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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 17, 2024 19:50:40 GMT -5
Houck better be given a chance to finish this.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 17, 2024 18:51:40 GMT -5
Do you a moment for my Bagwell gripes….? Jon Lester for Cespedes was certainly a chef's kiss of awful moves. At least they converted Cespedes into Porcello who won a Cy Young and contributed in 2018. The bigger mistake was not extending Lester followed by not signing him as a free agent.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 16, 2024 21:50:48 GMT -5
Well that was a waste of time. They blew that one. Oh well. Doesnt really matter. They're not going anywhere anyways
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 16, 2024 21:48:39 GMT -5
Wonder what Masa's gonna do (groundout to second)... He might ground out to 1b
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 16, 2024 21:24:37 GMT -5
That happened against the Angels in 1986. Todd Fischer balked home Dwight Evans I believe.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 16, 2024 21:24:02 GMT -5
An infield chopper would do.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 16, 2024 21:22:28 GMT -5
I mean, we’ve had some lean teams over the years, but I am struggling to remember a team as flawed as this team is fundimentally. That’s where I’m at now. 2012 was horrendous, but talent-wise that team was much, much better than this current version. For me, 2014 is standing out as particularly bad, but that was coming off the magic of 2013 so those guys get a bit of a mulligan. I don’t see any strengths on this team, or anything that they do even slightly above average The worst era was the 1920 - 1933 post Babe Ruth rape of the Res Sox era. The next and last real prolonged stretch of being horrible was the 1959 - 1966 ers, which was quite dreary, 8 losing seasons with a 100 loss season among them, or basically the Pinky Higgins era. The Butch Hobson managerial era was bad but luckily brief (92 - 94)). After that I'd say Sept 2011 - 2015, except that 2013 somehow happened, so somehow it was kind of worth it. I mean they won more championships in that brief stretch than they did when they had 16 straight winning seasons from 1967 - 1982. Then there's this period of mediocrity, not as bad. Just kind of mind numbing and frustrating.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 15, 2024 10:57:08 GMT -5
Love Abreu is RF with Rafaela at SS with story out. Let’s Rafaela work on versatility and give us a better SS and we get Abreu in the lineup with Duran and oneill Also give us a meaningful look at what we have in Abreu I think this is something they needed to try. Get Abreu some ABs and see if he's really part of their future. And if Rafaela is truly their best SS, then they have to try this although understandably there will be a defensive dropoff in CF. If it dont work- they can cross that bridge when they get to it.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 15, 2024 10:07:54 GMT -5
Most teams have strong stretches of starting pitching for about a month. They also have month long struggles too. I'm not convinced it will hold up especially as some of these guys pass 120 innings. To be honest most of these starts are five and dive which still overworks the pen. It doesnt overly impress me, but I know that's more a statement of the modern game than the individual Red Sox staff, as all staffs do five and dive these days. It seems like you're already somewhat on this wavelength, but the team with the longest average starts last year, Seattle, only posted around 5.5 innings per start. If they can 5 and dive effectively for 120 innings the team should be in pretty good shape even if a few guys drop off; 120 IP is 3/4 of a season at 5 innings per start. The Red Sox are usually fine for hanging in about 108 to 120 games. It's been the last 40 - 54 games that have been a doozy the past couple of seasons.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 23:00:36 GMT -5
I know it's only 1/10th of a year, but since I have been critical of the front office for a lot of things I have to say it looks like they got the O'Neill signing right. Where would this team be without him? Even if he cools off, you have to think he will end up giving the team at least as much as Duvall (who as I recall also started out hot) did last year. I liked the O'Neill trade from the start. It's really early. Let's just say he's done nothing to alter my opinion that if he stays healthy he's going to have a damn good year, 30 plus homers. Hard to imagine the Cardinals didnt want to keep him around. Jordan Walker in RF, sure. But for LF and DH, they had clearly better options?
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 22:56:17 GMT -5
Looking at "paces" this early in the season is kind of next to meaningless unless the fact that the Yankees are on a pace to win 120 actually means something- hint - it doesnt. 2 games ago they were on a pace to finish .500. Just 4 games previous it was a 114 win pace. Now it's 91. Personally I still think they're a 70 something win team who happens to be off to a respectable 9-7 start. If the sample size gets a lot larger and they're doing well and the mounting evidence starts pointing in a different direction, then I'll revise my opinion. Haven't really seen anything that dramatically alters my opinion of what I think they are, but like I said if I start seeing mounting evidence to the contrary then I'll revise my opinion accordingly. A 9-7 start isnt a big enough sample size of evidence to sway my original opinion of the team. You were always expecting the exceptional starting pitching, I take it? Agreed that it's very early, though.
Most teams have strong stretches of starting pitching for about a month. They also have month long struggles too. I'm not convinced it will hold up especially as some of these guys pass 120 innings. To be honest most of these starts are five and dive which still overworks the pen. It doesnt overly impress me, but I know that's more a statement of the modern game than the individual Red Sox staff, as all staffs do five and dive these days.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 21:22:18 GMT -5
If Kenley Jansen is right and the baseballs are inconsistent and messed up and difficult to control I'd be very concerned that one of these many flamethrowers will lose control and we could see a serious unintentional beaning. If Jansen is right and these baseballs are difficult to grip this could be a very dangerous thing with worrisome consequences.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 21:17:43 GMT -5
Looking at "paces" this early in the season is kind of next to meaningless unless the fact that the Yankees are on a pace to win 120 actually means something- hint - it doesnt.
2 games ago they were on a pace to finish .500. Just 4 games previous it was a 114 win pace. Now it's 91.
Personally I still think they're a 70 something win team who happens to be off to a respectable 9-7 start.
If the sample size gets a lot larger and they're doing well and the mounting evidence starts pointing in a different direction, then I'll revise my opinion. Haven't really seen anything that dramatically alters my opinion of what I think they are, but like I said if I start seeing mounting evidence to the contrary then I'll revise my opinion accordingly. A 9-7 start isnt a big enough sample size of evidence to sway my original opinion of the team.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 16:18:16 GMT -5
So you would have been cool if they let a generational hitter on a team bereft of offensive talent beat them? I would have been ripshit if Trout got a go ahead hit when they could have walked him. Christ, the 2013 Cardinals lost a freaking world series because they were too stupid to walk David Ortiz. Hell, that's one of the reasons the 67 Sox won - other teams refused to intentionally walk Yaz in key spots and he kept making them pay over and over and over again. In that specific situation: - With runners on 2nd and 3rd, the Angels need a hit to tie the score or go ahead. With the bases loaded a walk ties the score. Kenley hasn't been giving up hits but he has been walking a ton of guys. - The dropoff from Trout to Ward is not that huge. Ward has a 167 wRC+, 25 points lower than Trout. By projections it's similar. But if Ward is coming up with the bases loaded he's obviously more dangerous than Trout with first base open. - SSS and it don't mean much, but Kenley has been good against Trout in the past. As have the Red Sox generally.
I am honestly having trouble here imagining the counterargument to this. It just seems so clear to me that an IBB would have been suicidal there. I don't know about what happened in the '60s with Yaz but in *this* situation, with *this* version of Kenley Jansen on the mound, it would have been insane to intentionally load the bases.
Will have to agree to disagree here. If Cora is thinking I dont trust this guys to throw enough strikes and could issue a walk with the bases loaded then he shouldn't be pitching. Period. Trout is a generational HOF caliber player who is still playing like one. Ward is a guy who is off to a hot start. I'd take my chances with Ward.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:44:55 GMT -5
Alls well that ends well. Jansen isn't right but somehow got out of it. Cora should have had Trout walked but he got away with it.Guess 2 wrongs made a right. If Cora had walked the bases loaded in that situation I would have initiated a personal vendetta against him. It would be passed down through the generation, against his children, and his children's children. So you would have been cool if they let a generational hitter on a team bereft of offensive talent beat them? I would have been ripshit if Trout got a go ahead hit when they could have walked him. Christ, the 2013 Cardinals lost a freaking world series because they were too stupid to walk David Ortiz. Hell, that's one of the reasons the 67 Sox won - other teams refused to intentionally walk Yaz in key spots and he kept making them pay over and over and over again.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:38:10 GMT -5
And if Kenley gave it up Cora would have been roasted and for good reason As the late great Harry Caray was fond of saying, "If ifs and buts were candy & nuts, every day would be fricking* Christmas!" * added for effect. Results are ultimately what matters so good for them, but it was still stupid.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:34:36 GMT -5
And if Kenley gave it up Cora would have been roasted and for good reason
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:33:19 GMT -5
Alls well that ends well. Jansen isn't right but somehow got out of it.
Cora should have had Trout walked but he got away with it.
Guess 2 wrongs made a right.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:30:58 GMT -5
Why not just walk him?
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:30:08 GMT -5
This should be interesting
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:29:16 GMT -5
Living on the edge.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:28:45 GMT -5
Where did the 2b go?
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:27:37 GMT -5
Jansen isn't healthy and it shows. He'll have very limited trade value by July.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:26:54 GMT -5
This ain't going to end well. They were due for a 9th inning meltdown.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Apr 14, 2024 15:24:38 GMT -5
Koji says, why the hate? I was awesome, not a washed up closer.
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