Playoff Farrell

For years we had the treat of watching Terry Francona execute his “Playoff Tito” persona.  Even in the great run of 2013 it seemed that sometimes John Farrell was a bit cautious with his bullpen.  In this nine game winning streak, and even going back to the Toronto series, I think we have started to see a real “Playoff Farrell” at work.

9/16 - Sox 7 - Yankees 4 - Kimbrel comes in before it is a save situation to finish it in the ninth.
9/17 - Sox 6 - Yankees 5 - Kimbrel 4 out save.
9/20 - Sox ...

Making Ups of Downs

As the Sox begin a crucial four game stretch in Baltimore it is worth taking a moment to look back at the last week of baseball and some of the concerns that exist there.  It has been said and repeated that you are not as good as you look when you win nor as bad as you look when you lose.  The Sox over the past week have in my opinion been fairly fortunate.

Since crushing Toronto in the first game of the series last Friday night the Sox have played nine games.  In those nine games they have ...

That Is How We Do That

That folks is how you handle a road trip.  6-3 overall, 2-1 in each of the three cities.  It’s not glamorous, it’s not dramatic, it’s just steady, solid baseball and the Sox have turned a two game deficit into a two game lead with just 20 games remaining on the season.

There was a lot happening across this trip but for me the most important thing that happened is the effective return of Koji Uehara to the bullpen.  He has looked very sharp in his three appearances and with he and Ziegler in ...

It’s Gonna Be Fun

The Sox will play their biggest regular season series probably since 2011 starting Friday in Toronto;

Rick Porcello vs. Marco Estrada
Eduardo Rodriguez vs. J.A. Happ
Clay Buchholz vs. Aaron Sanchez

I can’t say I love those matchups.  The Sox probably come out on the short end of the projection stick in those three games but not by enough that I feel like any of the games is unwinnable.  A few random thoughts;

- There will be at least one game in this series that one of these teams refers to ...

The Most Annoying Man In The World

Over the last decade if you asked Red Sox fans who the most annoying man in the world is I suspect you would be greeted with a rousing chorus of “Clay Buchholz” responses.  Buchholz is unbelievably annoying to root for.  The guy is hurt constantly, he moves at a pace that even Josh Beckett would say “hey dude, pick it up a bit” and dear god if I see one more friggen pickoff attempt when the runner is standing on first base I am going to lose it.  On top of that he just looks slovenly.  I ...

Expanding Their Horizons

After a mildly disappointing (3-3) homestand the Sox will hit the road for an important long trip.  They will likely do so with some roster reinforcements and I just want to lay down some quick thought on the relevant players;

Bullpen - Joe Kelly, Noe Ramirez, Henry Owens, Heath Hembree, Chandler Shepherd

The last Red Sox reliever to throw a 1-2-3 eighth inning in a save situation was Matt Barnes…on July 9th.  At this point any remotely healthy arm should be called up and given a look.  ...

Games With Numbers

This is going to be short, but just a quick guesstimate as to how the rest of the season might play out for the 72-58 Red Sox;

Tampa - 2-1 (2-1)
at Oakland - 2-1 (2-1)
at San Diego - 1-2 (2-1)
at Toronto - 1-2 (2-1)
Baltimore - 2-1 (1-2)
NYY - 2-2 (4-0)
at Baltimore - 2-2 (4-0)
at Tampa - 2-1 (3-0)
at New York - 1-2
Toronto - 2-1
Total - 17-15
Final - 89-73

I don’t think there is anything in there that is particularly outrageous.  I think if they do that the Sox are probably a Wild Card ...

It Gets Easier…But Not Easy

Faced with a daunting 11 game road trip that started with five games in four cities in a five day stretch they put the hammer down starting the trip 5-1 before stumbling a bit at the end.  By any objective measure a 7-4 road trip is excellent but it feels a bit disappointing given that of the four losses three of them (Detroit last week and the last two days in Tampa) really felt like winnable games.  That the Orioles and Blue Jays have both stumbled a bit certainly was an added bonus.

Having ...

A Few Minor League Notes

We haven’t posted anything on the minors in awhile and given that I spent a few hours watching minor leaguers in Lowell today I thought maybe I would jot down a few words as a bit of a placeholder if anyone has any thoughts;

- My second Spinners game of the year and the second time I saw Josh Pennington pitch.  This kid is very impressive.  He reminds me a bit of Stankiewicz when I saw him a few years ago where his repertoire just looks too advanced for the level.  Hitters really look ...

One Week Later - Not Doomed but Probably Not Saved

One week after feeling like the Sox were about to crash out of the pennant race things are considerably rosier.  The Sox beat up a disappointing Diamondbacks team (at this point “the disappointing Diamondbacks” may be their officially trademarked name), edged division leading Cleveland then picked up two big wins in Baltimore.  Thursday afternoon was a bit of a downer with the Sox losing/giving away a game that can be pinned on a terrible bullpen and what can most charitably be described as a ...

The Red Sox Are Not Doomed (But This Garbage Has To Stop)

Ah, the return of Sox Therapy, the crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd and the sounds and smells of the ballpark; roasted peanuts, red hot hot dogs and urine filling diapers everywhere.  The Sox hit a slump and we are doomed, DOOOOMMED.  So let’s start with the cold hard truth, the Sox are not playing particularly well.  They have lost four out of five, six out of nine and 13 out of 20.  That ain’t getting it done for a team that fancies itself a pennant contender.  However, that the Sox ...

I Don’t Know What To Think

The Red Sox get to enjoy a glorious day off after a grueling 11 day, 11 game road trip that saw them go a somewhat disappointing 5-6.  It was a bit of an odd trip, if you want to see the glass as half full they could’ve been 4-7 if not for the Dustin Pedroia fueled come back victory last Sunday in Anaheim.  Conversely they could’ve gone 7-4 if they had held on in the first two David Price starts (the Hanley error game and the Cano homer game).  In the end I think it’s fair to say they left a ...

Thoughts on Andrew Benintendi

As you likely know by now the Sox have called up outfielder Andrew Benintendi with Michael Martinez being DFAd to make room for him.  According to WEEI Benintendi and Bryce Brentz will share time in left with Brock Holt returning to his more productive utility role.  The Mariners send lefty Wade Leblanc to the mound tonight so presumably Benintendi will spend the first couple of hours of his big league career as a well paid spectator.

I have had the opportunity to see Benintendi in person on a ...

The Tire Fire Brigade

I shared this little bit of data in the OmniChatter after Ziegler surrendered the homer to Cabrera.  It seems like a relevant discussion point at the moment as the Sox embark on a long and crucial road trip.  This is the list of Red Sox relievers in 2016 and their current streak of games pitched without allowing a run (the bold are on the active roster);

Koji Uehara (DL) - 4
Junichi Tazawa - 3
William Cuevas - 2
Matt Barnes - 1
Noe Ramirez - 1
Joe Kelly - 1
Clay Buchholz - 1
Craig Kimbrel - 1 ...Read More...

How Good Does Pomeranz Need To Be?

Boston is 1.5 back of the division lead, 2 up (3 in the loss column) on Toronto. They’ve added Drew Pomeranz for the stretch run. How good does he need to be for them to take the division?

I’m going to look at this somewhat simply because I’m crunched for time.

Why I Love The Pomeranz Trade/Why I Hate The Pomeranz Trade

Why I love acquiring Drew Pomeranz for Anderson Espinoza;

We overvalue prospects - By the time Jake Peavy’s first start with the Red Sox was over he had more wins than Frankie Montas (who I adored) has had in three years since.  Prospects give a team value not only by becoming stars but by allowing you to trade for players.  I’d rather not have dealt Espinoza but I don’t mind the Sox dealing one of those big four prospects.

Drew Pomeranz is pretty good - Like Espinoza Pomeranz was once a ...

A Little Bit of Fun

I know Nasty Nate would never forgive me if I didn’t hand out some fake awards.  That guy is all about the awards!

MVP – Mookie Betts – The competition here is stiff but Mookie gets my nod.  I feel like he has just been a bit more consistent and as the leadoff hitter I think he sets an important tone for the team.  He is leading the team in WAR at 4.1 and his homer in Texas off Matt Bush is one of the defining first half moments.

Cy Young – Steven Wright – Honestly I think you can ...

Your Red Sox All Stars

On the heels of yet another frustrating loss (and man, is it me or is every loss “frustrating” in some way these days, there’s no simple loss lately) I think it is worth taking a moment to appreciate the Sox All Star representatives.  While the season has been alternately thrilling and exasperating there is a lot to see here and I think it bodes well for the future.  Here are your six (!) Red Sox All Stars with some other relevant data;

David Ortiz - 40 years old - last year
Craig Kimbrel - 28 ...

Not Half Bad

We’re halfway through the 2016 season, and Boston is sitting with a 44-37 record. Jose’s preseason feeling was that this was an 83-79 team, and halfway through the season they are within range of that, with a couple extra wins in the bank. The shape of that record, with command of first place for a couple months followed by a disappointing June, has people feeling like it’s time to panic. But taking my usual optimistic approach I’d say they’ve done pretty well.

Not Major Leaguers - On The Move

It’s been awhile since we took a peek at the minor leaguers and I figure an off day is as good a time to take a look at them.  While not all players have been promoted that is the group of guys I am especially interested in today;

1B - Chris Marrero - Pawtucket - Deven’s cousin did not actually get promoted, yet, but he certainly has to be on the big boys’ radar.  The right-handed slugger has kicked around for awhile and earned a spot on the IL All Star Team.  He seems fairly versatile with ...

Is It Time To Panic?

Well, yeah.

OK, maybe not panic exactly but the time is now for the Sox to get their collective heads out of their posteriors and start playing better.  There is plenty of time for all sorts of analysis and discussion but really it comes down to the very simple issue of pitching better.  The Sox have surrendered 60 runs in their last ten games and honestly I would have pegged the number as a lot higher than that.  Incredibly they have managed to 4-6 in those ten games and it is possible we ...

The Return of The Duke

Watching the Sox lose their second very winnable game in three days last night I was struck by something.  This team reminds me greatly of the late-era Dan Duquette clubs.  This is not to rip on the Duke who generally got a raw deal (note to Karl: he’s still not better than Theo) but the late Dan Duquette era was marked by a “stars and scrubs” format that the current Red Sox have very similarly followed.  This is not a bad thing on its own.  Like those teams with Pedro, Manny and NOMAAAAAAAH ...

Trading Partners

It has been a bit less than two months since my triumphant/disappointing/flatulent return to Sox Therapy where I proclaimed we didn’t know nothin’.  I am not entirely convinced we know a heck of a lot more today but one thing I think we can feel pretty good about is that the Sox should plan on being competitive.  At 37-28 even a .500 performance by the Sox the rest of the way would put them at 85-77 and the difference between that and a Wild Card spot or even a division title is pretty minimal. ...Read More...

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 ...

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.

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 ...

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?

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 ...

Feet of Clay

It is hard to argue that Clay Buchholz has earned any right to make his next scheduled start.  At this point with Eduardo Rodriguez nearing readiness and Roenis Elias lighting it up in Pawtucket if Buchholz starts Tuesday it will be both a surprise and a mistake.  Watching Buchholz get pounded last night I found myself thinking about the upcoming draft, prospect watching and what Buchholz represents on that front. 

Buchholz is a former high draft pick (supplemental first, compensation for ...

More About Guys Who Are Not Major Leaguers

So the minor league season is moving along smartly and that requires some less than smart analysis.  I am just the man for the job!  Let’s take a look at the kiddie korps! (yes I know I spelled it wrong, shut up!);

1B - Sam Travis - AAA - .281/.338/.438 - Travis impressed in Fort Myers and the 22 year old is adapting well at Pawtucket.  The K/BB rate is taking a bit of a hit which is somewhat predictable but his K rate is league average and he looks to be growing into the power the Sox hoped ...