Larry Cook

Last year I thought there was talk in the media about both shoulders hurting. I know he got one fixed.

Good move by the pirates.

Could not agree more.

I want to go back to leadership and pedroia for a second. There is an article on the NESN site that basically says pedroia wants others to step up and be the leaders of the team. Ok probably best for the team if that happens, don’t know who could fill that role. But that is pedrioa’s perrogative. Then I read the lindy’s baseball preview issue and it has an unnamed scout talking about how pedroia owns the locker room and Cora needs to get pedroia in his corner so as to not wind up like Farrell who did not have pedroia in his corner. And in my mind, the conclusion I get as that we have a totally dysfunctional locker room centered around pedrioa. I got a player who does not want to be a leader controlling the fates of the manager. This is not anyway to run a railroad. Somebody needs to step up and stop the madness. What am I missing here?

Really? Micro fracture surgery is drastic, but guys have come back from it. Maybe not 100 percent, but 95 percent of pedroia is still a pretty good second basemen.

Sounds like Cora has a plan for how he wants to run our team. So far I am liking what I am hearing. Of course it is easy to talk a good game in spring training. Let’s see how he does during the crush of the regular season and hopefully a pennant race.

I think you called it. Boras getting desperate?

Amen brother! Did not bogey imply there was tension in the locker room as well last season?

Pedroia will give you everything he has game in and game out. And if you are looking for a leader by example, he could be that. But if your your looking for a guy to motivate, inspire and pick up other guys on the team, he is not the guy. Never has been and never will. Just not part of his dna. Sad because when you think back to his rookie season and how badly he struggled and how many guys had his back when he needed it most. Now to know that he will never be a guy to have a teammates back. But pedroia does give you everything he has!

3 years on Watson?

Marrero has an above average glove. If he could put it together at the plate, that would be a huge problem solved for us.

Can we please just pass on JD? He is an injury waiting to happen and not worth our time or money. Pitching! We need more pitching!

Betts and sale have to be extension priorities.

Team dynamics mean that the manager can never be the guy we need. The only way to get accountability in a locker room is through the players themselves. Think of the other Boston teams and if I ask you who the leader is, you know the answer immediately. Bruins - charra and Bergeron. Patriots - Brady, McCourty, Slater and Hightower. Red Sox - ugh??? Pedroia? (No pedroia will give you everything HE has, but he won’t demand anything of anybody else. That is not his style.) hanley? (Please give me a break. Hanley is all about Hanley.) one of the starting pitchers? (Sorry they only play once every five days. It has to be a position player.) Betts, Bradley, bogey,???? (No. They are part of the zombies) I guarantee that if we get a leader in that locker room, the zombies will step up. They desperately want that guy in the locker room, but none of the zombies wants to be that guy. Its dave’s job to build to a “team” every year and that means having leaders in that locker room. Once again, dave the fireman has let our team down. We need a real GM!!! Give this team a leader and I think we can win 95 games if our pitchers just stay relatively healthy and I don’t have to watch Wright start every fifth day!

Bonehead plays, lack of fire and desire, pedroia fracturing the locker room and price verbally berating eckersley. What does it all add up to? A total lack of leadership in the locker room. No one is demanding accountability from fellow players in that locker room. It is madness to expect this to change in 2018 unless we bring in a guy that can lead these sheep.

Coming into the 2017 season, was price having elbow issues? I did not think do. Yes, he had a lot of innings on the arm, but people were calling him the guy with a rubber arm. Sale, price and porcello (with a working sinker), hard to see how we could not win 100 games as a team. But then price got injured. But Pomeranz stepped up big time. However then porcello went into the tank. And to make matters worse, rodriguez’s knee gave way again. And we were left needing more pitching. In desperation, we had to turn to fister!!!!! 2018 is shaping up to be another year of not enough pitching and who is the next fister! Back to the lineup: Even if you brought in the world’s best clean up hitter, this team won’t do squat unless he is a leader! We desperately need someone to command the locker room. Someone to hold players accountable to the team. Until we get that personality, our young guys will not take it to the next level. 2018 year of the zombie part 2.

They won 93 games with that under performing offense. And in my mind, it was not about the under performing offense as much as was talented youngsters stuck in a locker room with no leadership. This team still needs a leader. You can bring in Martinez, stanton or Harper, but if they are not a leader in the locker room the zombies will not improve! Leadership is desperately needed and dave can’t seem to figure that out! But to the original post. Yes, we need more pitching. Two of our starters are potential tommy John candidates. Another is coming off knee surgery and doubtful to be ready by opening day. Then there is the injured knuckleballer that we are counting on to start the year in the rotation. This is madness! Sadly I think it is too much to ask of dave to remove his head from his behind and be the GM we need.

No! Dave a fireman, not a real GM with a plan for the now and future of a team. He can’t see past the end of his nose. Hence the overpaying for assets, the decimation of the farm system, and the cliff in two years. He does not know how create value only how to buy it with cash and/or prospects,

I saw matta pitch a couple games last season. His stuff does not scream like groome’s but sometimes when you stand next to a super bright light like groome, talent evaluators tend to be blinded to just how good your stuff is. And that is why I am very high in matta’s potential as a #3 or #4 starter. Did not see houck pitch in pro ball last year, but saw him a couple times in college. Best bet for him is he is our future closer.

JD - Arizona is a great place for you. Please take them up on a one year deal and then next offseason you can sit back and watch the super high dollar scrum to sign manny, Harper and Donaldson and then you can get a lesser deal than what we offered this year and cry about collusion all you want! JD - we have no spot for you on our roster. Hello, you suck in the outfield. You are an injury prone dh only! Deal!

When the sinker is sinking; he is a cy young type pitcher. When the sinker is not sinking; he is the meatball king! Serving up more meatballs than all the Olive Garden restaurants put together. I think we need to keep him and take the gamble that he fixes the sinker!

Supposedly price told someone today that the elbow felt good after throwing today. I think we need to start the countdown click to the big “pop@!

Still time for dave to sign a major pitcher. Let Boras struggle to come up with plan b for JD!

This makes perfect sense. Would dave abandon his pursuit of JD and go this route?

I don’t know how he can be back before mid June, but if anybody is going to push it, he is the guy.