Sox Therapy: The Dombrowski Method

When I watch baseball I always like to think about why teams do something.  I would rather figure out why Jonny Gomes starts over Daniel Nava than complain that the manager is a moron or why Josh Reddick gets traded for Andrew Bailey than whine about the GM.  That’s not to say that I never voice those complaints but I always like to have a handle on what teams are doing.

In the case of the Red Sox I think Dave Dombrowski’s tenure is quickly coming into focus.  For many years we had Theo ...

Gonfalon Cubs: Off Day Musings

Just a quick post about a couple of things on my mind lately.

Addison Russell

On May 14th, Addison Russell was hitting .263/.375/.447 and was looking like he was on his way to a legit breakout season.  He was in the middle of an amazing hot streak, going .323/.447/.597 over his previous 17 games.  However, since that game, he’s hit .184/.225/.211 with 30Ks in 76PAs.  His season K% is now only down slightly to 30% after 31.3% last year.  It’s not so much the slump that concerns me, but the ...

Hall of Merit: Most Meritorious Player: 1994 Discussion

The World Series and much of the season was cancelled. Vote for 14 this year.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Jeff Bagwell		32.3		8.2
Kenny Lofton		23.2		7.2
Barry Bonds		25.5		6.2
Frank Thomas		27.6		6.3
Albert Belle		25.8		5.7
Ken Griffey Jr		21.7		6.9
Paul O'Neill		21.2		4.3
Moises Alou		21.8		5.1
Tony Gwynn		18.5		4.2
Barry Larkin		18.2		3.9
Matt Williams		19.1		4.7
Kevin Mitchell		19.0		3.7
Larry Walker		20.1		4.7
Craig Biggio		25.6		4.6
John Valentin		15.0		4.3
Fred McGriff		22.6		4.5
Cal ...

Hall of Merit: Most Meritorious Player: 1993 Results

Congratulations to Barry Bonds on being named the 1993 MMP unanimously. This makes back-to-back awards for Bonds.

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Barry Bonds	135	9	9
John Olerud	117	9	0
Ken Griffey Jr	96	9	0
Mike Piazza	82	8	0
Kevin Appier	78	9	0
Jose Rijo	77	8	0
Chris Hoiles	67	9	0
Frank Thomas	66	9	0
Greg Maddux	64	8	0
Len Dykstra	62	9	0
Rick Wilkins	51	7	0
Rafael Palmeiro	43	6	0
Juan Gonzalez	43	6	0
Roberto Alomar	29	6	0
Darren Daulton	19	4	0
Jay Bell	11	2	0
Ry! Henderson	10	1	0
Albert ...

Gonfalon Cubs: Soler

For those who didn’t see it last night, Soler left the game in the 3rd inning after a single.  He pulled up rounding first; earlier in the game he’d made a great defensive play on a running/jumping catch at the wall.  Jorge has a history of hamstring problems, and is getting an MRI today.  Rumors are that if Jorge has to go on the DL, Almora would get the call.  I would hope that means he’s coming up to play - and preferably CF, even though I really don’t expect that - and not just watch ...

Sox Therapy: Cascading Problems: The Bullpen

Have problems in the rotation led to problems in the bullpen? If so, it’s not because a bad starter is in the bullpen.

Sox Therapy: The First Third

So with the Sox a third of the way through the season after last night’s homerpalooza if I read my Moneybag correctly that means we now know what we have.  Some thoughts on the first third;

1. David Ortiz.

No, seriously…DAVID ORTIZ DAVID ORTIZ DAVID ORTIZ!!!

2. John Farrell is still manager of the Red Sox.

Whether you like him or not, this is good news because if he wasn’t manager today that would mean the Sox started slowly. As it happens the Sox are off to a very strong start on a 96 win ...

Sox Therapy: Three Questions: June 2016

1. What will the Red Sox rotation be by the end of the month?

2. What additive moves should Boston make?

3. On what date will David Ortiz pass Ted Williams on the career HR list?

Gonfalon Cubs: Prospect Update

I don’t actively follow the minor leagues, and haven’t seen any of these guys plays this year yet.  But I thought it would be interesting to look at how the top prospects for the Cubs have been doing so far this year, and also to talk about which ones the Cubs should keep and which are possible trade bait.  As for what the Cubs should trade for, feel free to add your suggestions or packages you think it would take to get these guys. 

I’ve been banging the drum for some time for a young, cost ...

Sox Therapy: Feeling A Draft

On June 9 the Red Sox and 29 lesser teams will begin the process of drafting the future players we all get way too excited about that never accomplish anything.  Unfortunately for the third time in four years the Red Sox have a high draft pick, this time picking 12th.

I am no kind of draft wizard but I have a Baseball America subscription and if that doesn’t entitle me to opine on the draft, I don’t know what is.  Picking at 12 the Sox would have a lot of uncertainty even if the draft ...