oldtimer

Devers and Casas are two of our best hitters and both have power potential. I finbd it doubtful that Sox management would risk the clubhouse upheaval of moving either from their hot corner positions despite their below league average defensive woes. That relegates Bregman to 2nd base. Each of the three could wind up as DH for short stints but the majority of their play will be at the expected positions. Story will line up at SS as long as he can remain healthy. In the outfield we have Duran as a lock. Abreau is solid and Rafaela is capable defensive;y but is a question mark at the plate. It has been difficult to follow the Sox on the basis of a long term plan as they have had a terrible time of it for years. Still I remain hopeful and I think you do as well. Somehow, we have to incorporate are best prospect into the team sooner than later. That means Anthony, Campbell and Mayer. Bregman could opt out after a year. Yoshida is a bad fit for our team. We have a structurally weak defensive team and need to take drastic measures to correct the problems. Does management have the willingness to do so? I doubt it.

The concept of depth is that there are backup players who are around league average who can sub in during short term periods of FT player absence. To me it implies that we want our best players (those above league average) to get a substantial portion of the season reps. When we identify Anthony and Campbell as potential above league average players, it means to me that we want them as FT position players. That is especially true for our team which has done poorly over the recent past. With Bregman added to the team and both Devers and Casas likely fixtures in the lineup despite their lackluster fielding prowess, there are few opportunities for our new potential game changers from reaching the ML lineup. The best bet is in the outfield where we need to evaluate if Anthony and/or Capbell are better than Abreau, Rafaela and Yoshida. We have made one move to balance our lineup but are still heavy with left handed batters. Abreau is a quality player on both sides of the ball, Rafaela is a quality fielder but with a weak bat. Personally I would move Rafaela to utility while trading Yoshida and Abreau. We need a closer and a quality backup catcher. I'm an advocate of acting boldly.

I'm in agreement with you on this and in particular on finding a path to the majors for both Campbell and Anthony. With Bregman coming to the Sox, and with 2nd base as the expected position we have blocked the most logical position for Cambell. Bregman helps us with lineup balance but does nothing to solve our defensive shortcomings at the corners or at catcher. Now Campbell and Anthony must break in to a set outfield to into ML games. I have advocated trading Yoshida and Abreau to open space for these top prospects., I hope that the Sox don't drag out their promotion for another year.

I didn't expect this to happen but there it is. Now we will see what other ramifications are involved. Does this hold Campbell out of the lineup? Right now things are up in the air but clearly we aren't paying Bregman to be a utility player. It;s 3rd or 2nd.

Like me, you discount Yoshida and think he should be traded. I think we can do better in the outfield as well. Trade Abeau, move Rafaela to utility along with Refsnyder, move Anthony into our outfield and trade for a right handed power hitting outfielder. I don't expect Bregman will be in a Sox uniform so Devers remains at 3rd and we live with poor fielding at the corners. We do need another catcher but I don't expect there will be one available. There must be a moderate cost older right handed hitter who could be picked up to fill our DH spot instead of Yoshida.

We really need to improve our defense while also starting a more balance lineup. Arenado at third improves both area but then required moving Devers to first or better yet into a very expensive designated hitter. If Campbell is truly reading for 2nd we would have a balanced lineup and Devers would be able to backup Arenado as needed. Part of the consideration should involve the outfield plan going forward.. Anthony is a #1 prospect and looks to be the future. Duran is in his prime and was an all star. Is Rafaela going to improve and is Refsnyder our utility answer. Depending on ones view of that outfield plan it would make both and the use of Devers in the primary DH role, both Yoshida and Abreau become available. Certainly there is value there. That is the direction that makes sense to me. I don't believe a high value catcher is available or I would also look in that direction.

My view throughout the off seeason is that the Sox nees to improve on defense and to do more to balance their lineup with right hand bats, preferably with some power. In my view Yoshida is not a good fit for Boston in either category (defense, balance). Is it still too late to trade for a right handed outfielder? Trade Yoshida and if necessary Abreau to make it happen. A trade for another quality right handed hitting catcher doesn't seem to be in the offing so an outfielder makes sense. Rafaela's hitting reamains suspect so I don't expect he will begin the year as more than a utility player. I don't see him as filling the need. Realistically Devers and Casas will remain at the corners and we would like to see the Sox take advantage of our high performance prospects. Anthony in the outfield and Campbell at 2nd base while avoiding a major commitment to an older player who would wind up out of his best position. I woulld roll the dice in the direction of our prospects. Can Mayer also be brought up and given reps at SS against some RH pitching? That's a tougher call but I hate to see him languish in the minors if he has true ML capability. Over the years I have lost confidence that Sox management has a plan to make the team truly competitive.

While our pitching looks to be improved for the 2025 season we have built in defensive issues on the infield corners, at catcher and in the outfield if the idea of using Yoshida is carried forward in a meaningful number of games. The lineup imbalance also remains. Because we have Devers, finding a home for either Arenado or Bregman is the issue holding up bringing them in. Rafaela didn't hit well last year, marking him as more or a utility player or someone working on his game in the minors. I just don't see us having a strong season so believe it would be smarter to bring in our best prospects early and trade away the bad fits. The Sox front office doesn't see it the way I do so I'm ready for another disappointing season. I'd be delighted is Sox management would act strategically and forcefully to strengthen the team.

Vlad is too expensive as a DH. Also Yoshida should go. Bring in a solid LF or keep Abreau. Why not pick up a RH power hitter? Otherwise I like the idea of bringing up Cambell, Anthony and Mayer. If they pan out, they represent a major upside and if we don't one or more can be recycled to gain experience.

You say you're not sure that we shouldn't have both Rafael and Vlad on the team together. I am sure and realize thar at this time we have Devers, Casas and Yoshida. All are lefty bats and sub-par defenders. I resigned to the fact that we will have sub-par defenders at the corners this year but certainly do not want to add another expensive lefty who plays only first base. I also have been a long term advocate of moving Yoshida. He can hit and should have value to another team but he is not a fit for the Sox. Package him and get a decent return.

Our goals for the 2025 season were to improve the defense and balance the lineup. In addition, addressing the pitching issues was the priority item. At least we have addressed the pitching to some extent but we still have four poor defenders in the lineup if catching is included and we have less balance in the lineup than last season. There were some trade and FA possibilities out there but as yet they have not been realized. Management needs to think stategially, including long term and also use the strengths available to us. Clearly Yoshida is a poor defender with a left hand bat. It would be an addition by subtraction had we traded him, even if we had to sweeten the pot with Abreau. Is there a catcher out there we can acquire in trade? We let Teel go so now have very little in the wings. We have the number 1 rated prospect in all of baseball and are debating whether he will make the 26 man. True he is a left handed bat, but come on man, bring him up. We need a second baseman and have Kristian Campbell who is a high potential and flexible defender and swings a right hand bat. Bring him up instead of dumping big bucks on a once great but now possibly over the age hump infielder. We also have Mayer who clearly is an advanced defender with a high potential bat. The problem there is he is a left handed player and doesn't fit as well We have put ourselves in the position of starting below average defenders at both 1st and 3rd. Since we get a lot of offense from those positions and we have big money involved, the solution is not obvious. Having Yoshida out of the lineup would open the DH up but I doubt if either Devers or Casas wants to go that route. If we don' t find a solution to the problem this year, it will linger on. It sounds like they are both here to stay so is their defense. If that is the case, we at least need aRH power bat for DH. I don't see that Sox management and ownership have addressed fixing the weaknesses in our field players.

Arenado is still in the mix. He could play 3rd, 1st or DH. Would be a smart addition and would fit at Fenway. I have thought we might go that way if Tescovar wasn't interested in the Sox.

Arenado is owed 74 million over 3 years. He would be a goodx fit for us but are the Cardinals looking for young pitching and would they eat some of the remaining contract. Since Yoshida has value, but is not a good fit for us, we would like to include him in a trade, but he too has a big remaining contract. Maybe Fitts and Bleis for Arenado with cash or a solid catching prospect.

I just noticed we got Arenado.That's a big get if true. The Sox are really making a bid after the recent inactive years. At 84, I am happy we might be getting back to competitiveness. Anyone guess on what that means for the sstarting team?

He's a lefty handed hitter on the RS. a team loaded with them. He is slow and not a serious outfield reserve. He is a reasonable contact hitter but doesn't do much else. i believe we should trade him to someone who can utilize him more than we can. Get as much of his salary off our books while looking for a right hand hitter who can at least be a reasonable sub at 1st and who can DH.

To me, the Sox couldn't afford both Soto and Devers, so it was an either/or. Just too much money for Soto. Paying for a player at $51 mil per year to age 41 made no sense anyway. I believe in spending money, but doing it wisely. We have the elements of a competitive team provided we spend on pitching and a very good right hand hitter who can hold his own in the field.

My answer is no it wouldn't be enough. We need to spend on pitching. Having two expensive players (Devers and Soto) who will be in decline at the same time makes no sense to me. At my age, I probably won't be around to see it happen, but still it looks like a poor strategy. To me it's either/or. If Soto, then trade Devers and probably Yoshida at the same time. Soto is better offensively and defensively. We have some impressive rookies coming along to fill in. Leave some money on the table to fill the great need, which is pitching.

I believe we will and should promote both Anthony and Campbell. With those two, and in the event we also get Soto, we would have some tough decsions to make for the 2025 season and beyond. To my thinking Yoshida never was a good fit and becomes a prioity to trade. I see it as an either/or with Soto/Devers. I'm fine with either, but not both. Yes we need a short term backup catcher. And Refsnyder makes perfect sense as a backup outfielder. Whether Rafaela is on the active roster to start the season is open to question so who the backup utility infielders should be depends on the possibility of Soto coming to the Sox. In that regard, I question the sense of a 15 year deal for any player. Might be great for part of that time but a big liability as age sets in. Sox management needs to make wise use of their resources.

I was of the opinion that they should sign Soto, even at the outrageous numbers being talked about. I have changed my mind when I heard he wants a deal stretching over 15 years. The risk is just too high when taking a commitment of that length. If the Red Sox are to spend, lets hope they do so wisely and get value for their outlays.

If we expend the big bucks, let's do it wisely.

Realistically, I can't see us affording both, so if it is either/or I think Soto is a better bet overall. Devers is $31.5 mil/yr and Soto may be $40 m/yr. Keep Casas and use Abreu as trade bait to fulfilll over needs.

Time for a shakeup? Lot of Flexibilty, Balance, Power. Higher risk with multiple rookies. Only Wong to cover FB. C Jansen/Wong FB Casas SB Grissom SS Story TB Campbell RF Soto CF Duran LF Anthony DH Oneill Util: Rafaela, Refsnyder, Mayer Trade Yoshida, Devers, Abreau

Every team will try and sign him so the probability of the Sox winning is low but not zero. I can see us getting Fried as a major lefty #1 or #2 even if we are lucky enough to get Sasaki.

He may have value in the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes. He would fill a major need for a #1 or #2 starter and he is only 23 years old and maybe not as costly in the budget cap as others we might get. In addition, we could use our tradable prospects to reel in relief pitchers and/or a right hand power bat.

If you could have either of these two players straight up for the Sox, who would you take? Devers vs Soto?