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There is no reason to bring Gorkys Hernandez back. None whatsoever

Why is Weber still here?

I remember when the BABIP-fueled Ciriaco was the Shortstop Of The Future. Turns out in this case, the future meant "the next 6 days."...

If the Sox protect 6 players, they cannot make a selection. They might leave spot open if there is a player Bloom likes. No one wanted Ockimey last year. He did improve a bit this year by taking a lot more walks and showed more power (aided by the Manfred Missile), but I am not so sure how many team want him on the MLB roster all season. Although they could select him and work something out...

So 8am Tokyo time?

I think the biggest factor will be who else is in the lineup. As of now, the team is incomplete. When the Sox had Ortiz and AGon, they had to get creative to get both bats in the lineup in NL road games. But this team right now has no such problem. The internal candidates at 1b are Chavis and maybe Dalbec, and benching either for 9 games doesn't look like a big issue. In the outfield, Bradley is reportedly gone, so there is a huge question mark in CF. If Betts is also gone, that doubles the questions. The Sox don't have much in the way of internal solutions - Durran, Wilson and maybe (but probably not) Castillo. And the only external name mentioned so far (Jake Marisnick) doesn't represent a massive change in this status. If any of them were benched to put JD in the outfield for 9 games, I don't see that being a major issue. Even a worst case outfield of Martinez-Benintedi-Betts might have defensive issues, but that hardly guarantees losses every time they send them out there. If JD plays the field in NL road games, where he plays is likely to be determined by whoever fills out the outfield and who winds up holding down 1b...

The big issue with his early years was a lack of anyone behind him. From 1998 thru 2001, the only starting pitchers besides Pedro to throw over 140 IP were Mark Portugal and Pat Rapp, both in 1998. Yay! Such quality arms. Remember the days of "Portugal and Rapp make the rotation crap." It wan't until 2002, when the Sox converted Lowe, added Burkett, and stopped moving Wakefield around that they had a true starting rotation capable of not only pitching well but also eating a lot of innings...

Actually in those days, a players service clock did not start if he was called up in September. Now, a September call-up does get service time...

Adams doesn't spund like he would garner much interest. Baseballtradevalues.com gives these players the following surplus values: Adams: $0 Cortes: $0 Tarpley: $1.1mill The trio together don't project to be worth all that much. Basically every team in MLB has 3 pitchers like them already. If the Yankees want, say, Jon Gray, who would be a great target for them, that site says the Yankees would need to give up a package of Deivi Garcia and Clarke Schmidt. If the Rockies have interest in Cliff Frazier for some unknown reason, that would certainly work out better for the Yankees...

Excellent call. And a horrible omission on my part. Pedro was a significant factor in winning a title in Boston. Surprisingly, only one...

One of which was a bit unfair, as he inherited a talented mess and forced to hire a talent-less mess to manage them And his final last place team (78 wins) wasn't that much worse than the 2019 team (84 wins)...

Along with 28 pther MLB GMs. Only the Braves are making moves. Free agents signed by the Braves: 4 Free agents signed by the rest of MLB: 3, two of whom really just accepted Qualifying Offers.

If you look at al the Hall of Famers who played for the Red Sox over the years - Williams, Yastrzemski, Rice, Doerr, Fisk, Boggs, Eckersley, Cronin - none of them ever won a World Series while playing in Boston. If Betts makes it to Cooperstown, he would be the first Hall of Famer who won a World Series as a member of the Red Sox since Babe Ruth in 1918. (Or the second, once Ortiz gets enshrined.) I like having great players, but it's not always a recipe for success. Other than Ortiz, is there anyone else from the 2004, 2007, 2013, and 2018 teams that look like a surefire HOF candidate? Manny would be one but the steroid legacy might have drastic implications...

That would be a Cora Problem, not a Red Sox Problem...

Today is the deadline for having a final 40 man roster for the Rule 5 draft. The Red Sox have 6 open spots on their 40 man. I expect some names added, and there will likely be trades around the league. With Tampa having a 40 man roster crunch, I expect Bloom to make a trade with them for a prospect or two he is familiar with. (One of there borderline prospects for protection is a shortstop named Lucius Fox, which is a name that should appeal to fans of Batman movies.) San Diego is in a similar spot with too many good prospects and not enough room to protect them..,

I think he is a very underrated sports executive. The guy has been part of the front office for numerous championship teams in multiple sports. He’s just not very likable...

Yes, but I’ve seen 4 titles now. It’s not that I’m done, but I do want a reason to watch all season long every year. If the Sox lose in the postseason, I’m usually more bothered by the suddenness of the season ending than by the fact that there will be no parade...

He might take flak, but he unquestionably did it. It’s not like a Lucchino situation where everyone hates him for stuff they assume he did...

Nomar couldn’t stay healthy. He was a big name wrapped in bandages. Cabrera was allegedly a horrible human being whose skill at baseball was just not enough to eclipse his acts of selfishness...

Google is our all-knowing Dark Overlord...

Nomar was a walking tribute to OCD, no doubt. He was like a little nervous version of Robin Yount up there...

It’s not an apples to apples comparison if you compare aging Nomar to 26yo Betts. Before turning 29, Nomar was on an HOF fast track himself with numbers bearing a striking similarity to Robin Yount’s. I think there was a time when we also looked at Nomar as Red Sox Rushmore potential. But it just faded so fast with the injuries, and he fell so far. I wouldn’t separate the two by much. Nomar just had so many ungodly games, and I believe still has the team hitting streak record. Remember in the postseason Schourek game. Nomar’s HR off Bartolommeo Colon was the lead Schourek was protecting and Gordon couldn’t hold...

If you asked me that in 2003, I take the latter. But asking me now, I might consider the former. It’s close...

I haven’t seen anything...

Will Bloom do something tonight? The Rule 5 Draft is tomorrow. The Sox have 6 open spaces on their 40 man roster. The have plenty of room. It’s not uncommon to deal for players about this time of the other team cannot squeeze him or them on to their own 40. It’s how the Sox got Colten Brewer last year... The Padres and Rays both have quality prospects they have to leave unprotected. Will Bloom spring a deal?