oldtimer

We still went over the spending ceiling but got very little return on investment. The situation was not handled wisely.

Evidence to date, Hoy Park and Joely Rodriquez. Let's see what happens although Bogaerts needs to be settled before we really know what we have for needs and how much money is vailable.

We will see what Turkeys Bloom will come up with for the 2023 season.

Devers did make a substantial improvement in DWAR last season and that may be part of a positive trend. Still not great defensively, but better.

Makes you wonder if something is wrong with him.

With a last place finish in 2022 and a lot of holes to fill with good but not great money to spend, I still recommend resetting in 2023. Any FA signings should be those who will remain with the club for at least 3 years unless of course they are very inexpensive and can fill a hole pitching or in the lineup for a year. I would exclude very expensive older FA's since even with them we will probably not be competitive at the highest level. A guy like Verlander is still capable but not right for us at this time.

The Dalbec experiment has failed after being pursued for far too long. Let's move on.

You have two CFs and no right RF. I assume one of the two would play right. I can't imagine Hosmer/Dalbec as our DH's. Surely we could do better. It all will hinge on what we do with Bogaerts. Until that is settled, there is not much meaningful that can be done at least with the field players as we won't know our budget flexibility nor if we need to go after a talented SS. If we have set aside a budget for pitching, we can move there although what FA's would markedly improve the staff? I don't see great alternatives.

Fans tend to want their players to be paid the market rate, however many large contracts have a risk factor that often limits the team's overall performance. Bogaerts is a very good player but certainly Bloom will have to assess how to structure his and other salaries such that he can put a competitive team on the field year after year. Both the AAV and the risk associated with diminishing performances over the length of these long contracts is a subject that Kimmi has reacted to in the past. The Astros were WS champs this year and have consistently been very competitive. They have been great at developing pitching and smart about signing players. Correa is a top notch shortstop but they let him go when his contract demand were enough to hamstring the budgetary requirements of the team. They got Pena as a low cost replacement. They have great pitching across the board, excellent defense and enough hitting to be competitive based of their pitching and defense. Their offense came primarily from their lineup positions 1 through 6 with Brantley being injured. The Sox management needs to look closely to see if they can structure our team going forward to emulate what the Astros have done.[/b]

What do fans really think about giving Bogaerts a contract equivalent to his perceived value. (8 years at $225 millions). Haven't heard from Kimmi on this one as yet.

Maybe the Astro's success is because they were willing to lose Correa since they has an upcoming and low cost shortstop. Saved them a ton to spend elsewhere. Food for thought.

Javier is a pitcher with a fastball in the low 90's. I wonder if some execs would pass on him in the quest for pitchers with higher velo? There more to pitching than velo!

The cards are on the table for Devers who is looking for $300 Mil over a 10 year period. Are the Sox willing to go that high? Some have opined that Devers might go anyways unless Bogaerts is signed. So far the Sox have not shown a willingness to meet Devers view of his worth. How would you feel if Devers winds up on the hated Yankees?

Under $134M lux Tax Total, I would have put before any additions or subtractions. Surely the probability of losing such notables as Brasier, Cordero Almonte and Chang is high and others may go as well. Casas, Bello are all but guaranteed to be in and Rafaela likely.

WHAT? Sluggers on long expensive contracts who don't slug against playoff pitching.

Devers is one of those natural hitters who also has power. His defense has improved. He is young and athletic for his size. Those are all plusses. He does chase out of the zone and could improve if he chases less. What is he worth on the market and to the Red Sox? Hope those two are similar. The Sox need to decide what type of team they want to become. The Astros would be a good team to emulate. Good at developing players and recognizing talent, especially pitching. Very good defensively by signing players who have shown to be very good defenders. Professional hitters who can grind out at bats and who typically swing and miss at a lower rate than average.. When they get a player that fits their framework, they ink a contract early before reaching FA's. To me, the Sox have to improve their talent recognition and development process. Too few ML players coming out of the minors in the past. Sure, Casas an Bello look like they will make it and perhaps Rafaela for next season. We will need to bring up a few ML capable players per year to have a consistently good team going forward. We are coming off a period of unwise signings. Price will be off the books. Sale's signing has been a disaster. Can he have a couple of good years to finish it up or will it be one of the worst signings in Sox history. What's done is done. The thing is to recognize if a signing will move the Sox toward the kind of team that can consistently be winners. Signings of Devers, Bogaerts, Wacha and Eovaldi have to be looked at in that light. That we didn't reset in 2022 is evidence the current management has not acted wisely and with a plan going forward. That too needs to change and if not, we need to find management that can deliver and not just talk a good game. It's like AAA, first you have to admit you have a problem before fixing it. A last place finish should be enough of a dose of realism to drive the point home. Act wisely and act decisively.

I wouldn't mind signing Mancini for a combination, 1st base backup, DH and RF. He might cost more than you would like but his versatility and veteran ability would make us more competitive. That would also allow us to trade away Dalbec an Cordero.

I was thinking, would the Astros prefer to have Correa at $35 mil on a long term contract or Pena at $700K. Both are very good shortstops but one comes $34 mil higher and with additional risk to boot. The Astros chose well and could use the extra bucks to retain pitching and other assets. Do the Sox have a similar choice to make?

Since when do people automatically get inflation protection? I'm reluctant to go to 6 years but if that is a must, I think $150m/6 is a great offer for a player in his 30s. I might go a little higher in AAV if the term was for 5 years. How many stinko contracts are out there in MLB?

Won't the analytics change next year with the banning of the shift?

I want my leadoff guy to get on base and then be a treat to run. Good plate discipline good bat to ball skills. I also want enough speed to put pressure on the pitcher by being a threat to run. I'm okay with having my best hitter up second but I also want a guy behind him that is a treat so they have to come in to the 2 hitter. A Dalbec type hitter behind your best means he never sees a hittable pitch.

I'd like Bogey back for several reasons but was reading that Boras is likely to delay any decision until close to Spring Training trying to squeeze the last penny out of any contract for him. If he does that, it could leave the Sox high and dry and without an alternative. I would offer Bogey a competitive contract and stick with it. If there is no movement by the end of the Winter meetings I would look elsewhere.

I'm impressed with Steven Kwan of the Guardians. He's a guy with minimum swing and miss in his game. He is a prize at $700 k per year. Obviously the Guardians will want to keep him but we should be looking for another like him for our leadoff man. I am not a big fan of putting a HR hitter up first, I'd rather have a high OBP man.

In watching the playoff games I was struck by how many ball and strike calls were awful. One game that stood out was the last 18 inning game between the Mariners and the Astros. Strikes were being called on balls both 2 inches below the zone and 2 inches above. Hitters were frustrated and wound up having to swing at balls way out of the strike zone. When will we see technology aided strike and ball calls?

The game is evolving with the shift gone and bigger bases. The Sox are talking about becoming more athletic and that makes sense to me. Defense, base running and on base percentage are traits to look for. The Sox have money to spend but likely will wish to keep the salaries below the tax line and reset in 2023. Bloom should have recognized the situation in 2022 and reset then but didn't leaving 2023 as the most reasonable time for a reset. I feel that if we truly wish to keep Raffy we will need to sign Bogey as they are close. If Bogey goes, Raffy will likely go as well. So resolving the issue by keeping Bogey, who is a very goo player in his own right, would give us a starting point for signing other. It's pitching we need first with Sale iffy and Bello young but upcoming. Whitlock is the other lock. So sign at least one front line starter and one dependable high leverage reliever. Look to Casas and Rafaela to provide young low cost talent and rid ourselves of the deadwood. So who would are athletic players be in that case? Story, Kike, Rafaela with sort of average athleticism out of Bogey, Raffy and Verdugo. There was a list published about the worst contracts held by each club. It was surprising to see how many long term $25 million ++ contracts there are in MLB that are underperforming. Ours is Sale currently and Bloom needs to be wise not to handicap the team by taking on others.