dgalehouse

Okay . I guess it is just meaningless speculation caused by the boredom of waiting for the hot stove to heat up.

A lot of Sox fans are taking on many of the characteristics that we hated in Yankee fans. I guess winning does that to you.

If the Mets can stay healthy, they could be a formidable team in 2019.

Apparently Dustin Pedroia, the one time heart of the Red Sox , has fallen out of favor with some fans. Interesting. Edwin Diaz is the new flavor of the month. And let's take the disgraced Cano also. Pedey ; watch out for that swinging door on your way out.

Well Moon , I hope you are back home and on the mend for Christmas. Yes , the stress and anxiety levels were crazy this post season. The game threads were incendiary with the screaming, cursing, lack of faith and the venom spewed at some players. I tried to be the voice of reason , so to speak , but it was out of control. I wound up just avoiding the game threads. The funny part is , this was probably the easiest , smoothest pennant race and post season run ever. There was no reason for the angst. No doubt Kimbrel caused much of it as he was certainly not at his best . However, the bottom line is that the Sox went 11 - 3 . Kimbrel saved six of the eleven and had no blown saves. Pretty sure Kimbrel will not be back . It is just too much money and we have other needs. I wish him and his family the best ( Talk about stress and anxiety) . We won't be as good next year as we were this year , but maybe still good enough to repeat. Hopefully, we all learn a lesson to keep the faith and not get swept away with our emotions and stress levels. And this is coming from a guy who threw a beer bottle at the TV in 1986. Best of luck with your surgery.

A staggering amount of money was spent on DiceK , Castillo and Moncada.

What happened was that you became sucked into the vortex of despair that was playoff paranoia during the post season game threads.

Actually , Ryan Brasier was a good find . A little known flamethrower pitching in Japan. I was thinking of the kind of ham and eggers that Ben used to collect . Guys like Jean Machi , Eddie Mujica , Chris Capuano , Noe Ramirez and Jonathan Aro , among others . Get enough dumpster types and you wind up down in the dumps. Stick with quality if you want a quality team.

The budget is a concern for sure . But if you want a championship caliber team you need quality players . Don't start grabbing a bunch of ham and eggers , hoping to find a diamond in the rough. That will not work. I think D.D. understands this.

I think it is perfectly clear that the Sox have reached the limit with their budget. Kimbrel will be too expensive to sign, so we do need to find a dependable replacement. No argument there. However , your statement that Kimbrel has shown no sign of being a relief ace is beyond my comprehension. He has been in MLB for nine years and has been an all star in seven of them. He had 42 saves last year and 333 career saves. He has a career ERA of 1.91 . A career WHIP of 0.9 . How many relief pitchers in history have those kind of accomplishments ? He is clearly a relief ace and maybe a future Hall of Famer .

Regarding Wright and Pedroia : The Sox esteemed team physician, Dr. Vinnie Boombatz , offered his expert medical opinion: The good doctor said ; " Knee injuries can be tricky " .

Bell , The solution might be to decide which guy you are willing to let go . ( Even if it happens to be Mookie ) . Then use the money saved to keep the others. Please note : I am not advocating letting Mookie walk , just using that for an example. Trying to point out that there are ways to avoid going over the dreaded precipice. A chess master can often find a way to escape a predicament.

Kimmi , Quit making illogical suggestions. It doesn't suit you .

In the extremely unlikely event of a Georgia upset , Alabama probably drops to number four. Clemson would then be number one , and would have to play Bama . N.D. would play Georgia , and Oklahoma would be out of luck.

Okay , but a win is still a win . Alabama is about the only team that dominates every game. Oklahoma was fortunate to squeak by Army in overtime. Ohio State was impressive yesterday. Like I said , I expect that Oklahoma will get the last playoff spot when Alabama beats Georgia.

The 2013 Sox team was a very highly motivated group. The whole Boston Strong thing was very real. It seemed like we got the very best from just about everyone on that team. They were truly on a mission.

Brock Holt is stereotyped as a bench player. Not sure what he has to do to change that.

I just don't agree with the gloom and doom forecast. We have the best team right now and by a pretty clear margin. And it is basically a young group. The trick will be to keep this bunch together . That will cost money , but money has not been a problem. We could use some help from the farm , but not a whole lot is needed at present. We should be okay. New York is really the only competition in the division. And with two wild cards , the playoffs will continue to be within reach. Don't worry.

Irish finish up the regular season undefeated at 12-0. Not really one of their better games . USC sold out to stop the run , and Ian Book's limitations were on display. Wound up being a hard fought win against the hated Trojans. It really doesn't make any difference if they are ranked second or third. Have to beat Clemson either way . In my opinion, Ohio State deserves to be rated ahead of Oklahoma. Both have one loss , but the Buckeyes play a tougher schedule in a tougher conference. However , I think the committee will favor the Sooners. Regrettably , I just don't see how any of them have much of a chance against Bama. The Crimson Tide would probably give a couple of the weaker NFL teams a battle.

Cherington nostalgia is understandable. You can't blame those who are afflicted with it. After all , Dombrowski decimated the farm. He traded away a bushel load of blue chip prospects who represented our future. All for the short lived satisfaction of a few great teams. Ben Cherington, on the other hand , despite his numerous dismal failures , had long range vision and a plan for great success somewhere down the road. A wonderful and sustainable future filled with seashells and balloons. A future totally devoid of cliffs.

Larry , help is available.

The first step in overcoming Cherington nostalgia is admitting that you have it.

My uncle Tony had the Midas touch. Everything he touched turned into a muffler.

I would sooner believe in clutch and momentum than in mojo , much less reverse mojo .

Right. Probably a few extras as well. Well worth the price.