Fortugno, who was was once traded by Philly to Milwaukee for an actual bucket of baseballs, and then went of to give up George Brett's 3,000th career hit (and then picked him off first base). B-R.com lists the transaction as "Purchased by the Milwaukee Brewers. He was "purchased" for $2,500 and 12 dozen baseballs." That actually happened...

The biggest difference between the 2019 team and the 2021 team are the 2019 had Chris sale and David Price. But as this was not exactly vintage Sale (147 IP, 4.40 ERA) nor vintage Price (107 IP, 4.28 ERA), it is not that difficult to imagine those numbers being replicated or exceeded by Richards and Perez. That bullpen also relied heavily on Colten Brewer and Marcus Walden, two pitchers who will have to earn their way back on to the 2021 team. And this could get even more difficult if/when the Sox sign Sawamura. Replacing Mookie with Verdugo is a loss, but replacing Holt with EHern should be a gain. Its not hard to see Devers as being better, despite his brillaint 2019 season. but more important is the AL East competition. Are the Rays (25.1 fWAR) still the best pitching staff in the AL, like they were in 2019? Are the Yankees still a top 10 pitching staff, especially considering the durability of their starters? The Jays' staff should be better, but that does not mean they are good. Those 3 teams account for over 1/3 of the Sox opponents in 2021. That said, any of these teams could still improve substantially if they choose to spend on some of the remaining arms. But then so could Boston...

Jeff Passan has written numerous articles on MLB's archaic blackout restrictions. It's ridiculous that people who live in El Paso - a scant 9 hour drive from Arlington - can have Ranger games blacked out because they would stubbornly refuse to purchase tickets. I agree with him 100% when he says "MLB has a good product and they should not go to such lengths to prevent people from seeing it."

Immigrants? Visa applicants taking American jobs?

And 7 of MLBTR's top 50 are still unsigned, all of them pitchers. Six starters and Mark Melancon...

I think he should start there and stay there. He is much more likely to be an effective bullpen arm than starter anyway...

The only reason I can see to include Daisuke was that BA did list him as the #1 overall prospect despite his already having had a very successful professional career overseas. I do think BA needs to stop including Japanese imports as "prospects"...

Exactly. The minors have been recast before and will be again. The overwhelming bulk of minor leaguers never make the majors anyway and the goal is only to find the best 26 to make a team. And for a large market team that spends heavily, the effect will be even less than it will for a team like Tampa or Pittsburgh that has less resources...

And held them to the same standard?

This is neither new nor tragic. The bottom line is only 750 people get to play in MLB at a time. And unless/until more teams are added,vthat's not changing and the goal is to be one of the 750. The most likely outcome of some reduced minor leagues is actually fewer carer minor leaguers...

Just like other leagues. you can have undrafted free agents. Some will go play overseas and try to establish themselves...

With about 100 unsigned players, there can be a lot of changes...

Early 70's team that saw Rice, Lynn, Evans, Fisk, and Burleson all come up within a few seasons of each other?

It is a tough division, with them playing 57 games against New York, Tampa and Toronto. But I still think 83-87 seems reasonable...

I don't think so. I think that most HS kids don't fret over Rookie Ball when they sign. Probably never enters their minds that they will be playing that level. What might happen is the draft rounds cut again. No more 40 rounds, and certainly no more guys like Mike Piazza getting taken in the 62nd round. Maybe they cut the draft to 20 rounds?

Even college players play in the minors. The only players even recently to jump from college to the pros have almost exclusively been relief pitchers (and Mike Leake and Ryan Zimmerman). I atually think non-RP used to jump from college directly to MLB a little more often, back wen players like Ventura and Incaviglia did so...

They also need to get the truck there...

It's Jose Peraza money. So, yes...

Last year the sox SP who got the most starts were (in order) Perez, Eovaldi, Godley, Mazza and Weber. They also got multiple starts from Brewer, Hart, Kickham and Triggs. Those pitchers I just named started 29 out of 60 games. The Sox also used Brasier, Brice, Osich, Hall and Leyer for another five starts, making it well over half the season. Granted, Perez and Eovaldi are reprising their starter roles, but replacing all those other AAAA arms with actual MLB arms does make for an improvement. I am hoping this team can be a competitive team that at least is still interesting in September. They still have one of the highest payrolls in MLB, so I doubt anyone expensive gets added. but this is defintely a better team that last year's mess...

Yes and that offense should be better, but the Sox bullpen should fare better against the Jays' lineup than the Jays' bullpen would do against the Sox lineup..

Well, don't forget that Eduardo Rodriguez guy. And eventually that Chris Sale guy. I don't think he's done, either. The OF is still a question mark, and I don't think anyone tagged Renfore as a starter, given that he only paid him $3mill. That's utility infielder money. I assume the Sox will add an OF at some point in the next week or two...