Regarding Devers, Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Boom said by text, “Our efforts are only intensifying — but it’s something we’ve really wanted to do for a while and hopefully we’ll be able to find that path.”

Regardless of what one wishes was true, here's the reality: In the Boston media market, unless you go 239-81 with six Super Bowls and 17 division titles in 19 years, you will eventually get eaten alive as a coach or GM if you can't be at least a decent communicator with the media and the fans.

This quote from Bloom, given the current context, is tone deaf:

1) It sounds identical to the type of rhetoric that was used over the past year relating to Bogaerts, so it simply lacks credibility;
2) "really wanted to do for a while" and "hopefully" sound to the fan base like complete BS. I call terms like this "verbal wincing" - you can virtually see Bloom wincing as he texts this;
3) And, by the way, texting this crap? Get in front of a camera, and answer questions (Theo Epstein was pretty good in this regard in that critical window before October of 2004, when the intensity of the fan base was like nothing I've seen in 40 years of being a New England sports fan). Fair or not, Bloom looks very weak right now.He (and/or ownership) are completely missing how close this franchise is to losing a generation of Boston-area fans to the Celtics. In fact, the Red Sox are fortunate that the Patriots are flailing right now, because if the fan base was confident that the Patriots had a legit plan going forward, there would be even less oxygen in the room for the Red Sox.

This week, the team has held press conferences introducing Jansen and Yoshida; both athletes were charming and did everything right.

You should have seen the response from the fan base: "Good for these guys, I hope they succeed, but until you extend Devers and get a real shortstop, don't even waste my time, Bloom." It is vicious. Here's the Red Sox starting rotation as of now for 2023:

Sale
Pivetta
Whitlock
Houck
Bello

The two best starters left in the FA market are probably...Wacha and Eovaldi...both of whom were on the team last year. I think Bloom being employed by the Red Sox beyond 2023 is going to come down to a few things:

1) Can Sale actually stay healthy and pitch well for most a season?
2) Can at least two of those three young starters on the back end become reliable, above-average, healthy starters?
3) Will Yoshida and Casas basically be Rookie of the Year finalists?

I remain hopelessly optimistic that Sale will be good. His last few injuries have been either fluky or self inflicted. When he has pitched, between injuries, he has pitched well. If he can get out of his own way his arm should still be potent?

Regardless of what one wishes was true, here's the reality: In the Boston media market, unless you go 239-81 with six Super Bowls and 17 division titles in 19 years, you will eventually get eaten alive as a coach or GM if you can't be at least a decent communicator with the media and the fans.

This quote from Bloom, given the current context, is tone deaf

This is from Jim's intro in the other Sox thread:

To that end an owner has to provide the needed stability AND cover by getting out in the press to explain the team’s vision. The team’s actions then need to match those words.

I may be in the minority of the fandom, but I don't give a #### about this kind of thing. I don't care if the team tries to explain to me their vision or plan. It doesn't matter to me whether or not they are publicly misleading about their interest in a player or a contract extension.

He (and/or ownership) are completely missing how close this franchise is to losing a generation of Boston-area fans to the Celtics. In fact, the Red Sox are fortunate that the Patriots are flailing right now, because if the fan base was confident that the Patriots had a legit plan going forward, there would be even less oxygen in the room for the Red Sox.

It doesn't help that in the past couple years, Jerry Remy died and Dennis Eckersley retired, and next year has Joe Castiglione reducing his workload to 81 games a year. After the Mookie trade, I remember talking with friends about how Bloom and Henry don't seem to realize that this isn't Tampa; fans in Boston have reasonable expectations of getting attached. Sometimes a team can't do much about things that threaten that attachment, but once you include Orsillo, that's four voices associated with the team folks aren't hearing any more, in addition to how few of the fan-favorite players are left. It's not great for team loyalty, especially when there are two young and exciting teams in the Garden.

So, yeah, they kind of have to lock Devers down. His agent, at this point, is basically asking Bloom "you gonna be that guy?

don't care if the team tries to explain to me their vision or plan.

Honestly, I'm almost actively hostile to it at this point. I could get hit by a bus tomorrow and the team isn't cutting ticket prices while they try less hard to win .

Could/should the Red Sox just tear it all down and rebuild? Seems weird to say for a big market team, but I cannot see them seriously competing even if they suddenly get aggressive this winter.

Could/should the Red Sox just tear it all down and rebuild? Seems weird to say for a big market team, but I cannot see them seriously competing even if they suddenly get aggressive this winter.

No. And what's the difference between competing and seriously competing? I'm not being snarky - this year the Phillies were 87-75 and went 6 games into the world series; the year before the Giants unexpectedly won 100+ games and the Sox themselves fluked deep into the ALCS.

And sources say a Devers extension is Boston’s “No. 1 priority,” which never seemed true for Bogaerts.

Didn't Bloom say retaining Bogaerts was Boston’s top priority this off-season? #1 must not be the only one with doubts about his sincerity.

No. And what's the difference between competing and seriously competing? I'm not being snarky - this year the Phillies were 87-75 and went 6 games into the world series; the year before the Giants unexpectedly won 100+ games and the Sox themselves fluked deep into the ALCS.

Do the Red Sox seem like they can win 87 games? They won 78 last year, have lost their catcher and stud shortstop, will probably lose their DH, still have two SP from last year unsigned, and have only added an OF from Japan who has never played in MLB, a few decent middle relievers, and a great closer who is 35 years old. Oh, and every other team in their division has improved or has a wealth of young talent.

Do the Red Sox seem like they can win 87 games?

Yes. But It seems like they will win less than 87. Those statements are not contradictory.

They have enough talent (and spending willingness) that it would be stupid to tear down. But they are not the favorites for their division or even the wild card. It's not an especially rare position to be in.

I don't think you can understate how big an impact the crummy bullpen was last year. Adding Jansen, Martin and Yoshida filled some HUGE holes. Obviously making an assumption about Yoshida being decent but the bar is low (the corpse of JBJ). Now you can't dismiss the loss of Xander, that's massive but the Sox have a bunch of areas where improvement should be expected;

-healthy full season Story
-Casas>Dalbec
-Hernandez may not be the 2021 version but he should be better than 2022
-all kinds of stuff associated with the rotation (note: I'm crazy and irrationally bullish on Bello)

If they go into the year with Story at SS and Arroyo/Kinsler/Remy/Doerr at 2B that's a different story and a lot of my concern is there.

I hate hate hate hte current direction of the franchise for a lot of reasons. I don't have much confidence because IMHO they have lost the willingness to blunder that has worked well for awhile. The boldness that served them well seems gone and I don't know why. I think there is a very reasonable path to 85-90 wins, I just don't have a lot of faith they will get there.

Do the Red Sox seem like they can win 87 games? They won 78 last year, have lost their catcher and stud shortstop, will probably lose their DH, still have two SP from last year unsigned, and have only added an OF from Japan who has never played in MLB, a few decent middle relievers, and a great closer who is 35 years old. Oh, and every other team in their division has improved or has a wealth of young talent.

The Red Sox currently seem likely to be the same-or-worse at the following positions:
C - Vazquez was above-average last year; after he was traded Reese McGuire hit .337/.377/.500 in 36 games. I like McGuire, but he is obviously not going to replicate that in 2023. The position was about a 110 OPS+ for the year; good luck matching that in 2023.
SS - Bogaerts had his best year defensively since at least 2018, and was the second-best hitter on the team. This is obviously going to be a big drop in 2023.

They are poised to improve in the following positions:
1B - All Casas has to be is healthy, and it is a massive upgrade. In fact, the best thing I can say about the Red Sox in 2023 is that if they can simply put average performance at 1B, CF, and RF all season, the team will improve by several wins. Heck, just being able to put Hosmer and Pham in two of those slots improved the team, because Dalbec/JBJ were stunningly bad.
CF - I don't know how good Hernandez is going to be on his one-year deal; I don't even know if he'll be playing a lot of CF, or if he'll move to 2B, if Story moves to SS. But if Hernandez is simply a league-average hitter, and stays reasonably healthy in CF in 2023, that would be a legit upgrade on Duran/Hernandez of 2022. They were awful.
RF - Yoshida will be playing right field, I presume? Who knows what we've got there...but he will be a legit upgrade on JBJ.
Bullpen - This is the one area where the Red Sox acted like a big-market team, going pretty much all-in on several quality arms. It is clear that the team made a decision to move two of their best young arms - Houck and Whitlock - into the rotation to addresses those deficiencies, and spent money on the bullpen to replace them. Just avoiding giving legit innings to arms like Robles, Davis and Brasier will be an upgrade.

Then the areas where...who knows:
2B - Is Story better than this offensively? Is he more durable than this? If he's not, then I wish they had taken his $20m salary and applied it towards Bogaerts or Devers, and then used Arroyo or something at 2B.
LF - I have said many times on this website that Verdugo has plateaued to a slightly-above-average outfielder who is starting to make more money than he is worth. In 2020, he made little money, and was one of the more valuable young players in the league. Since then, the average, OBP, and SLG are all down each of the last two years. He went from a 24-yr-old making under a million bucks with a 123 OPS+ to a guy entering his age 27 season making $7m with an OPS+ of 102 in 2022. I think this is what he is.
DH - For the second year in a row, Martinez started hot, then slowly dropped down as the year went on. The second half of 2022 was ugly, and not trading him for a bag of potatoes to get below the luxury tax at the deadline last year was a mistake. He was done. I have no idea who is going to be the DH (probably a rotating position?), but whatever they do - I'd like them to not spend money on the position. Put the money towards Devers and strengthening the outfield.

Finally, the starting pitching. They are relying on a fragile Sale; an extremely durable and average Pivetta; and three young arms with promise but no history of making it through a season as a starter (Whitlock, Houck, Bello). The two most likely external options to augment that are familiar faces: Wacha and Eovaldi. The problem with both of them: Their health...which is why both remain available.

What the Red Sox need, given their likely rotation, are a couple of guys who are more like Pivetta: Average, but reliably durable. I'll tell you what would be truly unacceptable, as a lifelong fan: A rotation with guys like Wacha and Eovaldi at the expense of the three young guys. If we're not going to be seriously challenging in 2023 (and we are not, it appears), then let's play the young guys. I'd rather take a chance of going 72-90 seeing what Whitlock, Houck, and Bello can do for a full year than go 80-82 with Wacha and Eovaldi preventing us from finding out. If I thought we could go 90-72 in any scenario in 2023, well, you'd take that, obviously.

Basically, regression at SS and (to a lesser extent) C has the potential of wiping out a lot of the gains to be made at RF and 1B.

After all, he’s four years younger than Bogaerts.

These days, does that just mean his contract is 4 years longer?

If the season started tomorrow, this is a last place team. Maybe last in the AL.

If they don't add some legit talent, especially at SP, they're dead, again.

Hernandez is a 4th OF/ 5th IF. Expecting him to be an impact player...foolish. Arroyo at 2B is a better option.

It's looking bleak, as of today.

I may be in the minority of the fandom, but I don't give a #### about this kind of thing. I don't care if the team tries to explain to me their vision or plan. It doesn't matter to me whether or not they are publicly misleading about their interest in a player or a contract extension.

I understand that thinking. I still think an owner is better off being honest.

If the team with a weak major league roster wants to build a sustainable winning team the owner either has to dig deep for free agents as a bridge to farm success or he has to eat the fan anger. Of course, a big part of the fanbase will lose their minds no matter what he does but, as I said in another thread, saying one thing and doing another makes a person look like a liar or incompetent, which isn't good. Saying something is a priority raises expectations. When the something doesn't happen the resulting anger is worse.

----------------
Yoshida is playing left field. He doesn't have the skills for RF, especially in Fenway.

Chaim Bloom lays out his plan for Red Sox offseason

This is a bad team. From the article, "Chaim Bloom just got into specifics about Boston’s off-season plan. He repeatedly said Red Sox want to add 7, 8 or 9 players to build a contender in 2023. That includes another reliever, another starter and position players."

Now, it doesn't seem like he specified "good" players so I believe him. Who are the 7, 8 or 9 players who are available to build the 2023 Red Sox into a contender? Of course, he also talked about trades. I don't see how trading your prospects for major league players for 2023 helps build that sustainable team they talk about.

Nobody expected this year's market. Bloom, especially, appears to have been completely caught off guard.

If he can somehow pull a competitive rabbit out of his hat, he will earn my respect and apology.

I'm not really worried about having to apologize.

Nobody expected this year's market. Bloom, especially, appears to have been completely caught off guard.

I agree. He doesn't seem to know how much talent costs, to be blunt. Maybe they'll stumble into some hypothetical bargain like Story again.

I have no idea who is going to be the DH (probably a rotating position?)

Hosmer.

haha

I can't tell if 16 & 17 were posted before or after Hosmer was DFA'd tonight. If before it's even funnier.

I'm assuming Boston isn't on the hook for anything with regard to Hosmer, and that the DFA also wipes his luxury tax hit in 2023...

after

Last year the Red Sox were 26-50 vs the AL East, and pretty good against the rest of baseball. They should improve a few games just by playing a more balanced schedule this year. But the same goes for the other AL East teams.

Adding Jansen, Martin and Yoshida filled some HUGE holes.

I mean, maybe. Relievers are fickle, and you have to wonder if the rule changes will hurt Kenley more than most. And Yoshida, entirely possible he transitions just fine. But it's not a slam dunk IMO.

Verdugo is an adequate LF. In RF, he's weak. This year's OF is weak, just as last year's OF was.

Captain Willard: "They told me that you had gone totally insane, and that your methods were unsound."

Colonel Bloom: "Are my methods unsound?"

Captain Willard: "I don't see any method at all, sir."

I'm assuming Boston isn't on the hook for anything with regard to Hosmer, and that the DFA also wipes his luxury tax hit in 2023...

I'm not certain if they are completely off the hook but they are certainly on the hook for no more than 2 years of league min. He was never a lux tax concern for them, his contract is still SD's problem.

I could get hit by a bus tomorrow and the team isn't cutting ticket prices while they try less hard to win .

Just noticed this. This should make for an entertaining causal argument.

1. The more fans hit by buses, the lower the demand, leading to lower prices to boost demand.
2. "We have noted the alarming rate of Red Sox fans being hit by buses. While there's nothing we can do to reduce these tragic accidents, we can give surviving Sox fans a break on ticket prices! And we've installed extra wheelchair ramps for those who've survived."
3. "We are deeply saddened by the news of Jay Seaver being hit by a bus. In his memory we are cutting ticket prices for Thursday afternoon's game against the Royals by 10 percent."
4. Depsite cuts in ticket prices, Red Sox fans are still being hit by buses due to wandering into traffic while trying to figure out how the Red Sox could try less hard to win.

They're two separate arguments! :)

But, more seriously, I kind of think of it in line with a story about Steven King that's too good to verify: He's on a panel at some book event with George R.R. Martin, and Martin, half-jokingly because of his own issues in this area, notes that King had really picked up the pace on his Dark Tower series in recent years, releasing several books in pretty rapid succession when he'd previously gone five years or so between volumes of that series, and how/why he did that. King says that when he got hit with by a car and had to spend a fair amount of time in the hospital recovering, he met a lot of fellow patients with cancer who asked him how The Dark Tower was going to end, and that, more than his own brush with death, made him see completing it as having more urgency.

Anyway, the Red Sox famously support a charity focused on children with cancer, and I'm sure that most other teams have similar partnerships in their own communities. It wouldn't hurt their front offices to keep those fans in mind when they are considering tearing it down and embarking on a years-long stretch of "rebuilding".

(And, also, it's a rare team that cuts the price of tickets, concessions, parking, etc., as they cut payroll.)

#24 - the Sox still get a $3M or so tax hit for Hosmer, unless some other sap signs him.

#11 - $7M for an avg OF is well worth it. Verdugo is no team saver, but he is still plenty valuable.

Oops

#11 - $7M for an avg OF is well worth it. Verdugo is no team saver, but he is still plenty valuable.

Yeah, just because he was more of a bargain a couple of years ago than he projects to be in 2023 doesn't mean he is overpaid. They have plenty of problems with roster/salary that I don't know why we would nitpick about one slot that is already set up to likely be adequate or better (and cheap).

Hosmer

I misspelled Turner, obviously.