Fan_since_Boggs

By the way, Brentz hit another HR. He should be on the 25 man roster (and in the lineup) on Sunday when the Red Sox face the Yankees lefty starter.

In the meantime, Chris Young has a replacement level WAR. I would get Brentz on the major league roster by Sunday -- the Red Sox face the Yankees lefty on Sunday. Another day, another incompetent start from Trey Ball. I used to feel bad for this guy for some reason and then it occurred to me that he was paid 2.75 million for sucking s***. I wish someone would pay me 2.75 million for sucking s***! Compare Trey Ball to a really good teacher or nurse. The teacher/nurse would need to put in how many years of hard work before earning 2.75 million?

Yeah, Farrell totally mismanaged that inning. He needed to act with more urgency and was slow to get Kelly up in the bullpen. The one good thing that came out of this game: the Red Sox are less likely to trust Reed. Reed immediately became the 8th inning guy, but he never earned that distinction with the Red Sox. After Reed's meltdown, I'm hoping he will be demoted: Kelly stays as the 8th inning guy, Barnes the 7th, and Reed will now be a 6th inning reliever or someone who fills in when one of the top 3 can't pitch due to fatigue/overuse. You also bring in Reed when the Red Sox are down a run or two and will probably lose anyway.

Great post. At this juncture of the game, I thought the Red Sox would lose. Yeah, they still had the lead but you figured the Yankees were going to score some runs and had a rally in them. They have a good offense and Yankees stadium is a hitter's park. The Red Sox had a chance to add on and Young swung at two curveballs in the dirt, it was such a pathetic at bat. And then like a kid in little league, Bogaerts hit a weak grounder back to the pitcher's mound. Notwithstanding his big game the other day, Young should not be on this team. He has proven time and time again that he isn't any good (replacement level). Brentz has proven time and time again that he deserves a chance. By the way, Bogaerts now has a 0.9 WAR. In other words, Bogaerts is a reserve level player this year. His defense is bad at SS and, as we know, his hitting has fallen off. I guess we don't have to worry about whether or not to give Bogaerts one of those 100 million dollar contracts. He has made that decision pretty easy for the organization.

Solid work from Mata 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K's. Not the most encouraging start from B.Johnson, 4 IP, 1 ER, 4 BB, 6 K's. The Red Sox seem to be treating him with kid gloves as if he isn't fully healthy.

I keep forgetting about M.Hernandez! Thanks, Nietzsche. I like M.Hernandez. He will be 25 at the beginning of next season. 2b is his best position. Let's say the Red Sox resign Moreland on a one year deal while Chavis is in the minors learning to play 1b. The Red Sox also resign Nunez. Against RHP (2018): 1b: Moreland 2b: Hernandez SS: Bogaerts 3b: Devers LF: Benintendi CF: Bradley RF: Betts DH: Pedroia super utility: E.Nunez against LHP (2018): 1b: Ramirez (won't get enough bats for the option to vest!) 2b: Hernandez SS: Bogaerts 3b: Devers LF: Brentz CF: Bradley RF: Betts DH: Pedroia super utility: E.Nunez I'm not platooning Nunez with Hernandez because Hernandez has always hit lefties in the minor leagues. I like this plan much better. We have a DH spot for Pedroia and didn't spend all that money on Hosmer. We also block Hanley's option. If Hanley acts up, you dump him later in the season and promote Chavis. By making such moves, the Red Sox will go into the following free agent market with more money to spend (the B.Harper and M.Machado free agency).

Some Jay Groome video from earlier in the month. Groome has impressive size (still only 18) and a clean delivery. He has a nasty curve, watch the third pitch in the video, how that curve drops off the table. You see the same thing with the last pitch, the strikeout pitch. Groome is going to have a plus fastball, perhaps a plus-plus curveball, but I don't know how his third pitch, the changeup, is coming along. But if he doesn't develop a plus changeup, he could always develop a cutter to complement his fastball and curve.

While I like the idea of signing Hosmer, I'm starting to think the organization might move in a different direction. (1) How will Pedroia's knee hold up long term and will he need to move to the DH spot in the near future? (2) Can Chavis play 1b or 2b full time or is he only a DH? I could see Pedroia taking over the DH spot in 2019, with Chavis at 1b, but then who plays 2b? In this scenario, there is no room for Hosmer but there is a need for a full time starter at 2b. If the Red Sox can develop Chavis into a second baseman, Pedroia takes over DH in 2019 and there is room for Hosmer. But can he play 2b? I haven't paid attention to where Chavis is playing in the field--will need to look it up. But second base is a tough position to play well. If the Red Sox see Chavis as a future 1b, signing Hosmer wouldn't make sense especially if Pedroia's knee is going to be a problem moving forward. The 2b free agent class (after the 2017 season) isn't overly impressive. The Red Sox should resign Nunez as he could get some work at 2b while Pedroia gets some work at the DH spot (to ease up on the knee). This would be a good scenario for the Red Sox as it would reduce Hanley's playing time and keep his option from vesting. The other interesting question: could Chavis be ready to start at 1b as early as 2018 or will he need more time in the minors? The Red Sox could resign Moreland to a one year contract if they don't believe Chavis will be ready in 2018.

Based on Farrell's comments on Pedroia (he will get some starts in the DH spot throughout the final months of the season to ease up on the knee) we can safety assume that Jay Bruce is not on the Red Sox's radar at all. I like the idea of using Pedroia in the DH spot, as it would mean less at-bats for Hanley, making the option less likely to vest. Against RHP Nunez (2b) Benintendi (LF) Pedroia (DH) Betts (RF) Devers (3b) Bogaerts (SS) Moreland (1b) Bradley (CF) Vazquez © Against LHP Nunez (2b) Young (LF) Pedroia (DH) Betts (RF) Ramirez (1b) Devers (3b) Bogaerts (SS) Bradley (CF) Vazquez © As long as the Red Sox maintain a solid lead over the second place team, I would use Pedroia sparingly in the field. But when the playoffs start, I would expect him to be the regular second baseman. Hanley's at-bats in the playoffs don't count toward the option. This is the best of both worlds: keep Pedroia healthy by using him in the DH spot, keep Hanley healthy by giving him fewer at-bats and less playing time, and reduce the chances that Hanley's option will vest. When the playoff start, Pedroia is the regular 2b and Hanley is the regular DH.

B.Johnson was placed on the 7-day DL in late July, came back on Aug 5, went 5 innings in AAA. Let's see how he does in his next start which should be coming up in a matter of days.

I would like to see the Red Sox non-tender B.Holt next season and resign E.Nunez to be that super utility guy.

Trey Ball -- LOL. For the 2020 starting staff, I have (1) D.Price (he isn't opting out) (2) E.Rodriguez (2020 will be his second to last year of arbitration) (3) ??? (4) ??? (5) B.Johnson/J.Beeks Are we selling B.Johnson short (2020 will be his first year of arbitration)? He could be around in 2020. If D.Price goes under the knife in 2018, Johnson probably takes his rotation spot. Beeks will ride the AAA-major league shuttle in 2018. I'm going to say that one of the two will be in the rotation in 2020. Contenders for the remaining rotation spots. The kids: J.Groome T.Houck B.Mata A.Scherff Free agents: Do the Red Sox resign Sale or spend big on another free agent pitcher? Wild Card: Steven Wright (2020 is his final arbitration year)

Thanks. So basically, with a hard cap, there is no more spending over the limit. A team that does go over the limit will probably lose all the players they signed. This is a better system.

Sounds like Price is still experiencing soreness: http://www.masslive.com/redsox/index.ssf/2017/08/david_price_injury_boston_red_7.html Good chance, I would think, that he doesn't come back until Sept when rosters expand. We will then find out if he can help in October. If his career is going to continue like this, it would make sense to go under the knife (Tommy John) as soon as possible.

A question about this process. If teams go over their spending limit on international prospects, what is the penalty? Is it the same penalty that existed when the Red Sox signed Moncada, etc. a few years ago? I'm pretty sure the rules were changed, but I don't recall the new penalties for over-the-limit spending.

No one would be surprised if he hits .320 next year with 25 HR. He hasn't had that breakout major league season yet, but it could be around the corner. On the other hand, maybe Benintendi he has more Ken Griffey Senior in him than George Brett. But even if he becomes Ken Griffey Senior, that is still a really good player, just not as special as George Brett.

I'm not convinced that Bradley is the kind of guy you want to invest big money in after the 2020 season. At that juncture, Bradley will have left his 20s behind and so much of his value is tied to his defensive prowess. But when his defense declines, and I would expect that to happen in his 30s, his offense isn't going to make up for that loss. He isn't M.Trout with the bat--far from it. I'm hoping Cole Brannen will be the Red Sox starting CF beginning in 2021. Most importantly, his last name starts with the letter, "B"!!!

A couple of years ago, when Ball was struggling, they should have taken a look at him as a hitter. I wonder if it is too late now to make that move. It is hard to feel bad for a guy who got 2.75 million for nothing. That's robbery. I feel worse for the organization for blowing a top ten pick on a guy who stinks.

That's what you said about my Clint Frazier post on his mediocre minor league numbers/performance. How is Clint Frazier doing now? Cashman has made some good decisions but going into the stretch run with T.Frazier and C.Headley as his starting corner infielders aint one of them. That's the problem. The Red Sox might need the Mets owners to kick in some money. If the Mets kick in money, they will expect a better prospect in return for Bruce. I would be tempted to make it work somehow. If the Red Sox trade for Bruce and release Young, they would need a right handed bat to platoon with Benintendi, but they could promote Brentz for that role and put Holt on the DL (if he doesn't have an option remaining). Alternatively, the Red Sox could keep Holt and use Nunez in LF against lefties. That would work--Nunez has played 19 games in LF this year with the Giants. With Nunez on the team and his ability to play LF, there is less need/use for C.Young, opening the door for a better bat.

Replacing C.Young with J.Bruce would make a lot of sense and greatly improve the Red Sox depth. C.Young has been useless all year.

Let's say the Red Sox put Hanley on the DL and don't make a trade. Pedroia comes off the DL on Tuesday. Lineup: Nunez (DH) Benintendi (LF) Pedroia (2b) Betts (RF) Devers (3b) Moreland (1b) Bogaerts (SS) Bradley (CF) Vazquez ©

In retrospect, knowing what we know now, I think Dombrowski outsmarted Brian Cashman. It looked like the Red Sox were interested in Frazier, but we can now safety assume they weren't. (1) The Red Sox knew that Pedroia needed to go on the DL and so Nunez was the target all along, not Frazier. Nunez can play 2b, Frazier can't. (2) The Red Sox internally decided that Devers would be called up, thus meaning that Frazier wasn't needed. (3) The Yankees acquired Frazier thinking they were taking a player from the Red Sox. And now the Yankees have done something pretty stupid--they have Frazier at 3b and Headley at 1b. A better move: keep Headley at 3b and trade for a guy like Duda (putting up big numbers for Tampa Bay) or Alonso. The Yankees are now stuck with Todd Frazier. The Yankees have given Frazier 53 PA and he is batting under .200 with 1 HR. LOL. I'm unhappy that Dombrowski didn't acquire Duda, but I have to give him credit for running circles around Cashman and for improving the offense with Nunez and Devers.

Wow, I just read that Jay Bruce passed through waivers and thus can be traded to any team. If Hanley needs a DL stint, the Red Sox have to seriously consider Bruce, no? http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2725772-jay-bruce-reportedly-clears-waivers-is-eligible-to-be-traded

I'm actually rooting for Hanley to go on the DL even though his absence will hurt the Red Sox offense. (1) The more time on the DL, the less chance the 2019 option will vest. (2) They need a healthy Hanley for the stretch run and October. Put him on the DL and get him healthy. He will produce at a higher level when he is healthy.

Great stuff especially: I have such a man-crush on Devers. I might even like him better than Scarlett Johansson.