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2017 Red Sox Major League Spring Training Thread
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Mar 5, 2017 15:26:47 GMT -5
Jayce Ray is in the media guide, so not sure what the deal is with him. Might be hurt? Happened with Gragnani last year - we just kind of never saw him in camp and he opened the year on the DL.
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Post by sarasoxer on Mar 5, 2017 18:34:05 GMT -5
Was at beautiful jetBlue sheltered from steady 20 mph winds starching the flag in from center directly to third. Nothing was going to get out and nothing was close.
Sat next to a die-hard Cubs fan who went beyond "In Theo we trust" to something akin to "Hail Ceasar".
The Sox cruised to an 11-1 win against a weak Pirate lineup.
For those that did not watch on NESN, Kendrick pitched 4 crafty no hit innings. Kyle's FB topped out at 92 in the first dropping steadily therafter to 88-89.
Beni had 2 doubles down the left field line as well as a lineout to center in 3 ABs.
Favorite Sam Travis roped a double off the wall base in left center...
Ross pitched one inning running his FB 91-93 giving up 2 hits and a run.
Devers entered in mid game and made an excellent athletic play on a slow chopper rifling an on the run strike to first. He appeared over anxious at the plate tho fanning on 3 pitches in one at bat which was representative of other efforts. Big Brandon Workman has not yet regained his velo and topped out with one pitch at 90....
I love Marco Hernandez at the plate. I suspect that he will not make the club unless Rutledge tanks on a lefty righty basis but he appears to have outstanding hand-eye. I would hate to list him.
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Post by tookme55 on Mar 5, 2017 19:58:13 GMT -5
I would like to see Sam Travis called up in May to platoon at 1B, leaving Hanley strictly as DH.
There's no denying Travis hitting at a major league level.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Mar 5, 2017 21:04:59 GMT -5
I would like to see Sam Travis called up in May to platoon at 1B, leaving Hanley strictly as DH. There's no denying Travis hitting at a major league level. I think the only way it makes sense to have Travis up there is if Hanley gets injured or Moreland either gets injured or hits so poorly. Travis platooning with Moreland would waste a roster spot and worse, deprive him of needed ABs as he'd only be facing southpaws in the majors if he's in a direct platoon. I like Travis' bat as well and think he'll be a bit better than expected. My guess is that we will see Hanley on the DL at some point this season and at some point Moreland, if he plays like he did last year, we will see Travis, but when he comes up he needs to play every day.
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Post by James Dunne on Mar 6, 2017 9:15:46 GMT -5
I would like to see Sam Travis called up in May to platoon at 1B, leaving Hanley strictly as DH. There's no denying Travis hitting at a major league level. I think the only way it makes sense to have Travis up there is if Hanley gets injured or Moreland either gets injured or hits so poorly. Travis platooning with Moreland would waste a roster spot and worse, deprive him of needed ABs as he'd only be facing southpaws in the majors if he's in a direct platoon.I like Travis' bat as well and think he'll be a bit better than expected. My guess is that we will see Hanley on the DL at some point this season and at some point Moreland, if he plays like he did last year, we will see Travis, but when he comes up he needs to play every day. Yes. The chance that Travis is an upgrade over Chris Young at the plate is pretty remote anyway, and certainly not worth stunting his development to get him 10 to 15 MLB at-bats a week. He only has 190 Triple-A plate appearances, and it's not like he crushed the level. And whose roster spot would he take under this scenario? Rutledge? That's giving up a ton of defensive flexibility to carry basically a fourth 1B/DH/corner player. On top of that, he's not on the 40-man yet, so he's not burning an option. If they call him up and he's not ready, they've burned his first option a year early cutting into their flexibility down the road.
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nomar
Veteran
Posts: 10,826
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Post by nomar on Mar 6, 2017 10:23:26 GMT -5
I'd like to see Travis keep working on his approach too. His ISOd was .06 last year in limited PAs, and with his limited in game power, it would be hugely beneficial for him to get back to the .08+ ISOd he had in Portland in 2015.
Either way, choosing to hit him rather than Chris Young would just be detrimental to the offense, let alone Travis' development. We should all be hoping we don't have to see Travis in Boston too soon, because that would mean something has gone wrong.
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Post by jimed14 on Mar 6, 2017 11:12:13 GMT -5
Travis is simply backing up Hanley and Moreland. He won't be up unless one of them is on the DL.
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Post by sox fan in nc on Mar 6, 2017 11:23:27 GMT -5
Saw that the Braves are moving to North Port FL.....That could help in that the Sox won't have to play the Orioles as much & put another team in the Twins/Rays rotation along with the minor league games. North Port is an hour from Jet Blue whereas Sarasota is an hour and a half. Will also help not constantly playing another AL East team.
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Mar 6, 2017 11:49:07 GMT -5
Huh. Right next to Port Charlotte. www.winknews.com/2017/01/24/atlanta-braves-unveil-plans-for-north-port-training-site/Braves would probably also join the GCL Sox division. Last year, the 17-team GCL had four divisions. The South (4 teams incl Sox) and East divisions (5 teams) only played intra-division before the playoffs, while the Northeast and Northwest (4 each) had inter-division play. My guess is that the Braves would join the South and the Northeast and Northwest would be combined into a single, 7-team division, although the whole reason it was two divisions seemed to be to break up the two Tigers and Yankees teams in the circuit. But yeah, getting a fourth team to play would be very, very good. Although come to think of it, odd numbers wouldn't work with intra-division play only, unless they went back to playing a different team every day. Having every 5th day off would be normal down there though.
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Post by thursty on Mar 6, 2017 16:38:18 GMT -5
Owens: 1 IP, 1H, 1R, 4BB, 2K
So far this spring, 8BB in 5 IP
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Post by jimed14 on Mar 7, 2017 15:55:03 GMT -5
Can Deven Marrero salvage his career? He's hitting like crazy this spring and made adjustments to his swing after elbow surgery in November. Would be a nice alternative to Rutledge if he can hit at all. And yeah, I'm talking about 20 something plate appearances in Spring Training, but it's something to watch IMO. www.masslive.com/redsox/index.ssf/2017/03/deven_marrero_boston_red_sox_2.html
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Post by ramireja on Mar 7, 2017 16:18:31 GMT -5
Can Deven Marrero salvage his career? He's hitting like crazy this spring and made adjustments to his swing after elbow surgery in November. Would be a nice alternative to Rutledge if he can hit at all. And yeah, I'm talking about 20 something plate appearances in Spring Training, but it's something to watch IMO. www.masslive.com/redsox/index.ssf/2017/03/deven_marrero_boston_red_sox_2.htmlI'm going to go with a hard 'no.'
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Post by jimed14 on Mar 7, 2017 18:10:21 GMT -5
THUMBS UP: Catcher Christian Vazquez made what was perhaps his best throw since having Tommy John surgery in 2015, a laser to second base about a foot over the bag to get Micah Johnson trying to steal second base in the first inning. Vazquez also picked Austin Riley off first base in the third inning, but umpire Brian O’Nora missed the call. “The carry and accuracy is approaching pre-surgery,” Farrell said. “A very good day for Christian defensively.” www.bostonglobe.com/sports/redsox/2017/03/05/red-sox-plate-eight-seventh-inning/IWTZvoW8fZzu1AocKs90vK/story.htmlThat's good to hear. I think he'll end up the starter.
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Post by Oregon Norm on Mar 8, 2017 0:30:47 GMT -5
I could easily see Vazquez getting 100+ games as the starter if he's up to it. I also think he's capable of hitting something like .260/.330/.390 if he does get that playing time. That would be in line with where he was headed before the injury.
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Post by telson13 on Mar 8, 2017 3:21:09 GMT -5
I could easily see Vazquez getting 100+ games as the starter if he's up to it. I also think he's capable of hitting something like .260/.330/.390 if he does get that playing time. That would be in line with where he was headed before the injury. I'm not sure he's ready for .260, but I think you're right on the IsoD/P. I admit, I'm not convinced he *wont* put up that line either. I certainly think he can (and eventually will) hit at least that well. I like his gap power and the steady development of his hitting over time. If he does, and his defense is up to pre-surgical par, it's a huge addition to the club.
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Post by pedrofanforever45 on Mar 8, 2017 4:42:01 GMT -5
Maybe it's just me but the Sox seem to be holding a bit of a grudge against Vasquez. I mean he wasn't called up last year until mid September. He was quickly sent down after he called for a fastball in the rain with Wright on the mound that gave up the grand slam. He has been named a predetermined backup before the season even starts.
Sure Leon's hitting line looks nice overall but his numbers fell off the cliff by September. That didn't stop Shaw from losing his job and eventually getting traded when Shaw couldn't hit down the stretch but when it comes to Leon, he keeps his job. It should be a competition there if the Sox were open minded about things.
I just hope it works itself out and Vasquez is starting by the third week of the season.
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Mar 8, 2017 7:24:51 GMT -5
Maybe it's just me but the Sox seem to be holding a bit of a grudge against Vasquez. I mean he wasn't called up last year until mid September. He was quickly sent down after he called for a fastball in the rain with Wright on the mound that gave up the grand slam. He has been named a predetermined backup before the season even starts. Sure Leon's hitting line looks nice overall but his numbers fell off the cliff by September. That didn't stop Shaw from losing his job and eventually getting traded when Shaw couldn't hit down the stretch but when it comes to Leon, he keeps his job. It should be a competition there if the Sox were open minded about things. I just hope it works itself out and Vasquez is starting by the third week of the season. 1) He was called up on September 5 immediately after Pawtucket's season ended. And before that, Leon had established himself as the starter - did you want them to call him up to play 1-2x/week? 2) He was with the team and the starter from early April until the beginning of July, which you seem to have just forgotten about entirely. 3) As for the "predetermined backup" thing, they have a catcher who pitchers love throwing to who hit .310/.369/.476 last year. They HAVE to at least outwardly say he's the starter, even if everyone involved knows he's likely not repeating that. And it's not like they're committing to running the same lineup for the entire season - you make it sound like the starter on opening day has to catch all 162 games or something. Hell, they replaced the opening day catcher two weeks in last year... with the guy they supposedly hold a grudge against. 4) Vazquez has hit .233/.293/.308 in the majors. You don't hand him the starting job with those numbers. 5) Farrell said he played Leon too much last year. "Predetermined backup" could still mean Vazquez catches 3x/week to start the year. 6) He was not "quickly sent down" after the Wright game - he caught the next day. He was sent down because he was hitting .220/.292/.254 in his previous 21 games going back to June 1. He had to completely re-tool his swing in Pawtucket - he eliminated a leg kick he added for... some reason during the 15-16 offseason. That's also why they left him down there for so long - he was going through major mechanical adjustments in his swing. But other than that, it's just you.
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Post by sarasoxer on Mar 8, 2017 7:44:04 GMT -5
Maybe it's just me but the Sox seem to be holding a bit of a grudge against Vasquez. I mean he wasn't called up last year until mid September. He was quickly sent down after he called for a fastball in the rain with Wright on the mound that gave up the grand slam. He has been named a predetermined backup before the season even starts. Sure Leon's hitting line looks nice overall but his numbers fell off the cliff by September. That didn't stop Shaw from losing his job and eventually getting traded when Shaw couldn't hit down the stretch but when it comes to Leon, he keeps his job. It should be a competition there if the Sox were open minded about things. I just hope it works itself out and Vasquez is starting by the third week of the season. 1) He was called up on September 5 immediately after Pawtucket's season ended. And before that, Leon had established himself as the starter - did you want them to call him up to play 1-2x/week? 2) He was with the team and the starter from early April until the beginning of July, which you seem to have just forgotten about entirely. 3) As for the "predetermined backup" thing, they have a catcher who pitchers love throwing to who hit .310/.369/.476 last year. They HAVE to at least outwardly say he's the starter, even if everyone involved knows he's likely not repeating that. And it's not like they're committing to running the same lineup for the entire season - you make it sound like the starter on opening day has to catch all 162 games or something. Hell, they replaced the opening day catcher two weeks in last year... with the guy they supposedly hold a grudge against. 4) Vazquez has hit .233/.293/.308 in the majors. You don't hand him the starting job with those numbers. 5) Farrell said he played Leon too much last year. "Predetermined backup" could still mean Vazquez catches 3x/week to start the year. 6) He was not "quickly sent down" after the Wright game - he caught the next day. He was sent down because he was hitting .220/.292/.254 in his previous 21 games going back to June 1. He had to completely re-tool his swing in Pawtucket - he eliminated a leg kick he added for... some reason during the 15-16 offseason. That's also why they left him down there for so long - he was going through major mechanical adjustments in his swing. But other than that, it's just you. A lot of good detail..... I did not know about point #6 and don't know if the batting change has helped him. I remain surprised that Vasquez has not displayed more power given his 18 HR season several years ago and the mantra that power comes with maturity. That evaporation is a mystery. I think that fans became so enamored of his pop times and arm that other elements were relegated to the background. He became the golden boy du jour. Leon probably is not a .310 guy but I can't totally discount his season based on a late in the year fade either. I think that he will be better offensively than many are crediting and, as noted, pitchers love him. He is not shabby to second either.
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Post by James Dunne on Mar 8, 2017 8:36:56 GMT -5
Maybe it's just me but the Sox seem to be holding a bit of a grudge against Vasquez. I mean he wasn't called up last year until mid September. He was quickly sent down after he called for a fastball in the rain with Wright on the mound that gave up the grand slam. He has been named a predetermined backup before the season even starts. Sure Leon's hitting line looks nice overall but his numbers fell off the cliff by September. That didn't stop Shaw from losing his job and eventually getting traded when Shaw couldn't hit down the stretch but when it comes to Leon, he keeps his job. It should be a competition there if the Sox were open minded about things. I just hope it works itself out and Vasquez is starting by the third week of the season. Going beyond the factual reasons that Chris gave to refute the idea... why in the world would the Red Sox hold a grudge against Vazquez? Your thought process here seems to be "I think Vazquez should start, the Red Sox don't, ergo the Red Sox are biased grudge-holders." Come on, man. And your point about Shaw totally runs against your whole "the Red Sox aren't an open-minded team" thesis. He got a chance to play, hit well for awhile, then didn't, and then got traded. They gave him a chance to play, were flexible with him, and then used him to fill a hole when they didn't think he was part of their future.
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Post by Guidas on Mar 8, 2017 9:55:44 GMT -5
I could easily see Vazquez getting 100+ games as the starter if he's up to it. I also think he's capable of hitting something like .260/.330/.390 if he does get that playing time. That would be in line with where he was headed before the injury. That line with his defense would make him an above average to near all star catcher. Endorse.
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Post by sarasoxer on Mar 8, 2017 10:36:30 GMT -5
I could easily see Vazquez getting 100+ games as the starter if he's up to it. I also think he's capable of hitting something like .260/.330/.390 if he does get that playing time. That would be in line with where he was headed before the injury. That line with his defense would make him an above average to near all star catcher. Endorse. And several parsecs from Gary Sanchez.....who might be borderline intergalactic by that measure.
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Post by James Dunne on Mar 8, 2017 10:51:08 GMT -5
That line with his defense would make him an above average to near all star catcher. Endorse. And several parsecs from Gary Sanchez.....who might be borderline intergalactic by that measure. Eh, I suppose the Yankees can be better than the Red Sox at one position.
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Post by James Dunne on Mar 8, 2017 11:20:55 GMT -5
I'm a little bit surprised that there hasn't been more of an overreaction here to all the time Selsky has seen in center field this spring. I was a pretty staunch defender of leaving Betts in right when Bradley didn't play - right field is nearly as difficult and important as center, and Betts is legitimately great at it. But I have to admit that I'm starting to get a skosh worried that they'll keep Benintendi in left field if Bradley goes down - a move that is much, much less defensible.
EDIT: Remember Wily Mo Pena playing center field? That's not applicable to anything here, it just popped into my brain and I wanted to share it. 2006 was not Terry Francona's best work.
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Post by Guidas on Mar 8, 2017 11:41:43 GMT -5
And several parsecs from Gary Sanchez.....who might be borderline intergalactic by that measure. Eh, I suppose the Yankees can be better than the Red Sox at one position. BLASPHEMY!
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Post by jmei on Mar 8, 2017 12:02:25 GMT -5
I'm a little bit surprised that there hasn't been more of an overreaction here to all the time Selsky has seen in center field this spring. I was a pretty staunch defender of leaving Betts in right when Bradley didn't play - right field is nearly as difficult and important as center, and Betts is legitimately great at it. But I have to admit that I'm starting to get a skosh worried that they'll keep Benintendi in left field if Bradley goes down - a move that is much, much less defensible. EDIT: Remember Wily Mo Pena playing center field? That's not applicable to anything here, it just popped into my brain and I wanted to share it. 2006 was not Terry Francona's best work. John Farrell is a "keep your core players in a consistent role" kind of guy. Remember playing Chris Young in CF last year? I am resigned to the likelihood that Farrell keeps Betts in RF and Benintendi in LF and play a fill-in (Holt, Selsky, etc.) in CF on Bradley's days off. That said, I think he'd be more flexible about moving Betts or Benintendi to CF if Bradley misses significant time due to injury (or is benched due to underperformance). So that's good.
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