And don't forget Len Barker

Geff grew on me in the end, and I like the Wednesday break from OB. Geff didn't sound tightly wound like OB did last year, and I thought OB stepped on Joe's toes a little. OB definitely fits better this year and has better chemistry, but Dale is fine and I like John Rish too. I can listen to any of them with Joe. I think they are all pretty good, and for homers they still feel like they watch the game fairly (as opposed to some other AL East announcers). Dale's only problem is I think he has a little issue of describing the action as it is happening, he seems to be in the past tense. Variety works for me.

Agree with your Dale sentiments...waited a full 15 mins to get the score whilst listening in the car yesterday.

Hey did you know (or care) that they scored all their runs while Dale was doing play-by-play? I sure don't. Care, that is.

"Modern-day country is pop music with a fiddle."
- Tom Petty

Dale's stunningly amateurish: "The ball's hit to center, and . . . " Sounds like me calling one of my electronic football games in 1982, except my voice was more mature.

Dale, O'Brien, Rish, even Geffner...it's all the same, and that is: NOT TRUPIANO! Life has been good in Red Sox radio land since Trupe left. I'll admit Geffner was not very good at all, but by comparison to who he replaced, he was awesome.

Sandy Martinez was on the Sox?! I used to have a game-worn Cubs jersey of his, which may or may not have been from the time he caught Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout game. Cannon of an arm. And thanks for throwing "before his inevitable injury" in there; what did I ever do to you?

Don't forget Cesar Crespo from the '04 season- where would the Sox have been without his -4 OPS+?

Dburba,

Did you read Keith Law's take on the deal? Pretty interesting. Likes Gallagher, says the Class A catcher everyone is raving about has been horrible this year and needs to get it together or he'll fall of the prospect radar altogether.

When he's on, Harden's as unhittable as any pitcher I've seen this year - not only does he throw 98, but his fastball has ridiculous downward movement. I LOVE the deal from Chicago's perspective. But you have to be a little suspicious about Beane's timing, especially with reports that Harden's velocity was down in his last start.

Was Len Barker gone by the '82 season? He pitched a perfect game in '81. You forgot about Eddie Cicotte (pre-Black Sox) for the knuckleballers. You really should have included Bob Montgomery in the '78 Sox line. Granted, he only appeared in a few games, but how this guy managed to hang around for nearly a decade is a mystery to me, and he was as dull in the broadcast booth as he was with the bat...fortunately, he is not the worst former Sox catcher/commentator there has ever been. That honor goes to the only man in America who has ever purchased a bottle of Derek Jeter's "Driven".

Chicago's view is: If we get 10-15 starts out of Harden, win it all, and then he craps the bed, its OK for us.

Beane's view is: Harden's value now is as high as its been in years. And since we dont think there's a likelihood he'll be consistently (175+ innings worth) healthy beyond this year (or this month), he's value will never be higher.

Probably the right trade for both teams at this time.

(FWIW-BP sugeests Beane's big mistake was giving up the 26y/o Gaudin)

And wasn't that Sandy Martinez the same guy who got into an Izzy Alcantara-style kick fight with someone?

I stand in the distinct minority of thinking Geff wasn't bad last year. I thought he was better than OB, who I felt was too detached, like every game was a national game and he didn't care. I don't want a cheerleader, but some emotion would be nice. He's much better now that he's relaxed more.

Based on the way Beane pulled the Cardinals' pants down with the Mulder deal (they got 1 good year), I'd imagine that when push comes to shove, the Cubs' will have their pants down on this deal as well. Only time Beane didn't win on a trade in recent memory was the dealing of Tim Hudson (who I miss seeing getting is butt whipped by the Sox) and the jury's still out on the Haren deal (how will those prospects he got turn out?). But if I'm a Cubs fan I'm scared that we just traded for Mark Prior, pre-season-ending injury.

I turn the games off when I hear Dale, he is sad.

If you want to hear real country music check out Wayne "The Train" Hancock.
Close your eyes and you'd think it was Hank Williams - the original not the son.
His music so beats almost everything that has come out of Nashville in years.

wow, just looked at the '04 Sox roster on baseball-reference.com. I had completely forgotten about a lot of those horrible pitchers that we cycled through for the last few spots in the bullpen. Mark Malaska...Phil Seibel...Joe Nelson...Frank Castillo (!)...Anastacio Martinez...heck even David McCarty pitched!

maybe our middle relief this year isnt as bad as we think ;)

A Yankees collapse, as suggested on Chad's wish list, is a decent possibility. Their August/September schedule is very tough.

Barker was there in '82 - he won 15 games. They also had Lary Sorensen, who has apparently set some national drunk driving record. (Google him.)

Blyleven made only four starts, though.

Who would have thought that 36 year old Curt Leskanic would turn out to be a savior after they picked him and his 8.05 ERA off of the KC Royal scrapheap?

"Leskanic, you son of a . . . "

If only Hansen and Delcarmen had his stones.

Felix Martinez was the Martinez with the Izzy-style karate kick fight. He was playing for KC and I want to say he kicked a Tiger or Indian player.

Chad, nice points about the '78 "offensive juggernaut" Red Sox.

Remy's season was just OK.

Burleson was terrible that year, and worse yet, he browbeat Don Zimmer into letting him bat leadoff about six weeks into the season because he said he couldn't bat 2nd. So much for acquiring Remy that offseason for "speed in the leadoff spot."

Hobson, Scott, Yaz and Fisk all had offensive seasons that were below, or even far below their 1977 production.

Fred Lynn had a nice year, but he waited a year too long to start pounding the Nautilus machines, because the Sox could have used the 39 dingers he hit in 1979 more than the 22 he had in '78.

Jim Rice, for all of the crap he took in this town for the double plays and for not being a "clutch" hitter, simply carried that team offensively more often than not. Designated Hitter or not, he was truly the MVP that year......406 total bases. I mean, my goodness.

The fact remains that the '78 Sox were a better all-around team than the '77 version that won just 2 fewer games (97 wins in '77; 99 in '78), but the '77 team was the true offensive juggernaut. Had the '78 team received even 2/3 of the offensive production from guys like Scott, Fisk, Hobson, etc., that they received in '77, then Bucky Dent's middle name never becomes "bleeping", because the Yankees would have been buried by mid-August.

another oft-mistaken for jimmy buffett song...."another saturday night" by cat stevens. can't tell you how many chicks think that's buffett.

another oft-mistaken for jimmy buffett song...."another saturday night" by cat stevens. can't tell you how many chicks think that's buffett.

I turned on the game in my car yesterday as Minnesota began the seventh inning. I was in Raymond, New Hampshire. It was a long first-half of the inning, with the Twins loading the bases, a pitching change, a commercial break. Not once...not once.....not once did Dale provide the score. Finally, at the end of the inning, he mentioned the Sox had a two-run lead. The half-inning ended and the broadcast went to commercial break....and I had hit the toll booths in Hampton...Dale did not mention the score until after the break. Inexcusable broadcasting.

I could never figure out how Dale "ikiebaluki" Arnold got the Sox p/t broadcasting job. He''s the only one on radio who forces me to turn it off and listen to the TV. Embarassing in interviews with athletes since he's such a colossal suckup he should go back to the Bruuns - wait...they fired him didn't they.

Dale has that just-happy-to-be-here radio demeanor and always sounds like he's calling the game from deep in the Right Field Grandstand, craning his neck and looking into the sun with a pair of binoculars. It's sort of unfair to judge him against Joe's almost otherworldly sense of timing, so I try not to, though it would be nice if he could upgrade his seats. He's a vast improvement over Geff, however, because anything would be; undeniable knowledge of the game aside, his voice is suitable only for Over-40 Men's Softball or any place that doesn't actually care about baseball, like Florida. Say what you will about Trupe's irrepressible corniness but the man's vocal chords were genetically engineered to call a game. I for one miss him. If OB deigns to stick around long enough to raise a generation of radio listeners, all will be forgiven.

Nothing wrong with the Pina Colada Song. That is quality right there. Don't hide your feelings, Chad! Just go with it.

"It was my own lovely lady.." Always liked that part.

"She said, 'Aw, it's you."

Uh-huh, right. Every woman on the planet, save for the one in that song, would have him spayed and neutered for trying to cheat on her through the classified ads. Even though she had the same notion, of course.

"She said, "Aw, you're [expletive] dead, you son of a . . . HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME, RUPERT?!!! AND PINA COLADAS?? REALLY? WHO ARE YOU, A-ROD????!! I'M GOING TO CUT YOU!!!

See, isn't that a better song?

Ha ha ha! Both "Key Largo" and " Escape - The Pina Colada Song" made VH1's list of 40 Most Soft-sational Soft Rock Songs. What a cool crew we are discussing those tunes! When's the Air Supply or Manilow reference coming?

I also am blown away that Darren Oliver still occupies a spot on a major league roster.

Chad.....good grief, I knew Brohammer was bad in 78, but 30 years later, it was really bad, and with all due respect to Darren Oliver, I am speechless....carry on carry on

Dale Arnold is an embarrassment to baseball radio broadcasting, he has no timing when a ball is hit, he tries to interject "humor" at the wrong times, he doesn't give the score, he makes ill timed comments like he is on his talk show,he doesn't know baseball,he thinks he is funny and interesting. He is trying to reinvent himself after getting fired by the Bruins. We in Boston deserve more,Why is Sox management treating the radio broadcasts like a weekly tryout game, we have a rich tradition of great broadcasters here. Dale Arnold is not a baseball broadcaster, stop the charade. He is a company man which is what Lucchino wants, no bad words said, everyone is "happy" Sox radio listeners be damned.

Does Air Supply have a single song without the word "Love" in it?

@ Duke: "The Air That I Breathe".

I agree that Dale isn't the man for the job - but, regarding the game score, it's entirely possible that it is a mandate from the radio stations, themselves. Don't announce the score = more listeners staying tuned.

In today's money-grubbing world, I wouldn't doubt it.

DaveR, "The Air That I Breathe" is by the Hollies, not Air Supply.

Fear not. Despite my best attempts to purge these horrific train wrecks of songs from my memory, the magic of wikipedia produced to me the following hits of Air Supply without the word "love" in the title:

"Every Woman In the World" and "Even The Nights Are Better"

Dale Arnold strikes me as an Air Supply kind of guy.

I have a friend who, last I knew, had been to two concerts in his life:

Air Supply.

Manilow.

I imagine he'll show up here in the comments to defend himself.

I'm surprised you didn't put in the 1 day wonder known as Brandon Puffer who was one day in uniform but never got in the game and was gone the next day. Also, wasn't Jimmy Anderson traded for himself? I could've sworn he was.

1. Dale Arnold is a smug, self-satisfied no-talent! It is painful listening to him--for the first time ever, I won't listen to the Sox on radio when he does the games. There, I said it.

2. On a happier note, I would add Todd Jones to the list of ex-Sox that looked finished years ago.