VAfan

My vote: 1. Re-sign Rodon, hopefully for at least 2 years. 2. Keep Kimbrel. He's not worth trading as a salary dump, and he's not valued highly enough for someone to take on his salary and give something of equal value. 3. If the Sox are willing to spend, they can do more. But they should not try to do something else if it keeps them from doing 1 and 2.

The problem here is that MLB isn't willing to give the players much of anything. They seek to offset any increases in their offer. So, somewhat more money, but control of rules changes, plus more playoff teams meaning more TV money. Would additional TV money completely cover any increases in the contract?

Do you want to see Rodon on the Yankees or Twins? Or Tigers? I didn't even use this in my arguments, but one of the biggest reasons to re-sign Rodon is to keep him away from another AL team.

The Sox have the best information of anyone on his health. I think a player hires Boras to get the best deal. Boras was Rodon's agent last year and he re-signed with the Sox. If the Sox are willing to at least match another's teams offer for Rodon, I think he'll stay.

I can understand the viewpoint that the Sox may not pony up to keep Rodon. What I can't understand is thinking that would be a bad idea. I believe the Sox do not want to set the market for Rodon, but may be willing to match the market, depending on any offer he receives elsewhere. I also believe that, if the offers are equal, Rodon would choose returning to the Sox over just about any other team that bids for his services. But let me just remind everyone here how good Rodon was last year. Here are his splits from Baseball Reference, and here are his game logs. He had 24 appearances. He gave up 0-3 hits in 13 of them. He had 7 outings of 0 runs, 8 outings of 1 run, 2 outings of 2 runs, 2 of 3, 4 of 4, and 1 of 5. He was DOMINANT. Here's Grant Bribee, Giants writer for the Athletic, on Rodon: So, the Sox may not sign Rodon, but they SHOULD. He's WAY better than any other pitcher named in this thread, and he only costs money, not prospects or current Sox players.

So much has already been written about what the Sox should do to fill out their roster before a season starts, whenever that occurs. 2B, RF, and SP are usually the top 3, with backup catcher and further BP depth also listed. For my money, I believe that re-signing Carlos Rodon should be the Sox #1 priority, and if that was all they could do, I'd be okay with that. Here are the reasons. 1. Rodon finished 34th in baseball with 5 WAR last year. https://www.espn.com/mlb/war/leaders That was the second highest total on the team, behind Lance Lynn's 5.4 WAR. Tim Anderson was the only other Sox player ranked in the top 50, coming in tied for 47th at 4.6 WAR. (NOTE: I'm drawing WAR numbers from different lists that don't seem consistent, but I don't think if you plug in Baseball Reference or FanGraphs numbers that it changes any of these points.) 2. The Sox without Rodon have only 1 lefty starter - Dallas Keuchel - and he had the worst season of any Sox starter last year. He was so bad down the stretch that he was left off the playoff roster. The Sox badly need a lefty for some balance. 3. Even with the lockout, the Sox need to keep their starters fresh into October if they want to advance in the playoffs. The meltdown of their starters against Houston doomed the Sox chances. By adding a 6th starter, and one who can slot at the top of the rotation, the Sox should be able to ease the workload on all so they are pitching strong late. The last Sox team to win the WS in 2005 was led by a dominant starting staff. It may be old-school now, but that's partly because no team has a dominant starting staff. By bringing Rodon back and easing in Kopech, the Sox could have the best starting staff in baseball. 4. A corollary of #3 is that the Sox have at least 2 starters who need innings limits -- Michael Kopech, because he's not fully up to speed yet, and Dallas Keuchel, to keep him from vesting his option. If the Sox don't add a starter like Rodon, they'll be forced to dip into far inferior starting options to cover for those limitations. And this doesn't even factor in potential injuries that inevitably occur. 5. The Sox are not going to come close to signing a similarly impactful player for 2B or RF. Here's a list of free agents by position, with WAR listed, and including those signed. https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-2021-22-free-agents-by-position At 2B, the White Sox actually already signed the 3rd highest FA by WAR in Leury Garcia, at 2.4. To get a higher WAR FA 2B, the Sox would have to sign Trevor Story and move him to 2B. That's just not going to happen. For RF, everyone's favorite is Michael Conforto, listed on that chart with a 2.9 WAR. (Not sure where that WAR number comes from, as Baseball Reference and Fangraphs both have him at 0.8 WAR in 2021 and only 2.1 WAR in 2020). That's not much of an upgrade from the trio of Sox players eligible to fill out DH/RF this year -- Sheets/Vaughn/Engel. 6. Rodon is going to be way more valuable as a TOR ACE than the 9th player in the batting order at 2B, or another bottom of the batting order hitter in RF. The Sox have Anderson, Moncada, Robert, Abreu, Grandal, and Jimenez penciled in from 1-6. They aren't going to add anyone who will supplant those top-6 batters. Meanwhile Rodon was the best pitcher in the AL in the first half last season. 7. Rodon doesn't hurt or slow the development of anyone on the Sox -- he essentially just hastens the elimination of Dallas Keuchel, who needs to be phased out anyway, and when gone his salary will cover most of the cost of Rodon's contract. But if the Sox add a new RF like Conforto, not only will that stunt the playing time of Andrew Vaughn, Gavin Sheets, and Adam Engel, but if he's signed for multiple years, it may slow the arrival of Oscar Colas and/or Yoenis Cespedes, at least one of whom should be the Sox RF within a couple years. Meanwhile, at 2B, the Sox also have multiple guys who are in development, including Romy Gonzalez, who hit 24 HRs between AA-AAA last year, and Yolbert Sanchez. Granted, they may not be ready to contribute in 2022, but the Sox still have Leury and should be able to add a cheap stop-gap player. For the Sox to pry away a better 2B, they will have to make a trade, which means weakening another position (or 2) to strengthen 2B. 8. Even though my argument is to sign Rodon #1, that wouldn't by itself preclude the Sox from improving at 2B or RF if they found the right fit. Will the Sox re-sign Rodon? I still think it's possible. I think they didn't offer to tender him because I think if they sign him, they hope to get him for somewhat less than that number, given his late-season arm fatigue and prior injury history. I believe the Sox are hoping no one gives him a big multi-year contract, and the Sox will be able to match whatever offer Rodon can get on the open market. I also believe that if the Sox are ready to match what any other team offers, that Rodon would choose to return to the Sox, because he likes the team and his pitching coach in Ethan Katz, who began to unlock his potential. As for the money, the Sox could cover most of the cost by trading Kimbrel. But I actually think the Sox are going to keep Kimbrel and go for it in 2022, hoping that he bounces back and gives the Sox a killer bullpen to go with dominant starters. Pitching, if you have it, should win in the postseason, and the Sox pitching has the potential to be even better than their dangerous offense. Carlos Rodon would be a key part of that.

I joined July 28, 2003, so I guess I qualify as a fairly early Sox talk member. I'm 65. Been an avid Sox fan since 1970. I switched off the Cubs after they folded down the stretch to the Mets in 1969. Grew up in Evanston, but I haven't lived in the Chicago area since 1976. I owe my baseball fandom to my oldest brother, who died 9 years ago. We never had a conversation on the phone in which baseball didn't come up. He was also a Sox fan, until later in life when he moved to Ohio and switched to the Indians. I somehow remember snippets of the 1959 Sox winning the pennant, though I'm not sure how as I wasn't even 3. The funny thing is, before the Sox won the pennant in 2005, their previous pennant was 1959, when I was almost 3 (November birthday). Well, my adopted Son, who is also a Sox fan, was just short of 3 years old when the 2005 Sox won the pennant and World Series. (He also has a November birthday.) Hopefully the Sox won't have to wait for another pennant/WS until he has a son, born in November, who is about to turn 3!

I'm 65. Was super active on here in 2005, and for a couple years after that, but checked out of most of the rebuild. Been a Sox fan since 1970. Switched off the Cubs after the 1969 debacle. So I have never given up being a Sox fan, just not as motivated to post when the team was not good.

The most interesting thing that I read in that article was Yoan being quoted that he would play wherever the team wanted him to. So, in response to the "if it isn't broken, don't fix it", the answer isn't that 3B is broken, but that 2B is. So it's not really true that it's "not broken." There's no question the Sox would be a better team with Yoan at 2B and any of those other names in the article at 3B, rather than most current 2B options who are currently free agents. Guys move around all the time to make the overall team better. There is no reason to make an exception for Moncada. To provide another example, if the Sox hadn't traded Tatis Jr to the Padres, and he was still on the Sox, do you think the Sox would have moved Tatis off SS or Tim Anderson?

I believe the key to Rodon, as I said above, is that the Sox aren't willing to set the market for him, but they may be willing to meet the market. In other words, we'll match any offer he receives (up to a limit, of course). Given the uncertainty about him, that's likely to be a 3-year deal. With or without an opt-out after 2 years. Rodon might take that, because he can pitch longer to establish his ability to be a top guy, but then be back on the market when he's 31. In many ways, the Sox need Rodon (lefty, TOR when he's on), but Rodon kind of needs the Sox (WS contender, pitching coach who turned him around). I will think it's going to happen until he signs elsewhere.

I'm just going to throw out an idea for discussion that's been percolating in my head for a while. 1. I think the Sox are still going to be in the running for Carlos Rodon on something like a 3 year deal. Maybe with an opt-out after 2 years? The Sox need Rodon, who was their best pitcher in the first half of last year. Not only was he their best pitcher -- even better than a great year from Lynn -- but he's a lefty, which the Sox don't have in the rotation. The Sox know Rodon better than anyone else. They won't do this is they know his shoulder is fried. But I think it was just innings fatigue. I expect he'll bounce back this year and be able to sustain his velocity for longer. Rodon knows and must like Ethan Katz, because he turned his career around in just one offseason. Does Rodon want to ditch that and go elsewhere? To a club that may or may not be a contender? I think Rodon still has unfinished business with the White Sox. I think he wants to win a Championship, and if he had his choice, the Sox would be the team he would want to win with. The reason the Sox haven't already signed Rodon is because his market isn't set yet. The Sox are not going to set the market for Rodon, but they might meet whatever the market turns out to be. 2. If Rodon returns, and Kopech is added to the rotation, the Sox will have 6 starters. Why not use all 6? I haven't done a deep dive into the effectiveness or lack thereof of 6-man rotations. I think most teams don't use them because they don't have enough pitching depth and want to use their top guys more often. Didn't Milwaukee use a 6-man rotation last year? What happened last year was that by the time the playoffs rolled around, our starting staff was cooked. Lynn, Giolito, Cease, and Rodon all got torched. Lynn had the knee issue. Rodon lost his velocity. Cease had the strength, but was his usual head case. And Houston was the worst matchup because of how well they handle fastballs, and how hard they are to strike out. I think this year will be better, but I still think pitchers won't be ready for 200 innings. (Can you believe the 2005 Sox had 4 starters who went over 200 innings?) So my thought is why not go to a 6-man rotation to ease the burden over the season and make the starters fresher for the playoffs. If you go to a 6-man, you can also keep Keuchel to see if he has a bounce-back year. His 4th year doesn't vest unless he pitches 320 innings across 2021-2022, or 160 innings in 2022. He pitched 162 innings in 2021, so you have to keep him under 158 in 2022. With a 6-man rotation, you can easily do that. The other reason to go to a 6-man is because Michael Kopech isn't ready for a full season as a starter. The Sox need to keep his innings down. How do you do that without shutting him down, and then starting him back up close to the playoffs? A 6-man rotation is one way to do it and still provide him steady work. The way I would order them would be: Lynn, Rodon, Giolito, Cease, Keuchel, Kopech. Kopech isn't the 6th best pitcher, but he's the one who can pitch the fewest innings, so that's why I would put him at the back. Plus, he's a huge contrast with Keuchel. Lastly, a 6-man can obviously become a 5-man for a stretch if anyone gets dinged up and has to go on the IL. You don't have to use spot starters like Lopez nearly as much. ************* I think the chances of this happening are low. Rodon has to sign, and the Sox have to think outside the box to go with a 6-man rotation. But I still think it's a good idea. The Sox do not need to burn out their starters to win the AL Central again, no matter what the Tigers have done. They should be thinking postseason from day 1. Anyway, that's my thought.

Graveman pitched 11 innings in the postseason this year over 3 series with a 1.64 ERA. Only Garrett Crochet and Jose Ruiz had lower ERAs for the Sox this postseason. Ryan Tepera was at 1.93. He was next best. Next up was Lopez at 4.50. Rodon was 6.75. Everyone else was shelled at 8 runs per nine or higher..

NEITHER is the right answer. As mentioned above, until Roberts exploded in the second half to show what he can actually do, I would have ranked Eloy as the Sox' best hitter. He still has the upside to do that as early as this year. Vaughn, meanwhile, became a more valuable piece by showing he could handle OF duties on LF or RF. Not a plus defender, but able to hold his own. He also crushed lefties, and with Sheets emergence, can serve as a platoon partner. That may not get him enough ABs, but you can still phase him in against righties by playing him in the field some of the time. Until he shows he can rake against righties, his trade value for a team who wants to play him full time will be suppressed. Abreu is on the last year of his new deal. He'll likely be extended again, but at some point, the Sox will need a replacement at 1B.

Just putting this out there before the game today. I think Rodon is the best Sox starter, and has been since the beginning of the year. Even if he doesn't have top end velocity, I think he'll have by far the best game out starters have put up against Houston. Even with 90-92 velocity against the Reds, he gave up 1 marginal hit in 5 innings last time out. Instead of K's, he kept Luis Robert busy tracking down fly balls, none of which neared the fence. I hope the Sox find a way to keep him in the offseason. I think he'll want to stay.

In their article "Here's Who's Going to (Maybe) Win the World Series", Fangraphs ranks the Sox's chances very highly. 18 of 27 pick the Sox over the Astros. 14 of 27 have the Sox playing the Rays. 13 of 27 have the Sox winning the AL, with the Rays getting the second most votes at 7 A Sox-Dodgers WS gets the most votes at 6. The Sox tie the Dodgers with 6 votes to win it all. Here's their separate Playoff Power Rankings, which puts the Sox behing the Dodgers and Giants, but ahead of everyone else in team quality. Here's how they projected baseball standings and WS odds prior to the season. At least they had the Sox on top of the AL Central. However, the pre-season staff predictions were not as sharp, with the Sox just edging the Twins, and the Rays well behind the favored Yankees. The pre-season AL ZiPs projections were also off, with the Twins projected to win the AL Central again. So, there you have it. Has Fangraphs righted the ship and seen things more clearly now? Of course, none of this matters at all. But with so few "experts" picking the Sox, it's interesting to see who really likes them.

I still think the Sox should explore moving Moncada back to 2B next season, and bringing up Jake Burger to play 3B. Moncada's slugging numbers are pretty low for a 3B player. If somehow he can return to his 2019 slugging numbers, I still make that move, because I think Burger will hit better than anyone else we have to play 2B. He only had 42 PAs this year, but slugged .474 with a 119 OPS+. Then, if Moncada returns to 2019 form, I'd hit Anderson, Moncada and Robert 1-3. I might do that anyway because Moncada scores better than he drives guys in -- 71 runs v 58 RBI. I mean, Leury Garcia has 54 RBI to Moncada's 58 in 140 fewer PAs.

Except he didn't hit 3rd at the beginning of the year. He played 56 games this year hitting 4th. I guess I should have read down the thread before posting this! As for the comments about TA, my main counter would be that TA hits differently in big games. Last year against Oakland, he was 9-14, far and away the best on the team. Look at the Field of Dreams game. Or look at the other day in the clinching game against Cleveland. He's the energetic table setter for this offense. Plus, he can run.

Luis Robert is the White Sox best hitter at the moment. That is clear. In the last 7, 14, and 28 days, his OPS is well over 1.000. Even Yasmani Grandal is not in that stratosphere. So it's quite clear that Robert needs to hit in one of the top 3 spots in the order, if only to make sure he gets a 4th, 5th, or 6th AB in a game. But, the White Sox are not going to take Tim Anderson out of the leadoff spot. Tim isn't the Sox best hitter, but he went 9-14 in the Oakland series last year, saved the Field of Dreams game, had a monster game in the division clincher, and definitely seems to rise to the occasion. So the only real question is whether to hit Yoan Moncada 2nd and slide Robert to 3rd, or to have Robert hit 2nd and have Moncada slide to 6th. The value of Moncada as a hitter is that he takes pitches and gets on base. His overall .375 OBP is 3rd behind only Grandal (.414) and Robert (.387). So that suggests he should hit second. He also has speed, so he's not going to clog the bases between Anderson and Robert. Because he can take pitches and hit with 2 strikes, he has the patience that would allow Anderson to run if he's on. Robert, on the other hand, is super aggressive and swings more than just about anyone else in baseball. Moncada's splits also show he's done best batting 3rd or 5th, but his third best slot has been hitting 2nd. He's hit much worse in the 6 or 4 hole. Putting Moncada second also gives the Sox better L-R balance through the lineup. Anderson, Moncada, Robert, Abreu, Grandal, Jimenez, Sheets (or Garcia), Vaughn (or Engel if healthy), Garcia. That's R, S, R, R, S, R, L (or S), R, S. With Anderson, Moncada and Robert 1, 2, 3, the Sox could run more if they need to manufacture a run. TLR hasn't run them much this year so far to save wear and tear. He might unleash them in the postseason. This puts the fastest players at the top of the lineup, and if Garcia is 9th, that's 4 speed guys connected in the lineup. I think Robert should hit 3rd, and that should be his long-term slot on the White Sox. Abreu can still drive in runs as the clean up guy, or walk and let Grandal and Jimenez drive him in. What do you think?

Tim Anderson is always going to set the tone for the Sox in big games. Last season he ended 3 for 33 in the regular season. Then went 9-14 in the 3 game series with Oakland. He was also the hero in the Field of Dreams game.

I've been thinking about putting up a post with this title for some time. There isn't going to be a lot of analysis in it. I just want to put it out there that if the Sox are on their game, they can be the best team in baseball. The top-six in their lineup -- Anderson, Robert, Abreu, Grandal, Jimenez, and Moncada -- can play with anyone, including the Rays and Jays and anyone else if they are on. Right now, only Robert and Grandal are truly on. And their bottom 3 can still do damage, with Vaughn, Engel, Hernandez, Sheets, Garcia, Goodwin as options. They have power, can draw walks, get hits, can score with and without the long ball, and have speed that hasn't been fully utilized to save wear and tear. Their rotation includes 2 Cy Young favorites in Lynn and Rodon, and staff "ace" Lucas Giolito who seems like the kind of pitcher to come up big the bigger the game. Regardless of how they handle the 4th spot, having 3 aces should be enough. Assuming the bullpen holds up. They also have starters who have pitched some fantastic games in Cease and Lopez. The bullpen could also be lights out with Hendriks, Kimbrel (if he can get his act together), Bummer, Kopech, Crochet, and even Lopez. Maybe Cease if he's not used to start? Each of these groups -- offense, starters, and bullpen -- can be top notch. But all three can and have imploded. We just aren't going to know which version will take the field until October. It's gonna be a crapshoot.

After last night's bullpen meltdown, the second one in 3 days for the Sox in Toronto, I started thinking about what the Sox might do to line up their pitching for the postseason. But let me first start with some caveats. The Sox aren't in the playoffs yet, even if the odds are overwhelming that they will get there. We don't know the seeding, or the matchup if/when we get there. We don't know the health of our pitchers at the time of the playoffs. Assuming all the pitchers are healthy, what are the issues? 1. Starting rotation The first issue is how to you line up the starters? Who goes 1-3, and who pitches 4 if/when you need a 4th? I think this is how I would line them up. Lance Lynn. Has lowest ERA. Been the most consistent. A workhorse. He may not be the one most likely to pitch a shutout if the opponent shuts down the Sox lineup, but Giolito has lost this role and Rodon is inexperienced. Carlos Rodon. If rested, he's the most likely to pitch a shutout. Good contrast to Lynn. Lucas Giolito. Was shaky early in the year, but seems to have found his groove the last couple games against the Rays and Jays. Dylan Cease. If the Sox don't win home field in the first round, but get to a 4th game, it would be at home, where Cease has been at his best. It would be nerve wracking to say the least if this was a do or die game, but Cease has much better stuff than Keuchel. 2. Most reliable bullpen arms The problem is that this cupboard is completely bare at the moment. The White Sox currently have ZERO reliable bullpen arms for a big game. EVERY pitcher in the bullpen has blown multiple opportunities this year. Some fans blame TLR for this, but the problem is with the pitchers themselves. Lack of control, especially of pitches they hope to get batters to swing at out of the zone, has been a problem. The Nationals won the World Series in a year when they had great starters, but a bullpen that was worse than what the Sox have. So their manager shortened the postseason group. He used Corbin, his third starter, in relief multiple times. He only used 3-4 other arms out of the pen. And his starters - Scherzer and Strassburg -- were horses who could work deep into games. For the Sox, despite the problems, here's how I would rank them. Hendriks. Has to be the closer, but doesn't have to close every game. He might need to be used for a 4-5 out save and not be available the next day. Kimbrel. Needs to get fixed in September. Sox need him as a reliable closer #2 and lockdown 8th inning guy. Kopech. Has the best stuff. I hope he can elevate his game in higher pressure situations. Field of Dreams game was a good example. Crochet. Has to be the prime lefty. Bummer is just too unreliable. Tepera. I forgot about him in my initial draft. He might actually be the one guy who hasn't blown games yet. That may be all you need. If you went with a 6th guy ... Lopez? He would be my long man at this point. He might have even been the 4th starter, but I think that bubble was burst his last start. Guys I wouldn't trust right now. Bummer. Maybe the most disappointing pitcher for the Sox. He has great stuff, but he can't control it and the league knows it. Batters only have to wait him out to draw walks, or to get behind and then groove a hittable pitch over the plate. If I were TLR, I would start using him a LOT with the idea that he needs steady use to get the feel of his pitches so he can control them. This would be my project over September. Everyone else could be left off the playoff roster. Keuchel. I'm sure the Sox will keep him on the roster, but to what purpose? Can he pitch effectively out of the bullpen? Can he be relied on to start? He often does pretty well the first one or two times through the lineup, but the other day he was shelled in the first inning. He seems like too much of a risk. Yet if he WERE on, he offers a huge contrast to the Sox' power arms and it could be very disruptive to an opponent's timing. Rios. Burr. Foster. Marshall (if/when he returns) Anyone else I'm forgetting. So that's my current take. Rotation of Lynn, Rodon, Giolito and Cease. Bullpen of Hendriks, Kimbrel, Kopech and Crochet, and Tepera, with Lopez as my 6th guy. The Sox could carry Bummer and Keuchel, but I likely wouldn't use them. I'd rather go long on position players than pitchers.

I don't see how you can blame Tony LaRussa for a lot of the things you blame him for. Why were the 2005 Sox so good in 1-run games? You said it above -- they were a veteran team. They had top of the line starting staff, and the bullpen didn't blow leads. Why are the current Sox sloppy? Again, they have several rookies, and guys playing out of position. Their current main backup catcher has 2 passed balls a night. The 2005 Sox had Crede and Uribe and Iguchi. (BTW - the Cesar Hernandez throw to third last night reminded me of one Iguchi turned in the 2005 playoffs.) Is it poor bullpen management, or a bunch of relievers who are not reliable? Did Tony LaRussa ruin Jason Kimbrell, or is he just not pitching as well as he was earlier in the year? Did Tony cause Hendriks to tip his pitches against the Yankees? Is Tony the reason Bummer goes through stretches where he can't throw strikes? Tony uses his whole roster, and it has been to very good effect for the most part. Is that an "obsession" over platooning? ******** Having said this, I would agree with the premise that the 2021 Sox have a much bigger hill to climb than the 2005 Sox. The 2005 Sox went wire to wire, had the best record in baseball, and were the best team in baseball. The 2021 White Sox can beat anyone if they are on their game, but they could also lose to anyone else in the playoffs if they aren't.

The Sox seem lethargic. Going through the motions. Biding time until the playoffs begin. I wouldn't read too much into this stretch, as I think the Sox will find their mojo before October rolls around. But I do think they are missing several guys who would add more energy to the club. 1. Billy Hamilton. He may be rah-rah in the dugout, but having him occasionally in the field adds juice to this team and gets other guys riled up. Also, if Billy hits, everyone is motivated to hit so they aren't upstaged by Billy. 2. Gavin Sheets. Much better to have a rookie trying to make it in MLB than a vet like Jake Lamb, at least in terms of energy. If Lamb was producing, this might be different. 3. Jake Burger. Same as for Sheets. With Burger, you can have a platoon with Sheets. Burger can give Moncada some rest at 3B, or DH if Eloy is in LF and Vaughn is in RF. The Sox don't have anyone else who can stack their team with right handers when Engel is out. And when we see Danny Mendick flailing in the batters box, don't you pine a bit for Leury Garcia to be back? A big part of the story for the Sox this year was how well the AAA guys filled in when Eloy and Robert were hurt. Now that they are back, I think the Sox have lost some of the edge that they had. We also miss Nick Madrigal's energy, though that's not coming back.

Don't see how that's on TLR. He's not pitching the baseball.

One last point here. As much as it would benefit the Sox to finish with the #1 seed -- because I think the Yankees are going to catch the Rays, and if the Sox are #1, the Yanks and Astros might have to face off in the first round -- I think LaRussa needs to give some of these guys more rest to get them fresh. Moncada and Abreu would be two guys I would give time off to, especially in September when we could bring back Burger and Sheets.