Did the Red Sox bring back the medical staff from 2008-2012?

Has anyone ever studied if the Sox have a particularly bad health record? I know this is a conventional wisdom but it seems like something that we believe because we see it day to day.

I'd be shocked if ALL of those players were unavailable on Opening Day but I wouldn't bet on ANY of them to be healthy that day either. It's like betting "the field" against a single player on an MVP prediction.

Has anyone ever studied if the Sox have a particularly bad health record? I know this is a conventional wisdom but it seems like something that we believe because we see it day to day.

There are a few awards given for training staffs and/or medical staffs, and as far as I can tell Boston has never won any of them. The Brewers have won a few, as have the White Sox. IIRC the Indians won one of these in 2016.

There are a few awards given for training staffs and/or medical staffs, and as far as I can tell Boston has never won any of them.

Ah ha! I knew it. Irrefutable proof.

Hmmmm...the guy at Pawtucket won the international league award last year. I can't find all the winners listed anywhere though.

Ah ha! I knew it. Irrefutable proof.

More like "this is all we've got".

If I have a complaint about Farrell it's that he and his GM often seem to be not on the same page. Or at least they express different sentiments. Tito and Theo always seemed to be on the same page right or wrong and with both Cherington and DD there are times where Farrell says something that just seems at odds with what they have said. I suspect a lot of it is just a matter of how things are expressed but it's a thing that bothers me and I know you are worried about that.

I suspect a lot of it is just a matter of how things are expressed but it's a thing that bothers me and I know you are worried about that.

I don't know that they're not on the same page, but rather I think you hit the nail on the head here. I think Farrell has a way of expressing things that makes things rather ambiguous.

So... Swihart can't throw. On the plus side, surgery was on his ankle, not his arm, so we can be reasonably certain this is not connected. But come on.

TFA says he can't make an accurate throw 60 feet away because his arm is now trained to throw like an outfielder. He hasn't played outfield for 6 months, and prior to that he hadn't been playing as an outfielder for more than 4 or 5 months.

I'm not buying what they're selling here.

It's almost like they ###### up with him last year.

It's almost like they ###### up with him last year.

Those of us who believe Swihart is an inferior catcher aren't ready to pin the blame for his not being to throw a ball 60 feet on the fact that they had trained him to throw 180 feet last year.

It's amazing Hanley could return pickoff throws in 2016 without rolling it back.

I don't think he's a great defensive catcher but I think his issues weren't as bad as was made out last year.

I just don't understand what they are doing with him. It all felt like a series of panic moves that weren't necessary. The idea that it's in his head now after all the jerking around doesn't seem outrageous to me. I also think it wouldn't surprise me if this was one of those things that in about 3 weeks in a complete non-issue. A few bad throws on day one of camp isn't necessarily proof that he's screwed.

I just don't understand what they are doing with him. It all felt like a series of panic moves that weren't necessary.

I don't know. Was it a panic move that Betts was moved to the OF? I think they liked Swihart's bat and just wanted to get it in the lineup, and that it made less sense to try Vazquez or Leon in LF.

You are right that the yips might not be an issue going forward.

The Betts thing was utterly different. He was moved to the outfield because his position was blocked by a guy signed for half a decade playing at a high level. Swihart was the opening day catcher, then after a week and a couple of misplays was sent down and had a position change. I'm sure getting his bat in the lineup was part of it but to go from "he's our starting catcher" to "he's third strong and we are moving position" in a week is rash decision making.

I'm sure getting his bat in the lineup was part of it but to go from "he's our starting catcher" to "he's third strong and we are moving position" in a week is rash decision making.

I think there was a lot of panic in the early going, and especially so after Holt (and then Young) went out injured. I also think there's a bit of a "look, LF at Fenway is easy to play!" mindset that's still with the FO too.

So it's been 3-4 days since those initial yips reports... any follow-ups on Swihart from the weekend? I haven't seen anything but my looking was somewhat cursory...

Side Note: Pedroia--as good as he was last year, and has been, etc.--is entering the nexus where few 2B emerge unscathed. It's never really been clear what his position would be if he couldn't play 2B defensively. He's quite short for a 1B, supposedly doesn't have the arm for 3B/OF... I'm assuming he could slide over to DH full time, but he'd be a bit unorthodox (production-wise) as a DH... I rather suspect Pedroia might be one of those guys who hangs it up a year too early rather than a year too late, especially if he knows he can't play 2B any more.