oldtimer

Tough sentiments, but I agree with them. I disliked the whining, even when there was some justification. When you take good pitches and swing at bad, you have no business whining about a call. I don't give the Sox pitchers as much credit as you do though. Many of the pitches for balls were no where near the plate. None wanted to throw strikes and none could get ahead in the count. Sale blew up for a while, but so did Verlander.

This is the only place they can use Price as Houston would not work. I agree that Eovaldi is a better choice, since he throws a higher percentage of strikes and gets ahead in the count, but he and Porcello are better suited to Houston.

Last night it was a mechanical issue, not a health issue that bit Sale. I do also think though that long term contracts for pitchers in general are bad bets and when they amount to Price like numbers they become very bad bets. The problem is that teams will still give those kinds of contracts so we either compete or look elsewhere.

Disappointing first game What with Sale starting for us against Verlander, I expected a tough game but hoped the outcome would be better than it turned out, for a lot of reasons. First and foremost was our pitching. Pitching: On a cool and pressure packed evening, Sale lost something in his pitching mechanics and had a devil of a time finding it. He could have gotten better defensive support to prevent his wildness from giving the Astros the early lead, but it wasn't to be. The damage was done and Sales pitch count blew up so he couldn't make it past the 4th inning and that will probably prove to be more damaging to the club than the two runs he gave up. i guess Cora wanted to save him for a potential start in game 4 or maybe just game 5 if it goes that far, especially with Price today. We used all our bridge relievers and used them hard, because no one seemed able to throw strikes and get ahead of the batter. Nine walks and three hit batsmen says it all. Kelly, Barnes, Brasier all used hard and only Kelly gave up a run, so the game continued to be within reach. Workman came in and was also not able to hit his spots. The Astros made him pay and perhaps now we know he can only be used in blowout games where we are already far behind. Bad performance by him. I suppose he was put in rather than Kimbrel because we might have tied the game and needed Kimbrel to close, not a totally wrong decision as some would have. Defense: Nunez has just recently made a very good play at third to help close out the Yankees. nunez can be good and when one considers the alternative it was reasonable to have him in. Nunez is irratic though and did not come up with one ball that would have changed the outcome of the game and outright booted another which cost us another run. What to do? Third base is a weak spot for us. Hitting: We got only 3 hits all night. Betts may have looked best but even he only got one hit. eni looked helpless out there and was called out on one ball off thew plate, but never made solid contact except maybe for a high fly ball to left in the first. He got to get back into the game. Very little from anyone. The Astros pitching is good, so we need to do better to win. It's like the Sox were in lala land to start the series. Got to get it together or face the trip to Houston, down two. We can do it with a good pitching performance, strong defense and a little timely hitting. Will we is to be determined.

Thats a difference between the Astro's and the Sox. Poor defensive options at 3rd for the Sox vs gold glove level for the Astros.

All it takes is blinking at the wrong time. They do the best they can, however, those that score much worse than the rest on a yearly basis should be demoted. The bang bang play is just that. Umpires not only see the play but listen for the ball hitting the glove and the foot hitting the base, when that occurs. When we have real time accurate robo assessment of balls and strikes it is still my contention that it could be easily used as a tool by the HP umpire to get all of his calls correct.

This is a matter of opinion and neither side is right or wrong, we just value different things. I guess being an engineer I find accuracy to be more important than tradition. Not to worry, the umps will continue to be here for a few years anyway, if the change is ever made. By the way, I have been getting the high dose flu shot for years.

We have very good players and have an aggressive style of play thanks to Cora. We do need to get off to a good start but that could also be said of the Astros. Looking forward to a competitive ALCS.

Here we are going into the ALCS and havinng a conversation about next year and beyond. I am guilty of the same type of thinking, but really would rather talkk about the next week and the current team until we either win it all or fall out along the way. We have an interesting team now so I will avoid the temptation to prognosticate further on where we go after this year plays out.

Perhaps you and I are two of the older fans here yet we have different opinions on using technology to get the ball and strike calls right. Too darned many wrong calls and too much variabillity between umpires. I would keep the ump behind the plate as there are many other reasons for him there. Just feed him or her the ball and strike calls electronically. What happens if the World Series was determined due to a strike call on a pitch 2 inches off the plate? My view is lets get the call right rather than stick with tradition.

Then don't complaiin about balls and strikes.

What makes me cringe is the thought of Billy Buckner letting a grounder dribble through his legs in game 6 of the 1986 world series. Kimbrel losing last night would have equalled that.

The era of robo umps is coming. The calls will be consistent and agree with strike zone rules. No more bitching needed. Should start trying it out in the minors.

The Yankees Robertson is a FA. He is a smallish guy and 32 years old but was impressive against us. He is currently also earning $13 mil so probably out of reach. Would be nice to weaken the Yankees and they are picking up our guys. I do like Eovaldi and ho Good pe we at least try and keep him in the fold. Is he durable? Good question to ask but is anyone throwing close to 100 mph that durable. Not many Nolan Ryans around.

Just think, the Yankees have Stanton locked in for $30 mil a year. That will cramp their style getting lots of new players. Stanton is not worth 1/2 of what Martinez is getting.

I like your general direction: Kinsler is a good pro but I would rather have a young and capable second baseman to share duties with Pedroia. I doubt if Dustin can do the entire season and if would give us a transition body. You suggest LeMahieu but I would find a home grown (if he exists) or a young and rising player in that role as being a decent choice. I don't think we will get Kimbrel and maybe it is time to go in another direction. Kimbrel has earned his keep in the past but a long term high dollar contract there should be avoided. DD may be able to come up with a solid closer from a different source. I don't have anyone in mind. I believe we should wait to pick up relief pitchers until we have a look at what we have during spring training. We probably lose Kelly but will keep most of our resources and augment as needed. At first base, we have Moreland for another year and I don't expect him to be traded. To supplement him, Pearce is not a bad choice for one year. Possibly Devers will transition there for the 2020 season. I would keep Nunez and Holt as well. One position you didn't mention is catcher. I prefer not to go another year with Leon on the roster. His hitting is just not at a ML level so at some time he will be let go, why not for the 2019 season. Swihart has ML talent and we either should give this versatile and athletic player a chance or cut him lose. Finally, although not a priority, if a better hitting quality CF turns up, I think we should go in that direction. JBJ is a great fielder but in my mind a marginal hitter.

The Yankees has a very stacked lineup on paper. I thought the Yankee starting pitching looked a notch below Boston's but their BP looked pretty strong when they brought the A-Level guys in. Stanton didn't earn his keep and compared to Martinez, he had a poor series. I also think Cora out managed Boone.

Vaz has held his own at bat but Leon has not. With Vaz in, we probably will not need a pinch hitter. With Leon, unless we are well ahead, he should be taken out when we have a scoring opportunity with him at bat. I haven't noticed field players underperforming with the possible exception of Moreland whose injury status is uncertain. We probably stand pat for the astros.

They didn't need Judge to wake them up. Yankee hitters just laid an egg for two games in the Bronx.

Cora pushed the right buttons. Nunez did great for us.

I look at it from the point of view of what are needs will be going forward, and we will have some as I see it for 2019. 1. I, like most here, am assuming that we will find Kimbrel's contract requirements to be above his value to the team and we will reluctantly have to let him go. So a big need (#1) will be to replace our closer and probably no one on the roster is capable of that. 2. Relief pitching with Kelly possibly gone will need to be bolstered. Evaluation of Smith and Thornburg will be needed and possibly we will need a couple of additional solid relievers. This can be done as we get into the season and assess our needs fully. Probably be our #4 need. 3. As far as starting pitching, we will have Sale, Porcello and Price for sure and will no doubt want to hang onto E-Rod. Wright's knee inflamation may be serious enough to make him a no go but medical evaluation will be needed. Eovaldi is looking like a starter if we can affort him. Having had two surgery's on him arm doesn't disqualify him in my book, provided a reasonable contract can be worked out. Possibly our #2 need. 4. We will need a second base backup for Pedey. He is aging and is trying to recover from an injury. I would look for a young and talented player who can play half the time and potentially be our second baseman going forward. How long will Pedey be able to play is the question, not how long does his contract run is the question to address. 5. I would look for a replacement for Leon. He is a very good defensive catcher but a .177 avg is well below league avg and we should have better on our roster. Keep Vaz and Swi and look for another. I would look at this as our #3 need. 6. We still should consider the CF position. Can we replace JBJ for the money he will expect with a good defender who is also a more consistent hitter? Don't know the answer to that but DD should look. I would rate this as a #5 need which can be let go if we are in a salary bind.

Having watched the game last night and had an unsettled night tryiing to sleep, I want to congratulate the players, coaches and managers for doing a great job of beating a stacked Yankee team in their own ball park and bringing home another ALDS for us die hard fans. Saying that, I was nervous about Kimbrel. Kimbrel came in to a game where we had held the Yankees to 2 runs in 17 innings. Kimbrel is very experienced at closing games and facing game pressure. He has had a lot of close calls along the way where he creates trouble for himself but has gotten out of many of those. Kimbrel really has 2 quality pitches. A heavy 4 seam fastball and a knuckle curve. I cannot psychoanalysis him but it appeared that he wasn't willing to use his quality pitches and trust in them to prevent the Yankees from scoring. It appeared he tried to put a little more on each pitch and was wild as a result. Relief pitchers in general appear to be a breed apart and closers perhaps more hyper. We have seen Barnes, Kelly, Workman, Hembree and Kimbrel lose it at times and last night Kimbrel seemed non-plussed and almost irrational in the way he pitched. Cora had to stay with him as who knows how Kelly or Hembree would have done. Kimbrel would have been the goat of goats if he had lost that game. As it is, he has left a very bad taste in my mouth and I would find it a stupid move to go into a bidding war on the FA market for his continued services. Maybe it will be time to move on.

Agreed. No matter what the lead, Kimbrel was set to blow it and our advancement. thhank heaven for Nunez and Pearce. Those that want Kimbrel back on a big contract should remember these moments;

Cleveland came in with an impressive lineup and what looked to be very good starting pitching but were swept by the Astros. Be interesting to what others make of that. I know the Astros are an excellent club, but Cleveland was taken down rather easily. I agree with Moon that winning 16 to 1 last night does not give us an advantage over the yankees in todays game. It's Porcello against Sabbathia and our BP against theirs. They will bring out their best tonight as their is no tomorrow for them. Its win or better luck next year. Whoever is sharp and confident will determine who wins the game. If its us, we move ahead to play a tough Astros team. I thought the Braves and Rockies would go fairly quickly so now the Brewers with play the Dodgers and that should be a good series. Lots of fun watching the games but I haven't seen as much as I would have liked due to playing in the Senior games softball tournament in Cary, NC. Too tired to stay awake for the games. I got home last night around 9:00 pm so saw quite a bit of our beat down of the Yankees.

He pulled his 3 rbi double down the right field line. More balanced hitting for him adds to his value.