Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 2:19 PM EST
"I think the bullpen is probably the strongest asset the Sox have going for them".
The irony is that the best BP is one that is seldom used. Relying on the BP means the starters aren't
giving 7 or 8 innings like they should, and I hope the BP doesn't get overtaxed.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 2:24 PM EST
In response to Alibiike's comment:
"I think the bullpen is probably the strongest asset the Sox have going for them".
The irony is that the best BP is one that is seldom used. Relying on the BP means the starters aren't
giving 7 or 8 innings like they should, and I hope the BP doesn't get overtaxed.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 2:31 PM EST
In response to Alibiike's comment:
"I think the bullpen is probably the strongest asset the Sox have going for them".
The irony is that the best BP is one that is seldom used. Relying on the BP means the starters aren't
giving 7 or 8 innings like they should, and I hope the BP doesn't get overtaxed.
No teams today have starters that on the whole average going 8, and only half the teams averaged going 7 innings or more in 2012.
(BTW, the Sox were 8th in most IP by relievers in 2012 with 514 (just over 3 IP per game, while the Rockies were first with 657- almost 100 more than the Royals at 2nd.)
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 3:36 PM EST
I heard that the Yankees have a facial hair policy?
So it's okay for a ballplayer to throw his balls at female fans during a playoff game but one cannot grow facial hair.
Okay Mr. Steinbrenner. LOL
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 6:51 PM EST
In response to Promise4you2's comment:
I have to admit, I did not like the off season signings when they were made. I was all for playing the kids and moving on. Now however I suddenly have a good feeling about this team. The starters do have the possibility of having real #1 & #2's in in Lest and Buch. I also think Lackey has something to prove and he will. Doubby should be fine and win his 12-14 games. The starters are actually pretty deep.
You never know what will happen with the pen, but this one looks strong and deep, especially if Bard makes a comeback.
Im liking the infield alot, again plenty of depth. i believe the addition of some older stable ball players in the outfield will help immensly with the growth of the sox. If this team stays healthy they could make a run.
Best part, we lost no kids in developing this team.
A complete reversal in my thought process from the past winter, but then again signs of spring and my Sox do this to me!
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 9:45 PM EST
In response to craze4sox's comment:
In response to Promise4you2's comment:
I have to admit, I did not like the off season signings when they were made. I was all for playing the kids and moving on. Now however I suddenly have a good feeling about this team. The starters do have the possibility of having real #1 & #2's in in Lest and Buch. I also think Lackey has something to prove and he will. Doubby should be fine and win his 12-14 games. The starters are actually pretty deep.
You never know what will happen with the pen, but this one looks strong and deep, especially if Bard makes a comeback.
Im liking the infield alot, again plenty of depth. i believe the addition of some older stable ball players in the outfield will help immensly with the growth of the sox. If this team stays healthy they could make a run.
Best part, we lost no kids in developing this team.
A complete reversal in my thought process from the past winter, but then again signs of spring and my Sox do this to me!
I predicted 88 wins Promise even after voicing all my concerns. I agree with Joe, we are deep without injuries and the correct lefty/righty swaps. Injuries to key players, or our platoon guys is like playing with one arm on this team because the talent doesn't run deep.
I'm not one of those people who think that because we flipped tails 5 straight times the odds for flipping a head improves: it doesn't.
It's still 50-50.
Yes, it's hard to imagine we get hurt as much as 2012 or even 2011, but if we have the average amount of injuries, several weaknesses will be exposed. I do like our depth better this year, but last year some of our subs actually did pretty darn good...
Cody Ross was envisioned as a platoon OF'er who maybe only played vs LHPs. He ended up 3rd in PAs and SLG%.
Middlebrooks!!!!
Shoppach did fantastic (.798 OPS).
Ciriaco (.293) & Podsednik (.302).
Nava (.352 OBP was 2nd best on the team and 25 pts higher than all but 3 guys!)
This post has been removed.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 10:01 PM EST
In response to moonslav59's comment:
In response to craze4sox's comment:
In response to Promise4you2's comment:
I have to admit, I did not like the off season signings when they were made. I was all for playing the kids and moving on. Now however I suddenly have a good feeling about this team. The starters do have the possibility of having real #1 & #2's in in Lest and Buch. I also think Lackey has something to prove and he will. Doubby should be fine and win his 12-14 games. The starters are actually pretty deep.
You never know what will happen with the pen, but this one looks strong and deep, especially if Bard makes a comeback.
Im liking the infield alot, again plenty of depth. i believe the addition of some older stable ball players in the outfield will help immensly with the growth of the sox. If this team stays healthy they could make a run.
Best part, we lost no kids in developing this team.
A complete reversal in my thought process from the past winter, but then again signs of spring and my Sox do this to me!
I predicted 88 wins Promise even after voicing all my concerns. I agree with Joe, we are deep without injuries and the correct lefty/righty swaps. Injuries to key players, or our platoon guys is like playing with one arm on this team because the talent doesn't run deep.
May I ask why some of us seem to be betting that the injury bug will pass us by? We are not a young team. We have several players with serious health issues (Naps, Papi, Buch) and a few players with recent histories of extended missed time.
I'm not one of those people who think that because we flipped tails 5 straight times the odds for flipping a head improves: it doesn't.
It's still 50-50.
Yes, it's hard to imagine we get hurt as much as 2012 or even 2011, but if we have the average amount of injuries, several weaknesses will be exposed. I do like our depth better this year, but last year some of our subs actually did pretty darn good...
Cody Ross was envisioned as a platoon OF'er who maybe only played vs LHPs. He ended up 3rd in PAs and SLG%.
Middlebrooks!!!!
Shoppach did fantastic (.798 OPS).
Ciriaco (.293) & Podsednik (.302).
Nava (.352 OBP was 2nd best on the team and 25 pts higher than all but 3 guys!)
This post has been removed.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 10:20 PM EST
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 10:42 PM EST
They will be a fun team to root for - and if they are in contention (doubtful) it will be miraculous and therefore more fun.
But, come on folks - this team lacks talent. They are built to win 79 - 80 games.
We are going to need players to come out of nowhere (aka Portland and Pawtucket) for this team to be a playoff team.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/20/2013 11:42 PM EST
Just once I would like to see them come out of the gate winning...and not having to play catch up baseball by May. Games in April count every bit as much as games in September...a good April the year of the September collapse would have made all the difference in the world.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/21/2013 12:08 AM EST
I think theres only one answer moon, we are sox fans who all hope it will finally be different.
I hope it will too, but that doesn't mean I have to accept it.
I'm as big a Sox fan as anyone here, if not more, but I try to be realistic.
It will take near zero major injuries, quite a few big "ifs" to come through all at once, and some bad luck for teams better than us for us to even make the playoffs. Advancing is another prayer. A ring is basically out of the question.
If you can accept this as the truth or very close to the truth, you have to look at this past winter as a big missed opportunity to improve our chances in 2014 and beyond. We could have still signed a few bridge players to make the season more colorful and fun to watch, but the fact is, we made next to zero moves that help us in 2015 or beyond.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/21/2013 3:09 PM EST
In response to Promise4you2's comment:
I have to admit, I did not like the off season signings when they were made. I was all for playing the kids and moving on. Now however I suddenly have a good feeling about this team. The starters do have the possibility of having real #1 & #2's in in Lest and Buch. I also think Lackey has something to prove and he will. Doubby should be fine and win his 12-14 games. The starters are actually pretty deep.
You never know what will happen with the pen, but this one looks strong and deep, especially if Bard makes a comeback.
Im liking the infield alot, again plenty of depth. i believe the addition of some older stable ball players in the outfield will help immensly with the growth of the sox. If this team stays healthy they could make a run.
Best part, we lost no kids in developing this team.
A complete reversal in my thought process from the past winter, but then again signs of spring and my Sox do this to me!
I admit, I'm getting more and more excited.
I was really drifiting in a no-where's land early into the Hot Stove. But I'm banking on the team coming together - I see the pitching staff taking a great reversal and the club being "likeable" - heh!
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/21/2013 3:16 PM EST
In response to nhsteven's comment:
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Since a majority of the experts are predicting them 5th, that's a stretch.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/21/2013 8:56 PM EST
In response to ThefourBs' comment:
In response to nhsteven's comment:
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Since a majority of the experts are predicting them 5th, that's a stretch.
When it comes to predictions, the "experts" aren't much better than the rest of us.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/21/2013 9:21 PM EST
In response to moonslav59's comment:
In response to ThefourBs' comment:
In response to nhsteven's comment:
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Since a majority of the experts are predicting them 5th, that's a stretch.
When it comes to predictions, the "experts" aren't much better than the rest of us.
True. Look where the experts picked us for last season.
88 wins and 74 losses on attitude and desire alone is still my prediction if we limit the injuries. What in H... our team looks like moving forward is a complete unknown.
This post has been removed.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/21/2013 11:29 PM EST
In response to selenium-'s comment:
In response to moonslav59's comment:
In response to ThefourBs' comment:
In response to nhsteven's comment:
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Since a majority of the experts are predicting them 5th, that's a stretch.
When it comes to predictions, the "experts" aren't much better than the rest of us.
True. Look where the experts picked us for last season.
Experts never predict record # of injuries, subpar performances / off years, trading away key players, and Bobby Valentine. Why is Moonslav suddenly playing the Softlaw role.
For years, I have said we are a top starter away from being really serious contenders, but I did think we'd win 92+ games last year thinking 2 of our top 3 starters would do well. Now Beckett and AGon are gone, and I'm supposed to feel better about 2013 than 2012?
I do feel better about 2015 than I did last February.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/23/2013 10:05 AM EST
In response to BostonTrollSpanker's comment:
I think the team can be very good, I don't see a championship caliber roster but you never know I guess. I disagree with the OP about Lester and Buch being 1 and 2, I feel like our roster has a bunch of 3 and 4 type starters...but I do like what I am hearing about how Pedro is working with the pitchers, Lackey being in decent shape, etc.
This team also has the chance to be really bad. I'm looking forward to finding out. I think they will be better than last year's outfit. Bobby V was terrible, Farrell is going to be better...
Just a note, Lester is 5th on the list of games won over the last five years. Guess he could be an ace on all but the four teams, that the other guys play for.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/23/2013 10:08 AM EST
In response to craze4sox's comment:
In response to moonslav59's comment:
In response to craze4sox's comment:
In response to Promise4you2's comment:
I have to admit, I did not like the off season signings when they were made. I was all for playing the kids and moving on. Now however I suddenly have a good feeling about this team. The starters do have the possibility of having real #1 & #2's in in Lest and Buch. I also think Lackey has something to prove and he will. Doubby should be fine and win his 12-14 games. The starters are actually pretty deep.
You never know what will happen with the pen, but this one looks strong and deep, especially if Bard makes a comeback.
Im liking the infield alot, again plenty of depth. i believe the addition of some older stable ball players in the outfield will help immensly with the growth of the sox. If this team stays healthy they could make a run.
Best part, we lost no kids in developing this team.
A complete reversal in my thought process from the past winter, but then again signs of spring and my Sox do this to me!
I predicted 88 wins Promise even after voicing all my concerns. I agree with Joe, we are deep without injuries and the correct lefty/righty swaps. Injuries to key players, or our platoon guys is like playing with one arm on this team because the talent doesn't run deep.
May I ask why some of us seem to be betting that the injury bug will pass us by? We are not a young team. We have several players with serious health issues (Naps, Papi, Buch) and a few players with recent histories of extended missed time.
I'm not one of those people who think that because we flipped tails 5 straight times the odds for flipping a head improves: it doesn't.
It's still 50-50.
Yes, it's hard to imagine we get hurt as much as 2012 or even 2011, but if we have the average amount of injuries, several weaknesses will be exposed. I do like our depth better this year, but last year some of our subs actually did pretty darn good...
Cody Ross was envisioned as a platoon OF'er who maybe only played vs LHPs. He ended up 3rd in PAs and SLG%.
Middlebrooks!!!!
Shoppach did fantastic (.798 OPS).
Ciriaco (.293) & Podsednik (.302).
Nava (.352 OBP was 2nd best on the team and 25 pts higher than all but 3 guys!)
I think theres only one answer moon, we are sox fans who all hope it will finally be different.
GREAT answer craze!
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/24/2013 1:30 AM EST
I think theres only one answer moon, we are sox fans who all hope it will finally be different.
GREAT answer craze!
I'm hoping it will finally be different as well, but with our player's ages and recent injury histories, I'm not holding my breath on the health issue.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/24/2013 2:03 AM EST
In response to nhsteven's comment:
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Since a majority of the experts are predicting them 5th, that's a stretch.
Re: Excited about 2013
posted at 2/24/2013 2:04 AM EST
In response to selenium-'s comment:
In response to moonslav59's comment:
In response to ThefourBs' comment:
In response to nhsteven's comment:
In response to RickEO's comment:
90 wins . Bank on it
Since a majority of the experts are predicting them 5th, that's a stretch.
When it comes to predictions, the "experts" aren't much better than the rest of us.
True. Look where the experts picked us for last season.
Experts never predict record # of injuries, subpar performances / off years, trading away key players, and Bobby Valentine. Why is Moonslav suddenly playing the Softlaw role.
This post has been removed.
