MiddleCoastBias

So close!

It's a tough position to be in to hope Williams goes 0-4 as proof that this experiment should end, while also hoping he hits and contributes so we can win a ballgame.

Because I want to watch baseball today.

Feel like there are some people in here from a few days ago that owe the OP an apology. Last 3 days Robert has looked good and has seen more pitches per AB. Small sample, but so was the initial sample that had posters calling out the OP for being wrong.

We talk about how little depth we have enough but it's even more glaringly apparent when we put up a getaway-day lineup featuring Jake Lamb, Billy Hamilton, and Danny Mendick.

If anyone thought Kopech's heart wasn't going to be in it after two years or that he only wanted to be play if he was a starter, he sure looks like he's having fun out there right now.

Wonder if making a few plays in the outfield and "showing" that he can do that will relieve some of his pressure at the plate and loosen him up. Pressure to not fuck up in LF and pressure to get your your first hit, strung a little tight. Hopefully this could help him relax and get into his game.

This has aged poorly.

The last time I was this excited about seeing an opening day team was 2011 when Adam Dunn played his first game as a Sox, hit a homer and a double, and we beat Fausto Carmona and the Indians 15-10. Time grants perspective, but looking back on being excited for THAT team vs. THIS team is a world apart. Great things ahead, boys!

No game yesterday, no feed today, no game tomorrow, AND late West Coast start Thursday night? That's too many consecutive hours without baseball. This is bullshit, I need my fix.

Hector is the people's champion this week 3 months, according to Hector's info.

Lot of ink spilled these past couple months debating who out of Vaughn, Collins, and Mercedes who make the OD roster. Crazy to think here we are and they're ALL making it. No one could have predicted that.

Where's Lucroy been? Feel like his playing time has fallen off precipitously. Maybe giving Collins and Yermin a shot to duke it out for that DH spot, get them more ABs?

Man, Gio has got that fire in him today. You can see him like offended when Fuentes had some good hacks, spoiling some good pitches. Gets that authoritative strut off of the mound after he gets the K. Dude just has the right mentality, love it.

Eloy-related: Yankees keeping Jay Bruce. This leaves Tauchman as the odd man out and possibly easier to get via trade.

Man, how pissed must Gavin Sheets be? Picks up an outfielder's glove after he sees he's super blocked at 1B (by heir-apparent Vaughn) and that we have no outfield depth, wants a chance to expand his game to crack the roster. Opportunity comes and this is his shot! Nah, Sox give that to Vaughn too with literally zero experience out there.

Yes and no. Eloy has been trying to get better in the outfield and part of that is just Robert letting him catch balls instead of robbing everything. It sounds like the plan with Vaughn is actively "everything to your left is Robert's", though maybe that's meant to be tongue in cheek.

There's been a lot of doom and gloom in here so I don't want to add to the pessimism, but this not only exposes another DH/non-outfielder to greater injury risk, but you're also explicitly asking Robert to cover more ground and expose him to more risk. It's like if you have a sore foot so you start shifting your weight and favoring the leg for too long, you're going to tweak something somewhere else. Just nervous that Robert is going to feel more pressure to get to more balls and he's going to get hurt too. Backing off the ledge now, I know they're athletes and we can't just wrap everyone in bubble wrap.

Fangraphs loves him because he genuinely does a great job receiving the ball, framing pitches, and stealing strikes. Where I have issue with his defense is after the ball is put in play. Seems to continually make boneheaded mistakes during a live play and forgets how to catch the ball. Where's my defensive runs saved stat that shows him botch plays at the plate? I'm not advocating for him to be traded, I'm just not ready to anoint him as some defensive god when he continues to make the same mistake. Parts of his game are lacking. If that's just a focus issue, fix it.

Oh man, Benetti asking TA if he's ever played catcher on the broadcast interview. Which one of you monsters paid Benetti to ask that? He's. Not. A. Catcher. ?

I swear I've seen Grandal mess up a play at the plate where he can't catch a ball half a dozen times, so frustrating.

Meanwhile, fantastic defensive play by Madrigal on the diving stop. Great to see that.

Oh man, this delay between Stone and Benetti is going to be so annoying today. Sounds like Stone is on a few seconds delay so Benetti ends up talking over him in the feed, and then there's a long pause after Benetti speaks before Stone picks up, and then Benetti is speaking over him again. It's got to be an issue with the sound truck.

You acknowledge that we already have one of the best at SS in Tim Anderson, so it doesn't make sense to use assets (money or trade) to replace "one of the best" with ... another of the best. Use those assets elsewhere if you want to be a splash and play in the "big boy league". Let someone else blow their load on the shortstop battle while we look to upgrade areas that actually need upgrading. Just seems too lateral of a move to me.

Reynaldo Lopez optioned to alternate site, not breaking camp with the team.