5GoldGlovesOF,75

The only part I disagree with is that if a bullpen is toast from overuse -- that results in actual sore elbows, rotator cuffs or pectorals (who here really knows what ails Barnes) -- then bad recent effects are not random. In baseball lore, a good performance from a starting pitcher can be a famous or infamous momentum shifter, partially from preventing tired relievers from returning to the mound. At least that's my best hope for winning this series, via efforts from Eovaldi and Pivetta..

... yup, time to "find the fence" -- the fundamental taught to pre-teen players on perimeter balls in the air: sprint to the fence, brace with bare hand, look up to find the ball, then push off or push up accordingly.

If this wasn't evident over the weekend, consider that the two relievers used by last-place Baltimore were way better than the Red Sox' relievers last night. And not just inducing swings and misses or weak contact, but with their mixed speeds and command of the strike zone.

I was thinking the same thing, especially if they're not a Wild Card team. Because no matter how delightfully surprising this club has been -- or maybe because of how encouraging the first half was -- a collapse that keeps Boston out of the postseason will be disappointing. Optimists can point to last year and even last winter's predictions, but we all know how this feels inside right now. And yet, will any of the following outcomes be acceptable to owners that want to win: not making the Wild Card, getting blown out in a WC game at Yankee Stadium, winning the WC game but getting swept in the ALDS, winning the pennant but losing the World Series, etc.

There's no reason the Red Sox can't win the next two vs. the O's. Unless, that is, batters keep bouncing the first pitch to the third baseman. One runner on base per game won't do it.

That would be ideal for the Yanks but the team with the best head-to-head gets to decide whether it wants to be C...

Have you seen how effective Red Sox relievers are trying to pitch two days in a row? (Have you seen them try to pitch one day in a row?) Sorry to answer your question with more questions, so: any C team would most likely get to face a foe's #2 starter instead of #1, and also bat against a bullpen possibly spent from and almost definitely used in high leverage the day before.

I think the team with the best head-to-head gets first pick to decide if it's A, B or C. Obviously, everyone would want to be C and hope A vs. B is a back-and-forth nailbiter that uses up entire pitching staffs. It would be cool, though, to see the Red Sox forced to play three consecutive playoff games (including the actual WC) vs. multiple foes and qualify for the ALDS. Could this board survive; on second thought, the board will still be here afterwards, but may need to recruit new members to replace those who can no longer type due to strokes.

Watch out the Sox don't let him back in their perpetually swinging bullpen door... Can Andriese qualify for a Red Sox postseason roster spot -- since, unlike Iglesias, Matt was in the Boston organization this year prior to Sept. 1?

I watched a little of the Nationals game last night. Josiah Gray beaned Brendan Rodgers in the first inning. Rodgers, who dropped and was immediately taken out of the game, homered off Gray just last week. Maybe it was just a coincidence... anyway, the Red Sox will probably face Gray this weekend in Washington.

Rafie is a rarity with the bat and at 24 too young to give up on because of hot corner issues; Miggy Cabrera was once a third baseman. X is someone who loves Boston and hopefully doesn't sour on the franchise. Pedro was right when he said fans have been seeing Hall of Fame production out of this duo the past three years. Some fans may perceive Mookie as greedy for wanting a contract at the top of his market, but it's hard to argue his overall value as an all-around player. I've never been a fan who feared how much a superstar's contract will "limit" his club's chances to field a contender. If big market teams can't afford great players, then who can? An owner that wants to win needs to hire a front office that can make it happen.

Sorry if I confused anyone with my inflection of typed black words on a white screen. Hopefully these points will be clear: I am against spending big money on established relievers, who in my opinion are the most unpredictable players of all big league positions; I admire the way the Rays have emphasized the constant pursuit of young pitching depth; someday I'll even approve of the Angels selecting pitchers in the first 13 rounds of the 2021 Draft. Like most fans, I'm really looking forward to our CBO investing some big market budget on good starting pitching. However, I am not in favor of trading star homegrown fan favorites about to enter their primes. I still hate that Bloom traded Mookie, but understand he had no choice. I'd like to see Boston keep Bogaerts as a lifetime Red Sox, unless he insists on being a shortstop for his entire career. And I certainly hope Bloom will extend and build around Devers, because even though he swings at everything, few batters in the majors or team history have ever been able to do so much damage to so many pitches all over and near the strike zone.

I'll always be grateful he hung around long enough for Slappy's interference, Bellhorn's homer to left, and the Houston fan who closed Mookie's glove that was about to catch Altuve's flyball. That strike call two feet outside on Kike was a doozy, but if the Yankees actually do something this year, their cocky fans will always know -- like the rest of the world -- that one September Sunday night in Boston, Aaron Judge actually struck out...

WHA-??? Why else did all of us sign up for this board? Did anyone really think their skills as a keyboard GM would get them hired by an actual MLB franchise? Oh, wait... that's actually how Chaim Bloom got a job...

I'm in total agreement with you. Relievers that are not unanimous Hall of Famers are the shooting stars of the big leagues: Did you SEE tha- poof... Some posters seem to think I'm advocating the opposite (even though I wrote today that Bloom will never sign a big money closer). As far as the bullpen, all I've pushed for is help -- last winter, and especially at the deadline this summer. I admire the RaysWay when it comes to pitchers, pumping them out of the gate like Minions. I don't think for a second our beloved CBO isn't constantly scouring the databases for next year's Rasmussen or Kittredge or Nick Anderson or Pagan, etc., etc.

Nah. I'm just duped by the Moneyball scene when John Henry approaches Billy Beane to say how much he wants that same approach to approach Boston, Massachusetts, East of Worcester, USofA. And posters are right, the RaysWay narrative about exactly why Henry approached Chaim Bloom needs to go away -- and will, as soon as Bloom signs a closer like Liam Hendricks for $54 million. Dollars.

I'm not so sure Cash won't try to eliminate New York if he gets a chance. If you were Tampa, wouldn't you rather face the opportunity to play Boston in a best-of-five? Plus, the Rays really don't have an A Team, but have more like two B+ Teams, so they'll all probably get a match-up at bat and a few frames on the field (except maybe Nellie Cruz Control).

I wanted to say, "And more whiffs..." but MLB stats show the Sox have struckout less than all but four AL teams. BTW, the two best contact clubs, by far, are Toronto and Houston. And for those who think the last three games in Washington should be easy wins, consider: the Nationals' batters have the least amount of Ks in the NL. If that translates to more balls in play... vs. Boston's D... ulp.

There's no way Bloom spends big bucks on "proven" relievers. The Rays never do; instead, they constantly deal for young power arms to stockpile and develop -- and as soon as one becomes established and possibly expensive, they trade him while he's still good, but always for two more pitchers. Bloom had a chance to sign plenty of "proven" relievers last winter and refused, while they landed instead all over the MLB map. He finally caved and extended Barnes this summer... and got burned. Expect our CBO to turnover the bullpen, but via trades and promotions.

Yep, and "rest" had nothing to do with the past weekend. Every single "reliever" was well-rested and ready: Sawamura, Perez, Robles, Houck, Hernandez, Richards, Ottavino, Barnes, and Braiser. The latter was the only one who did his job -- and that includes Barnes, whose job was supposed to be closer or at least late-inning high-leverage guy. The other EIGHT penmen totally gagged, by either walking batters, throwing wild pitches or getting ripped. Sure, one can say the Yankee stars are awesome power hitters, but at least Ottavino admitted what we saw: "bad pitches" (as in meatballs). Throw any MLBer a meatball and he'll hit it; it may not go 450 feet, but almost always will be barreled. And though NY leads the majors in free passes, no game plan ever starts off with, "Pitch around Gio and Gardy..."

I dunno... while any of us could take the mound and bounce a ball to the backstop on our first pitch to let a run score in a close game, how many could throw it as hard as Robles -- so that the ball bounces even faster and further away from home plate?

The glaring issue is 8-21 against teams with winning records since the trade deadline. Boston has bounced back all year, but we all know the D and the current pitching guarantees nothing this week against Baltimore and Washington -- two bad teams, but still big league teams. The Sox should hit, though, because even though they whiff a lot vs. good pitching, they also make hard contact. How many rockets were ripped right at Yankees all weekend -- those liners are due to find some gaps. But: how many runs will make the end of these next six games safe???

And yet, how many times in the second half of the season in supposed big games against teams we're fighting to reach the postseason have we witnessed "the worst loss of the year"? I said over a month ago there's not a single pitcher on the staff that can be trusted in a big moment (and I wanted that guy to be Eovaldi, and he still might be our best hope)...

TV viewers were forced to watch last night's game on the Yankees Channel called ESPN. It featured a whole special in-game feature on Judge and commercials by Judge and Stanton. Luckily, they didn't show the Bucky Dent pop-up until the 3rd inning... I must've missed the clips when they showed the biggest choke in baseball history, when NY gagged four straight games to Boston facing elimination in 2004 -- something that happened this century, 26 years AFTER 1978.

The thing is, Boston was such a better club in most of those victories when Barnes was an All-Star closer and Whitlock was the best set-up man in the league.