5GoldGlovesOF,75

Let CBOs sign enough good pitchers.

Bleccchhh! Move Mayer to first base today! Or whatever day he plays again...

Wait -- they're still married to each other... and still amorous with each other?!? This whole thread should be green.

The more I look, the more I just don't see many pitchers with longterm ace status around anymore -- too much velo, too much torque, too much sweep, too many injuries. The smart money and prospect capital -- instead of blowing it on one temporary All-Star arm -- may be to spread it around to stockpile proven big league pitchers... Depth. It isn't that deep.

Lots of good young outfielders. At least a few promising shortstops coming. But there's no first baseman in the pipeline close to Casas. He's a keeper. As a methodical cerebral batter, it's not hard to imagine Casas becoming a consistent Joey Votto type player. (had to bring up Votto -- who just retired... saw him in Woo last month, pinch-hitting and running the bases with no socks on... then my son saw him on the street and got his autograph; Joey wearing Bermuda shorts and sandals, walking to his hotel, instead of taking the team bus).

With no active trade thread, there's still been lots of trade buzz here in our never-ending quest to acquire big league pitchers. Three of the young men discussed as possible trade bait also happen to be Red Sox high school draftees with promising left-handed slugging potential. For a standard high school first-rounder -- how about #1 overall pick Chipper Jones (who sometimes batted lefty)? Jones made the majors at age 21, and the Hall of Fame at 46. His MLB career lasted 19 years with 162-game averages of 30 HRs, 105 RBI, .303/.930. So who -- if anyone -- will be the closest thing to Jones' production: Casas, Anthony or Mayer? Jones and Casas each had their first full big league seasons at age 23; Larry hit 23 homers, while Tris hit 24. In three full years in the minors, Jones had longball totals of 13, 13 and 15. Anthony, in two full years, has 14 and 16 (so far). Mayer, in partial seasons, hit 13, 13 and 8... All were or are big, strong guys, so this may be impossible to predict -- but if it comes down to health, we know Casas and Mayer have already had some nagging injuries. Right now, Anthony's build may be more supple... (until he fills out, his metabolism slows down, and he starts losing his hair - many years from now).

Could've sworn I heard that before, but it's not repeatable.

Bob Stanley, the Red Sox all-time leader in games pitched and relief wins, will only be 70 in November. But the only way Breslow and Bailey get him to come out of retirement is if he's injured, and has to rehab, then throw on flat ground, before reporting to Woocester for some bullpens and three-batter minimums. Steamer should be ready by October, 2025.

Gotta hate those guys who only focus when it matters the most... and otherwise give away all their other at bats. It's not like they're lucky they bat at the bottom of the order, and by the time pitchers face them, they're spent from trying so hard not to let the heart of the order beat them. Pitchers who let a guy like Bill Mueller win a batting crown batting 9th must be unclutch.

I keep saying it (lately, and earlier). Not one Yamamoto who can get hurt and maybe Sale through a half decade of rehab before returning, but lots of average albeit actual BIG LEAGUE starting pitchers... ... kinda like KC did -- back when the Sox were just "interested" in making Lugo a starter. Every time I see Moon give the history of big Boston deals for ace starters, I keep looking at those packages and noting that these Red Sox just don't have top pitching prospects that other teams want right now in trade. But that's what they'll all want, in addition to one or two of the Top FOUR...

Bernardino whiffing Alvarez on three pitches with the bases drunk almost made me! I was so excited I wanted to immediately post a Pedroia chant, but out of respect for the new cleaner board, I'll just use the MLB mandate invented to replace Pedroia's favorite concussing: "LET'S GOOOO!!!!"

I wrote a longer post and deleted it, because I couldn't really find any right now... but there used to be: Hanley for Beckett, Moncada for Sale... ... there's not even a Skenes-like pitching prospect in the minors worth giving up for what Anthony could become.

Here's a novel business plan for a longterm way to compete and save money: SPEND money! Sign free agent pitchers instead of trading top position player prospects, who you can then ink to team-friendly extensions. Just think of the savings, when you don't have to pay Devers $300 million in his prime. What would be better: a Red Sox team with Juan Soto or one with Roman Anthony, Max Fried and Jack Flaherty (ya, why not get the old high school gang back together; they could rehab at Giolito's house).

Glad I wasn't here yet. What a bunch of pack mule hindquarters. I would've told them to play Twister with each other until they were all excrementally inextricable.

Stats are ok if you want to only consider offensive performances, though Mookie may be a tough comp with a villainous Yankee on a Red Sox site. As a Sox fan, I know Betts contributes in so many other ways than just batting: he jump-starts rallies by getting on base and scoring runs -- which may be teammate-dependent, but not so much for his 14-for-15 in postseason stolen base attempts -- and Mookie has delivered on defense; in just the 2018 ALCS, he gunned down a baserunner at second in a big spot, and leaped among fans to rob extra base-hits (when they didn't slap his glove...) ... which brings up ARod's defining moment in the '04 ALCS, with his bush-league slapping the ball out of Bronson Arroyo's glove.

This is exactly why career stats are unnecessary in this discussion -- but I certainly understand how some fans always go to stats for info, since it's part of being a baseball fan. But what you described is perception -- a reality based on observation. That exists. Anyone who has played a lot of competitive baseball into adulthood probably knew a few teammates or opponents who earned certain reputations in big moments. A common fact is they were probably good players in the first place. What may be easier to prove is the existence of good players who for some reason were not considered clutch. How reviled was ARod by Yankee fans until he finally won in 2009? David Price couldn't win a postseason start until 2018. Verlander was 0-6 in four World Series before he finally won. Kershaw had a losing record in the postseason for a decade... the pressure of losing builds on these guys, gets in their heads, and affects performance -- and they're professionals!

Don't forget he also had Netflix cameras dogging him -- and a bad haircut that needed to grow out.

You guys just ruined it; don't you know interns from other clubs read forums for every team? Mayer's value just nosedived and Brez can't afford to sell low. Wait, Bloom just woke up from an Underdog cartoon and called Dombrowski last year. He said he could have Mayer for a Song.

Scouts looking at possible pitchers to draft usually like projectable bodies that promise power arms: tall frames with strong arms and legs. But the clever Red Sox strategy going forward will now be to look at big toes. Breslow and Bailey, being realists (since they accepted positions in management for John Henry) have tasked their analytics dept. to study John Hopkins Medicine for the latest treatments for Tommy John surgery, aka ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction. As fans know, TJS replaces the damaged elbow tendon with one harvested elsewhere from the body. A "graft" is typically taken from a forearm, hamstring or... big toe extensor tendon. "They're all going to blow out eventually," paraphrased somebody on every thread on talksox. Not to worry, Red Sox boyscouts are always prepared to have a leg up on the competition; at least, a foot up...

Yellow shirts still suck, too.

Ok... "Just trade" "the best prospect in the organization" to another club for their best prospect... as long as he's a pitcher. Otherwise, if he's that good a hitter, find a position for him -- and keep shaking that baseball tree.

I know -- could be a righty Valdez. Then again, a few years back, Duran was NOT an outfielder... even when he played it in the majors. Then again again, Franchy was not a fielder, anywhere.

Surprised you didn't just flip Story and Mayer. We know Trevor can shortstop, and we know some scouts have speculated Marcelo could be a candidate to shift to 3B. Ya, Story is the injury-prone old man, but his workout ethic should keep him in shape to play good D through the end of his contract... when someone like Arias or Cespedes should be ready for showtime. Could Mayer morph into a southpaw-swinging Machado or ARod (without the assholishness)?

Don't worry, you know what's coming - our next core of sustained contenders. They should be established veterans by 2028... 2030 at the latest! THAT'S when they'll spend on major league pitching -- legitimate starters for a deep rotation, and an endless supply of relievers who throw a hundred with a change-up.

I'm not talking about a bad month or two, like Pedey had when he started -- and then won Rookie of the Year. The next season he celebrated his Sophomore Slump by winning AL MVP. I'm just wary these guys might take some time, once they make The Show, and even encounter some ups and downs. Anthony, as a lefty power hitting outfielder, isn't projected to be another Yaz or Lynn, but looks like he has 30 HR potential (led the Eastern League in XBH when called up)... and at his age, can he do that for a decade (only four outfielders reached 300 longballs for the Red Sox: Ted, Yaz, Rice, Evans). We should at least hope he's in the dirtdog mold of another high schooler drafted by Boston: Trot Nixon, with a career .844 OPS... Mayer and Teel, when they were promoted to Worcester, were 1-2 in batting average in the Eastern League. If you lead your entire league in hitting, that promises more than average at another level, once it's populated by many of the same peers. Bello dominated Double A two years ago; it's why I expect him to eventually be more than a #3 starter in the rotation...