Nick

Well, my eye test results are in. Ort the 30 year old looks better than Dieckman.

I was being sarcastic. He looks fine to me. I'm wondering why the parent club has avoided him?

Thank you with stats.....that's what my eyes tell me. He can't be trusted. No way I bet my life on him. I would rather bet with Schreiber.

That begs the question, WHY IN THE f*** DO WE KEEP HIM? HE'S BEEN A CLOSER IN AAA FOR 2 YEARS. APPARENTLY HE'S NOT TAKEN TO 'COACHING'. SO YOU IMPLY WITH HIS HIGH BB RATE. We saw what Brasier did last time he came into extra inning game. Gave up 2 runs. When he comes in, I'm hoping the ball finds a glove. Same goes for Sawamura. They have no upside. Trot out more young guns. See what they got. We already know about Brasier and Sawamura.

There wasn’t much more Kaleb Ort could do but wait. After 75 games over the past two seasons in Triple-A — most as the WooSox closer — there wasn’t much more Ort could do to earn a call-up. He’d saved 34 games in 38 opportunities. This year opponents were hitting .185 against Ort. Why wasn't he called up sooner with the mess our bullpen was in?

Bottom line is we'll match up well vs the Yankees when everyone returns. Sale, Pivetta, Eovaldi and Wacha. We'll need to lengthen our pen, add to Houck, Schrieber, Whitlock and Strahm. But the starters can also come in for an inning here and there. I would love to see us add a bat at 1B. We're no pushovers. Our secondary players have gained valuable playing time.

I'd have to see how well Sale pitches but the ultimate question is How well will we fare against 110+ win Yankees in a short series. Looks to me like we'll hit against them. Question is can they hit our major league pitching and not our AAA starters?

They used to rave about Nathan Eovaldi' 100mph fastball. But every time I watched, the exit velocity off of his fastball was 100+mph. He now has five pitches with pretty good command. Anymore, 96-100 means nothing unless you have something else to go with it. Ecks constantly mentioned last night that Bello was a two pitch thrower, fastball and changeup. I thought he also had another plus pitch in breaking ball. I didn't see much of it. Rays simply sat on his fastball. But as posters have said, only one start. He did induce some groundballs thought. I think that was something positive to build on.

Does Dieckman know you only get three balls before walking a guy on next ball call?

10 hits and 4 walks.....2 runs, yikes.

That's fair.

I'm going to follow Kimmi's approach.....always seeing good in our Sox. On what planet would we be unhappy that we're in the thick of playoff chase while we've seen Pivetta elevate his game, found a possible future rotation guy in Winckowski, a closer in Houck, a set up/long reliever/starter in Whitlock, future all-star in Duran (yep, I'll say it), a solid corner OF/1B Cordero and not to mention Verdugo finding his groove? Kutter, Seabold and Bello are waiting in the wings. Matta and now Ward are rehabbing. Sale is also one more outing away from pitching in Fenway. We're in thick of it despite chalking up most walk off losses in the majors. All things considered, life is good.

+2.0 games up in wildcard chase....only stat that matters!

Fresh off his second straight SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Month Award, Brayan Bello got to work on the three-peat. The right-hander allowed just two hits across 5 1/3 scoreless innings, walking three, and striking out eight. He induced 17 swinging strikes and lowered his ERA since his promotion to Triple-A to 2.81. I would love to see this kid at least as middle inning guy this year. 54.2 innings pitched in AAA, Winckowski 51.1 innings pitched in AAA, Bello Bellow has now pitched 84.3 innings total in 2022 vs 95.1 innings in 2023.

Houck, Whitlock and Schreiber, then pray for rain or complete game.

My response was to the original poster name calling Houck. I bet Houck would beat the crap out of that poster even without having the 'jab'.

Maybe we could have swept had Whitlock and Eovaldi been available last night. We also have future Hall of Fame coach. I believe he missed 6 games due to Covid protocols. I rather have dinner with Sale, Houck and Duran than one of those guys missing games due to positive tests.

I wish they would 'test out' Frank German. What's the downside? He comes in and blows a 5-4 lead in the ninth?

Nice pop up.....2 more RBI's

Batting 6th in Red Sox offense can mislead RBI production.

I bet Trevor pops up.

We have some speed guys then there's JD.

I'm all about player controlled years.....you can't project talent, not all will remain a Red Sox but at least you know who maybe available. I'm counting 'team' option years here. Controlled through 2028 (six more years after 2022 season) Trevor Story (he's a terrific fielder and I can see him moved to outfield IF that's what the Sox needs to accommodate someone like Nick Yorke, unless of course he become our next shortstop) Garret Whitlock Jarren Duran Josh Winckowski (looks like a major league pitcher) Controlled through 2027 Tanner Houck Controlled through 2026 Bobby Dalbec John Schreiber (relievers are unpredictable but he sure looks he belongs this year) Controlled through 2025 Chris Sale Josh Taylor Controlled through 2024 Nick Pivetta (Let's wait until season is over but should explore extension if healthy) James Paxton (has club options for 2023-24) I'm missing some, like Darwinzon Hernandez (who may never come back) or players I don't consider worthy. This also shows Bloom has financial flexibility going forward. Very few long term deals on the books. I only see Story, Whitlock and Sale in that category. And Whitlock comes cheap. I anxiously wait someone like Bello joining this group. Will Xander join the group? Devers better join this group.

Arroyo has earned another 0-10 outing.

How many vaccinated Red Sox players had to miss games this year due to Covid protocol? What's the freakin' difference? Is Houck sick? I'm a Sox fan. No fan of your politics.