notin

Which begs the question - if the plan is to release him, why haven’t they? His appeal has already been denied. And they could free up his entire salary instead of just half of it...

Cashman probably has. Judge should pass hard on 4/$60. His 3 arb years alone are likely to net him close to $60mill.... Also, why only buy out the arb years? If the Yankees at least went 5/$90mill, they could delay his free agency with an offer he shouldn’t refuse and it could be signed today...

And that’s why we didn’t acquire Sonny Gray. We knew he couldn’t handle throwing all those sliders at home...

JBJ will have stellar offensive numbers this year...

Yes. And we know he didn’t learn his lesson after the first two, hence the third. We don’t know yet if he learned his lesson after the third suspension....

And they know Steven Wright’s? Mejia’s backstory was summed up in every article when Boston signed him and was the rare player described using the words “lifetime suspension.” Wright is just another athlete with PED issues. His domestic issue last year was barely covered outside of Boston...

Is Wright a bigger PR problem than Mejia? Bear in mind, on a team that needs a closer, Mejia is the career saves leader. He might have been brought in with hopes of filling an important high profile role. And this is a guy who got suspended twice and still didn’t learn his lesson...

When? Opening day is 3 weeks away...

I still don’t think he gets released. He is still here after all, and he was reportedly a key in the future bullpen plans...

After his age 26 season, Blake Swihart has had 597 plate appearances and an OPS+ of 82. After his age 26 season, Jason Varitek had 248 plate appearances and an OPS+ of 85. While stardom is probably out of reach for Swihart, it also might be early to be talking “salvage” as well...

I don’t think the Sox are going to release Wright for this. This is the team that signed Jenrry Mejia after all...

Well then, if you don’t hate anybody I think I like you a lot less

They might have insisted he throw more sliders at home to help keep the ball in that little bandbox...

You hate everybody. That’s what I like about you...

Lakins is one candidate. Tapia has looked good so fart, too. But he would have to be added to the 40-man roster. I believe the Sox do have one spot remaining...

The name of that team is the Fighters. But yes, Ham Fighters does sound too awesome to ignore...

I’d rather have Betts than all of that mediocrity combined. Whether you like fWAR or not, it’s a good way to discuss the impact of a player. Betts is worth about 8 wins per season. A player giving half of that - about 4 wins per season - is going to cost half of that Betts. Betts has been worth 24 fWAR in the past 3 years. Lorenzo Cain has been worth 12. Cain costs $16mill AAV last year, alittlr under half of Betts’ guesstimated salary. A 10/11 win pitcher is a little vague, but a value of 2.7 fWAR is a good estimate if he throws about 180 IP. Mike Leake (also $16mill AAV) is a good example here Roll fillers are cheap and provide little if any value. Brock Holt is probably one of the most valuable, giving a ful win above replacement annually. His pre-arb salary is low and his FA cost is TBD. Let’s say it’s $5mill AAV. Bullpen help is nice, but costly on the free agent market. Cody Allen just got $8mill and looks like a bargain (that’s setup reliever money nowadays). He’s picallly worth about 1 fWAR per season. So if it comes down to spending $35mill for Betts and 8fWAR or $45mill for Cain, Allen, Leake and Holt and getting 8.7 fWAR, which looks like the better deal? I think the Sox can make up the extra 0.7 fWAR with $10mill. Now Betts does carry other concerns like length of deal, injuries, drop in production, etc. inherent to putting all your eggs in one basket. But I still take him in that case...

They’re already picking last anyway. And the really obvious impact players are usually gone in the top 5 or 6 picks...

Lin is clearly the Jeff Bailey Award favorite, but even if Pedroia starts on the DL, Swihart definitely and possibly even Chavis are ahead of Lin...

Brag about being paid $330million...

It’s like he was in denial they’d ever find out.

If he told them when it happened, he might have been non- tendered...

It’s a really, really safe bet John Henry cares about taxes. He didn’t get to be a billionaire by paying too much for everything ...

The Sox, along with fellow normal big spenders LA, NY, and Chicago, appear to be trying to avoid long term heavy deals that don’t involve their core players. DD isn’t just thinking about 2019 and “back to back.” He’s also thinking about 2020 and beyond and making sure he keeps as many of Betts, Bogaerts, Sale, Martinez, and maybe another name or two as possible. I don’t think he views Kimbrel as part of that core. That means any big deal for Kimbrel gets in the way of keeping that core...

I have no idea what Thornburg has left, but Dombrowski did sign him after the season to avoid arbitration. The Sox probably start the season with 7 relievers. But the only guarantees right now seem to be Barnes, Brasier, Hembree, Workman and Johnson. Thornburg should grab one of the last two spots, but that’s not guaranteed. The other options on the 40-man include Poyner, Brewer, Lakins, and the distant possibility of Hernandez. Some of the NRI players are certainly trying to impress. At his relatively low salary, I think Thornburg does get a shot. DD has shown he has no problem releasing players making much more...