oldtimer

Well, Texas and the Sox were rated at the top at the start of the ALDS, probably based on their records and potent offenses. Texas just was swept in large part due to weak starting pitching. The Sox have also lost two with weak performances from their starters. Kind of points to the need to have improved pitching. In our case, we chose a bad time to have our hitting also go downhill, but some of that is due to the improved pitching seen in the playoffs. There will be a competitive market for such starters who might become available through Trades next year.

Francona's stated that he would do everything he could to compete in the winnable games, referring of course to the games with the Sox. Let the future take care of itself. Showalter didn't do that, leaving his best reliever sitting when he still had a chance to win. He is rightly being criticized for that lack of action.

Let Kimbrel pout. We need quality and if we get it, the boys will have to work it out.

Instead of concentrating totally on the White Sox and trying to get a blockbuster trade, I would look to the FA market to see if we can do anything there first. Justin Turner is on the market for third base. Maybe we could avoid picking up Frazier that way and simplify the proposed trade with the White Sox. I favor picking up Carlos Beltran for DH if we can get him off the FA market. I am probably one of very few fans that think we have weakness at catcher with 4 on the books. I would look at Wilson Ramos on the FA market and keep Vazquez, allowing the others to be traded. I understand both Kenley Jensen and Mark Melanson are FA who could help with the RP. I have heard that E. Encarnacion is in a lawsuit dealing with passing along sexually transmitted disease. I would be reluctant to bring him aboard due to the big money involved, the length of contract likely and this unsettling legal situation. If we could get Quintana in a trade with the WS, I would be for it, but with a single target, our offering could be much less and not deplete our prospects so deeply.

It reasonable to say we can win one game on Sunday. The problem is we need to win 3 games and at least one of those against Kluber, who dominated us yesterday. I hope we can but who is going to energize our slumping hitters?

I have been a fan since the 1940's and have also seen a lot. It isn't being bitchy to point out the reality we find ourselves in.

The first thing I would do is look hard at the manager and coaching staff. What we have seen at the end of this season is a collapse of the team and I hope it doesn't end Sunday for Ortiz, but we have played poorly. Starting pitching, closer, hitting and even field play are all suspect. It is worth asking why this should occur and who should be held accountable? Clearly, JBJ, Bogaerts, Leon and Shaw have fallen into a funk at the plate. Perhaps Shaw and Leon are returning to their ability levels, but JBJ and Bogaerts appear to be better so need to be worked with for next year and hopefully return to what I perceive is a higher ability level at the plate. A note of caution is that be very careful about bringing in ace pitchers on big, long term contracts. We have Price now who is more of a 3rd starter than an ace. Kimbrel is another story. Great stuff but wild. Also, be wary of bringing in older field players and hitters on big, long term contracts. With that said, I would be willing to trade away Swihart, Shaw, Johnson and Owens and roster players like HIll, Hannigan,Rutledge and Marrero. In the relief area I would trade Elias, Abad, Workman and Ramirez. I would be very reluctant to trade JBJ as he still has a high upside potential. The deal would need to be very enticing to let got of him. I would keep Devers for the time being as he may fill a need at 3rd, depending on how Moncada works out. Quintana would be my SP target. We do already have a serviceable rotation so someone would wind up being pushed out. Don't know who that would be. Have looked at Robertson and I assume he is one of your targets for setup man in the 7th or 8th. Smith is returning for surgery so maybe Barnes or Hembree would fill in but Scott is a lefty or Pomeranz would fit as a long reliever. As far as lineup at the start of the season is concerned, I am assuming we don't trade JBJ away and we keep Young. Lineup: 1. Pedey 2nd 2. Beni lf 3. Betts rf 4. Beltran DH 5. Rameriz 1st 6. Bogaerts SS 7. JBJ cf 8. Frazier 3rd (on your advice) 9. Leon c Remaining 25 man roster: 10. Young of 11. Henrnadez 2nd, SS 12. Holt of, if 13. Vazquez c Other reserves: Moncada 2nd, 3rd Travis 1st Dubon SS Devers 3rd Holaday c On the longer term, the hope is that Moncada can make the jump during the year and be a solid contributor after the all star break. If we do lose JBJ, then I wouldn't plan on playing Beltran in LF. Holt would be a better choice. Getting any free agent will be a competitive situation and DD is the guy who we want to make favorable trades and acquisitions for us.

Just a reality check. Didn't we just lose 7 of the last 8 games? Hardly a competitive team at this point. Instead of doom and gloom, I see it as a reality, as it is in the books. The Pollyanna types can say their piece and be hopeful, as is their right, but the facts point in the other direction.

In view of the end of season performance of our team, we may need to rethink who we keep and who we need. Since it seems we are in a general malaise, I would also look to the coaches and managers for an explanation. Some of our poor performers are under big contracts so that is hard to fix. Others, as you mention, need to be reconsidered and their performances are sub ML level. Some of our fans might say look, we made the playoffs so we should tread lightly with changes. The reality is our end of season has been dismal to date and we never would have made the playoffs the way we are going now.

After the game this afternoon, even the most optimistic Red Sox fans have to be discouraged. Down 2 in a 5 game series is a huge hole. Signs of the Red Sox weakness showed up with the performances of Kimbrel and Price late in the season. When Porcello had a clunker, the complexion of our playoff picture turned grey. Our hitting also turned sour and for stat guys you need to look over a short period to get a true picture of what is going on as Shaw, Bogaerts,JBJ and Leon have all been underperforming. Knowing we were going up against playoff caliber pitching meant our other players would struggle to carry the team. Only if our pitching was stellar would be have a good chance. Well, today we seemed to be snakebittern. We ran into good pitching and struggled with it. While Price seemed to have good stuff, a couple of unlucky break hits got him into trouble and then he had a mistake or two and he had to be removed from the game. By then we were in a big hole and never could have gotten out of it. Interestingly, Kimbrel got used for one batter and struck him out although he looked wild to me. Also, we had mishandled balls by Pedey and Holt while every bounce seemed to go Clevelands way. Our only hitters that seemed to hit the ball well, by that I mean didn't strike out a lot and put the ball in play with decently hit balls were Holt and Beni. Bogaerts and Betts each got a hit but didn't look good at the plate. Pedey also looked bad. JBJ is not even making contact now and perhaps we should get Young into the game for the series in Boston by moving JBJ out and moving Beni into center. Leon isn't doing much either and it doesn't seem to matter which pitchers are in the game against us, we just aren't hitting well. You have to ask why we are in such a malaise but I have no answer. We may have to rethink the roster for next year in view of the performance of the team in the playoffs. I guess we have to hope Buchholz can win the next one and take it a game at a time.

He was used in medium relief and did the job pretty well. I wonder how much rest he will need between apprearances?

The American League Championship Series is underway. Players and coaches strive during the 162 game season for the privilege of playing in it. Once there, the realism is that you might not get there again so it is time to make the most of it. Execute each pitch, each at bat, each fielding play or go home. No excuses, just execute. Last night we had our ace going but he didn't get it done. Porcello's bread and butter pitch is the sinking two seam fast ball. Hard to hit at all and really hard to get in the air. That pitch sets up his high four seamer, the changeup and the curve. Last night he started well using that pitch but for some reason went away from it. Maybe only a few for the rest of the outing, instead going with belt to shoulder level fast balls and changeups. I don't understand why he, Leon and the coaches didn't realize he had done so and correct it. Instead, he seemed mesmerized and was on his way to more than a 9.0 era for the game. Giving up so many in so few innings digs a big hole for our hitters. Speaking of our hitters, they are facing major league pitching and you can't expect them to do more than put up good at bats and have occasional hits. A number of our players did just that but our original killer bees seem to have lost their sting. Betts at least drew a walk and should be okay. Perhaps the idea of being in a playoff game made him nervous. Bradley on the other hand was taking his power cut and having trouble making any contact at all while Bogaerts looked totally lost. These guys need to get in the game and execute or else we will be out early. Leon got a home run but clearly doesn't handle the curve very well. I'm guessing he will see a lot more of those as the series progresses. The only field play I thought was not made as well as it might have been is Beni's throw to second base after making a catch in deep left. He seemed to hesitate getting the ball in perhaps thinking the runner would not try to tag and take 2nd. That resulted in a run so was important. I chalk that up to experience. Pedey, Holt, Ortiz, Hanley and Beni looked good at the plate but they need more help. Price against Kluber will be to our disadvantage so we really need to step forward or go home down two.

I like to see speed along with OBP early in the order. I believe our fastest players are Betts, Beni, Bogaerts,JBJ and Young (not ordered for speed). I don't see JBJ as an early in the order guy but the rest are good possibilities. Pedey isn't as fast but he is such a good hitter that he fits in as well. Our current Sluggers are Hanley, Betts and JBJ, so I like them behind our early order guys. Betts fits batting third very well with both speed, power and a high OBP. We may well pick up an additional slugger for 2017. I love to see Beltran in a Red Sox uniform. The really slow guys that we keep on the roster like Leon should be placed where he is less likely to hit into double plays and kill rallies. Down in the lineup with lower oBP guys ahead of him.

Any chance that Kopech will make the scene in 2017? He's got a great arm.

Beltran for a year or even two would be a positive for the team. Kind of reminds me of when the Yankees picked up Ibanez. A very good veteran with real pop. Probably a very good team player as well. Would solve the DH position.

Choice of backup catcher was more to do with defense, since none of them set themselves apart at bat. I liked Hernandez over Marrero as he looks more poised at bat, although neither has proven much in that respect at the ML level. I would have chosen Hembree over Barnes but they are similar in many ways. Tazawa being left off is a little surprise but I can't criticize who was picked instead. I like having Pomeranz as he has looked pretty good having gotten a little rest. We still are weak at 3rd base but other than that, we have our best lineup available either against lefties or righties. Now they need to execute.

I guess we have to wait for game time to see who made the 25 man roster. I too would pick Hernandez over Marrero.

I took a shot at our pitching needs. It is a difficult subject as getting rid of any of our starting pitchers carries a risk of not gaining much and incurring a lot of cost. The relief area is clearly a need. Oct 5, 2016 The pitching staff for 2017 is a difficult subject in that we already have pretty solid starters but our RPs are up in the air due to FAs and returns from injury. Those assuming we should go out and trade away solid resources for a SP should consider the advantage when compared to our current starters. My thinking rating our current flock from top to bottom is as follows: Starting Pitchers: 1. Porcello is in the running for Cy Young and deserves his accolades. He will probably have another very good year in 2017 2. Price is a workhorse. I’m not sure he will be our second best in 2017 but he should be close. His contractual agreement makes him a long term member of the Sox starting rotation. 3. Rodriguez has shown signs of really blossoming. He has a terrific arm and shows signs of being at least a 3rd starter. 4. Pomeranz will start out rested in 2017 and will likely be a winning pitcher. He may surprise us an put up very good numbers. 5. Wright is an inning eater and capable of earning a winning record. He goes long in the game so is healthy for the BP as well. That is 5 starters who are all capable of winning records with Buchholz in the BP for long relief and probably able to fill in as a full time starter should we get an injury to the top 5. Starters waiting in the minors: Some of these may be traded. I would be very hesitant to trade Kopeck and Groome as they are possibly the pitching future for the Sox. 1. Owens 2. Johnson 3. Kopech 4. Groome Relief Pitchers: With FA loss of Ziegler, Tazawa and Uehara likely, we lose the strength of our setup men and possibly closers. We need 7 RPs going into the season. My grading of them right now is kind of up in the air.The best I can see includes: 1. Kimbrel who is wild now but has great stuff. Can he ever get reliable enough to be the kind of closer that racks up a starring record? 2. Ross has proven himself to be a solid left handed option is not a true setup man. 3. Kelly is developing into a good guy to get the strikeout and stop a rally. 4. Hembree is good at times but has shown to be unreliable at others 5. The question with Smith is can be ready to return as a setup man. 6. Buchholz is a good candidate as long reliever Beyond those I see possibilities but not locks: 1. Scott looks like his effectiveness is against lefties. 2. Barnes has been questionable. 3. Abad has good stuff but hasn’t delivered in numerous chances 4. Workman is coming back from injury While the numbers are there to make up a relief cadre, I don’t like the quality. I see a lot of questions in the group starting from the top. We could use two quality guys to perform the setup roles and perhaps even inherit closer duty. I wouldn’t be sad to see us keep 5 of the top 6 and trade for two others or get them through the FA market.

Both posts are informative and excellent

Good that Hanigan and Hill are FA's. I doubt we can use them anyway. I list Sandoval and Rutledge as prospects since I see them needing to fight for a spot next year. Perhaps prospects is the wrong category but what else would you call them?

I agree and he can PH and PR. Both may be of use in the playoffs.

Was he in some way injured. The things fans don't know.

10/5/2016 Red Sox Team Projections for 2017 The Red Sox will need to revamp some of the lineup next season with the retirement of Ortiz and the lack of performance at 3rd base. Also the Sox lack depth for at PH. I did some thinking and listed the Sox in terms of importance to the team and perhaps I am being harsh, but so be it. Lineup Keepers: 1. Betts All around player, MVP candidate and good team mate. 2. Pedroia Very good fielder, excellent hitter and team captain material 3. Bogaerts Very good fielder, expected 300 hitter and very durable 4. Rameriz Acceptable fielder, probable 280 streaky hitter with much needed power 5. Bradley Gold glove outfielder with maybe a 270 avg and some power 6. Benintendi Solid young outfielder with probable solid BA and good speed, top of the order type 7. Young Good defensive outfielder and good hitter against lefties Marginal Players: 1. Leon Good defensive catcher, hitting may fall to 250ish avg, overweight and DP in waiting 2. Hernandez Good utility infielder, young, strong and fast with good hitting approach 3. Vazquez Good defensive catcher with so far 220ish avg potential 4. Holt Good utility player who tends to wear down over season 5. Shaw Good fielder at either 1st or 3rd but unimpressive hitter Probably Won’t be Here Next Year but tradable: 1. Hill Decent fielder but unimpressive hitter 2. Holaday Decent catcher but again unimpressive hitter 3. Marrero Utility infielder/outfielder but unimpressive hitter 4. Hannigan Decent catcher but very weak hitter Prospects Currently On Board With a Chance of Making the Team 1. Swihart Good young talent who can play OF, 1st, catcher and PH. 2. Moncada Hot prospect but needs to develop. Maybe later in year 3. Sandoval High salaried guy with ML experience who needs to show determination 4. Rutledge Possible returner since he might fit the 3rd base needs. A long shot at this point 5. Devers Another possible 3rd base prospect with some power. 6. Travis Probably needs time to recover from off year and major injury This team for 2017 is marginal at catcher, is missing a DH and is weak at 3rd base. We really could use a power bat as our competitors currently have more than we do in that way. I need to think more about the pitching, especially in the relief area.

No one seems to care much about where players bat in the order, but I think grouping your best hitters together is the best bet for scoring. From that point of view I have noticed the recent move of Holt to the 2 spot hasn't resulted in the team scoring. It could just be an aberration based on a small sample or having faced especially good pitching in that period. I wonder if Beni would be better in the 2 spot with Holt moved back.

That way you only need to bat your eight best. Sounds good to me.