Category: Red Sox

Red Sox Twitter Needs to Stay Calm

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The Yankees acquiring Giancarlo Stanton is obviously huge news and not great news for the Red Sox. The Yankees have acquired the reigning National League MVP for pennies on the dollar because they can eat salary better than any other team in professional sports. That’s tough for Red Sox fans to stomach, but it’s nothing new for fans of the other 28 teams in Major League Baseball.

The Yankees have obviously gotten [much] better while the Red Sox are still looking for their power bat, but can we stop the histrionics? I get it, it’s frustrating to see the Yankees payroll go up every year at a faster rate than college tuition, but can we stop talking about the Yankees like they’re going to hit 300 home runs next year and win 130 games? Last time I checked, Stanton doesn’t play nine positions.

I’m old enough to remember the last time the Yankees swung a trade to pick up a reigning MVP. In early 2004 Alex Rodriguez, like Stanton today, was a reigning MVP entering his age-28 season. I remember Bob Lobel holding a town hall meeting on Sports Final with Steve Buckley (or maybe it was Tony Massarotti) to calm down Red Sox fans. If my memory serves me well, Buckley (or Mazz) said that it all comes down to pitching and that the Yankees pitching staff didn’t get any better after they picked up A-Rod.

Whoever it was, they were right. On the backs of Curt Schilling, Pedro Martinez and Keith Foulke it was the Red Sox who hoisted the commissioner’s trophy in October of 2004. It took the Yankees six years to win their first (and only) World Series with A-Rod. While still a good player, A-Rod’s best playing days were behind him by 2009. That 2009 World Series title really had more to do with CC Sabathia being a stud than it did with A-Rod anchoring that lineup. Honestly, 35-year-old Johnny Damon had as much to do with that title as A-Rod did.

I’m also old enough to remember when the Red Sox had two perennial MVP candidates in the middle of their lineup. Hell, in 2003 the Red Sox had Manny, Oritz AND Nomar in their primes and all three finished in the top ten in AL MVP voting. We all remember how that season ended.

Adding Stanton definitely gets the Yankees closer to a tile, and closer to a tile than the Red Sox, but let’s not cancel the season. As was the case in 2004, the Red Sox still have the better pitching staff. Next year the Red Sox will have two former Cy Young Award winners on the staff, and that doesn’t include six-time all star Chris Sale. And like in 2004, there’s still the Wild Card. It’s not 1987. So what if the Yankees win 130 games? The Sox can still win 95 games and get into the tournament. If that happens, much like in 2004, we’ll see you in Game 7 of the ALCS.

PS – I don’t know who came up with this first, but this tweet won Twitter over the weekend.

Japanese Super Prospect Shohei Ohtani is Leaving $200 Million On the Table by Coming to the MLB Early

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Yahoo – Baseball super agent Scott Boras is, in no uncertain terms, upset about the process that’s lead up to Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani’s arrival in Major League Baseball. Ohtani, after a posting agreement was finalized last week, is set to hit the open market Friday. The catch is: Since he’s an international free agent under 25, the market isn’t as open as it could be. MLB rules put a hard cap on how much teams can spend on international free agents under 25, so the most money Ohtani could possibly get is $3.5 million from the Texas Rangers. Some teams have as little as $10,000 to offer Ohtani. This isn’t about the money for Ohtani, who has long expressed his desire to play on baseball’s most competitive stage. To do so, he’s willing to leave upward of $200 million on the table. Were he over 25, Ohtani could be a true free agent and sign with any team for any amount. Since he’s a two-way star who can throw 100 mph and hit long home runs, getting upward of $200 million on the open market would be entirely plausible.

This guy is INSANE. He is leaving, literally, tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars on the table by coming to the MLB early. Because he is under 25 years old the international rules in place by MLB cap his earning potential $3.5 million. MAX. But if he had waited until he was 25 he could have entered the MLB as a true free agent and would have been free to go to the highest bidder.

Why the arbitrary age of 25?

“picking 25 years old as the cut-off means that a player like Ohtani will hit free agency around the same time as a player from the U.S. who went through the normal draft procedures.”

Just to put this into perspective, the most recent big name Japanese free agents coming MLB earned HUGE pay days. The Yankees signed Masahiro Tanaka for $155 Million. The Rangers signed Yu Darvish for $60 Million. The Red Sox even signed old friend Daisuke Matsuzaka for $51 Million and that was 10 years ago.

So this guy better hope he has the juice and actually performs well in the United States or he just sold low on a winning lottery ticket. Thats half the appeal with international players. You just never know how good (or bad) they’re gonna be. It’s impossible to project how their talent will translate to playing in the MLB. Thats how absolute bums like Rusney Castillo swindled $72 Million out of the Red Sox. Imagine if that guy had come over the US and played for peanuts in hopes of getting a big pay day later? That guy would be working at the Burger King off I-95 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island instead of earning $10+ Million a year to play 2 miles down the road for the PawSox.

Remember the last guy who wanted to pitch and hit in the major leagues? Red Sox super prospect Casey Kelly? Yea, turns out he couldn’t do either one well in the pros. Godspeed, Shohei.

 

Former Red Sox Manager of the Future Torey Luvullo Named Manager of the Year. For the Diamondbacks.

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ESPN – Torey Lovullo of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Paul Molitor of the Minnesota Twins are the 2017 MLB Manager of the Year Award winners. Lovullo, in his first season with Arizona, managed the team to a 93-69 record — 24 more wins than last season, the second largest win increase from 2016 among all teams — and into the playoffs for the first time since 2011.

Of course he did. The guy the Sox let walk for nothing ends up being the best manager in the league. So lets just recap all this real quick. Torey Lovullo was hired by the Red Sox and John Farrell to be his bench coach before the 2013 season (he also worked under Farrell for two years in Toronto).

Lovullo was widely considered a future MLB manager and interviewed for managerial jobs after most of those seasons before coming back to Boston. He was the interim manager for the Sox down the stretch in 2015 when Farrell was diagnosed with cancer. The Sox played extremely well under Lovullo, leading many to speculate that the Sox would dump Farrell in favor of his bench coach. The Red Sox kept Farrell at the helm though with Lovullo returning as bench coach.

Well the Sox gave Lovullo a two year extension for big money that all, but screamed he would replace Farrell once he was axed. The Sox instead stuck with Farrell through all of 2016 and let Lovullo walk to take the Diamondbacks managerial job, signifying they would be sticking with Farrell for the foreseeable future. Welp, just one year later after yet another playoff flameout the Sox finally did fire Farrell after the 2017 season, the same season in which Lovullo won NL Manager of the Year in his first season on the job.

So the Sox paid to keep Lovullo around as the heir apparent to Farrell, then refused to fire Farrell, let Lovullo walk, then a year later ended up firing Farrell anyways, all while Lovullo showcases an immense talent for the job and is named the best manager in the NL. Great asset management, John Henry.

 

Breaking: Giancarlo Stanton Reportedly Won’t Accept Trade to Red Sox (UPDATE: Maybe He Will?)

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Boston Herald – “A baseball source said yesterday that he’s been told Stanton will not accept a trade to either the Red Sox or the Cardinals, another team linked early and often in trade rumors. Perhaps there’s some flexibility in that stance, but Stanton’s preference is a factor.”

Welp, that was quick. The GM meetings aren’t even over and we’re already hearing reports that Stanton won’t waive his no-trade clause for the Red Sox. Glad I wrote 1,000 words on him earlier today. Now thats not to say this deal is completely dead. We’ve all seen some wild shit in the MLB offseason around no-trade clauses, contract terms, and the Players Union mucking things up. Namely how the Red Sox completed trade for Alex Rodriguez fell through after 2003 for various flimsy reasons.

If this definitely doesn’t happen and Stanton doesn’t want to come to Boston, the question is why? Before everyone freaks out and says “not everyone wants to play in Boston,” just relax. Look I get it, we are a very parochial town. We invented America for christ’s sake. You’re welcome by the way. But the guy is playing on a last place team and has publicly said he wants no part of a rebuild. Maybe he’s hoping to maneuver a trade to the Dodgers who seem to fucking print money these days. The same reports are also saying he won’t accept a trade to St. Louis. The only other (publicly) known trade suitors were the San Francisco Giants. Ya know the team that’s coming off a 98 loss season. I know he’s a Southern Cali guy, but if the guy really cares about winning then I can’t imagine he wants to go there. So maybe there’s a dark horse candidate out there somewhere that is going to surprise all of us.

Live look at my emotions while following the Giancarlo Stanton rumors today:

UPDATE:

Evan Drellich disagrees.

“The Red Sox may not be Giancarlo Stanton’s No. 1 choice, but he hasn’t ruled out them or anyone else as a potential destination at this point, a person with knowledge of Stanton’s thinking told NBC Sports Boston on Tuesday. The Marlins slugger, a bona fide star, is said to have a “completely” open mind about teams interested to trade for him, and is actively trying to be thoughtful about the process — one he ultimately controls because of a full no-trade clause.”

Giancarlo watch is BACK ON!

Reports: Red Sox Are a “Lock” to Land One of These Three Superstars

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WEEI – So, as the meetings kick off Monday, with Dombrowski offering his first update at approximately 5 p.m., such rumors as the ones involving Giancarlo Stanton shouldn’t be pushed aside. Sure, some are saying the Red Sox are all hot and heavy for the outfielder, while others suggest St. Louis and San Francisco are the favorites. No matter. Pay attention to every minute of it. As we found out with Sale a year ago, the end-game might not be found during the GM meetings, at least there will be a legitimate road to conversation. It is almost a lock-solid certainty that at least one of the top names in this offseason’s rumor mill — J.D. Martinez, Eric Hosmer, Giancarlo Stanton — will be holding a Red Sox press conference in December.

So Rob Bradford just reported that he believes the Red Sox are “a lock” to land one of these three guys: JD Martinez, Eric Hosmer, or Giancarlo Stanton. Now obviously Stanton is hands down the best player of the three, he also is the only one thats not a free agent so he would require a boat load of players and prospects to acquire. Not to mention the nearly $300 Million left on his deal. While I think he’s hedging a bit by including Stanton with the other two guys mentioned, all three are power hitters. Bradfo is pretty in the know so if he’s saying it you can bet the Red Sox have at least privately acknowledged their desperate need of a power bat. Now lets break down each player and see what the fit would be.

JD Martinez – Hit 45 Home Runs while batting .303 so he would definitely fill the power vacuum the Sox have, but he’s also reportedly looking for a $200 Million contract. I don’t know if Dave wants to give out yet another 9 figure contract. Especially for a guy thats only topped 23 HRs one other time before this year over the previous 6 seasons. Plus he’s an outfielder so he’d have to DH and slide Hanley back to first base, who all but refused to play the field last year, or the Sox would have to make room in the OF by dealing someone.

 

Eric Hosmer – There’s something to be said about a player that knows how to win and Hosmer fits that bill. He’s played in two World Series (and won one) over the past 4 seasons. And the WS the Royals lost went 7 games, so Hosmer has some serious experience in the pressure cooker that is October. And thats what the Sox need; a guy that isn’t going to crumble under the pressure of the playoffs, which about half of the current Red Sox roster has done the past 2 postseasons. Not quite the power stroke of Martinez, but he still hits 20-25 HRs a year and he also plays first base, which is where the Red Sox happen to have a vacancy. He’s also a stud defender, having won the Gold Glove four out of the last five years. Plus he dates resident NESN royalty Kacie McDonnell so that shores up my confidence argument.

 

Giancarlo Stanton – I don’t know much about Stanton the person, aside from the fact that before he was Giancarlo he used to go by Mike.

So he’s got that going for him. But I don’t need to remind anyone here that the guy can MASH. He’s up for NL MVP, which will be announced on Thursday night after hitting 59 HRs with 132 RBIs and an OPS of 1.007! The guy had a WAR of 7.6 for christ’s sake. I’m sure he’s a great dude too, but hitting 60 fucking home runs will make up for a lot of shortcomings elsewhere. Manny Ramirez was a complete dickhead most of his time here, but the guy was mashing 40/140 every year so nobody gave a shit. But I just can’t see the Red Sox pulling the trigger on a deal with the amount of players and prospects they’d have to give up before even mentioning the $295 Million left on his contract. Buster Olney said earlier today that even baseball execs are saying the asking price from Jeets is “out of touch with reality.”

The fact of the matter is the Red Sox finished dead fucking last in the American League in Home Runs. Dead. Last. Thats a sentence I never thought I’d type. I grew up watching guys like Mo Vaughn, Nomar, Manny, Ortiz, and all the other power hitters that have come through Fenway. The Sox have always mashed and more or less pissed on the idea of bunting and playing small ball. So to see such an anemic offense (OBP was top 5 though!) was shocking to see. However John Henry, Dave Dombrowski and the crew decide to do it, just bring me the power. Bring the bats and the rest will fall into place.

If I had to guess? I’m saying Eric Hosmer. Positional fit at first base, character guy, tons of playoff experience, provides some power, gold glove defense, and a (comparatively) reasonable contract.

Martellus Bennett Does Not Care What You Think

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God, I love Marty.

The guy does not give a fuck about anything, but he still doesn’t say anything too inflammatory. Bill Belichick has always given his veterans a bit of rope to speak their mind, as long as they’re not giving the other team bulletin board material or embarrassing the team (i.e. Welker’s Rex Ryan foot jokes).

Marty feels like he got dogged out by the Packers, in particular the team doctors and the head coach for all but accusing him of quitting on the team once Aaron Rodgers went down. Now did he lose his edge once his HOF quarterback went down and he saw his hopes of another Super Bowl burn up? Yea probably, which is why he likely decided alright well I’ll just get the surgery rather than play through pain for a team that isn’t going anywhere. Not the best attitude, but its hard to totally blame the guy.

In Bennett’s own words, he only mentioned the word “retirement” so the Packers didn’t think he was going to just take the money and run while hanging out on IR. But things got heated between the two sides, Bennett got cut, and he then apparently put out the word to not claim him because he wouldn’t play for your team….unless your Bill Belichick.

“He said he told his agent to tell teams not to claim him, since he wanted to get surgery on an injured shoulder. And even after the Patriots did, he said it took a conversation with coach Bill Belichick to convince him. “When Bill called and said they claimed me, I was like, ‘No [bleeping] way,’” Bennett said, via Phill Perry of NBC Sports Boston. “Then he was like, ‘What’s going on?’ And I told him . . . We had a quick conversation and I was just like, ‘Let me think about it and I’ll call you back.’

Hey man, can’t blame Belichick if guys wanna play here. None of my business how they leave their previous team. If a guy is available the Patriots are going to kick the tires every single time. Plus there is no better motivation than sticking it to your last team, which is what the Pats have thrived on with their player personnel for years. And to the people saying “thats not right” and its unfair.

You know whats not right? Suspending the best quarterback in the league for 4 games and docking the Patriots a first round draft pick for fucking air pressure in a ball. Yes, I did somehow bring this back to Deflategate so you’re welcome.

After this whole fiasco and returning to the Patriots to make 3 catches for 38 yards on just 7 snaps, I’ll leave you with this, the latest A+ quote from Marty.

“Like I told the guys, ‘In order for the Phoenix to be reborn, he must first turn to ashes.’ ”

Chris Sale Working Out With Red Sox Top Prospect Jason Groome is Pure Porn

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There is nobody I would rather see the Red Sox top prospect working out with more than our absolutely psychotic, alpha dog ace, Chris Sale. You look at Sale and don’t necessarily see a guy thats shredded, but you gotta be strong as hell to pitch like he does (17-8 2.9o ERA) and to get that gigantic lanky 6’6″ frame following perfect mechanics. Definitely not a bad idea to pair that guy with the Red Sox’ 2016 1st round pick (12th overall) for a little offseason workout.

Just in case you need a refresher on who Jason Groome is, he’s the top pitching prospect in the Sox farm system. Here’s the scouting report on him from SoxProspects.com

“Has the potential to develop into one of the top pitching prospects in baseball. Projects as a solid number two or high-end number three starter. Has the ceiling of a top of the rotation starter. Has the build of a workhorse starting pitcher and clean, repeatable mechanics to be able to sustain 200 plus innings a year. Early makings of a three-pitch mix with fastball and curveball both projecting to be at least plus offerings. Could stand to add a cutter to give hitters another look when he reaches the high minors.”

Earlier this year, MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo ranked Groome as the second best left handed pitching prospect in all of baseball, adding this:

“He still has perhaps the best combination of stuff, upside and command of any arm in his class.”

So, yea definitely a guy we want to follow closely and surround with the right influences. It would seem Beyond Motivation is a place that Sale has been working out at for at least a couple of years, so its not just bullshit P90X or some sketchy program in the Dominican that he’s been following.

And thats what makes Chris Sale the leader in this Red Sox clubhouse, bringing along the young guys even if they’re still only in A ball. Teaching them how to be do the little things to be one of the best in baseball and not how to bitch about the media and be a malcontent.

Red Sox Hire Tony La Russa to Be the Adult in the Room

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ESPN – Tony La Russa joined the Red Sox in a vice president’s role, and he will assist president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, the team announced Thursday..La Russa spent 33 seasons as a manager, beginning in 1979 with the White Sox when Dombrowski was an administrative assistant in the organization. La Russa won the World Series in 1989 with the Oakland Athletics and in 2006 and ’11 with the St. Louis Cardinals. He retired from managing after the 2011 season and worked in the commissioner’s office before joining Arizona’s front office.

How do I feel about the Red Sox bringing HOF baseball guy Tony La Russa into the fold?

Player personnel has been relatively good for the Sox, basically its been hit or miss over the years like any team. Chris Sale was a stud and was the front runner for the Cy Young until he faltered down the stretch. David Price has been disappointing for the most part. Eduardo Nunez? Excellent trade! Travis Shaw for Tyler Thornburg? Not so much. My point is the personnel moves have been, for the most part, pretty good. But the front office? Holy shit, thats been a soap opera for the past 15 fucking years. Ever since John Henry and co. took over the team. Lets run though some of the highlights.

  • Theo Epstein quits on Halloween night in 2005 and leaves the office in a gorilla costume.
  • Jed Hoyer and Ben Cherington take over as co-GMs and immediately trade Theo’s most coveted prospect in Hanley Ramirez (worked out OK).
  • Theo returns, but ultimately quits again in 2011 after yet another pissing contest with Larry Lucchino. Lucchino retires 4 year later, while Epstein has not only resurrected the Cubs and won a World Series, but has turned them into a juggernaut.
  • Beloved manager Terry Francona gets absolutely TRASHED in the media on his way out of town in 2011.
  • Bobby Valentine is hired in 2012 and immediately makes a mockery of the franchise and is shit canned after just 1 season.
  • John Farrell is kept on as Red Sox manager after 2016 and the team lets his replacement in waiting, Torey Lovullo, leave for the Diamondbacks. Lovullo goes on to lead Arizona to a 93 win season (+24 from 2016) and the Red Sox promptly fire Farrell one year later anyways.

So now finally, after years of a reality TV show running the front office we finally get an adult in the room. La Russa is a legend in baseball so its a huge win for the Sox to bring him on board.

Apparently La Russa and Dombrowski are buds, so I would assume it was Dave’s idea to pluck him out of Arizona’s front office to help right the shaky ship that is the Boston Red Sox.

The Red Sox now have a respected, experienced, strategic guy in the front office to complement Dealer Dave. So when Dombrowski wants to trade Rafael Devers, Mookie Betters, Xander Bogaerts and Andrew Benintendi for Giancarlo Stanton and his $300 Million contract Tony La Russa can slap the phone out of his hand. Plus he’s the only one with the stones to tell David Price to pipe down if he tries to mess with his boy Dennis Eckersley again.

Win-win situation.

My Man Gabe Kapler Named the New Manager of the Phillies. Good for Him.

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First things first, I don’t know how Gabe beat out THIS guy for the Phillies job.

Incredibly savvy move to leapfrog Manager John like that. Anyways, good for Gabe Kapler getting his shot as an MLB manager. He’s one of those glue guys that always played his balls off and all his teammates loved. You knew he would be a manager someday.

He started out managing in the minor leagues for the Red Sox farm system before moving on to player development where he’s killed it for the LA Dodgers. I’m happy with the Alex Cora hiring for the Sox, but I would have loved to had Kapler in that dugout as well. Smart guy who’s young, has a wide variety of experience and seemingly will have no problem communicating with his players. Plus he’s yoked and is a fan of the banana hammock so I mean that right there basically sells itself.

He may even get a few of his guys to start eating organic peanut butter the way he converted me with his blog.

PS – As a hustle> talent guy I was a big fan of Kapler’s growing up and I was *this* close to buying a Gabe Kapler Yomiuri Giants jersey when he left the Red Sox for Japan.

ITS NFL TRADE DEADLINE DAY!

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Normally this is the most boring trade deadline in all of sports. Rarely do blockbuster moves take place, whether its because it truly is the No Fun League or if its just too hard to incorporate pieces into a football team mid-season, you just don’t see big trades as often as you do in the NBA or MLB. BUT, that changed last night when the Patriots dealt the presumptive QB of the future in Jimmy Garoppolo to the 49ers.

And just minutes ago the Dolphins traded their starting RB in Jay Ajayi to the Eagles for a 4th round pick.

And now I just saw this tweet from Adam Schefter?

LETS GO! Give me all the trades. I want to see teams getting after it. The Eagles can smell blood as they’re one of the best teams in football this year and they want to strike while the iron is hot, which is great. More teams need to do that. Or accept the fact that your mediocre team ain’t doing shit this year and jump into the trade market.