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Britton only gave them 25 IP...

Cora is the one making the call. He fills out the lineup card. It doesn't matter if Sale says "I want Sandy" or not. Cora still makes out the lineup. He can put Holt behind the plate if he wants to. Why are you blaming the pitchers here?

I doubt we miss Buttrey all that much. Hr's the type of fringe talent found in every orgnization...

Cleveland isn't offering him a QO, which means they fear he would accept it...

There are reasons to do that and reasons not to. The primary reason not to is if he might not want to convert to closer and this suggestion makes him sign elsewhere. The idea of converting a starter to closer is certainly not a bad one. in fact, most closers were starters at one point, including Mariano Rivera (8 starts, 50 IP, 3-3, 5.94). I've suggested two other candidates for that, in Garrett Richards and Matt Harvey...

No one has said the Sox shouldn't get an experienced closer. Except Dombrowski, who suggested they might try Barnes or Brasier in the role. (This was likely a negotiating tactic.) But Kimbrel isn't the only closer. And the Sox do have a lot of very key core players with arbitration and free agency pending, And whether you want to admit it or not, there is most definitely a spending limit at some point. Is Kimbrel, who apparently has his targets set at being the highest paid closer ever, really the best use of money? Last time the Sox had a closer who insisted on being the highest paid ever, they moved on as well, And given Papelbon's mediocre performance in Philly, it was the right move...

I fear they'll go after Kluber, who isn't overrated but is available..

I agree. Kimbrel was great, but it's time to move on. And use that money Kimbrel wants to 1) sign a closer and 2) sign Benintendi to a Christian Yelich-style contract, as he is well on his way to being Yelich 2.0...

The MLBTR Free Agent Prediction Contect is out. The staff predicted the Red Sox sign Eovaldi and Andrew Miller. Pearce was not among the top 50 free agents, and therefore had no prediction. The prediction for the Yankees is Corbin and Ottavino. Not sure why anyone thinks the Yankees need bullpen help...

This, for example, is sarcasm. And well done sarcasm. It felt authentic at the beginning, but it built nicely and the completely laughable last line clinched it... Well done, dgalehouse. Take a bow...

Huh? Aroldis Chapman had 32 saves in 34 chances. Kenley Jansen had 38 saves in 42 chances. Kimbrel had 47 saves in 52 chances. Any reason to believe if we had Jansen or Chapman, the Sox would have had less than 52 chances for their closer?

At least it had a happy ending. My daughter's softball team lost their first playoff game, and then BOOM. Season over. But she knew most of the kids on the other team and was actually happy for them, and was hanging out with them after the game...

No point in trading Leon. He has virtually no value in a deal. Simplest thing is to non-tender him. In fact, many people have described players as "more valuable to the Sox than they are in a trade," which I've heard to describe Holt and Swihart in particular. I never agree with this, but it might actually apply to Leon. As he is Sale's primary catcher, he has a value to the Sox. But to the rest of MLB, he is another all glove/no bat backup catcher, the likes of which can be had for minor league deals every off-season and can already be found in most organizations...

Or Tony Fernandez, whose error on a routine grounder in the 11th inning of game 7 of the 1997 World Series is always overlooked...

The award to me is about best debut season, not future outlook. Should 30yo Ryan Brasier not be considered because players like Torres might have a brighter future?

Dig up the corpses of the 1927 Yankees and challenge them to a winner take all best of seven for the title!!

You clearly have more faith in Marco Hernandez than I do. I see him as a utility infielder with limited offensive potential and a hard time staying healthy. I think if there is a 40 man roster crunch, he’s a DFA candidate....

Unless Joey Wendle (3.7 fWAR) and Shohei Ohtani (2.8 fWAR) beat them out for it...

And if there is an early season need, Esteban Quiroz was signed for that reason...

I don’t expect a busy off-season. The focus is likely to be pitching, with the Sox lookin to add a starter and two relievers. The Sox will certainly try to re-sign Eovaldi. If that fails, maybe try to re-sign Kimbrel. Or both, which is possible. In the bullpen,I expect a trade for one reliever, possibly involving Michael Chavis and Brian Johnson for someone like Jose Leclerc or Will Smith. And the last arm added via free agency. Joe Kelly is in play here. Or a lefty arm like Justin Wilson, Jake Diekman, or Aaron Loup. If they bring in a starter (because they signed Kimbrel and not Eovaldi), some possible names include Pomeranz (who, if he is healthy, could be a steal), Charlie Morton, Matt Harvey (could also be a steal, but, really, he’s never healthy), Hyun-Jin Ryu, Josh Tomlin, Lance Lynn, or Gio “Walk And Home Run Machine” Gonzalez. I suppose they could also go heavy on Dallas Keuchel, assuming his demands are not insane. Unless they deal someone like Swihart or Holt, I don’t think Pearce comes back. If Pedroia is a question mark, it is possible Esteban Quiroz gets time at 2b. That is why he was originally signed, after all. And other than a decision on Tyler Thornburg, that’s about it...

It comes off the books just in time to lock up Betts...

If you take DD for his word and the Sox are keeping Swihart, Pearce becomes a lot less likely to return. There are simply not enough roster spots if everyone is healthy...

Hey, depending on Pedroia’s health, 2b might be a position of need. According to this guy, the Sox would be better off signing Kinsler instead of Dozier. I would expect Kinsler to be a cheaper and, more important, shorter deal. But which one makes the Sox better?

Ahead of Dozier. How is Dozier lower than Kinsler?

Maybe you can’t cure it, but you can sign stupid to a minor league contract...