Dalbec was just bad defensively. He couldn’t catch a cold if he was naked in Norway. (Alternate punchline: I heard he caught COVID, but he booted it.)
Yoshida to DH is more likely, since they have the outfielders already even if they don’t bring back Duvall. Duran (Refsnyder)-Rafaela-Verdugo is a step up.
But fixing those corner infield spots could, should and even would have a bigger impact.
I have heard the “Sox won’t re-arrange” arguments, but they’re really not valid. When the Sox signed Kike the first time, how many people thought it was to play CF? I’m not even sure it was, even though it certainly looked like it would make sense (which it certainly did)…
Abreu is in MLB. Ditto Valdez.
Drohan, Gambrell, German, Van Belle, Hamilton and Kavadas are in AAA.
AA has plenty of them, including Denlinger, Dobbins, Yorke, Guerrero, Binelas, Rosier, Meidroth, Jordan and a few others…
I do like a Garrett-Duran framework. I think it makes sense for both teams, especially given Duran having another year of low money and Miami having a weak OF, deep rotation, and shallow pockets…
I do hope he can do that. And do it quickly.
I know he was a 3b in high school, but scoring to B-R.com, he’s only played at 3b eight times in his entire minor league career, and not st all since A ball. Which makes me wonder where exactly was this work ethic to improve defensively before?
Probably Josh Hader, but he’sa free agent after this season.
Tanner Scott is another good one this year statistically, but I would not trade Verdugo for him. (Miami makes that deal so fast that they would go back in time to before that deal was made, and then make it again.)
Also what was that old fashioned Earl Weaver recipe for success. Three parts
1. Pitching
2. Something. I forget what
3. Three run homers.
Can you help me recall what Mr. Weaver had in the second spot…
So the argument is the Sox always ignore defense and look for hitters?
While on another thread, there is intense scrutiny going on as to why the Sox can’t develop pitchers internally.
Hey, maybe the problem isn’t that the Sox can’t develop pitchers; maybe the problem is expecting any young pitchers to be productive while standing in front of a lackluster (to be kind) defense…
The best stategy is to avoid their targets altogether.
Bulk the bullpen. Improve the defense. Trade for or sign lesser SPs whose role is going to be marginalized anyway…
Story was clearly about the defense. Some of his other moves that looked defensive (McGuire?) simply have not turned out that way.
And really, we don’t know what he saw in Wong…
I agre on trading for starting pitchers. Free agent starters are quite often simply just bad investments. Relievers are the place to spend, on the other hand. But a bullpen upgrade or two!!
If Chapman can be had for Story money, is it really out of character? Since, you know, we have Story.
In fact, Chapman profiles as a Bloom type signing. Since Matt is a metrics darling who doesn’t always post “back of the baseball card” numbers.
Will Bloom sign Chapman? Probably not. Of course this applies to every free agent from every GM. There are no locks. But Chapman really should be his primary position player target this off-season…
1. None of us have anticipated any moves beyond maybe signing Kluber.
2. Should they be done, is the question. Not will they be done. Only discussing moves the Sox will make is just playing a guessing game. It’s not your job to be there forum police and limit topics to do not approve of.
3. Last off-season I said the Sox should sign Joey Gallo. That would/should have meant an OF alignment of Verdugo-Hernandez-Gallo, which is most definitely in the running as the best defensive outfield in MLB. The Sox did not take my suggestion. So fill out here - do they put do they not have defensive issues?
Interesting that you consider dealing Jed Lowrie, who played parts of 4 different years in Boston, to be a prospect, but don’t consider Andrew Bailey to be acquiring one.
Melancon himself was part of two of those deals. Granted he was sent away largely with the spare parts from the Punto deal, and the Sox did get a talented young Brock Holt in return as well…