Lillian

I've been hoping that they would promote Tyler Neslony. He has been destroying RHP in AA. I know that he's older, but has always been able to hit. Putting up the kinds of numbers that he has, in that ball park, VS. RHP is impressive: 129 AB-- 13 2B 3 3B 9 HR 30 RBI 15 BB 18 SO -- AVG . 388 OBP .463 SLG .744 OPS 1.207 And, he is a legitimate right fielder.

How Moncada ever got listed as being 6' 2", remains a mystery to me. He might not even be 6'. That has always seemed obvious to me and continues to be perplexing.

This is a relevant and very interesting podcast:

This complete lack of production from Moncada and Grandal would be disastrous enough, under any circumstances. However, in that they represent the two left handed bats (switch hitters) that might have helped balance the lineup, their failure to produce has left the organization with one of the worst offenses in baseball. That magnifies the front office's misguided strategy, this last off season. Almost all of us recognized the need to acquire better balance in the lineup. Even Hahn acknowledged that need. Nevertheless, they did nothing to address the problem. This is a failure of huge proportions and coupled with all of the injuries, this season is fast becoming a lost cause.

I would have preferred that Cease hit for himself, instead of Grandal DH'ing. That would have been much more interesting and entertaining.

Just one other observation regarding ageing players: It's more challenging today, because of the high velocity pitches, being delivered so consistently. If a hitter's bat speed slows down just a fraction, it can render him much less capable of catching up to all of these mid, to high 90's pitches. It is only in recent years that so many pitchers have been able to reach the high velocity, we routinely see today.

Yes, they have all been good hitters. However, Abreu, Pollock, Grandal and Harrison are all at an age when they could just be to near the end of their careers. I have more confidence in Abreu to still have a decent season, than I do the others but all four of them are precariously near the point where they are just not going to be able to match their career numbers.

His Splits this year are pretty respectable, vs. RHP: AVG .276 OBP .343 SLG .520. Of course, it's a small sample size but that is similar to what he did last year. When Eloy is back, I would use Vaughn in LF, Robert in CF and Naquin in RF, with Eloy at DH. vs RHP. Naquin is a better and more established hitter than Sheets. Gavin may be a contributor, after Abreu is ready to retire, but for the rest of the this year, this team badly needs more dependable LH hitting. Engel could continue to be a defensive replacement and 4TH outfielder. I don't know what to do with Pollock. It's possible that he is just getting too old to be a really productive player. He had a great year last year, but he'll be 35 in 5 months. That is an age when some guys are just too far past their primes. Who knows? I wish there were better options than Naquin, but I can't think of any other realistic possibilities, can you?

Tyler Naquin is a LH right fielder, whom I suggested, before the season began. He hits RHP pretty well and is a legit right fielder. He'll be a FA, at the end of the season. He shouldn't cost much in prospect capital and could give his at bats, vs LHP to Pollock, or Engel. He's the best affordable option for a trade acquisition, whom I can think of bringing in, to try to jump start this offense. The Sox desperately need a legit bat, from the left side. Depending upon Grandal, Moncada and Sheets for that role has proven to be folly. It was always risky, but has gone about as badly as most of our worst fears.

I've been a Sox fan since 1953. This entire Covid era has become just too tiresome, so I'm going to stop watching the games. Carry on and try to enjoy the season.

When you analyze the decision to not make a qualifying offer, in light of Mr. Reinsdorf's aversion to giving pitchers long term contracts, you simply cannot justify it. This was at least a chance to retain him on a one year deal. It's just completely inexplicable. For that reason, I personally consider it one of the worst decisions this organization has made. Even trading Tatis Jr. could be explained by simply not recognizing the potential of a very young player, but failing to make the right decision, when given all of the "facts," is just inexcusable. It wouldn't matter if Rodon ended up with an injury and never pitched again, it was still a bad decision, because that is something that can't be predicted. Any pitcher can suffer injuries, at any time. If he was healthy at the time that decision was made, they had to at least make the QO.

Eloy and Robert need to employ some kind of audio system, similar the one being used by the battery, in order to ensure that there is sufficient communication. They simply cannot have any more collisions. They're both big strong men and someone will likely get hurt, ....again!!!!

The Josh Harrison haters will have to admit that he is one of the most energetic 35 year old veterans, we've ever seen. The guy looks like he's always jacked up on something. Certainly a refreshing change from last season's dead pan Cesar Hernandez. Cesar was the epitome of low energy, and no enthusiasm. This guy's greatest value may be what he is able to inspire his teammates to do. I thought Billy Hamilton was energetic, but Josh has him beat. Anderson and Harrison should keep that dugout and clubhouse pumped up, all season. It's easy to see how Harrison has been liked, at every stop in his career. With the Sox stacked lineup, he shouldn't be asked to do too much and if he stays healthy, I think we'll be happy that he's on this roster.

Do you think that ownership would be willing to take on that contract?

Any suggestions?

In my humble opinion, the Sox are one top half of the rotation starter away from being favorites to win the A. L. pennant. I love Andrew Vaughn and wouldn't be a bit surprised if he became a perennial .300 hitter, with 30 plus homers. Nevertheless, he is not needed for this window of contention. The roster is full of good right handed hitters and has first base and DH well covered, which are really the best spots for him to play. He has demonstrated that he's capable of playing LF, but he does not have the speed to ever provide plus defense, anywhere in the outfield. Vaughn is the best trade piece the Sox have and could be the bargaining chip needed to land a much needed dominant starter. If you could add Montas to the Sox rotation, even without Vaughn in the lineup, this team would be a serious contender, with no holes, this year and next. It wouldn't hurt to find a left handed reliever, to help fill the void left by Crochet's injury. Otherwise, there really isn't anything that this team would lack. Lineup vs. RHP: SS Anderson CT Robert C Grandal 1B Abreu LF Jimenez DH Sheets RF Pollock 3B Moncada (he can move up in the order, if and when he starts hitting) 2B Harrison Bench: Engel, Leury, McGuire, Adolfo/Gonzales Rotation: Giolito, Lynn/Montas, Cease, Kopech, Keuchel, Cueto, Lopez, Velasquez (let's hope he's never really needed) Bullpen: Hendriks, Graveman, Bummer, Kelly, Ruiz, Crick, LHP?? Many of you will argue that Vaughn has too much promise to trade for 2 years of Montas. That is a reasonable position to take. However, this is the best shot the Sox have to get a ring. Teams that are in such a position, but are unwilling to hand out big contracts to pitchers, sometimes need to make trades, like the one I'm proposing. The front office had a chance to sign a dominant starter, and they passed. The only viable path now is a trade. Let's see if Hahn is able to acquire that starter, at this late point. Perhaps they plan to wait until the trade deadline, and add then. That would be taking a bigger risk than I would prefer, as there is no certainty that such a pitcher would be available. But then I'm not the GM. We'll see what happens.

Perhaps a new trend will soon emerge, in which more movement and less velocity is valued. The way hitters have adapted to the high 90's velocity, pitchers might be better served concentrating on getting more movement. However, until some "sticky substance" is approved, that is going to be very difficult. Someone should revive the use of the knuckle ball. That's a pitch that, when thrown well, always seemed to baffle even the best hitters and a guy like Wilbur Wood, not that there were others like him, could throw it all day long, with no wear and tear on their arm.

I had always understood that Nolan Ryan's mechanics were very good, especially the way in which he employed that unusual very high leg kick. What was it about his mechanics that was considered "bad"?

Yes, the offense could indeed be something really extraordinary, and there is decent depth there, as well. It might be the best Sox lineup I've ever seen, dating back to 1953, when I became a Sox fan. However, the starting pitching is very, very thin, and that's where all teams are most vulnerable to injury. The kinds of injuries which effect pitchers, are often season ending. The Sox have a great and deep offense, but a vulnerable and thin rotation. What is the obvious solution?... I've made the assertion several times; trade some of that offense, for a starter. So, whom could Hahn acquire and what would he need to sacrifice?

Fernandez had a solid year with the bat, in just under 200 at bats, last year at Birmingham.

Yes, he is a good defensive catcher. I wrote about him, last year, when everyone was asking who might be Grandal's backup. He was considered ready, at least defensively, when the Sox acquired him from the Royals, about 3 years ago. I've been hoping that he would get an invite to Spring training. A lot of people on this board seem to favor Perez, but I think Fernandez is intriguing.

Yes, your point is well taken. Pollock does hit RH pitching well, so that helps.

Given that I subscribe to the old maxim; "pitching wins championships," I can't help but fault the front office for their allocation of funds. I'm assuming that Tony La Russa has been very involved and influential in this process of roster management, and he should know better than to accept such a lack of starting pitching depth. Acquiring a few arms, who could eat some innings shouldn't have been that difficult. More importantly, they needed to replace Rodon, as one of the candidates to fill the role of a potential playoff starter. They entered the season assuming that all four of their Post Season candidates would be healthy and effective. Last year, the Dodgers had a very deep starting staff. Even so, they were really pressed after losing several arms. The old saw; "You can never have too much pitching" should have been their guiding principle, but unfortunately it wasn't and that mistake has already been exposed. They also knew that they needed a better balanced lineup, yet they did nothing to improve that. Instead they focused on much less important issues. There was no hole at second base. Leury could have played there, with Romy Gonzales getting some opportunities. The best reason that it made any sense to add someone at second, was the potential to use that opening as a place to play a left handed power bat, along with RF, which also was not void of options, albeit all right handed. Therefore, the front office accepted a diminished starting staff , compared to last year and they failed to acquire better lineup balance. At this point, they deserve their fate. They did not do what was necessary to maximize their window of contention. If now they are forced to give up someone who could be an impactful part of the future, in order to acquire quality rotation depth, so be it. I suspect that is what will happen, or they will, once again, fail to advance in the Post Season.

That's the obvious question, which I've been asking myself. Does anyone know how hard he has been working, in anticipation of getting a contract?

Half of Brubaker's starts were pretty decent. He was carrying a 4.49 ERA, going into August, but then the wheels fell off. He had 3 consecutive starts, where he gave up 8, 5 and 7 earned runs in short outings. That added a full run to his ERA, before prematurely closing out his year with a couple of decent starts. He missed the final month of the season, with a thumb injury.