oldtimer

Williams was a great player and maybe the greatest hitter in recent memory (recent when one is approaching 80). Kind of a bad joke to compare Devers favorably to Williams.

Not that we were interested in a 3rd baseman, but one more option came off the table when Josh Donaldson agreed to arbitration today. One year $23 Million. We continue to sit and wait.

We do have a change in conditions for these players as well with a new manager and hitting coach. It remains to be seen what if any effect that will have but I am guessing it will be positive.

Yes and that also was irresponsible. Has it turned out well?

I read the same thing however believe needs might determine who of those or others, if any, are called up. You know I believe a player like Brannen with excellent speed and a good arm could easily do the job up the middle in the outfield. He is very young, but a year of maturity with increased strength and a chance to hit near big league pitching might land him in consideration for Sept call up. Can't teach speed. I think he is 9th on the Sox prospect list going into this season.

In any short term period, that makes sense, however on a long term basis i would expect that statistical information to mirror what the player will do. Age and injury do play a part with long term performance.

At this point, I would give JD a drop dead date and be prepared to walk away. In fact, I would make that date some time next week to allow us to make another deal if he refuses. Let someone else get him for 6 years and $180 mil. They will surely regret the day they make that kind of offer.

What about picking up Starlin Castro in a trade. Good 2nd baseman and young as well. Salary is around 9 million. I wonder about Pedey.

I think the Sox front office has several goals: 1. Put together a competitive team capable for competing for the league championship 2. Structure the team so that it can remain competitve every year 3. Keep the cost under control, especially in relation to the Lxury Tax threshold (where possible) These are competing goals that have been made difficult to fulfill as the result of bad contracts, which I would define as not providing value in relation to the money spent. The ones that have not produced in relation to the money spent are in my view: 1. Sandoval Got nothing for a long term $19 mil contract 2. Castillo Nothing for a $12 mil long term contract (not luxury tax but still a waste) 3. Pedroia Sentimental contract for a Sox hero, but unlikely to have value relative to the money spent 4. Rameriz At least there has been some return for the money spent but the value hasn't been there 5.Price Paying a long term ace money contract for a pitcher with a lot on innings on his arm is not a value play and so far looks like a large mistake. 6. Craig Finally we are almost completely past that controll which provided no value for a long term fairly expensive contract. GM's should be allowed room to make some mistakes but these contract have and will continue to limit our options going forward. I find it hard to criticize contracts for Pomeranz, Kimbrel and Porcello as each have provided value for the money paid.

DD is no dummy. He is going to deal in the Red Sox interest. Its my view that it involves making a solid offer and then be willing to walk away if they show themselves unwilling to settle. There are other fish to fry.

If someone offered you $125 mil over 5 years to do a job would you feel you hit the lottery? What do players expect now? I worked my entire life in a high stress job that required a great deal of specialized education at my own time and expense and only earned a tiny fraction of that. I'll bet that the majority of posters have had similar experience. C'mon JD, what are you waiting for?

I believe 5 years at $2Mil/Yr will get the job done. I believe the 2nd question also remains open. Do we use him as a DH or plan for him to take LF for a significan portion of the season, while trading jbj? That is a legitimate question ane may impact JD's decision process and also would have an impact on the final luxury tax salary limit and who else we can afford.

I still believe our offer is a good one at 5 years, but should also include a time limit to allow us to go to plan B if Boras holds out for more years. It doesn't make sense to wait until the options become too limited. Give him til mid January and then move on. Sometimes the signing not made is the best in the long run.

Maybe some would say that 5 years is a risk. I would for sure. How much money does someone need and how long does someone expect to play? At the end of 5 years JD would be rich beyond any of our beliefs and if he still can play if he wants to and can make the decision at that time. Cap it at 5 years.

The question of value seems a little different to me. One year of Machado with his difference in offense and defense against Bogey longer term at less money plus another high level prospect. In that case I would lean toward Kimmi's assessment. A long term Machado against a long term Bogey with a top prospect is more of a balance.

I worked as the main representative in technical negotiations and meetings with large Japanese firms, mainly in Tokyo. You needed to learn that a Yes answer did not mean Yes as we understand it, but yes they got the meaning of our point. So you not only have to listen carefully to what is being said, but also understand the culture of the person that is saying it. Agents, Lawyers and the like also have their own culture but as others have said, it centers on the best interests of their clients.

We should offer based upon perceived value, not on what some other team is willing to offer. Meanwhile, life and the market moves on. There are stirrings out there with the Braves, with Hosmer and others. The realization is that waiting has risks.

I would set that as the Red Sox limit and that has risk that he can be worth that much over 5 years.

Good to hear, but the question remains, does it have an expiration date?

At that price and with one prospect, I would pull the trigger although reluctantly due to the loss of JBJ's defense. One wonders if DD is active at all? Lets hope he has something in store for us.

That is an excellent wish list but adds about $38 mil to the luxury cap line by my estimates. Could we afford it? We lose a top notch defensive outfielder, a high potential left hander and a couple of decent prospects in the deal but you do have to give something to get something in return. You know I am thinking Cole Brannen can help us up the middle in the futute. Late 2018 or 2019 if he shows he can hit, so that is a possible CF of the future. Travis and OcKimey are good but not great prospects.

5 Years would be my limit as well.

Bruce, Nunez and a lefty reliever vs JD. Less years and the same or less money.

We don't know the behind the scenes offers and negotiations going on and we just assume DD has made a sensible offer for JD and Boras is delaying the decision, trying to get more from Boston or from some other team. If we have offered $25 mil per year, it leaves us with very little flexibility to acquire other sought after pieces before they get taken by others. That's why I advocate attaching a deadline to our offer. Take it or leave it, and then move on. Nunez and a left handed reliever plus a big bat in the $6 mil region for one year and we have a complete team. I am sure there are other scenarios that would be attractive although JD best fills our need.

Yes, he is an internal asset that miight be able to help us down the line. The problem is that you have to trade a valuable asset to get a valuable asset, so he is definitely trade material. If he is traded, let us hope that we get a player that can help us for a number of years. I see Chavis as a possible second baseman, not a first baseman. The lack of movement by the Sox is really troublesome and speaks to the probability that DD is all in on JD. I mentioned before that we construct an offer that is reasonable and set a drop dead date on it after which we go to plan B. if Boras wants to string teams along then we could wind up getting no one of value.