The Red Sox agreed to a minor league contract with right-hander Noah Davis last week. The former Colorado pitcher announced the news on social media on Saturday.
Davis has pitched in the majors in each of the last three seasons. That included a career-high nine outings for the Rockies this year. Davis tossed 20 1/3 innings of 5.85 ERA ball with a below-average 15.6% strikeout rate. The 6’2″ righty owns a 7.71 earned run average across 51 1/3 frames in his major league career. He has started six of 18 appearances.
The UC Santa Barbara product has also worked in a swing role at the Triple-A level. Davis has started 23 of 34 outings for the Rockies’ top minor league team. He has a 5.06 ERA across 133 1/3 innings in the Pacific Coast League. Davis has fanned just under 20% of batters faced against a higher than average 11.3% walk percentage.
While the numbers aren’t especially impressive at either stop, Davis has had the misfortune of pitching in difficult environments. He averaged nearly 94 MPH on his sinker in a multi-inning role for the Rox. That hasn’t resulted in huge swinging strike or ground-ball numbers. The Red Sox will try to translate that repertoire into more consistent results in a new setting.
Nothing wrong with taking a flier on a guy with a minor league deal
Tell that to fever pitch guy
@fletcher. He’s really not that bad. He atleast presents facts, and not some trolling comment like most of the people on this site.
rex: that’s not true. He trolls constantly and his facts are only opinions. and when he’s not doing that he’s heaping praise on the three posters agree with him.
You can’t engage in any meaningful discussion with FPG..
@acell10. I disagreed with him on the buehler deal, and he didn’t freak out. I’m not a Sox fan, and made it clear. So maybe that’s why.
rex: the flip side is he lies constantly to make his points. anyone who follows the red sox and knows anything about baseball knows how full of it FPG is.
@acell. Probably one of blackpinks many accounts.
Every time the Sox make a minors deal he complains about all the minor league signings that threw a combined 30 innings last year and claims these types of signings are some kind of slight against the fanbase
I don’t think he’s a troll, I just think he’s too stupid to reason with
God, I hope he’s a troll. The other option is too pathetic to think about,
I might have been giving him too much credit by saying he’s trolling… either that or he actually believes his own lies.
Acell: while I’ll let Fever respond if he chooses, I guess I don’t follow the Red Sox or I don’t know anything about baseball. Thanks a lot …
Dewey: you’re welcome
Rex – Thank you! People disagree with me on things all the time, and most are Sox fans. I welcome and respect differing viewpoints, all I ask is for them to keep it civil and not get personal.
BTW – That person to whom you responded attacked me several times and is obsessed with me, that’s why I muted him. He does the same thing to Saga and others.
Rex – I agree he has multiple accounts and has been called out on it in the past.
Fletch – Look at the comments under the Moran article just 2 days ago, then show some maturity and integrity by apologizing for being wrong.
Dewey – I have him muted so thankfully can’t see his posts. He has known that for a VERY long time, incredibly sad he’s still so obsessed with me.
typical Fever. quick to criticize then won’t admit that he mutes people because of he’s a child and can’t handle when he gets told he’s wrong.. He attacks others then tries to gaslight people into think he’s the victim. it’s pathetic really.
Not sure why you guys are getting on FPG. There are plenty of very dedicated Sox fans that comment here that have just had it with the Ownership/Management. There is no reason for the team not to compete in the personnel market along with the Yankees or Dodgers. They are a very wealthy and profitable organization.
Ok, so they have decided that “baseball players are expensive” and they not going to attempt to buy talent. But then don’t jump out every off season and talk this “full throttle” nonsense, just let it be.
As for all of your comments on this article, it’s mere trolling and nothing else, which is fine we all do it from time to time, but don’t pretend it’s anything more than that.
Sad – Thanks I appreciate it!
It all boils down to actions speaking louder than words. I come here to have interesting and fun conversations with other baseball fans, and I mix in humor to make people laugh. The fact that I mute the few people who personally insult me is proof I don’t enjoy or want to interact with them or read their posts. I’m also cognizant of the fact that many others here, along with the MLBTR staff, don’t want these comments to be polluted with childish non-baseball drama. The vast majority are here to talk BASEBALL, not talk about others.
Those few people (far fewer than the number of their accounts) who obsess over me YEARS after I muted them is the equivalent of the boy who gets rejected by the older girl, but then he parks his bicycle outside her house every night spying on her with binoculars … and then each day at school he constantly tells everyone within earshot how much he hates the girl who rejected him. This is Dr. Phil Show behavior, not healthy at all.
Anyway I hope Davis works out, but won’t be surprised if it doesn’t. I just wish the Sox front office would devote half as much time improving the MLB club as it does scouring the dumpsters for a needle-in-a-haystack gem. They continue to be a large market club operating like a small market club. It’s as embarrassing as Elon Musk spending all his time at the Dollar Store.
Nah
Fletch – So you’re making false accusations against me and even after I prove you’re full of crap, you are too arrogant and insecure to apologize.
Hmmm ….. are you the type of person I’d give the time of day to, much less communicate with on a busy baseball site when I have so many others to talk baseball with?
Nah.
“False accusations”
Last week you were incessantly bitching about the fact that Naoyuki Uwasawa threw 4 innings for the big league club
You’ve never proven me — or anyone else you disagree with– wrong and it’s embarrassing that you keep coming back to get clowned on. Get out of here and stick to calling into WEEI
Fletch – I’ve said I’m fine with most of them, including the Moran trade just 2 days ago.
But thank you for thinking of me, makes it feel like my second family here (Addams Family? Haha).
At least FPG explains himself, in detail, and has no problem when people point out past posts that may have turned out differently than he thought. He gives you an “opinion” and why he thinks that way.
Many people just troll or blurt out train of thought, emotionally driven nonsense. I do not agree every time, but I appreciate that he tells you the why.
I’ve never found him to admit that he’s wrong. In fact he does the exact opposite and refuses to admit his mistake. If anything he triples down.
The only reason he mutes people is not because they harass him. It’s because he gets tired of being proven wrong.
I haven’t got that impression in the past. We have had a good back and forth a few times about not having problems with signings or trades that went badly we thought would pan out (a couple that may have potentially hurt the team btw). Mostly deals we wanted the Sox to do that ended up being great…… for another team. We both wanted Lugo and Imanaga last year, since we knew they would go cheap, if at all.
I don’t post nearly as much as most here overall, usually in short time periods of spurts so I do not see much. These last couple weeks I posted a lot because I had the time, but typically I’ll disappear for weeks or months just as regularly. I have never had a reason to see FPG as anything other than passionate and whether I agree or disagree, he will explain himself.
william – Thank you!
Yes if I don’t know something I will acknowledge it and thank the person for informing me. And I admit when my expectations are wrong, such as being overly bullish on Yoshida (although I’m not giving up on him yet).
Fever, since you mention Yoshida again, what’s your feelings on the reports that the trade talks involving Casas derailed after Breslow insisted Yoshida and his remaining 3 years had to tag along for the ride?
Also, belated merry christmas
GASox – Dude how ya been, scale from 1-10? I was about to put out an APB on you, been a while. Still going up to Worcester every month?
I haven’t heard those reports. What I have heard is Seattle wants Casas only for Castillo, and the Red Sox are willing to trade Casas only for one of the other 4 Mariners starters.
You’re not gonna like this, but I’ve heard fairly credible sources that the Red Sox weren’t even close to enticing Teo and they have not made an offer to Bregman. So unless they land Santander, which I doubt, they may be going into the season with Yoshida as the DH and secondary OF backup if he’s fully healthy. Apparently John Henry is tired of paying players to play for other teams, go figure.
Merry Christmas to you as well my friend!
Fever – I’ll have to give it a solid 2 on the scale. Name of the game right now is t315i mutation, so bad juju. Explains a little over the past few months anyways.
Tonight I’m about to make my *third* trip to worcester in December alone, believe it or not.
As far as RHB situations? I didn’t want the Sox in on Teo at all so I’m good there. I would’ve preferred shipping Casas out for an arm than the crochet deal, even if it meant keeping Yoshida, then slide Devers over bringing in bregman. I honestly think they’re fine with the controllable OF setup they’ve got, and, I remain unimpressed by grissom in any capacity.
I’d think you’re more likely to see Anthony join the OF mix and bump ceddane to the IF or super sub than you are to see Yoshida ever play the field again unless 3 or 4 guys are hurt at the same time. There’s just too much depth with guys who can put one foot in front of another and use a glove without hurting themselves to ask Yoshida to do either.
GASox – Sorry to hear, I looked up what that is. Safe travels, I heard there’s some snow up north. Mask up because Covid is going around the Bay State especially airplanes and airports.
I still see Bregman with the Tigers, they’re saving 3B for him. Tigers ownership will be doing Hinch a solid.
I’m all for giving second chances to guys like Grissom, Casas and Yoshida. When I said secondary OF backup I’m talking like maybe just 150-200 innings on the season? Certainly Ref is gonna be the primary OF backup. Hopefully they don’t stick Wong or Romy out there.
GA: The Sox wanted to trade Casas for one of the younger Seattle starting pitchers, but Seattle didn’t want to do that. The Sox then you inquired about Castillo, who is older, and Seattle then asked for Cases for Castillo. Boston said they would do this if Seattle also took Yoshida’s contract according to Jeff Passan. I think it all makes sense and shows they want good value if they trade Casas.
I’d be very surprised to see Yoshida make 150 innings on the MLB club. Maybe log some time in rehab assignments though when trying to bring his bat to speed.
Going to be driving up again, haven’t been taking planes lately. Have the trip down to two gas stops in transit: one VA, one Scranton PA. I may fly back on the 30th/31st though and leave a car up there since I’m due back Jan 7th. It’s still a 15 hour ride to make the 1200+ miles each way. So definitely will hit up as mask if I take the easy flight route back!
Seems like every trip I’ve made up this month I’ve gotten to see a couple inches of white stuff
GASox – I think at some point in 2025 they will want to trade Yoshida. Allowing him to show he can play outfield is a good way for him to become more tradable, re-establish his value.
Driving this time of year? Isn’t that kind of risky with the weather? One storm with slick or snowy roads can easily turn a 15 hour ride into a 20+ hour ride. Be careful on I-80 in NJ, there’s a massive sinkhole that just opened up. How come you don’t go up I-95? Sure there’s tolls, but it’s a lot shorter distance.
Yeah the only time I wear a mask is airports and airplanes, last time I flew there were sick people literally everywhere.
Well please try to post after each trip so I know you’re alright.
Fever, I do neither.
I95 just 80 miles into SC then it’s off to i26 to i77 to i81 to i84.
I skip DC, Philly, NYC, all the craziness and most of the tolls. I’d even ditched merritt Pkwy in favor of 84 these days because is even worse than the racetrack it always used to be.
You’re right about the potential to lengthen the trip, but, I also prefer to bring good food back with me in spare omaha steaks coolers as well. Seafood quality is so much better, not to mention the European import foods I haul back. Can’t do that on a plane.
GaSox – You’re so right about the Merritt, I’ve almost always avoided it. I flew into Westchester last summer and decided to take it since it was around 8:30pm … very scary trying to enter from a dead stop with cars flying by. And inevitably traffic cones to a standstill.
Yeah makes sense to drive if you’re hauling stuff. Just be careful with black ice.
Pool – Is this significant enough to be presented here or does it look like Breslow doesn’t have his eyes on the prize?
Just answer ONE line of questioning – What is your projection for this pitcher while he performs for Boston over the rest of his career? Will he average enough innings to be significant? If not, he’s simply not relevant or worthy of discussion in a forum like this one. In a trivia contest? Maybe.
If so, then put some perspective to this addition because the writer didn’t explain why this topic should be covered other than he had no real stories.
Sag – Great post! I’m fine with this deal, but with nearly every one of these many many dumpster dives there’s three things that are guaranteed:
1) Certain people here will praise the front office by calling it a great move.
2) The Red Sox will find a way to call up the pitcher and put him into a high leverage situation.
3) Certain people here will accuse me and others of not liking the acquisition, when in actuality it’s the usage of said player that concerns me and Red Sox Nation.
Fever Pitch Guy – You are right. There is a common denominator to the dumpster dives. Like you said, all too often these guys are worthless and end up in games and the time is higher leverage than anyone would want but that’s on Cora because he has no experience except the mistakes he’s made in Boston and he never learns from his mistakes.
A second common aspect of these deals is that they generate debates among novice contributors about which player is the better player and how effective or ineffective the trade is. It’s silly because the trade is both insignificant and completely lacks impact on the big picture so they are basically worthless.
What is shocking to me is how even guys that make occasional quality contributions don’t seem to understand the role of the farm system and that it’s a contained system with limits that don’t budge. Each farm team has x number of roster spots. If you add trash, which both Bloom and Breslow have done far too much, then you must cut somebody who already exists in the farm system Is the new person better than the old person? Marginally some times but more often than not, they are comparable so we simply swap names on jerseys but we don’t add value. So why do it? There are always transaction fees with these types of activities so it’s a waste of money. Not a lot of money but 100 bad transactions have 100 sets of transaction costs that add no value to the ball club. So why do them? So you look like you aren’t being idle when you don’t acquire talent in an off season? Is that really a valid reason to waste this money and time?
Ask yourself, if this transaction didn’t happen what would be the impact? The answer is no more or less wins. That’s always the case with the dumpster dives that’s why I object to the churning. It’s simply not productive.
What’s annoying about it is people look at 17 year old prospect that gets added and use showcase evaluations to draw conclusions that will never match the kids actual performance. That’s how you end up with guys over hyped like Jeter Downs and Marcelo Mayer. Watching a guy as an amateur evaluator and making absurd claims that don’t match the production of the player is all part of the craziness that fuels this website with bad projections on how good the farm system is and the MLB team. I wish people could focus on real talent and how to fix the broken roster rather than exaggerating their favorite players in hopes that the front office will support the players being hyped in the media sites like this one.
One last point, don’t worry about Acello. He has a low comprehension level when it comes to the game and personnel and he’s harassed me and many of my friends over the years. If he’s not accusing you of being one of them, he’s suggesting he’s not negative when every comment he makes is about the writer not the subject if he disagrees.
Care to elaborate on what friends you’re referring to?
Sag – Excellent post as always!!
Yes some people here fail to see the Big Picture as usual. These numerous dumpster dives are not made with the intention of filling the AAA roster and giving the Woosta fans a product to cheer, they are made with the intention of cycling them on and off the MLB roster whenever Cora burns up the bullpen, and ultimately as we all know they will likely be thrust into high leverage situations because – wait for it ….. Cora has burned up the bullpen and therefore is forced to use the 12th or 13th best (really the worst or 2nd-worst) pitchers on the roster.
The solution is rather simple: PUT TOGETHER A QUALITY 13-MAN PITCHING STAFF THAT DOESN’T HAVE A BUNCH OF PITCHERS RETURNING FROM INJURY
As for your comments on the farm system, you are 100% spot on! I’d much rather give 20-23 year old PROSPECTS a chance to develop in the minors than block them with 28-year-old pitchers who have already shown they are not yet capable of facing MLB hitters.
On your last point, I don’t worry about those that I have muted because they will never know who I am or where I live, but I do genuinely hope they address their mental health issues because when they become adults (age-wise) if they don’t resolve their issues they will become a burden on society and a drain on taxpayers.
I don’t think of adding minor league pitchers that may add depth as dumpster diving. The Sox definitely tend to go overboard in reclamation projects, but this is just bringing in a pitcher who has some potential and seeing if you can get anything out of him. Not sure why that would hurt the farm system as they have limited pitching depth and this is the kind of move all teams make.
Sag imo ..Totally not worthy of discussion which is why people veered to talk about fpg. I think there are strong odds we never hear about noah davis again which is why i said there is nothing wrong with the signing.miggt aa well take fliers where you can.eye on the prize , im not worried about it from what ive read breslow is being very aggressive…just on us to judge the actual fruits of the labor by mid feb when pitchers and catchers report
Pool – I appreciate that you talked strictly about Davis in the first comment, but the second comment coming from one of my stalkers – who isn’t even a Red Sox or Rockies fan – was quite disturbing.
Honestly there have been many articles where the headline doesn’t interest me so I don’t even bother to read the article or the comments. If the Teo article had been posted before this one, I’d probably have never even seen what was going on here.
Go Yard Goats
Mang – Hartford is baseball! I met Manny there a few years ago.
It’s a minor league depth deal all teams and I mean all teams make these kinds of minor league deals. Nothing to see here.
Bruin – I agree, nothing to see. The Red Sox make these types of moves more than nearly every other team, certainly more often than any Top Ten revenue team.
But it’s not like we have signings of players such as Teo to talk about ;o)
I’m actually not to disappointed in missing out on Teo. The only way he fit is if Breslow found a way to trade Masa and I don’t think that’s happening. I’m fine with what we have offensively. My real wish list is Burnes and Scott and call it an off-season. I don’t think it happens but that’s where I would focus if ownership green lights a Burnes acquisition.
Bruin – I am 100% with you on all those points!
I strongly believe as you do, I would love to have Burnes and Scott (or Hoffman, Helsley, Yates) but if they don’t acquire any of them I’m fine with starting the season exactly as is and seeing how things play out. I have that much confidence in The Big Three and I’m bullish on a healthy Casas, Story and Yoshida.
I say this all the time to my colleagues, don’t make changes just for the sake of change.
That would be full throttle.
Scott seems the more realistic of the two at this point.
Fever you know who else does a lot of signings like these DD.
every team makes these type of moves. Whether it’s dumbo or other GMs. That’s the point that most of us are trying to make
Acell10 – Disparaging words from you about the HOF GM. Typical. Ignorance is rampant on the site and you are a main contributor!! Bruin1012’s comment must mean I hurt his feeling somewhere.
Dombrowski fills his roster top down. If you followed the game closer you’d know that Bruin1012. The last two clowns in Boston fill it bottom up. Dumpster diving the entire fall and straight through Spring Training. The most aggravating part is that they often forget they are supposed to fill the MLB roster too with quality players so it simply doesn’t happen. I believe it’s been 5 years running since the HOFer was ousted by the idiot owners. Guess how many quality players we’ve gotten during that stretch? I’ll let you know as soon as we get one!!!
The Red Sox make these types of moves more than nearly every other team, certainly more often than any Top Ten revenue team.
===================
No evidence from Fever Pitch Guy to back up this claim.
He’s been saying this for years and been proven wrong countless times
All – How do you know he’s wrong? Did you ever count the number of players we’ve recycled? Is it any more fair to suggest he’s wrong if you haven’t done the totals. I mean I get that Acell10 is simply being contrary and would never have bothered to count but I’m surprised you haven’t.
I actually tried to count the recycling and it was simply physically overwhelming. I got through Sept to May and gave up out of boredom. I did a quick check on moves and I think it’s fair to say there are a lot of teams that churn bad players. The Dodgers had a lot of injuries yet they seem to do less churning than most.
Good luck on trying to actually count the churning, I find it easier to count the misplays by Devers than the churning because it’s meaningful. 52 misplays and 14 errors is a huge discrepancy so I prefer to point that out than to be the guy who tracks dumpster dives.
Dumpster diving here we go!
Total lack of understanding of how every team makes these types of depth moves, here we go!
AAA depth is all.
Really good breaking balls. Doesn’t throw them enough because he’s been pitching at altitude (Denver and Albuquerque) for years. Fastball is batting practice tho. Good flyer here.
red sox are serious candidates for that third place,, jays probably get bregman
Good. After Bregman cried because Boston traded him I doubt they bring him into the clubhouse
Look at you, showing off your baseball knowledge,
Beis – I still say Tigers.
Is he injured? Due for TJ? If neither of those are true, then he’s not the Sox type of pitcher.
Yeah, it’s so awful they got Crochet and Buehler. Oh, it’s so bad,
That 5.75 ERA should help this team drastically. Breslow, please stop with the dumpster diving and being a pauper and spend some money. The way this guy is, does anyone realistically think Sasaki will sign with the Red Sox. Breslow, stop teasing the fans and pick up a difference maker not injured pitchers on discounted contracts. Yeah you picked up another pitcher Garrett Crochet who is coming off a major injury and does not have a track record of pitching a lot of innings. Spend some of that money you allocated for Soto.
Bro. It’s a minor league signing. Get a grip.
How about we pick up a major difference maker who can help this team already
Imagine being Noah Davis and seeing more than 30 comments. Bet he wouldn’t expect that.
Let – He’s probably also wondering who the hell is FPG and why are people talking about him. Haha!
Noah allows baserunners two-by-two.
AHH – You win Post of the Day!!
He needs to be in the same bullpen as Genesis Cabrera and Jason Adam.
Thanks, folks, I’ll be here all weekend.
Going out to get more junk out of the dumpster again…forget about the MLB team, it’s just the way of this FO/ownership. Seeing what others are doing to better their team on the field compared to us just blows me away!!
Someone or something in the Red Sox Analytics Office continues to press the point in signing these “depth/live arm” guys. I don’t understand it. They haven’t “fixed” any of these guys to date.
Moreover, stockpiling these guys blocks the development of homegrown players at lower levels of the system. This bothers me. If you’re looking for pitchers that are perhaps a little further along in their development before they get assigned to your farm system then perhaps they should change strategies and draft college pitchers.
I know I should say, “this is fine” or “can never have enough pitching”, but the guy threw to a 5 ERA, admittedly in a small sample.
The Sox philosophy is off somewhere. They really don’t seem to be pursuing the most talented, but rather checking some boxes on a spreadsheet.
I miss Dave D.
Sad Sox 3 – We all miss having a real GM!!! Great commentary.
My theory on Breslow’s actions relates to trips to Vegas.
Lets say you are married and you have strict enforcement on the money you can take to Vegas. Breslow knows his limits so he’s playing all the long odds bets. Instead of playing 21 and having a strong chance of winning if you know what you are doing, he goes to the spinning wheel and bets the qualifying offer money on a specific number. With Giolito, he landed on miss a turn so he only has one chance to win with two turns. Same with Sandoval. With Buehler, he’s got one chance to win but rather than going the safe route and playing 21 or going for a Blue Chip pitcher, he’s gambling that he’s right about Buehler and will hit big with him. The problem always comes back to Breslow in the form of what’s next? Once Buehler hits, his wife is not giving the money to legitimately invest in the much improved Buehler, that choice will go to his buddy with the more generous wife!!! The same is true with Giolito and Sandoval. A great year means an exit and a bad year means a bust so how does Breslow ever win with these type of deals? He doesn’t he simply enjoys his trip to Vegas since he’s never been there before just like Bloom and Cora.
Sad- I think truly think this is a nothing burger. This isn’t blocking any of the top 60 prospects. It’s truly just a depth signing that all teams do. It doesn’t affect any of the guys in AAA they will still have all of the depth that has been accumulated with the starting pitcher depth. I don’t think there is very much bullpen depth in AAA so that where he goes. They have to fill out there AAA team they need need bullpen pieces.
Saga do you really think this is a Breslow thing or an ownership thing. Do you really think that Breslow wouldn’t sign Burnes knowing he’s the best available pitcher on the free agent market this year. Especially being a former big league pitcher. I don’t think so I think he’s working within the parameters he’s been given by ownership. It’s why he gave up so much to acquire Crochet. He’s a former pitcher he knows the value of top end pitching. I think it’s clear that ownership isn’t going to sign a pitcher 30 or older for a long term contract despite needing to do that. I truly believe he’s addressed pitching to the best he can. I think it’s an ownership level decision to sign those high end level free agents especially pitching. There is no doubt in my mind the team that Breslow has put together has a higher upside than last year. Of course I would love to see them sign Burnes and Scott and let’s see what happens in October but no doubt the team is better than last year. That’s why I think Breslow has done a good job under the circumstances.
Bruin1012 – I struggle with Breslow because I think a good GM would go to ownership and point out that Blue Chip players win more games. How can Breslow improve the future when he keeps making such huge mistakes:
1 – He gave up way to much for Crochet’s 2 seasons.
2 – He paid $100 Million in pitching salaries and in the end he will either be successful and the players will go to higher bidders or he’ll fail and the money will be wasted. $100Million is a crap load of money. Two QOs for Giolito and Two QOs for Sandoval and ONE QO for Buehler. That’s $100 Million and what does Boston have when they are done? Nothing. All three pitchers will be busts or be successful and use Free Agency to find better spots to land than Boston.
3 – Blue Chips aren’t guaranteed success but their likelihood is so much higher. Breslow needs to simply say I want to spend big money to get a top of the rotation pitcher for 5 years or more. Then he can fill out the rest of the line-up with guys like Houck and Bello.
So lets consider the upsides if you believe we are better:
1 – Houck is Houck
2 – Crochet has upside potential BUT is not a guarantee because his season had some ups and downs
3 – Giolito – best case is ready for the start of the season but it could take the standard two months to get him into the groove with his control. So we paid a lot of money for 4 months of effective pitching.
4 – Crawford and Bello are solid SP3 and SP4 type pitchers and maybe they improve a bit. That would be great.
5 – We have no solid depth at this point for starters. We have players who might pitch well over their heads or not. So is our pitching improved?
Now turn to the offense and you see we have fixed no holes. Devers is still going to kill us. Story needs to play improved defense and hit if we are to gain on last year. Grissom or possibly Campbell needs to play extremely well to improve on last year. Casas will be back full time so that should be an improvement. There is no Tyler O’Neill so that’s a huge drop off. Anthony needs to be great for there to be improvement in the outfield. Yoshida needs to improve his hitting as well. At best, it’s a lot more of what we say last year.
What’s missing? No Kenley but we have Hendriks and if healthy he should be better than Kenley. Whitlock is back but will he be good? Hard to say. So in the end, are we better in 2025? It seems like we are still a .500 team that won’t make the playoffs unless something is added that is significant.
Breslow’s relationship with ownership is unknown. Maybe he can’t do anything or maybe he chooses not to do anything for fear of being fired. I don’t know. His gambling would be greater appreciated if all things didn’t end with the SP leaving if he’s successful or being cut if he is not. He’s in a very tough position if you believe he doesn’t have the flexibility to ask for Blue Chip players. If he doesn’t, then I can join you in feeling sorry for the guy. I just don’t know if there are handcuffs on him or he like Bloom chooses to do what he wants to do to make a name for himself. If Bloom’s approach was to build a program that allowed for multi=position players who are all priced about the same with no standouts then what is Breslow’s philosophy? No money so high risk/high reward players? If so, why not figure out how to keep the guys if you actually guess right? That’s the part I can’t reconcile.
Bruin1012 – I just read that Burnes got 6 years for $210.
So over the next six years would you rather spend blue chip money on Burnes to the tune of $210Million for an AAV of $35Million
OR
Would you rather spend half that ($105 Million) to have Giolito for 4 months, Sandoval for 4 to 6 months and Buehler for a year with no chance of keeping any if they are successful?
For $15Million a year less we got 3 hurt pitchers and can only count on the three of them for 1 year max so in the end both choices cost the same amount of money but in one case you get 6 seasons of a blue chip pitcher and in the other case you get THREE recovering TJ surgery pitchers for 1 year or less.
Breslow has to be able to explain to owners that our approach doesn’t work if he truly believes it doesn’t. If he likes playing Russian roulette with the pitching staff then I think the blame goes squarely on Breslow.
Sad – I swear I posted nearly the exact same thing BEFORE reading your post! Great minds ….
Of course they are trying to save money, that’s the whole purpose of putting together an analytics department of 300 people that required a major expansion of the Fenway offices.
John Henry made it crystal clear when he slipped by saying “Players are expensive”, he’s focused on making the highest profits with the lowest possible payroll.
5 years of not trying to win allowed them to build up the farm system, now they are choosing to spend their prospects instead of money. If things don’t work out with the trades and promoted prospects, they are screwed.
Fever- it’s not like the cupboard is bare and they are going all in on selling prospects. They sold one prospect and one maybe prospect. I like Meidroth but he didn’t have a path on this team no matter how good I think he can be. The Red Sox still have a very good farm system with three guys poised to make their debuts this season at different times. There is still a lot of potential big league talent in that farm.
I am disappointed that they traded Teel but it’s clear Breslow is trying to add big league talent. Could thus backfire of course it could. When you trade or sign pitchers it can backfire they can get injured. Would it be better if ownership, instead of the ridiculous pursuit of Soto, jumped the market and signed Fried and Burnes of course it would. I just don’t think ownership was willing to do that. Breslow was forced to trade and it was painful but what choice did he have? He could have waited but Boston fans aren’t very forgiving on the waiting game. He saw a big issue and he tried to address it.
Bruin – I’m surprised, it sounds now like you’re not that bullish on Monty …. I thought you were? I know you were angry about Teel at the time of the trade. LOL!
I wasn’t referring to just those 4 guys going to Chicago though. I think I counted 12 prospects including the 4 for Garcia, the 3 for Jansen, and the 1 for Paxton (I did NOT include Yorke even though I’m bearish on Priester).
So that’s 8 prospects that definitely returned nothing, and 4 prospects that we are waiting on Crochet to determine.
Where do you think the farm system is ranked right now? You know it’s gonna take a big hit once the Big Three are promoted.
Fever Pitch Guy – Bruin1012 has his favorites but I always go back to the numbers and Meidroth was a lot better than Mayer. If Grissom blossomed then Meidroth might be out of a job in 2025 and would have had to wait in AAA for an injury, however, if Grissom floundered I’m not sure Meidroth wouldn’t have just taken over at 2B for the future. That would allow Campbell to be either the SS of the future or the 3B if they finally push Devers off 3B.
Montgomery was a huge steal in the draft and to poo poo him isn’t cool. He’s an outstanding prospect who has a far greater chance of success than Mayer simply because he hasn’t failed for so many years both on offense and defense.
Teel was a flat out mistake. Based on his position and impact to the team in the future, he was the most difficult player to replace in the event a trade happened. Breslow’s choice is inexcusable. Fisk and Varitek. Those are the names I think of when I look at what Teel might have been.
Here is what guts me every time I think about Breslow’s bad choice. Today, in 2025 CWS have a high ceiling catcher in Teel and they have another one in Quero. Breslow made the choice to push Teel over Mayer and it’s a massive mistake. Mayer is the higher seed and he will be discovered this year as a pretender and his value is going to fall like Jeter Downs. Whether it’s from injury, lack of defensive skills or his inconsistent hitting he’s going down and think how great it would have been if Teel was still a Red Sox and Mayer was in Chicago. HUGE mistake. This is what separates Dombrowski from Breslow. #1 guy like Moncado identified as a pretender by Dombrowski so we can get an elite pitcher like Sale with an 8 year track record. Breslow has no clue who the pretenders are so he gives away maybe the most valuable prospect of all to get a pitcher with 1 year of SP experience.
This is why we went from the top of the heap to the bottom and now can’t get past .500.
It’s hilarious to see people get worked up over a minor league signing. Keep in mind that nearly every MLB team has a 3:1 or 4:1 ratio in the offseason (3 minor league additions for every 1 major league addition). This guy is at the bottom of the list of probable promotions to Boston in 2025. They are just hedging in case they need to call on Priester, Fitts, Sandlin, etc. to fill some major league innings. They have to have someone left to pitch for Worcester. Who knows, maybe Andrew Bailey sees something in this guy he likes. This signing has nothing to do with Breslow’s remaining plans for filling out the rest of the major league roster. If he stinks, they will just release him. Nothing to see here or to get upset about.
Red Sox fan since 1963. I’m fine with ownership and I’m fine with Cora and I’m fine with Breslow. I’m also fine with minor league signings of pitchers. I’m happy with the moves so far, I’d like a good righty bat to stick near the middle of the order. And I’d like to get a closer. With those two additions, this team is going to be a good one. They will probably win the division because they have a good manager. Have a nice time complaining, go watch Tony C get beaned, Jim Rice miss the 1975 World Series, the Mets refusing to lose in 1986 (sorry, the Red Sox didn’t blow it, the Mets won it), Bucky Dent, Boonedoggle, Mariano Rivera TOTALLY CHOKE.
It’s been a great ride, thank you Red Sox.
hayzee – Thank you for your service!
whyhayzee – I’m not sure I’ve ever read a more controversial statement than yours. You are fine with ownership gutting the team. Fine with Cora embarrassing former players and the game with his two acts of cheating that should have ended in a lifetime ban and possibly jail time if the gamblers in Houston could have been proved to have made millions on the cheating.
The rest of the feel good comments are fine. I lived through the same era and more and acceptance of the recent behavior of this organization is incomprehensible.
Thanking the ball players is a class move. They deserve it.
BTW … we have an excellent closer and a right handed bat can’t be gotten because of the selfish 3B who won’t move off 3B despite being the worst fielding 3B in history.
It’s a nothing signing to complain about. He SHOULD never pitch an inning on the team. If he does, everything probably went wrong. They probably looked at his stuff and told themselves that he wasn’t outright terrible in 100% of his outing in MLB, just about 75% of them. We can work with that.
William – I think the possibility of him being called up because Cora needs a “fresh arm” after burning through the M*A*S*H 4077 pitching staff is quite high.
Can Crochet, Buehler, Hendriks, Giolito and Sandoval all stay healthy …. or at least most of them?
Time will tell.
Well, like I said. If we see him, things went very wrong. However, I did watch Ort throw over 50 innings for the Red Sox, and that to me seemed like an impossibility.
Can we bag the BS depth moves and get Scott and Burns already, also Bregman! Thank God Hernandez is gone…don’t need ANY Outfielders
guru – Didn’t you hear? Sox are all in on Santander! Hahaha!!!
Burnes just signed with Arizona. Another one off the board!!
FYI – We have 5 guys on the 2025 roster that cost $110 Million in total –
1 – Devers
2 – Story
3 – Buehler
4 – Giolito
5 – Yoshida
That leaves $131Million under the CAP.
The top five have achieved the following:
1 – Devers has a 126 Career OPS+ – A slightly above league average hitting performance with a far below league average fielding performance
2 – Story has a 89 Career OPS+ with the Red Sox for half his $140Million contract
3 – Buehler has yet to play for Boston but has an ERA+ under 100 the last two seasons but his 7 year ERA+ is 125 (same as Tanner Houck after 5 yrs)
4 – Giolito has yet to play for Boston but has an ERA+ under 100 the last two seasons but his 8 year career ERA+ is 98 just below league average
5 – Yoshida has a Career OPS+ of 111 for his $18Million a year. He has 3 years left just like Story except that if he plays DH he prevents the Red Sox from having anything but a bottom 5 defense thanks to Devers.
We spent 46% of the money under the CAP on these 5 guys. Bloom is responsible for the over pay of Devers, Story and Yoshida and Breslow owns the Giolito and Buehler big money.
The team refuses to fix any of the mistakes either because Breslow isn’t allowed to fix them or he doesn’t recognize the problem. We all hope it’s the former reason but we have nothing that confirms that.
1 – Moving Devers must happen
2 – Trading Yoshida or Devers must happen so there is ONE DH
3 – Houck needs to be signed so there is at least two pitchers on the books for 2027 who have career ERAs under 4.00. Yes Bello and Whitlock are signed in 2027 for around $8Million each BUT Bello has a 4.50 ERA and a ridiculously bad 1.415 WHIP and Whitlock hasn’t pitched recently but did have good numbers a few years ago but they couldn’t decide if he’s a starter or reliever. That’s our future pitching staff as of today in 2027.
The roster simply is not coming together under Breslow. He threw away 3 great prospects for a guy here 2 years. A catcher with 6 years of control, a top draft pick Outfielder with 6 years of control and an up and coming 2B with 6 years of control for a pitcher 2 years away from free agency.
Fans need to realize we are not securing the future right now. We are bailing water out of the boat so we don’t sink. Bloom perforated the bottom of the boat and Breslow seems to be sticking fingers in the holes for now since he has NO EXPERIENCE fixing boats.