Hugh2

I'm driving up for the Celtics game tonight.....staying for the Sox game tomorrow. I hope you're all Jelly

amen

The way the game is played today, pitching out of the bullpen is not the step down it once was. Starting pitchers used to throw 200 innings, now only a handful do each year; only 8 pitchers had 200 innings last year and that was a step up from 4 the year prior. I'm fine with Houck in the rotation now, but if someone needs to be bumped at some point then I'd be happy with him in the pen as well. I think he can be elite there, and what are the odds that at least one of Martin/Jansen need to either be upgraded or replaced later in the season?

I'll take me some Jim Edmunds.

So what you're saying is some people think that the hitting can not be this could and will eventually come back down to earth and simultaneously believe the pitching is this bad and has no room for improvement? That just sounds like pessimism to me.

Well, if we believe the offense would regress back to the mean. Why? Would we not believe the pitching would do the same?

Weren’t they like last a couple weeks ago? Moving on up in the world!!

Loving the 5 Ks to 0 BBs

I know if we lose tonight it is still a successful series vs. a division rival ahead of you in the standings but man….I want a sweep. A sweep would really feel like a statement. That’s what I’m hoping for tonight a statement game. Would be an even bigger statement if Bello and the bullpen shuts this team down

It will be interesting to see what Roman Anthony does with his career.

Oh they didn't get hurt. I didn't think it was that deep of a cut after you followed it by a nice robust post. Yes, Duvall and Story are HUGE question marks. HUGE because they both have the talent to be really good players but would you be surprised if they were plagued by some mixture of underperformance and injury the rest of the year??? I wouldn't be, but conversely, I think there's a really decent chance for at least one of those guys to really contribute to this team come playoff time. It really takes the pressure off when other guys perform. I expect a regression to the mean by some, but if other guys can pick that up as the season goes on then I think this team (or at the offense) can be as good as it is now. Maybe not defensively, but from an offensive perspective the team looks to have great depth.

Silly thread? Well now my feelings are just hurt.

Precisely

I kind of answer his question above. The STATS ARE THE SAME!!!! haha. 2X2=4 2+2=4

Performing on par when someone else folds equals the same exact results. For example. Lets say player A is not clutch, but not not clutch either (we are going by believers in clutch in it's non-reverse clutch permutation here, I hope I haven't lost you). Player A is batting while Pitcher X throws a meatball to him. Pitcher X is anxious and folds under pressure. He serves up a meatball to Player A, player A hits it out of the park. Was player A clutch? or did pitcher X fold? It's like 2X2 = 4, but 2+2 = 4 as well. You get the same results, but it's two completely different formulas. We see this play out in real-time. There's no factor that allows a guy to reach into his physiology more than other people. A pitcher reaching back and adding 2-3 MPH to his fastball is not an uncommon trait, but we see some guys lose their control while they do it and others are able to keep it. IT'S MENTAL. It's all about mental acuity. Clutch players are able to maintain their composure while others are not. If you're able to do that, and lets say 25% of pitchers can not, without ANY uptick in skill level ALL of your stats are going to be beefed up. That's pretty straightforward, just like 2X2=4, or 1 2 3 as some would say. When I competed as a pro athlete, I found this to be very real. Some guys let the adrenaline get to them and it's actually overusing your strength and trying to do more that leads to less. It's the guys who are able to control their emotions that outperform. And while I do believe some human beings have a pre-disposition to control their emotions it's also a teachable skill. The more experience you have, the better you can become at controlling those emotions. Clutch, is emotions, it's the ability to control them and not let your anxiety lead you to underperform in a tight situation. It's all about Mental acuity. So yes, I do believe in clutch. Clutch is very real. I just see it as 2X2 = 4 where others are saying 2+2 = 4.

Reverse clutch is the only real clutch. Facts of life my friends.

Should Yoshida be benched? If Casas starts performing how he is advertised to be should he be benched? What if DUvall comes back healthy? Maybe DUvall is the guy who is benched because he offers more postional flexibility than those guys so you can more creative to get him at bats.

If I have to choose, it's Duval in LF, Duran in CF, Verdugo RF, Casas 1B, Yoshida DH, Story SS, Kike at 2nd. If everyone is healthy I don't want Kike touching SS. Are guys going to be rotated and platooned? yes. But those are my "all things being equal" everyone is healthy, and assuming Casas figures it out lineup. Switch out Turner for Casas if Casas never figures it out.

Sox are still in 4th place, but now have the 9th best record in baseball. They would be 1st in the AL central 2nd in the AL West 1 game out of 1st. 2nd in the NL East 3rd in the NL Central 1 game out from 2nd 2nd in the NL West 1 game out of 1st As of today we are in the playoffs.

Well it looks like he tweaked his knee so.......more like I stayed at a Motel 6 last night.

Exactly. As someone who has competed as a professional athlete (many moons ago and not baseball) I find this to be true. People who let their adrenaline get to them make mistakes, tire out quickly, and often get sloppy. Id' say anyone who says differently has never competed competitively on a pro level of anything before. Having the ability to muster up some extra "strength" or "adrenaline" alone is not an uncommon skill and alone does NOT make you a better player, as a matter of fact, it can make you a worse player. Example. We've all seen a pitcher who can reach back and add an extra 2-4 MPH on his fastball and completely lose his mechanics and control. The ability to physically add something more is not special, but we have ALSO all seen the guy who can do the same exact thing in a tight situation and keep his command. What's the difference???? It's all in the head. It's mental acuity, it's the ability to "maintain ones composure"

All things considered? Story at SS, Casas at 1B, Duran in CF, and the rest make up an elite bench.

According to advance stats McGuire is a better pitch framer than Wong. But Wong is not a bad pitch framer and his pop times are a LOT better than McGuire. Which I find intriguing because before this year McGuire had elite poptimes, and they have dipped this year. Get that boy in a weight room over the offseason and work on it!!! The only thing I find a little concerning about Wong is he does have below average whiff rates, chase rates, and walk rates. But they're not horrible, especially for a catcher and he has elite exit velocities.....which is both surprising and intriguing to me. I think there is room for his bat to grow and if it does the kid will be a stud.

Clutch is real....in the form of reverse clutch. People fold under pressure. Those who have the mental acuity to maintain their composure reap the benefits. Maybe this seems like a semantics battle. I believe in "clutch" I just now it manifests itself a little differently than people think.

What you’re describing sounds like a physiological response in the human body. This is very measurable. I’d be interesting to see if there’s any empirical evidence backing this up. I have not seen any. I remain convinced clutch exist due to reverse clutch. Players fold, clutch players maintain their composure.