5GoldGlovesOF,75

Duvall actually made an out. Apparently doesn't love the smell of napalm in the evening...

Ozuna just missed the Moonya; hit an asteroid and bounced back into the Atlantasphere...

Acuna already hit one to the Moonya. It's so ironic; Tom Caron was just telling us how Mazza has dominated Atlanta... in 4 2/3 innings! Geez, Tom, that's only four outs away from being one quality start...

Not bad. As long as we don't become the Sons of Doesn't Mata Horn. I invented Verdirtdog today, after watching him slide safely under the swipe tag of the pitcher he beat on his grounder to first this week.

I'm giving Beni a pass, as he was clearly not himself - because he had to shut down due to injury, it's reasonable to suspect that was a major factor in his slump; young pros don't suddenly forget how to do their jobs.

Wish him the best, but don't expect him being a positive factor in 2021. Plan the winter with finding viable replacements, and consider any contribution from ERod as a bonus.

No walks -- throw strikes!

Fa-la-at... as in, face up, and run over by the machine that rolls the infield before every game. Or Kevin Bacon's face, after Delta House ruined the parade at the end of Animal House. When history reflects on this Red Sox season, who's looking better: Beni and JD... or Colin McHugh, who opted out?

Looking at that rotation -- and what the Sox thought would be acceptable -- is why they can't just add another mediocre starter or two this winter: Houck kind of has Masterson (when he came up) stuff and promise, Pivetta has unrefined potential like Kelly did, Perez literally replaced Porcello, and Eovaldi can look as much like an injured All-Star as Buch... So who will be next year's Wade Miley? Will adding a Miley type really round out this rotation -- and will fans be satisfied with that?

They have to make sure this summer doesn't happen again. All these what-ifs are why I think Boston spends big and/or trades for at least two starting pitchers that are more sure things. Otherwise, there's no reason for any astute fans to believe ownership or the front office that the Red Sox plan on contending in '21.

I'm not so sure ownership would agree with you... not IF they're worried about selling tickets for '21 (depending, of course, on what happens this winter in regards to an approved and available vaccine, and whether scientists have convinced the populace it's safe). However, if circumstances give the franchise another free pass on its standing -- and thus, the opportunity to rebuild sensibly and progressively (doormat to also-ran to contender to go-for-it) -- there will be less pressure on Bloom to make an immediate PR splash.

Right -- would ownership want another loose cannon and possible PR nightmare so soon after just getting rid of Price? Then again, if Bauer came in and mouthed off about Cole and the Yanks -- and put his pitches where his mouth was -- that'd be a great way to re-spark the rivalry. Sox fans would love him as long as he beat NY, but the Boston columnists would be ready to pounce the second he dissed the wrong peeps. As for the others mentioned, who would be more of a gamble: a guy whose stock this summer plummeted because of performance, like Robbie Ray, or someone whose wing rested this whole season -- but didn't compete -- like Stroman, who opted out, or Odorizzi, who had a non-throwing arm injury.

Putting this here, because it's the 2021 thread, but this could kick off a '21 pitching thread: Assuming next season is played in its entirety, and the Red Sox plan to begin most games with actual starters and not openers, I can't see Bloom not acquiring at least two established arms before Spring Training. With around 150 starts needed from starters (I'm conceding a dozen bullpen games and spot starts), and zero guaranteed from Sale and ERod, can Boston expect 30 from Perez? If so, what's the over/under for the oft-injured and/or developing trio of Eovaldi, Pivetta and Houck... 60? That still leaves at least another 60 -- or 30 each from a new pair of veterans. Barring trading a core chip like Vazquez, it seems likely Bloom signs Bauer and another guy, like either Stroman or Ordorizzi (whoever looks healthier and ready to resume a workload). Or the Sox may welcome an older, one-time stud as both a reclamation project and mentor, like Kluber or Lester. I'd prefer they add three of the five... and Liam Hendriks as a closer. These are the kind of moves needed to restore relevancy to Red Sox Nation and the AL East.

My Dombro post: I'm still satisfied the Red Sox finished first three straight years, improving each year until they had their best season ever -- which never would have culminated with ultimate success without the Pearce and Eovaldi trades. Argue all you want about subsequent signings after the 2018 World Series, but the facts are Pearce was the WS MVP, while Eovaldi -- statistically, for those who forget -- was Boston's best pitcher through the entire '18 postseason (in the past half century, of all hurlers appearing in 6 games and a minimum of 22 innings in a postseason, only two had a lower ERA, Opponent BA and WHIP – Schilling and Johnson in ’01). As for those who suspect Dombrowski's spendings on others led to the eventual trade of Mookie, I'm not so sure. I always wondered about DD's quote -- "You can't sign'em all" -- and hoped (against all hope, as it turned out), that he wasn't referring to Betts. I sense Dave knew Mookie wouldn't be signing back in Boston, and that's maybe what drove the contracts for others instead. As has been well chronicled, Dombro knows and appreciates talent; remember, Max Scherzer turned down a massive offer in 2014, and yes, Miguel Cabrera got a massive extension. But Miggie is also a first-ballot Hall of Famer... So is/wiil be Mookie. And it's hard to believe someone in the business as long as Dave Dombrowski didn't see and/or plan for this. After all, Betts was the best player on the best team that DD ever GMed...

Just looking at the semantics -- and assuming the best case scenarios in each of these -- we shouldn't expect any more contributions in 2021 from ERod than from Sale. If ERod resumes his profession next Spring, and works his way all the way back to an elite starting pitcher at the highest level in the world -- without any physical setbacks (including cardiovascular, as well as with his pre-existing conditional knees) when can we reasonably hope he'll be back on the mound, dealing again? June? July?

I was citing Quintana's bWAR for 1990 at 2.0, and 1991 at 2.9. Oddly, his career bWAR is 2.7, a tenth less than his fWAR. Both Fangraphs and BB Ref describe their WAR totals as estimates, but the latter is easier for a dinosaur like me -- more appealing and quicker to access -- because I like clicking on any team in any season and seeing pics and totals of their top 12 WAR players. That's also the best I can do in accepting a major modern stat that can't be figured with one or two of the four operations of a calculator.

When discussing the 2021 starting rotation, the guy I worry will be the least reliable -- as far as the total unknown -- may be our 19-game winner from '19, ERod. Since there are no longterm studies of the longterm affects of Covid, we can only hope the heart problems afflicting some victims will heal entirely... eventually. If not? He may never be the same player again. At least with the Tommy John guys, we know what to expect... Anyone remember Carlos Quintana? Red Sox starting first baseman in 1990 and '91, decent hitter -- .287, .295 -- around a 2-3 WAR guy... then broke his upper arm in a car accident, lost all pop and was done in the MLB at age 27.

Yes, thanks. Maybe the Red Sox of the past were just appeasing (I'm not going to say patronizing) these "two-way" draftees early on, until they realized they'd better focus on one direction. After all, doesn't every Little League All-Star start his career as an ace pitcher who also plays shortstop or catcher and bats clean-up? Of course, there are plenty of cases of guys converting from regular to pitcher or vice versa. The reverse of Ruth was maybe Bob Lemon, third baseman before WWII, Hall of Fame pitcher after the war. Javy Guerra was once a highly-regarded shortstop prospect that the Sox sent to SD in the Kimbrel trade; now he's a reliever.

I'm so done with drafting two-way guys because of raw tools instead of targeting projected MLB pitchers or MLB hitters. Frankie Rodriquez, Casey Kelly, Trey Ball -- that's enough -- none of them became Babe Ruth or Ohtani, and hardly anyone in history has ever been even a semi-regular as both a pitcher and regular position player at the same time because they all get injured and/or distracted trying to do one thing and then can't do the other. It just doesn't translate at the top level in the sport. Wakefield set a college record for home runs, and yet for some reason, no big league club even let him DH.

I agree with this, and don't think they'll acquire enough new starting pitchers with the intent of bumping Houck out of the rotation. But I could see having back-ups ready in case he falters and needs to work out of the pen as he refines his arsenal.

Maybe not, but we now know LA was thinking more like 13 years of Mookie. If Friedman was willing to make that kind of investment -- making Betts the Face of the Franchise for the next Dodger decade -- then he could've been pressed to add a pitching prospect... if Bloom had any leverage (which he did not, because of Price).

I don't know is on third.

There are just not that many catchers with Vazquez' wheels that can bat leadoff in the big leagues.

Even with her, he couldn't steal first base...

I'm not screaming, because I sense Mookie wasn't signing here, and know Price had to go; as much as this season sucked, imagine how much more fun it would've been having Price around folding all the cards, and mocking "Manager Ron" and "GM Brian" and "Officer Chaim". I just think it's unrealistic to think Boston will be better off without the longterm "burden" of paying for a Hall of Famer in his prime. Betts may well be less productive in the second half of his contract, but the next six years sure would've been better watching him win more MVPs for the Red Sox than for another team.