5GoldGlovesOF,75

Bradford today says Mayer's "slump" in AA was directly related to the same shoulder injury that just led to the Sox shutting him down for the season. He landed on it, trying for a triple, and it impacted his swing ever since. Fans shouldn't stress so much about this. Bangs and bruises tend to heal just fine when you're a strong athlete at the ripe age of 20. The difference between Mayer and us, besides the usual ( tall-dark-and-handsome, wealthy, already way better at something we've loved two-three-four times longer in our lives), is that his bosses are not only paying him not to work, but also providing room, board, and personal trainers to help with recovery.

I have Teel at the top. Most important regular position on the diamond. Best catcher in this year's draft. A 1.72 pop time throwing out baserunners trying to steal; Realmuto leads the majors with 1.82... And Teel can hit...played on three teams at three levels so far this summer... with an overall batting average of .368, OPS .941.

Too extreme... can't we just exile him to a deserted island or something.

They weren't mad at the actual pick, just the actual CBO who wouldn't trade any of his other 75 SS prospects in a deal for an authentic MLB pitcher. That dream just didn't make sense.

Kike was the unexpected hook-up at the bar where most attention was on the more glitzy. You even hit the jackpot with Kike on a few hot getaway weekends, where you barely left the hotel. But reality came a-calling with an attempt at commitment: piles of clothes and shoes everywhere, make-up bottles and brushes all over the bathroom... and erratic headaches and elbows full of bad timing.

Story and Duvall: comparable ballplayers who've had success at the big league level, not superstars or even stars, but guys who can augment legitimate contenders (like Adam did in '21). Both are good defensively -- but Story phenomenal (like Middlebrooks called him 89 times last night)? Maybe on the '23 Sox, by not throwing a ball into the dugout once a game. Both are also capable of hot hitting streaks -- but nothing near the consistency of a star batter. Duvall can homer in seven straight games (see late-August), then strikeout seven straight times (see Tampa). Thanks for using "perhaps." You're coming around. Now, if only Raffy would... (he will have better seasons than this one during his new contract years).

This point has been underrated -- at least here, where some give Bloom so much credit, over and over, for outsmarting other clubs to get Whitlock, an oft-injured pitcher whose best year was as a rookie set-up man, and Pivetta, a #5 starter better as a bulk guy. Who were even above-average in a skill? Here's a few we hardly knew: Wacha (IL risk: he must pitch for a living), Schwarber the HR king (where would the Sox play a bad fielder?), Renfroe -- power with strong arm (and BO or something that moved him to six teams in five years), and Turner... raise your hand if you really think Bloom will pay the adjusted market rate it will take to keep him. At least the Red Sox' best player -- Chris Martin -- is still signed for another season (when he'll be 38).

Hey -- Johnny Pesky said it makes the beer taste better and that makes the women look better... what are we waiting for!

You've said that a lot the past few years. But has it occurred to you that maybe he just likes holding out a half-curled hand, maybe only with a half-crooked pinky and index finger extended, like a failed audition for an extra in a Big Bang ComicCon episode... "Live short and perspire"... the buzz could be in the challenge for a bored fantasy league team-builder-turned-MLB-CBO.

Perfect post that shows the worst flaw of the entire Bloom Era: add a player who "worked out fine"... then let him leave, and back to the "dumpster dive." It's like the guy has an eating disorder, and can't help himself... turning down nutritious meals, so he can jump back into the alley, scrounging for half-finished dinners behind the restaurant.

Ya, but... in '21, IKF played for Texas -- which lost 102, with the third-worst runs allowed and ERA. Wonder how many of his extra assists were on relay throws, gunning out baserunners trying to advance?

What gives this old dinosaur agita is why do the Boston. Red. Sox. have to constantly keep running loads of pitchers through recycles of rosters, each and every year -- all year -- of the Bloom Errrrrr. When you find pitchers who prove they can be successful and happy in Boston, sign them and keep them. Has any pitcher who spent at least a season here the past four years left and then broke the bank of another franchise? And don't pretend ERod, Eovaldi, Wacha, or even Strahm aren't worth fair market value for legitimate big league pitchers...

... only if it's reported interest.

More info needed: do the 20 grounders A misses go for singles? does B make every play he gets to beyond the 10 Es (so 90)? Are B's Es booted, dropped or through the legs -- accounting for one free base -- or do some include bad throws, allowing for two free bags?

How can you say that? Joe Jokes threw a two-hitter: Lowe and Paredes, back-to-back (upon review, it may have been back-to-foot...) Who says such clutch moments are not repeatable... Who says such clutch moments are not repeatable...

No, Bloom can't help himself attempting to contrive versatility for every best player available. Imagine the increased value of Rafaela when he can be converted to grounds crew utility, honing his focus while liming the batter's box and the fair lines, and building up hammies, quads and calves rolling out the tarp during rain delays.

Nope, but two of the many who were dealt in July would've meant a lot better shot at the postseason. It was the month that two team leaders (at least in salary) -- Jansen and Devers -- appealed for help for both the pen and rotation. According to Bloom, BOH and Sam K, that just didn't "make sense." Instead, in the first series after the deadline -- vs. a team the Sox were just one game behind in the loss column for a wild card spot -- Cora was left to start two openers. Toronto -- using starters Manoah, Berrios and Bassitt -- swept Boston. The Jays didn't even have to use their #1, Kevin Gausman. For fans, it will be remembered as the most despicable series of the season. The most ridiculous, of course, was being swept by Houston, when the Astros were another playoff-bound club Boston still had a chance to catch. The infamous Bear Claw Game will always be a reminder of what can happen when a front office regularly refuses to fortify the big league bullpen with legitimate MLB pitchers.

Again: to fans, and I dunno -- manager, coaches and players -- it also would have made sense to trade a few prospects they might never know for a pitcher at the deadline who just. might. have helped. pry open. the window... this year. And I'm not a poster convinced the playoffs is always a crapshoot, but I'm a fan who always likes to see my team play in the postseason.

You know how much the Bloom Error values versatility. DHs can sit on the left side of the bench, the right side, on a stationary bike in the clubhouse, and in-between at bats can gofer coffee, sausage and peppers, chili dogs, and Monstah fries... but not chicken and beer (not because it's against the rules, but the typical DH salary cannot afford the price of ballpark beers).

I just don't see a guy who has been top five in the league in batting average all year as a major problem. It's really a Bloom issue, for not spending more to fill more vital holes. I actually anticipate Yoshida improving in some areas in his second year in the states, maybe even becoming an All-Star by his third year... before regressing back into a fan target as an "albatross" at the back end of his contract. Maybe it's perception; when Masa strikes out, he just doesn't look as athletic as Trevor Story, when he whiffs. But while Yoshida has shown he can make consistent contact, Story has always been a K machine.

Said this last week; Rafaela in CF (Duran is not the answer) and fulltime Story at SS helps in two key spots -- but we have to live with Raffy and Casas at the corners, and the best way to offset them is by recruiting strikeout pitchers.

I'm not disagreeing with any of this; Toronto gave Chris Bassitt three years and $63M, and he leads the Jays in wins and innings pitched. Imagine if the Sox had signed a guy with a 3.81 ERA who threw 165 IP in 2023... they might even be four games better than Toronto (and the Jays would be four games worse). But OMG -- Bassitt will make $21M at age 35 and 36... is the market rate for his production such a risk, compared to wasting another $40M on four separate one-year contracts on guys in their late-Klubers?

This is why some of us want to Swift BOOT Bloom (sorry, moon; typo). His farm looks good right now, but so did my garden in the spring before three months of rain drowned my best apple tree and stunted most production on my hot pepper plants. Old fans who can sense Satchel Paige catching up with us don't hate Bloom the person, just the whole concept of the Bloom Era. I'll bet Alex Cora and his coaching staff does, too. Imagine them sitting at a hotel bar on the road just before the season -- or just after the deadline -- lamenting what their boss has deemed acceptable to give them for a big league rotation... now go make the playoffs!

Somehow, the favorite punching bag for Red Sox fans in 2023 has become Masataka Yoshida. Punchlines have varied, from his defense in left field, body-type, running technique, and lack of Schwarber-like home run power. Main complaint -- as usual for anyone who doesn't earn multi-million dollars per year in any job (much less, playing a kid's game) -- is that Yoshida, signed for an AAV of $18 million per season, is grossly overpaid. Last point first: per Sportrac, there are at least 60 MLB players with a higher AAV than Yoshida (more than half make at least $30M). That's an average of two per team, but we know small markets don't pay, so it's probably closer to four per team. On the Red Sox alone, that includes Sale, Story and Devers. Ex-Sox who also make more include Bogaerts, Betts and Schwarber. A strong September for Yoshida puts him on pace for about 18 HRs, 80 RBI, .300 BA. Q: how many big leaguers averaged all three of those stats in 2022? A: FOUR: Judge, Alvarez, Goldschmidt, Freeman. Regarding speed, Yoshida is second on the club in stolen bases, 8-for-8 in attempts. Another short Sox player, Pedroia, was 7-for-8 his rookie year. But Dustin was a dirtdog... and a great glove at second base -- a defensive position a lot more important than left field. As MVP has alluded to, LF defense is hardly the key to a lockdown D on the diamond. As Max has constantly posted, D isn't even much of a factor, as long as a guy can hit. Moving Yoshida to DH won't solve the Red Sox' putrid defensive issues... the most it will do is allow another bat (most likely a replacement for too costly Turner or Duvall) into the line-up. Among AL outfielders, Yoshida also has the second-best K-rate to Steven Kwan. He can start in my batting order.

Gotta wonder if/when Tek somehow becomes Red Sox skipper, how he, himself, would consider a catching prospect ready to start in the majors... Who would know better than the four-time no-hitter receiver? Would his expertise conflict with metrics crunched by analyticals who never played the game?