Lillian

"What now?" The one short term fix, which I'd like to see is signing Dallas Keuchel, to a one year deal. He is said to be open to a "pillow contract," in hopes of entering free agency again next year. That would be a reasonable move, even though it would cost the Sox a 2ND round draft pick. They have the salary room to sign him to a one year deal, at approximately $20 million. He could help shore up the rotation, and be a guy that could bring back a decent prospect, at the trade deadline. In fact, I suspect that if Keuchel pitched up to his recent historical level, that he would likely bring back a better prospect, at the trade deadline, than anyone, whom they might draft, in the second round. There are usually contending teams who become pretty desperate for some reliable starting pitching, late in the season, especially a left hander. If he were added to the rotation, whom would he replace? Well, I'd say that there are at least 2 candidates, who are both also short term, expendable players, who do not figure into the long term plan. Why not let him have either Nova's, or Santana's spot? Either one could be sent to the pen, which could also use some help. At the moment, Santana looks like he may not even be good enough for that role, but it's early, and he hasn't pitched much, in a long time. There is still hope. In any case, it's not likely that all 3 of those veterans would pitch well enough to create a "log jam".

The front office sees the same things that we do. They're likely already preparing to bring Cordell back up, after his quick start, both with the Sox and the Knights. Note that no one was clamoring for Cordell to be in the line up, before last nights 5 for 5, while hitting for the cycle and winning the game. Some of this criticism seems like "Monday morning quarterbacking". An organization which is filled with lots of good prospects is bound to have many instances where the right decisions will be difficult. Another case in point is that 3 of our top outfield prospects are all hitting around .100, at the top of the Baron's lineup. Time will sort out many of these kinds of anomalies. and issues. However, it's also not prudent to hastily react to every game, or even series, in evaluating who should get playing time. The less of a track record a player has, the more difficult these decisions are. After last season, how many would have been so eager to send Palka back down to AAA? The guy had a good rookie year and came into camp 20 pounds lighter, and has worked hard on his defense, all of which could reasonably be expected to help him take another step forward. His slow start is disappointing. Few of these early performances, by various players, both good and bad, are not necessarily indicative of what we should expect, going forward. Robert and Collins are not going to hit 100 home runs each and Palka is not going to go 0 for 500. The point is simply that it's too early to conclude anything. I enjoy following all of these dynamic elements of the organization's roster, but I try not to over react to any of them.

Whether some of us agree, or not, ownership and management are not going to over react to the first to weeks of the season, played in miserable weather. They will stay the course, and make minor adjustments. I'm sure that they are encouraged by what they see from their young core. They have to be happy with the starts for Anderson, Moncada and even Eloy. Minor Leaguers Collins and Robert also have to reassure them that the rebuild is progressing, and everyone has to love Cease's first start, last night. Rebuilds take time and require lots of patience. Let's see how Giolito and Lopez look, after a couple more starts, hopefully in some decent baseball weather.

Whether, or not, he can achieve that level of performance is indeed the question. My point is that his current approach affords hime the greatest chance for success. Why use an inferior approach? It would only impede his chances to reach those goals. Another way to look at it is to recognize that a good Major League pitcher, on a good day, is not going to give you much to hit, if you are looking exclusively for a ball that you can pull for a homer. However, even the best pitchers will offer up some pitches, that are just out of the zone. Using this approach affords the hitter a chance to still have a productive at bat. That was just such a pitch that Tim hit for an RBI single, yesterday. If you ask the pitcher if he thought that he missed his location, he would probably say "no, it was a good pitch". Tim beat him, because he didn't try to do too much with it.

That may very well be and if so, then maybe management needs to start rewarding guys who can hit for a better average, get on base, and no strike out. If all they are interested in is the long ball, I guess that you can't expect the players to not react accordingly. Moreover, the approach, for which I'm advocating, does not preclude hitting the long ball, when presented with the opportunity. Again, an inside pitch, a pitch right over the heart of the plate, or an off speed pitch would still afford a hitter his chances to pull the ball, for a homer. That pitch Tim hit yesterday was either going to be called a ball, or if he tried to pull it, he would have rolled over, on it and hit a ground ball to the left side. By going with the low and away pitch, and taking it to right, he got a base knock and drove in a run. It's just an intelligent piece of hitting and I applaud him. He's learning.

His RBI single, in the bottom of the 8TH yesterday, was off a low and away slider. He hit a line shot to right, which is the only way he could have hit that pitch. Tim continues to use that approach, when appropriate and if he can maintain his newly found discipline, I think that he has the potential to be a .300 hitter. That would be huge, for the rebuild. https://www.mlb.com/whitesox/video/ryne-stanek-in-play-run-s-to-tim-anderson?t=t145-default-vtp

At least Shields' stuff moved. Santana is throwing straight, low velocity fast balls and so far, there is almost no movement on his breaking pitches.

Not only his Santana's command not good, his stuff looks awful. Could be a long afternoon.

Why is Madrigal batting 3RD? That's just weird.

Thank you. I couldn't find anything, except I didn't notice that it looks like he hasn't even pitched in the last few series. Maybe he's hurt. At any rate, you answered my question and he doesn't look like a candidate, at least not in the first round.

I hadn't seen anything, which suggested that he had lost his plus fastball. Are you sure that what you found, did not pertain to his younger brother, Cooper, who is also on that Duke staff? I do see that Baseball America stated on March 5TH that "Stinson's fast ball was clocked in the upper 80's". However, I can't read the article, as I don't have a subscription, and have to wonder if it was in reference to Cooper, not Graeme.

I just searched more information on Stinson's conversion to starting, and found this assessment encouraging, especially the 70 grade slider: "The top-ranked pitcher in the 2019 draft class, Stinson has some of the best pure stuff in the country between a plus fastball and a 70-grade slider that routinely generates whiffs inside and outside of the strike zone. Stinson posted a 1.89 ERA while striking out more than 14 batters per nine innings in 2018, but he spent most of his time coming out of the bullpen. While there’s no doubting his swing-and-miss stuff—Stinson has fanned 143 batters in 90 collegiate innings—he will need to show that he’s capable of handling a starter’s role over a full season. He’s shown flashes that he can be a dominant Friday night arm, including six shutout innings against a powerful Texas Tech lineup in last year’s Lubbock Super Regional, but this year will be his first full season in the role. Stinson gets plenty of comparisons to former North Carolina State left hander Carlos Rodon because of his size and stuff, and he will prove a menace to batters every week throughout the season." I also found this and I'm starting to find him intriguing: “Somebody asked [Stinson] at the media lunch if he felt like he could get comfortable starting and he was like ‘Yeah, I have been a starter all my life up to the last 2 years,’” head coach Chris Pollard said. "He really feels like this is something that is comfortable for him because this is kind of more comfortable than what he has been doing coming out of the pen for us the last couple years.”

It's hard to argue with your assertion. I'm just hoping that someone emerges, with a strong enough rating, to justify selecting them, at #3. Isn't the only only reason that Stinson is not more highly regarded, that he was a closer and has only begun to be a starter? If so, there is time for him to establish his credentials as part of a rotation. That's my hope. His SO to Walk ratio is impressive and he certainly has a starter's physical stature.

With all of the top candidates being position players, it would be nice if some pitcher would emerge as a viable candidate. It's almost certain that no pitcher will be taken with the first and second pick. That means that the Sox will be afforded their pick of the best college, or high school arm, in the country. Hopefully by June, Stinson will have demonstrated his ability to successfully make his transition to starter, from former closer. Then there is the high school phenom, Espino. Maybe it's just a function of having had to watch that Mariner's juggernaut offensive display, over the weekend, but pitching is still the most important part of the game and with all of the TJ surgeries, a team can never have too many pitchers. It's hard to believe that there isn't one elligible, exceptional arm, in the entire country. Could the Sox go under slot, take a pitcher, and save some money for their later round picks? The other factor, which we've often discussed, is that pitching is too risky to acquire through free agency. Arms are too expensive and too delicate, to risk committing to very expensive, multi year contracts. The risk of not having a successful draft, is still preferable to losing financial flexibility, over a bad free agent contract, for a "broken" pitcher. I wonder how nervous the Red Sox are, over extending Sale, while his velocity has dropped so dramatically. Who would be your top 2, or 3 pitching candidates?

I agree with you, however there are still plenty of pitches which are suitable to pull, even with this approach. Pitches on the inside part of the plate, and any off speed pitches are still easily pulled. It's only the outside pitches and high velocity fast balls, for which I'm advocating that hitters employ this approach.

The difficulty in executing the attempt to hit to the opposite field is primarily caused by hitters constantly trying to pull the ball. Pitches on the outside portion of the plate are actually easier to hit to the opposite field, but not if a hitter rolls his wrist over, which is part of the process of pulling the ball. It's more a matter of changing the mindset, than it is learning to physically do it.

I recently posted a comment, on this board, regarding Anderson's willingness and ability to hit to the opposite field. It was quite prevalent in Spring Training, prompting me to say, at the time, that this approach could be a significant factor in his progression as a hitter. I've always been a big advocate for hitting to the opposite field. Now, with all of the exaggerated shifts, it has become even more advantageous than it has always been. One of the really effective approaches, at the plate, is to take fast balls up the middle, or the the opposite field and to pull the off speed pitches. That affords the hitter more time to see and time a fast ball, and helps keep him from the dreaded circumstance of being "in between". Tim's home run, yesterday, was on an 85 mph cutter, or slider, which he took to center and several of his hits have been to right field. It's obvious that he is not trying to pull everything, which I applaud. Going to right also expands the hitter's plate coverage. If he isn't thinking about pulling the ball, he can simply use that "hands before the barrel of the bat," or "inside out" swing, to effectively punch pitches, just outside the strike zone, to the opposite field. Tim's new approach augers very well for his future. He is maturing both as a defender and as a hitter. There is a lot of talent in that young man, and if he realizes it, he could become an exceptional player. Stone has often asserted that he would soon hit 25 homers and steal 25 bases. He's even speculated that he could become a "30 - 30" player. If Tim can get his OBP up to closer to .350, he could become the Sox' long sought after, lead off hitter. That would in turn, allow Moncada the chance to hit in the middle of the order. One could envision a near future lineup featuring Anderson leading off, Madrigal batting second and Moncada third, with Eloy in the clean up slot, followed by Robert. Tim is already striking out less, now he needs to take a few more walks. This start to his season is very encouraging.

We already have Brando Guyer, at Charlotte and he probably plays a more respectable OF, than Austin.

The umpire may have thought that he saw the front of Machado's foot, just clip the catcher's heel, and that might have been the justification for calling interference. It was Brenley, who was announcing the game for the Diamond Backs, who angrily described Manny's dropping his bat, by the catcher, as "bush league". If you watch the play, you will see that Machado may very well have intentionally placed the bat near the catcher. Because the catcher ultimately had to move further up the first base line, in his attempt to catch the foul ball, the bat never really obstructed him. However, Manny could not have known exactly where the ball would come down and he certainly appeared to be putting it near the catcher. If that ball had come down, closer to the plate, the catcher could very well have tripped on it. Given his history, I wouldn't give Machado the benefit of the doubt. He also pretended to not even recognize that his placement of the bat was an issue. He simply said that he didn't think that he touched the catcher. Who knows? It's just another instance of Manny being Manny, and one which reinforces the perception that he is a jerk, if not a dirty player.

A few of you have asserted that Palka has a weak arm. That is not what I have read, nor seen. His arm has always been rated better than average, and he even pitched in college, with a 90 mph fastball. He may not have a great arm, but it's not the weakest part of his defense, in the outfield. His reads and range are both more of a problem, than his arm. Hopefully, the weight loss and more experience will help him to become serviceable in the outfield. Of course, first base would be more suitable, but there is no room for him there, on this roster.

I just watched the replay of Collins' 2 homers, on my new MILB.TV subscription. They were monster shots, especially the second one. You can't tell much, from those Twitter clips. They were really hit a long way. Is that ever great to see. He may have a chance to be something, after all.

Robert and Collins have certainly raised our hopes and expectations, for this rebuild. Very encouraging. It's a shame that the Sox coaching staff tinkered with Collins' swing mechanics. They seemed determined to have him "ditch the hitch". I assume that he is still hitting with his original mechanics, which he went back to, late last season. Comes under the category of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

How nice of you to say that. Thank you. Yes, I was considered pretty weird, and heard all of the misconceptions. It's been very interesting to see how popular and accepted it has become. Back then, you could hardly find a place to work out. Now, it seems that there's a gym in every neighborhood.

I agree with you. I've been weight training for over 60 years. I was a "pioneer" in that discipline, starting back in 1959, and I've never quit. I've been in gyms all my life. Trout doesn't look at all like a guy on steroids.

Trout does not look like a guy on steroids, even if he performs like one.