Pretty obvious that the Red Sox have a don’t swing at the first pitch mandate that took the orioles about 4 innings to figure out.

Is that analytics? Kevin Cash should be all over this shit.

I was amused by him leaving his starter in to die yesterday.

1st place!

He's a wily one, for sure. Never know what you're gonna get!

home runs are fun

simpsons_mcgwire_dingers.gif

*still

man the yankees suck

Gotta find a way to watch these cats, my schedule has not worked out at all to catch a game on TV.

Can Chaim go full fire sale right now just to load up the farm and really send the radio folks out of their minds?

this team is legit there should be no selling this year

The people claiming that Bloom was trying to build a loser and somehow accidentally built a winner are laughable. They're going to get some more absurd ammunition at the deadline, though, as I don't see them making any splashy moves. Maybe trade some mid-level prospects for a bullpen arm? A bench bat? Starters aren't in the cards--the team is probably banking on Sale and Houck pitching big innings in the stretch. No position player rentals because they'd have to mortgage the future. Slow and steady seems to be the theme for the year.

yep

I wasn't thinking Chaim was trying to tank, but I was thinking they don't have enough to go all the way. So like your idea of taking it slow and steady, why not deal off Perez and Richards and whomever else you want to continue to build for the future. Houck and Sale are the exact reason I thought they might try to deal Perez & Richards and what made me post that yesterday.

I def think Chaim's plan was to flip people like Renfroe and Richards if they were having a good year, but I mean he cant be a seller now, right? I guess never say never with the way this team has operated the last two years, but I feel like they would be a buyer. They desperately need an actual center fielder and not someone playing there out of position.

I wouldn't trade Perez away because you need starter depth, and Perez happens to be an incredibly average starter--something you'd love for your 4-5 slot in the rotation. What team who's in an active pennant race is going to think a 4-5 starter will put them over the hump? On the flipside, if the Sox dump Perez and suddenly there's a rash of injuries, they could get a lot worse if you've gotta trot out Kyle Hart for a bunch of starts. If someone offered the Sox something even marginally good for Perez, it's a huge risk considering they've got a top-3 record in all of badeball.

Lol @ the idea of anyone offering anything for Garrett "Spidertack" Richards. He will probably be DFA'd when Sale comes up, and it's the best move they can make with him right now.

Re: CF, I think they are counting on Duran coming up around 8/1 and filling role almost immediately (DFA Santana at that point, if not sooner). When they bring him up, he's coming up to start and stay, not to spell the current players. Could go well, could turn out he needs more time, but I think it's clear that's the plan.