Lillian

Yes, I was being serious. Although, I qualified my comments by admitting that limited Spring Training stats are not very meaningful, Moncada's completely underwhelming performance may not help his negotiating position. His offense has been completely absent, in his first 18 at bats. He isn't even making hard contact. He's healthy, been in camp the whole time, and even showed up early. I hope that he gets going soon. I know that I shouldn't over react, but he does look pretty lost, at the plate. There will be many times, during the season, when even great hitters will go through such slumps, but I'd like to think that it would at least be against really good pitching, not a bunch of Minor League arms. If he had a longer track record, I'd be much less concerned, but he looks more like the 2018 version, than the 2019 version, especially his reversion back to taking close pitches, with 2 strikes. Again, I don't get overly optimistic about a guy having a great Spring, considering the circumstances, but I'd like to see the best players giving a better account of themselves, than what Yoan has been doing.

Moncada's underwhelming Spring continues. He is not helping himself. It may turn out to be a blessing, in disguise for the front office, even if no one takes Spring Training performance very seriously. Poor performance is probably more meaningful than outstanding performance. Facing a lot of Minor League arms, can inflate a hitter's Spring stats, but not being able to excel against mediocre pitching is not a good sign, especially in that dry Arizona air, in which it's hard to get pitches to break.

After having watched all of his posted videos, I'm sorry to have to say that they really are awful. Tim seems to be constantly "playing to the camera". Most of his continuous hand symbols and mutterings, are either inaudible, or unintelligible, and often cringe worthy. The intriguing idea of having good quality video, revealing an inside look into the personality of this appealing group of Sox players seemed promising. Unfortunately, this effort falls far short of its potential. Eloy has the personality to do something like this, but I'm afraid that Tim just isn't cut out for it. Perhaps the best thing Tim could do is simply pretend that no one is capturing any of his antics on video. Just be himself and stop playing to the camera. Oh, and better quality video, and better editing would also help. Nevertheless, I like Tim, love the way he plays, and appreciate the good things he does. Hey Tim, just "don't give up your day job".

Eloy changed his batting stance, for that at bat. His left foot was not turned in and he looked like he was in a more pronounced crouch.

For either side to acknowledge any of this would be very foolish. Just imagine the endless questions, which would ensue. It would become a distraction of nightmare proportions.

I agree. The primary objection to these big, long term free agent deals, is the tail end of the contracts, when a team is saddled with a very expensive, underperforming contract. The strategy of locking up a player, through his best prime years is much more appealing. There is always risk, but this is relatively less risky.

That wouldn't be my choice, but you may be right. It will be interesting to see how well some of these guys perform, this Spring, and what they ultimately decide to do with the roster. I personally don't think that there is enough difference in the offense, between Leury and Engel, versus LHP, to give the platoon role to Leury. I prefer Engels defense.

Again, once Madrigal is added, I would expect Leury to be the primary reserve infielder. He should be ahead of Mendick, especially considering that Leury has a $3,5 Million contract. I think Mendick returns to Charlotte, once Madrigal is given second base. Engel is a better choice for the 4TH outfielder, to provide late inning defense, as well as a possible platoon partner for Mazara. I don't see the Sox carrying a 5TH Bench player. I think there will be 13 pitchers and 13 position players.

I have a feeling that Delmonico will soon be added to this discussion. The history Stone shared yesterday, about Nickey's painful injury and how he is now feeling 100%, coupled with his positive mechanical changes, working with Menechino, were all a revelation to me. At this early point in the season, I'd favor either Mercedes or Delmonico. Once Madrigal is added to the 26 man roster, I'd like to see the 4 bench players consist of Engel, Leury, McCann and one of those two.

However this deal is being structured, I do hope that it will keep him under Sox control, through this window of contention, but not so long that he lacks sufficient incentive to play for another contract. Perhaps an opt out after 2027, or simply a deal which expires after that season. Having him through his age 31 season would be great. Conceptually, this strategy of paying for the prime years, while maintaining control, seems much more sensible than paying for declining years of production, and being saddled with an albatross contract for a player in his very late 30's.

Thanks.

How long could the Sox retain Nicky in AAA, and on the 40 man roster, without the risk of losing him?

A core comprised of Anderson, Robert, Eloy, Moncada, Vaughn and Madrigal could solidify the offense, for a good long run. I'm hoping that Mazara realizes his potential and is added to that core, with an extension. I wonder how willing Mr. Reinsdorf will be to lock up some of the starters. It would be risky, but having Giolito, Cease and Kopech around for the same time frame, could be interesting. I'm skeptical of the chances and a good argument can be made for not committing to arms, given their fragility.

I love watching Tim play and I respect his philanthropic work in the community, however he does seem awfully full of himself. His Youtube channel is interesting, more for the behind the scenes peeks at the other players, than for his hardly audible ramblings. Oh, and I too worry about him trying to make a video and text, while driving. Perhaps he should hire a driver, so that he and his video assistant can concentrate on their "productions," while the driver concentrates on getting him to the field in one piece. In any case, he may be trying to juggle too many plates, while striving to accomplish his self proclaimed goals. I'd really prefer that he just focus on his game and let his video maker capture everything, more in the style of "Candid Camera". I do wonder if some of his teammates may not be comfortable with the loss of their privacy.

I just listened to the new Mazara interview, on the NBC podcast. What a terrific, likeable young man. He was more personable, intelligent and articulate than most of the American ball players, whom I've heard interviewed, especially considering that English is not his native language. I'll be rooting very hard for him and love his potential.

Although it is very unlikely, the Astro players might be best served, at this point, by actually being accountable and trying to demonstrate some sincere contrition. So far, their obviously scripted and phoney apologies have been transparently rejected by fans and players alike. Again, while it's highly unlikely, they might be able to stem the tide of scorn and vitriol by admitting that they did not fairly compete and therefore did not deserve their championship. Rather than the League stripping them of their title, they should volunteer to give back the trophy and their rings. That would earn them some respect and help restore the reputation of the game. I know, it's never going to happen, but it should.

Hey, present company excluded. I'm old, but I'm not "whiny," nor bad-tempered. All of these very young multi-millionaires are prone to ill-advised behaviour. Awarding tens of millions of dollars to young men, in their early 20's, in our current social culture, what could possibly go wrong? Hopefully, Abreu will provide some positive role model suggestions, minus the tobacco chewing. At any rate, I'm glad that Puig was not added to this likeable group of players.

Is Colorado really looking for that much talent, in their attempts to trade Arenado? I would think that it would take less. That contract is not exactly a bargain. As has been pointed out, the acquiring team would only be getting two guaranteed years of his service, because of his opt out. Seems like a lot to give up for just two years.

Leury should be just fine, as a platoon partner for Mazara. He hits lefties well enough to cover those games, as his performance over the last 3 years indicates: AVG OBP SLG .302 .341 .349 .333 .349 .444 .311 .344 .443 Given his speed and versatility, he is probably as good as some of the other names, which have been suggested, in the limited role of Mazara's platoon partner, especially when considering the cost. I'm much more interested in additional pitching depth, than I am concerned about acquiring a guy to take 100 + at bats from Mazara. In fact, I'd kind of like to know if Mazara can learn to hit lefties better. If Nomar realizes his potential vs. RH pitching, it would be helpful to know if he would still need a platoon partner, going forward, should the Sox have an interest in extending him.

Here are the issues, as I see them: 1) Fairness - The victories in the Post Season were not fairly won. 2) Justice - How do you try to rectify the injustice done and achieve some restitution? The only action which really fits the offense is to have the title, which was not won fairly, taken away. Exactly how that can be achieved is something that can be debated. It would understandably be problematic, at the very least. Questions such as; who would be declared the champions, what about the individual statistics compiled during the post season, what happens to the W. S. rings and what about the additional earnings derived from winning the Championship? However those issues would be resolved, in any case, the Astros should not be entitled to claim the World Series Championship in 2017. 3) Deterrent - Measures must be taken to mitigate the possibility of a recurrence of this behaviour. Perhaps strong penalties, as well as means of precluding any such future attempts, can all be part of that process. The use of electronic communication between the catcher and the pitcher would seem to be one viable strategy. In summary; suspending players doesn't seem to be feasible. How can one be certain which players participated, or which ones knew and did, or didn't object. The more appropriate measure would be to simply deprive them of their unfairly awarded title of Champions. It's a team sport and that punishment affects the entire team. Strip them and the team of their fraudulently awarded title and let them live with that disappointment and shame. That is my humble opinion, and I'm sure that many have their own take, which is quite different.

I'm not qualified to address the technological challenges, but I suspect that a secure means of communication could be achieved.

Not having read this entire thread, perhaps this has already been suggested, but why can't pitchers and catchers utilize a similar means of electronic communication, to eliminate future sign stealing? Putting down fingers seems like a pretty antiquated method of communication, in this modern digital age. That would be a completely appropriate use of the technology and eliminate the ability of teams to steal signs. As for the appropriateness of the punishments handed down by the Commissioner; As long as the perpetrators keep their World Series titles, it doesn't seem like justice has really been served here. Managers and GM's get fired all of the time, for doing nothing wrong, beyond failing to produce. That is not a harsh punishment and not sufficient to deter future violations. Beyond the deterrent issue, the fact is that the Astros, and perhaps the Red Sox, did not fairly earn their championships. That fact is not being addressed, by simply suspending a few people for one year. Well, I'm sure that has all been expressed by others, but that's my take.

That's true.

I see. So, you would be willing to just put Castellanos in RF and accept his poor defense. Well, that is one possibility, but I'm not sure how much sense that makes. At any rate, thanks for the clarification.

Do you really think that he would get any playing time in LF, with Eloy there? Why would he get any of the DH at bats, with E. E. there? They're all right handed hitters. I don't see the logic in that. Given his poor defense, the only place I see that he would fit, would be as a platoon partner with Mazara, taking the AB's versus LH pitching and I don't know why he would sign a one year contract, accepting such a limited role. Moreover, even if he would accept such a limited role, it would be hard to justify spending that much money to acquire him, under those circumstances.