5GoldGlovesOF,75

Thanks for the link. Red Sox fans aren't surprised Boston ranks dead last in investing in pitching prospects since 2018. We get what they don't pay for. In that span, the two teams who spent the highest percentage of draft bonus bucks on pitching are also recent World Series champs: Texas and Atlanta. At the same time, neither of those clubs have been shy about spending large to lock up star position players at the big league level. Data shows the Sox have preferred drafting hitters, but the author (obviously a devoted reader of of talksox) adds this: "The Red Sox’s hitter-centric strategy could still be successful in developing a balanced roster, especially if the pitching staff was buoyed by external investment in the free agent market and/or via trades of hitting prospects for pitching." Giolito looks like a bad buoy so far, but there's still hope for guys like Fitts and Sandlin (acquired for another pitcher, but at least through trade). Breslow still has a lot of hitting prospect depth that he could part with -- like the example given of Arizona swapping Jazz Chisholm for Zac Gallen.

Ok, though there is a chance that new pitching experts already contributed to the team losing its most expensive offseason addition to the staff... that is, if Giolito was following their instructions when he blew out his elbow and wasn't already undisclosed damaged goods (or wasn't following directions when he tried to throw his slider too hard). But you're right -- the pitching is bound to be better under new tutelage and fresh eyes. We should look forward soon to the arrival of last year's top college catcher in the nation. The last time Boston acquired a guy like that was probably Varitek, who took a few years to emerge, but had such an impact that we can recall the season he cracked an elbow diving for a pop-up. He was all done, and so were the Sox that year; Tek's absence was worse than losing Pedro and Nomar to injuries. Can never underestimate the importance of a top catcher who curates the pitching staff. Remember the greatest Sox team in '18, when certain pitchers preferred throwing to Leon instead of Vazquez? (moon may have had some stats to back that choice). Maybe Rutschman was that valuable to Baltimore's 101-win no-name rotation. Hopefully, Teel is the real deal.

For a second there, I thought you meant new people on the board -- since Jax the Yankee fan doesn't post here much anymore. But at least he was a pitcher, so knew a few things about actually pitching that the rest of us can't look up on statistical sites. And considering how bad the Red Sox org has been supplying the club with good pitchers for half a decade now, some new forum voices can't make it any worse.

Can't believe you included Bellhorn in your perple prose, without citing BellWAR and Bell's crackstistics! And your dictum I'm the victim has me feeling like a real dictum. From now on, when I'm merely trying to TALK SOX, I'll only mention an opinion on a player that even I can back up with a mofo fact... ... like the Red Sox sure could use a #1 overall pick like Adley Rutschman, who can almost instantly turn around their franchise -- like Rutsch did when he first joined Baltimore in May '22. At the time, the Orioles were eight games below .500; since he's become their starting catcher, they are 52 games over .500. I'm sure you remember one of the starting catchers in Baltimore before the freshman Rutsch -- no, not Chirinos... but Anthony Bemboom. The Red Sox will have a lot of Bembooms that need replacing this season...

No one here gave them credit for doing anything yet -- but almost every single expert professional in the industry has ranked them the top position prospect and top pitching prospect in the game. Certainly, those are the NUMBER ONE OVERALL picks, like Rutschman, that an annual doormat like the Red Sox would welcome in their rebuild. And for those who pick apart every single word of every single post, here's what these two guys have done so far: signed their names to contracts worth almost three times as much combined as those for Teel and Anthony.

Henry's front office of agriculture: slash and burn the big league club to build back the farm. I know, it's so cliche (almost as cliche as cliche). But maybe in this year's draft, if everything goes just left, the Red Sox can pick high enough to get someone good enough to truly turn their org around -- like a Rutschman... or maybe Holliday, Skenes, etc.

I was also thinking Roberts is the culprit; Mookie is clearly his guy, but San Diego is just a mustang ride away... ... where Machado sharpens his spikes/dulls his wits prepping to break up DPs, ruin careers, and feed fodder to forums forever fighting about fiscal fitness.

He keeps himself amused. Imagine having the power to affect the overall moods of an entire region of the United States of Vespucci. Twenty years he was responsible for the sheer joy of generations of families throughout New England. Now, he can claim to have brought prosperity to local economies in at least six states -- by driving untold thousands away from the Red Sox... and instead to beaches, concerts, other sports, and most definitely other TV channels sponsored by other products.

Leave it -- it plays here. That's what Cora would say...

That's because everyone's sick of "Sweet Caroline." Time for a new Neil singalong. Don't let it bring you down... find someone who's turning, and you will come around.

And he christened the babe Raffy D... though it wasnt tobaccy, but a wad of bubblegum wrapped around sunflower seeds. Chicks dont mind when you spit that crap (yeah, right)

All we are saying, is give Cease a chance. Actually, upcoming games that might have Red Sox fans most gruntled are the Spring Breakout games March 14-17... when Boston's top-prospect team competes vs all the other MLB prospects. We get to see the Big Three, plus, how's this OF: Rafaela, Bleis, Castro, Campell... and maybe most intriguing IF: Cespedes, Zanetello and Anderson... (notice I didn't mention any pitchers)

Cleavon wears his war wound like a crown

Except, of course, Marcus. No one needed to be extended more in Red Sox history.

How semantic of you to take a noun I used and turn into a verb thrice to pick apart yet another post. And don't pretend to defend Larry, because he knows I wasn't disagreeing with him -- as do you, officer -- but only adding to his take with another adjective. We're all in this together, even paid interns. And if I wouldn't dare try to compare the waste of the Giolito signing with Sale's, lest I get my post instantly replied with quote, replete with statistics and dollar signs to prove how much better off we all are without that all-time fiasco-of-an-extension budget-killer... who no matter how good he pitches, will still spend more time on the IL this year than the guy he was traded for.

The Giolito signing almost made me puke the minute they announced it. Just what a putrid starting rotation needs -- someone, who if he's good, will leave after one year... but if he sucks, we're stuck with him. All that arrangement ever indicated is that the front office was just trying to fill uniforms to get through this season, and then start all over again next year. It's insulting to fans -- and if you don't think so, I'll rephrase immediately: it's insulting to this fan.

So true. Reminds of Jim Palmer, who, after leading the AL in ERA in 1973, gave up almost a run more per game the next year. But he bounced back to led in ERA again in 1975 (for those who value won-loss records, Big Jim was a 20-game winner for four straight years before slumping to 7-12 in '74; he then won 20 or more the next four years). The difference is that Palmer had elbow problems for at least two months during '74, and Giolito's were just disclosed now, after two really bad seasons.

Extending Bello is a great move, and the kind of move the front office has planned for, since the Bloom Era began. It's also nothing novel or ingenious, but one that all big market teams and even mid-markets like Cleveland have aspired to for awhile now. The Red Sox have resisted for too long (except for Whitlock), but maybe the Brinks truck that Henry had to give Devers will now expedite the plan of paying now to save later, and that includes reserving homegrown stars for loyal fans to root for, for a long time. Hopefully, no more Mookies will be lowballed and have to leave?

because it's more and moronic it keeps happening in Boston, where the front office gets what it pays for -- which are acquisitions that are prone to break down with some kind of flaw that made them available as alternatives to spending on top talent? because it rhymes with ironic? because semantics police lurk in the dirt like trapdoor spiders, ever ready to pounce on any word they can counter, just for the sake of creating arguments that keep the majority of forum members from even bothering to post anymore?

No one on this forum typed that except you. Griz did have an issue playing shortstop for Atlanta, where he started 18 games and made a Kikesque 6 errors. Luckily, the Braves had a fallback in Arcia, who hadn't been a regular shortstop since the pandemic, and who wound up starting the All-Star game. Red Sox fans are intrigued (and still waiting) to see if Grissom can instead become a viable big league second baseman...

No. We just invested more money in Bello than any pitcher signing or extension given out in the Bloom Era. Bello is guaranteed even more money to actually pitch than Giolito will make to not pitch for Boston.

No one on this forum except you typed that... but Griz did have a hip injury, and a lot of baseballs thrown by Gio were injured by home run hitters.

No. It is more and moronic. Both had issues last year, as did O'Neill (currently sidelined with a leg strain), and Cron... ... subsequently, each became available to a team like the Red Sox.

dangyo

Someday the sun will implode.