Tag Archives: Game Of Thrones

Red Sox Demise Vastly Overstated

The Red Sox aren’t exactly Arya Stark, and the AL East isn’t exactly the Night King. But yesterday the Red Sox won, the Rays got swept in a double header by the Royals, and the Yankees lost against the Diamondbacks. That’s a game to a game and a half gain in the standings in one day. The end result is the Sox are a respectable 5.5 games out in the AL East today. Here’s what’s going right.

Playing Cora Ball

Last year the Red Sox pulled off a .667 winning percentage all year, resulting in 108 wins. The last 12 games the Sox have quietly gone 8-4. That’s, you guessed it, a .667 winning percentage. Turns out Cora can still manage.

The Bullpen

Sure, there are leaky parts of the 2019 pen. But the Red Sox enjoy, by design, a flexible stable of lock down options. Without Kimbrel, or an ordained closer, Cora is free to do what Tito Francona wanted to do with Pabelbon back in the day: Use his best relievers for the most important outs, no matter the inning. Matt Barnes has picked up where he left off last season: 2-0, with 2 Saves, a 2.25 ERA, a .83 WHIP, and 17.3 K/9. But the key number is 4. That is the number of Holds he has. That means Barnes is facing the toughest part of the lineup in the 7th or 8th inning when the game is on the line. Ryan Brasier has great numbers as well (1-0, 6 Saves, 1.32 ERA, .80 WHIP), but he strikes out significantly less than Barnes (7.9 K/9). So while Brasier is racking up more saves, Barnes is the true fireman of the 2019 Red Sox bullpen.

Another standout is Marcus Walden, seemingly coming out of nowhere to accumulate a 1.65 ERA with 10.5 K/9 in the early going. And while Workman has walked a few (12 Walks in 13.1 Innings), he’s also striking out 13.2 K/9.

The bottom line is, what Theo and the boys wanted in 2003 with Bullpen By Committee, Dombrowski and Cora are pulling off.

The Offense

J.D. Martinez has been hitting all season, but now the MVP is starting to turn it around. Mookie has raised his batting average 89 points over this 12 game stretch, from .200 to .289. He is spearheading an offense that’s scored 5.33 runs a game in this stretch, almost a full run ahead of their season average of 4.51. Also, a lot closer to the 5.45 of 2018.

This stretch has also seen the arrival of the young and dynamic Michael Chavis. He’s hitting .314 with 3 Home Runs and a 1.042 OPS. Not bad for a rookie.

The Starting Pitching

No one personalizes the starting pitcher turnaround like the steady Rick Porcello. After a drubbing by the Baltimore Orioles left his season ERA at 11.12 on April 13th, he has gone 3-0 and lowered his ERA by half, to 5.52. His last start in particular was a thing of beauty: 8 innings, 2 hits, 0 runs, 8 strikeouts.

And he’s far from alone. The Sox have won Eduardo Rodriguez‘s last four starts, David Price‘s ERA is down to 3.60, and Chris Sale has only allowed four earned runs total over his last two games. This is starting to look like the rotation everyone envisioned at the beginning of the year.

The bulk of the 2018 roster is still here. They were looking like all of James Holzhauer‘s Jeopardy opponents for the first few weeks. As it turns out, it really was early all along.

Featured Photo via HBO screenshot

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Red Sox-Yankees Series Preview

Pitching Matchups/Schedule (TV)

4/16 Chris Sale vs James Paxton 6:35 NESN

417 Nathan Eovaldi vs J.A. Happ 6:35 ESPN

Notable Numbers

1.93: That is the ERA for both Chris Sale and Nathan Eovaldi against the Yankees in the last three years. They’re certified Yankee killers. Could this be just what the doctor ordered to get these guys on track? Who can say?

Against Paxton, J.D. Martinez should continue his hot start to the season. He’s hit .500 against Paxton in his career. Both Brock Holt and JBJ have gone 3-7 against him as well. That short porch in right at Yankee Stadium might be beneficial to the Sox slumbering bats.

The Sox may hit Happ to a measly .212 as a team, but Steve Pearce has shined: .344 lifetime with 6 home runs.

What To Watch For

How about a little life from the boys? How about a glimmer of hope that the team is here to play this year? If you listened to Cora after Patriots Day he seemed to sense that maybe it’s not so early. On paper the Sox should sweep the two game series.

Expectations

It’s anyone’s guess right now. Even if the Sox sweep these two games it will be against half the Yankees. Look for signs of life. If we see grind it out at bats and pitchers hitting locations early we’ll know the Sox are waking up. But Nathan Eovaldi has a 8.40 ERA, Chris Sale a 9.0 ERA. The team is hitting around .230 overall right now.

Again, on paper, this is a Red Sox sweep. But the flesh and blood Sox are teetering on the precipice of irrelevancy. The fact the Yankees are reeling is the only light in our collective Sox universe.

I’m hoping for Cora to put on his cape and cowl and give us another super hero managerial performance. To save this team from themselves. But it sure looks like the Night King has set up residence in the clubhouse.

Featured Image via HBO screen grab

Should The Red Sox Go After Noah Syndergaard?

Syndergaard’s Injuries

Noah Syndergaard has had a number of injuries, but his ‘injury prone‘ label is unwarranted. In May of 2018, he had a strained ligament in his right index finger. It’s unknown how he did it, perhaps playing Fortnite or Red Dead Redemption 2 a little too vigorously, but it held him out six weeks. Then in late July, he suffered from the plague that hit New York pitchers hard: Hand, Foot and Mouth disease. The scourge of toddlers may be embarrassing, but it’s hardly a long-term problem.

The major injury for Thor was a strained right lat muscle in May of 2017. I’m not a doctor, so the details are a bit beyond me, but the bottom line is he did not need surgery. Furthermore, this was not a rotator cuff or elbow injury. Yes, it wiped out most of his 2017, but there has been no recurrence of the injury.

Contract Status

Because he missed the bulk of 2017, Noah Syndergaard has an incredibly affordable contract for someone of his stature. He still has three years of arbitration ahead of him, and he’s starting 2019 from the low rung of $2.975 Million.

That means that even if he performs like a Cy Young candidate in 2019 and 2020 he still won’t be breaking the bank. In short, this man is probably the best bargain in baseball as long as he’s healthy. And it appears that he is.

End Of 2018 Performance

Syndergaard had a rough August as his body recovered from sickness, but he poured it on in September. He went 4-1 with two complete games, including a shutout to end the season. His Statcast average pitch speed was over 97 MPH on his fastball, so he’s still throwing much harder than the average incredible baseball player who is on any Major League roster.

On September 14th, Noah Syndergaard came to Fenway Park and pitched a beauty against arguably the greatest Red Sox team of all time. 7 innings, 3 hits, 6 strikeouts. After the performance he tweeted out this nugget of a tantalizing possibility:

So…..Fenway was a sureal ballpark to pitch in…..from a childhood dream perspective……As visiting pitcher on a team and city I love…..#dontfreakout

— Noah Syndergaard (@Noahsyndergaard) September 15, 2018

I’m sorry, but in light of the rumors of his availability, can I freak out now?

How He Fits On The Red Sox

It’s no secret that the Red Sox have a rather large bill coming due at the end of 2019. Chris Sale’s contract is up. Xander Bogaerts is hitting free agency. JD Martinez has an opt-out in his contract. Mookie Betts even now is looking to break records in arbitration.

As stated above, Syndergaard is cost controlled. So while he is at that $2.975 Million number and coming off a season where he missed some time and made only 25 starts, Mookie is at $10.5 Million and coming off an MVP season. The lower you start from in arbitration, the lower you end up the next year, and vice versa.

For a Red Sox team that is paying David Price over $30 Million, with at least that much needing to go to Chris Sale if they want to keep him, Syndergaard is a dream contract. Furthermore, there is no starting pitcher depth in the Red Sox minor league system. Low-cost young stars are the lifeblood of successful major league teams. Noah Syndergaard is the very essence of the solution to these problems.

For these reasons, he won’t come cheap.

What A Trade Would Look Like

Alarmingly, the Red Sox main competition in the American League are pegged as landing spots for Syndergaard. But the possible assets from the Yankees and Astros can’t measure up to the firepower the Red Sox can offer.

I was willing to trade Rafael Devers for very few players. Kris Bryant was one of those players. That is because Bryant is young and an MVP winner and perennial MVP candidate. But Bryant would cost a lot soon. Syndergaard is almost the equivalent as a pitcher that Bryant is as a batter and third baseman, and he’s cheap.

I’m also an advocate for taking advantage of Christian Vazquez’s value at this moment in time.

The Mets are working on getting 3B David Wright’s contract off their books. They also have a hole at catcher.

I think the framework is there for a Rafael Devers and Christian Vazquez for Noah Syndergaard swap. I do know that this is a trade that meets what the Mets may be looking for.

This would be a major shake-up of the future of the Red Sox. Most likely this would mean the Sox would not be in on Nathan Eovaldi, the Sox number one target of this offseason, but maybe not. It would definitely mean letting go of all the potential and promise of Rafael Devers. Perhaps there’s a certain swiss army knife, who’s won a recent World Series with Alex Cora, the Sox could sign to play third?

The Mets GM, Brodie Van Wagenen, is an unknown entity at the moment. There’s no telling what he may do, but he is contacting a lot of starting pitchers’ agents. It certainly appears he’s readying to trade Thor.

Think of top of this rotation on opening day: Chris Sale, Noah Syndergaard, David Price. Kind of makes the drool flow freely from your gaping mouth right?

Support Rob Manfred: Contact The MLBPA About Pace Of Play

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Rob Manfred has gotten a contract extension to remain The Commissioner of Major League Baseball for another 5 years. That is outstanding news for all baseball fans because Mr. Manfred is a man on a mission to save our beautiful game.

Declining Ratings

And why does our game need saving? Because ratings and attendance are down, more every year. How is it that the World Series between Boston and LA, two historical franchises, had reduced ratings of 20% over the prior year? Because people hate the Red Sox. Oh, and it takes too long. The game simply takes too long.

Rob Manfred, a hero of busy people with only so much time, has taken on Titans and Legends alike in his time as Commissioner, all in the name of reducing Pace of Play. Let’s take a brief walk down his warpath.

Rob Manfred Pace Of Play Initiatives

In 2015, Big Time Rob got the MLB Players Union to agree to several Pace of Play initiatives:

Managers have to stay in the dugout during replay challenges. I have to admit, I kind of miss Lou Piniella. But it saves time!
Hitter have to keep one foot in the batter’s box at all times. No more afternoon strolls or other shenanigans.
The game must start promptly after commercial breaks.
Relievers have 2 minutes 30 seconds to come in from the bullpen and warm up.

It’s debatable how often Thor, I mean Rob Manfred, threw the hammer and fined players for their violations. But clearly, the battle lines were drawn.

The Owners Pony Up

In 2018 Jon Snow, I mean Ron Manfred, pulled out his long sword and did the unthinkable: He got the MLB owners to agree to reduce commercial time. This is money directly out of their pockets. 20 seconds less per break during the regular season. That’s almost a 10% reduction on 2:25 of ad time.

That hurts. It’s estimated that on national MLB games in 2017 the total cost of advertising was $313 million. That was just network games like Fox and TBS. Imagine all the team networks out there, charging for ads in all the MLB games every day.

Now imagine bigger. In 2017, the Phillies signed a deal with Comcast for $5 Billion over 25 years to televise the games.

The Players Need To Get Behind This

It’s high time the Major League Players Association started getting truly serious about reducing the time it takes to watch the games. I won’t say this is a crisis, but I don’t think I have to go chapter and verse of why a faster game would benefit all.

In 2018, when Jesse Owens, I mean Rob Manfred, negotiated the reduction in ad time, as well as limiting mound visits, he wanted to introduce the play clock. But he could not come to an agreement with the Players Association.

I’m no expert, but Paul Bunyan, I mean Rob Manfred, and his team are experts. And they say increasing the pace of play is vital for the game. The Commish could implement things like the pitch clock and between-batter timer unilaterally if he wanted to. But he has been exercising caution in the name of labor peace and cooperation thus far.

A Travesty In The World Series

I mean honestly, they were playing ads between pitches during the World Series. Between pitches in the ninth inning of a close game in the World Series. I watched this happen and was enraged.

The history and honor and glory of our great game is made and lost in the 9th inning of World Series games. How is it possible ads are playing between pitches?

Because too much time is taken between each and every pitch! It’s on the teams, the players, the managers, and the league, to make it inconceivable a real ad could be placed between pitches in the 9th inning of a World Series Game.

A Call To Action

I propose a grassroots campaign to flood the Major League Players association with calls and emails and letters urging them to agree with Commissioner Manfred to do anything possible to speed up the game. Here is the MLBPA contact information:

Website: www.mlbplayers.org
Phone number: (212) 826 – 0808
Email address: feedback@mlbpa.org
Address: 12 East 49th St, 24th Floor, New York, NY 10017

The owners have given up millions of dollars. They, in turn, have endorsed General George S. Patton, I mean Commissioner Manfred, to go on a long campaign of reducing the pace of play.

This is the players’ game. They need to get behind these efforts instead of fighting them. We cheer them, boo them, love them, hate them, and ultimately support all of them by attending and watching.

Now let them hear your voices like never before. Tell them to get behind the efforts, like the pitch clock, to speed up the game and not make it a point of contention or call for labor strife within the Players Union. Make it part of our great game going forward instead of a stagnant game going backward.

For the love of the game.

Boston Red Sox World Series Championship Game 5 Recap

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The 2018 World Champion Boston Red Sox beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 5 and cemented their status as the most dominant team in baseball.

Steve Pearce

This was a win that felt inevitable from the first pitch. Thanks to World Series MVP Steve Pearce it pretty much was.

Over 3 at bats at the end of game 4 and the beginning of game 5 Pearce was unstoppable. 2 Home Runs, a Double, and 6 RBI. He threw in another homer in the 8th to put the cherry on top of this Championship.

Turns out that kind of performance puts you shoulder to shoulder with MLB Legends. Here’s a couple of facts that stand out.

Steve Pearce joins Babe Ruth in 1927 and Lou Gehrig in 1928 with at least one home run and three RBI in back to back World Series Games.
Pearce, Ruth, and Ted Kluszewski are the only players in history to have a multiple home run game at age 35 or older in the World Series

Pearce told Andrew Benintendi before the series started that he wanted to win World Series MVP so he could go to the owners’ box at a Patriots game and sit with Bob Kraft and Bon Jovi. Mission accomplished my man.

I thought this World Series would invoke Legends, little did I know Steve Pearce would join them.

David Price

David Price dopped the mic on his postseason failures for all time. In this game he went 7 plus innings, 1 run, 5 strikeouts. Doing that on full rest would’ve been beyond outstanding.

But he didn’t just out-duel Clayton Kershaw, he did it on shortest of short rest. He pitched in 4 out of the 5 World Series games. In the game he didn’t pitch he warmed up. On the biggest stage he had the best stretch of his career.

Alex Cora on David Price: “David loves to be ready to compete on a daily basis. He enjoys being available, and he was available the whole time. (He texted) Count on me, use me, he just wanted to compete.”

Chris Sale: “I’m gonna tell my grand kids about (playing with) David Price.”

Here’s some pretty sweet play by play that shows David Price’s joy.

Chris Sale punches out Manny Machado. More on this in a moment.

Christian Vazquez runs to Chris Sale and look who gets there next.

What a moment for David Price, just look at his face!

Live it up David, you earned it.

Chris Sale

This says it all when it comes to what Chris Sale means to this team. Look at his teammates as he comes out of the bullpen to start the 9th inning last night.

Chris Sale entering the game (bullpen cheering). #EnterSaleman pic.twitter.com/2avCNnTGNn

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 29, 2018

I didn’t see Craig Kimbrel getting a standing ovation by his teammates coming into any games this post season.

And the way he had Manny Machado flailing on that immaculate slider. Satisfaction of the highest order.

Alex Cora

All night in the post game it was a Song of Alex Cora from all the players and ownership. Because he put the players in a position to succeed. He communicated at an all time level. He was outstanding at every little thing.

Alex Cora has been the Night’s King since Hardhome: All out aggressive and piling up wins.

He’s pulled all the right levers this postseason and he was on his game last night.

Steve Pearce batting third? Check. David Price batting in the top of the eighth? Check. Bring in Chris Sale who will probably need surgery next week to close? Check mate.

He has won the World Series as a player, a bench coach, and now a manager.

Ownership

Take a bow guys. 4 Championships in 14 years. They cleaned house after last year and chose the right guy in Alex Cora. These guys are good.

Nathan Eovaldi

A quick word about iron man Nathan Eovaldi. Take it away John Henry: “I mean he set us up, so that for the next two nights our bullpen was in good shape, and their wasn’t, that was the difference.”

It could be said no Eovaldi, no World Series Championship.

Now it truly is time to party.

📹 A lot going on here – Mitch Moreland with the beer shower, Brock Holt singing, and Eduardo Rodriguez with the speaker on his shoulder #RedSox #WBZ #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/jJcYinwPy8

— Joe Giza (@JoeGiza) October 29, 2018

Jackie Bradley Jr. A Better Option

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(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

The Mookie debate about where he should play in Dodger stadium is so obviously over. But that means someone else in the outfield has to sit. It’s a grudge match between Jackie Bradley Jr. and Andrew Benintendi. Let’s get ready to rumble!

By The Stats

I’m not going to flood you with statistics. Suffice to say, JBJ was close to 20% better than Benny in September against left handed pitching. That’s important, because the bulk of the best pitching on the Dodgers is left handed.

In the playoffs against all pitching, JBJ is a full 50% better than Benny. I’ve made light of Jackie’s three swings bringing him the MVP of the ALCS, but they were pretty big swings. Remember Papi in 2013 off Tigers closer Joaquin Benoit?

https://youtu.be/CYosReytpcM

Papi only hit .248 in that ALCS. But that one swing in game 2 changed everything.

Now from Jackie we have this in the 2018 ALCS:

https://youtu.be/NH18WpVfCgE

Sure, Jackie hit just .200, but that was no slap hitter .200. That was a Herculean .200. Can you remember any Benintendi at bats like that in the past month? Much fewer and farther between than from JBJ.

Almost Clear Cut

The fact remains these are small sample sizes we’re talking about. Jackie’s streaky hitting is legendary around here. How many times have we seen him hot as a pistol for a few weeks, only to fall back to mediocrity? Benny is steadier metronome of productivity.

It might come down to how these two perform in the first two games of the World Series against The Dodgers dual lefties of Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu. Cora’s lineups might even give us a clue in these two games. If Benny or JBJ sits it will be a telltale of what’s to come.

Let’s Go Boys!

Meantime let’s treat The Dodgers like the Boltons treated the Kingslayer and sever their best weapon tonight. If the Sox can conquer Kershaw in Game One it will shatter their confidence and lay a clear path to another World Series Title.

Raising a Glass to Rick Porcello

THE SETTING

Just imagine: The roof is closed on Minute Maid park, the smell of leather, sweat, the Jackson Street BBQ and Taco Trio in the air. The awesome noise of the Houston fans pounding on his amygdala. It’s Alex Bregman at bat looking to atone for inciting the Sox with his Instagram post before game 3. Can we get an Instagram post of this sweet 102 MPH dot he swung through in his last at bat of the season? You know, this one. Ah, I think David Price said it better.

“Post that” 😂😂😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/sG7LZ2n6zs

— Justin Duarte (@JDuarte15) October 19, 2018

THE PITCHING

At one point in the series Bregman was slashing a .000 batting average, .700 on base average, and .000 slugging percentage that was blowing statisticians minds. Porcello dispatched the 800 lb gorilla of the Astros lineup with a strikeout, spotting the low and outside corner again and again. Then comes George Springer, doing his best Carlos Beltran playoff edition impression, having already homered and doubled in this game alone. Walk. Springer sprints to second on a blown Porcello toss over, inciting the Houston Thunderdome again.

It’s 4 – 3 Astros and they’re looking for more. With two outs now Rick has the Astro’s Tyrion Lannister, full of rage and frustration from having a home run taken away, or not, to deal with. And Altuve’s doing his best Kirk Gibson, limping along and stinging every ball he gets his bat on. Porcello induces a gentle, tiny, wrapped like a little burrito just out of the womb, infield pop up. As insignificant an outcome as there is from one of the best bat handlers in the game. Brilliance.

THE MAN

Yes, Rick Porcello didn’t have his best stuff. The Astros got to him. But Houston was on the precipice of routing him in the early innings of ALCS game 4 and he held his ground against the toughest part of the deepest lineup (I was hoping the national media wouldn’t notice the Red Sox incredibly deep lineup but I think we’re beyond that) in baseball and stood as tall as Nolan Ryan or, dare I say, David Price ever did. We tip our weathered hats and frayed nerves to you Rick Porcello. May Chris Sale endeavor to emulate you.