You still have to get rid of a position player when you add Pedroia. They are Not going with a 5 man bench!
They can replace (or exceed) Hanley's power with Mitch Moreland. They'll probably go look for a cheap bat that can hit lefties if Swihart isn't that guy.Just in and haven't gone through the past six pages of posts, but I have to think there is something else in the works soon. It's the timing of this rather than the fact that it's happened that surprises me. Hanley's dropped off the pace that he was at last month (understandable), but there is still power in his bat. Pedroia's not replacing that and there is no other power option on the bench other than perhaps Swihart who's still a bit unproven at this point. Is this the bench they settle for with the Yankees playing better than Boston recently is does DD have something else in the works?
It's a cruel business.Alex Speier @alexspeier 1h1 hour ago
Dombrowski on Hanley reaction: ‘It was in the wee hours of the morning. ... He didn’t really say very much. There wasn’t much reaction at that particular time.’ Conversation took place at about 3:45am.
Brian Johnson currently has a better xFIP than Michael Fulmer, Luke Weaver, Jake Arrieta, Yu Darvish, and David Price. He doesn't have much upside, but he's got a great shot at replacing Pomeranz's production next year for 1/16th the cost.Meh. BJ is almost 28 and hasn't shown much. He's so replaceable with Velazquez and Wright coming back and Jalen Beeks pitching like Lefty Grove in AAA.
I'm assuming Swihart's axe isn't too far behind this one. But as already suggested this coming first does buy them a little more time to figure out the surrounding catching depth situation that will need to be addressed in the aftermath.You still have to get rid of a position player when you add Pedroia. They are Not going with a 5 man bench!
Yeah. Picking out the one least egregious offense as a comparison doesn't really feel apt.Bryce Harper was benched for failing to run out a ground ball in 2014. How many casual fans you think would call him lazy today?
So he didn't find out on twitter or a text message from a friend. I suppose they could have waited a couple hours longer to DFA him or w/e.I am on board with this move, but why did they need to call him at 3:45 AM? lol
Hanley completely transformed his body in two different off-seasons, just while he was with Boston. That's hard to square with laziness.Yeah. Picking out the one least egregious offense as a comparison doesn't really feel apt.
If he punted a ball 100 feet away and then loafed over to it while 2 guys sprinted around the bases to score, followed by not running out a ground ball in the same game? I think plenty of people would have called Harper lazy.
It might not have been a call. It was probably right after they landed. You aren’t going to tell him before the flight or in front of his teammates.I am on board with this move, but why did they need to call him at 3:45 AM? lol
In May it does. In April he OPS'd .906Sucks to end this way, but it sure looks like Hanley is toast.
I liked him too, and always wanted to give him one more shot because when he had it together he was really fun to have around. But he's been so consistently bad for most of the last 3+ years, the blips of performance are just not getting it done. He surely is toast.Sucks to end this way, but it sure looks like Hanley is toast.
Yeah. Picking out the one least egregious offense as a comparison doesn't really feel apt.
If he punted a ball 100 feet away and then loafed over to it while 2 guys sprinted around the bases to score, followed by not running out a ground ball in the same game? I think plenty of people would have called Harper lazy.
Six to one, half dozen to the other. Moreland plays a bigger role as full time first baseman for the time being but he's already there. He's not replacing Hanley's power as he's pretty much out shined him so far. See it as you like, but IMO you have to replace the power void that's been created. I would love for Sam Travis to be that guy, but he hasn't really showed that he's ready. Maybe if he sees any playing time Swihart can show some of the offense that he displayed in spring training. Either way I think something has to be done to provide a bit more pop off the bench.They can replace (or exceed) Hanley's power with Mitch Moreland. They'll probably go look for a cheap bat that can hit lefties if Swihart isn't that guy.
This move makes the Red Sox worse and less interesting. And it takes away the only proven clutch postseason hitter on a team that needs to prove itself in October. It sucks the color and cockiness out of the clubhouse. It takes away a big threat against lefthanded pitching. It subtracts a goofy, often-full-of-beans talent from a clubhouse peppered with millennial softies who routinely dance on the heads of the no-talent Orioles and Rays in May but have been zeros in October.
Oh, let’s not forget that Hanley batted .571 against the Astros in last year’s playoffs while his choking dog teammates — guys who did not want to be part of the big moment — produced a soft parade of easy outs.
But this does make the Sox better now? Does it improve their prospects for the 2018 postseason? It’s great if you care about the Red Sox’ bottom line (I don’t), but I fail to understand why any “win now” Sox fan would approve of this transaction. The Red Sox just decided to save money. They just decided to keep Brock Holt instead of Hanley Ramirez. They want Mitch Moreland to play every day.
But we all know that this was about the money, which is unacceptable for the 2018 Red Sox. More than any other team in baseball, the Red Sox are built to win now. Unlike the Yankees, the Red Sox are not going to get better in the upcoming seasons. They have to win this year or next. And they just made a deal that will save money in the short term but hurts the chance to win this year and next. So why would Sox fans be OK with this?
The 2018 Red Sox need more Hanley, not less. They currently have no player who has ever delivered on the postseason stage. In four career Division Series, Ramirez’s batting average is .446 with a homer and 13 RBIs in 15 games. When the 2016-17 Red Sox bombed against the Indians and Astros, Hanley batted .423 with 5 RBIs in seven postseason games.
More here:Unlike many of his former teammates, Ramirez is also a guy who is at his locker before games and after games.
This play is what "lazy" looks like."Lazy" isn't the word that comes to mind.
What did you write? I am geniunely interested in a Yankee fan's perspective on the Hanley DFA. You are one of the more informed posters on here and along with Jon Abbey proof that not every Yankee fan is an ahole...Forget it, not worth it.
Shaughnessy up with an absolute screed on why this is a bad move:
This move makes the Red Sox worse and less interesting
Unlike many of his former teammates, Ramirez is also a guy who is at his locker before games and after games.
More here:
https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/redsox/2018/05/25/there-are-powerful-reasons-not-like-this-hanley-ramirez-move/l60AaJwh3UdGaC8hAG1jmI/story.html
Which is why I think this might be about defense too. Moreland plays more at 1b, JD plays less in the outfield (which has not been good). A few pieces move around and the D is better at a handful of positions.Moreland gets exposed against lefties -- career .677 OPS. Even this reduced Hanley, this year had an .854 OPS (SSS admittedly in 45 PA) against lefties. A platoon might have made sense. But that wouldn't have solved the roster problem and maybe Hanley wouldn't have handled the reduced role well.
Citing the video makes it look just as bad as I remember.
"Lazy" isn't the word that comes to mind.
Having watched him over his career and especially the last four years, it's clear to me that Hanley's a player who pays some consideration to personal style. Remember that weird arm sweep he kept doing every time he caught a throw while learning first base in Spring Training 2016? Have you noticed he shows up with a new and distinct hairstyle each year? Call it ego, pride, showmanship, whatever; he's a flashy player with a lot of panache. This is not an uncommon personality trait. I'm sure you know people like this too.
Watching the play in that video above, he seems like a guy who inadvertently did something that made him look really dumb and tried to pass it off as though he didn't care. This was an obviously immature reaction and deserved some sort of discipline, and he got it.
I don't mean to psychoanalyze Hanley, but that seems like a lack of humility that's typical of a young person. I don't see how it equates with laziness. Especially when everyone in the country is familiar with how loaded that term is.
What the hell is this.
"Lazy" isn't the word that comes to mind.
Having watched him over his career and especially the last four years, it's clear to me that Hanley's a player who pays some consideration to personal style. Remember that weird arm sweep he kept doing every time he caught a throw while learning first base in Spring Training 2016? Have you noticed he shows up with a new and distinct hairstyle each year? Call it ego, pride, showmanship, whatever; he's a flashy player with a lot of panache. This is not an uncommon personality trait. I'm sure you know people like this too.
Watching the play in that video above, he seems like a guy who inadvertently did something that made him look really dumb and tried to pass it off as though he didn't care. This was an obviously immature reaction and deserved some sort of discipline, and he got it.
I don't mean to psychoanalyze Hanley, but that seems like a lack of humility that's typical of a young person. I don't see how it equates with laziness. Especially when everyone in the country is familiar with how loaded that term is.
Well there have been plenty of games against right handed pitching that Moreland has not started this year. Now he will presumably start them all. So you will gain at least that better production vs righties. If Swihart can hit competently against lefties, then you've made out pretty well. I do agree if the latter doesn't happen, then you still have some gap to fill in replacing Hanley's still-competent bat vs lefties.Six to one, half dozen to the other. Moreland plays a bigger role as full time first baseman for the time being but he's already there. He's not replacing Hanley's power as he's pretty much out shined him so far. See it as you like, but IMO you have to replace the power void that's been created. I would love for Sam Travis to be that guy, but he hasn't really showed that he's ready. Maybe if he sees any playing time Swihart can show some of the offense that he displayed in spring training. Either way I think something has to be done to provide a bit more pop off the bench.
Im sorry Hanley kicked your dog.good riddance. 3 useless years as a sock, covered up by one good one.
Just because it's surprising to those of us who watch from the couch doesn't mean we have to make shit up.Yeah, I'd be totally unsurprised if this was the team getting out in front of a failed PED test.
I assume it is about the lazy being racist line of discussion that was hot and heavy about the time it was written so his call to delete it was probably correct.What did you write? I am geniunely interested in a Yankee fan's perspective on the Hanley DFA. You are one of the more informed posters on here and along with Jon Abbey proof that not every Yankee fan is an ahole...
Based on how Cora operates, I would think that he wanted to make sure it was clear that the move was a baseball decision, not an accounting one. If that means "moving him early" than so be it--the team has decided that's worth it. Which has a lot of potential for what they may be trying to build going forward, i.e. trying to do it right.Good news for the 2019 team, given the pseudo-cap. It would have been better for the 2018 team to keep him as a pert time player (maybe Moreland is better playing part time), as it is unlikely that he will be replaced with a quality bat not already on the roster given the razor thin margin before hitting the more punitive luxury tax. That said, perhaps having him on the bench would have been a problem in the clubhouse, as Cora seems to have implied.
This didn't get them any wiggle room for this year, it's about 2019 payroll. They basically have no money to add anyone this year without taking the hit on the draft pick and international signing money.Now they have about 15 mil in tax wiggle room to get a deadline bat and setup guy. Of course, they'll have to cobble together a prospect package to do so, maybe throw in some picks. But even a Shin Soo Choo type would be an upgrade over Hanley. A righty bat would be preferable, however.
The doesn't change their payroll for this year, they are paying him all that money and it counts.Now they have about 15 mil in tax wiggle room to get a deadline bat and setup guy. Of course, they'll have to cobble together a prospect package to do so, maybe throw in some picks. But even a Shin Soo Choo type would be an upgrade over Hanley. A righty bat would be preferable, however.
oh. shit. thanks!The doesn't change their payroll for this year, they are paying him all that money and it counts.
It does free up money next year.
What hand does the pitcher use to throw?Game 6 of the ALCS. Seventh inning. Sox down 2 runs. Runners on first and second. Two outs.
Who do you want up? Moreland, Swihart, Holt or Hanley?
The hitter in that situation is likely facing Chris Devenski, so I'd want Moreland.Game 6 of the ALCS. Seventh inning. Sox down 2 runs. Runners on first and second. Two outs.
Who do you want up? Moreland, Swihart, Holt or Hanley?
It would largely depend on the handedness of the pitcher.Game 6 of the ALCS. Seventh inning. Sox down 2 runs. Runners on first and second. Two outs.
Who do you want up? Moreland, Swihart, Holt or Hanley?
Bingo.I don't think so.
He's not performing now.
He has a recent history of not performing.
He's old enough that the most likely cause of his non-performance is age related decline.
There's a better option already on the roster.
If he were making three million with no option to vest, we wouldn't be surprised at this.
The only reason we are surprised is that they're paying him a ton of money. When you consider the vesting option there's every reason to make this move.
There's no need for further explanations. There might be one, but everything we already know is enough to make this the right decision.
Yep. If it's a righty, Moreland every time.The hitter in that situation is likely facing Chris Devenski, so I'd want Moreland.
Sorry callahan. Try again.really?
I think the fondness for him and surprise on this thread is much weirder.
the guy has been an absolute bum in 3 of his 4 seasons here....and not an especially diligent or hardworking bum. He has been a disastrous signing.
If the question though were that the manager has the ability to counter whatever the Sox do once the hitter is announced, I probably would pick Hanley against a righty over Moreland against a lefty.Yep. If it's a righty, Moreland every time.