SCCWS

Agree. We know they stole signs at home so why did they have slightly better batting stats that year on the road?

I love the extensions as well. I think your analysis is wrong at least for big market teams. There is a new age of fan out there who sees his team continually changing. I think the Ernie Banks, Derek Jeter and Tom Brady types are going fast. We as White Sox fans better hope so. Do you think the Chris Sale fans have left and will not return? I think they already are Eloy or Yoan fans and Sale is in the rear view mirror.

Supposedly they only cheated at home. I think the most pertinent question is how come in 2017 the Astros hit slightly better on the road than they did at home in most offensive categories?

Depends on what you mean by value. He has more trade value now. But management may think keeping him ( especially the year before he hits the market) could mean they can make the playoffs. Also they have to weigh the Cora effect and do they now feel they are better off reloading by trading him. I have yet to see any "rumor"( West coast, warm weather, contender etc) of where Betts may be attracted to if he goes FA. He really can't go home since it is Tennessee. They have a rookie GM so rumors are still limited in New England press.

I see a lot of Holt and i always liked him. But he is not even a 1 War player for his career. Yolmer is a little better than a 1 and is 4 years younger. I think Yolmer's defense is probably the WAR difference.

Not sure that is true. Strongest current rumors are Dodgers and Padres. But Boston wants a bundle back. With Betts, Boston is following the blueprint Arizona used to trade Paul Goldschmidt with one year of control. The Diamondbacks received two major-league ready young players (pitcher Luke Weaver and catcher Carson Kelly), a minor league infielder (Andy Young) and a draft pick. Arizona won 85 games last season, a three-game improvement. The price for Betts, the better player, is higher. https://www.si.com/mlb/2020/01/28/mookie-betts-trade-boston-red-sox

Hopefully, but we will know more by end of ST. Unfortunately, even ST is not as good a gauge as it used to be with so many teams limiting away game travel. Maybe Cactus isn't as bad, but Grapefruit seems to get worse every year.

He may be ready physically but he may need a month in AAA regardless of service time to get back up to game ready form. Spring training may not be good enough.

Agree and I would think Fulmer would become the 5th starter if an injury occurs until Kopech is ready. It would be great if another SP( other than the 5) has a great spring to add insurance to the rotation

I think Grandal will have a greater impact on the White Sox than Donaldson will on the Twins. But not for your reasons. Grandal was a 2.5 War last year and a career 2 War. Donaldson was a 6 War last year and a career 5. Certainly Grandal is younger but as a catcher the difference may be negated by wear and tear. I think Grandal could have a major impact on our young pitchers which won't be reflected in his War but will be in theirs Just a veteran presence as well as a catcher who can keep them steady. The other major factor is he adds a LH bat to a lineup that desperately needed one.

Sorry you lost me. Did you mean a month from tomorrow?

I think AAA talent is another consideration on bench players. Some teams use utility players to fill in during stretches of the season while they give young players a chance to develop their game at AAA. But we know a starter or two will go down for an extended period of time. That is when the AAA roster becomes important. Hopefully you have a young player to bring up and fill in if your utility player is not the answer for long stretches.

It might not be 30+ years old. LaRussa had a role as an assistant to Dombrowski in Boston. Maybe when the Boston investigation is completed, LaRussa may have had some role in it.

How about " Another World Championship"

I do think it can influence an umpire to a degree. But obviously they read about pitch framing and may be more aware of it. I would think late in games a good framer may get a couple of close pitches. FWIW --As others have said, I think the pitching staff is still the key to how successful framing is. Grandal joined Milwakee in 2019 and they saw their walks go up slightly and their SO drop slightly over the previous year. I would bet that had more to do with the staff and the games themselves.

I do think SS play is affected by 3B. A SS playing alongside a 3B w limited range will be forced to shade more to his right than one playing w a 3B who moves well to his left.

No, last year he still had over 400 lead-off ABs. They tried Benintendi at one point but that failed and Betts returned to lead-off.

Red Sox won a World Series w Betts leading off He had 32 HR

As this roster takes shape, I think Grandal's starts usuage becomes more important. He normally catches 130ish and usually has a post all-star drop-off. Hopefully the Sox manage his catching starts while giving him DH ones in place. The Sox may very well be in contention down the stretch and we will need his bat in September.

I am not sure they are lowered to a .500 team. There are way to many variables. I think w the assumed improvement of Eloy and Moncada and a very solid year again from Anderson this could be a .500 team. The addition of Grandal, Robert and Madrigal as well as a RF and the quality of the Central Division should mean .500 is very realistic. Then the pitching staff determines how much better than .500 we will be. Will Gio be as good as his 2019 , will Cease jump to a #2 type or drop to a #5 and how big of an impact will Kopech have. Finally, who will the 2nd SP be. Yes it could be a .500ish team but in this division it could also challenge for a playoff spot. Way too early before the roster is even finalized to fold the tents yet.

makes sense. This year's FA market has been very active early on. But Boras held out till the end last year and he may try and extend this until a team caves in.

I would assume the preference would be to add a LH since we need at least one especially w the uncertainty of Rodon. So another plus w Keuchel or Ryu or even Price.

He got hurt in July and played but ended up on IL in August. I doubt they will want Madrigal or Vaughn looking at their top prospects. Rumors of the Dodger trade says they will most likely want an OF and SP in return. My guess is they will want Cease and Hahn says no. Not sure if Lopez is an option.

Boston's top MLB prospect is Chavis who is a 2nd baseman who has a pretty good rookie year. Boston needs a RH-SP if Price goes. I would love Benintendi in RF especially w him also being a LH bat. My gut is they won't trade him though.

It probably is mentioned somewhere in a postingon this site. But I have seen several articles on a Robbie Ray trade. Maybe he is an alternative to Price at a cheaper" price ".