The Red Sox have placed infielder Christian Arroyo on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to May 7, due to a left hand contusion. Fellow infielder Jonathan Araúz has been recalled to take his place on the active roster.
Arroyo has picked up the majority of playing time at second base this season. The former top prospect has held his own at the dish, hitting .275/.333/.377 over 76 plate appearances. With Arroyo and Kiké Hernández both on the injured list, it seems Marwin González is in line to pick up the majority of starts at the keystone for now. As usual, the 32-year-old González has bounced around the diamond a lot this season, but he’s only hitting .208/.319/.313 over 113 plate appearances. González is starting at second and hitting leadoff this afternoon against the Orioles.
In other Red Sox injury news, they’re shutting down right-hander Tanner Houck after he experienced some soreness in his flexor muscle. Manager Alex Cora says the team “is not overly concerned,” telling reporters (including Steve Hewitt of the Boston Herald) that Houck is “actually feeling better right now” and the shutdown is one “we feel…is going to be short term.” The 24-year-old has worked to a 4.35 ERA with fantastic strikeout and walk numbers (26.7% and 2.2%, respectively) in 10 1/3 MLB innings this year. Because Houck was optioned to the alternate training site before suffering the injury, he won’t be placed on the MLB injured list, meaning he will not accrue major league service time while he recovers.
They need to protect Houck, Hopefully it’s nothing serious.
Michael Chavis likely going to get a shot at 2B playing time with Marwin playing OF
Yes, Marwin will play LF against LHP with Cordero sitting, and Chavis or Arauz will be at 2B against LHP as Cora has tried platooning players more often than not.
Since Renfroe is hitting .314 in May and is now up to 4 HRs, he will get the starts in RF and Verdugo in CF.
That’s really scary bout Houck, any flexor anything is scary.
The Boston Red Sox have THE BEST RECORD IN ALL OF MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL. Can you believe that sentence right there? What a fantastic start. So far so good. Of course we don’t know if it will continue and it probably won’t, but it’s still a fantastic start.
And this fantastic start was boo hoo’d by many many naysayers that called the general manager and ownership out for roster moves Etc. The post following mine here will say something along the lines of JD and Xander can’t continue what they’re doing, and something about the starting rotation as well. Well sometimes there’s people that can’t be happy about anything. Oh well I’m loving this !!! Let the downers and naysayers commence with the replies.
What I know is I’M in first place. I also know that YOUR Red Sox will come back to earth soon and match YOUR prediction of middle-of-the-road team. Hope you enjoy that. But you know what? There’s plenty of room on the bandwagon right now. Why don’t you come aboard and enjoy it?
I hopped on at the end of the 1963 season when my man won the batting title. I only had to wait 41 years for success but now it’s a regular thing. What’s not to like?
Yep for me the 80s and the 90s were rough. That’s why I’m gloating now. Opportunities few and far between.
Ya, I do not understand all the negative comments about Bloom. It was as if the people posting want Henry to spend $400 million a year and were calling him cheap even when he spent the most the previous year, or spending big money on free agents when there was no one worth spending on.
Based on what he’s done since he joined the RS, he is the #2 GM in baseball. You can’t tell much about a GM until you see how his draft picks work out, but he has hit on a high percentage of his plays.
Red sox fans that don’t get it’s all gravy now aren’t Red So fans,.
Poor Marwin cannot seem to hit when he doesn’t know which pitch is coming. His ability to play all around the diamond is diminished by his weak offense. At least he converted his trashcan- inflated stats into a payday when left the Astros.
When was that, like 3 years ago? Give the trash can thing a rest.. You’re like the girlfriend that remembers our first week of dating, Sheila kept calling while we were on our date. “Okay that was like 3 years ago babe. Sheila hasn’t called since, why are you bringing it up.. AGAIN?” Get it?
And Marwin actually had a higher OPS in 2017 on the road. Funny no one mentions that.
I’ll say this, Marwin Gonzalez plays a pretty key reserve role on this first-place team.
I’m a baseball can who has followed the Sox since 1955. This team was destined to be no more than .500. It may still be but I’m enjoying the present high. This the perspective of one of 475 fans to watch the Sox in 1965 in a game with the angels.
I saw my 1st game at Fenway in 1956 — my dad was afraid that Ted W. was going to quit because he was so angry that the Sox would not sign any black players.
I remember Dave Morehead throwing a no hitter with less than 3k in the stands.
I was in that stands when Carney Lansford blew out his knee at home plate and had to be replaced by some guy named Boggs. Ever heard of him?
Nothing surprising here. Pivetta, JDM, Bogaerts and Barnes are doing better than expected, and Dalbec and Cordero are doing worse than expected. The rest are mostly about what should’ve been expected. The point being that we should be a little surprised, but not shocked.
This figured to be a decent+ team.
Joe I think most had them as a less than decent team. Most folks here had the Sox in last place battling with Baltimore. Just go back and read the comments. Those thinking decent+ we’re very, very few.
Agreed on Pivetta, JD Martinez, Bogaerts and Barnes. But I love the contract year of Barnes and Eduardo putting a little pressure to succeed. You Don’t See Barnes walking guys like he has in the last 5 years. He’s getting after it. Contact year baby.
Then with Dalbec and Franchy I think they were a crapshoot. You can’t expect anything from a rookie and Franchy is also a crapshoot, a gamble. Any sort of success from them is a bonus. So their .195 batting averages are not a surprise at all.
GaryWarriorsRedSox3 hours ago
Joe I think most had them as a less than decent team.
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I think most of them judged the RS on their 2020 stats. Most of 2020 was based on some awful players who were basically trying out.
The writers should’ve wiped the slate clean.
1-They finished 0.38 RPG from being the best offensive team in the league, despite getting almost nothing from JDM, 2B, and Benni, With almost any recovery from those three spots, they figured to be about the best offensive team in the league.
2-Eovaldi, ERod, Pivetta, Richards, and Perez figure tp collectively have an ERA of better than league average.
I don’t think, based on those two pieces of information, that there was a lot of doubt about them being able to play over .500. The issue is not talent, but depth. While this is a good team, it is also thin. We can win 90, but we cannot afford much by the way of injuries.
JB – Interesting stats. Let’s begin with the 0.38 Runs Per Game behind the best team. Are you sure? If Boston RPGs were 4.87 in 2020 and they ranked 11th out of 30 and there were and there were 4 teams in the AL with better numbers (#3 NYY 5.39, #6 CWS 5.03, #8 TOR 4.92, #9 LAA 4.90) help me with the math. 4.87 + 0.38 equals 5.25 that’s 0.14 short of the Yankees who were the best team in the league but only 3rd best overall.
Also, it was a 60 game season so who cares? It’s not like it represents what they would have done in 162 games. Heck both JD and Benny might have done great if 162 were played. We know Mookie would have!!
Wiping the slate clean as you suggest should be done every year. Had they done that after the 2019 season and written it off to Cora’s stupidity they might still have Mookie. But you are right the core 4 players from the 2018 team are formidable and Verdugo adds to that. The rest are utility guys except Dalbec, he’s just young. He’ll be fine as he gets more at bats. Is there team better than league average? Yes, slightly even without Mookie and Benny. So I guess I agree with what you said but not the numbers presented.
2 – I can’t agree with Eovaldi, E-Rod and gang being collectively better than league average as an assumption. Going in, you must think back to March, most thought Eovaldi was injury prone and likely to get hurt and not any better than a #3 SP. I liked him more than most. Most thought E-Rod was close to Sale’s skills and that was absurd. E-Rod is a blessing so far because of the schedule he followed to get ready for the season. He is very, very high risk for injury in my opinion. He’s a bonus as of today compared to March. NOBODY liked Pivetta except me. I thought he was abused in Philly and not given a proper chance to excel. He’s been given a proper chance in Boston and it’s worked out well so far. Richards was a long shot at best since it had been years since he had pitched well. 6 weeks in and nothing has changed. He hasn’t been awful and he hasn’t gotten hurt so that is a win that exceeds expectations in March.
You could argue that not one of these guys except the extra love given E-Rod would have been considered above league average in March.
Most importantly, this is NOT a good team. It is a hot team. The 2018 talent persists as the core of the team and that is an excellent set of individuals. The new Bloom guys are marginal and Frenchy is a huge step down from Benny. The pitching staff needs to continue it’s initial 6 week success since the season is 26 weeks.
Think about the fact that NYY, TB and TOR have all stumbled coming out of the starting gate and the Red Sox are playing way over their heads. Those facts suggest a huge lead. As of today, it’s 3.5 games and that could be gone by next week but it probably won’t be because they are in the soft part of their schedule.
The train that is barreling down the track at them will hit June 1. 3 versus Houston, 3 versus NYY, 3 more against Houston, 3 against the no longer floundering Blue Jays, 2 against Atlanta who is rounding into form, 3 days off against the Royals, 3 against TB who is looking like TB again, then 3 more against the Yankees and a month end breather in KC for 3 games. That schedule will make or more likely break the Red Sox. It all happens before Sale or Houck will be pitching. It may happen with more injuries than today. Maybe one of the big four get hurt. It’s the acid test for the Red Sox. Talk to me when it’s over and lets see if they are close to a playoff position . Your .500 is more likely today than in March but it’s not a guarantee, it’s a hope.
Franchy is a placeholder for Duran. Whether Verdugo or Duran play LF or CF they will decide when he arrives mid season.
JB – The remnants from the 2018 team were expected to perform well, right? OK so most folks thought JD was over the hill but many still had faith in him. We all knew Devers was a butcher but expect him to hit. well. Bogey seems to keep getting better. Trading away Benny who like JD just had an off year was a huge mistake that the Red Sox will regret for years. Don’t want to get into the Mookie drop-off in right field but if Verdugo can stay healthy he’s acceptable. Vazquez is like Bogey in that he keeps getting better just not as much as Bogey each year.
So in the end a team is only as good as the players play. A good year in 2018 followed by a bad year in 2019 SHOULD NOT have suggested the team was falling off, just that they performed at a different level and that the 2018 level could be attained the year after. Ownership gave up on that group and shame on them. Everyone lauded Cora but he was here in 2019 when they under-performed so bottom line he impacts nothing except the reputation of the organization with his cheating.
DD built a plan that was to last through 2022 and it was an excellent plan. He had talent at 3B, SS, LF,, RF, DH and Catcher. He had prospects coming to play 1B and CF and Peddy hurt the plan when Machado ended his career. He had Sale, Price, Eovaldi (replacing Porcello) and simply needed a 4th and 5th pitcher with several good possibilities in the minors (Houck, Mata etc.). The overall needs of the 2018 plan were to find a 2B to fill in for Peddy and to find 2 bottom of the rotation pitchers. Once Kimbrel proved inept he also needed a closer but was going to give a few internal guys a shot to win the job.
The plan was set and then it wasn’t and disarray happened for nearly 2 years now. Is the core team the same old studs? Yes. Is anything missing? Yes, the best hitter and fielder on the team and the #2 SP. That’s why the expectations for this team were significantly lower. Have some of the filler parts done well? No but the studs have carried the load so far and NO key injuries have happened. It’s that type of luck that must persist for them to hope for a .500 season. They haven’t had a reality check yet. No Yankee games where they get beat by 10 runs or more. If they can handle that and stay healthy, .500 is a possibility . Can they maintain a 10-2 ROAD RECORD? NO. As that number goes to .500 they will lose 8 games in the standings. With Baltimore 6.5 games back and in last place that 8 game drop will significantly change the standings and the chances for a playoff spot. Their only hope is to start winning at a higher rate at home. If that happens, they might have a chance at .500 or even the playoffs if adding Houck and Sale make a big difference.
You aren’t surprised because you had ridiculous expectations. The core team is the same great players from 2018 but the rest of the team pales in comparison. At some point, a lack of talent in the bottom half of the team that Bloom has compiled will be the Achilles heal that ends the hope for the playoffs.
There you are, I was just asking about you. I appreciate your baseball takes. I know you like posting on the weekends and hadn’t seen you in a little bit. Good stuff.
I skip KD as he is wrong most of the time when i used to read his garbage.
the team is doing well despite what bloom has done …. I hope I am wrong, just playing GM like you have no money and trying to be like Tampa is not a good move …. sorry for ranting … just can’t get over the AB trade which the day it was made looked awful and now it looks even worse
jaash5
playing GM like you have no money and trying to be like Tampa is not a good move
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The money issue belongs to Henry. Bloom can only spend what Henry puts in the budget.
And not trying to emulate TB? Since they have one of the best records in BB over the past 4 years, and went to the WS, maybe explain copying their operation is a bad thing?
cordero is pretty much what he is…. not a major league outfielder… I’m glad they are doing well, but the Benintendi trade was god awful
There’s a big difference between Benny’s 5 million-dollar salary and Cordero’s $800,000 salary. Plus a couple prospects thrown in as well going to the Red Sox. They figure it was worth the risk with Benny slipping and not a sure thing any longer and perhaps Cordero could put it together ?? Plus Renfro and Gonzales and Kike filling in where Benny played in the lineup.
Plus I thought I heard someone say Benny was hot? He’s sitting 265 or three home runs. That includes his two home run day the other day. You can have him I’m glad to be rid of him. Rather have Hunter Renfrow and his 25 bombs coming this year. Maybe a .220 hitter?
Gary – Think about a guy who is paid $5M and his OPS+ (which seems to be a universally accepted way to compare players) is 102 on May 10th and his history has been 118, 103, 123 and 100 then he gets hurt and during his shortened season his OPS+ drops to 27 so he is traded for a guy who has had an 83, 105, 132, 94 in the shortened season and is at 34 on May 10th. How should we value the cost savings of $4M? Frenchy has had 2 below average seasons, 1 average season and 1 above average season and Benny has had 3 average seasons counting this year and two above average seasons and one disaster in a shortened season. Is the consistent production over his career worthy of $4M? Think about this. The Red Sox gave JBJ $11M and he is one dimensional. Benny is a better fielder than Cordero and a much better hitter. I for one think he’s worth the extra $4M and I think a lot of Red Sox fans would agree and wish he was in LF this season.
Also, you compared him to Hunter Renfroe who is replacing JBJ not Benny. Renfroe is a power hitter and JBJ was a defensive stud. The Red Sox traded one dimension for a different dimension and neither has the balanced skills of Benny. Verdugo is the only OF that has balanced skills as of today and eventually that will catch up with Boston. That’s why when Duran has gotten enough non-MLB days under his belt this season he needs to be in CF or even 2B since he played it in college. He needs to be able to hit for a .250 average in the majors for him to be a keeper. The same needs to be said about Downs as well, if he ever learns how to hit. You can’t expect to make the playoffs with only 4 legitimate hitters in the line-up and right now JD, Bogey, Devers and Verdugo are the only serious threats. Vazquez is good for a catcher but that leaves 4 spots in the order where the other team doesn’t have to worry about things. Dalbec can scare them a bit with his power but the other utility players that Bloom brought in don’t profile a threat to the opposing pitcher. Benny would have.
The 22-13 start is not at all surprising to me! The fact that teams like the Dodgers and Yankees are barely over .500 is. All that talent on the Dodgers and they have not gotten it going, but they are paying $16 million to a reliever named David Price, and $30+ million for Betts who is hitting .261 should help.
For more on the Dodgers, KD their biggest fan should be along after everyone else is done posting to give thousands of words of inaccurate responses.
I’m amazed at the people trashing the Red Sox as playing over their heads. Do you really think Tampa, Toronto and Baltimore are good? The Yankees may get their act together, but the Sox will compete. The group of Verdugo, Martinez, Boegarts and Devers compare to any 2-5 in the league. ERod, Eovaldi and Pivetta are pitching well, and Sale will be back for the last couple of months. I like the role players who each make contributions. Not a great team, but name one in the American League.
Comments such as this were non-existent in spring training. In fact, the exact opposite, times 10.
GaryWarriorsRedSox – Yes, the expectations for the season were based on talent that didn’t exist in the Red Sox organization. That’s why the spring training comments were negative. It’s simply setting expectations based on talent.
Why are Ray Win’s comments absurd? Because they don’t recognize all that had to go right for the Red Sox to be off to such an unexpected start. First, player performance dictates success. The core 2018 group have performed as they did in 2018 and carried the team. Second, there have not been any significant injuries. Third, they haven’t played the Yankees. Fourth, the clowns that Bloom brought in haven’t been great but they haven’t sucked as much as most expected. Nobody saw Pivetta doing what he’s been doing.
So everyone take a breath and enjoy the moment. This is the high that comes from players over performing. DD’s crew from 2018 have enormous talent but that team had Mookie not a guy like Verdugo who will never be as good as Mookie offensively or defensively. That team had Benny not Cordero who will never be as good as Benny. This team is a much weaker version of the 2018 team because the new parts provided by Bloom for the most part suck. Pivetta is an exception and remains Bloom’s smartest pick-up. The excellence of that trade is off-set by the stupidity of the Benny trade. JD proved he was simply having a down year and Benny is starting to show the same thing in KC. Boston will regret that trade for years.
Enjoy the moment because it’s not going to last. It can’t. The team lacks talent and injuries always happen sooner or later. When Bogey goes down for two weeks or JD is on the IL for 10 days that’s when you’ll see things start breaking down. When the reality of winning over 80% of your games on the road ends, reality will sink in and the pride you are feeling now will be covered in reality and a sub .500 record. Enjoy the moment. SF is experiencing a similar anomaly. Ask KC how fast things can change. A week ago they sat on top of their division like Boston. Now they are third because reality hit them between the eyes. That same reality is going to clobber SF fans and Boston fans. It’s inevitable because talent wins out in the end and players with talent can perform great and carry a team for a time but not a full 162 game season. The Red Sox lack of bottom end talent will bite them in the ass later this season. Thank Bloom for the lack of bottom end talent.
I can’t never take KD17 seriously what a joke of a fan.
TGlass you ass. Why not comment about the content not the person. You have issues and you shouldn’t be attacking others just because they don’t see things YOUR way. Grow up and act like an adult. Start writing what you think about topics not other commenters.
KD is a bitter old fool. Lol lol lol lol
First the Red Sox are not the best team in baseball as their record suggests and I think most rational fans know this.
The Red Sox have gotten off to a good start and they have been fortunate on the injury front but if you are going to say that they were very unlucky on the injury front last year name one other team that lost there two best starting pitchers after the free agent signing period you cant name one because it didn’t exist. Boston was very unfortunate last year on the injury front and they have been fortunate this year just kind of evening things out.
Bloom has done a solid job retooling this team. His trade for Pivetta and Seabold was a great trade and one that was easily won by Bloom. He also traded Moreland to San Diego and got back Potts and Rosario a trade he cant possibly lose because Moreland did nothing for San Diego and is now an A. Bloom also stole Whitlock from the Yankees in the rule 5 draft. I think Bloom has a plan and he is sticking to it just because you don’t agree with it doesn’t mean its a bad plan its just to early to tell anyone that is criticizing Bloom before at least after next offseason is just clueless especially after some of his really good trades and pickups.
The Mandate for Bloom was clearly sent down from ownership and it was to not go over the lux tax. He was clearly constrained in that matter so he came up with a plan again knowing this year he couldn’t sign any of the major free agents he went out and got players with a lot of defensive versitility doesn’t mean he was right or wrong but if we assume the constraints of not going over the lux tax and a weak free agent class he came up with a plan and he executed it. You will also notice another thing he did all of the guys signed are on team options. This also makes it look to me like Boston will be far more willing to open the pocket book this offseason after resetting the lux tax.
How do you know that Boston is going to regret the Benny trade? You don’t even know what 3/5 of the return is its impossible to judge that trade until you know the full return. I agree that Benny for Cordero straight up would be a blunder but that’s not what happened. I have seen nothing from Bloom on the trade front that tells me he doesn’t have a plan in mind when making these trades. Are you a chess player KD? I’m guessing not. Bloom is making moves with the future in mind not all will work out but I guarantee one thing he is thinking three moves ahead like a good chess player and building the next team he thinks can compete for a championship,
Lets also let the Mookie trade lie that wasn’t Blooms doing yes maybe the return is his doing but not the trade.. There is no way he came in as a new GM and first thing wanted to trade there cornerstone best player they have developed in 30 years Mookie Betts. I will tell you this he did want to get pitching but the Dodgers were not willing to give them Gonsolin or any of their young pitchers. I think the return for Mookie has been pretty good so far. Like or not there is an opportunity cost when when you sign someone for 30-35 million a year. I know you just want to look at the player and say Mookie is better then Verdugo and I don’t think anyone is arguing that he isn’t the better player. With that said Verdugo is a very good player and he is on a rookie contract so he is an absolute steal right now so while he may never be as good as Betts that is highly unlikely is he an incredibly valuable player for Boston that allows them more flexibility over the next few years while he is cheap without a doubt yes.
The bottom line KD is this years team as good as there current record no most likely they are not and some regression is expected. Is this team a .500 team as I predicted at the outset yes it probably is will they make the playoffs its a higher chance then when we started the season but I would be mildly surprised if they did make the playoffs but that the point this year was never meant to be a year where the Red Sox went for it what’s happening now is just a bonus. Oh and yes Bloom does have a plan lets at least give him next offseason to see it really start to take shape when I believe the shackles are off then you can start to criticize Bloom doing so before having a chance to see what is built well that’s just stupid and ignorant.
Bruin1012
You will also notice another thing he did all of the guys signed are on team options.
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That’s a big issue for me. Especially for a guy like Richards. Without the option year, the gamble is a straight coin-flip. With the option, being right has twice the value. He has a 3.21 since his first start, so the value of that option year is looking huge.
I agree and I think it was done strategically. I don’t think Bloom intended to compete this year and this has been a pleasant surprise. I think he was eyeing next year as a competitive year and this wanted the team options.
This team was built to have a chance. I think the entire goal was to:
1-Stay under the payroll cap. That way, we go over next year and have another 3-year window before the big penalties kicked in.
2-But still be good enough where, if everything broke right, and we were in 1st at the trade deadline, we can make the payroll decision at that point. If we are still at, say .575 at the trade deadline, and MA finally decides to open the economy, the money will come pouring in for the RS.
I agree Joe there is no reason they can’t go over the lux penalty since it was already reset but only if it makes sense. The season really starts after tonight’s game. It gets much more difficult schedule wise for the next 45 days. Let’s see where everything is at then.
LOL! It felt like we had it easy, but I had no idea of how tough it was about to get. Still, I think it will take 90 wins to get the second playoff spot. That requires a .535 the rest of the way. We’d need a lot of health, but it is possible.
There seems to be a peculiar absence of the standard weekend commentary of JD17. Also the other guy, what’s his name, 30 Parks, I think. I suspect they’ll be back in three weeks when the Red Sox come back to earth and are four games behind the Yankees. Myself.., I’m enjoying this momentary “top of the world” Baseball in the standings. Life is good, let’s enjoy it Red Sox fans!!!
GaryWarriorsRedSox – FYI it’s KD17!! Busy with mother’s day weekend activities kept me from commenting. Thanks for the shout out., I have addressed many of the misconceptions presented in the comments for this article.
For the Red Sox fans, there is a light at the end of the 2021 season tunnel and it’s a train that’s going to run you over without hesitation. The Yankees, Blue Jays and Tampa all have far more talent and the Red Sox won’t go an entire year without injuries. Two weeks without JD, Bogey or Devers will change the standings. The pitching staff throwing more like last year than this year will change the standings. Cora making his daily mistakes will change the standings. Most importantly dropping from a 10-2 road record to .500 will change the standings.
The longer it takes for that day to come the happier I will be. Maybe JD Martinez and Xander Bogaerts will continue to hit .330+? Maybe Nick pivetta we’ll go from 5-0 to 10-0? Probably not but with this nice start it means the Red Sox could be in the hunt for a playoff spot at the end?
But yeah that unbelievable road record probably can’t last but with that realization comes perhaps a better home record as well? We’ll see, but in the meantime I’m wearing my Red Sox hat around town everyday.
KD bleeds Dodger Blue lol lol lol
Funny, the same people blasting Bloom for being a GM like Tampa’s and trying to ridicule him are the same people saying Tampa is good. How can that be? They picked from the scrap heap and traded players like Longoria and got better. Did anyone think Tampa was going to be good two years agp? I see this team more like 2013 than 2018. They veterans they picked up are good clubhouse people, and chemistry does make a difference.
There is no way around it. Those people are insane. There is absolutely no reason not to look at what some of the ultra-competitive small market teams are doing, and not try to replicate successful strategies.
While the Yankees have not been winning WSC’s, they have successfully copied some small market techniques. They’ve added a couple of young guys like Voit, Hicks, Urshela, who were minimum wage guys playing like decent+ major leaguers. They traded away Chapman & Miller when they weren’t competitive. They let Cano walk rather match Seattle’s over-payment.
You can’t compete by simply cutting checks.