5GoldGlovesOF,75

Memorial Day marks the One-Third mark of the MLB season. Is it still early for the .500 Red Sox? Compared to the 2023 Sox, many think this season has shown improvement, because of the rotation and better overall defense. When we consider those two factors and look back on last year, this version has to be better... ... but remember this: the '23 Red Sox were nine game over .500 at the end of July, when the front office rewarded players and coaches by acquiring zero reinforcements of any significance for the stretch run. The Sox were still eight over .500 as late as August 24 -- and then dropped off a cliff, losing 24 of their final 34. Imagine a way the current Red Sox -- without hitters like Casas, Yoshida, Story, Verdugo and Turner in the batting order -- can go nine games over .500 in the next two months. O'Neill, Abreu and Rafaela have had their moments, but even if they improve, will this offense have enough to contend? Where will help come from? What's more plausible: Breslow bringing in legitimate talent -- which would have to mean "painful" trades of prospects -- or the promotion of some of those prospects? Lean to the latter -- if there is any consistency from the front office still overrun by the same dozen assistant VPs over the past five years, they won't trade anyone they think might someday be a big leaguer that they only have to pay minimum wage to promote.

"listen to the river sing sweet songs to rock my soul"

The defense is improved - can't get much worse after last year - but anyone who watches most games must have burped up their cookouts when O'Brien called the Sox D "ELITE" today. This was in a game when the infield couldn't complete a tailor-made double play -- and the batter who was safe then immediately scored on a gapper. It was the first run in a blow-out loss.

Good post. I find myself agreeing more lately with Max and others about the putrid offense. I've been a Sox fan long enough to know that we're going nowhere without pitching, and "good pitching beats good hitting." But when pitching isn't always good (always good is implausible), good hitting can still win games and at least make them watchable -- like in the 70s and 80s and 03 and 05 and 08 and 19, etc. Right now, if the starting pitchers aren't good, there is little chance for any comeback Ws. Maybe in a few years Rafaela will step into the box with a count of 0-0 instead of 0-2 -- and that will make a difference, since his bat is already one of the few with any charge in it. I don't know where the right-handed pop will come from -- looking at MLB stats today, there are 11 RHH AL batters with .800 OPS, and only 7 in the NL. That seems rarer these days than 100 mph fastballs.

For Boston, I wouldn't even call this the foundation. Some young pitchers and outfielders, couple literal cornerstones in the infield -- those men are the rebar and wire mesh that comprise the formwork... before pouring the cement... ... but the front office from Bloom to Breslow has been telling us for two winters now that the guys who will be driving and running the cement mixer are in the minors. Sox fans have to be patient -- just a few more years -- don't want to rush and risk totaling the big rig.

Raffy's third strike was also way outside. All batters hope the ump is consistent, but it's against to rules to hit a pitch while stepping on home plate -- which is what the Sox will have to do to have a chance to make contact... Batters called automatically out for stepping on the plate go into the official scorebook as... you guessed it, a strikeout.

That first Orioles' run won't reflect statistically bad D for Boston, but it was another unacceptable play in the big leagues. The Sox should've turned a double play on a hard-hit grounder right to the second baseman -- both NESN announcers even expected it off the crack of the bat -- but Cowser was safe at first and just scored on a gapper. Merloni had to explain in the nicest terms that Griz was still transitioning to the position, and his throws don't yet have enough "zip"... and even made the excuse that every club's modern DP depth is on the edge of the grass nowadays. Romy at shortstop still looked pissed, after his strong return throw was too late.

Yesterday they batted him third, just in front of Devers. If you can't hit MLB pitchers that are coming right at you -- because the most-feared batter in the line-up is on deck -- then you can't hit. But it gets worse: today, Cooper is batting fifth, right after Devers. We get the left-right batting order protocol, but once again: with "protection" like Cooper, why would any pro pitcher throw anything near Raffy's bat with the game on the line (or ever)?

The Braves sent Grissom back to the minors last year when he was doing much better than he is right now for Boston. But it makes sense for a first-place team to lose patience quicker. The Red Sox are going nowhere, so why not give Grissom a couple months to find his groove? The Pedroia comps were just to show that even borderline Hall of Famers often need transition periods to adjust to the bigs. It's not news; how many ballplayers were named Al Kaline, and are enshrined in Cooperstown after never playing a single day in the minors? The difference between Pedey and Griz was that the '07 Sox -- and most Red Sox teams in that decade -- considered themselves World Series contenders. So when Pedroia struggled, fans and media (Remy included) were calling for Cora to play second base. It just turned out that the Sox were so stacked that they could keep Dustin around a lot longer, until he became a star to make them even better.

If ever a guy repeated clutch, it was Ortiz in at least the three seasons he helped Boston win the World Series. But how rare is that? Well, the last ballplayer to win three rings for the Red Sox was named Babe Ruth... but he was a pitcher then, and only contributed one hit in the Fall Classics of 1915, 1916 and 1918. There was, however, a man who WON FOUR RINGS for the Red Sox: Harry Hooper -- Babe's teammate, who also played on the Sox' 1912 championship team. Hoop was only great in his first three World Series, but his large sample size of postseasons shows he performed better when it counted most, compared to the regular season: career .293 and .810 in WS vs. .281 and .755 in 154-game seasons. Does anyone really want to argue that the Red Sox playing in four World Series out of seven years is a small sample size when considering postseasons -- the biggest stage of them all every year? ... or can we just celebrate the guys who came through for the Red Sox when teammates, fans and New England needed them to?

More concerning to me is that the Braves changed their minds rather quickly on Vaughn Grissom. They were ok letting Swanson leave, and seemingly prepared to at least add Griz to last year's MLB roster. Opening Day they gave the starting shortstop position to Orlando Arcia -- a guy who hadn't been a big league regular since 2019. Last Spring Griz hit .277 with a .622 OPS in 70 PA in the majors (numbers that dwarf his Red Sox start of .129 and .314 in 65 PA). Then Atlanta sent him back to the minors. With no fit for Grissom on the parent club, the Braves were trying to make him an outfielder in winter ball. Then they traded him. The Braves rarely lose a trade.

"When I'm at bat, I'm in scoring position," said Oscar Gamble. His baseball card was a picture of a giant afro, with a face and cap sticking out.

- 22? That's not just below a replacement player, it would be like the White Sox team bus stopping at a construction site and throwing uniforms at a whole crew: sheetrocker, taper, electrician, plumber, journeyman, apprentice, laborer, the poor guy installing fiberglass insulation, and the underrated kid holding a broom (you can hear OB now: "Sweeper! Sweeper!")

I love disagreeing with this, but only because I played for decades on special clubs with certain guys that teammates counted on to drive in vital runs -- because those guys often did, more than anyone else. They were usually among the best hitters on the team, but even when surrounded by groups of five or six All-Star bats... let's just say certain individuals had a knack for delivering in big moments. Alex Rodriguez had a career BA/OPS of .295/.930 in the regular season, and .259/.822 in a dozen postseasons. He was good in seven of 19 series. David Ortiz had a career BA/OPS of .286/.931 in the regular season, and .289/.947 in nine postseasons. He was a beast in nine of 18 series. Both were stars; one was a little better at a time of year when it mattered most, while the other got a little worse. But those are just numbers. Now ask any Red Sox or Yankee fan who they'd rather have up with the game on the line -- ARod or Big Papi?

Here's where one stat can be dismissed by other stats -- and rational observers can argue... Is Ceddanne Rafaela literally worth less than a replacement player this year? Do his overall contributions really affect the Red Sox in a negative way? He's made some errors on defense, but anyone who has watched most of the games knows the team D stabilized when he was forced to become the regular shortstop. And while Duran has been surprisingly consistent in the outfield -- 3rd in the AL in dWAR -- Rafaela has already made some plays in CF fans haven't seen since vintage Jackie Bradley Jr. With a bat, Ceddanne is still a hacker, but slowly improving. He actually has less strikeouts than Duran, who is 4th in the AL in WAR. Rafaela has the most RBIs on a team with a winning record. That right there is a lot better than if the Red Sox replaced him with some guy off the street, or gave his uniform to a poster off talksox (who would probably sell it on eBay -- which automatically makes him a positive).

The only thing we know for sure is that Ottavino would strike out Babe Ruth, like every time. Because he said so.

Another guy did in the two years right before '78 -- for two different teams -- including one for the Red Sox in '77, when he also led the league in saves... ... and won 30 games in '76-77, all in relief! It makes more sense, in a way, because he also led the majors in games finished in those two seasons with 144. And then... Soup Campbell was oyster crackers. Managers just left him on boil for too damn long. Zimmer shoulda let him simmer.

That's because just typing the words Bob Stan- can't do it - gives fans PTSD.

What if he Red Sox made the Rays worse by sweeping them?

Tried to get into a Ground Round to watch it on the big screen, but was too young... so watched every pitch on the edge of the couch, with a six-pack of Schlitz (won't say who bought). Piniella made the lucky stab when Remy's liner came out of the sun, but if it got by him and the Sox won, have to admit Yankee fans would bemoaning bad luck until eternity. The one everyone forgets is Piniella's running catch in the corner on an earlier drive by Lynn with two runners on -- why Lou was playing a lefty batter to pull vs. the best southpaw in the world that year still mystifies me...

I thought they'd all have a better shot because they only had to beat each other out for spots. But I thought the West was the best... Houston may have a problem, but also has a winning record in May. I also called the East "vulnerable" (from the prediction thread): "But the AL East will not be the mighty division many expect it to be. There will not be three playoff teams in the East" Can the Sox hang in there? I hope they do, at least through June, just to see what Breslow will be allowed to do. We know he's not sitting on his hands; even minor moves for Smith, Cooper and Short are moves...

If Devers wasn't so strong, he'd have a few more singles. But all of his oppo hits seem to reach the wall for doubles or go over the wall. I can't wait until Casas returns, and hits almost exclusively to left, to protect his tender core. Pitchers will start jamming the big boys, and by then it will be summer: Raffy's favorite time of year to turn on pitches.

You do know that 2007 Red Sox rotation was being paid top of the market salaries in that particular year... except Lester, who was a rookie.

Sox fans were just mad they didn't have their ace starter taking regular turns in the rotation the past half decade. No one really cared that Sale had the highest salary on the payroll... except maybe the guy who signed the paychecks. It is stupefying that the Red Sox had a pitcher who broke his rib pitching, and now have a batter who wrecked his core batting. If they tried to hire Sale to pitch BP to rehabbing Casas, both might be rolling on the ground, writhing in pain, before one throw even reached the plate.

Well, a lot of us said it last year, when the starting pitching -- or lack of starting pitching -- was taking them to last place.