Boston Red Sox 2017
MCMLVTopps
Posts: 4,840 ✭✭✭✭✭
Ok, I cracked the egg, at the behest of Perkdog. With pitchers and catchers reporting in about a week, I thought I'd do the deed.
Much is going on with the team, which I won't post here. All news is easily gotten via Google or duckduckgo...I prefer the latter, as they don't track where you go.
I probably won't follow the team as avidly as I may have in the past, but will toss in a comment here and there. I have to say, I'm far from excited that el Gordo Sapo will anchor 3rd base...this of course is only because some idiot GM gave him the half of fort Knox in one of the worst deals in Red Sox history. Basically, fatty is having to sing for his supper...which should only be crackers and water.
Other info is ongoing with possible trades, most notably may be Napoli and...wait for it...wait for it...ready?...could be the return of guess who??? Papelbon. Well, like I said, lots going on. I wish the team well and of course a successful season.
Ok Paul, I did it. 
Interesting (or not), now there is back and forth about which was bigger, the SB comeback win Sunday, OR, being down 0-3 against the Yankees and winning 8 in a row to finally nail the 2004 WS win. Not apples and oranges to me, they are gigantic in their own realm...some people have too much time on their hands to waste dissecting this comparison.
Comments
Thank You AL! I'm so excited about the Super Bowl still but definitely looking forward to the Sox this season as they are stacked and on paper look like they could be good! Looking forward to this thread as well, thanks again for keeping up with tradition, there isn't much we got going on here in sports talk anymore but what we got we should keep going strong
Some quick stuff...
Pedroia should become the team captain...hard to believe he wouldn't get that recognition.
Swihart trying to find a position, not likely he'll be behind the plate, but could happen.
Predicitions are the Sox win 90 plus games this year...that should do it. The pitching is there, are the bats? OH, those one-run losses!!
The insanity of local Red Sox fans stood in the miserable weather to wave goodbye to the equipment truck that left for Ft Myers yesterday. Now, you gotta ask yourself...why on earth would you stand in snow/rain/cold in miserable stuff to just wave goodbye to a truck??? Better yet, why didn't the truck leave in October or November? If the truck left tomorrow, they'd be fighting a blizzard...earth to management...it's New England, they have CRAPPY weather in the winter, I know!!
One for the ages...today is Carney Lansford's 60th birthday. Always rock solid at 3rd base.
I read somewhere that Braun was being looked at as a possible replacement for Papi, no idea if it's true
How Is it that Carney lansford is 60.. still basking in the patriots win, but am very excited for the Sox. Dare I say this could be the best rotation since the early 2000's athletics or maybe even the 1990's braves. Im sure that is hyperbole, but hey, it's February. MAy as well dream now
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
Not a Red Sox fan, but I sure hope they do not bring in Ryan Braun. This is a franchise that does not have a lot of steroid taint to it. I know that no franchise is truly clean (my Royals have certainly signed some free agents that had some stink to them).
Now we can debate all day whether steroids should be banned, whether franchises should be penalized for signing steroid users (see Yankees second contract with ARod, and maybe the first one for that matter). But would love to hear what the crazy man Schilling would say if Red Sox sign Braun.
"Look up, old boy, and see what you get." -William Bonney.
I know you have not missed me but am still around. Hope for a great year with the Sox.
El Sapo Gordo has shown up down a few lbs...geez, thanks for the effort, at $17.6M per season, ya think you oughta show up in shape? Hope it didn't cramp the diet too badly. I will struggle to say anything good about this guy...he's a bus to me and a waste. Wanna impress me Gordo? Hit about 30+ taters, bat at least 300+ and play a STELLAR 3rd base. Maybe then you get off the snide... oh yeah, stay off the horn texting chicks.
Jerry Remy appears to have a cancer relapse...don't know details. He has signed with NESN to do 115 games this year, a multi-year deal.
As for Mr. Paranoia above, we all miss each other in different ways.
Thanks to apparently a very long time of smoking, Remy's lung cancer (mentioned above), which had been in remission, has resurfaced. Of course he encourages everyone to get "checked out". I wish him well, having that hanging over you every day is, I'm sure, not a pleasant thing. Having been a smoker myself earlier in my life (3 packs of lucky strikes a DAY), I think smoking is just like pointing a gun at your head...sooner or later, that trigger may get pulled. For whatever reason, I quit the day I got home from Vietnam and never looked back...it was kinda tough for a few days, but I went cold turkey 47 years ago.
I predict El Sapo Gordo, aka the current Red Sox 3rd baseman will be gone by season's end. Sandoval is nothing but a huge drag on the team and best described as a boat anchor. He would have to have an incredibly strong season to impress me...but he'll limp along and eventually the front office will eat a ton of Fenway Franks and move his obese body to another team...the sooner the better.
Much going on with trades, pitching, and trying to figure out who the "new Ortiz" will be...that is, who will become the new DH for the team. Kinda looks like Jose Bautista is in the running, but who knows. Swihart continues to try to move back to the catcher position, but he's stuck at #3, his days may be numbered as well.
No Red Sox visit to Atlanta this year, so I'll catch them as I can on national broadcasts...not gonna get the baseball package.
Enjoy the weekend.
I did not get the package either but did pick up NESN instead of the whole package and will catch what games are shown there.
Lets see if I got this right now. Red sox 2 and 0 now.
El Sapo Gordo is 0 and 2 now.
Thats 0 hits and 2 errors.
He lost some pounds but did not forget how to make errors!
Breakdown said: "This is a franchise that does not have a lot of steroid taint to it."
I had to see if that was posted on April 1st. Hello! Big Papi? Manny Ramirez? A case could be made that the Sox would still have a WS drought without those steroid cheats.
Long time sox fan, but I would disagree that they don't have a lot of steroid taint to them. Consider that their two best hitters of the last 17 years are PED guys.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
Sale was a beast last night.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
I would agree 100% that the Sox wouldnt have won without Papi or Manny, But you have named two guys LOL The Franchise as a whole doesnt have too many more names you can add, The Yankees had Arod, Giambi, Clemens, Pettite, Kevin Brown...
BTW... GO SOX!!!
Let's get off the PED thing...it's pointless to look back, so let's not steal the thread on talk about yesteryear. This is about the 2017 Red Sox, not "I remember when".
However, we can look at what's happened to our illustrious 3rd baseman and see how he's recovered from an ABYSMAL 2016 performance...oh yeah, he was hurt, ok. He still banked $17,600,00.00 for NADA.
So far, El Sapo Grande de grasa (big fat toad) has shown his inept play at the coveted 3rd base position, with 2 errors in 4 games (actually 3). He's batting a whopping .188 for 16 ABs and oh boy, 1 homer that went for naught. So far, John Henry has ponied up $434,568.00 to Sapo's coffers and boy, oh boy, tons and tons more to come. Any 1st year Econ student would call this an exceptionally poor ROI for that kind of coin.
I doubt Sapo will blossom into anything of value at 3rd base. IMO, he's only playing because Dombrowski is trying to showcase him to other teams, in hopes he'll do something good and dump this dude ASAP. Clearly, there are more able players at that position in the minor league organization...or, groom Holt, or somebody, to fill in permanently...only time will tell. Actually, I hope Sapo becomes a star, but I also hope I can convince my wife that my desire for a vintage corvette will be a beautiful thing...you can only hint so long, before you have to face reality...not gonna happen.
I want badly to hammer Cherington here, after all, he hired this bozo...but, Cherington also gave us Porcello, Holt, Xander JBJ and others, so I am compelled to lighten up on him. BUT, to saddle the Sox organization with a player who is barely suiting up between the lines, allows for some mud to go Ben's way. So far, Uncle John has paid Sapo $35,634,568.00. STUNNING!!!
Well, I'm off on a Celebrity cruise next week to the Caribbean. I'm sure Perk and Pitboss will cover the Sox well.
GO SOX !!!
Can we all celebrate today that Mr Suckholtz is no longer a part of the staff. He will miss the rest of the season with an arm injury. Didn't even make it out of April
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
There is nothing good to say except that Sale and Benentendi look great.
Got my first look at Red Sox last night vs Yankees. My initial thoughts are they are terrible. I barely knew anyone in the lineup. Good pitching, weak hitting. Aaron Judge eats sandwiches bigger than Benentendi. There is not a single guy in that lineup I fear. Not one. The Yanks, who are supposed to stink and have two starters on the DL, look good so far. It's a long season. Didi comes back tomorrow and they can get rid of Kozma who is just not major league material. Big upgrade. Bird, Gardner, and Holliday have been horrible, yet they have the 5th best record in baseball. The Yanks can score.
Yes, I realize Price, the fat 3rd baseman (can't remember his name) and Pedroia are sidelined. Announcers mentioned that the Sox have had 35 3rd basemen since 2013? The O's look like they are the team to beat in the East. They have multiple guys in their lineup I fear every time they come to the plate; Machado, Trumbo, Davis.
OK, small sample size but here is what I think of Sox; they stink. Terrible hitting team, maybe the weakest in the majors. It's not as if Tanaka was Cy Young before last night. Even with a complete game shutout he still has a 4.2 ERA. Boston can not hit. Their defense is shaky too. Sale didn't help himself on the mound last night either and the previous game they had 2 errors. Why did he come out for the 9th? He had nothing and should have told the coach. Benentendi threw to the wrong base and Gardner should have scored, 3rd base coach is too conservative. I didn't see Benetendi get a hit in the two games or even hit the ball hard and at times he didn't even come close to hitting pitches in the dirt. Early season AL East predictions:
O's
Yanks (wild card)
Tampa
Sox
Toronto
FOUR errors today. They Suck I'm afraid.
Four more errors last night.
OK time to get rid of fat boy and eat some money, He is useless. Bring up Devers as he could not do any worse.
Well, I haven't posted about the Red Sox in some time...I've only seen a couple of games and don't follow the stats like I once did. So, I took a quick peek today. The good news is that they're over .500, the bad news is that they aren't winning the closer games that they should, far too many RISPs with zero results. Last night they had 8 LOBs, losing with the W/O homer by Mauer...crushing I'd say. Said it many times, those one run losses add up quickly in late September.
I choose to omit discussing Tubby, who is now on the DL...dude is laughing all the way to the bank. Thanks again Ben!!
So, I'm not hearing the fat lady sing yet, but she has certainly been warming up. The ever optimistic Farrell continues with his mind-numbing clichés, which have become pathetic to read. Watching Dumbrowski peer intently into his tv screen surrounded by lap tops, does make me grin, he certainly plays the role well. Yo Dave, it's ok to dress down a little, dump the tie, look relaxed a little, gonna get hot soon, the jacket is ok...oh, I forgot, you get to watch all the games from an air conditioned suite.
Earth to Dave...make some moves !!
No we don't need Dave to make any moves . He is a moron , every move he makes is terrible.
He should move out of town. They could replace him with a magic 8 ball if they have decisions to make
Well, let me announce the UBER doofus trade of the century...ah, that would be allowing Travis Shaw to depart Boston. Thanks Dumbrowski, I guess Ben left you with "synapse syndrome", as in yours ain't workin'. No wonder Detroit fired you!!
Oh my goodness, I was sooooo relieved to read that El Sapo Gordo's, (or is it El Grande Sapo Gordo???) knee is improving. Wow, what a relief, makes me wanna pony up for the MLB package...NOT. Probably strained it pushing that wheel barrow full of Red Sox loot into the bank, gotta watch those curbs and cobblestones in Boston.
HanRam has a shoulder tweak, Price is limping back, and the beat goes on.
Well, this thread is about as dead as can be. Not even generic comments on the team's play, or lack thereof...much is going on however and most of it not good. Some seriously high priced players are on the DL and the team as a whole continues to play mediocre baseball. I haven't looked, but I suspect they're about in the middle of the pack, or lower, in the AL East.
Rumblings abound that Farrell's days are numbered...some have said he should have been canned at the end of last season, but Dumbrowski kept him onboard...I suspect it was because of the cancer situation, which Farrell has fortunately beaten at this point. However, lackluster performance by the team will not enhance his tenure, I suspect he'll be gone soon enough. Why Dumbo let Luvollo (spl?) go is a mystery to me...oddly, he now he's the manager under the great Dan Duquette...we won't get into that.
Ok, predicitions...the Red Sox will come up short again this year and only a minor miracle will get them into the playoffs. There appears to be a total lack of cohesiveness in the team, no "cowboy up" stuff, no "esprit de corps", just me and my checkbook stuff...the Fenway Faithful will be disappointed come late September.
Price threw 90 pitches and got beat up in a little league game but farrell is going to start him monday
Usually I have voted for the all stars on multiple addresses but this year not even once. The only stars I see are Sale, Kimbrel, and Bogaerts with 2 of those not eligible for voting as they are pitchers so I will not even bother. They need some drastic improvements if they are going to even make the playoffs. Now they are faced with a big problem with fat boy coming back on the scene. Price is back but that too is a big question mark. We shall see!
Go Sox!!! Sorry fellas that's all I can muster, I only watch the Sox if they make the playoffs. They lost me a few years ago, as did all of MLB. I'm tired of these overpaid crybabies
Geez, I thought I was posting to myself...nice to see the regulars back, or, semi-regulars.
I find it almost impossible to root for this team, or any other. One need only do some basic searches and read what's going on with the team to see how really dysfunctional the whole thing is. The salaries are really off the chart insane for the performance returned. Can't really blame the players, they're in it for all the gold they can stack up. Oh yeah, stub a toe here, tell the doc your shoulder hurts and you get at least a 14 day rest and get to sit in the best seats in the house and still get paid, and paid they are, in many cases well over $100k per game...that is just sick!!
It's not the Red Sox I once knew and I treasure my Fenway memories, but it ain't what it was and never will be again.
I'm tired of the egos from guys playing a kids game and becoming multi-millionaires, with mediocre output. El Sapo Gordo GRANDE (close enough) is beyond disgusting to me. They're all sucking on John Henry's wallet, and the lemmings keep coming en mass, trudging faithfully to Fenway, hoping for only God knows what and, I might add at bloated prices, not to mention the parking ripoffs that abound.
Red Sox come up short this year, no post season. I watch an occasional Fenway game when it's on the MLB channel, but only for an inning or two to relive those cherished memories from when I was a kid sitting in the bleachers, or in that triangle adjacent to the bullpen.
I even changed my avatar...that's a 1973 corvette I once owned...ah, the good old days!!!
Stay well everybody!
Al
PS...cruising is great, loved it so much, have already booked a 14 day New Zealand cruise at Thanksgiving and working on an Alaska cruise-land tour for next May.
Yankee announcers last night pointed out that the 39 homers from the Yankees Judge, Holiday, and Gardner is just short of the 43 for the entire Red Sox team. Yanks look like the team to beat this year
I wish two things in MLB regardless if I'm paying attention or not.. Sox to win and Yankees to lose. Other than that I don't care.
Dave Dumbrowski has a shocking ephiphany...
"We need to see more from Sandoval".
Wow, Dave what a startling comment!! Gee, I guess paying a fatso $105,000 per game doesn't buy what it used to.
Who puts the Dumb in Dumbrowski ? Davey , davey he's our man if he can't do it , no one can!!!!!!
I think we did see more from Sandoval and he showed his true colors when he tried his best to make a error on a throw to first base. He is worthless!
Price looked good.
I think the red sox working up to release Sandoval. It's a lot of money but they are a better team with him off the field so its kind of pointless to pretend the money hasn't been wasted already
Good by Jim Piersall ! You were a great player.
Hey scarlet hosed boys....treading into enemy territory here BUT your third base troubles should be solved in the not-to-distant future. Actually I read that there's a chance he ends up at first base.
I got to watch this young man last night in a AA double header and boy did he stand out.
It was his personality that first drew my attention.
When he arrives, I hope he can keep his light-hearted attitude. If so, he'll be a fan favorite.
Smiley, engaging, personality plus but when it came time to make a play or hit, all business.
Had some great skill plays at third and a monster homerun to boot.
Rafael Devers
"If I say something in the woods and my wife isn't there to hear it.....am I still wrong?"
My Washington Quarter Registry set...in progress
I have been keeping track of him and he is only 20 years old. Very impressive but still needs more seasoning this year.
Sorry to read of Piersall's passing. He made it to 87, pretty good run, though I suspect his latter years were rife with health issues.
Not sure I'd call him "great", although he did have moments of brilliance, like 6 hits in a 9 inning game and a couple of All-Star appearances, his stats don't = "great" in my book. He is indeed a member of the Red Sox Hall of Fame, so, his overall performance with the team must have reached a high enough level to merit such an inclusion.
Number 37 was high energy and did some pretty bizarre stuff along the way...like running the bases backwards after a homerun and referring to himself as the "Waterbury Wizard", having been born in Waterbury Connecticut. This went over like a lead balloon with teammates.
His on-air broadcasting career with the White Sox, came to a screeching halt with his reference to White Sox baseball players wives as a "bunch of horny broads"...and his ongoing battle with White Sox management. Jimmy just kinda faded away.
But, gotta say, he was a crowd pleaser in Fenway...
Hopefully Devers will be Sandoval's replacement next year if he keeps improving at 3rd base but he still has quite a ways to go yet.
Just watched the Sox vs Yanks 3 game series in NYC. Boston was able to take the first game against Tanaka who has been throwing batting practice for 6 weeks now. Against 2 good pitchers they managed 1 unearned run in the next 2 games and got blown out twice. They throw the ball away on defense, poor communication between outfielders, Benentendi looks weak at the plate and unsure in the field, Price is terrible, no power hitters. How are these guys in second place? Have they just played a weak schedule so far?
Edit: Looked at their schedule. It has been weak as have not played Houston yet and beat up on Texas and Seattle. Yanks lost 3 to Houston earlier this year.
No, they're mostly just a bunch of overpaid, underperforming losers.
Price gets paid what? Sandoval gets paid what? Ramirez gets paid what? OBSCENE salaries for playing a kid's game in such a p-poor fashion...oh yeah, I got it, they got injuuuuuuuuuuuured. BS.
The 1A Lowell Spinners could play better than these bozos. They won't last long in 2nd place, said it earlier, and will repeat again...no post season for this pathetic team. And that childish whoopee dance in the outfield after a win is beyond lame.
"Despite multiple attempts at a comeback, the writing’s on the wall. Pablo Sandoval’s career in Boston isn’t going to last much longer."
Hunter Noll is a Staff Writer for Outside Pitch MLB.
WOW, another epiphany regarding the fat looooooooooozer. Ah, there is hope oh ye of Red Sox Nation...word is that the Padres are scouting him. No doubt the Red Sox will have to eat a ton of his salary, but I'd be glad to pitch in a few bucks to buy him a bus ticket to San Diego, which, BTW, is just about as far away from Boston that El Sapo GRANDE Gordo could go...and, better yet, the chances of him ever being in Boston again become very remote. Only being sent to Japan would be better.
Dumbo continues to whine about Pomeranz, now wanting him to head to the bullpen.
Did you see the look on Farrell's face when the uber cheapo Grand Slam got hit last night? Should have pulled Pomeranz an inning earlier...geez, I'm 1,200 miles away and I could see that coming.
Please que...Slip Sliddin' Away.
Just release the bozo and be done with it. Every time he gets on the field he makes an error. If someone is stupid enough to pick him up they will probably be sorry but who knows he may be able to play better somewhere else. Who cares as long as it is not with Boston. Maybe we could send him somewhere and include Farrell as part of the package for say a ball boy.
They are tied for first place but there is nobody even posting anything about them. I guess everyone feels like I do and sees no world series for them in the near future.
Well Pit, it just seems to me there's a lack of cohesiveness to the team. While I checked on some Remy stuff online, somehow Farrell came on and spun more crap like he always does..."his fastball was clipping the corners", "we had some balls to hit, but couldn't connect", "we had a long overnight flight", it just goes on and on with Farrell, like the players are anointed with some mysterious oil that makes them impervious to a comment that might bruise their ego. The Red Sox need a manager like Dick Williams...a no nonsense guy who led the team in 1967. Don't even get me start on DUMBrowski.
I am BEYOND sick and tired of the INSANE...I-N-S-A-N-E salaries many of these guys get to perform, and yet their just lackluster players. Price and Fatso to name a couple. Millions and millions for playing a kid's game for 6 months!
Where is the performance, where are the key hits, the "cowboy up" stuff of the era of Pedro and Millar? Gone forever.
They're only in first place because the Yankees collapsed...no fear, they aren't going anywhere.
Hope things are good for you in ABQ.
Al