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I don’t remember anyone saying we need to keep them both. But no one was happy the only replacement the Sox got was Colten Brewer...

A Boggs hater?!?! For shame. How can you hate the man who starred in the SyFy original movie “Swamp Shark”?

Won’t happen. As Bellhorn said, they’re going with launch. 30 home runs translates into more money than 30 bunt singles...

I can only think of two MLB players who walked away from guaranteed deals, and both walked away from only one year. Dempster and Gil Meche. So while it has happened, it’s incredibly unlikely. It’s also possible Pedroia doesn’t think he’s done and will constantly be working towards a comeback. That seems more likely to me, although it’s not like I know him personally...

Ty Buttrey stepped right into the Angels’ bullpen and became an impact pitcher. The Sox also need a SP. Don’t you think Kopech or Logan Allen could fill that role? And of all the other trades, only Manny Margot is 25. Saying “none of them were impact players, so it was ok to deal them” is actually a reason to deal Dalbec. Bear in mind, he is older than Moncada, Kopech, Guerra, Allen, and Espinoza and done as much or less in MLB than all of them. And Margot is only 9 months older than Dalbec...

True but Chavis’ OBP was .322 in 382 PA. Middlebrooks never topped .280 in any season with that many plate appearances...

Yes, but it’s not necessarily the best use of a player whose best asset is his defense. His arm would play well in RF, but I don’t know how well his overall defense would be out there. His biggest question mark will be his bat, and by putting him at 1b - the easiest defensive position - aren’t the Sox counting on him to be a hitter?

So... the entire time the farm system was ranked last, you insisted it was fine. Niw it’s improving and you call it “extremely weak.” The real issue with the Sox farm system right now is it looks like the most MLB-ready player is a 3b, and the most likely openings for a rookie will be in 1b, 2b, CF, or RF, along with SP and RP. So unless Dalbec can handle RF, or Devers moves to 1b, are you saying the Sox should just hold on to Dalbec and leave him in Pawtucket just for the sake of having one better prospect?

Maybe he is trying to impress Jenny Dell? Also cut Chavis some slack. He walks about twice as often as Middlebrooks did...

He spent 8 years as a scout for the Sox, most of it as an advance scout...

Dodgers are in BIG trouble now. Queue up the new Sox GM to solicit offers for Mookie...

Strasburg better settle down in that case...

This isn’t like unloading 4 prospects for the highest paid closer in the game and paying all the freight. It’s one blocked prospect. Look at the Kimbrel deal. Arguably only Margot was blocked, since he was almost in MLB and Bradley had 4 years left. Guerra really wasn’t, since he could have potentially arrived in MLB this year, which, before the extension, was due to be Bogaerts’ last. And Logan Allen, as a pitcher, was never blocked. Pitchers just never are.

Really one of two options. 1. Move Devers to 1b. 2. Trade Dalbec, preferably for a SP or outfielder. Either work for me. Much better than the “don’t trade him because he is a prospect. Make him waste away in Pawtucket instead” mentality. It seems simple to me. Accommodate him or move him...

Well, if Dalbec is traded for a full price overpaid veteran, yes. That would be dumb (depending on who it is). But if he is dealt for an equally talented minimum wage player who happens to play a position the Sox need, it’s not a bad idea at all....

This Pedroia thing has been beaten to death. He isn’t retiring and the Sox will have to deal with spending a mere $194 million instead of $208mill. It happens. Texas has the same thing with Prince Fielder’s contract. Personally I’d rather Price retired...

Prediction: Foltyniewicz has pitched his last game as a Brave...

Chavis is certainly a good start towards getting Buxton. The rest are crap. A Chavis-Houck package should intrigue MN, but I’d be hesitant if I were Boston and I’d rather hold on to my pitching prospects...

I don't think the CBA would allow this. It has a specific clause about trying to circumvent the luxury tax with contracts and negotiations. And if the plan is to give him the same money over more years, it's probably not even a wise move. Just leave it as is and let it expire as soon as possible rather than making it an issue over the next 10 or whatever seasons...

Per baseballtradevalues,com, Byron Buxton is worth $21.8mill in surplus trade values. Using their method, the Sox could get him by dealing either Dalbec ($17.5mill) or Chavis ($17.7mill), paired with one of Tanner Houck ($4.8mill), Groome ($4.3mill), Antonio Flores (($3.7mill) or maybe Nick Decker ($3.6mill). Depending on whether or not the Twins even like any of those prospects. But yes - Buxton is an amazing defensive CF. Agree there...

I don't agree with your budget estimates. Per sportsrac, the Sox have about $56mill before the first limit. The arb cases for Betts, Benintendi, ERod, Barnes, and Workman should tally in lose to about $45-50mill, leaving JBJ ($10-12mill) on the outside looking in (as you have him). That leaves te Sox with about $6-11mill total to spend. Not much for getting a rotation piece and bullpen help and a CF and RF. The budget might go up a little if JD opts out and re-signs at a lower AAV, but that would increase it by maybe $6mill at most. I don't see squeezing in Odrizzi and Betances. Unless the Sox disregard the limit, and it is not etched in stone that they will stick to it. I will say, I don;t think Henry minds paying $X million in luxury taxes, if it leads to him making $X+Ymillion in revenue...

Also, Benintendi is 10th in fWAR for left fielders over the past 3 seasons, and that was after a down year in 2019. He's hardly some worthless corner outfielder who needs to bulk up his value. He plans to lose some weight, and get back to being a 3-3.5 fWAR player. Also, not sure how the plan of putting him in the middle of the order was going to add .100 OPS points...

This would all be a massive overreaction. I get why they would deal Betts, but the idea should be bring him back after one year, which means they need a tea to bring him back to. If he is set on testing the market, Boston has a strong history of making competitive offers to free agents. Cincinnati is one possibility, but I wouldn't rule out the Mets. And I think the most likely targets are San Diego (where the CEO has promised "heads will roll" if the team has another embarrassing season, and the Braves. Both alo have much, much stronger farms than Cincy, and Luis Patino is a better trade target than Hunter Greene. (The Padres also have a massive 40-man roster crunch, and the deal could be expanded to include some of the prospects needing protection for some of the Sox who do not.) I get dealing Walden, but honestly, a 30yo career journeyman even with a low salary and a lot of control isn't likely to bring back much else besides another career journeyman. If the Sox dealt him for, say, Brian Goodwin, that's about the limit of his appeal. I do agree it is not likely JBJ is back. I think it is more likely Rusney Castillo is in the Sox OF next year, but I wouldn't bank on that, either. JDM isn't likel;y to opt out, and if he does, it gives the Sox about $78mill to spend before reaching the tax limit. With very little else is the way of appealing hitters on the FA market, the only thing more surprising than Martinez opting out would be the Red Sox not bidding heavily to bring him back anyway, and probably at a lower AAV (although with another year or two tacked on). Also, the buzz in Chicago is that Abreu and the White Sox have mutual interest in getting something done. I don't see Barnes as a "sell low" and I don't think GMs view players that way anymore, especially not players under 30. Barnes is a 1-1.5 fWAR relief pitcher with 2 years of control left, and there is a lot of value in that. He ranks 22nd in MLB in fWAR over the past 3 years among all relief pitchers, and third among all relief pitchers with 5 or fewer saves. So as non-closers go, only Chad Green and Yusmeiro Petit (who is always criminally undervalued) have been better. If the Sox deal Betts, Barnes salary, which might be $2-3mill, is hardy an obstacle and he can easily be retained if no one meets an asking price. The Sox are NOT going into some stupid full scale rebuild. They cannot afford to, and have too much money on the books for the next few seasons. They will try to be competitive next season, despite what Yankee fans want...

Please no platoons where players swap positions. I could see Dalbec at 3b, Bogaerts at SS, and Devers at 1b, with Lin or Hernandez playing 2b and Chavis as the supersub at 1b, 2b and 3b. And he might even see time in LF or RF. The Sox are definitely going to need some minimum wage players on the 25 man roster, and hopefully none of them are named Ockimey or Travis...

Was that because he was trying to rebuild the farm or because nobody would give up the player(s) DD was targeting for anyone in the Sox system?