Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

[ILLCHILL]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

WOW! That was hilarious. First of all, Manny IS back and hitting as good as ever. Second, I don't know whose reaction to that grand slam was funnier, Myers of Manny. We are playing flawlessly right now and it follows manny's World Series guarentee. If we were slumping then the dopes at FSN wouldnt stop talking about how that guarentee hurt us.

[Stu]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

WOW! That was hilarious. First of all, Manny IS back and hitting as good as ever. Second, I don't know whose reaction to that grand slam was funnier, Myers of Manny. We are playing flawlessly right now and it follows manny's World Series guarentee. If we were slumping then the dopes at FSN wouldnt stop talking about how that guarentee hurt us.

Some more fun Manny stats.
- Since June 11th his batting average has gone up in 11 of 12 games. The only one it didnt was the game he got beaned and left 0-1.
- His Avg on June 11th was .248. As of yesterday it was .275
- He has 7 multi-hit games during that 2 week stretch and is batting .409 with 7 HR's and 17 RBI, not counting today.
- He is tied with David Ortiz for the AL lead in RBI's at 65

[ILLCHILL]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

Some more fun Manny stats.
- Since June 11th his batting average has gone up in 11 of 12 games. The only one it didnt was the game he got beaned and left 0-1.
- His Avg on June 11th was .248. As of yesterday it was .275
- He has 7 multi-hit games during that 2 week stretch and is batting .409 with 7 HR's and 17 RBI, not counting today.
- He is tied with David Ortiz for the AL lead in RBI's at 65

Also, he rocks that do-rag far better than Dimitri Young does.

[CWood2]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

My feeling on the Schmidt talks is they are just keeping communication open in case Schilling suffers a setback. While Schilling is talking and acting like he is back to 100%, that may not be the case. One thing Theo has excelled at since becoming the Red Sox GM, is keeping our options open.

I think if Schilling is healthy, Schmidt in the rotation is just too much, unless they plan on dealing Arroyo.

A lot of people feel that Arroyo would be perfect in middle relief for us, and has shown that he is in the playoffs last year. Personally, I think we can get an arm or two for the pen and trade Arroyo now while his stock is high and his salary is low. If we put him in the bullpen, his trade value could take a hit. When he's healthy, Jason Schmidt has phenominal stuff, even better than Wade Miller. It's no secret Theo wants to get younger and if Schmidt can regain his Cy Young form, I'm going to keep pushing for this guy. If we can keep the key prospects, Zito could get all the attention in a few weeks while we take a big salary off the Giants hands nice and quietly...maybe.

[GBrushTWood]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

^^ Right. We already have somewhat of a logjam at starter with Schilling on the verge of being activated. I can't see how any person can think that regaining Schilling can somehow hurt the momentum of this team. He's the friekin ace. Maybe if he's still not 100% and not throwing > 91.
As of right now, acquiring Schmidt does not solve the real problems of this team: middle relief, long relief, and utility infielder.

Fortunately, these are all fixable problems. Whether they go inside the organization (Dinardo, Malaska to replace Embree, Alvarez to replace Dalai-Halama, and Machado to replace Vazquez) or outside (re-acquire Pokey Reese from Seattle? Ron Villone, Jeremy Affeldt?) remains to be seen. I'm confident Theo will make the appropriate move and improve this team even more.

Right now, I don't see any team beating the 2005 Red Sox, especially in Fenway Park. Honestly, can anybody envision a team coming into Fenway and putting away the Red Sox? I just can't right now. The White Sox do not scare me (just keep Podsednik off the bases). IMO, their good fortune with their punch and judy offense will eventually balance out. I just can't see their SP holding up in the dog days, especially in that ballpark known for its offense. And the bullpen? Hermanson is Hermanson. You can coat and paint a turd all you want, it's still a turd. Hermanson ain't that great.

IMO, Boston, Chicago WS, and Anaheim will all be in the playoffs. The real interesting part should be who gets that final wild card spot. Right now, it seems to be a dogfight between Minnesota, Texas, and Baltimore. If the Yankees can get above .500, then they can be considered too.

[rsox]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

One thing people seem to forget about putting Wakefield in the bullpen is Wakefield has converted 22 out of 30 Save oppertunities in his career, so Wakefield has had success coming out of the pen.

[Misfit]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

Quite a wacky game today. It was a win and the offense was still smoking but its never a good sign when you let an 8 run lead melt away. Middle relief is still a problem for this team and I'm not sure Embree makes it to the end of the season.

This team is crusing right now, but they aren't unbeatable. In a short series, the Twins and White Sox could prove lethal in the AL as could Anaheim if their starting pitching gets on track. Schilling and Wells aren't a sure bet and Clement doesn't have a lot of postseason experience. And St. Louis still looks like they might be the best team in baseball right now.

[ILLCHILL]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

In reply to what another poster said about the possiblity of re-acquiring Pokey, I think he is out for the year with an injury.

[GBrushTWood]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

Reese underwent right shoulder surgery on May 6th and was supposed to be out 4-6 weeks. He's not ready to hit yet, but he's not out for the season.

In addition, Seattle has seen the emergence of a prospect named Mike Morse at SS, making Reese seemingly expendable. The only thing is, does Reese want to be a defensive replacement at this point? Maybe the chance to nab another ring would override his desire to start? It doesn't have to be Reese either, just somebody to replace the corpse known as Ramon Vazquez, who can't hit, can't run, has been injured all year, and isn't a ++ defender.

After thinking about acquiring Jason Schmidt, I've read a couple of scenarios on SoSH that seem to benefit the club this year and beyond.

Jason Schmidt for Wade Miller, Kelly Shoppach, and maybe Jon Papelbon.
This opens up a spot in the rotation for Schmidt, gives our rotation that definitive 1-2 of Schilling and Schmidt, and strengthens our pitching overall, without giving up any of Hanley, Pedroia, Lester, Sanchez. Shoppach is going to get moved, we know that. Wade Miller has been mediocre thus far IMO. 4.83 ERA, 5.74 K/9, 1.45 K/BB, 1.43 WHIP is not that great. I'd definitely be up for moving him.
I'm not sure the Giants would want to make this move, however, based purely on Miller having almost 5 years service time and being arb-eligible. If they didn't take on Miller and asked for Arroyo, I probably wouldn't do this move.

[Stu]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

Another point regarding the benefits of acquiring Schmidt. It would give the Red Sox 2 aces heading down the stretch and we all know how well that worked out for them last year with Schill and Pedro. A team with 2 aces is virtually unbeatable in the playoffs. Although he's 32, Schmidt is much younger than Schilling so it gives them a legitimate #1 going forward. Schilling probably only has this year and maybe next year left as a #1 starter.

I agree on Shoppach. There's really no reason not to trade him, barring injury. They're high on Papelbon but I dont think they'd be opposed to moving him.

[CWood2]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

Reese underwent right shoulder surgery on May 6th and was supposed to be out 4-6 weeks. He's not ready to hit yet, but he's not out for the season.

In addition, Seattle has seen the emergence of a prospect named Mike Morse at SS, making Reese seemingly expendable. The only thing is, does Reese want to be a defensive replacement at this point? Maybe the chance to nab another ring would override his desire to start? It doesn't have to be Reese either, just somebody to replace the corpse known as Ramon Vazquez, who can't hit, can't run, has been injured all year, and isn't a ++ defender.

After thinking about acquiring Jason Schmidt, I've read a couple of scenarios on SoSH that seem to benefit the club this year and beyond.

Jason Schmidt for Wade Miller, Kelly Shoppach, and maybe Jon Papelbon.
This opens up a spot in the rotation for Schmidt, gives our rotation that definitive 1-2 of Schilling and Schmidt, and strengthens our pitching overall, without giving up any of Hanley, Pedroia, Lester, Sanchez. Shoppach is going to get moved, we know that. Wade Miller has been mediocre thus far IMO. 4.83 ERA, 5.74 K/9, 1.45 K/BB, 1.43 WHIP is not that great. I'd definitely be up for moving him.
I'm not sure the Giants would want to make this move, however, based purely on Miller having almost 5 years service time and being arb-eligible. If they didn't take on Miller and asked for Arroyo, I probably wouldn't do this move.

I don't think Theo would include Papelbon in a deal for Schmidt. If they want Abe Alvarez, I'm game, but considering the uncertainty of Schmidt and his salary, I don't think it would happen. Shoppach could play for them now and to get a good pitcher and a pretty good prospect to save them $10 mil, that should be more than good enough. If not, I'd be willing to move on with what we got.

[rsox]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

I think it would take one heck of a package to get the Giants to trade Schmidt. However, Kirk Reuter and Bret Tomko are most definately up for grabs. Schmidt is starting to regain his form, in his last two starts he has allowed 0 runs, has 15 K's and has only walked 3 in 16 innings. If he continues to improve like this then by the trading deadline the Giants are going to start asking for more than Kelly Shoppach.

I think the Red Sox rotation with Schilling and Clement is more than capable of getting the job done, they need help in the bullpen and that should be priority one. Getting someone to replace Vazquez shouldn't be too hard, they could look for a Tony Graffanino or a Chris Woodward, they also have a pretty good utility guy in Dave Berg down in Pawtucket (Berg is hitting .299 with 0 HR's and 33 RBI's for the PawSox).

[GBrushTWood]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

I don't think Theo would include Papelbon in a deal for Schmidt. If they want Abe Alvarez, I'm game, but considering the uncertainty of Schmidt and his salary, I don't think it would happen. Shoppach could play for them now and to get a good pitcher and a pretty good prospect to save them $10 mil, that should be more than good enough. If not, I'd be willing to move on with what we got.

I think the biggest thing we're assuming here is Schmidt's health. That's the real wildcard in this situation. I've heard he's been better lately, but there seemed to be some serious concerns about this guy's elbow as early as a couple weeks ago.
It would certainly be a high risk/high reward type of trade, and when you're looking at possible damaged goods, one that Theo might be averse to pulling the trigger with. OTOH, Schmidt's contract has a club option in 2006 ($10M club option, $3M buyout), so acquiring Schmidt wouldn't necessarily indicate a long term commitment, though it would certainly seem like a step in the direction...

The other thing regarding Schmidt is if we see him as the type of guy to anchor our rotation 3-4 years into the future. I'm sure that Bill James, et al are performing their projections as to what Schmidt might produce in the next couple of years, and how much that is worth financially to the team.
Remember, we have fairly solid prospects making their way through the system these days. If a few of Papelbon, Lester, Sanchez (or others) can be dependable pitchers in 3-4 years, that would save tremendous resources otherwise dedicated towards expensive SP like Schmidt or other established FA starters in their 30's.
We would then be able to allocate these resources towards the best FA to come out.
We know that the FA pitching class this off-season is fairly weak (Burnett and...??), but how about into the future? Santana and Sheets seem to be locked up. I think more and more smaller market teams are locking up and will continue to lock up their young stud arms before they hit arbitration and even reach FA before they're past 30 years old.

This would certainly be an interesting deal. If Theo does pull it, I'm confident that he's calculated that Schmidt is worth the risk. I think prospects are such crapshoots that if you get the chance to acquire a Schmidt for a package of W. Miller + Shoppach + top minor league prospect not named Pedroia, Ramirez, Lester, Sanchez, you do it, especially with Schmidt not being tied down long term.

*Edit* One thing I didn't even think of is that we're dealing with Brian Sabean here. This guy just got bent over a chair by Jim Hendry in the Hawkins/Williams trade. It's not out of the realm of possibiltiy that Theo "sells him some fine real estate in the country".

[CWood2]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

I think the biggest thing we're assuming here is Schmidt's health. That's the real wildcard in this situation. I've heard he's been better lately, but there seemed to be some serious concerns about this guy's elbow as early as a couple weeks ago.
It would certainly be a high risk/high reward type of trade, and when you're looking at possible damaged goods, one that Theo might be averse to pulling the trigger with. OTOH, Schmidt's contract has a club option in 2006 ($10M club option, $3M buyout), so acquiring Schmidt wouldn't necessarily indicate a long term commitment, though it would certainly seem like a step in the direction...

The other thing regarding Schmidt is if we see him as the type of guy to anchor our rotation 3-4 years into the future. I'm sure that Bill James, et al are performing their projections as to what Schmidt might produce in the next couple of years, and how much that is worth financially to the team.
Remember, we have fairly solid prospects making their way through the system these days. If a few of Papelbon, Lester, Sanchez (or others) can be dependable pitchers in 3-4 years, that would save tremendous resources otherwise dedicated towards expensive SP like Schmidt or other established FA starters in their 30's.
We would then be able to allocate these resources towards the best FA to come out.
We know that the FA pitching class this off-season is fairly weak (Burnett and...??), but how about into the future? Santana and Sheets seem to be locked up. I think more and more smaller market teams are locking up and will continue to lock up their young stud arms before they hit arbitration and even reach FA before they're past 30 years old.

This would certainly be an interesting deal. If Theo does pull it, I'm confident that he's calculated that Schmidt is worth the risk. I think prospects are such crapshoots that if you get the chance to acquire a Schmidt for a package of W. Miller + Shoppach + top minor league prospect not named Pedroia, Ramirez, Lester, Sanchez, you do it, especially with Schmidt not being tied down long term.

*Edit* One thing I didn't even think of is that we're dealing with Brian Sabean here. This guy just got bent over a chair by Jim Hendry in the Hawkins/Williams trade. It's not out of the realm of possibiltiy that Theo "sells him some fine real estate in the country".

I share your confidence in Theo. I've followed the Braves since '91 so I watched Schmidt come up and show his stuff as a young starter. When we lost him just before he hit his prime, I always wanted to get him back. So if the Sox can snatch him if he's healthy, I agree with your assessment. It's a great feeling though; if a deal doesn't get done, you have to think it's for the best. The only thing I question is his constant attempts to unload Manny. I don't care how much he makes, we're a completely different team without him hitting behind Ortiz!

Looking forward to more Schmidt rumblings and other potential targets though, fun time of year.

[GBrushTWood]

Re: Official Boston Red Sox 2005 Thread

The only thing I question is his constant attempts to unload Manny. I don't care how much he makes, we're a completely different team without him hitting behind Ortiz!

If Theo managed to move Manny Ramirez before the end of July, we should erect a statue of him outside of Fenway Park immediately. I'm not kidding. Manny receives his 10/5 rights at the conclusion of this season, aka - no trade provision in his contract. If Theo does not move Manny by the end of this month, we're essentially stuck with him for approximately $18-21M/year for the next 3 years (at least). Think about the kind of players they could acquire with that saved money.

Of course, nobody seems to be willing to take on that contract. I don't think even Sabean is that dumb. The Yankees and every other team had the chance to have Manny for JUST the waiver wire fee at the end of 2003. They chose not to.