2012 MLB Season

[BigBubba]

Blue Jays lose again, and are now 5-20 in their last 25. Bautista went 0-for-4 in his return. At least we're getting Morrow back tomorrow, and Lind and Lawrie soon as well.

[Fox]

So the Sox are blowing the whole thing sky-high.

I must, say, I 70% love this deal.

I love the prospects they're getting back. I love that they're getting rid of Beckett and Crawford (whom I believe will come back better following Tommy John, but whatever) and I love the salary relief this provides them.

However, I hate 30% of this.

Losing A-Gon will hurt. A lot. I love that guy.

And the Sox are also getting James Loney. Gag me.

I love Gonzalez as a player, but with up to $260 million that the Red Sox could save in this deal, I'm sure they can replace his production. Let's face it- It's time for the Sox to rebuild. I'm actually quite excited. If the deal goes down, the Red Sox have taken four big contracts off the books this season (Youkilis + these 3). I'm not expecting David Ortiz to return this off season, so that's another $15 million off the books. EDIT: And I forgot about Dice-K. So the Red Sox could potentially cut $80-90 million off their payroll, wow!!

While the team on the field will suck, this should give the Red Sox a ton financial flexibility down the road.

[Kramerica Industries]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

Mets have lost five straight games, at home, to lowly Colorado and Houston.

Mike Francesca is not pleased:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgyRKcEXYtI

[NJTank]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

So good of you to notice

[cshookemHORNS]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

Mets have lost five straight games, at home, to lowly Colorado and Houston.

Mike Francesca is not pleased:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgyRKcEXYtI

Wait he's come to expect more of the Mets? I really have no room to talk though because I'm an Astros fan I get happy when we don't lose 5 in a row! Haha

[cshookemHORNS]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

So good of you to notice

Thanks, I guess.

[pmoehrin]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

Mets have lost five straight games, at home, to lowly Colorado and Houston.

Mike Francesca is not pleased:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgyRKcEXYtI

I heard that on the radio coming home from work on Thursday and I was laughing my ass off. I didn't see the game but it couldn't have been more entertaining then that.

The odd thing about it is Francesca is usually not that emotional. If it was Mad Dog back when the two were together I wouldn't have been surprised, but I don't know if I can ever remember Mike going off like that.

I can understand where he is coming from though because the Mets right now may very well be the worst team in baseball. They had that West Coast swing where they split a 4 game series with the D'Backs and beat the Giants 3 out of 4, but otherwise that has been it for them since the All-Star break.

[Kramerica Industries]

Crazy game on Chicago's southside, which sees the scalding Mariners nearly pull victory from the jaws of defeat, only to then snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

And the White Sox now lead the Central Division by three games.

[RedSox44]

So the Sox are blowing the whole thing sky-high.

I must, say, I 70% love this deal.

I love the prospects they're getting back. I love that they're getting rid of Beckett and Crawford (whom I believe will come back better following Tommy John, but whatever) and I love the salary relief this provides them.

However, I hate 30% of this.

Losing A-Gon will hurt. A lot. I love that guy.

And the Sox are also getting James Loney. Gag me.

I love Gonzalez as a player, but with up to $260 million that the Red Sox could save in this deal, I'm sure they can replace his production. Let's face it- It's time for the Sox to rebuild. I'm actually quite excited. If the deal goes down, the Red Sox have taken four big contracts off the books this season (Youkilis + these 3). I'm not expecting David Ortiz to return this off season, so that's another $15 million off the books. EDIT: And I forgot about Dice-K. So the Red Sox could potentially cut $80-90 million off their payroll, wow!!

While the team on the field will suck, this should give the Red Sox a ton financial flexibility down the road.

Yes, I realize losing A-Gon is for the better in the long run. It hurts, but it's like Nomar in 2004: something that just had to be done. With all this money they saved, I expect a better Red Sox team next season. The prospects are mouth-watering, too. I could see them going big for someone like Napoli or Hamilton for a bat in the lineup. Starting pitching looks a little lean outside of Greinke, Jackson and Santana (I'm assuming Tampa's going to exercise its club option on Shields). Maybe a solid middle-of-the-rotation guy like Correia, McCarthy, Saunders, Lewis or Dickey if they're not too expensive.

All in all, I think you and I and all the other Red Sox fans are in for a very interesting off season.

And I forgot about Matsuzaka inevitably leaving. Holy crap.

[sportstar1212]

I can't wait for the offseason! If we land some solid free agents and give Bobby V the sack, we'll have a contender for sure in 2013.

[TheOldRoman]

Crazy game on Chicago's southside, which sees the scalding Mariners nearly pull victory from the jaws of defeat, only to then snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

And the White Sox now lead the Central Division by three games.

Two and a half. But yes, it was a laugher until the bullpen blew up in the top of the ninth, turning a 7-2 lead into a 8-7 deficit. The Sox get a lead-off hit, a four pitch walk to a guy trying to bunt, and then a single to tie it. With runners on first and second, Konerko hit a deep fly ball to right center. The RF got the ball in his mitt and then had a collision with the CF, causing the ball to roll away. It wasn't called a catch, but the baserunner had waited and essentially "tagged-up" from second to win the game as the ball was rolling around in the outfield. Considering both halfs of the ninth, that might be the craziest ending to any game this year.

[dfwabel]

I can't wait for the offseason! If we land some solid free agents and give Bobby V the sack, we'll have a contender for sure in 2013.

Bobby V signed a two year contract. As of now that coincides with the end of the contract of TOR manager (and former BOS coach) John Farrell.

[njmeadowlanders]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

Mets have lost five straight games, at home, to lowly Colorado and Houston.

Mike Francesca is not pleased:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgyRKcEXYtI

I heard that on the radio coming home from work on Thursday and I was laughing my ass off. I didn't see the game but it couldn't have been more entertaining then that.

The odd thing about it is Francesca is usually that not emotional. If it was Mad Dog back when the two were together I wouldn't have been surprised, but I don't know if I can ever remember Mike going off like that.

I can understand where he is coming from though because the Mets right now may very well be the worst team in baseball. They had that West Coast swing where they split a 4 game series with the D'Backs and beat the Giants 3 out of 4, but otherwise that has been it for them since the All-Star break.

It's all manufactured. He absolutely hates the Mets. He would love nothing more than for the Mets to cease to exist. This was just to make waves.

I also made my first trek to Citi Field tonight on the season (I live in San Diego now) and I have to say...it was so depressing sitting in the stands with 4 other fans. The place is a mausoleum, they got down 2-0 and you just knew the game was over. Your 2012 New York Mets!

[Fox]

I can't wait for the offseason! If we land some solid free agents and give Bobby V the sack, we'll have a contender for sure in 2013.

Bobby V signed a two year contract. As of now that coincides with the end of the contract of TOR manager (and former BOS coach) John Farrell.

I like the idea of Farrell managing the Sox, but why wouldn't the Blue Jays want to bring him back?

[pmoehrin]

The Astros manage to suck against every other team but are 4-0 against the Mets this year. Thats 1/10 of their wins...

Mets have lost five straight games, at home, to lowly Colorado and Houston.

Mike Francesca is not pleased:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgyRKcEXYtI

I heard that on the radio coming home from work on Thursday and I was laughing my ass off. I didn't see the game but it couldn't have been more entertaining then that.

The odd thing about it is Francesca is usually not that emotional. If it was Mad Dog back when the two were together I wouldn't have been surprised, but I don't know if I can ever remember Mike going off like that.

I can understand where he is coming from though because the Mets right now may very well be the worst team in baseball. They had that West Coast swing where they split a 4 game series with the D'Backs and beat the Giants 3 out of 4, but otherwise that has been it for them since the All-Star break.

It's all manufactured. He absolutely hates the Mets. He would love nothing more than for the Mets to cease to exist. This was just to make waves.

I also made my first trek to Citi Field tonight on the season (I live in San Diego now) and I have to say...it was so depressing sitting in the stands with 4 other fans. The place is a mausoleum, they got down 2-0 and you just knew the game was over. Your 2012 New York Mets!

I kinda like Mike myself. I find him to be one of the more level headed radio personalities out there, which is again why I find this to be so bizarre.

Was it all an act? Maybe. I don't really know or care that much.

The Mets have been just horrendous to watch as of late though. Citi Field should be empty for the way they've played. That club quit on the season the second things started turning south. That offense has just shut down completely. Although even as bad as they are Jason Bay still got benched, as he should have. At this point a straight trade for Carlos Zambrano with the intention of moving Carlos Zambrano to left could be justified. That's how bad Jason Bay has been, and I think the Mets are just hoping he retires after this year because he is done. I don't even think he could be justified starting for AAA Buffalo let alone in the majors if your only taking into account his production.

[Cujo]

Back to the Dodgers-Red Sox deal.... What's the goddamn point of having a trade deadline when stuff like THIS is (possibly) allowed to go down one month before the playoffs begin?

[pmoehrin]

Back to the Dodgers-Red Sox deal.... What's the goddamn point of having a trade deadline when stuff like THIS is (possibly) allowed to go down one month before the playoffs begin?

If it were up to me I would move the trade deadline up to September 1st and make it a hard deadline, meaning you could make no roster moves beyond DL related issues. I think the only way a team should be able to claim somebody off waivers is in the case of somebody being removed from the 40 man roster. It shouldn't be something that happens very frequently.

My hope is this deal brings attention to the issue of the trade deadline being too early and maybe the CBA can be reworked to account for that either this offseason or somewhere down the road.

I'm still trying to digest exactly what happened so that's the only real comment I have on it at the moment.

[dfwabel]

I can't wait for the offseason! If we land some solid free agents and give Bobby V the sack, we'll have a contender for sure in 2013.

Bobby V signed a two year contract. As of now that coincides with the end of the contract of TOR manager (and former BOS coach) John Farrell.

I like the idea of Farrell managing the Sox, but why wouldn't the Blue Jays want to bring him back?

Hey, BOS signed Bobby V to just two years. The BOS management knows more about the TOR situation than I do or more about how Farrell likes to live there.

If you are Farrell, why sign an extension with TOR when you are fighting for AL East 2nd place at best?

I can't wait for the offseason! If we land some solid free agents and give Bobby V the sack, we'll have a contender for sure in 2013.

Bobby V signed a two year contract. As of now that coincides with the end of the contract of TOR manager (and former BOS coach) John Farrell.

I like the idea of Farrell managing the Sox, but why wouldn't the Blue Jays want to bring him back?

Hey, BOS signed Bobby V to just two years. The BOS management knows more about the TOR situation than I do or more about how Farrell likes to live there.

If you are Farrell, why sign an extension with TOR when you are fighting for AL East 2nd place at best? Plus, as cosmopolitan as TOR is, if you and your family love the USA, then you still may dislike living in Canada.

[Brian in Boston]

So the Red Sox could potentially cut $80-90 million off their payroll... this should give the Red Sox a ton financial flexibility down the road.

Which brings up a hypothetical question I posed to some fellow Red Sox fans that I was having dinner with this evening: Might the Red Sox reduced payroll and financial flexibility soon be of benefit to someone else? In other words, what's the possibility that this blockbuster trade is being entered into by the current Sox ownership group in order to dump enough salary and long-term contracts to make the team more attractive to potential buyers?

John Henry-and-Company saw the Sox win 93 games the year they bought the team, take the Yankees to Game 7 of the AL Championship Series the following season, and capture the ultimate victory - the franchise's first World Series win in 86 years - in just their third season owning the club. They'd add a second World Series title three seasons after that. Pretty heady stuff right out of the ownership blocks. That said, not every year is going to see overachieving, role-playing, fan-favorite "Idiots" rallying around a "Cowboy up!" battle cry on their way to post-season glory. Additionally, Boston is one of the tougher towns in which to own a pro sports franchise when things aren't going well for the hometown team.

So, might it be that the powers-that-be on Yawkey Way - particularly, John Henry - have grown less-enamored of being in the Sox ownership spotlight since the team's post-season fortunes started to take a nose-dive and the notoriously vociferous Beantown boo-birds have begun to squawk with renewed vigor? Further, Henry - 62 years old, with a 33-year-old wife and a toddler daughter - doesn't strike me as the type of guy who is going to want to preside over an involved rebuilding process.

Again... purely hypothetical, but stranger things have happened.

[sportstar1212]

I can't wait for the offseason! If we land some solid free agents and give Bobby V the sack, we'll have a contender for sure in 2013.

Bobby V signed a two year contract. As of now that coincides with the end of the contract of TOR manager (and former BOS coach) John Farrell.

I like the idea of Farrell managing the Sox, but why wouldn't the Blue Jays want to bring him back?

Hey, BOS signed Bobby V to just two years. The BOS management knows more about the TOR situation than I do or more about how Farrell likes to live there.

If you are Farrell, why sign an extension with TOR when you are fighting for AL East 2nd place at best? Plus, as cosmopolitan as TOR is, if you and your family love the USA, then you still may dislike living in Canada.

Farrell was Boston's first choice to fill the manager spot, but the Jays then implemented a new rule saying that management or coaches cannot leave the organization if it's a lateral move. Valentine leaving after this year is just wishful thinking. Farrell's and Bobby V's contracts both expire at the end of next season, so it makes more sense that he'll come to Boston for 2014.