Dominikk85

Ricky did some mistakes but this game he really managed great. He pulled dunning when he got in trouble and then went with his best guys stretching them maybe a batter too long but not terrible either. This game there were two problems and neither is on ricky: 1. The sox don't have a third starter 2. The usually good relievers didn't find the zone Nothing he could do here. Sure it sucks rodon had to pitch but he brought in rodon with 2 out and bases empty, a perfect situation that doesn't get any easier.

Rodon was brought in at the right time, with two out in the 4th and nobody on, doesn't get more low leverage than that. If he needs to pitch that was the time. Unfortunately nobody got the job done.

I think cease has to pitch now. Not much left in the pen

In hindsight it was a mistake to not trade for a starter but cease and dunning looked not bad in the first half but especially cease struggled more than expected in the second half.

At that rate a position player pitches in the 8th

Well if you have a bullpen game in the first inning you have to leave some guys out a batter too long and hope for the best, otherwise you have nobody left in the 7th. Sucks that the sox only have two real starters.

I would have said crochet open for 1 or 2, then dunning and if he struggles pull him quickly however the last starts weren't so great by dunning maybe now I would start dunning and then stretch crochet as far as you can maybe even let him throw 2-3 innings.

I think there are several factors to why he was so good this year. 1. He is slimmer and fitter than usually 2. Avoiding the cold: jose hates the cold and is usually not good the first 4-6 weeks. This year he started the season when it was hot 3. A bit of luck. His .379 xwoba is a career high (only since 2015 available) but still he got a little lucky with a .404 actual wOBA. Regarding the final out yesterday: it was a great decision to swing first pitch here. He is clearly the best hitter of the team and it was two out. If he walks it is 4-5 and mazara is up with 2 out. I definitely take the chance of jose getting a hit and tying it over hoping mazara gets on and ties or wins it vs a lefty or McCann in case he pinch hits there.

He did always trade a lot of prospects but most of them really became busts. The only real good ones he traded were andrew miller in the miggy trade and moncada, kopech in the sale trade and both trades brought in a superstar in their prime who worked out really well. Still of course that approach is not super sustainable but he definitely did trade the right guys most of the time.

Great. Get a tired hendriks who the sox have already hit in:)

Dont agree. Best hitter of the team got a good pitch to hit and smoked it just at somebody. Even if he walks there they are still a run down, he absolutely has to rip the first fat pitch he sees there.

Dont agree. Best hitter of the team got a good pitch to hit and smoked it just at somebody. Even if he walks there they are still a run down, he absolutely has to rip the first fat pitch he sees there.

Yeah definitely save the good relievers for tomorow and hit the left handed starter

It could be though If there is a game 3 and the pen is needed early there. Also keuchel could need relief early too if it goes wrong. I think a 4 run lead in the 8 was a good situation to wait it out a little.

I think that was a good decision. It was a 4 run lead and giolito was dealing. That was exactly the time to stretch the starter and save the pen, the no off days post season means you have to take some chances. I would have pulled gio one batter earlier after the lead off got on but even giving him one extra batter was not that terrible of a decision. With 4-0 bottom 8th sox had a 96% win expectancy and with the lead off on that lowered to 92%. That was the right situation to take a chance with their best starter as the Sox pen will be used a ton the next couple days.

Hopefully the sox can get the lead again. Of course he is a RHP and the sox aren't as good against RHP but bassitt is ok but not an elite guy. The sox can't hit the top stuff righties who abuse their plate discipline but bassitt isn't monster stuff guy.

I don't think that pace is sustainable but I do hope he keeps that shape next year. He does look slimmer, maybe the prospect of being on a winning team motivated him while until 2019 the team had no chance anyway.

Yeah. Colome is the closer and he has a 3 run lead. This is definitely a situation for him.

Should gio start next inning? Or put in a reliever with a clean slate?

Neither is a good example for a low education guy who made it though. They both went to elite schools and only dropped out because their business that they founded as a student made truckloads of money. Had they failed their business either of them likely would have gotten a degree.

Mazara does have some home road splits but even if you don't think much of Hahn and Williams you can assume they did check home road splits. Mazara still had a .751 career road ops against righties 16-19 which is not great but playable

The sox definitely need to get a lead in the first 5 innings because the pen of the As is a lot better than the Sox pen which has been surprisingly good but has no real depth.

6.4 is centerfield kind of speed, that is really fast.

I never hated the mazara move. If he was what he was the last 3 years (105 wrc+ against RHP, Can't hit LHP) he would have been fine but for whatever reason (illness, injury, mechanics, mental?) he couldn't do that. But hahn couldn't have known that, you don't expect a 25-26 year old who was rather consistent (on a mediocre level of course) to decline that much, if anything you either hope he is the same or even slightly improves. A 2017-2019 mazara against RHP and engel against LHP would have been a decent albeit not spectacular platoon, I liked the thinking at the time. Can't blame hahn for that.

then you need to take him off the roster though, you can't carry a short side of the platoon pinch hitter on the roster. If you carry him at the very least he has to play the platoon against lefties, otherwise he is just a waste of a roster spot.