Adam Morgan

Alex and Maddie talk about Connelly Early's incredible start to his big league career and dive into why Payton Tolle hasn't been able to replicate his first start again. They give live updates on the second game of the A's series while discussing just how listless the offense has been since Roman Anthony hit the IL with an oblique injury. Finally, they throw some names out for the General Manager search that will take place during the offseason. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

Maddie and Alex talk through the Roman Anthony extension and which players, if any, should be in line to get the next one handed out by the front office. They review the roster moves the team has made over the last week and then try to figure out why the Red Sox still have the third-best odds in the AL East to make the playoffs. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

Alex and Maddie discuss what went wrong during the second half opening series against the Cubs and why Carlos Narvaez has so many catching issues against the Phillies. Then they break down their preferred trade options for the starting rotation, bullpen, and first base. They review some notable rumors from the past week and share their thoughts on which players from the roster should be available as the deadline approaches. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

Alex and Maddie talk about the resurgence of errors with the Red Sox and wonder if some players need to be shipped out to try and fix that problem. They provide a timeline for when to expect some key contributors to return to the big league squad and live react to Walker Buehler giving up five runs in the top of the first, before moving on to discuss the trade deadline. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

With the injury to Triston Casas, Maddie, Alex, and Adam discuss the ensuing feud between Rafael Devers and Craig Breslow. They discuss first base options both inside the organization and outside, and wrap up by discussing the pitching staff and what exactly to do with Tanner Houck. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

Red Sox announcers and the team’s social media pages have been quick to point out that Boston leads all of baseball in three-run home runs with 11. In second place is a four-way tie with six three-run home runs between the Dodgers, Giants, Cardinals, and Cubs. It is a fun statistic, but does it actually matter? To determine this, I decided to look at what teams lead the league in three-run home runs and what were their ultimate fates. For example: In 2024, the Yankees lead the league in three-run home runs. We know that the Yankees made it to the World Series, where they ultimately lost to the Dodgers. The Dodgers were tied for fifth most three-run dingers last year. Since 2000, only three teams have led the league in three-run home runs and won the World Series: the 2019 Nationals, the 2009 Yankees, and the 2004 Red Sox. 2004 was not the only time Boston has led the league in 3-run home runs. They also paced the pack in 2021, when they lost in the ALCS. Losing in the playoffs has been the most likely outcome for teams leading the league in three-run home runs. Of the 31 teams that have led or been tied for the lead since 2000, 21 have made the playoffs. That is roughly 68% of teams. More interesting are the teams that didn’t make the playoffs while leading the league in three-run homers. Most of those squads were pretty good, but there are some outliers. In 2022, the Phillies tied for the league lead in three-run home runs. The Phillies famously lost in the World Series that year. Who did they tie with for the lead? The Colorado Rockies, who finished in last place in the NL West. Similarly, the 2003 leader was the Texas Rangers, who finished in last place in the AL West that season. So, what does all this mean? Well, in terms of replicability, not much. You can't really build your team around the skill of hitting three-run homers. You can, however, build your team around a set of skills that would aid in giving them plenty of chances to hit three-run home runs. Such a team would need to be particularly good at getting on base, as well as hitting with runners in scoring position and hitting, well, home runs. Turns out, the Red Sox are pretty darn good at all of those things. Through April 30, they rank sixth in MLB in team-wide on-base percentage (.334), ninth in batting average with RISP (.253), and eighth in home runs (38). Those are important skills to building a winning team. I doubt the Red Sox will finish in last place this season, but I am not sure they will lead the league in three-run bombs either. Through 30 games, they were on pace to have 59 three-run jacks. The most any team has hit in a single season was 40 by the 2015 Yankees. It would be nice to supplant the Bronx Bombers atop that list, but every indication is that there will be some regression to the mean. Then again, Boston’s offense appears to be clicking right now, so maybe they can stockpile some three-run round-trippers before the dog days of summer really hit. View full article

You get an extension! You get an extension! YOU ALL GET EXTENSIONS! Alex, Adam, and Maddie break down the Garrett Crochet and Kristian Campbell extensions, discuss the five-game winning streak, get a chance to break some news on the pod, and try to pronounce a lot of player’s names with varying degrees of success. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

Are you an Out Of The Park fan? We look at the new game through the lens of the Boston Red Sox roster. If you are a longtime Out of the Park Baseball franchise player, you have seen many Red Sox-affiliated names grace the loading screen. While the game is loading, various baseball quotes flash in the loading bar. Some are funny. Some are fun facts. Some are testimonials. One of those testimonials is from principal owner John Henry, who said, “OOTP is an astonishing accomplishment.” Another is from post-season hero Curt Schilling, who said, “There is no comparison to any sports sim I’ve ever played.” So, when looking at the 2025 season, I figured, why not see what the highly touted game thinks of Boston’s team? OOTP allows you to choose different ways to view player ratings; to keep things consistent with baseball scouts, I am using the standard 20-80 scale in this article. Looking at the Red Sox roster, it should be no surprise that Garrett Crochet is the top-rated player. He grades out as a 70 overall with an 80 fastball, a 75 cutter, a 70 slider, a 55 sinker, and a 55 changeup. While the game does think he has mostly reached full potential, it does allow for the possibility that his changeup could reach a 60 grade. There is a tie for the Red Sox's second-best player between Rafael Devers and Jarren Duran. Both grade out as 65 overall. Duran has 55 contact, 50 power, and 45 eye, while Devers rates out as having 55 contact, 65 power, and 50 eye. Surprisingly, Devers rates as a 50 defender at third base, a position we won't be playing very much this season. Alex Bregman, who will actually be playing third, grades out as a 55 defender, which seems surprising considering he won a Gold Glove at the position and Devers was widely panned as plain bad. Bregman’s rating is 55 overall, with 50 contact, 55 power, and 55 eye. In between Duran/Devers and Bregman are a couple of surprising names: Triston Casas (60 overall, 65 potential), Wilyer Abreu (55 overall, 60 potential), and Aroldis Chapman (60 overall). While Casas and Abreu have been touted as young stars in the making for years, Chapman has had a rocky career on the field since leaving the Yankees. Chapman has not averaged less than five walks per nine innings since 2020 and has not recorded more than 14 saves in a season since 2021. Still, OOTP gives him 80-grade stuff with a paltry 35 control. Chapman is the Red Sox's highest-rated reliever. There is a tie for second-best reliever between Garrett Whitlock and Liam Hendriks, who are both 50 overall. Compared to Chapman, Whitlock has 50 grade stuff and 65 control, while Hendriks has a more balanced 50 stuff and 50 control. If you let OOTP’s AI manager choose the roster, it puts Whitlock in the 8th inning and Hendriks in the 7th, which might seem like a longshot considering the way Hendriks has pitched in spring training. That’s not the only surprising decision the computer makes, though. It chooses Quinn Priester and Josh Winckowski as the Red Sox's fourth and fifth starters, respectively. We know this will not happen in real life, with Winckowski officially being reassigned to minor league camp. More surprising still is the starting lineup, which has Romy Gonzalez as the starting shortstop over Trevor Story. Trevor Story has a 45 overall rating with 55 defense at shortstop, while Gonzalez has a 50 overall rating with 50 defense at shortstop. Maybe if injuries beset the Red Sox, we‘ll see Romy at shortstop, but there is no way this happens on Opening Day. Almost as strange is how OOTP’s AI sees third base developing. It has Devers playing third against right-handers with Bregman not in the starting lineup and Roman Anthony at DH. Against lefties, it plays Bregman at third with Devers at DH. If you were wondering, it has Kristian Campbell as the starting second baseman in both scenarios. The AI manager has Romy Gonzalez and Trevor Story listed as the backups for second base, which means David Hamilton, Vaughn Grissom, and Marcelo Mayer all start in the minors. While we know Grissom will be in Worcester, it is hard to believe that neither Mayer nor Hamilton will be on the Opening Day roster. OOTP lists all three as currently 45 overall, with Grissom having a 55 potential and Mayer having a 60 potential. The game sees Hamilton as a true 45. Despite not believing that Aroldis Chapman is the Red Sox's best reliever nor that Romy Gonzalez is better than Trevor Story (when healthy), the rest of the player ratings check out pretty well. If everything goes right, you would expect Garrett Crochet to be the ace of the staff with Walker Buehler and Tanner Houck battling it out for number two starter, and you hope Devers and Duran will be driving the offense with Casas being a major contributor, provided he stays healthy. The AI manager could work, but we must hope Alex Cora can outthink the computer. View full article

The Red Sox won their first game against the Northeastern University Huskies at Fenway Park in 1977, 10-2. The budding rivalry went dormant for 27 years. In 2004, the two teams began their annual tradition of playing in spring training. It kicked off with a 7-0 shutout for the Red Sox over a Northeastern University team that included future major leaguer Adam Ottavino. The following season, the Red Sox would throw a combined no-hitter, winning the game 17-0. The 2006 game saw Northeastern’s Chris Emanuele hit a home run off Red Sox starter Matt Clement’s first pitch. Considering Clement was coming off a 2005 season where he made his only career All-Star game, it was probably a huge thrill for Emanuele. Although Northeastern would only score one more run in the game, with the Red Sox winning 9-2. Ottavino’s last season at Northeastern was in 2006, which means the 2007 team was devoid of future major-league talent. However, the Red Sox were back in shutout form, winning 11-0. From 2006 until 2011, the Huskies were shut out by the Red Sox every year. In 2011, Northeastern put up a bit of a fight, scoring two runs, but it fell to the Red Sox 13-2. In 2012, the Huskies received an injection of talent from Jason Vosler, a future major leaguer and current Chunichi Dragons infielder. However, the addition of Vosler could not help Northeastern, as the Red Sox won 25-0, the largest margin of victory in the series. 2013 was yet another shutout, but the Red Sox only won 3-0, the smallest margin of victory up to that point. 2014 was another three-run victory for Boston, with the team winning 5-2. 2014 was primarily considered a turning point for the Northeastern program. Northeastern alum and former major league first baseman Mike Glavine became the head coach. His hiring coincided with an influx of talent. 2014 was the first time in Northeastern’s history that two future major leaguers shared the roster: Jason Vosler and pitcher Aaron Civale. Since 2014, the preseason games have been relatively close. 2015 the Red Sox won 2-1 in the closest contest yet. In 2016, it was 8-3. In 2017, it was 9-6. Six runs is the most the Huskies ever scored against the Red Sox. The game was held on February 20th, 2020. The Red Sox won 3-0. While the world was about to change due to the COVID-19 pandemic, college baseball wasn’t officially shut down until the following month. Northeastern played its final game of 2020 on March 11th. There was no game in 2021 because of COVID-19 and no game in 2022 because of the lockout. The game returned in 2023, and the Red Sox won 5-3. Last year, the Red Sox won 7-2, and this year, they won 5-2. While it is hard to draw any conclusions from the game itself, it is a tradition that Red Sox fans look forward to, indicating the beginning of baseball being played. It is also a special day for Northeastern baseball. Not many college players face a major league team every year. It is no wonder Glavine and Northeastern have been able to recruit better talent each season, and the program seems to be ascending. View full article

The Red Sox snagged Alex Bregman and Rafael Devers doesn't seem thrilled about it. Alex, Adam, and Maddie discuss the Alex Bregman signing. What does it mean for the Red Sox infield? What does it mean for the Red Sox prospects? What does Rafael Devers think about adding a Gold Glove third baseman to the team? And even with all these questions to answer, Alex still manages to mention Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View full article

The question is: Do the Dodgers have a problem filling their seats? Probably not, yet they have the second most giveaways in baseball. It is not about selling tickets to a game but making sure people are as happy as possible that they went to a game IMO.

You've only got two chances at a bobblehead, so get ready. The Boston Red Sox have unveiled their promotional calendar for the 2025 season at Fenway Park. It includes eight dates where there will be giveaways to the first 7,500 fans. Here are the selected dates with the corresponding giveaways: Monday, April 7 vs. Toronto Blue Jays: Jarren Duran All-Star Game MVP Bobblehead Monday, April 21 vs. Chicago White Sox: Patriots' Day Puffy Vest Thursday, April 24 vs. Seattle Mariners: Wally or Tessie Squishy Pillow Tuesday, May 6 vs. Texas Rangers: Rafaela CF or SS Bobblehead Sunday, May 25 vs. Baltimore Orioles: Charm Hat with Charms Wednesday, June 11 vs. Tampa Bay Rays: Beach Towel Wednesday, July 2 vs. Cincinnati Reds: 1975 Replica Jersey Saturday, August 16 vs. Miami Marlins: Sling Bag All of these giveaways are with standard tickets. Theme nights like Star Wars Night and Hello Kitty Night include giveaways but require a special ticket to receive them. Here is how the Red Sox stack up against all the other major league teams who have announced their promotional giveaway schedule included with standard ticket purchase. Seattle Mariners - 35 giveaways Los Angeles Dodgers - 34 giveaways Baltimore Orioles - 32 giveaways New York Mets - 32 giveaways St. Louis Cardinals - 29 giveaways Kansas City Royals - 27 giveaways Los Angeles Angels - 25 giveaways Pittsburgh Pirates - 23 giveaways Chicago White Sox - 23 giveaways San Francisco Giants - 22 giveaways Cleveland Guardians - 22 giveaways Texas Rangers - 21 giveaways Toronto Blue Jays - 21 giveaways Atlanta Braves - 20 giveaways Washington Nationals - 19 giveaways Chicago Cubs - 18 giveaways Milwaukee Brewers - 17 giveaways Philadelphia Phillies - 16 giveaways San Diego Padres - 16 giveaways Minnesota Twins - 15 giveaways Athletics - 14 giveaways Detroit Tigers - 14 giveaways Cincinnati Reds - 14 giveaways Tampa Bay Rays - 12 giveaways Colorado Rockies - 12 giveaways Boston Red Sox - 8 giveaways Miami Marlins - 0 giveaways The Miami Marlins come in dead last with no giveaways; they have some giveaways with special tickets but none that come with just a standard ticket to the game. Somehow the Red Sox have the second fewest gate giveaways with only eight. The Red Sox have ten theme nights with giveaways that require a special ticket. So even if you counted those nights, that would still put the Red Sox behind teams like the Cleveland Guardians and the Chicago White Sox for the amount of swag the team is giving out. Some teams give out fun unique items like the Brewers give out a Cribbage Board and the Pittsburgh Pirates give out a plush pierogi. The Red Sox never get that unique with their giveaways. Boston will have a Patriots' Day Puffy Vest on April 21st; it seems like only two other teams give out puffy vests. While you can fault the promotions department for a lack of creativity in coming up with giveaways, the real kicker is the lack of standard giveaways. A majority of MLB teams give away team trading card packs; the Red Sox don’t have that as a standard giveaway or even with a specialty ticket. Almost half of major league teams give out team Hawaiian shirts; the Red Sox have nothing of the sort. The lack of giveaways may not seem like a big deal but it shows a laissez-faire attitude towards the fans. The front office knows that Fenway is a small park and the Red Sox have loyal fans so most if not all games will sell out if the team remains competitive but that doesn’t mean that ticket holders don’t deserve the same amount of perks as 27 other major league teams. View full article

Ichiro Suzuki terrorized pitchers around both the league and the world, but he didn't exactly thrive against the Red Sox. Ichiro Suzuki played exactly 150 games against the Boston Red Sox, his fourth-most against any opponent and the most against any non-AL West team. It is an impressive total, considering he only spent three years in the AL East as a part-time player with the Yankees. Despite his short tenure in New York, if you Google “Ichiro Suzuki vs Red Sox,” the first video that comes up is from August 19, 2012. It was Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN, Red Sox and Yankees in the Bronx. Ichiro hit two solo home runs for the Yankees as part of a 4-1 victory. Those dingers represent two of the six he hit against Boston in his career. Despite only hitting six home runs against the Red Sox, Ichiro never hit one out in Fenway Park. He hit .269 over his 64 games in Boston, compared to an overall .292 batting average and .349 on-base percentage against the Red Sox. If you look at his numbers against all MLB teams, that puts the Boston firmly in the middle of the pack. But if you look at teams that Ichiro faced at least 100 times, the numbers tell a different story. Only Tampa Bay held Ichiro to a lower regular season batting average, slugging percentage, or OPS than the Red Sox. Of course, this could be due to the fact that he played more games against the AL East later in his career. In 2001, Ichiro’s historic Rookie of the Year and AL MVP-winning season, he hit an incredible .429, with 18 of his league-leading 242 hits coming in nine games against the Red Sox. That was his third-highest batting average against any team. His .455 OBP against Boston was his fourth-best against any team. By 2006, it seemed like the Red Sox figured Ichiro out. He hit a league-worst .195 against Boston in 2006 and a mere .139 in 2007. It wasn’t until 2011 that Ichiro got back on track, hitting .342 against the Sox. But even in that magic season where Ichiro had his two home run game against the Red Sox, he played 18 games against Boston and only batted .266. Ichiro finished out his Yankees career in 2014, batting .236 against the Red Sox over 19 games. Just looking at the microcosm of Ichiro batting against the Red Sox shows how special of a player he was. 2014 was his age-40 season, and he had 17 hits in 19 games against Boston. He still was a full-time player for three more years with the Marlins, and in his age-42 season, he was worth 1.6 WAR. It was a truly remarkable career, and even if he never played for Boston, Red Sox fans were lucky to observe a little slice of it. View full article