After a quiet winter, the Red Sox have made a pair of long-term commitments to key young players. Since the start of Spring Training, Boston has inked starter Brayan Bello and center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela to extensions. On the heels of finalizing an eight-year, $50MM agreement with Rafaela, Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow suggested no other such deals were imminent.
“(It’s) impossible to handicap perfectly what the chances are of getting another deal across the line. I would say, I don’t see anything as particularly close right now,” Breslow told reporters (link via Rob Bradford of WEEI). “I do think it makes sense at some point to focus on the season and give players some clarity around what they’re trying to accomplish every day and give us a chance to kind of assess more broadly what we’re trying to accomplish, what our vision is. So I wouldn’t ever say never, but I think it’s unlikely.”
That’s probably most relevant with regards to first baseman Triston Casas. The former first-round pick has previously indicated that the Sox and his camp at MVP Sports Group have kept up dialogue. Casas reiterated to Bradford on Wednesday that he’s hopeful of remaining in Boston for the long haul, although he said he’s unsure about the current status of negotiations. Casas indicated he’s taking a hands-off approach, telling his representatives that while they’re free to continue discussions during the season, he’s not interested in being updated each time the sides float contract parameters.
In any case, Breslow’s comments imply there’s a gap between the team’s comfort level and the asking price being floated by Casas’ camp. There’s not a ton of urgency. Boston controls the lefty-hitting first baseman through 2028. He won’t be eligible for arbitration for another two seasons. Even if the sides were to table discussions while the season is ongoing, there’d be plenty of time for a new set of negotiations next spring.
Breslow wasn’t specifically addressing the status of negotiations with Casas. Tanner Houck, Jarren Duran and Vaughn Grissom are among other pre-arbitration players whom the Sox could have interest in securing on a long-term deal. Whether they’ve opened discussions with anyone from that group isn’t clear.
Getting the Bello and Rafaela deals done already marks an active spring on the extension front. As shown on MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, the Sox are the only team to extend more than one pre-arbitration player since the start of last offseason. That marks something of a shift in organizational operating procedure. Before this spring, Garrett Whitlock was the only pre-arbitration player to sign an extension with the Red Sox in over a decade.
I don’t see the Rafaela extension working out well. I know he is just starting out and all, but his OBP is well below .300. Just doesn’t seem like the type to lock up long term.
Strikes me of the Evan White deal the Mariners made. Only time will tell if it a good signing, or an albatross.
League – It all depends on perspective. If the Sox eventually begin spending like a big market club again, then it’s a tolerable gamble compared to ridiculous contracts they’ve given such as Giolito, Story, etc.
But if they continue to operate like a low budget small market team, it would suck if down the road they refuse to sign much-needed free agent talent because $15M a year is being wasted on dead money contracts like Bello and Rafaela.
You should have seen Tom Caron and the Sox announcers talking about the Rafaela extension last night, comparing him to Mookie and comparing what the Sox are doing to what the Braves have done with extensions.
If Rafaela doesn’t improve his plate discipline and continues to be a sub-.600 OPS hitter the contract will turn into a disaster. Comparing him to Mookie just because of his defensive skills and versatility is absurd, Mookie never in his MLB career had an OPS under .800
As for the Braves comparison, they were smart enough to wait until guys like Strider and Acuna had a great full MLB season before locking them up longterm. Neither Bello nor Rafaela has even come close to a great MLB season yet.
Fever. I get, in a bit of a way the Rafaela-Betts comp, like size and at that age? Possible upcoming power, speed, GG calibre defense from the outset and size, but like you wrote? The inability of Rafaela to lay off pitches out of the zone is a huge difference, betts even walked a ton in the minors before he started to hit if memory serves.
Believe goals have been changed over the years on early deals, we don’t see super cheap, or extreme team friendly ones for a reason. That said, I doubt Houck, or Crawford right now would sign the deal Whitlock did.
Casas is another issue. Might just be me but have a feeling he was offered truly fair $$ and countered with.. Guessing.. Maybe as much as 70-80m for 6 and an option. All speculation of course.
John – I agree they are similar in size and versatility and 3 tools (arm, glove, speed) but I don’t see Rafaela hitting for as much power or having as high an OBP as Mookie … not even close.
And quite frankly with an 8-year contract, where’s the incentive? That’s one thing people don’t take into consideration, some players will lack motivation after receiving a longterm contract.
As for Casas, ain’t gonna speculate on that one … he is a very unique dude. He said the one offer he received was a lowball, so he’s probably seeking a very long contract.
FPG I don’t think motivation will be a problem with Rafaela or Bello. With Rafaela they are pretty much gambling with house money. He has a high floor at the very least he’s a very versatile defensive minded player that has surprising pop that should be worth 50 million over 8 years. He does chase a lot but he also makes a lot of contact with that chase and as he adjusts I expect him to be a better offensive player then JBJ was but nowhere near as good as the much more selective Mookie Betts. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if he settles in as .250 ish hitter with some pop like 15-20 homers good slugging % but low obp because he doesn’t walk. With his defense and versatility that would make him a borderline all star type player. I think in the end both extensions will be good extensions.
I can’t see Casas signing a team friendly extension. The guy has already talked about his financial circumstance and it’s not like his family is dirt poor and that kind of contract would be a big game changer for him. He’s already talked about how little money he needs at this point I think he’s very likely to bet on himself. In short I just don’t see Casas signing an extension in the near future.
Bruin – House money is typically defined as at least breaking even on an investment, therefore the Red Sox would need to get at least $50M worth of production (WAR?) out of him to begin playing with house money. Obviously I really hope he can become a .750 OPS hitter, I’m certainly not worried about his defense.
As for Casas, most believe his comments about needing little money meant he wasn’t looking for a massive haul. But I appreciate your interpretation that perhaps he was saying he can survive for a few years on pre-arb salaries. That is a great point.
I agree, Bello and Rafael seemed liked early candidates but I’m glad they are waiting on Casas, he’s a 1st base/DH waiting to happen. You got Devers who will sooner than later be the DH. It’s a gamble with the first 2 but not terrible. Are they thinking like the braves? I don’t think so, not yet. They really need pitching, sooner than later.
Mad – As bad as Devers is on defense, Pablo is even worse. Did you see his error tonight, it was brutal.
As was Hamilton, who somehow missed the bag trying to turn a doubleplay.
Other than a healthy starting rotation, NOTHING has changed from last year. Still horrific fielding, bullpen and manager. When your BP has a 10.66 ERA over a 3-game series it’s not a surprise you got swept.
I mean I agree with almost all of this, but Giolito’s contract was anything but ridiculous. The per year was less than Chris Bassit and Charlie Morton. He got hurt, that’s pretty much guaranteed these days for pitchers, but because he did, he’ll more than likely have a team option for 2025 at 14 million, 3.6 million less than Miles Mikolas.
TJ is part of the game and not going away with pitchers chasing velocity. Sox did good not going to 5 or 6 years. 2 years with a club option if he throws less than 140 innings in 2024? Good stuff
hiflew
I don’t see the Rafaela extension working out well. I know he is just starting out and all, but his OBP is well below .300. Just doesn’t seem like the type to lock up long term.
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This feels almost identical to the Tovar deal for your Rockies. A glove-first up-the-middle defender that you hope improves his offense to league-average.
And since I opined vociferously on behalf of the Tovar contract, then I feel pretty good about this one also.
He’s not a finished product but the consensus seems to say that he’s excellent defensively at a key position. That where his value is. He’s never going to be a high OBP guy but could develop more power and better plate discipline. Worst, he’s Jacky Bradley, Jr. with a 90-100 OPS+ and still be an above-average player. I don’t think the RS expect him to be an All-Star but it gives them cost-certainty for a long time.
As a Mariner fan, I supported the White deal… which went t*ts-up, early on.
These sorta deals are a roll of the dice.
Can’t predict injuries but too bad for him and M’s fans.
Exactly.
Used to be that GM’s would need a year or to of proven success before offering a “mutually beneficent” contract.
Pedroia comes to mind, for one.
YBC – Well, sometimes you can kinda predict injuries …. if the player has a history of injury or if they tend to play recklessly instead of on the conservative side.
Speaking of “kinda”, last night Kutter Crawford had a 3 minute interview and said the word “kinda” literally 21 times! It was so funny I had to go back and replay the interview and count ’em. LOL!
YBC – Actually, Rafaela’s value is his ability to play above average defense at multiple positions, especially CF & SS & 2B. That is what separates him from JBJ, who could play only OF.
Last night he moved mid-game from CF to 2B, there’s a lot of value in that capability especially when there’s only typically 3 bench players on the Sox at all times (not counting the 2nd catcher).
I think you are being a bit too optimistic that JBJ is the floor for this guy. From the numbers I have looked at, it seems like this guy could end up a few floors below JBJ.
As I mentioned above, there is little difference between Ceddanne & Tovar. Thru the same number of PAs, Ceddanne has a higher OPS.
hi – The Red Sox said the reason they gave the contract is not because of what he’s shown so far, they gave it because he’s a “work in progress” and they expect him to greatly improve.
Yeah, I know ….. doesn’t sound rational.
Fever, so far this season Ceddane has a strange profile, both sides of the ball.
He’s made some great reads and jumps on the ball… with a couple of errors including carelessness.
He’s struck out a TON with his 13:2 k/w ratio, and, a fairly low exit velo of below 83mph when average is around 89… and yet, of his 7 hits he has a double and two triples in only 40 odd plate appearances.
So what’s the read on him? Coaches everywhere he’s been I know of love the guy. I think we’re seeing a mix of growing pains, and, he needs to settle down to the moment he’s in. A fall call-up isn’t the same as being awarded the starting job out of ST.
He’s got speed, has tools, and is generally a smart runner on the basepaths. All those shine through in his results to this point.
I think he needs to slow things down, and, try to not let the pressure cooker atmosphere of not just playing for Boston get to him, but, also not let the weight of living up to this extension rattle him either.
GASox – Time will tell, I’m just not easily sold on ANY rookie because I’ve seen way too many “can’t miss” kids flame out.
A bunch of analysts and former players including Jim Rice just yesterday have all said the same thing, you can have the greatest talent and speed and glove but baseball really is mostly mental. If your head isn’t on right, it will affect your performance. It’s like Rafaela is known to make highlight reel plays in CF, but then butcher routine plays.
He doesn’t strike me as someone that would cave under pressure he seems to be quite confident and actually a little cocky. But like I said, if he can become a .750 OPS player then the contract will be a good investment IMO. Time will tell.
IM – Time will tell. There are so many factors it’s impossible to predict, look how much Duran has improved in the past year.
While it may not work out, that sample size tells you nothing. Mike Trout had a very similar OBP through the same number of ABs in his career
There have been far more players that started out like that that did NOT become Mike Trout too. And the Angels didn’t rush off to sign Trout to an extension after that first poor season, did they?
It sounds like we are in agreement that the small sample size means very little!
at an average of $6ish mil per year, even as a defense first utility player, going forward that amount is not terrible.
See if Boras has learned his lesson and try to lock up ONeill.
Lol. Boras is about the Benjamins.
Not likely unless Tyler brings the suck soon. 🙂
Pretty much count on o’neil hitting FA. like was posted above. boras will look after max amount and if fails? lie ’til his teeth fall out.
Yes John and that definitely didn’t work for him this last offseason.
Maybe my M’s can resign him in early April of ‘25 for next to nothing?
John – I haven’t read much on O’Neill over the years, has there ever been any whispers of PED usage? It’s not just that he’s so jacked, his mannerisms are typical of juicers. We all know his dad was Mr. Canada and bodybuilders are notorious for using “supplements” to build muscle mass.
BTW Tyler’s error last night was awful, hopefully it’s not a harbinger of what will happen throughout the season.
I wouldn’t pay a premium on O’Neil.
Just enjoy the ride if he does well in a Saux uniform.
Who said pay a premium?
ONeill is what he is. He’s a very talented player who has had injury problems. If he has a great year Boras can play the glass half full card like he did with Bellinger and Snell but that clearly didn’t work. So again perhaps he’s learned his lesson.
5 years 75 million?
When dealing with Boras, you’re more likely than not going to over-pay… is all
Like I said if Boras learned his lesson. If the Red Sox want to give someone an extention he seems like a really good candidate he’s only under control for 2024 and he has superstar potential.
League – Perhaps the tide has turned and teams are no longer willing to be Scott’s female dog.
Pink – The extension priorities should be Houck and Pivetta, if healthy. It will be a very thin free agent market for pitchers next offseason and the Sox don’t have much in the minors.
Oneill’s injury history is going to hurt his FA market If he continues to put up numbers all year then he’s getting a QO.
I bet he either accepts that or he gets something like $3/48MM because of the injury risk. Probably w/ an opt out.
Like I said 5 years 75 million. I think that’s fair for both sides.
Houck and Pivetta aren’t soon to be free agents why would they be priority over ONeill? And isn’t Houck already hurt?
Your steroid comments are kind of stupid.
Pink – I don’t know where to begin with the corrections, there are so many errors in your post.
1) Pivetta is a free agent after this season, I would call that “soon”.
2) Houck has 3 arbitration years left, that’s it. Probably the best time to lock up a player longterm is with 2-3 years remaining before free agency. The Sox have basically no pitching depth in the minors and free agent pitchers are pricey.
3) Houck is not injured as far as anyone knows. If he is, that’s news to us and he’s not on the IL.
4) I asked if there was any speculative history with Tyler, I never accused him of anything. My reason for asking involves logic.
Whew this gets tiring ….
Ok Pivetta is a soon to be free agent. That’s my mistake.
You accused ONeill of taking steroids. That’s your mistake.
It’s logical that because his dad was a bodybuilder that ONeill would break the rules of MLB and use steroids????
No. Sorry. That’s just a stupid comment on your part.
And Pivetta is hurt not Houck. I got the 2 guys mixed up. You obviously knew what I was saying but you chose to be a moron instead of trying to have a conversation. I don’t follow the Red Sox I am a Cardinals fan who is very familiar with ONeill that’s why I am commenting.
Fever – I like Houck. But, I recall his mechanics looked a lot like a mirror image Sale. Obviously different bodies, but still. That delivery would have me temper years and dollars perhaps.
Pivetta has been durable so far, except… his current injury does have a decent correlation (not causation of course) with TJ. So, extending him now MUST come with a lackey clause to get some mlb-minimum options tacked on for time missed with an arm injury costing extended time.
The counterpoint on extending pivetta of course is, with a weak FA class PLUS the elevated costs of FA pitching lately… he knows the type of money waiting for him. I’m not sure it’s the bargain that would normally be expected in an extension.
Pink – New poster or not, I don’t tolerate when people falsely accuse me of writing something when the proof is right there I didn’t. And I sure as hell don’t tolerate namecalling.
I don’t play games, you’re muted.
GA – I agree Houck looks like a mirror image of Sale when he was young. The mechanics are are unusual and could create arm issues but annual dead are for a week or two like Sale had under Ventura had more to do with his aggressive nature of pitching with his hair on fire than the stress on his elbow. Dead arm isn’t an elbow issue it’s a shoulder issue and is caused by fatigue from throwing such a high percentage at max velocity. Houck might experience the same thing but I don’t think he is as aggressive as Sale was.
Houck’s fastball breaks away from the lefties and into the righties, just the opposite of Sale. His curve ball breaks into the lefties and away from the righties just the opposite of Sale. Houck’s change-up is the key pitch because a good change up can break both down and in and down and away if he properly applies pressure to both sides of the ball. Sale had great success with it during his great years. Houck’s is getting better AND Houck has the potential to put more pitches in the strike zone than Sale because Sale’s movement for years was more unpredictable leading walks that Houck might not experience.
I agree with you Pivetta comments. I would suggest to Breslow to extend Kutter and Houck after their pre-arb seasons. I would then evaluate both Pivetta and Whitlock to see if they actually have Houck, Crawford and Bello talent levels. If not then I would get an ace to make the staff better and spend roughly $25MM to do so.
I wouldn’t either, and I like the guy. I assume the OF going forward for several years will be Duran/Ceddanne/Anthony & Abreu, with Bleis in a few years. If we get lucky, and he continues this, we can give him a QO.
ONeill is better than any of those guys on their best days. Better than any of them.
Yes give him the qualifying offer and let him leave. Then you can watch him play well for another team while you hope those outdielders you mention become something.
ONeill is better than any of those guys on their best days. Better than any of them.
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1-When he plays. Like I said, I like the guy, and I liked the trade. But that doesn’t mean I can ignore the injuries.
2-With very few exceptions, teams shouldn’t pay FA prices if they have prospects to replace them, even if O’Neill is better.
If you extend O’Neill, then it means you are sitting either Abreu or Anthony.
Why do you keep saying “I like the guy”?
Why wouldn’t you like him? He plays for the team you root for. He’s playing great. He’s getting paid very little and didn’t cost barely anything to acquire. What possible reason would you have for not liking him????
Abreu and Anthony are unproven. And there is always room for 4 outfielders to get playing time considering injuries, which are a concern with ONeill, and the DH.
Blackpink – Consistency is a huge part of baseball as is age. Guys who are pre-arb have the upside potential to be better than O’Neill and O’Neill has the risk of injury like in the past or inconsistency. No single choice is a certainty so the team needs to see how well Rafaela, Duran and Anthony progress. It wouldn’t be terrible to have four excellent outfielders if the cost of each outfielder is lower than the value provided. There is room for all of them given that situation..
Looking at OPS+ for O’Neill you have him putting up a 115 at age 23, then 90, 70, 148, 99 and 94 in six years of play. His current 249 is outstanding like his 148 back in 2021. If that was his NORM we should sign him. If back to back sub 100 years occur after 2024 then it’s not smart to sign him more than an additional year.
Rafaela only played 28 games in 2023 so his 78 OPS+ is too small of a sample. After 2024, Boston will have a baseline for him to go with Duran’s. Duran at age 26 is a late starter who put up 121 and has improved on that so far.. O’Neill’s 115 at 23 was a comparable start while 3 years younger but then he failed so there is no certainty, just hope for both along with Rafaela and possibly Anthony.
O’Neill will milk his 2024 success because Breslow guessed correctly. I think only his length of contract will be a question and Breslow will need to double down that O’Neill can repeat his performance and not get injured or have a bad year. If all four outfielders progress and somebody can finally put Devers at DH then Yoshida could be traded and O’Neill could get Yoshida money so payroll doesn’t go up.
The outfield looks to be real positive for the future.
Trollfree I don’t think you know anything about ONeill and what kind of player he is. He’s a 2 time gold glover to judge him based on OPS is simply wrong. ONeill is better than any of those other outfielders mentioned he just has to stay healthy and that is the risk in signing him. It’s also why he won’t cost as much as someone with his ability who has a better history of playing every day.
The reason ONeill has had so many injuries is because he was training like a bodybuilder because that’s what his dad taught him to do. I believe this has changed and it should lead to him being healthier in the future.
ONeill is a great fit in Boston. He’s got some John Cena in him. He works hard and really cares. He’s not a smart ball player and he does have a temper but he was also treated poorly in St Louis. He sat behind Dextee Fowler because Fowler had a huge contract. Then he sst behind Carlson because Carlson was a top prospect and then was replaced by Jordan Walker who as of today is still a negative win player. He didn’t get a fair shake in St Louis. If the Red Sox give him one I think he won’t let them down.
Why would you be hoping for that?
Weird replies. The Red Sox don’t have a lot going for them either now or in the near future. Perhaps enjoy what they are doing well instead of finding weirdo reasons to complain.
Pink – I’m pretty sure he meant he hoped Tyler would become the first MLB player to start a season with 10 homeruns and just 10 RBI.
In other words, all of his RBI would have come from solo homers.
Get it?
This whole comment section is about finding weirdo reasons to complain.
Why would you hope for something like that?
finding weirdo reasons to complain.
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Welcome to any random Red Sox thread.
Cardinals fans do the same thing. I think the fans of the Cardinals, Red Sox and Giants are all pretty similar. Lot of whiny entitlement because the team was good recently but isn’t anymore.
RE: Boras. History not only repeats itself, it defines what will likely happen when stupid people hold the strings of power.
Excuse my post. But hard to separate sports from politics. 🙂
League – Not really, most of us here follow baseball in part to get away from politics.
Fever: Great post ( MOST OF US) . There is still a few whack O’s on here that turn baseball topics into political debates.
@FPG, you get reply of the year here. Dead on target, bro. I follow politics, news, and world events closely. Sports has always been my escape. I think you are accurate when you say most of are that way.
Let’s try to.make this a politics-free zone!
@DBH1969
I wonder what MLBTR would have been like back in the early 1900s.
Chalkboard?
That’s funny!
Can we at least see Grissom play a game before talking about extending him, please? I am not against these signings. I like the Bello and Ceddanne extensions, I think they are team friendly. But, really, just one game? Is that much to ask?
Houck should be ext3nded. At worst he can be the closer of the future. Duran? I had concerns about his mental health. I thought he had a real meltdown the other day over his error yelling “I effing suck”. Turns out he has learned to vent on himself like a volcano, be grumpy until.bed time, and then “toss it in to the trash and begin again tomorrow”.
To me that is a big step forward for the kid, both for the game and life. I am now all for extending him, too.
Good.
They need to renegotiate Trevor Story’s contract.
Melch – The trade for Grissom indicated the Red Sox were really, really hoping Story would exercise his opt-out after next season.
Now that seems unlikely.
I’m sure they’d love to but there is a 0% chance that story and his camp return that call lol
The vision for the players , staff and management should be building a competitive team.
6+ Million per year for next 8 years is pretty cheap in my book versus what is being paid out nowadays.
Its called showing some faith in the kid… Defensively it is already there…. Offensively it is a work in progress but the overreaction on what you see so far is just… an overreaction.
Thats what I was thinking, players are getting ridiculous numbers and I doubt its going down. If he doesn’t pan out he does land in the super utility type player. Better than Kike Hernandez and cheaper!
It’s more like “does this mean the front office will delay spending on the FA market bc their excuse is spending on early extensions?” No rational person can call these deals busts yet.
It’s a great thing to lock up your youth while you don’t have to spend money on contracts like Story’. However this team still doesn’t have enough pitching to get by. I’m a firm believer Breslows time with the Sox is going to very short lived
ngl i would rather see duran get an extension than Rafaela. speed and bat makes up for the iffy defense
Baltimore swept us and I am starting to wonder if Breslow is a one and done baseball GM. This team is bad and the fans are not going to tolerate this low budget crap in a major market city like Boston. Breslow is in way over his head.
Al – I really don’t see Craig leaving before 2028. Henry always allows at least 4 years, and Craig is doing on-the-job training right now with Theo (they were pictured together at Wednesday’s game).
My bigger concern is Bailey hasn’t had the impact that was expected. Campbell has been atrocious, Martin has been shockingly bad, and Bello hasn’t stepped into the #1 role yet.
I think the Sox will have a nice weekend, winning at least 2 games, but then it’s 10 games against two teams that are playing very well. If Devers doesn’t get healthy, it could be a rough month.
I think they put way too much faith in Bello as a number one pitcher. He is mainly a number 2 or even high number 3. They were way short on pitching even before Giolito went out for the year. They cannot beat good teams like last year. The only thing this team will do this year is piss off the fan base more. I don’t have a baseball package after the last two years. I won’t waste the money on this mediocre team. I’ll check the score a few times but I do not watch it religiously like I use to. They had a good team in 2018 that fell in 2019. All Bloom had to do was tinker with it instead of dealing Betts for garbage and the other questionable deals he made.I said it was a terrible deal even though they got rid of Price who could be an idiot.
FPG
Agreed about Bello but if you look at the other guys in the rotation (Houck, Whitlock, Crawford) it seems that Bailey has turned some stretch rotation guys into legit starting pitchers.
Duran – I’ve been a huge believer in all three of those guys. Houck proved himself back in 2021 before a rash of injuries struck. Whitlock proved himself before a rash of injuries. And Crawford was their best starting pitcher last year.
Bello is the guy that Bailey needs to improve. He has a lot of potential, but hasn’t realized it yet. If Bailey can fix him, he will have earned his salary.
Al
I completely agree. they should just fire Breslow and let Theo take over!
Al – You’re not alone, Red Sox Nation is furious with ownership and it already started showing last year.
This is from Forbes:
Year Purchased – 2002
Price Paid – $380M
2023 Revenue – $500M
2023 Operating Income – $62M
Debt/Value – 6%
Player Expenses – $224M
Gate Receipts – $186M
Wins-to-player cost ratio – 70
Revenue per Fan – $96
Metro Area Population – 4.9M
While overall revenue in MLB rose 10% last year, Red Sox organic revenue decreased 6%.
Red Sox Nation has spoken, and will continue to do so.
It’s bloody well official. Cora can’t hire coaches to coach players how to play defence.
Also add to this Cora doesn’t have a clue how to use the pen.
Last 2 games takes the starter out after 5 with around 85 pitches thrown.
Will their arms fall off putting them in for the 6th.
Both pitchers had the O’s off balance and could’ve gone another inning.
It’s FFS fire this lousy manger and get someone who can show what defence is and can run a pitching staff
Sox67 – Can’t agree more. I’ve hated his managing since April 2018 and he won a world series!!! 12 games more could have been won but I’m thankful we got our last ring What an incredible team.
The team doesn’t have to pull pitchers like they did Sale, Price and Eovaldi because they have far less wear and tear on the arm and the quality of the other pitchers is so much better than Perez, Kluber and others. A real manager pulls the pitcher when he has lost it not when he is facing adversity. Cora simply sucks.
TF – As bad as the Red Sox defense has been the past couple years, have you EVER seen a worse 3 innings than tonight? My God they are PATHETIC!!!
THREE ERRORS ALREADY!!
HAMILTON – HORRIFIC THROW
CASAS – GAVE UP ON AN EASY POPUP BECAUSE HE WAS “JUST” SIX FEET FROM THE DUGOUT RAIL.
PABLO – THREW THE BALL TO FIRST BASE FROM EIGHT FEET AWAY, THE BALL WAS A MISSILE INTO THE GROUND HALFWAY THERE.
RAFAELA – TRYING TO THROW OUT A RUNNER AT HOME, THE BALL ENDED UP NEAR FIRST BASE ON A COUPLE BOUNCES
Only 3 official errors in tonight’s game so far, but my God this is beyond pathetic. I don’t ever want to hear again how Casas is a much better defender or Rafaela is a GG outfielder. So far they both have sucked defensively!
Rafaela has THREE ERRORS ON THE SEASON ALREADY! Casas has TWO ERRORS ON THE SEASON ALREADY!
The Red Sox now LEAD THE LEAGUE IN ERRORS!!!
The announcers are trashing them! The small Fenway crowd is loudly booing them! This is worse than the beginning of the MAJOR LEAGUE movie!!
FPG – With Story out I would play Rafaela at SS and put Duran in LF with O’Neill in CF as a two time GG. Then Abreu can play RF and the overall defense will be better.
You may be right that Rafaela is a better not a great defender or maybe he just needs to get familiar with the field itself. This year is a blow off so I think giving him right field and O’Neill CF makes the most sense if they won’t play him at SS.
Also, small sample size and your team is led by your worst defender so maybe the team isn’t focusing on defense. It’s a shame but it’s Cora.
16-16 will be the last time they are at .500 or higher so maybe they can work on defense and hitting to all fields so they can improve. I hope O’Neill stays happy for the team’s sake.
I’ll be honest, after a rough few weeks, I’m just happy to be alive and able to watch the kids.
TF – So glad to see you back, what’s been going on? Health issues? If so then yes baseball becomes a low priority. It’s unfortunate the Sox are incapable of bringing us some pleasure with this year’s team. I can’t stop following them but it’s hard to keep seeing what we are seeing. Cora has to be feeling the heat, I doubt he gets his contract renewed.
Errors are a product of Cora’s non management skills
Last 2 games the starter was awesome thru 5. With only 85 pitches +- and Cora takes them
Tonight the starter has already in the hole losing5-0 and go figure Cora sends him back out. SMH. I truly believe he wants to lose.
Sox – Great post! Yes this has been Cora’s MO for years, he doesn’t try to win games until June or July.