MLB Daily Thread: Sox lose (shocker), Mets score a TD & Yankees beat the fightin' Royals

[Rock Strongo]

farrell has to be on the hot seat.

eduardo rodriguez gets the nod for the sox today, called up from pawtucket. hes a guy the sox got from baltimore for andrew miller last year.

 

[Rock Strongo]

WHY ARE RED SOX LOSING? IT'S NOT THAT COMPLICATED
Wed, 05/27/2015 - 11:39pm

Hanley Ramirez's recent performance has been part of the Red Sox' problem. (Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)

MINNEAPOLIS -- Statistics. Conspiracy theories. Personal problems. Personnel problems. They all have been surfaced when attempting to decipher what is going on with this Red Sox team. Stop searching. Look no further.


There are two reasons: underperformance of foundation players, and flawed expectations. For what it's worth, that's it.

Let's start with No. 1 ...

Take the players you have committed the most money to and analyze their contributions. It's the same formula that anyone could have leaned on back during the 2012 demise, or 2013 championship ascension. Last year? Same deal.

The Red Sox are paying nine players $9.5 million or more for this season. Of that group, you could make the case that one (Dustin Pedroia) is close to living up to expectations. No matter what level your team's payroll, this is the group that has to drive the bus. You simply can't win if they are stalled more times than not.

In '12, with all the chaos that circled around Bobby Valentine, the main reason that Red Sox team found itself hovering around .500 at the end of May was because their most counted on players weren't meeting the expectations management was banking on. The off-the-tracks managerial style of Valentine didn't help, but with the talent on that roster it wasn't the be-all, end-all.

Same situation here.

Here are the aforementioned nine and what they've produced:

Hanley Ramirez: .252 batting average, .757 OPS, one RBI in May.

Pablo Sandoval: .265 batting average, .729 OPS.

Mike Napoli: .208 batting average, .715 OPS.

David Ortiz: .216 batting average (.105 vs lefties), .679 OPS.

Shane Victorino: .255 batting average, .724 OPS, currently on disabled list, his second trip this year.

Pedroia: .290 batting average, .809 OPS.

Rick Porcello: 4-4, 5.37 ERA.

Clay Buchholz: 2-6, 4.33 ERA.

Justin Masterson: 2-2, 6.37 ERA, currently on disabled list.

The just-completed series sweep by the Twins only highlighted this fact. If Ortiz and Ramirez were swinging at the level the Red Sox were counting on for this time of year, it's not far-fetched to suggest the Sox would have won at least two of these games. Key moments -- winnable moments -- were punctuated with the sad trombone thanks to inning-ending, middle of the order outs.

There are others in uniform who should be breaking off a slice of the blame pie, but a huge part of deciphering the good and bad of team construction is taking stock of the roster's big ticket items.

And, No. 2 …

After the Red Sox' 6-4 loss to the Twins Wednesday afternoon, there was the usual quest to find explanations. The most common one bubbling up was, and has been, that these players who aren't performing have track records, and in baseball you'll almost always land around where you have already have been.

"Well, we haven’t met our expectations of what we’re capable of and that’s not to say you can’t just erase a long history of individual players production, it exists," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "The talent is there. To me, it’s not injury related that’s causing guys not to perform like they’re capable. We’ve got to go out and do better."

"If you’ve been consistent over your career, you are who you are," Pedroia noted. "If you’re a career .300 hitter and you’re hitting .280 the last day you’re probably going to play a 30-inning the last day. That’s the way I view it and the way everybody views it. You just have to continue grinding and find a way."

"Everybody here, pretty much everybody is champions," Ramirez said. "They know how to win. They know how to win. I've been here for a month, month and a half, almost two months, and I've learned that from those guys. I'm trying to be on the same page, know what I mean? All I care right now is just win. We're not winning lately, but we're just going to stay at it every day."

Stop. This could very well be a good team. There is seemingly enough talent to win this very uninspiring American League East. But leaning on history is a flawed notion with this group.

Sure, all these guys have been good at some point in the past. That's why they're paid what they're getting paid. But take a few seconds to look closer and you'll see it's not that simple. There is definitely a bigger leap of faith that the organization either doesn't want to admit to, or hopes doesn't surface.

Ramirez has never hit in the American League, or faced adversity in Boston. He also hasn't turned in an OPS of better than .767 in a season of playing more than 128 games since 2010. Sandoval also hasn't experienced life in this town or league, and the expectation set by the third baseman is his mediocre .739 OPS of a year ago. They both have to prove they can figure it all out.

We don't know if a 39-year-old Ortiz can get up to speed without any sort of ramp up to the regular-season. We have no idea if Victorino can stay on the field and produce like two years ago. Porcello? One standout season and an impressive spring training have led the Red Sox to their $20 million-a-year expectations. Buchholz, Masterson, Wade Miley and Joe Kelly? Sure, they all have done the sort of things that the Red Sox are envisioning being constants, yet all continue to ride the roller coaster that hasn't allowed for securing benefit of the doubt.

Mookie Betts. Xander Bogaerts. Blake Swihart. Rusney Castillo. Eduardo Rodriguez. They shouldn't fall into Sox' kettle of expectations, but they have. They all might be rolling come July, but none offer the sense of security fans are looking for when searching for optimism.

They can't lean on expectations. This is a roster of players who have prove themselves in the present, whether young, old or in between.

The Red Sox are five games below .500, sitting in last place. They are also well within striking distance, residing four games back of the first place Yankees. Their existence isn't because of clubhouse discourse. It's not due to a lack of effort or preparation. It is about personal accountability, and taking some good, hard looks in the mirror.

General manager Ben Cherington has cast his lot with this group and now he is faced with his biggest challenge: identifying where his evaluations went awry.

Farrell and the coaches must find a way to extract the best out of what they are dealing with.

And, most importantly, the players have to back up their proclamations and pleas for patience with performance.

It really isn't that complicated. It just seems that way.

 

[Rock Strongo]

BUSTER OLNEY ON MFB: RED SOX HAVE ‘MOST FIXABLE PROBLEMS’ OF AL EAST TEAMS
05.27.15 at 1:49 pm ET
By Josh Slavin

Buster Olney

ESPN baseball analyst Buster Olney joined Middays with MFB on Wednesday to discuss the Red Sox, their status within the American League East and how they can improve. To hear the interview, go to the MFB audio on demand page.

Last week, with the Red Sox seeming to heat up, Olney said that the team had a great opportunity to take advantage of a relatively weak AL East. Since then, the Sox offense has sputtered and the team has lost five of seven. However, Olney maintains that the Red Sox still have the best chance of any team in the division to turn things around.

“When you look at what they have as their list of potential solutions, it’s just a lot longer than, say, a team like Tampa Bay or the Yankees, where they’re pretty much stuck with the guys that they have, and it’s part of the reason why I think going forward [the Red Sox] have a chance to get better,” Olney said.

While the Red Sox have struggled this season, Olney said, “They have the most fixable problems and the most resources to fix them with,” as compared to other teams in the AL East.

One change Olney recommended is to move the lineup around based on day-to-day matchups rather than each player’s pedigree. The Sox, for example, moved the struggling David Ortiz down to fifth in the order for Tuesday and Wednesday’s games.

“That feels like the first step in what has to happen next in fixing the 2015 team, which is to get away from stature and past records and all that and just get back to picking the best lineup every day,” he said. “If you move Ortiz, who has the most stature on that team, you can probably do a lot of other things as you go.”


As for the pitching staff, Olney said that manager John Farrell may consider moving Joe Kelly to the bullpen if Kelly continues to underperform as a starter.

“At some point if they decide to put him out there I think he has a chance to be dynamic because of his stuff. If Joe’s in a position where he knows that once every two or three days he’s coming out of the bullpen for 18 to 20 pitches, he could be someone who could really light up a radar gun and change the options for John Farrell in the eighth or ninth inning,” Olney said.

Olney indicated he expects Red Sox manager Ben Cherington to make a move for a pitcher via trade, but only if it comes at the right price.

“The fact that the division is so mediocre and there doesn’t appear to be any team poised to run away buys Ben Cherington time to wait to see if anything materializes that’s actually a good deal. I do think at some point he’s going to strike and add a guy like a [Scott] Kazmir,” Olney said. “Maybe that right guy for the right price is Cole Hamels, maybe it’s Johnny Cueto, but he doesn’t have to jump because of what’s going on with the other teams.”

Following are more highlights from the interview. For more Red Sox news, visit the team page atweei.com/redsox.

On pitchers getting suspended for using a foreign substance on the baseball: “To me, they’re like the guys who get caught going 56 miles per hour in a 55 mile per hour zone and they’re getting their license suspended. It’s ridiculous, because everybody in the game knows that this goes on.”

On Ortiz getting older and getting out of his prolonged slump: “He’s told me a number of times he’s got to focus on taking the ball to left-center, and once he can get that going, then that’s fine. … Once you start to get older, people don’t talk about you being in a slump, they just talk about you being old, and that’s right with David now. He’s at that point where the Red So have to ask that question seriously, especially when they do have other options on their roster if they’re looking to play more of a matchup thing.”

On the possibility that Alex Rodriguez could become the next Marlins manager: “The guy knows baseball, he’s actually really good with young players, he has a passion for the game, he’s never been someone who’s been afraid of working hard and he certainly would fit [Marlins owner] Jeffrey Loria‘s intention to make a splash with his managerial hiring. … For all of the other B.S. and the suspension and the lies that he’s had in the past, the guy loves the game and he actually has a lot of knowledge about the game.”

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

WHY ARE RED SOX LOSING? IT'S NOT THAT COMPLICATED
Wed, 05/27/2015 - 11:39pm

Hanley Ramirez's recent performance has been part of the Red Sox' problem. (Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)

MINNEAPOLIS -- Statistics. Conspiracy theories. Personal problems. Personnel problems. They all have been surfaced when attempting to decipher what is going on with this Red Sox team. Stop searching. Look no further.


There are two reasons: underperformance of foundation players, and flawed expectations. For what it's worth, that's it.

Let's start with No. 1 ...

Take the players you have committed the most money to and analyze their contributions. It's the same formula that anyone could have leaned on back during the 2012 demise, or 2013 championship ascension. Last year? Same deal.

The Red Sox are paying nine players $9.5 million or more for this season. Of that group, you could make the case that one (Dustin Pedroia) is close to living up to expectations. No matter what level your team's payroll, this is the group that has to drive the bus. You simply can't win if they are stalled more times than not.

In '12, with all the chaos that circled around Bobby Valentine, the main reason that Red Sox team found itself hovering around .500 at the end of May was because their most counted on players weren't meeting the expectations management was banking on. The off-the-tracks managerial style of Valentine didn't help, but with the talent on that roster it wasn't the be-all, end-all.

Same situation here.

Here are the aforementioned nine and what they've produced:

Hanley Ramirez: .252 batting average, .757 OPS, one RBI in May.

Pablo Sandoval: .265 batting average, .729 OPS.

Mike Napoli: .208 batting average, .715 OPS.

David Ortiz: .216 batting average (.105 vs lefties), .679 OPS.

Shane Victorino: .255 batting average, .724 OPS, currently on disabled list, his second trip this year.

Pedroia: .290 batting average, .809 OPS.

Rick Porcello: 4-4, 5.37 ERA.

Clay Buchholz: 2-6, 4.33 ERA.

Justin Masterson: 2-2, 6.37 ERA, currently on disabled list.

The just-completed series sweep by the Twins only highlighted this fact. If Ortiz and Ramirez were swinging at the level the Red Sox were counting on for this time of year, it's not far-fetched to suggest the Sox would have won at least two of these games. Key moments -- winnable moments -- were punctuated with the sad trombone thanks to inning-ending, middle of the order outs.

There are others in uniform who should be breaking off a slice of the blame pie, but a huge part of deciphering the good and bad of team construction is taking stock of the roster's big ticket items.

And, No. 2 …

After the Red Sox' 6-4 loss to the Twins Wednesday afternoon, there was the usual quest to find explanations. The most common one bubbling up was, and has been, that these players who aren't performing have track records, and in baseball you'll almost always land around where you have already have been.

"Well, we haven’t met our expectations of what we’re capable of and that’s not to say you can’t just erase a long history of individual players production, it exists," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "The talent is there. To me, it’s not injury related that’s causing guys not to perform like they’re capable. We’ve got to go out and do better."

"If you’ve been consistent over your career, you are who you are," Pedroia noted. "If you’re a career .300 hitter and you’re hitting .280 the last day you’re probably going to play a 30-inning the last day. That’s the way I view it and the way everybody views it. You just have to continue grinding and find a way."

"Everybody here, pretty much everybody is champions," Ramirez said. "They know how to win. They know how to win. I've been here for a month, month and a half, almost two months, and I've learned that from those guys. I'm trying to be on the same page, know what I mean? All I care right now is just win. We're not winning lately, but we're just going to stay at it every day."

Stop. This could very well be a good team. There is seemingly enough talent to win this very uninspiring American League East. But leaning on history is a flawed notion with this group.

Sure, all these guys have been good at some point in the past. That's why they're paid what they're getting paid. But take a few seconds to look closer and you'll see it's not that simple. There is definitely a bigger leap of faith that the organization either doesn't want to admit to, or hopes doesn't surface.

Ramirez has never hit in the American League, or faced adversity in Boston. He also hasn't turned in an OPS of better than .767 in a season of playing more than 128 games since 2010. Sandoval also hasn't experienced life in this town or league, and the expectation set by the third baseman is his mediocre .739 OPS of a year ago. They both have to prove they can figure it all out.

We don't know if a 39-year-old Ortiz can get up to speed without any sort of ramp up to the regular-season. We have no idea if Victorino can stay on the field and produce like two years ago. Porcello? One standout season and an impressive spring training have led the Red Sox to their $20 million-a-year expectations. Buchholz, Masterson, Wade Miley and Joe Kelly? Sure, they all have done the sort of things that the Red Sox are envisioning being constants, yet all continue to ride the roller coaster that hasn't allowed for securing benefit of the doubt.

Mookie Betts. Xander Bogaerts. Blake Swihart. Rusney Castillo. Eduardo Rodriguez. They shouldn't fall into Sox' kettle of expectations, but they have. They all might be rolling come July, but none offer the sense of security fans are looking for when searching for optimism.

They can't lean on expectations. This is a roster of players who have prove themselves in the present, whether young, old or in between.

The Red Sox are five games below .500, sitting in last place. They are also well within striking distance, residing four games back of the first place Yankees. Their existence isn't because of clubhouse discourse. It's not due to a lack of effort or preparation. It is about personal accountability, and taking some good, hard looks in the mirror.

General manager Ben Cherington has cast his lot with this group and now he is faced with his biggest challenge: identifying where his evaluations went awry.

Farrell and the coaches must find a way to extract the best out of what they are dealing with.

And, most importantly, the players have to back up their proclamations and pleas for patience with performance.

It really isn't that complicated. It just seems that way.

Manifesto.

 

[bksballer89]

Yo Rock question for you. I need your honest answer

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

Yo Rock question for you. I need your honest answer

Sounds suspicious. Proceed with caution, Rock.

 

[Rock Strongo]

Yo Rock question for you. I need your honest answer

only if you let me be the man.

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

farrell has to be on the hot seat.

Their shit show at the plate is what's really baffling. They should have a rocking offense, but they're ranked dead fucking last in the AL in RS for May. 33% below league average. That's insane.

 

[Rock Strongo]

Their shit show at the plate is what's really baffling. They should have a rocking offense, but they're ranked dead fucking last in the AL in RS for May. 33% below league average. That's insane.

pitching coach fired...they kinda settled in after that but have faltered again. chili davis isnt the problem...and he shouldnt go.

if any message will be heard, its canning farrell.

 

[bksballer89]

only if you let me be the man.

How many wins you predicted for Boston in the winter after all of their moves? 93?

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

pitching coach fired...

That's amusing.

Here, Mr Pitching Coach, have a pitching staff full of bullshit and crusty bitches. Shine it up to make it all sparkly. You've got a month an a half. Go!

 

[Rock Strongo]

How many wins you predicted for Boston in the winter after all of their moves? 93?

i said 90+

so i guess you could say 93

this teams not good enough for .500

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

How many wins you predicted for Boston in the winter after all of their moves? 93?

On the predictions page, I picked the Astros, Twins and Yankees to all be in the basement of their respective divisions. As of this morning, they're all in 1st.

I'm a pig fuckin' idiot.

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

i said 90+

so i guess you could say 93

this teams not good enough for .500

They're grounding into a lot of double plays, but I'm not sure who should be held accountable for that as it has nothing to do with the batters doing their jobs.

 

[Rock Strongo]

They're grounding into a lot of double plays, but I'm not sure who should be held accountable for that as it has nothing to do with the batters doing their jobs.

its a lot of bad luck, but at some point the manager has to hold guys accountable, and he really isnt outside of moving ortiz to 5th.

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

its a lot of bad luck, but at some point the manager has to hold guys accountable, and he really isnt outside of moving ortiz to 5th.

I was just busting balls. They're actually right about average for GDPs.

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

Indians in May:

#3 in runs scored AL
average team ERA AL
14-11

That 7-14 April fucking killed them. Basteges!

 

[Rock Strongo]

Indians in May:

#3 in runs scored AL
average team ERA AL
14-11

That 7-14 April fucking killed them. Basteges!

yan gomes is back for you too, he should do nothing but help that once hes back in the regular batting order.

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

yan gomes is back for you too, he should do nothing but help that once hes back in the regular batting order.

Hopefully.

Oddly enough, the offense has been pretty fucking hot since they moved Kipnis to the leadoff spot. It's weird how that shit works.

 

[Rock Strongo]

thus thread needs more hu