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5GoldGlovesOF,75

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Everything posted by 5GoldGlovesOF,75

  1. He made the Top 40 -- Mookie is 1st, Judge 2nd, Trout 3rd... I can't seem to duplicate the chart I found, but the only younger players than Devers with more WAR are Soto and Acuna. (bb-ref, since 2018)
  2. Reynolds is a good hitter, but not a great outfielder. Hard to see how BTV makes him tougher to get than Murphy, a Gold Glove catcher (with pop) who can impact an entire pitching staff.
  3. I'm in on Haniger, and a deal for Reynolds, to replace the missing righty power (at least from last year) of JD and Bogey.
  4. Disagree. Devers had more extra base hits at age 22 than anyone in MLB history except Joe DiMaggio. He needs to be signed this winter or he's gone. I heard on MLB radio that in the past dozen years, only one free agent "star" has re-signed with his own team: Cespides in 2016. The last guy before that was Matt Holliday in '09 (Stanton's mega was an extension).
  5. This is fair, but Mookie has always been one of baseball's most valuable players; he got MVP votes in 5 straight years in Boston, 4 in the Top 10, with a 2nd place a few seasons before he won. In the NL so far, he finished 2nd in 2020 and 5th last year. Gotta wonder how much Jose Ramirez could have gotten if he didn't choose to take a team-friendly to stay in Cleveland. He's also had 5 Top 6 MVP years in the past six seasons: 3-3-0-2-6-4
  6. You're right, I shouldn't have called it an "issue." That's my own subjective reality, since everyone I've ever known who was told to lose a few pounds eventually had it turn into an issue when they put them back on. But Raffy's a young man and pro athlete, so should have proper guidance, including trainers and nutritionists, to keep him fit at least through the next decade of a rich contract. The injuries that happen to all these guys are typical, but how they adapt is what separates them as they mature. For example, if you rely on speed, pick your spots as a baserunner, because every slide is another body-slam into the earth. Or if you have a sore elbow or hammy, don't try to freaking crush every pitch...
  7. Is the title of this thread An Unrealistic View?
  8. Sox fans still have to have some doubt about the next decade of Raffy. He's already had weight issues and nagging injuries, and his defense -- while improved -- is still below a replacement player's. When he becomes a multi-kajillionaire set for nine lives, will he get complacent or more intense, to prove his worth? We just don't know. Personally, I never had any of these doubts for Mookie -- the best hitter, best runner, and best fielder -- who always appeared a fine, upstanding individual from good stock, and a five-tool athlete in the best condition because of healthy lifestyles. His height or weight is not why he's suffered a few aches and pain; it's that breakneck style of play. Devers won't be Beltre 93.5 WAR! or Miggy, but closer to a lefty Ramirez would be ok (statistically) -- hopefully more Manny 69.3 than Hanley 38.
  9. Does anyone want this inscribed on his tombstone: "while Chief Baseball Officer of the Red Sox, oversaw departures of beloved fan favorites Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers" ?
  10. Wouldn't that be playing the public? And in baseball, doesn't playing the market mean you have to pay market prices for quality?
  11. "Hill should be ready for action by August 1! He won't cost us any prospects, and be as good as anyone else available at the trade deadline!" ("he'll also replace that good pitcher we're going to sign who we'll flip for a haul in July when we're out of it")
  12. Still engaged: pre-nup's not yet signed by both. Actively engaged: pretending the groom has any say in the shades of blue or magenta for the baby's room.
  13. The only way I can see Bloom getting canned is if the extra money from Bogey leaving is spent on actual stud pitching -- and the Red Sox still suck. But if X signs elsewhere, and all Bloom does is fill in with a placeholder and add a few other mediocrities just so they can field a team, then you have your answer: the bank's closed. So what if they miss the postseason again, as long as they still trade assets for prospects, stay under the tax, get into a good draft position, and give their farm another year to grow. Bloom will be doing his job and get to keep it. Unless ownership is planning on selling the Sox soon...
  14. If this is true, the front office must know they better be prepared to overpay and lock up Devers asap -- for their team and customers -- or he's as good as gone, too.
  15. You answered your own question about Maldonado -- the Houston staff swears by him, and no matter what his batting average, Dusty wasn't going to replace him. He even said Vaz could pinch hit for Maldonado in late innings after the trade... as if that was the main reason they got him. Don't forget, Vazquez is well-respected around in the league (at least according to a manager/coach poll that named him best in AL last year).
  16. Good point about the widespread power outages; we'll see if the MLB gets its new, speedy offense next year -- if not, expect a juicier ball and return to the longball in '24.
  17. Bad teams usually have bad pitching, but one underrated upgrade to rotations and bullpens is a good catcher. A take-charge receiver who calls a good game -- in synch with a pitcher's stuff on any given night -- is more valuable than a backstop who can hit or even throw. A catcher is also a leader on the field, and knows when situations call for a pat on the back or kick in the pants. Someone who can do all those things well, of course, can turn a team around. St. Louis was always a contender with Molina; expect some regression without his stabilizing presence behind the plate. There's a reason the Yankees never won with all their "great" pitching the past decade; NY fans know why. Watch Baltimore in the next few years, with a young catcher who may soon turn into AL MVP.
  18. Never with the bat: literally made Yankee fans cry at the Stadium at age 20 and then had a game-winning pinch hit in the World Series the next year. It was always the D in doubt for Devers at third. Machado was the shortstop for the losers in that 2018 World Series.
  19. For an AAV of $21M, here's what I wondered: All-Star catcher or All-Star batter who plays the catcher position? Contreras, 30, is a career .256 hitter with an .808 OPS in the NL, with half his games at Wrigley. His 162-game average of 26 HRs, 81 RBI and .349 OBP shouldn't go down in Fenway, right? But look at his dWAR... all positive -- never one negative in seven seasons. For a comp, Vazquez, 32, has a career WAR of 7.0 and dWAR of 5.3 in 733 games. Contreras has a career WAR of 20.8 and dWAR of 6.5 in 734 games.
  20. Things that don't need to be typed (except by someone who feels the need because of something read online when the hot stove isn't yet lit): Every team and GM dealt with Covid. Every club has injuries every year. And a last place team is still in the cellar no matter how many games it wins or loses. Pick 4: Senga, Kluber, Eovaldi, Wacha, Rogers, Fulmer, Chafin, Eflin, Estevez, Miller, Moore, Martin?
  21. Thanks for this. Good to know he's a groundball guy -- which maybe means they add a glove-first shortstop. If not, shouldn't they?
  22. And don't forget after all that, the Red Sox began this offseason by raising ticket prices. Can't blame Bloom for all that, but right now he is the face of the capsized franchise.
  23. I dunno if this is vitriol, but here are headlines from the past week from columns by two writers who cover Boston: Red Sox sure seem to be taking their fans for granted If the Red Sox don't want to pay big, they'll be left out this winter
  24. Keep it in perspective. If you're Bloom with at least 10 positions to upgrade on the big league roster, then Casas is anything but a gamble. He will get paid MLB minimum wage...
  25. Based on what we know about Dombro's bullpens since bulls were invented? Definitely...
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