JUSTgottaBELIEVE

And I’m confident it will happen in time. Everyone just needs to exhibit a little patience. He’ll get there.

You are insufferable

Along the lines of free agent signings this offseason, I think Grandal needs to be priority #1 (I've given up on the Machado fantasy). I doubt he will receive a QO from LA and the Sox really need to bring in an experienced, strong defensive catcher to work with these young pitchers the next few years. I wouldn't be upset if they signed him and no one else this winter. Of the bottom tier FA's, I'd also consider Leonys Martin to cover CF for a couple years until Lubo is ready in 2020 (hopefully).

I like Pollock a lot but will he be worth losing a high second draft pick to sign given his age and injury history? I presume he will receive a QO from Arizona.

Make that two hits and two walks. On base 4/5 AB’s tonight. OPS up to .722. FOF should call him out more often. Wouldn’t be surprised to see Moncada perform well down the stretch and finish with a mid-700’s OPS. For comparison, Baez finished with a .737 OPS in 2016 (also his first full MLB season at age 23). Patience is needed here.

For all the talk of his decline, would anyone be surprised if Jose ended the season with a .825-.850 OPS?

The present (game you cited) is also Moncada with two hits including a homer and walk. And Chris Sale is on the DL, at the present moment. Let’s see how this trade looks in a couple years before declaring it a bust, fair?

Baez was a ~2 WAR player up until this year (age 25 season). I think you have to give Moncada until thru July 2020 at least before worrying he's nothing more than a league average starter. If he hasn't progressed at all by then, it's time to start worrying and/or considering other options for 2B (e.g., Madrigal).

If by weak spot you mean league average starter then yes I would agree. I expect the next WS winning team to have at least 2 or 3 league average starters (just like the Cubs this year - Rizzo, Almora, Happ, and Heyward are all average to slightly above average starters this year as I would expect with TA in the future).

Realistically, if they get 27-30 WAR from their offense, they will be contenders as long as the pitching is above average. So even if Moncada is a good but not great player in a couple years, they can still hit that number as a team. Of course, the other positions need to be filled with at least league average or better starters. C - 2.0, 1B - 2.5, 2B - 3.5, SS - 3.0, 3B - 2.0, LF - 4.5, CF - 3.5, RF - 2.5, DH - 2.0, Bench - 3.0 = 28.5 There are no "stars" in that group with the exception of perhaps LF. Even 4.5 WAR isn't mega-star level, it's simply all-star level, which I think is a fair expectation for Eloy at this point. What they can't have is a black hole at multiple positions because then they would need multiple stars at other positions to offset it. Also consider that the Sox position players (excluding the OF) rate near league average already this season despite underwhelming results from Abreu, Moncada, and Sanchez. I exclude the OF because their OF is the worst in baseball yet we know none of these guys will still be here in 2020 with the possible exception of Avi if he's extended (and he should be good for ~2.5 WAR when healthy if extended).

At the end of the day, the Sox don’t NEED Moncada to be a star for the rebuild to work. What they need is solid production across the diamond and a strong pitching staff. Big picture, pitching is a bigger concern to me but it’s far too early to be overly concerned there either considering we haven’t seen what guys like Kopech, Cease, Dunning, etc. are capable of at the big league level.

Moncada may have been overhyped but I still expect him to be a consistent 3-4 WAR type, which is fantastic when you consider it’s been awhile since the Sox had an infielder (not named Abreu) capable of doing that consistently.

I’d say Kopech has really found his groove the last few weeks. 60/86 strikes tonight. Very impressive.

Between the recent trades by the Braves and the promotion of Allard, who will soon lose prospect eligibility, I’d give the Sox a slight edge on the Braves for #2.

Oh ok, didn't realize that's how it worked. What happens with the $2M buyout for next season if he's traded? Right now the Padres are covering that per Spotrac. Would that money also go bye-bye for the receiving team in a trade?

Thought he was only owed ~$3.5M from here on out?

Realmuto to the Sox makes no sense. He doesn’t align with the Sox competitive window at all.

True, must hit for minimum of 1.250 OPS

https://mobile.twitter.com/ckamka/status/1024081253950259200?ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^tweet That’s pretty good

Not after they trade for Archer though ?

https://mobile.twitter.com/RyanBHQ/status/1023305270401748992?ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^tweet

Crazy prediction here. Got a feeling Kodi ends up a top 10 WS prospect and near top 100 guy by this time next year. I’d take that all day.

This farm system is absolutely lit. Can’t wait for the monster bounce back game from Hansen this weekend to get him rolling again.

A first round matchup with the Braves smells like a potential upset.

Good call! #19