TODAY: Toro cleared waivers and was outrighted off Boston’s 40-man roster, according to multiple members of the Red Sox beat. Toro has accepted the assignment, as per MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam.
AUGUST 21, 2:44pm: The Sox have now officially announced Toro’s DFA and Hamilton’s recall.
10:10am: The Red Sox are going to designate infielder Abraham Toro for assignment, reports Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic. Fellow infielder David Hamilton will be recalled as the corresponding move. The Sox have not yet announced the moves.
Toro, 28, signed a minor league deal with the Sox in the offseason. He was selected to the big league roster in early May after first baseman Triston Casas suffered a season-ending knee injury. For a long time, the Sox replaced Casas with a platoon of Romy González and Toro. González, who swings right-handed, has more than held up his end of the bargain. He has a .340/.389/.641 line against lefties this year, which translates to a massive 176 wRC+.
For a while, the switch-hitting Toro was playing his part as well, but he couldn’t keep it going. He was able to put up a strong .296/.296/.537 line in May but that dropped to .279/.354/.407 in June, .221/.295/.279 in July and .137/.151/.255 in August. His wRC+ was 123 in May but then slid to 110, 56 and -1 in the subsequent months.
The Sox recently added the lefty-swinging Nathaniel Lowe to the roster after he was released by the Nationals, effectively replacing Toro in that first base platoon. They could have kept Toro around as a multi-positional bench bat but it seems they prefer to have Hamilton take that role, with González and Nate Eaton also able to bounce around a bit.
Toro is out of options, so removing him from the active roster meant having to remove him from the 40-man. Now that he’s been designated for assignment after the trade deadline, he’ll have to be placed on waivers.
He is making a $1MM salary this year, a bit above the $760K league minimum. His declining offense this year will likely scare off other teams from claiming him and taking on that contract, though he does at least provide some versatility. He has big league experience at all the non-shortstop infield positions as well as the outfield corners. His career .223/.285/.356 batting line translates to a wRC+ of 81, so his true offensive talent level likely lies somewhere between this year’s hot start and more recent cold stretch.
If he clears waivers, he will have the right to elect free agency but probably won’t exercise it. Players with at least three years of service can reject an outright assignment in favor of the open market but need at least five years of service to both head to free agency and keep their salary commitments intact. Toro is in that three-to-five window and is still owed about $200K of his $1MM salary. Assuming he wants that money, he would report to Worcester and give the Sox some non-roster depth.
Photo courtesy of Brian Fluharty, Imagn Images
About time!
One game too late!!! Goodbye and Good Riddance !!!
It had to happen, but dude, played well for a while, worked harrd, and seemed like he fit in well with clubhouse.
You guys are a couple of salty babys.
Someone had to tell you.
Exactly! That’s why nobody wants to play for the Red Sox. Horrible fans! You are the exception that confirms the rule. Go Yankees!
Not like all those loving NY fans that booed Judge yesterday like he threw all those meatball pitches and made all the bonehead baserunning and fielding mistakes.
It’s called tough love, and Judge understands that. That’s why he’s staying here. You wouldn’t understand. Meanwhile, all the star players are leaving Boston — from Mookie to Devers. Chris Sale has become an ace again now that he has left Boston — the Red Sox and their fans are horrible. Go Yankees!
Hamilton doesn’t hit into a DP with the bases loaded.
I wonder if dumbo Cora ever thought of a squeeze or even a Safety Squeeze…. LMAO …. doubtful
You also seem like a salty baby.
Does anyone ever actually check stats before they post dumb comments?
Hamilton has 2 GIDP this year in 143 PA. Toro has only 1–in 284 PA.
You have to give Toro some credit for how hot he started. He helped the team win multiple games in the Spring with both his bat and even his glove too. He has certainly faded since mid-June and deserves to be released now that Lowe is here, but his overall time in Boston was more positive than negative if you ask me.
Dotty – Well said! The guy had an .803 OPS in July, he played a key role in many wins during May and June.
The question is, how much is gained by replacing him with Hamilton? I guess they figured if Toro can’t hit any better than Hamilton, at least David can help with his blazing speed.
I’m sure Toro will report to Woosta.
AMEN!
The 2024 Dominic Smith of 2025 for Boston. Thank you for your service. We hardly knew ya.
He was born and raised not far from me. You don’t see many Canadians make the majors.
This has been coming
Needed to happen after grounding into yet another rally-killing double play. Toro was a rock when they needed it right after the Casas injury but its been a steady decline since. I do expect he’ll latch on somewhere though, even Dom Smith caught on with the Reds after being cut last season
My sentiments exactly. Wishing him well, but his time here was up a few weeks ago.
He fell off a cliff in June, doesn’t take long for big league pitchers to figure hitters out
He’s been in MLB since 2019. All the “big league pitchers have been seeing him for years.
You know he’s been in mlb for 7 consecutive seasons and 1200 mlb PA before 2025 right?
Pitchers figured him out a long time ago. He’s been a consistently well below average mlb hitter every one of those 7 seasons except the one where he only got 21 at-bats for Milwaukee.
He was far better than he normally is for his first 100 or so PA this year thru June 11 and then he’s been far worse than he normally is for the last 150 or so PA thru Tuesday night.
My guess is that if the Red Sox stuck with him they could most likely expect Toro to hit about like Toro normally hits (650ish OPS) going forward. But the lulls and springs of a veteran player’s season isn’t because pitchers suddenly figured him out on June 12, 2025.
1-Not sure what you mean by “another … DP”. He only has one. Another means at least two.
2-It was time to go, but no one gets cut for a GDP.
My favorite DP of all time was by a player who hit into only one all year. Dick MCAuliffe ended the 1967 season by grounding into a DP. The Sox had only clinched at least a tie for the pennant until the Tigers lost the second game of a double header later that day.
Dom has been pretty good for the Giants this year.
Toro has just 1 GIDP this season. One.
baseball-reference.com/players/t/toroab01.shtml
Ok, my mistake. But he was still practically an automatic out in clutch situations
.263/.689 with RISP.
Which goes to .195/.214 with two outs
Which isn’t clutch. Its just 2 outs.
He had a .200 BA and .550 OPS with RISP and 2 outs.
I agree that we will be a better team without the Toro we saw in July and August but not for any of the reasons you have tried to use. Lowe has more power and will occasionally run into one and take it out of the park. That is the only reason.
A really good manager and coaching staff would have figured out what Toro was doing in May and June and helped him get back to that. I blame Cora for that.
If you are going to blame Cora than you need to blame A.J. Hinch, Dusty Baker, Scott Servais, Craig Counsell, Mark Kotsay and all of their respective coaches because Toro would have decent stretches for all of them before turning back into a pumpkin regularly
BITB-That’s pretty much all nonsense. Toro has never hit. Trying to blame Cora for Toro’s career OPS+ of 81 is a really bad take.
Needed to happen. Thank you for your service earlier in the year, his heater came at a time where it was sorely needed. But the regression to the mean has been far too painful to keep enduring. Best of luck to him wherever he winds up.
Baseball is a tough business.
The scene in moneyball sums it up best. “We all get told at some point we can’t play the children’s game, some of us get told at 18, some of us get told at 30, but we all get told at some point.” That might not be perfect, but close enough.
Toro has done a great job in the situation he was given.
To me, it’s like being sympathetic when a CEO loses their job. When you earn millions, you have to put up with some negative stuff sometimes.
Correct Joe! No one is entitled to be in the MLB. They have to earn the spot on the 26-man over and over! When you make minimum $4000 per day – $760,000 per year, you say, “yes, sir and do your job….”. Devers missed the memo. Owners sign the pay checks.
Really appreciated his time here. Wouldn’t be surprised at this point if he accepts an assignment to Worcester and plays the season out down there, ready to go in the event of an injury.
Oh Toro!
Thanks for the fill-in, Toro. For Lowe though?
Highlights the lack of activity at the deadline. Let’s just bring up The Password at this point. Even Campbell…
They brought him up today but not to play 1B.
Toro did a commendable job now back to the woodshed to cut some grass. Toro toro my friend
Let’s ***** Mow!
Trying to win. Toto may find another job after clearing and if not, will likely agree to go to Worcester.
“Toto may find another job”
Won’t be in Kansas
I laughed at myself or auto correct.
Toro, you’re not in Boston anymore.
First of all, thanks for holding down 1B for a while Toro.
But it’s been a long time coming. Hopefully a platoon of Lowe and Romy can get the job done. They now need to DFA Campbell and hope there some internal options for BP help.
DFA Campbell? I’m confused.
Isiah Campbell.
But I missed that he is no longer on the 26 man roster. Fitts replaced him.
Ah, my bad…that makes way more sense. I’m tracking now.
Goth – We call Kristian “KC”.
If I’m not mistaken they have Slaten on the 60 day DL. Campbell should be a DFA for sure once he gets activated.
Looking at the active roster, I am less sure who goes to clear a spot for him. Would love for it to be Hicks but given the money he’s owed I am not so sure it will be.
Probably yoyo Fitts or Bernardino (who I’m a huge fan of out of the pen) until the roster expansion on 9/1 – unless Slatens rehab goes quicker than that. Sounded like he’s trying to get back asap, which makes sense lol.
Toro is slumping hard offensively for a while, and doesn’t play that great of defense to prop up the bat.
For a while Toro was crushing it, but it’s difficult to sustain success across the long season.
Thanks for holding down the fort Toro. He’s like Dom Smith from last year. Did better than expected, but if the team is to make the playoffs they need a better option at 1B.
Lowe’s numbers against RHP are better than Toro’s and they can platoon with Romy who crushes LHP – which is what they have been doing.
I don’t love it, I would have preferred an actual trade, but Toro’s second half numbers are bad and he’s really been slumping for a while. It’s time for a change and Lowe was the best option available because they waited so long.
HAHA what a crock of rotten soup
Not sure how you’re calling that better numbers for Toro. He has a .678 OPS against RHP, the only playing time he’s likely to get going forward (Romy will get all the starts against LHP) compared to a .735 OPS for Lowe.
Lowe will play against righthanders.
Toro has a 678 OPS against righthanders.
Lowe has a 735 OPS against righthanders.
That does not mean Toro was better against righthanders, it means he is quite a bit worse.
What’s Devers hitting these days?
(sorry I’m a bad person)
Lowe hit a clutch HR (17th) when the Sox needed one. Toro couldn’t do that. Also, Lowe will not see many ABs vs. LHP. It’s a good move. My only disappointment was seeing that D. Hamilton is back on the team. Seriously?
The SF Giants have the worst record in MLB since the Devers trade…
Devers misses his Green Monster.
Devers is hitting .227/.749 with the Giants. What an absolutely wonderful trade. Excising that cancer has paid give dividends.
Miller seems to think BA is more important than OPS. Lowe has much more power.
.152/.202/.242
That is Toro’s slashline over his last 30 games. In that time he has walked a total of 4 times in 103 PA’s. Lots of soft contact and even defensively it seems the more First Base he playes the worse he gets.
I imagine Romy and Hamilton will be getting reps at 3B because Toro was the backup to Bregman but it’s unfortunately necessary to save Cora from himself because if Toro is on the roster he’ll keep penciling his name in the lineup
Now Cora is going to find a way for D. Hamilton to make more automatic outs at the dish. It has been said… You can’t steal first base.
Or can you?…
Dodgers should pick him up in the short term – he’s still better than some guy named Buddy Kennedy that the Dodgers signed with a like a .017 batting average – at least until the other 5 utility players they have on the IL get better
This isn’t a statistics issue. Tori was on the team to fill an injury-driven hole. He held his own for a while but has been a drag on the lineup for months. Whether is lost confidence or skill deficit, he is simply not providing any offense, which they sorely need from their first basemen. At least Hamilton can run, and Lowe looks like his stroke is back. He’s a vast upgrade. I’m sure Cora and Breslow would be happy to have Toro in Worcester, but would also be happy for him if he latches on with another team. Boston treats its players no worse than any other franchise. It’s not like Toro has built his career here.
It is the wrong move to drop the statistically worst baseball player in MLB since early June? He cant hit and he’s fairly atrocious at 1B… he had a couple good weeks in May and that was it.
OMG, NO! Not Hamilton AGAIN! I’m going to throw myself in front of traffic in the Callahan Tunnel.
Fat – How did Gerry get a tunnel named after him?
Fever—Should be renamed The Dennis & Callahan Tunnel. Those guys were iconic.
I agree with your points about Gonzalez and not wanting to pigeon hole players or overemphasize the things they are less strong or well suited for – for a game where confidence is so critical to being able to compete against elite players all over the league, you’d think there would be more care taken to avoid shrinking a player down to one or two specific strengths.
I do want to mention that Romy’s vs RHP production is heavily skewed towards Fenway (.809 OPS home vR, .472 away vR). That said, especially as Toro’s slump carried on, it was absolutely time to start feeding Romy some vs RHP starts. I do think some of the reluctance to do that is based on Romy’s history with injuries. There’s a tricky balance between more regular playing time versus overexposing a player, whether in terms of durability or production, to the point that he may not be available at all. Complaints about Refsnyder’s light usage apply here. These players are so valuable that you need to keep them as available as possible as often as possible.
Romy showed some ability to hit righties well in the minors, and it does annoy me when he’s talked about as if it’s some sort of settled finality that he’s not capable of providing any value vs RHP in MLB. I wouldn’t want to count on him for 500-600+ PA coming out of spring training, but is he someone who I’d be comfortable as the first or second guy pushed into a mostly starting role when injuries occur? Yeah, absolutely, and it’s a big plus when you’re comfortable enough with your first couple of guys on the bench to do that, instead of viewing them as totally inept and incapable of handling a larger assignment in the short or medium term.
What are you talking about?
Romy’s splits:
Lefties: .340/.389/.641 WRC+ 179
Righties: .252/.279/.408 WRC+ 82
Basically he’s a superstar against lefties and he’s below league average hitter against righties.
Gonzalez has 10 XBH in 79 home PA vs RHP as part of a .301/.329/.479 line
Gonzalez has a career .584 OPS against righthanded pitching and a career .880 OPS against left handed pitchers. baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=gonza…
It’s funny how you used the BA line to hide how Lowe has 9 more HR and an extra 44 RBI vsRHP (plus 108 wRC+ vs 76 wRC+) but now your trying to hide Romy’s .340/.389/.641 line vsLHP.
Players have to put up with crap if they want to stay in the game. Just ask Crash Davis.
I was never a fan. He did yeoman’s work for a while, and for that i am grateful.
But, it proves a point. For all of you who said that the analytics show the platoon of Toro and Romy are better than having a “real” first baseman. Nonsense!!! its regression to the mean, and now, below the mean.
These two guys couldnt play for the Mariners and White Sox, and so filling in on a short term basis, we got lucky.
Lets stop with this pretending we’re the Rays and put together a major league roster before game one of the season.
Breslow has screwed this 10 ways to sunday, we should be running right there witht he Jays and perhaps ahead…..
Sad – Big picture, Cora/Breslow value “versatility” over talent.
They’d rather have a crappy hitting guy who can manage to play multiple positions than a talented hitter who is really good at one position.
In large part because they like the short bench and they like the constant L/R matchups.
Until that management philosophy changes,there will always be Toros and Eatons on the Red Sox.
Look at how much money they saved by not getting a real first baseman, catcher, SP or righthanded reliever.
Is it really versatility if you dont play the positions well? Lol
I would say of course not, but the team’s management obviously feels differently lol!
Not wanting Vazquez is the only time Fever has ever been right about anything. It was his participation trophy.
FPG the Yankees fan is one of the few people that have merited a mute since I joined this site at the end of last season.
What I always say about FPG is “not as accurate as a broken clock.”
Gonzalez and Toro as a platoon had a 102 OPS+ this season. The platoon is still above average, better than the mean, even with Toro’s struggles since the beginning of July.
Its one thing to rant. We all do it. Its quite another when you are wrong.
Now stop cherry picking stats and show his OPS vs each one. He’s has a .664 OPS vs RHP, 1.040 vs LHP. That’s why he’s a platoon player.
Olé!
Should of given me a a call.I can’t hit or play defense but was a 1b in Slow pitch softball for years.I would only cost the minimum.Then people could gripe i sucked too.In the grand scheme of things.Toro is much better than me and he sucks.Unfortunately,most teams unlike the dodgers form a team with a potential all star at each position.Most have weak areas.
Hamilton is no better
All for this move, but crissakes… Hamilton again? Other than being fast, he brings no value.
I wish I knew what the deal is w Grissom. He’s not being Rusney-ed, he’s played pretty ok and I would think they’d try to salvage some value out of that dumb trade. Either way, I’d much rather him or even Campbell over Ham.
It’s so frustrating to see AC pinch run w Hamilton late in the game and then leave him in to play 2B. It’s a bizarro defensive replacement. Can’t understand the thinking there. And now he’s back for a make-or-break series.
Big series…
LFG!!!!!
The fact that you state he brings no value is just ridiculous. His speed plays…. if he was given everyday at bats he would hit between .240 and 270, he’d hit 10 HR’s and lead the league in Stolen Bases. The problem is Mr. Platoon Cora, thinks he is smarter than everyone else and doesn’t have the patience or balls to stick with a normal lineup with minimal daily changes.
Looks like Hamilton’s mom stole your log in Coop…
In 182 ML games Hamilton’s OBP is only .278. OBP! We can just leave it at that. He’s good at being fast and it ends there.
He has never been given everyday at bats. Put him on the Pirates or Rays…. that actually know how to use someone like him (see Jose Cabellero before he was traded) and you get a productive player.
swan – Just think, Bloom paid $9.5M for David Hamilton and 91 games of .578 OPS JBJ ….. whatta bargain!!! LOLOLOLOLOL!!
If youre not getting at-bats there’s usually a reason
Wow Fever…. Last Night was a perfect example…. Speed causes havoc….. yeah the getting picked off 3rd was stupidity, but his speed got him a hit, caused two errors, stole a base, caused a balk.
Before you all come back at me,,,, my whole point is for those who think Hamilton is useless… what he showed last night is what he brings to the table. As a former College SS back in the day, trust me Speed causes multiple issues, not just the obvious.
Cooper – Actually, Hamilton should have also been picked off first base too. A decent throw from Gil would have had him, because when he slid back to first base he came up short like Willie Mays Hays did in Major League!
But I’m with you all the way, Hamilton is worth keeping on the roster. I just wish Cora would go with a 5-man bench, but he never will. …. well, not until September when he has no choice. LOL
FPG
What a crazy game… All the miscues, errors both mental and physical. When was the last Sox to get picked off 3rdbase. I think Hudson has to take some blame for that,he is having tough week.
cdc – It’s funny, the same thing happened with Rafaela against the Yankees!!! Yeah how can Hudson not realize TWICE!!!
mlb.com/video/yankees-pull-off-heads-up-play-again…
FPG
Will Garcia be in there tonight? Why bring him up if he is not going to play.. surprised with the call up, he started last year in single A. Very aggressive. Rafaela at 2nd , Garcia in cf ??
Also Charlie Morton has been very good in 3 of his 4 starts for Detroit. I know he was not viewed as a big prize at the deadline,but the guy still gets it done..
cdc – Very difficult to predict, but I’ll take a stab at it ….
LF – Duran
CF – Rafaela
RF – Anthony
3B – Bregman
SS – Story
2B – Hamilton
1B – Romy
C – Wong
DH – Garcia
Bench – Yoshida, Narvaez, Lowe, Eaton
DH is the best way to ease in PW.
Yeah Morton has definitely surprised me, no question.
FPG
I tried posting this in the corresponding article but could not .. Beltre statue
No question Beltre a great player, H.o.Famer. but a statue in Texas??? Only played there for 8 seasons and never won a W.S. I don’t know… How about Michael Young , Juan Gonzalez… Just throwing that out there. ..
cdc – How about Jim Sundberg, Buddy Bell and Oddibe McDowell?
There should be a Statue of Nolan Ryan with Robin Ventura in a Head Lock…….
Every single comment you make is about Cora.
It’s dull.
You’re dull.
Hamilton has great value on a team that can capitalize on his speed as a pure pinch runner that occasionally plays the field to relieve players.
The one thing I knew he couldn’t do after watching him play his first bunch of games for us was hit. He is not a good hitter, nor will he ever be an impactful offensive player. I was surprised how mediocre he was defensively because of his immense speed. If he was a solid glove guy, he would be a fantastic guy to have on the bench for speed and defense, but he isn’t that either. I wish he was, because he seems like a good guy, and the effort is there. I wish that for a lot of guys, but at some point, this is a business about winning games and the contribution each player provides to his team to accomplish that.
william – I’m really surprised nobody other than me has compared him to Billy, a guy who still managed to play in the majors for 11 seasons!
swan – Kinda hard to call up Grissom when he’s currently on the IL.
But I fully support Cora’s usage of Hamilton. His speed will win a lot more games than his defense will lose, and he usually plays defense for only an inning or two.
Yeah, I missed my copy of Woosta Weekly. Didn’t see Grissom was injured.
Grissom is hurt? I missed the memo about him being healthy at some point. =) jk
He barely hits his weight
Lowe is more about projection-he’s had some serious success unlike Toro
Tar – Yep, Lowe had a grand slam in his last game with the Nats.
Abraham (Twins) Toro – What do they have to lose?
“Boston sucks” NO….. It’s just Cora. If this team had a different Manager that actually knows how to handle the pitching staff and Bullpen…. they would be in 1st place.
Coop – Also if Roman had been on the roster all season or even since May, they’d be in first place.
All those early season 1-run losses, he would have made a difference.
T. Hudson is a disaster at 3B.
That double play he hit into Tuesday night (tie game in the 10th with bases loaded and 1 out) was the last straw for me. See ya
FPG
I would imagine Chapman gets some Cy Young votes ,heck maybe some MVP votes. Why not…. !! Who else on the team besides Crochet gets some award recognition. Story for sure, Anthony. If Bregman had not missed so much time … ?. I’ve watched Williams pitch several times and he looks crazy good sometimes.
Looks like Campbell got sent down as well with Fitts coming up to take his place
Hamilton is useful as a pinch runner and defensive replacement, but no way should he be starting like he is tonight.
Hamilton is not a MLB caliber player. Bad defense and a lack of baseball awareness. All he can do is run.
Exactly
He is a good trooper and deserves a spot on someone’s roster. Best of luck, AT.
Mariners Legend Abraham Toro!
Should have done this a month ago, why not Campbell or Grissom?
Reps make you better or expose you. The idea of taking great prospects and platooning them to not expose them or sending them down to find success if they start badly has always made me scratch my head. You have to expose players to improve players.
EX: a guy struggles to hit against lefties? Give him a couple hundred MLB at bats against them to see what they are doing to them, pick up the spins, and learn the outside of the plate to fine tune their discipline against the nasty breaking stuff. Sending them down to face everyone not good enough to be in the show probably isn’t the answer. Facing rehabbing MLB lefties in the minors a couple times a summer isn’t preparation.
Exposing players may not be the best business move, but it is the best baseball move. You learn what you have, and you learn it more quickly. They adapt and improve with the reps, or you realize you have to move on to the next guy in the pecking order. At least you learn definitely you have a platoon guy and they themselves realize it instead of convincing them through your actions that is all they are.
In the majors teams have no at bats to waste, especially if the are in contention. If players have shown in the minors that they have extreme platoon stats there is no reason to give them at bats in the majors to try to improve. That is what the minors are for.
Agreed, but that is a different scenario. Those guys are never meant to be everyday players, nor thought of that way. I am
Talking about the guys that are and are not
Provided the opportunity at times to fail trying, or if they are, they are either afforded little time to truly adapt, or are sent down to face the pitching they already feasted on instead of failing till they adapt against the best.
It took 4 months for the Red Sox to finally replace Casas with a viable solution. Toro was a great little story but if anyone looked at his career this was inevitable. He eventually falls off a cliff, just the story of his career. I’m quite shocked it took this long. He did what the Sox needed him to do. Be a cheap as can be option at a position that needed to valued but they didnt value it at all. There were many things they could have done but chose to just keep waiting and waiting and waiting. If Lowe didn’t fall into their lap they would still be trotting Toro out there like nothing is wrong. Breslow and Co will just keep throwing cheap options at everything. I mean sure they are in 2nd place however this could be going the opposite direction very easily as well.
And my lord why is Greg Weissert still in this bullpen? He literally gives up the lead, the tying run literally everytime he pitches. Yet Cora keeps running him there. You can not have that dude pitching in the playoffs.
Hyperventilate, much? Geez take a breath, your team is on a streak.
lol
He has a 139 ERA+ and has only allowed 4 inherited runners to score. He’s been great.
He has a 2.96 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP, and 3 saves. You know that’s good?
Sure he’s great when the game doesn’t matter. Really dig. When there’s a lead he doesn’t hold it and when it’s tied gives up the lead.
You said he :”literally gives up the lead or the tying run every time he pitches:”
Which is dumb and totally wrong, which is why I put up his stats.
Guess who just gave up the tie and the lead? Our boy Weissert! Haha
Toro toro taxi. See you tomorrow, my son
An obscure reference that fits perfectly. Well played.
Toro remains in the org and for sure will end up being some kind of hero in the post season
Dano – Only if Subway is a postseason sponsor and is looking for a mascot.
Toro was so good for us until the calendar turned to July. He had a .292 BA and .803 OPS that day and then he hit .221 and .137 in July and August.
We were out of the race early without him. Glad he was part of the team.
On a side note, the Red Sox are 14 games over .500 since trading Devers and the Giants are 16 games under .500.
I hope the Sox give Toro the same deal for next year. Good guy to have in the minors in case of injury.
Toro is a good guy and played some good baseball before fading. Hopefully, they can bring him back next year, but we have so many young prospects we can turn to at first from Campbell, Jhostnyxon and others. So much young talent on this team, i just hope we can extend Bregman and Abreu.
Poly – I’d rather have Hamilton, Romy and maybe Ref back as bench players instead of Toro because he doesn’t contribute offensively and he’s average at best defensively.
I also think Rafaela is headed to super-sub status, because he’s proven he can’t hit decent MLB pitching.
FPG
Why didn’t Fitts just start last nights ballgame?.
cdc – I was fine with it. Simple reason, Holliday & Henderson are lefties and it’s better having the lefty Bernie facing them than Fitts.
Man I hope he’s okay, forearm tightness is never a good sign.
Wong has been on quite the hitting streak, right? I figured he would eventually, nobody goes an entire season with an OPS under .500
Duran with the HUGE homerun, hope he’s heating up again.
Roman is just amazing ….. absolutely love the guy.
That was probably the worst game of Rafaela’s career. Loumer keeps saying he’s figured it out, he’s ready to bust out, yadda yadda …. fact is he’s getting worse, not better. Striking out on 3 or 4 pitches, batting .120 with a .385 OPS …. doesn’t get worse than that.
FPG
Slaten appears to be ready . A dominate bullpen can carry a team a long way in the playoffs…
I want to see Tolle take his shot. Let’s see if he is ready for the big time.. What is the date that players must be on the roster to be playoff eligible??. There is a history of late season pitching call-ups that really helped there team..
cdc – September 1st, although anyone on the 40-man can get called up for the postseason if there’s an injury replacement need.
So who would you replace for Tolle? I’m guessing Hicks or Fitts?
Chap, Slaten, Whitlock, Wilson, Matz, Bernie …. looking really good right now.
FPG
How about a Tolle vs Skenes matchup on Friday…
How exciting would that be. Might be asking to much… Maybe he could go on Saturday, not sure when his next scheduled start is due in Worcester.
FPG
Ok …. Wong 8 for 20 with 3 doubles in his last 6 games. How about Whitlock & Chapman!!! Chapman hasn’t given up a hit since he gave up a hr against Philly 14 games and 38 batters ago. Koji-esque…
Whitlock since Cora basically made him a single inning guy (1 , 2 inning stint) has only given up 2 earned runs in his last 23 outings. That is absolutely tremendous.
cdc – I’ve been saying all year, Whitlock and Chapman are THE biggest reasons why the Sox are in a playoff spot.
When you have a shutdown back end of the pen, it makes a world of difference. I always remind people a closer is unique in that if they do their job, the team is GUARANTEED to win. Every time Chapman pitches the 9th with a lead, if he does his job the Sox WILL win. No other player on the team can say that. Not even Crochet, he could pitch 10 shutout innings and that STILL wouldn’t guarantee a win.
My only concern, Chapman has strict usage limitations. Which means he may not be available or effective in certain postseason situations. But we will cross that bridge when we get there!.
The multi inning or 4/5 out save has been the bain of many a good team or closer. Yeah I am concerned about this come playoff time.
Chapman is the Sox MVP this season. No question, a shut down bullpen is the key to a long playoff run. I do admit , I wasn’t all that high on the Chapman signing, gotta give Breslow credit . I want Williams or Scott. I know you liked Chapman, but more than those two???. Be honest ..
cdc – What are your thoughts on Chapman winning the Cy? He’s been the most dominant pitcher in the league, but obviously he doesn’t have a lot of innings pitched.
Yeah I keep remembering how much guys like Foulke and Mariano pitched in the postseason, and how Chapman pitched poorly for the Cubs in the WS because he was tired. But I know I’m getting ahead of myself here because of my excitement. LOL
I’m always honest! LOL!! No I didn’t expect Chapman to be THIS good. I wanted him to be our top LHR and closer, but yeah I probably would have preferred Williams or Scott if it was between them and Chapman. Primarily because Chap is 37 now and I wasn’t sure if last year’s “fix” would stick for another full season.
In order, I’d have chosen Wiliams-Scott-Chapman if I could only have one. Williams has a 5-year track record, Scott has only 2 years. Glad we dodged that bullet!
FPG
Maybe they should have just left Rafaela in cf. He swings for the fences way to much.
cdc – Agreed, he is very immature. Hopefully he will mature with age as he gets into his 30’s. But for now all he cares about is the long ball. It’s crazy because he’s got excellent speed, he should play like Duran not Dave Kingman.
FPG
It’s funny they are talking about Chapman on weei radio right now, how when he signed here it was lukewarm. Now they they think the Sox should offer him a big 2 year contract.. Definitely Cy Young votes as well as MVP votes IMO. Story should also get MVP votes. Let Duran get hot(ter) down the stretch and he also will get votes. I don’t want Duran traded this off-season. He is a difference maker not many clubs have.
cdc – It was lukewarm for a few reasons …..
1) His high walk totals. His control has been this good only one other time – all the way back in 2016.
2) His age
3) His reputation which took a hit when he walked out on the Yanks (or something like that) in 2022
4) His DV case, which caused a certain type of fans to automatically condemn him
He should absolutely get a 2-year contract with the highest AAV for a reliever in MLB. I’d much rather the Sox take a small risk with a guy who has been not only totally dominant but has an excellent health history. The Sox have pissed away so much money on high risk gambles with injured/old/crappy pitchers, so there’s no excuse for not taking a low risk gamble with Chapman.
My fear is the Sox will let Chapman walk because Hicks is getting paid big bucks.
Yes, votes for Chapman and Story ….. and I agree, Duran has a shot too.
If either Duran or Abreu gets traded just to keep Rafaela, I’ll be quite unhappy.
FPG
I love a ‘Kong’ reference….. for the longest time he had the most hrs. who was not in the hof.
How about Tolle on Friday/Saturday?? He has been dominant in Worcester.. he could be a real X – factor for this squad..
cdc – Sure, it sounds like Tolle would give a better chance of winning than Harrison.
Did you see the schedule is out for next year …. my favorite day, get to plan my trips!
What really stuck out, the first scheduled DoubleHeader since I can remember ….. it’s in Seattle.
FPG
A doubleheader??? Really??? I’m going to have to do some research to see when the last scheduled DH was…
cdc – Yes, because of a World Cup game being played in Seattle.
FPG
I be been looking deeply into Chapmans stats so far this season. Absolutely unbelievable. In his Last 10 2/3rds innings ,no hits 3 walks. a whip of 0.281 a season whip of 0.68 . What he is doing is historic .. has only given up 1 earned run in 35 appearances!!!!! The HR in Philly 14 games ago on ,7/23, This man deserves and should get Cy Young and MVP votes. I thought Kojis epic season was the greatest relief pitching I have witnessed,but what Chapman is doing is right there..
cdc – With all due respect to Chapman, check out my man Eck’s 1990 season …
baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=ecker…
And he didn’t even win Cy that year!
BTW – The last two relievers to win Cy were Eck and Gagne!!!
cdc – BTW Chapman’s K/BB is 5.07
Eck’s was 18.25 !!!!!!
Some questionable defense almost cost Bello ( what a performance) and the Sox the game last night. We have been killing Rafaela but he put on a coy good swings last night for sure. Just read Wong had more basehit s than Narvaez since the all-star game…
cdc – The thing that really impressed me, but didn’t surprise me, was the list NESN showed of the 5 Best ERA’s in the AL since I believe June 1st? Crochet, Giolito and Bello were all on the list!
Yeah Rafaela was due, first homerun in ages. Let’s hope he has another streak like he did in June!
Wong is I awesome, I wouldn’t trade him for even Big Dumper!! j/k ;O)
FPG
Oh yeah LaRussa knew what he was doing.., Amazing….. Eck was the best….. Loved him in the booth for the Sox. I remember he struck out Dewey and he pointed at him !!! Dewey was pissed….. Couldn’t get passed Oakland in 88/90
cdc – Good morning! I don’t remember the Dewey strikeout, but I certainly remember Eck’s finger pointing in general.
I think 1990 is when Clemens got thrown out of a playoff game against Oakland.
FPG
So looking forward to this game this afternoon.
Let’s go Sox !!!! Who’s gonna be the hero today….. It’s getting very exciting!!!.
cdc – When was the last time 3 Sox starting pitchers had this kind of a roll? Hurst, Clemens, Tudor?
cdc – What a great DP by Story!!!!
The guy will just not cool off ….. yet another homerun today!
25/25 is not that far away, what an amazing accomplishment for a guy who had a lot of bad luck early in the season.
The haters are looking so foolish right now! LOL!!!
FPG
It was 1990 and the ECK struck out Dewey and then with much aplomb pointed right at him … Those were great A’s teams. Dewey and Eck were good friends
.. the Sox could not get by them during that time.