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Post by a2sox on Feb 23, 2024 0:30:20 GMT -5
Great piece from Jen McCaffrey in the Athletic on the new staff's approach to pitching: theathletic.com/5291591/2024/02/22/red-sox-andrew-bailey-run-prevention-unit/?source=nyt&access_token=12484200Bailey and crew are stressing getting ahead in counts. This excerpt from Cora was interesting: Manager Alex Cora has appreciated the focus on getting quicker outs. In previous years, pitchers may have been too focused on pitching to the edges instead of attacking the zone.
“Everybody talks about throwing strikes, but we went from one philosophy to another in three years, and I think, with all due respect to the people that were running things (chief baseball officer) Chaim (Bloom) and the group, sometimes you got to be more consistent in that aspect,” Cora said. “There were reasons for it and we tried our best, but it didn’t work out. We got hit hard in the zone last year.”
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Post by a2sox on Jan 10, 2024 14:28:06 GMT -5
I don’t agree with that at all, to be honest. I would far rather have Giolito than Sale. I would say the pitching is not necessarily better in terms of ceiling, but it is a touch more reliable. I also think Grissom might be huge. I mean, I feel like we should be excited to have gotten a possible 2b of the future. I’m as content with O’Neill as I was with Verdugo. Losing the latter is pretty meaningless as far as I’m concerned. I’m not going to say they have done all they needed by any stretch. But I don’t think they are worse. I would add as a last thing that we might expect to see improvement in a few key guys, especially Casas. You didn't mention losing Turner, Duvall or Paxton in that. And on a team that was already SEVERELY lacking in Inning Pitched, we have are still missing over 100 from that. We won't start the season without addressing a few of those things, but TODAY they are worse and I don't even think it's debateable. Of course the team is worse today...they aren't done putting the roster together. That's like saying your kitchen is worse during the middle of a renovation than it was before the work started.
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Post by a2sox on Aug 6, 2023 18:42:36 GMT -5
I think he and ownership are on the same page, and I think has at least another year. They are trying to win now, but are not ready to start seriously pushing most of their chips onto the table and potentially sabotaging their future and what they've built. If prices were better, they'd have likely made a move. I think they're close. I think Bloom feels their close and I think Henry & co agree with this. Instead of doing a complete rebuild, the plan all along has been to be competitive while rebuilding the farm. If CB really felt his job was on the line, I think he'd have been a lot more aggressive. Maybe he miscalculated, but I don't think so. I think he communicates with Henry on these things. Maybe Henry just changes his mind, though? For me, 2024 is when the real window begins and when CB's job starts to be at risk. I agree with the upper bolded segment. I think he's executed what ownership asked him to do regarding the farm. But the second bolded part, that 2024 is the beginning of the window, seems to run counter to what ownership also said when he was hired - specifically, that this wasn't a teardown and this team would be competitive every year and a perennial playoff contender again very soon. Added to that, after 2021 happened, I was told by many of the more ardent supporters of Mr. Bloom that the window was now open(!)...until about halfway through 2022. Then I was told it would open this year because he'd finally have all that money off the books after 2022, and we'd see him exert his vision and build his team. Now the window's opening has been moved to 2024 - although some of his strongest supporters on this board have said in this thread and elsewhere, "Actually, it'll be more like 2025...or even 2026." This is why I think Mr. Bloom is an OK but not great head of baseball ops. Virtually any decent/average/OK head of baseball ops in the league could've rebuilt a low-ranked farm in 4 years with ownership's backing - especially when they were gifted with a #4 overall pick in their second year of the draft and a top two player that year, if not the consensus #1, falls into their laps. But good for you, Mr. Bloom, you got the farm rebuild part of your job done and done well. But that was only half of his publicly-stated charge. The other half -- building a perennial playoff team -- we're at four years and counting. Now, some people would say, "Hey, that takes more than four years!" That may be true (or not, and we could start a whole 'nother thread with examples), but when Mr. Bloom was hired, ownership said this would not be the case here. In fact, I believe the exact quote from ownership after Mr. Bloom was hired referring to perennial contention was, "You won't have to wait four or five years for that to happen, either." That almost seemed true in 2021 after just two years, but they've taken a couple or three steps back since then under his guidance. If that held, he would be the genius/great Baseball Ops Head we've been told by his supporters. But If 2024 was the window all along, as you're saying here, and we're not resorting to historical revisionism despite what we were told when he was hired, then the organization 1) needs to apologize to the fans and 2) should've been honest and tanked from 2020 to 2022. At least the tank-job/scorched earth strategy would've set fan expectations for the team and Bloom - who regularly get pilloried in the media and by the fan because they were sold different outcomes. It would've also given the organization more near-MLB, high-impact prospects ready to go in 2023 and 2024 courtesy of three seasons worth of very low number draft picks they got for the tank job and through prospects and controllable players picked up with the immediate sell-off of players of value that they did have on contract when Mr. Bloom took over. Even better, they'd have a very long and wide window for the next six to nine years with all those consecutive years of top-five or so picks. And Henry/Werner would still get their perennial contender at nice, sub-Luxury Tax, cost-certainty dollar totals, with even with a few high-priced free agents thrown in. Lose-lose-lose, then win-win x 6 to 9 (at least). But we were assured Boston does not do that, and the Superfortress could be built on the fly. Yet, here we are, pushing the goalposts out again. So be it - 2024 it is! Because, hey, do we have a choice? I don't think Bloom and ownership have viewed 2024 as the start of the window for contention - that was something they believed was possible starting in 2021 or 2022. 2024 is more like the year in which the chance of not making the playoffs should be very small. Their goal has been to build a strong farm system while fielding a team that is competitive for a playoff spot. They succeeded in 2021. They were competitive until the trade deadline in 2022, but then did not hit their target. It looks like 2023 is going to be a repeat of 2022 (hopefully wrong about that). They've done exactly what they said they were going to do...they just thought/hoped they'd be a bit more successful on the field in the process. Building a quality major league roster looks to be fairly challenging with this strategy. I view 2024 as the point when building the major league roster should be much easier given all the "build with the future in mind" moves they've made up to this point, and if they don't make the playoffs, I think Bloom's major league roster construction skills should be scrutinized heavily by ownership.
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Post by a2sox on Jul 12, 2023 14:38:06 GMT -5
Portland plays Reading this weekend. high quality drama!
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Post by a2sox on Jun 14, 2023 12:04:51 GMT -5
Honest question: Why doesn't Meidroth have more helium? His lowest wRC+ at any level in his pro-career so far is 155 as a 21 year old in AA, he's walking as much as he strikes out, his ISO is solid. I know he was a college guy so you expect him to be advanced but at this point he's doing it at a pretty high level. Must be something underlying suggesting caution? He did jump 7 spots in the latest rankings...but yeah, I'm a big fan too
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Post by a2sox on Apr 11, 2023 18:30:04 GMT -5
Best of luck, Dr. Steve Brule.
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Post by a2sox on Apr 4, 2023 14:39:15 GMT -5
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Post by a2sox on Jan 20, 2023 13:05:59 GMT -5
Don will perk up once Blaze mashes his first homer of the season
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Post by a2sox on Jun 15, 2022 22:36:18 GMT -5
Another day, another game where BLAZE JORDAN ups his OPS some more. Dude's just MOWING THE GRASS at this point. I'm as excited to see if Don can keep the puns going as I am seeing if Blaze can keep the hits going
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Post by a2sox on Jun 15, 2022 11:26:18 GMT -5
Not officially a Rafaela thread, but I think the earliest consistent chatter about him on this site came out in the "2019 In-Season Sox Prospects Rankings (National Outlets)" thread. Some good stuff in there. Shout out to Alex Speier (and the scouts he talked to) on that one.
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Post by a2sox on Apr 14, 2022 22:53:26 GMT -5
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Post by a2sox on Feb 16, 2022 21:33:00 GMT -5
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Post by a2sox on Oct 4, 2021 11:42:10 GMT -5
Hard to get excited for this game with how this team's bullpen has been performing and how they've done in "must-win" situations and games against superior opponents. With that said, win this ONE GAME, and the entire season is a complete success. Anything more is just extra credit. Even if they lose ALDS game 5 or the ALCS game 7 up 7 runs in the 9th inning. All I ask for is that they win 1 time. I'm plenty excited
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Post by a2sox on Oct 3, 2021 18:51:27 GMT -5
Yeah I didn’t give him credit because he didn’t coach but he was not able to. That sucks to have that on his record. He didn't make the playoffs in 2019 (2nd season). Anyways, he's great.
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Post by a2sox on Sept 30, 2021 12:25:15 GMT -5
Another stat that the radio guys dropped: Eovaldi's ERA with Plawcki is more than a run lower (3.55) than with Vazquez (4.77). They wondered whether Plawecki should play in any WC/playoff game that Eovaldi starts. That's interesting. I wonder what that split looks like when adjusted for competition.
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Post by a2sox on Jul 30, 2021 13:54:36 GMT -5
Never thought I'd write this, but I need the gameday thread to reprieve me from that trade deadline thread...
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Post by a2sox on Jul 30, 2021 12:03:42 GMT -5
If Boston can't get a decent starter they really are better off long term fielding offers for Nasty Nate and ERod. Rebuild while building. Going to have to win games 10-7 at this point Good grief, take a deep breath, man. You don't rebuild when you have the 3rd best record in MLB at the trade deadline.
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Post by a2sox on Jul 26, 2021 22:55:06 GMT -5
Yeah, seems like it was worth the risk (and may still pay off). At worst, next year they get someone who has the talent of the 40th pick.
It's a good reminder that "it's safe to assume the top 10 will sign" is a general rule, not entirely predictive.
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Post by a2sox on Jul 24, 2021 0:46:52 GMT -5
Kutter Crawford and Durbin Feltman promoted to AAA. AA Northeast hitters must be thrilled lol It's a deep cut, but I've been waiting on Dr. Steve Brule for awhile. Congrats, and hopefully this isn't his last promotion...
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Post by a2sox on Jul 1, 2021 21:05:17 GMT -5
And now on to Oakland. For those who've not been to that fair city, think of a bigger, hotter version of Bridgeport, CT, with earthquakes and even more random crime. Sitting at a brewery in Oakland now writing this and it is a fantastic city (have spent many years here). That stadium though...
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Post by a2sox on Jun 3, 2021 20:08:45 GMT -5
He was in Greenville in 2019, no movement in two years? Not impressed. /s Greenville is High-A beginning this year
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Post by a2sox on Apr 7, 2021 9:10:30 GMT -5
Weird to see this without the JBJ afro next to it
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Post by a2sox on Jan 26, 2021 17:43:22 GMT -5
Making the playoffs is fun, no matter how you do it. I got way too much work done last summer when the Sox were out of it early. I say bring on that wld card.
More on topic, the Ottavino deal is the first move I've been really excited about this winter. Hopefully there are a few more coming...
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Post by a2sox on Mar 11, 2020 11:10:40 GMT -5
Thad "Thy Young" Ward baby I remember we used to have a poster - can't remember who he was, but I think he's long gone, who used to insist that Kopech was going to be an ace as opposed to a closer. I thought he had a semi-reasonable chance to be and still do - of becoming an ace. It's better than the odds were back then when he couldn't throw enough strikes, but he still has a long way to go to get there. I just wouldn't be shocked at this point if he did get there even with the odds against it. He's got one helluva arm. Doesn't look like the surgery slowed it down much. deepjohn. I wonder if he's moved to the white sox blogs.
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Post by a2sox on Feb 13, 2020 8:46:21 GMT -5
Easy to say in February that you knew all along how last season was gonna turn out In redsoxfan2's defense, he whined about the team pretty much every day all season beginning in April
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