I'm not going to be surprised if they get neither.ArgentinaSOXfan said:Anyone doubting the Yankees will get either Lester or Scherzer?
I will be surprised if Lester good anywhere but Boston.
I'm not going to be surprised if they get neither.ArgentinaSOXfan said:Anyone doubting the Yankees will get either Lester or Scherzer?
nattysez said:Olney tweeted this morning that Lester is meeting with the Giants today. 1
Rasputin said:I will be surprised if Lester good anywhere but Boston.
Lars The Wanderer said:San Francisco isn't exactly the fuckin' outback. Holy shit. Dude is from the west coast anyway.
Also thisSoxFanForsyth said:I guess ill just worry about SF when he goes out there and visits the city, that's all.
SoxFanForsyth said:Never said 'this defintively means that the Giants are meeting w him in Atlanta.' I said I take it as SF visiting him.
My take =\= absolute truth
In keeping with another November tradition, ESPN.com polled 28 general managers, assistant GMs, senior advisers, scouts and other baseball talent evaluators on eight questions that will be front-and-center during Hot Stove season. They responded via email or phone on the condition of anonymity.
Here are the results of this year's survey:
1. Which marquee free-agent starter will provide better value over the course of his next contract -- Jon Lester or Max Scherzer?
Responses: Lester 23; Scherzer 5.
Lester, who turns 31 in January, has 1,596 big-league innings on his résumé. Scherzer, who turns 31 in July, has 1,239. Lester has averaged 32 starts and 207 innings per season since 2008, while Scherzer checks in at 32 starts and 197 innings annually since 2009. They've combined for one DL visit (by Lester) in that span, so they enter free agency with impressive track records for health, durability and a willingness to "take the ball."
So who gets the nod as the better bet to hold up and pitch productively past age 35? Despite the lopsided nature of the vote, most respondents considered it a close call.
"You're just splitting hairs between two elite pitchers," an American League assistant GM said.
Lester's distinct (and somewhat surprising) advantage in the voting stems from three factors: (1) He's left-handed; (2) he has a cleaner, more fluid delivery and a more diverse repertoire that might wear better over time; and (3) most executives think he'll be available at a more reasonable price than Scherzer. Lester is represented by the Levinson Brothers' ACES agency, while Scherzer and his agent, Boras, passed on a reported $144 million offer from Detroit last spring.
And he'd get to take his .000 BA to the plate every fifth day. Eventually his bat would run into something, not unlike the monkeys eventually typing out Shakespeare.nattysez said:Olney tweeted this morning that Lester is meeting with the Giants today. I would be shocked if the Giants were willing to pay Lester close what the Cubs and Sox are offering, particularly since they have some significant holes to fill in 3b and LF.
Part of that article says something I mentioned about Scherzer on this or another thread. I'd describe his delivery as bordering on violent. Any pitcher can get hurt and turn into a candidate for Tommy John, but I'd bet on on Scherzer for that before Lester.There is no Rev said:Crasnick on Lester v. Scherzer three weeks ago:
There's also the sense that, since the offseason began (or even before it), the prevailing thought was Lester being the center of a tug of war between the Cubs and Red Sox. Maybe he'd like to avoid that distinction altogether. The Cards apparently pulled out; the Braves are reconfiguring and might not want to spend the money; and the Yankees and Dodgers might bring baggage he doesn't want to deal with. San Francisco seems solid alternative pick.
Otis Foster said:
You're over-thinking this. Where he goes depends in no particular order on (1) money; (2) w/n the team is likely to compete; and (3) a good place for his family to live. He's no shrinking violet. If he opted for Pittsburgh (let's say) because he didn't want the public subject of a financial tug of war, I wouldn't want him pitching in Game 7 of the WS.
E5 Yaz said:
And you're overanalyzing what I said. SF will offer all three of those numbered items you cite. I can just imagine him being sick of the entire Red Sox/Theo melodrama, if a solid alternative existed
Otis Foster said:
I wasn't dismissing SF's chances at all, but I do think they also have a significant hole in their lineup with Pedro's departure and I don't have a read on their farm system. . I don't have any more sense of his priorities than anyone else here, but it's entirely possible that being with a contender is a difference maker if the numbers/years are roughly equivalent. I also wonder if the statement about a 'respectful' meeting with the suits was an overt attempt to address the stupidity of the earlier offer and to invoke his sense of loyalty for how the team treated him and his family when he was sick. I remember (I think) a Glob story quoting his parents on how appreciative they were for the RS thoughtfulness.
Anyway, rank speculation in the absence of corroborating evidence.Keep on truckin'.
Lars The Wanderer said:
Pablo. :buddy:
radsoxfan said:This may have been discussed earlier, but one interesting note re: Lester is his newly developed mental block regarding throwing to the bases, particularly first base. He has all but stopped throwing over on pick-offs, and his defense is atrocious because of it.
Certainly not a major issue compared to his ability as a pitcher, but kind of an odd development. I wonder if the Red Sox put any (even very minor) weight on his deficiencies there.
Definitely should help with the base stealing. I'm not sure it will help with Lester's inability to throw to the bases after he fields a ground ball. Last year he was under handing to first whenever possible, usually after running as far as he could to the bag.Manramsclan said:
I would think that Christian Vazquez' D and pop times might mitigate this, don't you?