VAfan

This somehow assumes that even playoff teams have solid and reliable 4th and 5th starters. A look back to 2019 when we played a full season shows that isn't true. It also assumes that for $11M you can get a reliable starter. That's also a crapshoot. Many people wanted us to sign Quintana. He only made it through 4 games in 2020. Sure, he pitched 170 innings in 2019, and went 13-9. But his ERA was 4.68 and his ERA+ was 93. Carlos Rodon did better than that the last 2 years he was healthy. Dylan Cease did as well, though he had a very bad FIP number. As I mentioned, I agree there is concern for the length of Hendriks deal. But for 2020, if the Sox want to win in the postseason, they need a strong bullpen, and that 4th or 5th starter could become irrelevant.

Except that: $13M is not $11M. Who is the $13M starter you are specifically talking about? Are they on a one-year or multi-year deal? Is that starter really better than Dylan Cease could be once Ethan Katz's program helps fix him the way it fixed Giolito? Is he better than Michael Kopech? Why are you wasting Kopech and Crochet and Cease as bullpen aces, when you have devalued that position? I would agree with you that top starters are worth more than top relievers, which is why top starters get paid 2-3x what top relievers get. An $11M-$13M free agent starter is usually not a top starter, nor someone you would trust starting a playoff game. The bullpen arms available to the Sox without cannibalizing their starting depth would have been Aaron Bummer, who I already pointed out couldn't stay healthy last year. And Garrett Crochet also couldn't stay healthy. Both also couldn't give us enough innings to win game 3 against Oakland last year. Cody Heuer also appeared in that game, gave up a home run, and was pulled by Renteria (too early) for Rodon, who promptly loaded the bases and helped Oakland take the lead against us. If you try to put Bummer into the closer role, then who pitches the 8th? Moving guys up can be done, but it can have a ripple effect that weakens the whole bullpen. And games lost by the bullpen are devastating. The Nationals, by the way, are still a very good example. The won the World Series by dramatically shortening their pitching staff and using starters in relief roles. But they also have lost prior playoff series due to bullpen problems, and been hurt in non-playoff seasons by bad bullpens.

But if you can't close, it doesn't matter how good your starters are. Look at the Nationals. They had a terrible bullpen and it cost them a lot of games. They won the World Series because they got a closer (former White Sox player) and their manager only used about 7-8 pitchers in the postseason, including his 3rd starter in a number of relief appearances between starts. The mediocre starters you guys want to sign would actually never see the light of day in the postseason because they aren't good enough.

I don't think so. If you signed a $10M starter, what do you do with them after 10 starts when they have run the service time clock on Kopech and he's ready to start? You can't send them to the minors. They either have to push Dylan Cease out or sit in the bullpen where they out of place. The Sox need manageable pitching depth that allows them to develop Cease and Kopech without some short-term veteran who may actually be worse getting in the way. Same is true for Andrew Vaughn. Now, Nelson Cruz would be an upgrade. So would Brantley at this point. But you can't fit those guys into the budget the Sox have spent. We used Encarnacion last year, and it was a mistake. I have no doubt Vaughn would have been a better player than EE in 2020. Then there is Collins, who has been great in the minors, but poor in the majors. The problem with him is likely not being given a chance for anything close to enough ABs in the majors to find his form. He's not a great defensive catcher, and may never be. As a backup, he should be fine. Plus, because he's a lefty, why sign a lefty DH to pair with Vaughn? Why not just use Collins as a lefty DH at least some of the time? It will likely accelerate his major league development. How does Tampa Bay compete? I haven't studied them closely, but given their payroll, I'm sure if they have a minor league guy ready for promotion, they don't jump in and sign a veteran (who if he's a cheap free agent is not a very good player) to get in that player's way. If you have injuries, it's great to have depth. It's called AAA.

For all those who answered "NO", I would say you have undermined your ability to criticize the Sox' actual moves. You can keep saying the Sox should spend more. I would have been happier if they spent more. But if you can't come up with defensively better moves on the budget the Sox have used, then you can't criticize them for what they chose to do.

Why do people -- it's not just you -- want a mediocre starter instead of an ace closer? I can understand an argument that Hendriks contract is risky for being too long. But on a one-year basis, if you don't have a lock-down closer the rest of your bullpen suffers. Who would the Sox use from within? Bummer? He was hurt early last year, and ineffective when he returned. Heuer? Maybe in a couple years, but he gave up the HR that started Oakland's comeback. Crochet? Isn't his value as a starter beyond this season? And he also got hurt after only a handful of innings. Plus, a mediocre starter just gets in the way of the development of Cease and Kopech, who have far more upside than any starter the Sox could have signed for the $11M given to Hendriks. Same thing for a backup catcher, who just blocks Collins and hits much worse than Collins is likely to once you give him some consistent ABs. I wanted Kluber. At least you have upside with him if he's healthy and back to form. But I wouldn't have sacrificed multiple years of Hendriks for him. Plus, like Pederson, I doubt Kluber would have signed with us once the Yankees made him an offer.

I'll give you a good grade for effort, but you violated the rules by spending $6.2M more. You also got McCann to sign an extension for less than he's getting now when you really didn't know if McCann was going to turn into what he's become. His second half of 2019 dropped off and he didn't have enough ABs in 2020 to know if it might have happened again. You also just assume Keuchel is signing here with a catcher not noted for framing at the time he was signed. Mike Minor (of the 5.56 ERA) also tends to block either Cease's or Kopech's development. La Stella tends to block Vaughn. Ramos blocks Collins. All three of those moves may put worse players on the field. And you want to take Luis Robert out of center field? I think you choices would have weakened the team and cost more money. That's just my opinion.

But that approach might have left the Sox without a right fielder. I think you have to assume Eaton would have been gone around the time the Sox signed him because there were online notes to that effect. So if he's gone, and Pederson has already turned you down, your strategy is to wait out Pederson and hope he changes his mind?

I'm of the view that expanding the playoff field is good for the White Sox because it increases our odds of making it into the postseason. For a fandom that often has had to wait long periods between playoff appearances, I would think expanding the playoffs would get wide acclaim here. I'm less concerned about weak teams getting on runs and winning the World Series. The 3-game first round at the higher seed's ballpark is better than the single play-in wild card game. The ability of seeds 2-4 to select their opponent is a nice idea. I'm not concerned about a team with a poor record running away with the World Series. Universal DH is way overdue. A single team getting a bye is also reasonable. If baseball players aren't maxing out their money compared to other leagues, I'm supportive of them improving their position, but not if it comes at the expense of playing 154 games this year. The players should not overplay their hand.

So much of the criticism of the Sox this offseason is based on the notion that the Sox needed to SPEND MORE MONEY than they did to improve their team. People talk about where we rank on the spending list for MLB, how far we are below the luxury tax, how much we spent compared to last year, etc. That's not a completely unfair criticism. But let's look at the offseason and decide if they wisely spent the money they did use. 1. Liam Hendriks. $11.3M in 2021, rising to $15M in 2024. 2. Adam Eaton. $7M in 2021 with an option for 2022. 3. Lance Lynn. $8M in 2021. Currently a free agent in 2022. 4. Carlos Rodon. $3M in 2021. In addition, they traded Dane Dunning and Avery Weems. So, that's your spending kitty - just under $30M, and the trade chips of Dane Dunning and Avery Weems. Think you could do better? And, before you say Joc Pederson, you have to accept that the Sox offered him $10M in December and he turned them down. So you don't just get to plug in Pederson for Eaton. Go ahead, show us all what you would have done instead that would be better than what the Sox did for what the Sox spent.

Let's look at the 2021 Sox and compare them to 2020. Starting Pitching 2020 v. 2021 1. Giolito v. Giolito. Slight improvement. Giolito is still developing, and the projections have him improving. 2. Keuchel v. Keuchel. Slight decline. Keuchel isn't going to put up a ERA of 1.99 again. 3. Dunning v. Lynn. Vast improvement. Dunning wasn't really our 3rd starter, but I'm putting him here so I can match Cease with himself. 4. Cease v. Cease. Likely improvement, perhaps significant improvement. This is all about our new pitching coach helping to fix Cease. It's unlikely Cease could be worse. 5. Lopez/Gonzalez v. Rodon/Kopech. Likely vast improvement. Lopez and Gio were really bad. If Rodon doesn't get hurt, he'll be much better and a good bridge to Kopech. The Sox have significantly upgraded their rotation with Lynn, and the expected arrival of Kopech. If Katz can get Cease on track, the Sox will be very strong. Not top of baseball, but more than strong enough with their offense and bullpen. Bullpen 2020 v. 2021 1. Colome v. Hendriks. Improved. Colome was very good at converting saves, but his underlying numbers have been declining, and he might not be good enough for playoff baseball. Hendriks is better. 2. Bummer v. Bummer. Big improvement. He wasn't healthy in 2020. Hopefully he will stay healthy this year. 3. Heuer v. Heuer. Improved. Has to be as he gains more experience. 4. Marshall v. Marshall. Stable. 5. Crochet v. Crochet. Improvement if Crochet is used in the pen instead of stretched out to be a starter in AAA. He will improve with experience. 6. Cordero v. Cordero. Same. 7. Fry v. Fry. Same 8. Cishek v. Fill in the blank. Improvement, as Cishek was bad last year. 9. Detwiler v. Fill in the blank. If Crochet takes Detwiler's innings, this will be an improvement. This is a better bullpen, and could be one of the best, if not the best, in baseball. Hendriks can compete with anyone, Bummer is super solid, and the rest are very good. Crochet is the wild card. If they use him in the pen and he stays healthy, we should blow away teams at the end of games. Starting Lineup 2020 v. 2021 1. Anderson v. Anderson. Same. I actually think Tim can get even better, but I won't project that here. 2. Moncada v. Moncada. Vast improvement. If he returns to 2019 form, this will be huge boost to this lineup. 3. Abreu v. Abreu. Same. Many will predict a decline, and it may happen. But Jose will remain the leader of the team. 4. Jimenez v. Jimenez. Slight improvement. He will continue to get better, and will make up for any decline by Abreu 5. Grandal v. Grandal. Same. He didn't have a great 2020, so it shouldn't be too hard for him to at least match it. 6. Encarnacion v. Vaughn. Improvement. Encarnacion was 70 OPS+ bad. Vaughn, when he comes up, will crush that number. 7. Robert v. Robert. Improvement. He started hot, went ice cold, then started improving at the end. He should be much better in year 2. 8. Mazara v. Eaton. Improvement. People fear Eaton will get hurt, but he only missed a few games his 3 years in Chicago. When he plays, he'll be vastly better than 64 OPS+ Mazara. 9. Madrigal v. Madrigal. Same. He had a fabulous rookie year. This lineup should be much improved with a much stronger year out of Moncada, better DH play with Vaughn, an improved RF, and Luis Robert in year 2. We were second in the AL in runs scored to the Yanks. We could be #1 in the AL this year. Bench 2020 v. 2021 1. James McCann v. Zach Collins. Big drop off. This is the one position on the team where we are taking a step back. It's why many are calling for another backup catcher. I think if you give Collins some ABs, he'll come through on the offensive side. He will likely never be as good defensively or as a game manager as McCann. 2. Garcia/Mendick v. Garcia. If Leury stays healthy, this will be an improvement. 3. Engel v. Engel. Same. A solid platoon player and defensive replacement. 4. Last man v. Last man. ???? We don't know who the Sox will choose as their last bench player. Will it be an infielder or outfielder? Coaching 2020 v. 2021 1. Renteria v. LaRussa. Vast improvement. I know many of you hate TLR. But he's going to be first all-time in wins for a post-integration manager this year. Renteria had the Sox having fun last year, but he had no clue how to manage tight pressure packed games down the stretch and into the postseason. LaRussa does. 2. Cooper v. Katz. Vast improvement. We have to see it, but going off what Katz did for Giolito gives most of us confidence he'll do very well for other pitchers too. Might be the key move of the offseason. 3. Remaining coaches v. remaining coaches. Even. There may even be improvement here, but I'll leave it even for now. Overview Here are the areas of improvement. Starting pitching: Giolito slightly better, Lynn huge plus, Cease likely improved, Rodon/Kopech much better than Lopez/Gonzalez Bullpen: Hendriks better, Bummer healthier, Heuer more experienced, Crochet the wild card. The rest are the same. Lineup: Moncada much better, Vaughn better than Encarnacion, Eaton better than Mazara, Robert better in year 2 Bench: Garcia staying healthy. Coaching: Huge improvement with LaRussa and Katz. The only declines are Keuchel will be unlikely to have a 1.99 ERA, and Collins cannot replace McCann at catcher. Granted, this is a very optimistic overview. Injuries will happen and could upset this evaluation. But it's crazy to look at this team and predict they may not make the postseason, will melt down and be terrible, and all the other doom and gloom predictions Sox fans have been expressing lately. This is a young, hungry and improving team, strengthened by savvy and skilled veterans, managed by a Hall of Famer who has a top notch pitching coach by his side, with no obvious weaknesses. The lineup could be scary 1-9 if Moncada is back, Vaughn acclimates quickly, and Eaton stays healthy. The top 3 starters all were top 7 Cy Young vote getters last year, and there is potential for starters 4 and 5 to become studs. The bullpen may be the best in baseball. I wouldn't call us World Series favorites, or even AL Pennant favorites. But we can match up with anyone in the AL, and if we win the pennant, we will have a shot at winning the World Series. So, there's my rosy analysis. Go ahead and tear it down if you like. But if you are really a Sox fan, why not just enjoy it?? We have an awesome team that should be very fun to watch.

I have a feeling that Rodon will stay healthy and plug the 5th starter role quite well until Kopech is ready. It's not rational, given Rodon's repeated injuries. But Rodon's first two years were fine for that role, and he even pitched enough in his second two seasons to fill those starts. Each of those 4 years left him with an ERA+ above 100. Now, you can't fully rely on him given his injury history. But you don't really want to sign someone like Hamels because neither can be sent to the minors. The Sox can still add, but it should be pitchers they can stash in AAA. That's why the discussions about Folty are regarding a minor league deal.

I don't think the sky is falling with the expanded 14-team proposal. 3 division winners in each league. 4 wild cards. Top seed get a bye. Second seed gets to choose opponent from 5-7th seed. After they choose, 3rd seed chooses, and 4th seed gets the remainder. What is so terrible about that? The White Sox should do really well in this scenario. They have 3 TOR pitchers, and can develop more in Crochet and Kopech. They have one of the best bullpens in the game, which plays in the postseason. They have a powerhouse lineup that also has speed and can manufacture runs. And they have a manager who is highly experienced managing postseason games.

Say NO to Hamels. He's unlikely to be any better than Lopez/Rodon or Cease and would just be in the way when Kopech is ready. Say NO to a "veteran catcher" who won't hit nearly as well as Collins will if they just give Collins some relatively consistent backup catcher and lefty DH ABs. Say NO to any DH other than Nelson Cruz. Collins and other current options can hold down the fort for a month while they get an extra year of control of Vaughn. Vaughn should have been the man last year. Say yes to someone like Folty if you can get him on a minor league deal. That option has upside, and provides true depth because you can move him up and down from AAA as needed.

The addition of Rodon may not move the needle for the naysayers, but it is inexpensive competition for Lopez until Kopech is ready. Between those 2, I'm slightly more optimistic that Rodon will figure it out enough to carry a 5th starter role. The key for him is to be healthy and stay healthy. If the Sox also sign Folty, especially if it is on a minor league deal, all the better. My post was not against adding depth. It was about not adding dubious vets who block playing time for Vaughn, Kopech, and Collins.

Rodon has no value as a reliever IMHO. He proved that last year when Ricky used him twice late in the season and he melted down both times. His only potential value is as competition for 5th starter until Kopech is ready, and semi-insurance against an injury to another starter. If he could approach anything close to his rookie season this will be an outstanding move. If he's just marginally better than Lopez, it's still a small plus. If he busts again, it's $3M lost, which won't keep the Sox from doing something else. It also doesn't hurt to have a second lefty starter. After last season and all the injuries, I would have been happy to never see Rodon in a Sox uniform again. But I'm coming around to being reluctantly positive about this move.

I'm not assuming that. I just think you can cover for it in other ways than signing a $10M pitcher you don't know what to do with if our top 3 don't get injured and Michael Kopech is ready.

The point of my post was the last line -- I think we have some talented young players, who the Sox will be better off giving playing time than some dubious veteran who blocks their development. Vaughn is the first of those young studs. We only need a DH long enough to cover the service time issue, which is only about a month. Kopech is the next young stud we should not block. I understand the need for pitching depth, but Kopech should be able to start about 20 games if handled correctly, which would coincide with delaying his call-up while they gain an extra year of control. So many of the pitchers people want to sign -- what would you do with them when Kopech is ready? We need someone for 10 or so starts to begin the season. The veterans people list can't just go into the bullpen, and they certainly can't go into the minors. And you also can't cut them. For true pitching depth, we need pitchers who can shuttle up and down between AAA and the majors. You might be able to hide one starter in the bullpen, but you can't hide more than that. Collins is the 3rd player we should not block. He will have some growing pains, but we need to get past them to develop him into a solid backup catcher and part-time lefty DH. He can also play first in a pinch. As the team is constructed now, there are no barriers to the Sox using all 3 of those players this year to their full extent. I would have been excited by someone like Corey Kluber, because if he was on his 2014-18 form, he might have been our best starter. But so many of the $8-10M guys do not seem to add much for me, other than insurance against injury. That's a real thing, but could potentially be covered in other ways. For example, by using guys like Lambert and Stiever, thus adding to their value and development. So my premise is the Sox could be better off if they don't block development of their young players with short term vets who cost more but don't really improve the team. Lopez might continue to pitch poorly, but if you only need 10 starts from him as a bridge to Kopech, you can survive. His cost is minimal, saving money for where it is needed, like extending Giolito.

We have all -- including me -- been pining for some more additions to the Sox roster. These positions have been at the top of most people's wish lists, in some order: - Starting pitching - DH - Veteran backup catcher As the days pass and the Sox don't sign any new players, while other teams start taking potential Sox' targets off the board, it seems more an more likely that the Sox may not do much of anything, or if they do, it will be shopping in the bargain bin for players who won't be guaranteed a major league roster spot out of spring training. I'm starting to come around to accepting that, and even seeing it as potentially positive. Starting Pitching If we add no one else, the rotation would be Giolito, Keuchel, Lynn, Cease, and then probably Lopez. Kopech would be targeted for an early summer call-up after the Sox capture a year of control. In reserve, the Sox would have Lambert, Stiever, and possibly Crochet if the Sox try to stretch him out to start the year. The first three of these guys are super solid - Giolito, Keuchel, and Lynn - and all were top 10 Cy Young vote getters in 2020. As long as they stay healthy, the Sox will have a strong rotation. The key player may be Dylan Cease. If the new pitching coach gets Cease on track to reach his potential, it won't really matter who the Sox use for the 5th starter. They could put out someone who won only 40% of their games and it wouldn't derail the season. And you don't need a 5th starter in the postseason anyway. I was a huge fan of signing Corey Kluber because I thought his upside was huge. At this point, I think it is fine for the Sox to bring in some emergency depth, but I don't think they are going to find someone who would be better than a combination of Lopez and Kopech, Lambert, Stiever, or Crochet when they are ready. That does put a lot of pressure on Cease, but Cease has been a .500 pitcher, and I see him getting better. That's all the Sox need. Anything better than what he's been will be good enough. DH and veteran backup catcher These two things are intertwined. Because if the Sox hold back Andrew Vaughn to gain a year of control, they only need to straddle about a month of the season. Well, the Sox have two potential DHs who also both catch - Collins and Mercedes. I could totally see those two guys being rotated with Abreu and Grandal to cover 1B, C, and DH at the start of the year. Collins needs more ABs to become effective as a hitter, so using him in the DH slot in addition to backup catching makes sense to me. Mercedes is there just to hold the fort and be an emergency catcher if needed. A veteran backup catcher would weaken our offense, and would block Collins from developing. I think that would be a mistake. Collins has great minor league numbers. The Sox should find out what they have in him. Now, I'm not going to complain if the Sox sign Nelson Cruz, but I don't think that is happening. I think the Sox believe in Andrew Vaughn and don't want to leave him in the minors for the year. So Vaughn is going to be the main DH and backup 1B as soon as the service time issue is covered. And I'm fine with that. ************* Baseball isn't necessarily won by the team who spends the most. The Rays won the most games in the AL and spent a pittance. The A's were similar. To win with those low-cost rosters, you need to draft or trade for young players and give them a chance to play. The Sox have a bunch of those guys - Cease, Kopech, Lopez, Lambert, Stiever, Crochet as potential starters, and Collins, Mercedes as offensive role players, with Vaughn another potential stud. Last year we got Encarnacion and held back Vaughn. Was that the right choice? Wouldn't Vaughn have likely been the better hitter by the postseason? So, I'm okay with where the Sox are now. They can still add, but I'm not waiting for an impact player, and ready to trash the team if it doesn't acquire one. I think we have several young players who if left unblocked by dubious veterans, could blossom into stars.

Terry Francona isn't going to beat us if their players can't. You may not love TLR, but he isn't getting outmanaged.

I have a few problems with your argument. 1. Why is this in a Garrett Richards thread? If Garrett Richards the "all in" move you are advocating? The Sox may need more pitching depth, but Garrett Richards is not a serious difference maker for an "all in" strategy. He pitched 51 innings last year with a 4.03 ERA. Not that exciting. Before that, he hasn't pitched more than 76 innings in any season back to 2015. That's 4 years of nothing. 2. As you have admitted, Lynn is not a trash move if the Sox extend him. So you are making a big deal about something in the future which may or may not happen. Obviously the Sox would be in no position to extend Lynn if they hadn't traded for him, so they have at least taken that first step. 3. You miss the point that without Lynn the Sox would be in much worse shape. Lynn has been a solid 200 IP pitcher lately, and could be expected to post those innings again this year. Dunning would have been a 5th starter at best, and if the Sox made another move to acquire a pitcher like Lynn, could well have been pushed back to AAA in reserve. Like many of the people who opposed the Lynn trade, you seem to be overvaluing Dunning. 4. Moreover, when the Sox make the postseason, Lynn is world's better than Dunning, who wasn't trusted to pitch even a full inning last year. 5. Name a better pitcher than Lynn who was acquired this offseason via trade or in free agency who was acquired for less than Lance Lynn. The Snell trade gave up a lot more assets. Yu Darvish was acquired for less than Snell, but his contract was nearly triple that of Lynn's -- $22M, $19M, $18M over the next 3 years. Would you have rather traded Dunning for Yu Darvish given the Sox payroll structure? To acquire Darvish, the Sox would have had to give up Dunning, and the salary cost would have meant not being able to acquire other players. The difference between Darvish and Lynn this year is MORE than Hendrik's salary, for example. I will agree with you to some extent. I believe the Sox need to do more this year to put themselves in the best position to win the division, pennant, and World Series. But I don't think Garrett Richards was that move. I really wanted the Sox to go after Corey Kluber. He may not have signed with the Sox for the $11M the Yankees paid. Would he have signed with us for $13M? Do the Sox have $13M more to spend? I hope so, but it's not my money. When Kluber was healthy in 2018, he was better than any pitcher the Sox have now. He has a great postseason track record. It would have weakened our chief AL rival - the Yankees. He was a consistent 200 IP pitcher until he was hurt the last 2 years. I'm not sure any pitcher that is left at this point moves the needle. I expect the Sox to make another Gio Gonzalez type move to add someone who can battle Lopez for the right to cover the beginning of the year while Kopech is held back to regain a year of control, and to potentially stretch him out so he could pitch in October. I don't want to trade more assets for a better starter because that just robs Peter to pay Paul. The Sox finally have a deep lineup of controlled stars. They need to keep them and win with offense. My overall take is that the Sox are not finished adding. We just have to wait and see who that turns out to be.

Shredder weighs multiple seasons, so Robert didn't have a chance to make that list. The individuals can make up their own criteria.

Tim Anderson is DEFINITELY in the top 10. Who is certainly higher other than Tatis Jr?

During the presser announcing the signing of Liam Hendriks, Rick Hahn said the following: So what is it going to be? Is what the Sox have assembled to this point going to be "our group", with management "very happy with it"? Or, since "there's always another move [they] feel [they] can make to get ... better", will the Sox in fact make one or more moves? And, if it's the latter, when will that happen? *********** I think we all want the Sox NOT to be done adding. Heck, a lot of folks still want the Sox to sign Bauer AND Springer or Brantley or Cruz. But the "realists" say the Sox will never spend the money, and so they look for cheaper options that could still improve the club. We've had a whole lot of posts about WHO the Sox might get. The question of this post is whether the Sox are DONE until Spring Training when they get to see what they might have with a potentially revamped Dylan Cease, a potentially rusty Michael Kopech, Reynaldo Lopez, and Garrett Crochet, among others, plus a better idea if Andrew Vaughn would be ready for a major role once they play the service time game. They will also want to evaluate their catching depth. We all know where we think they should add. Starting pitching and a lefty DH/part-time fielder. The question is: will they?

I don't agree with this. I think Colome would be much worse if he wasn't closing. I think getting the "save" forces him to focus and pitch much better. If he wasn't as focused, his stuff would become much more hittable. Sox don't need to spend more on their bullpen. They should put whatever money they have left to spend elsewhere.