To prevent this sort of discussion from spilling over into what are putatively news threads, I thought it would help to have a thread devoted to big picture discussion of the strategic and roster ramifications exposed by the trade deadline.
It's becoming clearer and clearer with each rumor that the team is in a very peculiar circumstance. Two seasons removed from collapse, one removed from astonishing success, injuries and underperformance have left what was supposed to be an orderly transition to younger players in a shambles, and left the team in last place. The Lester saga in particular raises questions about the trajectory of the franchise.
We spent the last off-season talking about how Cherington's masterful short FA signings helped patch holes in the roster and compete in the short term, but the drawbacks of that strategy were more apparent in 2014, as the roster was overtaken by the health woes of the previous signees (Victorino, Napoli) and the poor performance of the new crop of FA signees (AJP, Sizemore). At the same time, the rookies being incorporated, principally Bogaerts, Bradley and De La Rosa, have struggled at times, and looked good at others. Bogaerts, in particular, looked like a HOF candidate for a few months, before entering a deep slump.
The pitching has been okay (team ERA+ is 100); the offense horrible (team OPS+ is 95).
The team has notable strengths, however. Perhaps most notable is the strength and depth of the farm system. It seems clear that this sets us up well for offseason trades.
What would your aims be if you were Cherington and the FO? How deeply do you sell from the big league roster? Who is untouchable? What returns do you need to see?
What are your offseason FA and trade targets? How do you see the roster shaping up in 2015? 2016? When is our window?
It's becoming clearer and clearer with each rumor that the team is in a very peculiar circumstance. Two seasons removed from collapse, one removed from astonishing success, injuries and underperformance have left what was supposed to be an orderly transition to younger players in a shambles, and left the team in last place. The Lester saga in particular raises questions about the trajectory of the franchise.
We spent the last off-season talking about how Cherington's masterful short FA signings helped patch holes in the roster and compete in the short term, but the drawbacks of that strategy were more apparent in 2014, as the roster was overtaken by the health woes of the previous signees (Victorino, Napoli) and the poor performance of the new crop of FA signees (AJP, Sizemore). At the same time, the rookies being incorporated, principally Bogaerts, Bradley and De La Rosa, have struggled at times, and looked good at others. Bogaerts, in particular, looked like a HOF candidate for a few months, before entering a deep slump.
The pitching has been okay (team ERA+ is 100); the offense horrible (team OPS+ is 95).
The team has notable strengths, however. Perhaps most notable is the strength and depth of the farm system. It seems clear that this sets us up well for offseason trades.
What would your aims be if you were Cherington and the FO? How deeply do you sell from the big league roster? Who is untouchable? What returns do you need to see?
What are your offseason FA and trade targets? How do you see the roster shaping up in 2015? 2016? When is our window?