Lillian

Is there anyone in the Sox organization, who would be capable of providing adequate defense, if McCann is traded and then Grandal were injured? Neither Zavala, nor Mercedes are considered good defensive catchers. Think of it like this; If McCann were traded, then Grandal were injured, our catching tandem would be Collins and Zavala. Yikes!! No thanks.

I understand the concern about finding sufficient playing time for Collins. It's a valid point, because they will need to get him at least enough playing time to better evaluate him, going forward. It will be a challenge, unless either Grandal or McCann gets injured. However, there ought to be a way to work him into the mix, if they try. I think his catching is more important than his hitting, as he will not have a position unless he can catch, with Vaughn and Abreu sharing first base and DH, perhaps as early as 2021. With the offense that the Sox are assembling, there may be some games, in which he could get some playing time, when the Sox blow out the opposition.

Hopefully, by 2021 the Sox will have a better idea whether, or not, Collins is ready. At this point, they almost certainly do not know that. It also won't hurt to have him be mentored by both Grandal and McCann.

If Collins were a very good defensive catcher, he would be fine, as the back up, even if his bat is unproven. However, it just doesn't make sense to risk making him the primary catcher, if Grandal gets hurt. Perhaps if the Sox had another catcher in the system who was a very good defender, but they don't. Remember, catching is a defense first position, especially with 4 very young starters, out 6.

I have been stressing this point, but apparently some people don't care to factor in the potential injury factor. If Grandal were to miss substantial time, we would be stuck with a defensively challenged young catcher, who has yet to establish himself as a Major League hitter. That is not a prudent approach. McCann provides reasonable insurance, with his contract.

Maybin is actually a better hitter vs. RHP, than he is vs. LHP. He wouldn't work as a platoon partner for Mazara. I'd rather have Engel than Maybin. Pillar is an interesting possibility. Is his arm good enough for RF?

Oh, I see. Of course, that must be it. Thank you.

Excuse me, but what exactly is "dumb" about this post? I'm sorry, I must be missing something. Perhaps you were being just being sarcastic.

Very well said, and hard to refute. For those concerned about our best young prospects, consider that, in 2021, Vaughn could very well be the first baseman, Collins could be Grandal's back up catcher and one of Adolfo or Basabe could be sharing time in RF, with Mazara. Moreover, Mazara is only controllable for 2 years, and therefore may not even be in the mix, going forward. I'm hoping that he becomes a beast, but then the front office will be faced with the dilemma of whether, or not to sign him as a free agent. Bringing in E. E., for one year, seems like a very prudent move, at this juncture. If we're lucky, Vaughn, Adolfo, or Basabe and Collins all become part of the core, and afford the front office the financial flexibility to extend Giolito, Moncada, Robert and anyone else, whom they're concerned about ultimately losing to free agency, in their prime. It's interesting to note how some people seem to have no respect for the job that Hahn and the front office are doing. For my part, I'm quite satisfied with the overall rebuild, and am grateful that some of those, who consider Hahn an "idiot," are not running the front office. Perhaps we should try to better understand the rational behind these moves, before rejecting them, as "cheap, idiotic or desperate".

You said that you weren't sold on that order. I'm not either. I don't like putting 2 of the 3 LH hitters together, in the bottom 3RD of the lineup. It bunches too many of the RH, middle of the order bats together. Placing last year's batting champ, who is also probably the team's most accomplished base stealer, 9TH doesn't seem optimal. It is also a little premature to put both rookies at the very top of the order. I agree that they may ultimately be well suited for those spots in the lineup, but not in their Major League debuts. All that aside, the thought of potentially having an entire lineup full of legitimate hitters is exciting.

Finally, a rational post. Thank you. Regarding Collins, I contend that there is still room for him, if he can become a serviceable catcher. I doubt that McCann comes back for the 2021 season, when he reaches free agency. If he has another decent year, given his work ethic and ability to help pitchers, I would think he would rather sign somewhere to be the regular catcher, rather than Grandal's back up guy.

Regarding my power projections, FanGraphs is pretty close to my numbers, although most of them do not project full 162 game seasons, for the respective players. Perhaps the most significant mitigating factor would be a possible return to the use of the former ball. However, that hasn't been announced yet, has it?

Your point is well taken, however considering how much time he missed last year, it seems reasonable to me. Stone has consistently insisted that he will ultimately achieve that kind of power production. At the rate he hit homers last year, he would have hit 23, in a full 162 games.

Which specific projection do you think is overly optimistic, or unrealistic? I'm sincerely interested to know where I might be kidding myself.

I disagree. The young players, such as Anderson, Moncada and Eloy, were on pace to produce those kinds of numbers, last season. Each of them missed at least one month, but would have reached those numbers, if they had been healthy. Abreu actually hit 34 homers, if you count the one that they took away from him, because he passed T. A. on the base paths. Encarnacion missed almost the entire last 2 months and still hit 34. Mazara hit 19, but also missed 46 games (1/4 of the season). Moreover, he played with that bad thumb, for most of the first half of the year. He probably has more power than anyone on our roster. If Menechino can help him to unleash it, he could be a monster. Robert also has much more than 25 HR power, but that seems like a reasonable projection, for his rookie year. Granadal hit 28, but I only projected him to hit 25. I don't think that these are merely "best case numbers," although of course, they would be predicated on being able to stay on the field, for the entire year.

I posted my preferred lineup, with E. E. at DH, in another thread. Here it is with realistic projected home run totals, for 2020: Realistic HOME RUN production, with EE at DH (It could be even better, but this is conservative): SS Anderson 25 3B Moncada 30 LF Eloy 40 DH Encarnacion 40 C Grandal 25 McCann 10 1B Abreu 30 RF Mazara 25 CF Robert 25 2B Madrigal 5 TAKE THAT TWINKIES!!!!!! You know how I love having 3 dangerous left handed hitters, in the mix. That's precisely what I have been advocating, for the last several years.

Neither Eckstein, nor Pedroia had the elite contact skill that Madrigal projects to have. They struck out more than we should expect Nick to do. Pedroia did hit the ball harder, but we don't know how much stronger Nick might become, with a little time. I hope that he's hitting the weights hard.

The Sox have no one who could be counted on to catch, if one of Grandal, or McCann got hurt. Catching has to be shared, to begin with, which means that you need at least 2 capable guys. Given how much of a beating they take, it makes sense to have a 3RD catcher available. If they're worried about getting Collins enough at bats, he is not out of options and can therefore stay in AAA, for one more year. They are probably not going to resign McCann, since I assume that he would prefer to go somewhere, to be the primary catcher, rather than remain here and be a back up. Therefore, I would doubt that he will return in 2021. That is when Collins can be promoted. Hopefully by then, another catcher emerges somewhere, to provide the desired depth at that position, because again, catching depth requires 3, not merely 2 guys.

If the Sox acquire E. E., Collins should be in Charlotte, getting playing time. He would be the first to be called up, if either Grandal, or McCann miss any time, due to injury. Considering that McCann is a free agent at the end of this season. Depending upon how well Collins progresses, McCann may not be brought back. This would be the year to find out whether, or not, it would make sense to resign McCann.

Thank you for correcting me. Yes, he's just weeks from turning 37. My mistake and I'll correct my post.

I posted this in another thread, but it belongs here, in this discussion about E. E.: EE only played in 109 games, last year. He may be almost 37, but he can still hit. He also hits both RH and LH pitching, pretty equally. I realize that he is not likely to play every game, but If he had played a full 162 games, his last year's production projects to be as follows: 2B HR RBI AVG OBP SLG OPS 26 0 50 127 0 1 86 153 .244 .344 .531 .875 If he can be acquired on a 1 year contract, why not?

Here is a potential lineup, with EE at DH, versus RHP: SS Anderson 3B Moncada LF Eloy DH Encarnacion C Grandal 1B Abreu RF Mazara CF Robert 2B Madrigal I put the 2 rookies at the bottom of the lineup, until they prove they're worthy of being moved up, closer to the top. However, they could provide terrific offense, at the bottom to the order. Robert with his speed and power and Madrigal with his contact skills and base stealing prowess. That lineup has great speed at the top and bottom, serious thunder throughout and a nice balance of RH & LH hitting.

EE only played in 109 games, last year. He may be 34, but he can still hit. He also hits both RH and LH pitching, pretty equally. I realize that he is not likely to play every game, but If he had played a full 162 games, his last year's production projects to be as follows: 2B HR RBI AVG OBP SLG OPS 26 0 50 127 0 1 86 153 .244 .344 .531 .875

The current system makes it difficult to bring young players up to the Big Leagues, even though they appear to be ready. Teams are afraid of starting the clock on potential stars, because of losing them to free agency, well within their prime years. The Sox are likely to face this dilemma with Robert. If a player is ready, any way that he can affordably be brought up in his early 20's, while still being retained through most of his prime, should be the best strategy. I would personally much prefer to have guys like Eloy, Moncada and Robert from their ages 23 to 31, than from their ages 31 to 39. Unfortunately, the current free agency rules are not structured in a way that affords teams the best opportunity to control a player for the 8 years between 23 and 31. Moncada will turn 25 this Spring. I would prefer that they offer him more money than he would earn in arbitration, in order to extend him 2, or 3 years beyond 2024, when he is now scheduled to become a free agent. That would give the Sox control over him, for 6 or 7 more years, through his age 30, or 31 seasons. It would still give him an opportunity to enter free agency, at a young enough age, where he could seek one more big pay day. I'm not sure that Moncada would want to agree to such terms, but I really like it for the Sox. It would keep him motivated, while guaranteeing that we have him for most of his prime. It also avoids having to pay him for years, during which he would likely be in decline and overpaid. Although it will only retain Eloy through his age 29 season, this is conceptually what they did with his contract and it seems like a very rational way to manage a payroll. It seems to make more sense than paying for past performance and committing to a long term contract, beyond a player's prime, which has become the norm, for free agents.

Is there a single remaining starter, realistically attainable, who the Sox could add to the rotation, to make the Sox a serious contender for a World Series, in 2020 and 2021? If so, why not go get him? I assume that the only candidates are Price, Ryu or ??????