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Hell mine are often unpopular among the stat crowd. And many are not so hesitant to point it out, especially my mistakes and flawed logic (which I am more than fine with)…

Nope. That’s not looking solely at results. That’s making up results that you like, which is the opposite…

BTV suggests “not much”. None of Eovaldi (0.7), Martinez (0.4) nor Vazquez (0.4) offer much in the way of surplus trade value. Maybe a high A pitcher like Jordany Ventura or Nick Zwick. Or possibly AA RHP Grant Hartwig. The Sox reportedly want 3b prospect Mark Vientos, but on BTV, that’s a No Go. Of course, Cohen seems to care less about salary than most owners , and we can hope he might be willing to ensure a deal gets done, too. But then he presumably didn’t get rich by giving everyone what they want…

Yes. But also more AL East pennants than any manager in franchise history. More than Cora. More than Francona. More than everyone. And, hey, all that matters are results…

Results matter. But so does the starting point. If you go by nothing but looking at each individual season in a vacuum, then you have to conclude John Farrell was the best manager in franchise history…

Then they should stop handing out long term 9-figure contracts like they’re lotto scratch offs…

Technically he’s a troll desperately trying to look intelligent…

That’s because Bogie is on the short list of Sox players with TWO World Series rings already…

Are you actually criticizing the Sox for letting Martinez play DH? That’s f***ing ridiculous. Hey counterthought - maybe if the Sox benched him, other teams would think he was too fragile to acquire. Bottom line is nearly every team is playing their marketable players right now. Willson Contreras might be the jewel of the trade deadline, but he’s in the Cobs’ lineup almost every night, at either catcher or DH…

I’ve seen some defend Sale’s contract despite him only pitching 48 IP in the first 3 seasons…

Not true. Their $30mill ace pitcher was injured in February and not allowed to tell the team until March. This had a very big impact, as it caused a re-shuffling of the bullpen once the Sox started using Houck and eventually Whitlock in the rotation…

No debate. They’d be 1.7 games better…

Maybe there’s a reason moon isn’t the GM. . Either way, Bloom won’t be listening to him. So if 30yo Bogaerts wants an 8 year deal, do you think the Sox should capitulate? He likely won’t be very good in 8 years, and probably less than that. But he will still get his guaranteed money and could become an anchor, like plenty of others. Trout’s deal is looking awful. And going around the league, you can find plenty similar ones. The Angels themselves are facing trading their best player (Ohtani) because they likely can’t afford him while also paying for the immovable contracts if Trout and Rendon. That’s why the Sox desperately need to bulk the farm. There is a reason the Padres can pay for Machado, Tatis, Hosmer, and Darvish and still entertain the ida of dealing for Soto. Their farm fills void after void with minimum wage talent. Some of them (Cronenworth, who joined their minors via trade) contribute at an All Star level, while others (Aguilar, Abrams) barely contribute beyond making no money. But it is a system that works…

The 2021 bullpen was extremely good lead by Barnes, Ottavino and Whitlock (and eventually Houck) at the back end. Barnes was an All Star until the wheels just fell off. Granted he was having a career year so regression could be expected, but he regressed down to the level of Beer League Benchwarmer. It looked to me like maybe the Sox thought he could bounce back from his 10 inning slump at the end of 2021. And if he did, even to his serviceable less-than-All-Star norms, a bullpen anchored by Barnes, Houck, Whitlock, Taylor (remember him?),Brasier appeared to be the plan and in reality, shouldn’t be that bad. And if things swung right, could be an absolute strength. And that’s before we even mention names like Diekman, Strahm and Davis. The problem was the Sox kept dipping into the bullpen to fill injury voids in the rotation. Not sure if that was Bloom, Cora, or (more likely) both. But all during the shutdown when Sale was not allowed to tell the team he was injured, the bullpen didn’t look as bad on paper until it turned into what was left standing.

Are both producing now? JD has been OK. Eovaldi has had flashes of disaster. That’s the whole point. Locking up a player for 7 years to get 3 or 4 good years does mean you also pay for the bad ones.

True. Players typically waive the NTC for one of 3 reasons 1) Go to a contender or better situation 2) Have a team option turned into a guarantee 3) Have an incentive clause turned into a guarantee I don’t know if Bogaerts has any incentives, and his option is a player one, so item 1 is the reason he would waive his. I know he has always said he prefers Boston. While nearly every player under control says this, Bogaerts is the rare case I believe, because he signed his extension when he only had one year left. And that extension was less than he would have gotten in free agency at his age at the time…

Correct. The philosophy of spend, spend, spend and then fix it by spending more always Always ALWAYS results in situations similar to where the Sox are now. The big contracts to players like Sale, Price, JD, Eovaldi, etc. and subsequent roster maneuvers to make the budget fit are far more responsible for this season than the Renfroe/Bradley trade…

Franchy and Duran were always options. For an immediate in game need, Arroyo was an acceptable emergency play…

Reportedly they expected some offensive resurgence, but they also batted him 8th and 9th since day one..

I never saw that need. JBJ was brought back for the glove, which shouldn’t matter against whatever arm the starting pitcher uses…

I’d move him. If you can get a Cleveland SP or a catcher for 2023, it makes sense to do it now….

And that’s why I repeatedly fail since these long term deals. Betts, Bogaerts and Devers have been the only players to deserve one since Lester…

And you were among those who wanted him as a starter. I did, too, at one point this year. He is a guy who excelled in the minors with the bat, and certainly deserved a chance. But everything we’ve heard about his defense may have been understated…

Downs and Cordero were brought in by Bloom. I don’t think either of them were the primary piece in the acquiring trade…

Sox offered $300/10. Betts asked for $420 or something. DD balked and instead extended Bogaerts and Sale…