CentralChamps21

Perhaps, but making the change now gets you a head start on next season. Also gets a different opinion into the organization as the Sox contemplate trades over the next couple weeks.

I know that this wasn't initially a serious idea but picking up Hamilton and sending Engel down to play every day in AAA for a while and having him as a better option than Haseley to bring up.

It's the same core of players they had in 2019-20 and there weren't clubhouse issues then. What's changed (rhetorical quesiton)?

5th in AL in fWAR. (*Perez 6th, Manoah 8th, Valdez 9th, Cortes 13th, *Blackburn 20th) 4th in AL in ERA (Valdez 6th, *Perez 7th, Cortes 8th, *Blackburn 14th) 4th in AL in FIP (*Perez 5th, Verlander 7th, Valdez 9th, Manoah 10th, Cole 14th, Cortes 15th, *Blackburn 17th) * Texas and Oakland had to have an all-star and these guys were those teams' best choices. Still doesn't justify Valdez or Cortes when Cease beats them both in all three.

I was expecting that to end with Liam leaving the game with a twisted ankle.

Glad to be wrong on that one!

Honestly I give Gavin a better chance at getting a hit even against Soto. If they're willing to give TA a break from his day off I'd use him though.

Wouldn't make him a starter but I sure as hell would let him have a 2nd inning when his first one was like that.

Top or middle of the order due up in the 9th = closer in the 9th Bottom of the order due up in the 9th = closer in the 10th

Apparently the secret to beating AAA pitchers is AAA hitters.

If you're not willing to pitch your best relievers when down by 1 in the 6th inning then just give up on the season. That's the kind of mentality that the Pirates and Royals use.

Foster, Lopez, Graveman and Hendriks all available and TLR goes to Lambert in the 6th???

I turn the game on just now and the first thing I see is Leury knocking himself over swinging through a fastball down the middle. Then he sneaks a grounder through the right side.

OPS last 30 days: Abreu .990 Sheets .933 Harrison .904 Zavala .873 Robert .815 Vaughn .760 Moncada .675 Pollock .622 Garcia .554 Anderson .547

I split the difference. I 100% wanted the Sox to extend the QO but did not want to commit to a multi-year deal. I'd have been fine with the draft pick, even seeing what he's done with SF this year. That draft pick not only gets you a really good player, but increases the draft pool so you can get another over-slot guy in a middle rounds.

This would have been a good spot to give Kopech a bit of a break. Bring up Davis Martin to start today instead of in Tuesday's DH and push Kopech back to Tuesday. Then let Martin stay and take his next turn in the rotation and you buy Kopech until after the all-star break. Even better given that the entire bullpen save Ruiz is available to back up the starter today.

Because TLR's sudden illness that keeps him from managing the team ends after 6 days.

So I just saw some of TLR's postgame press conference and he said a bunch of words but I have no idea what he said. Whether temporarily because of alcohol or permanently because of age, he's not coherent.

Probably Montgomery, Vera, Martin and Burger. It would be putting all your eggs in one basket.

Cueto doesn't have the stuff to strike a bunch of people out and has good movement on all his pitches so he can pitch to contact and not get hit hard. Cease and Kopech pretty much have to strike out over a guy per inning or they'll get hit hard and that's going to take more pitches.

Harrison is fine as a utility player, not as a full time starter.

Leury in the lineup makes it easier to not watch.

Don't DFA anybody. If you can get someone to take a few million of the contracts of Pollock or Leury or Joe Kelly, you make that trade and get whatever organizational filler you can get in return. Someone will have an outfielder or a reliever go down over the next couple weeks and will be able to eat at least some of the money owed.

All WAR cited are fWAR. Cease was 4.4 last season and on pace for 5.0 this year Kopech still building up endurance Giolito has had seasons of 5.2 and 4.0 Moncada has had seasons of 5.5 and 4.1 Eloy I'm less certain about Robert had a 3.4 last year This is a strong enough core to win a championship IF: 1) the coaching staff with the possible exception of pitching/bullpen is completely replaced 2) the training program improves to the point that it reduces injuries 3) the dead weight (Leury, Pollock, Kelly, Sousa, Crick) are jettisoned 4) enough talent is brought in to where Burger, Sheets and Martin can develop at AAA without having to be called up every time there's an injury