oldtimer

The reason Lin has stayed around is he has position flexibility. Outfield, short, second and possibly third. The problem is his hitting. No power and well below average hit tool. He may be the only Taiwanese player in the league, something MLBB probably would like to encourage, but i can't see him making the roster in 2021. Chatham has position flexibility and has been talked about as being a contact hitter if not a power hitter. Just one example of another possible utility player who is already in house. Bloom probably already has a list of players who will be traded or nontendered.

I can't see leaving Houck off the list of starting pitchers after two very encouraging performances and another start to come. I would also add Valdez to the hopefuls for relief pitcher. Benintendi's end of 2019 and his short 2020 were trending down. Having him in the lineup could compromise the 2021 season. I would look for a replacement For CF, JBJ is showing an improved hitting skill and I would at least give him an option to return under a 2 year max team friendly contract. If not, look for a replacement (within or without) I think JDM is with us for 2 more years. If his skills have diminished as it seems then he could be a boat anchor holding back team competitiveness going forward. We have Mata, Downs and Duran as top 10 prospects. One would hope they would be considered. I assume that the current 40 man roster would be gutted of all those who haven't performed and hopefully we get something in return that can at least strengthen our prospect list, to go along with our young draftees.

I don't like long contracts any more than Kimmi. Between the long expensive contracts and the damage to our minors we have put ourselves in the yo-yo position. Bloom is aiming to make us more consistently good. So far, he has made mainly positive moves despite being put in a tough negotiating position. We have a solid draft position coming, we have a group of players to cherry pick from and then to try to get some value in trades of the rest and we have considerable financial resources to bring to bear. 2021 should put us in a position to compete and we may be able to become very competitive in 2022.

An outfield not including Duran would be a mistake. I assume they have held back two or three guys this year for reasons of player control and cost. Those players will be a par of spring training and some will stick.

I can see a legitimate argument for going either way with Eovaldi. Depends a lot on what kind of deal we could cut.

What kind of nonsense are you spouting. He homered against your vaunted Yankees last night. Do you feel the need to debase him?

He has glowing reports and we will need an outfielder. Why not at least give him the opportunity. Too much nay saying on the board.

I believe the goal for 2021 is to get better but I would recommend that we stay under the competitive balance tax in 2021 and save any major push to be a major playoff threat until the 2022 season.

I have thought he might act as a closer for us in 2021. We paid Kimbrel an equivalent amount and he may be able to handle 1 inning assignments and stay healthy.

How can we keep Arroyo in the lineup at 2nd in 2021 and still bring up Downs, assuming Downs continues to progress? Is it possible that we could move one of them to fill in at one of our weaker positions. Outfield or maybe 1st base if Dalbec continues to struggle? We are also weak at DH unless JDM can bounce back but that is not a place for a young player. Being creative such as moving Devers to first and Downs to third occurs to me but that may be something Devers doesn't want and we need to keep him happy. That kind of leaves the OF as a possibility. and we have several candidates for those spots plus we may well go outside the organization for an impact player or keep JBJ.

You don't believe in repealing the laws of physics?

We still have a PTBNL(Osich) and probably two draft choices to make the top 20 list, so there has been a substantial improvement in our farm already. No doubt Bloom will also trade some of our current assets for still more farm improvement so that part of the Sox team is coming along. The good news is Verdugo and Arroyo look like very good young MLs going forward. we also have Perez as a starter who looks like he belongs. Houck shows some signs of sticking. The bad news is Sale won't be back from TJS until around June, E-Rod is still iffy and in general our BP is a weakness. In addition, 1st base a nd two outfield positions are up in the air as is DH. Who on the prospect list can help us? Dalbec, Duran, Mata, Seabold or others? Will Pivetta turn into a great pickup by Bloom? What other pitchers from the existing staff can help us? D-Hern, Barnes, Brazier, Valdez, Brice, Brewer? many beneficial moves There is real hope that the 2021 version of the Sox will be much more competitive but it will require Bloom to jettison a lot of players, with some moves being unpopular. The needs are obvious as are the impediments, like contracts keeping us from making the moves that seem needed. I trust Bloom as he has already made many beneficial moves and says the right things about objectives.

Bloom did what he had to do in trading Mookie and it looks like he got real value in return. Verdugo would be a asset to any club and Jeter Downs may also make the team in later 2021. Christian Arroyo also looks like an asset so the pressure to bring Downs up early will not likely be felt.

Neither Dalbec or Duran are sure MLs at this point. I would like to think we will work with Dalbec because his power would be an important asset. Today, he struck out 4 times swinging and I don't remember him making contact, so he has a long ways to go. Casas is probably a year away so maybe we can get Dalbec to make adjustments and become an asset in 2021. All I have heard about Duran has been positive but we have to wait and see. His exceptional speed is also an asset so he is worth a look. I see Munoz as a place holder and not a great asset for the team. If the Sox can get someone like Springer for a reasonable contract, that would be a great improvement. I really don't expect that to happen but a third outfielder would have to come after filling pitching needs. I trust that Bloom has the right ideas for the club ad that he will look to secure deals that move us forward.

My response was to a poster who wanted to trade Beni and Chavis and I pointed out we will likely lose JBJ to the FA market. Since i believe our trades should focus on obtaining pitching, either starting or BP help, I identified the most likely outfield help on our roster and in the prospect list. Verdugo has played CF before coming to the Sox and is decent from what I hear. Roenicke put him there last night. Munoz is our best option and is most likely the left field candidate with Beni traded. Duran has been learning CF and was not brought up to date since they said he needed to work on going back on the ball. He does have great speed so right field at Fenway is large and would seem to me under the circumstances to be a fit. If the Sox look for a replacement outfielder instead of pitching I will be surprised, however they could try to do both since Arroyo seems to fit at second and Munoz as you say could be seen as a utility player. Dalbec is by no means a lock at 1st. I hope the kid makes it as we could use his power. Oppsing pitchers will look for weaknesses and lets hope he can make the adjustments on the fly.

If we lose Beni and Chavis in trades and JBJ goes, we still can use Verdugo in center, Munoz in left and Duran in right. That is without a trade return. I still would be looking for pitching returns first.

two on and no one out. Bogaerts, Martinez, Vaz up. All righties on a lefty with a 6.27 era. Not only do we not score, but we failed to advance a runner a single base. Pretty sad and Martinez has now fallen to a 200 BA.

I think when we have a player that is doing well at the position, others who normally fill that position become more expendable and on a shorter leash. It might come to that in a year or two with Dalbec and Casas as 1st basemen. It may come to that with 2nd base where Downs, Arroyo both could be good players but can you keep both? In the outfield we have Verdugo who has shown he is a keeper. With two positions left we have Beni, Chavis, Duran, Munoz and possibly a late Bloom adder or JBJ. One would think the leash would be shortened for guys who once given a reasonable chance, don't produce. Age, contractual cost, years of control and position flexibility might also be part of the decision. Bloom is here to improve the team and the farm. To do that he has to get rid of under-performing players and replace them with better. His main challenge will be the large number of pitching assets to sort through.

If Houck is our 5th best pitching prospect, one has to ask why haven't we seen any of these guys before? We been putting up guys who were other teams rejects instead. Does a prospect have to turn 25 to get a look in the Red Sox organization? Not a very good statement about the Red Sox development program.

I hope that you are right, but player and all the rest of us age, some faster than others. We can't have a middle of the lineup guy be that unproductive next season. We probably can't trade him so all we have is hope for a turnaround. We have both Beni and JDM in that predicament but it isn't unique to them as quite a few top hitters have had poor seasons. JDM is late on fastballs and Beni was pathetic. I hate to see us going deep in the season with either of them not hitting. Produce or find another place. It's tough love but the competitiveness of the team counts on requiring all to do their share.

g term Yes, and its an indication of the risk factor when taking on long term contracts. JDM may come back an earn his salary, but an aging player just may be facing a steep decline. Having over $40 mil tied up in a DH just limits us financially and makes the return to being competitive that much more difficult. The die may be cast with JDM and we have to hope he can recover his form in 2021 and 2022.

That is a big problem. Who would take the chance at over $20 mil for two years. We just might be stuck with an expensive player who can no longer come close to earning his keep. Don't get me wrog, He has done great things for the Sox and was worth the money in the past. He may just be aging and can't do much about it.

I would be happy to see a bit of a roster shakeup for 2021 that would make us competitive for a playoff spot (why not think positively) by bringing in some younger players and looking for some quality young starting and relief pitchers. My shakeup in the infield would be to consider moving Devers to 1st (probably won't happen) and Dalbec to third. Bogaerts is our anchor at SS, Arroyo is looking like the young 2nd baseman we've needed for the last 3 years My shakeup in the outfield would involve trading Beni, Keeping JBJ at center (probably not going to happen) and leaving Verdugo in RF. If JBJ goes I would give Duran an opportunity and use Chavis as the LF. I would use Munoz as backup in LF and RF and Lin as backup in CF. Holding out hope for another quality right handed hitting outfielder in place for Chavis. No change at catcher I would shake up the starting pitching by moving Eovaldi to a high leverage Relief role. Sale is not going anywhere but probably can't help us until June at the earliest. We have to hope E-Rod makes it back and Perez has looked like a reasonable 4th or 5th starter. We need to find at least one starter (preferrably two) from Pivetta, Houck, Mata, Seabold and Ward. . Then Bloom has to find us 2 decent quality starters. Starters aren't durable so having 6 to start with Sale returning sounds good to me. Relief pitching with Eovaldi, Barnes, Hernandez, Taylor and Valdez supplemented by two quality arms would allow for competitiveness. Brice, Brewer, Brasier and Weber as alternates would be reasonable. I look to move the rest. Our DH position has been very unproductive this year. Your value is indicated by your stats. My shakeup would be to trade Martinez and find a younger replacement. That leaves us with the thought of what to do about Downs, Potts, Casas and Groome, all of which are knocking on the ML door. Downs in particular could be ready in 2021 and will we have a slot for him. Same for Casas in 2022. It's the hard ass approach to the roster, but the management has to be willing to cut ties with unproductive players and build a team where everyone in the lineup contributes. It's not as easy as waving a magic wand, but I believe Bloom is the guy that will pursue a policy that requires performance from players

We have a shortage of Quality Outfielders. We have Verdugo and may try to keep JBJ on a team friendly contract. The question really is Beni still a quality outfielder going forward. If not, why would we want to keep him?

Maybe Arroyo is moving ahead of some of our options like Chatham, Lin and even Chavis. We need improvement in a couple of field positions such as second base and the outfield. Maybe we will find those players internally and then concentrate on pitching acquisitions this winter.