bmags

I doubt it was an explicit trade-off. I can see this meaning JR is very excited, and if JR is excited I think he'll be able to stretch and find ways to make money work.

Great stuff from Law in here: https://theathletic.com/2153856/2020/10/29/keith-law-top-40-free-agents-ranking-of-the-mlb-offseason-2020/?redirected=1 One bit I hadn't thought of: 39. Chris Archer, RHP, age 32 Archer missed the 2020 season after surgery to repair thoracic outlet syndrome, and he had his worst-ever season in 2019 after a mid-season trade to the Pirates the year before. He has a great arm, with an out pitch in his slider, and he wouldn’t be the first pitcher to struggle under the previous Pirates’ coaching staff and find success elsewhere. If he’s healthy, he should have plenty of suitors on one-year deals. Other favorable writeups for Gausman as well. Also favorable bit on Kluber that was nice to see, as I wasn't sure how risky I was being still being interested i him: 33. Corey Kluber, RHP, age 35 Kluber threw just one inning in 2020 before a slight (grade 2) tear in his throwing shoulder ended his season, although it’s unclear if he will require surgery. That comes on the heels of a 2019 season lost to a broken arm after he was hit by a line drive and a lat muscle injury he suffered while rehabbing. We haven’t seen the “real” Kluber since 2018, when he led the AL in innings pitched and was third in the Cy Young voting, although his stuff was pretty close to normal when he did pitch in the last two seasons (by velocity, with slightly lower spin rates). Assuming the muscle tear has healed, I’d certainly throw him a one-year deal with incentives to see if the 2018 version — or something close to it — is still in there.

Many here yes. He's not going to become a manager of any big league club anytime soon.

Just a reminder Jirschele is a 30 year old manager of an A ball team. There aren't many places he'd do better than here.

La Russa to Danny Mendick in spring training

There are three areas of concern for me: Number 1) The drama and conflict that follows TLR teams Number 2) The prospect of TLR going around Hahn / Scouting to make player requests Number 3) Tim Anderson's thoughts. That dude should have been able to hand pick the manager imo. Numbers 2/3 I think can be mitigated and we'd hear pretty soon. but we are definitely going to live with #1.

Yes, I'd feel better if we see sox PD guys get onto the field so there is some greater connection between our PD/analytics and on field development. Really had dreams of getting the UMich pitching coach, that ain't happening. Worst case scenario: a bunch of TLR buddies come back. And the spending, hoo baby that'd be nice. Really starting to think if sox were given greenlight to expand payroll this offseason it could be like buying up the loop after the chicago fire (that said, feel terrible for the players that are FA this year, but better sox spend for them than not)

This is just incredible work, this is an excellent resource to guide gatherings in winter or tough decisions you may have to make: https://english.elpais.com/society/2020-10-28/a-room-a-bar-and-a-class-how-the-coronavirus-is-spread-through-the-air.html?ssm=TW_CC

And if you getting overruled in one place buys you favor in another, I would take getting overruled on the manager position if it meant getting more money for FAs. That said, I don't want this to be construed as supporting how JR is pushing this.

when your that old your nuts always tend to be resting on one line or another.

This is right. As for your second paragraph, I agree. OTOH, he was part of two extended runs of successful teams and was never thought of as a piece holding them back. Probably best you can do as a manager.

Yeah we aren’t doing this.

Good stuff. There are certainly ways to make this work, I just worry about TLRs ego in actually accepting it.

I mean, bragging about something you won’t execute is really the Hahn special

Why don’t people ever choose Thome? He’d be way better.

Yeah this. It is the open thing now so obviously we are focusing on it, but it’s just a manager.

I think everyone is okay to be mad, just for me ... It’s still just a manager. I just don’t like the distraction from the rest of the team. But it will fade and he’ll just be a bad interview at the end of games we can ignore.

Lol do you remember who beat out Ozzie Smith?

This is what worries me. I don't think it's Billy Martin level, but his teams had drama. JR seems to think conflict is good on teams since he's always had it. (This guy is a whiner but lined up with some of what I remember): https://redbirdrants.com/2011/01/01/the-tony-larussa-problem/ " CATFIGHTS AND CLIQUES A baseball team should be like a fraternity. The guys on that team should be like brothers, a close-knit group that sticks together through individual and team-related troubles. They should cheer for each other, weep with each other, party together, and support one another. However, LaRussa’s teams almost always resemble a sorority; gossipy, cliquish, divided, tense, jealous, and uncomfortable. This is almost entirely LaRussa’s fault, as his personality and tendency toward favoritism cultivates this type of atmosphere. The number of players emotionally and professionally mutilated or destroyed by a LaRussa clubhouse is disturbing. The fight list seems endless: Ozzie Smith (who has avoided the franchise because of LaRussa), J.D. Drew, Anthony Reyes, Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds … these big stars just couldn’t seem to get along with the man. But 2010 was LaRussa’s masterwork of destructive emotional debris. In one short season he managed to fight with Ryan Ludwick (who was then shipped off), Brendan Ryan, and Colby Rasmus. The Rasmus situation was most telling about the atmosphere of a LaRussa clubhouse. During the September revelations of a rift between LaRussa and Rasmus, it was revealed that Pujols took the young man aside to talk to him, and that it was the first time the two had really talked in the year and a half that Colby had been on the team. HUH? The only logical explanation is that Pujols, playing favorites, sided with his manager’s dislike of Rasmus and his pedigree and ignored the kid. No major league clubhouse that expects to win can have a heavy atmosphere of resentment and mistrust. We can see LaRussa’s withholding of emotion in the day to day efforts of the team. Striving to be cooly professional all the time, the team generally lacks fire when it counts. This leads to limp playoff appearances, where the team settles into a chilled and tense mode that stifles any spirit. The best example of this came in the ninth inning of the 2005 playoffs when Pujols hit that monster three run homer off of Brad Lidge. When Pujols arrived at the plate, there was nary a celebration among the Cardinals players; they just clapped and moved on. No truly successful team has such a complete lack of fire and enthusiasm with the game on the line. This lack of emotional center comes directly from LaRussa."

Pujols did it quite a bit honestly. There are certainly more now. I think TLR will let his guys do it, more worried about him retaliating to be honest. You go through that clip (i kept watching) and it's quite a lot of oakland As (henderson) and cardinals (pujols). They've certainly accelerated since that Blue Jays/Rangers series but it's not like Tim does it every time.

And this is more of a staredown and doesn't count but my god I can't imagine ever seeing a harder hit home run

didn't quite nail the clip, more like starts at 3:05

tooollllddd yaaaaa (that said, I disagree, Bauer's gonna go whomever "respects" him most with the deal)

Wong officially a FA. 2b free agents Lemahieu Wong Villar La Stella Hernandez Profar Schoop Depth - M Gonzalez, Iglesias... And that's not even including possible 2b signees like Gregorius and Semien (and obviously Simmons)

No, no hard disagree. Managers alone win world series.