oldtimer

He said he had constant problems until JH finally said he would get the extension and that he would get paid. So credit JH for keeping him for the last 3 years .

You can find out a lot about the way Papi felt if you read his book, "Papi-My Story". Thats where I got the reference.

You are giving some front office individuals perhaps more credit than they deserve. Yes, to be successful they have to follow a logical process. On the otheer hand, these guys have egos and opinions and my well want to have a say into what might be thought of as the managers perogative. Papi pointed out that it happened to Farrell and it might also happen to Cora.

That comment was made in relation to how Papi felt when they were playing with him while bringinng in expensive FA for huge contracts. Why not pay the proven player in your system what he's worth before going out and spending like a drunken sailor on questionable talent.

If you believe what DD was saying about Brentz being given a solid chance as our 4th outfielder, how does that impact our need for Holt. We have betterIf's, so is he more likely to be mved/

Good observation. The question is whether the analytics are sent down for use by the manager in making decisions or the decisions are sent down to the manager for implementation. I would hope it is the first and that the hiring of younger analytics based managers means that they can benefit from the myriad of information that can be made available. Farrell was well liked by many of the players but may have overstayed his time and I support trying something new.

Your missing Brentz, who DD has said should get a chance as 4th outfielder.

In Ortiz book, "Papi-My Story" he talks about daily lineups being sent down by the front office in past administrations. Was it Theo, Luchino, or others. Is it still happening with Dombrowski? Not a very good thing to have happening with the manager being usurped. The behind the scenes activities we don't often hear about have a profound impact on the spirit in the dugout for managers, coaches and players.

I'd be interested in how Ortiz feels about the signing of Stanton.

The front office should consider the effect on our young high performance players of bringing in very highly paid FAs while finagling to keep their salaries low. That happened to Ortiz and others when Crawford was brought in. Maybe you pay the big money and the guy you bring in is not able to deal with the spotlight you get in Boston and he under-performs. Not everybody is cut out to thrive in this environment. We have seen Price bristle when criticized. We as fans also get on players ans sometimes unfairly, so if we think getting a guy in is just a game of adding his stats then we are missing part of what makes this game complex. We have 1st or 3rd base to fill depending on Devers and 2nd base to fill for about 1/2 the season assuming Pedroia can make it back to anywhere near his past capability. We probably also need a relief pitcher and possibly a starter. Santana is a tough get but would be very suitable. Nunez if he has recovered would also be good, but also may be a tough get. Stanton is a generational talent who should be considered but caution should be used due to the financial commitment, the length of contract, the opt out possibilities and the loss of young players from our organization. I question the sanity of going in that direction.

Why don't we just plan on him as the 4th outfielder for 2018? If we think he is a defensive liability, we could fill in with one of our faster utility players in critical situations. He might provide pinch hitting and even DH services. Getting the 4th outfielder from our existing roster makes some sense and Castillo would be more expensive to put on the active roster.

The situation continues to evolve. I thought Stanton was a reach and one that we wouldn't succeed, so now we move on anyway.

He was one of my favorite players and a member of my favorite team in 1949. Thats when players often stayed with their teams throughout their careers.

Maybe you mis spoke about keeping Beni in RF and probably meant LF. Keeping the outfield intact with Beni, JBJ and Betts is certainly one option. Like the idea of staying away from the expensive (in either $ or talent) contracts and staying with good servicable players for 3 year contracts max. Santana makes sense to me but I think there are better RP and 2nd base options. We should start to see some movement from the front office. Moustakas could be a good sign for 3 or 4 years max but that involves moving Devers, so both Santana and Moustakas doesn't make a lot of sense as Devers needs to be developed as a long term Red Sox player.

Teixeira signed a long term contract with the Yankees and became a drag toward the end. I am glad we didn't get him. Fair comparison and might be an omen of what we would get with a big time trade or free agent if we go in for a long term deal.

Thanks I thought it would be you with the answers.

The Sox do have some holes to fill and some moves to consider, in addition to the pitching needs. Holes to fill exist at second and first base. In addition there is a need for at least one power bat. Those two might be combined to some degree. Both Pedey and Hanley are question marks. Clearly we could go with the resources we currently have on the 40 man or injured list for 2nd but at risk of less than stellar offense. Ist is more of an open issue, especially if we use Hanley for DH only. The moves to consider have been discussed ad infinitum already. They are: 1. Move Devers to 1st and look for a replacement this year at 3rd. Possible improvement to the IF defense and possible addition of a solid bat. 2. Move JBJ and look for a trade or FA to fill in the OF. Possible strengthening of the offense while taking a hit on defense. 3. Move Bogey for a replacement SS like Cozart. Slightly better fielding and hitting. I'm opposed to that move as I believe Bogey can make a significant improvement on offense. 4. Trade Holt and replace him with another super utility player like Nunez (might solve 2nd base issue) or fill in from our 40 man or ML rosters. Big long term contracts for aging stars should be considered as too risky with great younger players available next year.

Will someone in the know go over the key dates as far as expected actions both in FA and trade markets? From what I understood, teams had 5 days to make qualifying offers to players following the world series, so that must have been completed. Teams have also exercised options for key players as the Sox have for Sale and Kimbrel, but I am not up to speed on the timing to do that. The GM meetings are coming up NOv 13 thru 16 and the Winter meetings are Dec 10 thru 14. With those in mind, when can teams go after and sign FA's and what is the typical range of time when that is done? Also, I presume the trade market becomes open now and the winter meetings might be fertile ground for that. What is the likely range of time for that and do they extend well into the season? Appreciate comments as I have some thoughts but am uncertain of what to look for and when.

Can't believe we would repeat the mistakes of the past and give out high dollar long term contracts to players soon to be on the decline. Got to be a better way of going forward that this.

I was born too long ago to see this kind of contract as realistic. Too long and too much money. The guy is good offensively now but certainly no defensive force. We probably can't get him for 3 or 4 years at most, but if so, we should let someone else take him on.

He was very well thought of and a good kid. Life can be unfair and tragic. I'm sorry for both him and his family. RIP

I like the idea of Santana over Hosmer, based on the likely deal required for each. Don't believe Santana is a long term fix at 1st though so consideration should be given to who we will have down the line in that position. Is it Devers? Devers at 3rd is a concern under your 2018 conditions. Can he improve his defense enough? I would keep Bogey as I believe Cora will be able to get much more out of him offensively and we can live with his defense. He is still young and may have a surprising upside. I am okay letting go off JBJ if we can land a power bat like Stanton or Martinez for the outfield. We lose on defense, but improve immensely on offense. Yes, we need another RP and possibly a starter but the budget may well preclude both and I still am concerned about getting a reasonable fill-in/replacement for Pedey, who is still a question mark for 2018.

I could see us trading one of our younger players but no more than that. To me, JBJ is most likely and Betts not at all a possibility. We need a big bat and one of Stanton or Martinez would fulfill that but at great cost. I would like to see action taken on 1st/3rd base which neither Stanton or Martinez would fulfill. We also need second base help and probably a relief pitcher. Lots of bucks to get all that done.

DD gets a pass by reason of the constraints he faced during last season. He will have more freedom for the 2018 season but it is still somewhat limited by the large contracts overhanging for another year. As far as LaRussa is concerned, I think the move made was a good one. Adding a very experienced and capable former anager in an advisory role makes sense to me.

I feel the same way. Cora is saying a lot of things that I have believed for a while now. His approach with the offense may well help some of our younger players to up their performance. Looking forward to seeing his approach put into operation.