Don't give up on the division yet.Originally Posted by vegasbob
That said, once the playoffs begin, it's all hands on deck. It could be that Eovaldi or Sale work out of the pen in some games like they did last year. Also, who knows what kinds of moves Dombrowski might make before the deadline, or how our relievers will be performing at that time?
I remember that people were very concerned about our pen last postseason as well. It worked out okay.
In the words of some singer, "Don't give up on us baby, we can still come through."
IMO, the state of the team's W-L record does not fall on Dombrowski. He did his job in assembling a competitive team. He cannot control what happens on the field.
It's rather perplexing that the Sox have such a poor home record. The last 2 losses to the Jays are disheartening, for sure. That said, this type of thing happens in the crazy game of baseball. The Sox will be fine.
This year’s current W-L doesn’t fall on DD. The state of the farm does. Also, if the financial status precludes deadline improvements, then that falls on him too. If the combination (lack of a farm and lack of flexibility) then its doubly on Dave
$4-6M is enough to get a very good RP'er or two solid one when you figure we only pay 1/3 of their contracts, or we get the other team to pitch in cash like we got with Eovaldi last year.
When you say it's gonna happen now
When exactly do you mean?
Unfortunately, I do not disagree with this. I have been criticizing Dombrowski for depleting our farm since he started.
That said, the only improvements that we need are one or two relievers for depth and reinforcement. Dombrowski should be able to do that with his remaining budget.
That's how I see it, but I'd like to see him get one long before the trade deadline.
Maybe he's waiting for Wright, and the roster restrictions due to several marginal players being out of options, but we could trade an out of options pitcher plus a decent prospect for a solid pen arm.
Pitchers out of options:
Thornburg
Johnson
Wright
Workman
When you say it's gonna happen now
When exactly do you mean?
Workman is the bullpen MVP to date. And the list of teams interested in Thornburg is shorter than the list of Oscar nominations for “Dude, Where’s My Car?”
Surprisingly, I don't think you are being unfair. It's actually three--including Beni--of our top five in the batting order who are down from last year, and that just might be what is contributing to RISP disease. Our bullpen is probably affected by the loss of Kimbrel, even though I agreed with DD not wanting to pay what he wanted. The Yankees bullpen, meanwhile, is the envy of MLB and, i think, gives a psychological boost to the lineup as well as the rotation. The last 2 games vs. the Jays notwithstanding, I did and do like that winning streak and taking 2 of 3 at Minnesoata. Plus I did say catching the Yankees is unlikely--too big a margin vs. a team that is playing so well.
Dombrowski blew into Boston like a big wind from Winnetka . He aggressively made moves that turned a last place team into a champion . Unfortunately , this past off season he rested on his laurels and took a long winter's nap. The same mistake Cherington made after 2013 . Hopefully , this club can still turn things around, but the season has been a disappointment so far . There is no disputing that .
I am far from an expert on front office moves, but have to disagree that DD fell asleep because I too thought Kimbrel was asking for too much, especially after his collapse in the postseason. Losing Kelly to the Dodgers actually turned out well--so far. We lost Kinsler, but really haven't missed him, especially when Chavis was hitting so well.
Meanwhile, the entire rotation, including midseason addition Eovaldi, is back, and basically so is that great lineup of 2018. It's just that JDM and Betts are having down years, ditto Beni somewhat. But Devers is way better, so is Bogie, so is Vazquez, and Chavis is a good addition with Pearce and Moreland on the IL.
And let's not forget that the Sox already have the highest payroll in MLB, which mostly why Kimbrel ended up in Chicago.
I of course defer to kimmi's bitterness over what DD has done to the farm system because that is on DD.
Cashman easily could have gone out and gotten Paxton and brought back the finishing squad from 2018 and stopped. We needed a starter, we got a really good one, awesome. But he used last offseason as a springboard, getting Ottavino and then Lemahieu, even when we didn't have a spot for him. DJ is our MVP at the halfway point and Ottavino is probably our relief MVP thus far. Getting the players we got allowed us to weather the storm of injuries that came. Spreading out the money allowed us to have incredible depth. Could we have let Gardy walk and spent bonkers money on Harper or Machado? Maybe. But having Ottavino, Gardner and Lemahieu is far more valuable than either of those players were.
And yes, our pen is a psychological boost for starters and the hitters. Batter know they just need to chip away because the pen can hold deficits. The starters know they don't have to be perfect cause the pen will hold it and the lineup can get them back.
Hal sucks
Great post! Is it DD's fault our rotation and top or the order have declined so sharply? (This question is not directed at you.)
On the bright side, we finally have the balanced line up many felt was essential to winning rings. How has that worked out for us?
Since Workman won't be going away and Thornburg is sucking at AAA (0-2, 15.43 ERA, 2.79WHIP in a small sample of 4.2 innings), that leaves Wright or Johnson . No clue as to whether Wright can pitch effectively, and k'ballers are always a crap shoot . No one would miss him being gone. Brian Johnson is his own dilemma. Was the 5 innings vs Toronto, the real deal or just another teaser ? SW and BJ could both go if it solved a problem. Same for the bad back of Hector V. None of those 3 should be in any serious plan for 2020.
Wrights record at PawSox is better than Thornburg. 1-0, 1.86ERA and 0.93 WHIP. Throwing his junk at AAA'ers is working for him. I imagine he will get both a chance in a couple days as well as some showcasing prior to the July deadline.
Last edited by vegasbob; 06-24-2019 at 01:49 PM.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote