Balta1701

3 pitches, 2 outs to start the 2nd. Good number of groundballs so far. Loved how awkward Span looked on that swing.

At least the Sox bats are back to their usual struggles against Pavano. When Hawk told me he had an ERA of over 9 since the AS break coming in I was worried we might actually hit him.

Phillies traded Gio Gonzalez and Gavin Floyd for a broken down Freddie Garcia.

This 598 vs. Stewart matchup worries me.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 07:28 PM) Right and if Rios can hit mistakes hell be hitting over 250. He just hasnt been hitting anything. The phrase by Hawk was "He's been trying to pull everything" and Pavano gave him a pitch that was pullable. That same pitch was a popup if Pavano could throw 92.

Oh Commander Chaos...

Doubles in his first AB.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 07:27 PM) Hmm that was odd Rios looked decent that at bat. First time the ball has seemed to leave Rios bat well. Look where the pitch was. It wasn't nearly outside far enough, so Rios was able to pull it.

Pavano leaves a fairly slow ball over the heart of the plate on the outer half, thigh high, Rios puts his big slow swing on it and bounces it off the LF wall. That leaves a lot of parks.

QUOTE (TheBigHurt @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 07:25 PM) Except Rios has had a reputation for a WHILE now of simply not caring anymore. Can anyone MAKE him care again? Less likely than Dunn recovering, IMO. He's put up an .800 OPS without caring before. I could live with that.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 07:24 PM) Got Kubel with a 95 mph fastball. Definitely can dial it up a notch when he needs it, sort of typical of a combo reliever/starter. It's obvious the main concern will be adding a workable changeup or curveball. Right now, he seems to be a classic sinker/slider type, and that (having two pitches as a starter without either being plus-plus) doesn't work unless you have pinpoint control. Again, the scouting reports say that he's got a changeup that sits around 79 that is currently an average pitch. Most pitchers wouldn't throw everything they have during the first inning, you ought to know that.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 07:19 PM) 88-91 MPH so far. 16 2/3, 26 hits....and his AAA start for us was similar, 10 hits in 6.3 Slider at 85. Fastest pitch so far 92. He really needs to come up with more of a variance in pitch speed. His stuff looks fairly identical to the "bad" Jake Peavy, actually. Doesn't he have a change also? Scouting reports say he will throw one at about 79. It is a bit early to be breaking in the Change if it's not your strongest pitch.

According to Ozzie, Stewart will make this start, then likely 1 more start and then head to the bullpen, moving back to a 5 man rotation.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 06:41 PM) They even tried to "hype" Marquez as being a future back of the rotation guy when he was acquired as the "centerpiece" of the Swisher deal. No way they're going to compare Stewart to, I don't know, Sean Tracey. Heck, I still remember KW "spinning" all the positives of Felix Diaz and Jon Adkins back in the day. This is no different. And I remember KW spinning how happy he was to get Gavin Floyd and Jon Danks.

QUOTE (TheBigHurt @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 06:43 PM) Dunn, I'm convinced, is in some awkward mental state or is doing something different that has caused him to be this bad. NL to AL makes no difference, NO ONE who's as consistent a HR hitter as Dunn is (or any other player for that matter) just all of a sudden can't hit at all... not after tallying his numbers up. I still feel hopeful at some point during his tenure here he will find his magic again and turn it back around. Why? Because it's perfectly logical. Rios on the other hand? Not so much. We already know what the problem is with him and I doubt it changes anytime soon. Trouble with that last statement is...Rios actually did have a successful, if not dominant first half last year, keyed by an awesome month of may. There's just as much reason to believe that the problem can change with him as with Dunn, and Hell, Rios is younger.

QUOTE (kjshoe04 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 06:47 PM) I think if Ozzie goes the Sox can compete in 2012. In this division of course they can. But they can only compete if they get good performances out of Peavy, Rios, and Dunn. There's just too much money locked up there to get around this kind of garbage.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 06:08 PM) Get used to it. Rios will be in the lineup for many moons to come. As will Dunn. Sox were willing to pay these guys long term; we'll have to suffer watching them long term. He may be in the lineup for several years...but he shouldn't be in there now. A long benching and move to backup status is the right move right now. Playing once, maybe twice a week at most. Earns his way back if we're content with the level of work that is put in off of the diamond and how he performs/hustles while on the diamond.

You enjoy the radiation, i'll enjoy a beer.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 06:21 PM) It's easy to say you want a rebuild. Going through it will be agony. The Sox need to be Yankees light. Sign a batch of free agents and Latin/Janpanese players while trying to not have the worst minor league system in baseball. We need to keep this base of good pitchers and start "rebuilding' our lineup. First step is to somehow get somebody to take Rios and Dunn off our hands with us paying only half the salaries. Going through this is agony. Stop pretending someone will take Rios or Dunn away if you pay 1/2. Just stop. It's not happening, the only way it happens is if they start hitting next year, and if that happens then suddenly you think twice about trading them...just like we wound up not thinking about trading Rios after he started hot last year.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 05:35 PM) I just do not trust helicopters period. Those things are always crashing. It was shot down.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 04:58 PM) If he gives us 7 innings and allows 2-3 runs that would be a good start to his Sox career. For a rookie? That'd be really great.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 04:53 PM) I guess I was wondering if he's at the Humber stage of his career entering tonight. No, Stewart's much younger and has never even come close to getting a shot. He made his big league debut earlier this year, probably ahead of schedule, and had 2 decent outings in 3 tries.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 04:40 PM) Is this Stewart guy still considered a hot prospect? I don't know youd apply hot, "Moderate with some potential" is more accurate.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Aug 6, 2011 -> 04:44 PM) And where are these prospects? That's right. There are none. As long as he's here, you play him. If only to build his value up for next year. Rios has no business playing tonight at the expense of CQ. And my break does not start until gametime tonight. Well, maybe he needs a day off? (Of course, the Elf ought to be playing then.)

Lacher