AL East Regular Season Thread

[twballgame9]

While I am on a roll, Bill Hall just jacked a two-run dong.

[bignick33]

The Red Sox are so fucking done. This "run prevention" thing has failed.

[pick6pedro]

While I am on a roll, Bill Hall just jacked a two-run dong.

[Endless Mike]

The Summer of Dongs!

[bignick33]

The Summer of Dongs!

I saw what you did there. Ergo, +2.

[eepstein0]

It's ok, I've posted on here about how much I think Adrian Beltre and Mike Cameron suck. I guess I was 1 for 2 on that one.

[shockdoct]

It's ok, I've posted on here about how much I think Adrian Beltre and Mike Cameron suck. I guess I was 1 for 2 on that one.

Beltre has made himself a ton of money this year...

I am assuming the sox can/will offer arb and he will reject it thus giving the sox some picks for rolling the dice on him this year.

[bignick33]

In all seriousness, I wonder how much longer Beltre can continue hitting .340.

[flyingelvii]

It's ok, I've posted on here about how much I think Adrian Beltre and Mike Cameron suck. I guess I was 1 for 2 on that one.

Beltre has made himself a ton of money this year...

I am assuming the sox can/will offer arb and he will reject it thus giving the sox some picks for rolling the dice on him this year.

He has a player's option so it's looking like he will opt out. IIRC the Sox can still offer arbitration and he will definitely be a Type A so if he leaves they'll receive a sandwich pick at worst and a first-rounder if the team isn't in the protected area.

I'm curious if he can keep this production going with his current approach. Guy swings at a lot of pitches.

[bcsoxfan12]

Jason Varitek out with a broken foot….Victor Martinez out with a broken thumb, the top 4 catchers in the system are banged up…..so we bring in Kevin Cash?

[flyingelvii]

Jason Varitek out with a broken foot….Victor Martinez out with a broken thumb, the top 4 catchers in the system are banged up…..so we bring in Kevin Cash?

Either him or Gustavo Molina who managed to put up worse numbers than Cash in AAA. And the Sox basically gave up nothing for him. Whatever.

I was reading somewhere that something like 15 of the Opening Day roster has been on the DL this year. This week has seen MDC, Tek, VMart, Lowell, and Pedroia to the DL and Buchholz pick up an injury. At least Beltre didn't kill any of them this time.

[branchinator]

Here's the July 4th Edition of the Papi/Teixeira battle royale:

Through 7/3/10 games

Papi
AVG: .263
OBP: .369
SLG: .566
OPS: .935
HR: 17
RBI: 54

Teixeira
AVG: .239
OBP: .351
SLG: .419
OPS: .770
HR: 13
RBI: 52

Advantage: Papi

[eepstein0]

Here's the July 4th Edition of the Papi/Teixeira battle royale:

Through 7/3/10 games

Papi
AVG: .263
OBP: .369
SLG: .566
OPS: .935
HR: 17
RBI: 54

Teixeira
AVG: .239
OBP: .351
SLG: .419
OPS: .770
HR: 13
RBI: 52

Advantage: Papi

Texeira has been killing my fantasy team this year.

[EagleNYC]

Call me when Ortiz ends up with 30 dongs and 100 RBI like he did last year when everyone said the same shit that they are saying now. He ain't the David Ortiz of old, but reports of his demise are grotesquely premature.

The Red Sox through 2 weeks have gotten bad performances from 3 top pitchers, no timely hitting whatsoever, and have played the worst defense in major league baseball history. None of those three things will continue.

That said, they still need a bat. Just one for this season, really, although they need to start thinking about 2-3 young bats for next year and beyond. Their pitching is set for a long time to come.

I don't think he gets there, but I was admittedly having a bit of fun with him. I'd put over/under at 24.5 HR, 85 rbi.

I got this one wrong. Kudos to Ortiz.

Far more impressive is the Sox keeping pace w/TB and the Yanks despite the loss of Beckett (to say nothing of the recent plague). With the Padre's in 1st though, I don't think we'll see Gonzo in a "B" this year.

[Shredder]

With the Padre's in 1st though, I don't think we'll see Gonzo in a "B" this year.

I see the Sox taking their chances on Gonzalez in free agency after 2011. They weren't able to agree on a trade this offseason and with free agency, all they have to give up is money. The Yankees are locked into Teixeira so they won't be any competition. The Red Sox have also set up their finances to have a lot of money for that offseason--Beltre only has a one-year with an option contract, Cameron and Scutaro will be off (two-year deals), Drew's five-years will be up, Papelbon will likely hit free agency and they'll be done with Lugo and Lowell's contracts after this season. Youk, Pedroia and the starters are already locked-in for the next few years. Adrian Gonzalez, Prince Fielder and Pujols (barring extensions) will all be free agents. I have no doubt Theo and Co. set it up that way to make a killer deal with a first baseman. I wouldn't give many years to Prince due to his physical risks and Pujols will probably stay in St. Louis so Gonzalez is most likely bet.

[twballgame9]

I'd bet a six pack that if the Padres don't re sign Gonzo after this season, they move him in the offseason. Sox might not bite, given the pending free agency and lack of competition from the Yanks, but the Padres will try.

[eepstein0]

Cliff Lee is apparently headed to the Yankees soon. Not good news for the Sox.

[cvilleagle]

Cliff Lee is apparently headed to the Yankees soon. Not good news for the Sox.

Yeah, but what could they do? They really didn't need Lee, so busting in and trading for him just would have wasted assets. They need to save their assets for big bats.

[twballgame9]

Red Sox should not be worried about the Yankees. They should be focused on making the playoffs. Once there, they are set up nicely.

[flyingelvii]

I don't think the Yanks have anything of real value to acquire Werth or the prospects to acquire another bat like Dunn so I'm not too worried. Sox just need to get healthy and get to October, where it pretty much becomes a crapshoot.

[cvilleagle]

I don't think the Yanks have anything of real value to acquire Werth or the prospects to acquire another bat like Dunn so I'm not too worried. Sox just need to get healthy and get to October, where it pretty much becomes a crapshoot.

It's better than a crapshoot. They have a team that's just built for the playoffs, if they can get there.

[flyingelvii]

I don't think the Yanks have anything of real value to acquire Werth or the prospects to acquire another bat like Dunn so I'm not too worried. Sox just need to get healthy and get to October, where it pretty much becomes a crapshoot.

It's better than a crapshoot. They have a team that's just built for the playoffs, if they can get there.

Well a little, yeah. But most teams that are in the playoffs are very similar talent-wise and it usually comes down to who gets hot at the right time (see: 2004 and 2007 Red Sox from Game 5 of ALCS to WS, 2008 Phillies, etc.). And this is basically the method Theo adheres to.

[eagle9903]

Where are all the Boston fans seeing the Werth rumors? I haven't heard anything definitive on whether the Phillies are selling yet. This would piss me off a lot, but surprise me very little.

[pick6pedro]

I don't think the Yanks have anything of real value to acquire Werth or the prospects to acquire another bat like Dunn so I'm not too worried. Sox just need to get healthy and get to October, where it pretty much becomes a crapshoot.

It's better than a crapshoot. They have a team that's just built for the playoffs, if they can get there.

Well a little, yeah. But most teams that are in the playoffs are very similar talent-wise and it usually comes down to who gets hot at the right time (see: 2004 and 2007 Red Sox from Game 5 of ALCS to WS, 2008 Phillies, etc.). And this is basically the method Theo adheres to.

So every playoff team has a similar rotation of Beckett, Lester, Buccholz, and Lackey? Methinks not. They have a YUGE advantage in that respect - and I'd take that on a playoff run any year, any time, with just about any lineup (and they have a damn good lineup* too). So no, not all teams are similar talent-wise. The reason it's a crapshoot is because anything can happen in a 5 or 7 game series.

*pending health

[flyingelvii]

I don't think the Yanks have anything of real value to acquire Werth or the prospects to acquire another bat like Dunn so I'm not too worried. Sox just need to get healthy and get to October, where it pretty much becomes a crapshoot.

It's better than a crapshoot. They have a team that's just built for the playoffs, if they can get there.

Well a little, yeah. But most teams that are in the playoffs are very similar talent-wise and it usually comes down to who gets hot at the right time (see: 2004 and 2007 Red Sox from Game 5 of ALCS to WS, 2008 Phillies, etc.). And this is basically the method Theo adheres to.

So every playoff team has a similar rotation of Beckett, Lester, Buccholz, and Lackey? Methinks not. They have a YUGE advantage in that respect - and I'd take that on a playoff run any year, any time, with just about any lineup (and they have a damn good lineup* too). So no, not all teams are similar talent-wise. The reason it's a crapshoot is because anything can happen in a 5 or 7 game series.

*pending health

They won't have a similar rotation but they will have similar overall HEALTHY talent in one respect or another (hitting, power, defense, bullpen, etc.), which is why all the teams have pretty similar regular season records, and, with a short series, it comes down to which team gets hot. Looking back at the past few years off the top of my head, it seems that every team in the LCS' were pretty similar talent wise and the WS generally consisted of the hottest teams. Really just splitting hairs but the lack of a huge talent gap and the short series makes it a crapshoot.

[pick6pedro]

I don't think the Yanks have anything of real value to acquire Werth or the prospects to acquire another bat like Dunn so I'm not too worried. Sox just need to get healthy and get to October, where it pretty much becomes a crapshoot.

It's better than a crapshoot. They have a team that's just built for the playoffs, if they can get there.

Well a little, yeah. But most teams that are in the playoffs are very similar talent-wise and it usually comes down to who gets hot at the right time (see: 2004 and 2007 Red Sox from Game 5 of ALCS to WS, 2008 Phillies, etc.). And this is basically the method Theo adheres to.

So every playoff team has a similar rotation of Beckett, Lester, Buccholz, and Lackey? Methinks not. They have a YUGE advantage in that respect - and I'd take that on a playoff run any year, any time, with just about any lineup (and they have a damn good lineup* too). So no, not all teams are similar talent-wise. The reason it's a crapshoot is because anything can happen in a 5 or 7 game series.

*pending health

They won't have a similar rotation but they will have similar overall HEALTHY talent in one respect or another (hitting, power, defense, bullpen, etc.), which is why all the teams have pretty similar regular season records, and, with a short series, it comes down to which team gets hot. Looking back at the past few years off the top of my head, it seems that every team in the LCS' were pretty similar talent wise and the WS generally consisted of the hottest teams. Really just splitting hairs but the lack of a huge talent gap and the short series makes it a crapshoot.

I get what you're saying but when analyzing pitching versus hitting and heating up, you only need one or two guys to heat up pitching (and only one per game) to be able to dominate pitching, while it's going to take more than one or two good hitters heating up (and for multiple games) to dominate hitting. I go with the stud rotation over the stud bats in the playoffs every time, especially considering pitchers have a built in advantage over hitters in the game itself. Of course TRE goes with any stud he can get ever since he became a bottom.

[branchinator]

The Red Sox have no chance of beating the Yankees this year even if they make the playoffs. There isn't a single pitcher in the Red Sox rotation who the Yankees wouldn't destroy except maybe Lester. And then there's that whole bullpen thing that the Red Sox haven't quite figured out.

[pick6pedro]

The Red Sox have no chance of beating the Yankees this year even if they make the playoffs. There isn't a single pitcher in the Red Sox rotation who the Yankees wouldn't destroy except maybe Lester. And then there's that whole bullpen thing that the Red Sox haven't quite figured out.

Sure, if you assume the Lee deal goes through, that A-Rod has officially left his turtle-Rod playoff rep behind, Tex does anything, a 38 year old pitcher continues on his torrid pace for another 4 months, Granderson does anything, Gardner and Cano continue to play at a high level...

[branchinator]

The Red Sox have no chance of beating the Yankees this year even if they make the playoffs. There isn't a single pitcher in the Red Sox rotation who the Yankees wouldn't destroy except maybe Lester. And then there's that whole bullpen thing that the Red Sox haven't quite figured out.

Sure, if you assume the Lee deal goes through, that A-Rod has officially left his turtle-Rod playoff rep behind, Tex does anything, a 38 year old pitcher continues on his torrid pace for another 4 months, Granderson does anything, Gardner and Cano continue to play at a high level...

Were you in a coma last year? A-Rod practically won the title for the Yankees last year with his clutch hits. All of that playoff choking stuff has washed away. With Lee, the Yankees will absolutely dominate a 7 game series against any opponent in MLB.

[pick6pedro]

The Red Sox have no chance of beating the Yankees this year even if they make the playoffs. There isn't a single pitcher in the Red Sox rotation who the Yankees wouldn't destroy except maybe Lester. And then there's that whole bullpen thing that the Red Sox haven't quite figured out.

Sure, if you assume the Lee deal goes through, that A-Rod has officially left his turtle-Rod playoff rep behind, Tex does anything, a 38 year old pitcher continues on his torrid pace for another 4 months, Granderson does anything, Gardner and Cano continue to play at a high level...

Were you in a coma last year? A-Rod practically won the title for the Yankees last year with his clutch hits. All of that playoff choking stuff has washed away. With Lee, the Yankees will absolutely dominate a 7 game series against any opponent in MLB.

No coma, that's why I said "officially" - one good postseason does not slap that away. Almost forgot, some of the problems in the Sox bullpen will be lessened because the lower starters will be in there...another reason I'd take pitching over hitting in the playoffs.

I'm glad you're so cocky. I'm also glad I'm not a Sox or Yankees fan.