oldtimer

Over the last four games we have had 3 where we garnered 5 hits, 3 hits and 3 hits. It is possible to face exceptional pitching from time to time, but it wasn't really that solid in all of these games. Is it our approach? Is it a lack of talent? Something is very wrong when we squander good pitching performances in this way. I know I am frustrated after watching the game today. Our options are primarily to do with 3rd base. Devers or in trade. That won't solve the other weaknesses though. At least it would be a step in the right direction.

Another game in the books and we had 3 hits in this one. Cobb was throwing first pitch strikes consistently but our strategy continues to be to take them. It cost Porcello a very good pitching performance. Bogaerts drew a walk, MOreland doubled, Hanley looked awful, they walked Beni to load the bases and Young popped up. I wonder why JBJ wasn't called on in the 9th to bat for Young. It seemed to be the natural thing to do. I guess JF had his reasons. Hanley to me remains an enigma. One game he comes up big. Today he took very hittable first pitches only to swing at ones totally off the plate. In the 9th with the bases loaded and one out, we needed a disciplied hitter to put the ball into the outfield. Instead, Hanley looked very bad. Good to see Bogaerts back. Maybe JF can come up with something for the final game.

As far as the idea of trading for someone with power, I just look at the guys who are in the field for us these days, and most are home grown. Funny how the reverse is true for the pitchers. Our outfield is 100% homegrown with the exception of our substitute Young. In the infield, we have Pedroia, Bogie and now Lin and Marrero with Moreland being the exception. our backup at first is Travis and you could make a case that Hanley came up through our system although he has had a long journey. I believe Vazquez is home grown whild Leon we got through a trade. With that, why not believe Devers will be our next solid field player that is home grown?

Another nice start for Pomeranz and a chance to pick up a game on the division. Toronto is down, The Rays lost to the Sox and both Baltimore and NY are in close ones. I guess a little rest helped the Sox get grounded for tonights game.

You are indicating that Devers and Travis would be two you would not trade and one has no ML appearances and the other has very limited ones. Lin looks to be a valuable utility man this year and possibly into the future. He seems to have most of the tools to be a good player for the Sox, certainly missing the power. If we keep him around we will get a look at what he can do at the plate on a more sustained basis.

Hanley took first pitches down the middle last night and then swung at those outside the strike zone. The approach of being unpredictable makes the pitcher wary of just giving a fastball down the middle. Maybe the first time you see a pitcher in the game the players are looking for what the pitcher has but with multiple at bats, that rationale doesn't make a lot of sense.

I would also put Lin on the do not trade list as he looks to be our infield utility guy of the resent and future. Time will tell if his plate approach will result in strong enoough numbers to stick, but his defense already is very high quality.

The Sox have seen inconsistency from the 1-5 hitters in the lineup with the exception of Pedey who is doing his job. We are dead meat if Betts and Bogey go into a spiral downward, so we have to assume that they will produce going forward. Moreland has been hurt and we can bolster him with Travis, a decent solution particularly against left handers. Hanley tends to be inconsistent and recently he has shown a streak of decent hitting so we were hopeful it might continue. To me he is an enigma though and a high priced one at that. I think when we are talking trades, we are limiting them to 3rd base and looking for a better bat in a person who can play 3rd decently. We might then keep Lin up as our utility infielder. Is Ozuna in the realm of possibility? He would not be the total answer as we have to get a spark going throughtout the lineup. Maybe the team just looks tired now.

Well, another game in the books. the Sox must have been very tired after getting in from Texas at 6 AM and then having to play at 7 PM. We had our ace on the mound but the Rays are a decent hitting team with several power hitters. To win we neede to hit but didn't do it and took the loss. We also had a bad start with Bogaerts getting hit on the hand and having to sit out the game. Good that there was no fracture, but he may well have to sit out a game or two more. The good was Sale went 7 innings and gave us a chance. The bad is that we looked weak in a number of areas. Base runnning: Beni got a bad jump trying to steal second and was out easily, erasing one of our base runners. Later, Lin tried to take third on a ball in the dirt and was thrown out erasing another. I didn't get the concept of running while in scoring position to gain a slight advantage. We needed smart base running and didn't get it. Fielding: I thought Marrero didn't make a very meaningful attempt on a double down the line by Longoria. He might have had a play but his attempt was weak. Later, a ball over the SS went to the fence for a double and Beni's play was strange, letting it go to the wall. Hitting: There is a reason we have a separate thread on hitting. After a 3 hit performance in the last game in Texas, which might be the result of a stellar pitching performance (I didn't see the qame), to go to a 5 hit performance with 4 walks wasn't all that strong either. We seem to get into a funk with some of our key players taking the collar. Mookie with 3 popups and a srikeout and one other weak grou nder as I recall. Hanley not putting up resistance, taking the pitches over the plate and swinging at many bad ones. Moreland not hitting. In addition, we were penalized by having to play Marrero but he actually delivered the rbi on a fly ball and got an infield hit. Pedroia got two good hits, Beni one and Leon one. Lin was selective and got on base a couple of times. We simply need to get more out of our top hitters to be competitive. Hope tomorrow will be better and we don't lapse into a funk as we had been in earlier in the year. If Bogaerts has to sit, we will have Lin and Marrero in the lineup and no real infield sub. Would we have to use Vazquez at third in the even one of our infielders can't continue?

The positives Lin brings are speed, range, a good glove and accurate arm. He is diminutive, and won't be a HR hitter, but he is a patient hitter and has a nice swing. If he can hit 250 at the ML level, he is an excellent utility infielder for the team. To me, he makes the older Holt's tenture on the team unnecessary. As Moon pointed out, we have better options at all positions than Holt and now with his injury history will we need him? It's a hard thing to deal with an older player this way, but we need to do what is best for the team I don't see Sandoval or Abreau having enough value to stay on the roster either. Maybe there would be a question between Marerro and Rutledge as which right hand batter could help us most. It is interesting that this can even be a discussion item as Marerro was not in consideration 2 weeks ago but has played himself into contention to stay up. Travis is a good sub for Moreland. Moreland wil need time off during the 2nd half. It doesn't appear the Hanley is the right guy to sub at 1st. The problem is that would make more than 13 field players, so Travis will stay down for the time being. Maybe Marerro can handle subbing at 1st. That would fill out position player if as Moon thought we send Fister down when e-Rod gets reinstated. The subject of dealing with an everyday 3rd baseman still is open. We could bring Devers up soon and see if he can handle it or go out and try to trade for a replacement. But in doiing that we would have to get a guy who would perform materially better than those we currently have. If we go either with Devers or trade to fill that position, then I assume Marerro would be sent down. These are not easy decisions for JF and DD. I guess as fans we will stay tuned.

I am including a long article about injury rate and type for those with a lot of time on their hands. It might be useful in determining what to do with trades going forward since one can get an idea of the type of injuries we may face in the next few months that will need action by the front office. http://www.mdedge.com/amjorthopedics/article/106556/sports-medicine/injury-trends-major-league-baseball-over-18-seasons Saying that, we are currently carrying 12 pitchers, 4 outfielders, 2 catchers and 7 infielders (Hanley fits that category). Our current 10 day disaabled list guys are Johnson, E-Rod, Ross, Rutledge and Sandoval. We also have Workman, Swihart and Devers in the minors who are candidates for call up. The most likely guy to force his way back to the roster is E-Rod, at which time we might return one of Travis, Marerro or Lin to the minors and keep 13 pitchers( keeping Fister for long relief). An injury to the outfield might involve calling up Holt, Selsky or Brentz (sp). An injury at catcher might move Swihart up. To improve the team we might bring Devers up ad keep Lin with him, moving Travis or Marerro down. I don't see Rutledge, Holt or Sandoval making it back unless it be a late season call up. We may either have to trade these guys or cut them loose. Don't see a lot of room here for an acquisition from outside. Be interesting to hear what others think.

I look forward to getting E-Rod back since his potential is to become the #4 or even #3 level starter for us this year. He has been injury prone, but it that can be worked out he has the talent.

I guess I am too old to be taught. You can make a case for just about anything with statistical analysis but only a few cases make actual sense. I'll stick with what I have learned through many years of playing and watching the game.

Using this thread again to talk about last nights game as there is no other better place. Very good news on most fronts last night as the Sox took on the Rangers best starter and easily won while picking up a full game on the Yankees. Don't sleep on the Rays though as they are playing excellent ball these days. The best news was Price put up another strong performance. When a starter can give you 6 innings of shutout ball with 9 strikeouts and spread only 6 hits around.He did leave with what mmight have been a blister on his throwing hand. I will await a report on that but doubt it is very serious. His velocity was very good and command was there. No changeup but otherwise very good. JF was able to rest some of his key BP assests while letting others clean up the game. Clearly Beni had a great game hitting and made one catch in the game that will make all of todays highlight playbacks. What I thought was great about the hitting is that he pulled three of those hits, something he hasn't been doing that I had recommended. The ball was carrying for him but his homerun to right field was a very solid home run. Hope he can build on last night with increased confidence at the plate. I had talked about the approach to Darvish as one where they needed to grind it out to get to the Rangers bullpen. While the Sox didn't get any hits in the first they did grind out 16 pitches. In the second, after Moreland went down, it was good hitting from the lower part of the order. Hanley got a nice double and Beni started his night with an RBI single. Vazquez didn't try to do too much and was hitting well and I was very impressed with Lin's plate approach. I believe we put 2 runs and 30 tough pitches on Darvish. Couldn't believe the next inning when Pedey swung at the first pitch and both Bogie and Moreland went down easily with no more than 9 pitches total. They went away from the grind it out menatality. Good that the lower part of the order was of a patient mind set as they made it very hard on Darvish and he was out of there after just 5. I was very impressed with Lin. In him, we have a fast if diminutive player who is under control and fairly inexpensive. He has an excellent glove and arm and can play 2nd, short and third well.He is a patient hitter with a good eye. I hope he is not being showcased for a potential trade as to me he is a keeper who makes other utility assets like Rutledge and Holt available for trade. I would love this kid to be in the Red sox future plans. I loved the way JF put on the hit and run that worked to perfection. You seldom see those plays nowadays. Perhaps the only bad news is that Bogie is in a serious slump. He is chasing balls out of the zone, taking good pitches and swinging at bad.Has he lost confidence? Whatever iss going on he needs to reset his thinking and get back to meeting the ball. I don't have anything I can see to suggest for him as he is so out of whack right now. JBJ had a good night at the plate but I noticed at least once with two strikes he overswung rather than cutting down his swing and just trying to put the ball in play. Good hitters need to focus and be smart at the plate. Kind of like Hanley with the bases loaded swinging for the fence. Great night with a lot of guys playing well. Onward with Fister next and no pitcher wanting to be the first to break the winning streak.

Yes and the approach tonight should be to grind out every AB and make Darish work hard in the heat. If we get to the Rangers BP, they cannot match us. I don't know if Bogey will make the lineup and feel good enough to get good AB's but I hope so. We need all the quality experienced guys in the game we can muster tonight. I don't expect a lot of Sox hitting but hope to see them battle. We also need Price to pitch well tonight and he has been coming along well so there is a chance of that. I will watch with great interest.

Yes, Betts is guarnteed to be up with no one on base during his first AB when batting first. While our 8 and 9 hitters have gotten on base recently, it is usually the case that our lower OBP guys hit in those holes so Mookie will have a lesser chance of getting up with men on base when batting 1st than 3rd. That cannot be the best approach. The 1st and 2nd hitters in the lineup are usually guys that find ways to get on base at a higher rate than the 8 and 9 hitters. My takeaway is I would rather have Mookie up with a higher chance of driving runs in, even if it costs a few plate appearances a month. No one would have suggested we put Papi up first last year because he was our best hitter and the same should apply to Mookie.

In my view he makes some good decisions and some bad ones. Leaving Porcello in last night with over 100 pitchers in the heat was something I wouldn't have recommended. His command seems to fade as he tires and when that happens his sinking fast ball can go over the heart of the plate and be very hittable. Why not go to the pen with a 3 run lead. It might have saved a run and avoided extra innings. On the other hand, I liked the bold move of putting in the right hand subs to make it difficult for their left handed starter. Tonight will be a difficult game to win with Darvish being a really tough pitcher. It will be interesting to see how JF manages tonight. There will probably be decisions I like and dislike but he is the guy on the hotseat. DiSarcina says he sort of talks out loud but should only be offered suggestions when he asks for them.

Fister and Boyer are not so bad either.

The Sox went into Texas after 3 successful for longish games against Toronto and into the really hot weather and after a long flight. Fortuneately, JF was able to use Abad in relief closing the Toronto series so the bull pen came in somewhat rested and the starters were and are on regular rotation. To tough out a win required a lot of good things, and some not so good to happen. To me first among the good was the magnificent play by Dustin. He may have lost a step but he makes up with it in savy play. His hitting was clutch as he didn't try to do too much and his fielding was superb and made the win possible. Also, I credit our outfield play with all three fielders doing well and Young making catches like a premier outfielder. JF had started his mainly right hand hitting lineup with essentially 3 rookie players since Bogey is still hurting. Travis, Lin and Marrero field their positions well and Lin might be a better fielding SS than Bogey. He is also a smart base runner with excellent speed. If you count Beni in the rookie mix, we really had 4 in the game last night and none really hurt us. I thought Betts did some smart hitting as Texas was being so careful of him. He took walks and didn't chase. Finally, his double was key in winning the game. As far as pitching, the strike zone was very small but consistent last night so Porcello was up against it and faired well. His issues come when he leaves a sinker up in the zone belt high and over the plate. He did that maybe three times all told last night. The final time he was tired and JF may have mistakenly left him in too long. Our relief pitching was pretty good. Scott made an excellent pitch but the hitter fought it off for a double down the line. Small hiccups in relief are to be expected though and we had ours. Hembree came in and gave us two solid innings to win the game. In my opinion there were a couple of bad things worth mentioning. Hanley, who has been raking it recently, had some dumb at bats. He was up with the bases loaded and swung out of his shoes at balls outsside the strike zone (hero ball). He didn't look right all night. Beni, who wound up getting the winning hit, is still hitting predominently to left field with fly balls. He would do much better getting some more power into his hitting by pulling at least some balls. He is a smart young hitter and I expect him to work out where he can do better. Great start in Texas although they will face Darvish the Texas ace next up an runs will be very difficult to come by. Haven't heard about Bogey, but I would sit hm if there is a lingering groin soreness. We will need him in the long term so no reason to take chances there.

One thing that occurs to me is that our rookie players in Travis and for that matter Beni and having their struggles adapting to MLB level play. it takes time, even for some talented rookies to make significant contributions. Devers may also have quite a bit of talent based on his rating at the minor league level, but he too would likely take some time to adapt to the MLs. Meanwhile we need help at 3rd. I doubt Marerro is a long term answer and I gave up on Pablo so am looking for DD to make a more significant move in that regard.

I don't expect the FO to bring Pablo back unless he shows in a rehab assignment that he is capable of playing better then our current options. It is difficult to imagine that this will happen for Pablo as he has already had the opportunity and it hasn't gone well.

If you look at the Blue Jays, with some folks we thought we wanted a week or so ago, only Smoak is really hitting. Its just a cautionary thought to remind oneself that getting help is not as easy as picking up a guy who has doe well in the past.

When you say now, do you meet at this current date? In reality, while Bogaerts has the highest average, he is in a slump of sorts and no doubt will come out of it, but he isn't hitting the best on the team right now.

More ebb and flow of players today with Betts having a monster day (2HR and 8RBI and counting). Today he was lucky to have Lin and Marrero hitting well behind him. I would prefer Mookie batting 3rd with Bogey and Pedie before him. Funny how just a while ago people were worried about Betts hitting and those that urged patience are happy for him. Of course the same might be said for JBJ, now over 280 and Hanley seemingly hitting with a vengence. Hanley should be 4th or 5th in the lineup and JBJ is good enough to hit in either of those positions as well. Now we need a little patience with Beni and Bogey. They are both too good of hitters to be in a prolonged slump.

We seem to be seeing an ebb and flow of hitting on by various players on the Sox and I believe it is the managers job to use the guys who are hot and who can hit lefties or righties to maximize our run production without giving up too much defense. Our pitching has been solid and may still improve, so if we can score at least a few a game we are in it. By ebb and flow I am referring to a guy like JBJ. There were a lot of unhappy fans calling for his trade early in the year. Others advocated more patience, since he had hit before and was so good defensively. I was concerned about his long loopig swing. Now his swing looks better and he may just be the hottest hitter on the team. We will hear more about moving him up in the lineup. Handley is another one who was being heavily criticized for attitude, overstated injuries and lack of production. Some realized he miht be our only hitter with true power potential and one whose contract dictated we should be patient. Lately there are signs of he too coming around. Bogey has great potential as a hitter but has looked somewhat lost at the plate and it may just be physical and/or mental fatigue. He was given a day off yesterday but it may take more, erhaps the all star break to get him going. Last year he also had a bit of a swoon so it may well be just fatigue of some sort. Moreland was our most productive hitter for a while but he too has looked tired and a little off at the plate. He also has difficulty with left handed pitching. It is probably good to sit him against lefties and give him a rest now and again. He is now in his 30's so a little rest is a good idea. Too bad Travis hasn't been producing, but he has a history of being a good minor league hitter and may come through. I think Betts is okay although i would move him in the lineup to an RBI position. What I noticced about him was his propensity to hit the ball into the big part of center field making loud outs. He seems to be doing a better job of hitting to all fields and it may pay off in both total hits and HR's. Beni infrequently pulls the ball these days, preferring to hit into left field. His power has disappeared since he has done that and I believe he would be better served to go with the pitch. He has the potential to be a 300 hitter and needs to continue to make adjustments at the plate to help the team. I liked JF's idea of stacking the lineup against lefty or righty starting pitching. He gives the team an advantage by doing that and is able to rest some players who need it at the half season mark. We are fortunate to have good back up defensive players so little is lost by stacking. Here we are in first place. That doesn't mean we should become complacent. We still need to deal with the 3rd base issue and we probably need another relief pitcher. I look forward to watching this team make progress in the second half.