TedYazPapiMookie

So, a person who behaves immaturely cannot be called a child for their childish behavior? Didn't see that one coming. Lots of immature insults come my way and I have said that at least twice in responses to childish comments. I will completely stop since it offends the children. There is a major portion of the site that comments on baseball in a way that suggests they are minors. In my opinion, they don't belong but like most of the other sites like this one, kids find a way in, and they love the anonymity that protects them to say pretty much anything they feel like. Thanks for the heads up. The kids on the site do need protecting despite them seeking their 15 minutes of fame at someone else's expense.

Put each one in the lead off spot and see if they are better because we did that from Mookie to Duran and NOBODY was close to Duran. He's entitled to slumps. We let Devers slump every year and don't pull him out of the 2 hole but the lead-off spot should have a shorter hook? Break down his numbers and you'll find he's hitting .309 at home and .231 on the road. He hit .279 in Mar/April, .258 in May and .279 in June so far. These are the numbers you are criticizing? Obviously, Devers and Bregma aren't leadoff men, Narvaez is the other good right handed bat so far and is a catcher so not a great candidate for leadoff. If Cora didn't bat Devers second but instead move him to third it would make sense to bat Rafaela 2nd but not leadoff while he is trying to establish a higher average as his norm. Abreu can't be a platoon leadoff man. Duran is just fine. I think you proved the point quite well. He is irreplaceable.

I find it ironic that you give moderator advice to me after being a jerk on so many of your comments to me. Shouldn't you be setting an example of the tone of the website? Your warning is noted, and I assume the guideline is that I can't say the truth about Cora's integrity but it's ok to insult others. Odd rules. I'll leave the insults to the dozens that have done it so far.

I think Tolle had a breakout season at TCU where his hits per 9 dropped dramatically and his Ks exploded to 1.5 per inning. His Hi-A experience brought him back to the pack giving up almost one hit per inning, but his Ks are still outstanding, and his walks have improved since college. If Dobbins is still a prospect, I like him the most right now, but Tolle has a monster upside. He could look like Crochet in a couple of years. And Dobbins is a bulldog. To me, he reminds me of a young Clemens. His tenacity impresses me. Will he have Clemens-like stuff? Probably not but there is something to be said for Houck and Eovaldi from the old days being tenacious. They kept us in many games with their tenacity. With the offense we have now, I think Dobbins is going to do well and win regularly. Arias and Cespedes are at a very low level of the minors with Arias the same age but one step up. When you examine their stats there is an interesting difference. Arias has greater speed but doesn't hit many triples. Cespedes doesn't steal but hits lots of triples. As they ascend, I will be curious to see how their skills progress. Arias might be having a breakout defensive season. Until now neither has been very good. To me, they are years from catching Mayer even if he turns out to be a rough fielder. And since both play 2B/SS, they aren't going to be pressing Campbell any time soon either. Miguel Bleis in 2022 got everyone's hopes up with a great season. He jumped into the top 100 in 2023 and completely stagnated. This is a very typical pattern for young foreign players. They get pumped up with hype by doing well in the DOSL then come to ROK or even A ball and have an excellent year and all perspective is lost by the average fan. If they play well the next year they can hang around and stay in the top 100 but if they tank, they are here and gone very quickly like Jeter Downs. To me, Bleis lacks fundamental hand/eye skills which prevent him from making consistent contact and maintaining a decent average. His .301 in 2022 may end up being his career year. He's a perfect candidate as a throw in on a deal since he did hit the top 100 once and maybe another team can find a way to bring him out of his funk. Unfortunately, it's not really a funk, it's truly a lack of MLB skill. I wish the best for him

If I am Breslow I am buying and selling. I am trading Abreu and Yoshida and looking for young pitching. The hitting side of the team is ready to take off and Abreu is the odd man out since he's a platoon hitter and we can't waste a roster spot on someone who can't hit left-handed pitchers which throw 40% of the games Boston will play in. Even if we don't make the playoffs, Breslow needs to get this deal done to clear payroll. The rest of the season has two big questions: 1 - Will Bregman opt out? 2 - Given Crochet as the top gun, who fills the 2 through 4 slots in the 2026 rotation and can Breslow upgrade the bullpen in 2026? This team is on the cusp. Like the off season when he moved Devers to DH, Breslow must now fix the pitching staff to make a run at the division title in 2026.

Very Cora-like to retract your stupid comment and pretend it never happened. My comment clearly documents your faux pau and yours confirms it. HAHAHA Nice try. Way to own it!!!

You related to Cora? Erase all the evidence!!! hahaha What a child you are. 5 Gold Glove OF who doesn't know his baseball history so eliminates his embarrassing comment. Way to own it!!! hahahahaha Your love for Cora makes perfect sense now!!!

Can you remember back to all the years we struggled without a lead-off man after Mookie was tossed in the garbage? Well, Duran is the ONLY lead-off man currently on this make-shift team. Players have slumps and recover. Duran is an all-star and as we watch his average climb I think he still has a chance in 2025 to make it again since there is still a month left. All this talk about the best player other than Bregman being traded, moved or not playing daily is so off the mark it's hard to believe a Red Sox fan is coming up with this crap.

Seriously? hahaha You've never heard of the extremely famous line from the 1948 Boston Braves? Spahn and Sain and Pray For Rain? I forget the huge experience gap. hahaha You called this battle cry of the 1948 Boston Braves - Unpoetic? The irony is it was composed from a poem by Gerry Hern run in the Boston Globe on 9/14/1948!! Sometimes it's better to not comment when you have no idea what the comment is about!!!

Did you just equate a 2013 effort to pick up signs by looking in from 2B or the coaching box to what HOUSTON DID? Seriously, Cora built a sophisticated system of cheating that impacted up to 90 games. The single largest cheating scandal before HOUSTON was 5 games in the 1919 world series. The scope of cheating has a large range. The primary motivation in 1919 was to keep organized crime from tapping into the results of games. Now we let the folks who are in charge of gambling cheat to whatever degree they can get away with. The culture of sports changed with legalized gambling. What made Houston's cheating so despicable? The very thing HOF board members preach constantly, the integrity of the game. What a joke!!! Data has proven for 30 years that steroids had NO IMPACT on HRs, but players are denigrated for ATTEMPTING TO CHEAT with steroids even though the action didn't improve their numbers. Then a team comes along and impacts up to 90 HOME GAMES and completely changes the order of finish in the AL West, completely changes the playoff seeding and completely changes the results of the play-offs and nobody cares but if Bonds out homers Ruth with only the assistance of the juiced ball, he's the devil. What an incredibly screwed up baseball world we live in. 1 - We CAN NOT publicize the finding on steroids since they got Selig into the HOF and we can't publish and recognize the change in the baseball that happened in 1995 to boost HRs by 25% because that too would reflect poorly on Selig who enacted the change to the juiced baseball but we can ban players from the HOF for using an ineffective drug in AN ATTEMPT to cheat while achieving extraordinary HR totals using a juiced ball provided by the MLB? 2 -We won't penalize players participating in a 90-game cheating scandal, but we'll sentence the coaches who concocted the 18 times greater cheating scandal in 2017 TO A PARTIAL SEASON BAN!!! That is significantly down from the lifetime ban imposed in 1919 for 5 games? For the Cora fans who can overlook an indiscretion impacting 90 games, never complain again when something seems unfair to you. You pardoned the most heinous offense in baseball. Don't expect others to follow suit. There is no statute of limitations on this type of offense. It's like the HOF always says (out of pure irony since they don't enforce their code of conduct), the 2017 scandal was a blow to the integrity of the game and those who played it.

I completely agree. The design of the roster has prevented NYY and LAD from being good post season teams but great in-season teams. Recently, the addition of Betts, Freeman and Ohtani have changed that for the LAD offense. They still have a hit or miss pitching staff, otherwise, they would be like the Yankees from the early 1920s to 1962. Half the rings went to them. Let's hope they don't have their pitching together in 2025 so someone other than the LAD wins the ring this year.

I respect your opinion, but I can't disagree more. Names like Robles, Lopez and so many others immediately pop in my head with respect to his daily mistakes over the last 6 years not including 2020. I'm from a family of pitchers and I haven't seen someone as bad as Cora since Don Zimmer managed the Cubs. Some people just don't have an understanding of a situation to realize what is most likely to work rather than going by their gut like Cora does. Just look at the games of the last week. Some of his hitting substitutions were completely illogical because he chooses to follow his gut and is wrong nearly every time. Think back to pulling Sale with 12 Ks in 5 innings and hardly any pitches. His intuition told him Sale after a month off couldn't go more than fifty-ish pitches despite having great velocity, accuracy and movement. He has no idea what he's doing.

Fair enough. I make my assumptions on the future based on actual talent. I think Boston has a few gaps left to fix but are close if they get the 6 youngsters enough time to develop (Anthony, Campbell, Mayer, Narvaez, Rafaela and Casas) and with Bregman, Devers and Duran they have the hitting to compete. They need pitching and a manager. Without that, the talent level won't be great enough to compete seriously for anything other than a WC spot.

1st - Duran is in LF and he's not good there. I agree with you but he's a CF and a better defender that Abreu is in right field. If they leave him in LF, he either needs to learn how to play it or he's going to hurt the defensive team metrics even more. 2nd - Duran is the only game in town with respect to being a lead off man so he's irreplaceable right now and Abreu is just a platoon hitter with a big arm. This is on Cora once again mispositioning the skills of his team. Due to arm strength, Rafaela should be in RF and Duran in CF and Anthony in LF with Abreu who played all three positions plenty in the minors should be the 4th outfielder if he's not traded which he needs to be to get pitching. Cora put Duran in left field. That should be enough explanation as to why it's a wrong choice but clearly there is a huge difference between CF and the confined LF area where Cora put his fastest guy. Duran made 5 of 6 errors in LF despite player CF more in 2024. In 2025, he's made 4 of 5 in LF in half a season or less. Seriously, you can't see this as a problem with LF for an excellent CF? If you are saying Duran isn't suited for LF, I agree. Cora should have used his brain and realized you have two speedsters in Fenway so why would ONE go in LF rather than the power hitter with limited speed? You are right, it makes no sense. FYI.... Duran has 2 errors in CF since 2021 in 550 total chances!!!! That's not data that can be interpreted as Duran sucking on defense when he plays his normal position. He has 10 in LF in just 292 total chances. That is Devers-like bad in LF and JBJ-like good in CF.

Who other than LAD and PHI would you consider a contender with higher likelihood of winning than Boston in a year or two? NYY? DET? CHC? HOU? NYM? We know some owners spend crazy stupid money but teams like NYM and SD or even the NYY don't produce rings. You want a ring? You go to LAD, SF, TEX, HOU. ONLY LAD does over the top spending of the group of franchises that win so if LAD offers Bregman more I could see him leaving. Otherwise, I think you are right he wants to win and $40Million is plenty to live on so Boston works if the owners stay committed.

If you say so. Sounds like a gross exaggeration to make a point about how much you believe in him. I've watched both Duran and Abreu play. Abreu gets the YIPS when he runs back toward the fence in right field and when he has to run hard at the right field side fence. I've watched him catch balls side saddle to avoid contact with the wall while guys like Rafaela are fearless. I simply am not impressed with Abreu's defense, his defensive numbers or the way his average skills are portrayed. He has a strong arm, he slides for balls in front of him well but when he reaches up for balls over his head to his left he loses sight of the ball because he brings the glove directly through his line of sight. For me, those are things I have observed about players for many years. If my comment does not agree with the organization hype, I am ok with it. If scouts are not picking up on his shortcomings, then I'd go get some new scouts.

Duran struggles far more in LF than CF. That's why when Rafaela came up, I expected him to handle the toughest outfield position, (RIGHT FIELD) because many say the size is bigger than CF and clearly it has some tricky plays that need to be made down the line. The short (not tall) HR fence also makes it very challenging and dangerous. We've had two legends in LF over the years, and I think Anthony is a perfect third legend. Trade Abreu and get some pitching or dump Yoshida's money with Abreu's talent and buy some pitching or a prospect if Yoshida is included. Refsnyder is an excellent right-handed 4th outfielder. I just wish they would switch Mayer and Story so when Bregman is back Story becomes the reserve middle infielder and Mayer gets to prove that his defense is not as bad as his minor league numbers suggest. Abreu's hitting versus lefties and his strong and accurate arm should be worth a lot on the open market and we won't miss his streaky hitting performance each year. Abreu hits .304 in March/April, .222 in May, .227 in June, .250 in July, .295 in August and .234 in Sept. It's good that he's injured right now because his June OPS is .561.

I agree but I think if Cora is in Boston, Bregman will be in Boston and Cora will talk Breslow into the necessary extension.

The WAR numbers above triggered an idea for a trade. DD is pitching heavy, and Boston is hitting heavy so lets trade Abreu for Abel. It solves the outfield problem and adds what looks to be an excellent arm. With recent improvements from guys like Bleis and Refsnyder earning that 4th outfielder spot Boston won't miss Abreu's bat now that they have Anthony's and they won't need to roster an extra guy to make up for Abreu's inability to hit lefties. For me, Abreu is clearly the weakest of the four prime outfielders yet for some unknown reason he seems to be liked by the media and fans despite his shortcomings. His ratio of appeal to talent is second to Anthony so he's the perfect guy to trade to maximize value.

His OPS is .695 and it was over .700 a couple of days ago. Point in time decisions over a guy who is 24 and is constantly improving? Is that a knee-jerk reaction that doesn't allow a top prospect to develop? Abreu is a platoon hitter, is that a serious organization move? Carrying an extra player to make up for the issues with Abreu? I don't get that logic.

There are two VERY big differences between Abreu and Duran 1 - Duran is the best leadoff hitter since Mookie and Abreu doesn't have leadoff man skills. 2 - Duran hits for a higher average, has more speed on the bases and is a superior defender despite the GG that should have an asterisk next to it for going against such weak competition. I seriously don't understand why everyone is high on a platoon hitter who is the weakest of the big four defenders, who isn't particularly fast but swings for the fences all the time and causes the team to eat up another roster spot for his platoon mate. As far as Rafaela goes, he's a better hitting version of JBJ based on his minor league performance. Think back to how many years JBJ hit under .200 through May and then got hot and had enormous streaks just to return to being cold late in the year. I believe Rafaela will be more consistent, but he needs to prove it.

If someone is willing to go HIGHER than $40Million for 2 years, I would be very surprised but if someone is willing to go longer at $40Million, I would match it or exceed it to get him back. The interesting spin on Bregman is his connection to Cora. If Cora is let go does that mean Bregman will opt out? I have no idea how tight that link is but it seems pretty tight. I think there are only two all-star quality 3Bs that are free agents this off-season and Bregman is one of them. The other is Suarez who might love hitting in Boston but he's a below average fielder. The offensive production needs to be replaced if Bregman is gone so he seems like the best FA and he's half the annual price. I might proactively extend the $40Million 2 more years right now for Bregman and ask him to drop the opt out for the $80Million extra dollars. This team is coming into its own and Bregman is a key piece.

True. My 13 rostered hitters would be: C - Narvaez, 1B - Toro, 2B - Campbell, SS - Mayer, 3B - Bregman, Middle infield reserve - Story, Corner Infield reserve - Gonzalez, Reserve Catcher - Wong, LF - Duran, CF - Rafaela, RF - Anthony, Reserve Outfielder - Abreu for now but I would trade him and use Refsnyder, DH - Devers. When Casas comes back in 2026 then he takes 1B and Toro is the Corner Infielder Reserve. The hitting side of the equation seems pretty much set and the 4 reserves are at a level appropriate for a championship team. Breslow now must focus on the pitching.

The only scenario that makes sense is Scenario #2. Abreu is a platoon hitter whereas Duran, Rafaela and Anthony are not. Abreu is the weakest outfielder defensively of the four players, but he has a great arm. The 13 man roster only allows for 4 outfielders. With Abreu you are forced into 5 because he can't left handed pitchers so Refsnyder and Abreu need to be rostered as a couple and the roster has no room for that type of decision. Also, the bogus GG Abreu got for being the best glove in an incredibly weak group of right fielders in the AL inflates his value to other teams. I only say that because the MLB channel guys talk about his GG as if it was legit, never mentioning that he finished 2024 with defensive stats lower than both Duran and Rafaela. Abreu is a sell high scenario and might get us a young quality starting pitcher. Or he could help us salary dump Yoshida if Abreu is included for free for a prospect. Scenarios #1 and #3 make no sense. Abreu due to being a platoon hitter must be the odd man out.

What a great game for Anthony to break in!!! Except for the loss. He got a full dose of the excitement of a Fenway game. The ups and downs were outstanding. The line-up filled with the future 2026 starters except for Wong and Bregman!! When Bregman gets back then we'll have a real look at 2026. Hopefully by then, Anthony, Mayer, Campbell will all be more comfortable with the roles (Mayer at SS) and Duran, Rafaela, Devers and Bregman are pounding the baseball and playing great defense and Narvaez is throwing out runners and hitting well. That's going to be a fun team to watch the rest of the year!! Maybe Breslow can find another quality starting pitcher in a trade. Crochet looks great and Dobbins is all kinds of fun to watch. Giolito and Buehler need to significantly improve. Bello as a SP5 is adequate but an upgrade is needed there. Maybe when Houck returns, he'll return to form. His upside is so much higher than Bello. Right now, Boston has Crochet, Dobbins and pray for rain three days in a row.