5GoldGlovesOF,75

You mean 30/30. We knew once Mookie turned 30 years of age, his vertical leap would be less than 30 inches. Before you know it, he'll need a ladder to pick apples. (that was my notin impersonation)

96 total bases ties Sosa, but Babe did it on brew and stogies

Sammy didn't believe in getting on base; he just wanted to jog around them.

There was one era... Sammy Sosa June 1998 27 G 298/331/842 1173 OPS 20 HR 40 RBI 25 R 96 TB

I'd hire him to read my wife's mind for me so I won't get yelled at as much.

Michael Chavis was AL Rookie of the Month in May 2019. Dalbec actually came up in 2020, played in 23 of the 60 games, and had a .959 OPS.

I don't think so. The two best hitters from this year's mediocrity -- Turner and Duvall -- are missing. I don't expect Verdugo to be back, and Duvall would be a logical replacement -- and maybe even more valuable as a righty pull hitter (something too lacking in this lefty-laden batting order for Fenway) and middle of the order anchor. Story should improve, but at this stage in his career I don't expect him to make enough consistent contact to be a productive #3 hitter. The #8-9 platoon guys are also just placeholders for regulars that may truly turn this group into a "top contender." I'm talking Mayer at SS (Story moves to 2B) and Teel at C. Best-case scenario: they're this century's Lynn-Rice Rookie-of-the-Year twins by 2025. But since neither is an outfielder, we'll settle for the debuts of Nomar-Fisk... Unfortunately, under the devious and not-so-deceptive Henry-Bloom 100-month plan, we may need to wait until then before they finally invest in any top-of-the-rotation pitching.

A GM might be done with JT when his beard turns white. But by then, he might be the GM...

I don't call a team with a winning record taking a "nose-dive", just because the previous year they set a franchise mark for wins. To me, a club that consistently scrapes its nose on the pavement is in worse shape. Even if the 2023 Red Sox somehow rally and go 16-12 in September to finish with 85 wins, I'd still bet my house on the 84-win 2019 Sox in a head-to-head showdown. The '19 Sox with Betts, Benintendi and Bradley on the bases would run wild with glee on all the misplays, overthrows, and fake hits that '23 scorers would give them. But if you want to ignore the '23 D because winning is all about bashing, then how about three guys who hit 30 HRs, 100 RBIs with a .300 BA: Bogaerts, Devers, JD. They also had three others with 20 or more dingers: Betts, Vaz, JBJ. They also had three with 100 runs scored, including Mookie, who led the MLB with 135, Raffy 129, X 110. Devers also led the majors with 90 XBHs, while Xander was second in the AL with 85. My starting pitcher for the big game would be ERod, who won 19, lost 6, had a 3.81 ERA and threw over 200 innings. I'd like my chances knocking Bello out by the 5th or 6th and facing a tired bulk guy or DOAed waiver wire reliever before seeing Martin in the 8th. The only problem for the Hey-19s is if younger Cora brought in Barnes...

Steely Dan song... maybe starring Wander?

Max, Moon, and my cousin Dipre are all right. The Red Sox' overall game is disrespectful to fans -- and my take is that the easiest way back to respectability is to tighten up the D. Good glovemen who can't hit are easy to find -- and cheap -- so carry a few on the roster; instead of the "white flags" playing musical chairs for the last spots in the bullpen. If starting pitchers aren't required to get 4 or 5 outs per inning every game, then good relievers wouldn't suffer from burn-out, and the pen wouldn't need a dumpster-diving, scrapheaping helping of bargain bins every August. The offense is deceiving. If Turner comes back, maybe he can influence others with two strikes to make contact and not pull their heads. Hitting can improve with proper practice. But I have no answers for the stream of baserunning blunders. Maybe base coaches can use big color-coded flash cards: green for go, red for stop, yellow -- Go Back, Fool!

They weren't defending their rings in October '19 since they didn't even make the playoffs, but Bloom inherited the greatest team in Red Sox history (except the scariest bullpen in Red Sox history, because Kimbrel and Kelly were elsewhere). And Cashner. And Gorkys. And Owings... f***it - flea-bomb the house!

This is the most likely scenario posted so far today. I love Duran turning singles into doubles, but not those of opposing batters. Because of the latter, he's also not going to fetch a good young pitcher, unless he's part of a multi-player trade.

They don't even get to the LCS with Betts, because he would never boot a ball into the bullpen. Betts can bowl, but Hunter kicks field goals.

I'm another apologist. I feel sorry for any Red Sox fan who has suffered through the disassembling and reconstruction of the major league team the past four years. When the current CBO got his mitts on the club, they were defending champions of the world. Apparently, he thought that was an alien world, judging by befuddling attempts at reverse-engineering the roster, as if it were a crashed UFO retrieved by the military from a southwestern desert. He befuddling...

Just as long as fans complaining about Yoshida's lack of power -- for 5 years and $90 million -- aren't the same posters who didn't want Schwarber for 4 years at $79M? With another month to go, plus probably the playoffs, Schwarbs has already hit 89 HRs the past two years, including the postseason. And for those who care about budgets and payrolls, he's only under contract for two more years. Schwarber helped lead the Phils to the World Series last year, when he led all Philly regulars in OPS, with Harper on the IL for a third of the season. If you're going to feature a strikeout king at DH, he may as well be the home run champ.

Or over the Wall. Where could we possibly play a guy who hits 40 homers a year.

In baseball, the DH doesn't use a glove, unless it's secured by Velcro.

Fair answer. I'm starting to wonder if they'll shop Mayer... partially because they played Rafaela at short in his first MLB start, and because of the possibility of having to trade top prospects for legitimate rotation help. Also: major changes are absolutely necessary on defense, and if they still thought they had a shot at the playoffs, why wouldn't they use Rafaela -- regarded in many reports as Gold Glove caliber right now -- in centerfield?

Q: Would you take Bogaerts back if he was signed for Story's contract? I would, because I don't think for a second that Bogie won't bounce back and become a more productive hitter through his mid-30s. I'd rather have a steady shortstop who is never hurt with a 17% K-rate than a guy on the IL half the time who looks really athletic whiffing with his 35% K-rate.

The thing is -- as a few posters love to type everyday -- none of us know for sure just how much control Bloom has or doesn't have over investing in player acquisitions via spending budget money or prospect capital through trades... except maybe what it costs for minimum transactions to get AAAA relievers DFAed by other clubs (for those guys, at least we THINK Bloom has total control). Ultimately, the failures of this organization are on Upper Management -- which includes both the front office and ownership. Sam Kennedy said today that going forward the Red Sox need "pitching, pitching, pitching." He mentioned free agency; remember at the deadline he adamantly refused to trade prospects. Times may be changing: Sam also told the truth today. When asked to agree with Pedro Martinez, who said Bello's stuff was better than his own Hall of Fame arsenal, Sam said... "No."

Man, you don't need to explain your reasons for being here. The way I see it, regulars on a forum come to post for two reasons: to share opinions about a topic they're really into, or to disparage others because of their own superiority complexes. We can agree or disagree with others, share likes and dislikes about a topic, offer stats, complaints, and jokes -- but making fun of fellow fans' posts offers zero contributions to a thread. And all name-calling really does is expose a certain level of maturity and/or IQ...

Just fire Bloom. ANY change at the top will be better right now... ... better for the fans, better for the media, better for the players in the dugout, bullpen, clubhouse -- maybe even in the minors, where guys like Dalbec may actually get traded and have a better shot at making the bigs. Make Cora the interim GM and Varitek the interim skipper -- that will keep the Red Sox semi-relevant for one more month. Bradford on August: "it was a result of taking the wrong path ... again. (re. the Astros) "That was the team that made the moves. That was the team that just swept you. That was the team can definitively declare what the Red Sox can't. 'This team, we’re built to win championships and to go deep in the playoffs,' said Houston closer Ryan Pressly."

Maybe the Red Sox will finally trade a top prospect this offseason. Maybe they played Rafaela at shortstop last night to see if he's good enough to let them deal Mayer. Or maybe they're showcasing Ceddanne... One thing's for certain: Aldo Ramirez was definitely worth trading for Schwarber, who already has 83 MLB home runs the past two years! For Philadelphia...

I just threw in the links for anyone who may think the inept Little League defense that has turned our stomachs ALL season isn't the main problem with this excuse for a big market big league club... ... as if putrid fielding doesn't extend innings, up pitch counts and strain arms on the mound -- nor putting pressure on the offense to press to catch up -- every single game for five straight months. The D in '23 made it impossible to mount any consistent runs at contention.