5GoldGlovesOF,75

I wouldn't put it past Bloom to trade X; remember, he's a Dave signing... Plus, as far as we know, Bogie may tell them he wants to play for a winner one more time while he's still young, and they agree to find a landing spot he prefers, like they did with Mookie.

The fan that caught that ball now uses it as a paperweight, sometimes a doorstop. It transformed from a sphere into a trapezoid as it bounced over the fence.

I disagree; it's any subject! And I know I'm right because I think so.

I think it all comes down to which free agent shortstop they sign after next season -- Lindor, Correa, Seager, Story or Baez. These are arguably the best free agent position players available this year (via possible trade), next year and beyond, and if the Sox don't spend big this winter, the timing -- for being closer to contention and a PR splash -- will be ripe. Maybe one of them slides over to second or third, or maybe X Bogie does... or opts out, depending on if the Big Five make big dough on a rebounding market (or if Boston still stinks).

The "brothers" should've just head-butted each other; it would've done less damage.

One pitching move that still haunts me was in the last game of the '98 ALDS vs. Cleveland in Pedro's first year. Sox were ahead in the elimination Game 4 and Derek Lowe was pitching lights out (5 batters, 5 outs, 13 strikes in 19 pitches). Jimy Williams yanked Lowe for "automatic" Tom Gordon, who didn't have it that night and blew the save. The worst part is that Pedro would've started a winner-take-all Game 5. Doesn't seem like such a big deal now, but at the time the title drought was 80 years...

I center the motion.

Of course. But is Springer worth 50 million more than Ozuna (according to MLBTR)? Ozuna is two years younger and just led the NL in home runs and RBIs. And he has Hart -- his two biggest comps are Jim Ray Hart and Corey Hart. And then GlenAllen Hill and... Richard Hidalgo! I don't want to hijack the thread, but for the money, the Red Sox may be better signing Ozuna than Springer.

I love Springer. He's one of the clutch postseason players of this century -- .895 OPS vs. .852 OPS in the regular season. But his 27.3 career bWAR at age 31 is less than well-paid prime-timers like Harper 33.4 and Machado 39.5, who are both 28. Springer's also not as good as .900 OPS stars signed for team-friendly $100 million contracts like Acuna and Bregman (who may be a better shortstop as a fill-in or shifter than half the real shortstops). Interestingly, Springer's #1 comp on baseball-reference (which compare statistical accomplishments) is Tony Conigliaro. After that it's Yoenis Cespedes, Richard Hildalgo and Yasiel Puig. I'm not saying those guys in their primes weren't worth $100M in modern dollars... but in another possibly truncated season with no fans?

I'm with notin on the incredible, shrinking market, and can't see anyone going long on a 31-year-old outfielder at near Mookie money (per year... Betts made $27M this summer entering his prime -- I can't see Springer getting $25M in '21). I think Geo may turn out to be this winter's JD Martinez: looking for 200, settling for 100. Realistically, he might end up signing for Eovaldi money, something like 4 for $68... I also don't consider a Springer signing an impediment to pitching acquisitions (I was merely taking a poll, but still want four new starting pitchers) -- not if Boston wants to contend again, like Sam and Tom keep saying... and we're hoping JH is thinking... as soon as he thaws from suspended animation in a cryogenic chamber somewhere. Boston diehards can't let the franchise forget it bragged on social media about hitting the Reset button.

I picked Springer, because even though it won't be him (the horrors of losing a draft pick), he is by far the best all-around in the poll, and the Red Sox need really good players so they can be really good again. I think Springer will be at least good for the next four years, and can play any outfield position, so he won't block a guy like Duran down the road. Every other name on this list that is not a Red Sox is a back-up/fourth man type... so I'd also sign a second, inexpensive guy for depth.

Of course this is why Detroit and Chicago didn't waste any time a week ago. That Cora has been named as a "finalist" but not yet as the Red Sox manager suggests that there isn't total consensus on him in the front office.

Burke, along with Dusty Baker, invented the High Five, circa 1977. It was a cool thing before PEDs, when zealots started breaking each other's fingers, hands and wrists. Or dislocated shoulders...

The other factor in this what-if exercise are the guys we wouldn't have, some in '18, some in '16 through '18. The history would certainly change, and if the team wasn't as successful, then some of these guys would probably have been traded anyway and wouldn't be here right now, either way. For instance, would Moncada have had a pennant-winning homer in the '18 ALCS or the biggest hit (according to one statistical percentage) in the World Series, like Devers' game-winning pinch-single in the 9th inning of Game 4? Other examples: would Margot have won the ALCS MVP instead of Bradley? Would Beeks have been the best pitcher in the entire postseason instead of Eovaldi? They're all maybes, but doubtfuls. Then again, who knows -- maybe Shaw would have gone all Arozarena and compensated for all the others with nightly dingers.

He's tied with Bloom!

I think it's likely one of your present #1 and #2 will miss significant time with maladies, and one of #3 and #4 will not develop as hoped their first full year in Boston. To me -- especially if it's a buyer's market -- the Sox should look to acquire two potential aces, two innings eaters and resign Perez on adjusted short money/longer years. The Red Sox need four new starters. Among them could be one flyer -- like Kluber -- but the other three have to be established and ready to go.

Or maybe the callbacks are coming from the guys signing the checks.

Cora got his masters in rings: as a benchwarmer in '07, coach in '17, and manager in '18. He also hit 89 foul balls in one at bat and then homered... as a Dodger.

What about his son, of Sam?

Five "finalists" have just been named for the Sox' skipper, and what are the predictions? Cora, Kelly, Mendoza, Rowson or Fuld? If they hire Cora anyway, was this just a meticulous look for the masses, maybe to make it seem like they're really considering all facets, and then "upon careful scrutiny", they decide AC was the best overall candidate. That way, it doesn't look like the owners had their minds made up, or a secret handshake happened last winter, or that they automatically handed over the Nation's keys to a super-villain, and most importantly, that Bloom was granted his search and interview process, after all. Or if they hire, say, Fuld -- but listed Cora as a finalist to appease his fans -- did they work the scheme in reverse? The other two teams hiring new managers -- Chicago and Detroit -- didn't waste any time naming their guys. What's the hold-up here in Boston? Everyone knows when they axed RR that they had someone else in mind... and that they know what they're getting in Cora. Why list him as a finalist and not rehire him; wouldn't it be easier to just say "we decided to move on in a new direction"? Maybe the Sox are waiting to announce Cora after Tuesday, when post-election controversy will distract the media...

When you say discount return values, do you mean the trading team would eat half the contract, like we're doing with Price? That may be hard for a mid-market team to pull the cord on; they'd reduce their payroll, but also their chances if they're giving up their best player. You know, like the Beantown Tankers did in '20 (only for that team, they gave up a great one to get rid of a grate one... and then changed their minds on the graterol).

Have to think Bloom's phone will be ringing off the hook from agents this winter. Boston has to be one of the few markets with both the inclination and resources to invest in improvement. For players, Fenway may also provide one of the last enthusiastic baseball followings, once fans feel it's safe to return to the ballparks. From the looks of the landscape already, the Red Sox could maybe turn over half their 25-man roster, become a .500 team again (which would put them in contention for a postseason berth), and not sign any expensive, big-name free agents.

But we probably know that their managers knew about more enhanced guys than we did... and still do. That doesn't make Tony or his coaches or their peers in other dugouts any more guilty or innocent than modern-day mortals like Cora, Hinch, Beltran, Boone, etc. We might even want to respect LaRussa coming out of retirement to risk his reputation in dealing with modern player generation gaps. He's also -- at the high-risk age of 76 -- risking his life, until there's a vaccine...

It's arguable that LaRussa is to blame for a lot of last inning heartbreaks in the last 30 years of MLB history. After he converted Eckersly to the pen -- and the latter was so effective that it was actually the Eck who invented the three-out 9th inning closer position -- every other team tried to find/create their own version. Alas, the only one who was really automatic for more than a few years before burning out was Rivera. Come to think of it, since I have always contended that the single one difference that often separated the Yankees from the Red Sox from about 1995 to 2005 was Mariano, Boston fans can probably trace a lot of angst back to LaRussa and Eck. I don't know about the rest of the complaints on your list... but the '04 Sox were better in the infield in close games when Doug M. replaced Millar.

Millions of Americans are voting for guys his age to run a country. If only the manager who invented the closer could run a bullpen...