WestEddy

And I didn't get seethingly angry over Frank Thomas getting asked to DH. I think it's reasonable for a team to ask a player who isn't good defensively at his position to move to an easier position, or DH. I also think it's reasonable for a player to push back because Frank reasoned that being on the field kept his head in the game better. I could be misremembering, but I didn't feel Frank caused a huge rift over answering questions in interviews where he stated a preference for playing 1B while he was actually DHing. When a player starts arguing about being lied to, or whatnot, I also don't think it's unreasonable for fans to get tired of high-paid athletes complaining about the kind of things we all deal with on a daily basis for a lot less money. I also don't think it's unreasonable for anyone to side with the player. That doesn't preclude me from having an opinion.

And I know Sox fans who will always consider him a man-baby and a clubhouse cancer. I saw his point, but it's not abnormal for fans to get pissed at a player for going to the media with their grievances.

No, it's more when people barrel in and act like jerks because I'm not joining them in being pissed over something insignificant. Any sports talk anywhere is pretty miserable.

I'm 61. I know I've set myself up as a person who can be trolled. I was challenged over this: I believe that this was the first I weighed in on this string.

Pro and Anti Devers. It's a phenomenon that anything said on the internet must be defended to one's death.

If you want to talk about a snakebit organization, the Red Sox caught the bouquet on that one. I've already said they communicated poorly with Devers. It also is coming out that their development is taking a huge step backwards. They blew up their last core, and it's only a matter of time before this one is scattered. Their front office appears to be everything we accuse the White Sox FO of being. But there can be no nuance, here. One must capitulate and completely agree on every point, or else we're front office lapdogs. None of Devers' grand-children or great-grandchildren will have to work a single day of their lives. I don't really feel compelled to get seethingly angry because some 28-year-old dude is asked to do a slightly different job for 4 months at his $30M paycheck.

Yeah, I've got better things to do than research some "gotcha" question you just threw at me. Very recently, Kris Bryant played all over the diamond, along with Zobrist. Pete Rose did it back in the day. I suppose they don't count because .... reasons. LOL. Carrying the offense? Hyperbole much? Devers is 2nd on his team in offensive bWAR behind Bregman, and Narvaez and Duran aren't far behind. Yes, Devers is a crybaby, and a clubhouse cancer. It's not like the Red Sox talked to one team and traded him. That paltry return is what he's worth. The Giants just picked up a hitter who knew he was bad defensively, did nothing about it, then basically went crying to TMZ when they asked him to DH, then play 1B in an emergency situation. If Devers was the DH during the Marathon bombing, he probably would have used the "it's our fucking city" opportunity to say, "It's my fucking DH position!!"

When Sosa returns, there won't be any spots for Baldwin to play every day, unless they bench/cut Noda, and put Baldwin somewhere in the IF, when it seems they really want him to learn CF right now. And I don't really know the math but maybe keeping him down for most of June and July buys yet another year out of him. I do think that Baldwin can be a starter who bounces around the diamond, eventually. But I think he's there, yet.

Sure. A guy like Elko getting paid close to $4000 a day for a week really isn't jerking him around. Baldwin's working on his OF defense and his hitting at AAA. Promoting a player for a few days (again, at close to $4000 a day), isn't mistreating him.

Elko is generally regarded as a AAAA player. Nobody, even his most ardent supporters here, thought he would "save" this team. Brooks Baldwin needs work in both his offensive and defensive games if he wants a prolonged look on the major league club. Quero, Teel, Meidroth, Shane Smith, Mike Vasil, Sean Burke, Cannon, Davis Martin, Eisert, Grant Taylor, Leasure and Cam Booser all had less than one year's service time coming into this season. Miguel Vargas and Lenyn Sosa have one year's service time. That's 14 players - more than half the team is rookies "breaking in" to the majors. And if you really want to get technical about it, Ryan Noda and Jacob Amaya are getting/got extended looks in the majors. 2 starting (Houser, Civale) and 3 relief pitchers (S. Wilson, Altavilla, Alexander) are soaking up the remaining innings and will most probably all be moved at the deadline. That leaves their 5 OFs (Robert, Benintendi, Slater, Tauchman, Michael A. Taylor), most of whom are being marketed for this TDL. None of the outfielders at AAA are generally regarded as "prospects" anymore. Any playing time they get will most likely come after the TDL, which is still a full 2 months of major league games at over $3k paid a day. Can you explain how "this is not the team for a prospects to 'break in' with"? Elko was clearly overmatched at the plate. Baldwin is getting instruction on playing OF at Charlotte, and will probably start the last two months of the season. Otherwise, over half of their roster is prospects or rookies getting a full shot at breaking in.

Capitalism = Lying, and it's rewarded on a daily basis. Don't act naive. Team leaders lead. As I said, the team should have communicated better with him. However, he could have acted like an adult man and dealt with the situation without pouting. Public pouting shouldn't be rewarded, either.

Yes, and all of that's on the Red Sox front office. Then Casas was injured, and Devers should have been more amenable to helping out, instead of pouting.

I think it's been reported they wanted him and his BS away from the rookie core coming up.

People scream about "development" when a player boots a grounder or misplays a pop-up. Then when the Sox find a way to keep a guy in AAA for a few months to work on his game, we all become victims of the Sox not putting this guy in the bigs. Sports Talk and Sox Twitter have turned us all into incorrigible whiners.

A 4-WAR DH in his prime.

You're bumping a three week dead string on a minor trade in order to gloat over a player's struggles over a very small sample size. I'm sorry you don't understand the term market inefficiency, or irony.

I hope you're still around to flog your interview with him in 30 years.

And, no, Smith wouldn't return to Milwaukee unless Shane Smith passed through waivers without being claimed. The same rules apply to both Smith and Vasil.

Yes, Rule 5 rules apply to Vasil. If a team wants to DFA or put a Rule 5 player in the minors, they have to put him through waivers. If another team takes him, Rule 5 rules now apply to the player with the claiming team. Only if the player clears waivers can the player return to the original team, and he comes off the 40-man, and the original team can put him back in the minors, if the pay the waiving team $50k. I'm not sure what you're talking about with Clevenger and Taylor. I'd imagine the plan is to work Vasil up to starting in the future. If they don't go on a wild shopping spree this winter, they're still going to need a good dozen starting pitchers to cover the bigs and AAA.

Vasil is Rule 5 and cannot be sent down without passing through waivers. Vasil holds his own in the bigs. There's no reason to send him down.

Well, think of how they do it in spring training. They don't just go from 2 to 7 innings. It looks like they're bumping him up 10 or so pitches a game. This is the first time he's finished 4 innings, right? I'm guessing they pretty much flip Vasil and Shane Smith after the All-Star game, moving SS to the bullpen, and having Vasil start.

What's up with Cam Booser? He hasn't pitched in a week.

I wasn't thinking about the 2 years of control. but if they get him pumping like Houser, perhaps they can amass a group of lotto tickets to see if any of them emerge as a prospect. Sure as s%*# Vaughn wasn't going to bring back anything of note.

I sure hope he doesn't. Planning on guys like Tim Elko is pure folly. He was given more than a fair shot. He looks like a fish out of water against big league pitchers. Yes, Elko should be asking for a trade. A trade to Zack Collins' Real Estate office.