Red Sox Post Season roster-ALDS- 2018 edition

mfried

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 23, 2005
1,680
I think you have to leave Vazquez off ... I just don't see the point. Cora seems to like Swihart, and Leon, even though he can't hit a lick either is clearly the catcher the SP want to throw to.
I don’t understand why Leon can’t get a few hits. He has actually gotten worse than ever before. The hitting coaches should be advising him on staying away from inside breaking pitches and making modest contact. Yes, he’s on the post-season roster for sure, but he shouldn’t be an automatic out.
 

Al Zarilla

Member
SoSH Member
Dec 8, 2005
58,867
San Andreas Fault
I don’t understand why Leon can’t get a few hits. He has actually gotten worse than ever before. The hitting coaches should be advising him on staying away from inside breaking pitches and making modest contact. Yes, he’s on the post-season roster for sure, but he shouldn’t be an automatic out.
Leon and Christian Vazquez are tied for last among all MLB catchers in fWAR. They are both positive for defense, of course, so their hitting is what is dragging them down.

I thought there was a dearth of good hitting catchers right now. It is pretty bad but the average catcher in the majors is hitting like Yogi Berra compared with Leon right now. Nothing Cora can do, stuck with an auto-out when he comes up because the pitchers love him. Well, he could bat JBJ ahead of Leon to slightly reduce the number of PAs Sandy gets. Maybe Cora likes him 8th like some NL managers bat the pitcher 8th. Get a decent hitter batting before your leadoff guy.

I can live with Leon if we win the WS.
 

joe dokes

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
30,233
I don’t understand why Leon can’t get a few hits. He has actually gotten worse than ever before. The hitting coaches should be advising him on staying away from inside breaking pitches and making modest contact. Yes, he’s on the post-season roster for sure, but he shouldn’t be an automatic out.
Within the last week or so, I heard or read Cora giving what sounded like a technical reason (for batting, anyway) his struggles.
 

AB in DC

OG Football Writing
SoSH Member
Jul 10, 2002
13,616
Springfield, VA
Absolute Locks (barring injury):
1B Pearce
2B Kinsler
SS Bogaerts
OF Benintendi
OF JBJ
OF Betts
DH Martinez

SP Sale
SP Price
SP Porcello
SP EdRo
RP Kimbrel

Lock if healthy:
RP Barnes

Near-Locks
C Leon
3B Nunez
C/PH Swihart
1B/PH Moreland

SP/RP Eovaldi
RP Wright
RP Brasier

Not a lock in theory but I can't see Cora leaving them off
UT Holt
RP Hembree

That's 22.

Add 1 more reliever out of Kelly, Poyner, Workman, Brian Johnson
Add 1 more infielder out of Devers, Phillips
Then the last spot could go to any of the above or Vazquez.
 
Last edited:

oumbi

Member
SoSH Member
Jun 15, 2006
4,167
A lot of time left for auditions.

It's conceivable that Phillips could replace Devers, but unlikely.

Wright needs to prove he's healthy. So does Barnes.

I assume Pomeranz is dead to us. That would leave the unproven Poyner as the only LHR in the pen. Not sure the team will roll that way.

If good to go, Wright becomes a big asset.I don't think you bank on starters being called in to relieve until you get to do-or-die games. Still - 11 pitchers sounds right to me. Swihart really should make the team, so 11 is all they've got.

No way Kelly is off the roster.

Kimbrel, Barnes, Brasier, Kelly, Wright, Hembree, Eovaldi is my prediction.
For what it is worth, Wright has an interesting split between LHB/RHD. A bit better BA/OBP against right handers, but better
SLG against left handers.

Screen Shot 2018-09-13 at 12.44.15 PM.png
 

phenweigh

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 8, 2005
1,379
Brewster, MA
Wright has shown himself to be effective when healthy. He's healthy, and unless he's terrible these next 3 weeks, I have to believe he will be on the roster as a multi-inning relief pitcher, which are often needed in the playoffs. I would pick him over Eovaldi right now, and certainly over Pomeranz, Johnson, Velazquez.
I agree with you on Wright on the roster, but I'm not sure how much of a multi-inning reliever he'll be coming off the knee injury and not getting stretched out. In his 4 appearances since coming off the DL, he has 3 one-inning stints and 1 two-inning stint. OK, 2 innings is multi-inning, but I might not expect him to be asked to go more than that.
 

OurF'ingCity

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 22, 2016
8,469
New York City
Add 1 more reliever out of Kelly, Poyner, Workman, Brian Johnson
Add 1 more infielder out of Devers, Phillips
Then the last spot could go to any of the above or Vazquez.
I think this is a pretty good way to look at it. Personally my choices would be Workman, Devers (if he shows something in the next few weeks) and Vazquez. If Cora feels Devers isn't ready/is too redundant, could go with Phillips but I think I might add another BP arm at that point (probably Poyner). If Barnes is left off the roster due to injury I guess replace him with Kelly in that situation but otherwise I don't really want to see Kelly on the postseason roster.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,673
Maine
Barring an injury, Kelly is making the roster. I'm not sure why people think he won't.

He leads the team in relief appearances. He'd have to melt down something awful in the next couple weeks for Cora to lose so much confidence in him that he leaves him off the roster completely. Except for his outing on Friday against the Astros, he's been pretty good since the beginning of August. From August 1 until last Friday...16 games, 15.2 IP, 1.74 ERA, 3.4 K/BB, 1.21 WHIP, .659 OPS against. I think he'd have to have a couple more stinkers like the one on Friday to even consider leaving him off.
 

luckysox

Indiana Jones
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2009
8,073
S.E. Pennsylvania
I think Eovaldi and Wright are going to play really important parts in the post season. There is no question in my mind that they are both on the roster.

Let's assume good health here for the time being (I know, a big assumption). Sale should give you 6-7 innings of great pitching. Price, based on this regular season and particularly the last few months, should do the same. Porcello is going to give you no more than 2.5 - 3 times through the order of good pitching, and less depending on a given situation on any night (game score, series w/l, how his stuff is, etc.). EdRo is probably more like a 2.3 times through the order (he has pitched to a batter for the 4th time in a game this season only ONCE). So Porcello and EdRo are basically 4-5 inning guys for the post season. You match up Eovaldi to piggy back one for 2 innings, and Wright the other. Then you're basically working with the regular bullpen guys - Barnes (we hope), Braiser, Hembree, Kelly (Kelly should not pitch vs. Houston - I'm ok with him vs. everyone else) /Poyner/Vaz, and Kimbrel. There are also starters on their bullpen days that you can slot in for an inning if Cora wants to go that way (I think he will if he can). The bridge from starters to Kimbrel is going to be Eovaldi and Wright laying it all out no more than once through the line up (and likely not even that), and Cora matching up the right short reliever vs. the right batter in the 7th and 8th innings. This can work. There is no reason in the world this can't work. But I really think the key is those middle innings from Eovaldi and Wright, and holding a Sale/Price/Porcello responsible for an inning out of the pen on their side days as a "break glass in case" option.

Based on that, I'd do:
Leon
Pearce
Kinsler
X
Nunez
10D
JBJ
Mookie
JD

Moreland
Devers
Swihart
Holt

Sale
Price
Porcello
EdRo

Eovaldi
Wright

Barnes
Kelly
Braiser
Hembree
Poyner

Kimbrel

No need for 3 catchers. Leon will start every game and Swihart can come in after he or someone else PH if needed. I want Dever's power on the bench. Holt (and JD) can both back up OF. Kelly would be on my roster for everyone except vs. Houston. For them, I'd probably have Velasquez, as they have not seen him this year and he pitched well against them last year. And I like Poyner as the last BP option. His 15.2 innings have been pretty good this year. He has only given up runs in games where he pitched more than one inning (not going to happen in the post season) and in September guys are 3-18 against him and he's got 6Ks/1bb in 5IP.
 

OurF'ingCity

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 22, 2016
8,469
New York City
Barring an injury, Kelly is making the roster. I'm not sure why people think he won't.

He leads the team in relief appearances. He'd have to melt down something awful in the next couple weeks for Cora to lose so much confidence in him that he leaves him off the roster completely. Except for his outing on Friday against the Astros, he's been pretty good since the beginning of August. From August 1 until last Friday...16 games, 15.2 IP, 1.74 ERA, 3.4 K/BB, 1.21 WHIP, .659 OPS against. I think he'd have to have a couple more stinkers like the one on Friday to even consider leaving him off.
Guess it depends how much value you put in his August performance vs. overall. Yes, he had a good ERA in August, but his ERAs in June, July and so far in September are all about 8.30. He had a really good May and an okay April. Overall he has a 4.11 ERA, which is the worst of any active Red Sox reliever (admittedly, his FIP is around average for Sox relievers).

You may be right that he is a lock just based on the fact he's been around the whole year and Cora knows what he's got in him, but my butt will be thoroughly clenched anytime he is on the mound.
 

RedOctober3829

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
55,298
deep inside Guido territory
If Sale is not 100% and Price keeps rolling along, there should be a legitimate discussion as to who starts Game 1. Obviously if Sale is fine, then there's no discussion whatsoever. But the luxury of having 2 aces at the moment leaves the door open should there be an issue. God forbid Sale can't build up enough innings to where he has to be in the pen ala Price last year, but if it does then Price can step right in and be the Game 1 starter.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,673
Maine
Guess it depends how much value you put in his August performance vs. overall. Yes, he had a good ERA in August, but his ERAs in June, July and so far in September are all about 8.30. He had a really good May and an okay April. Overall he has a 4.11 ERA, which is the worst of any active Red Sox reliever (admittedly, his FIP is around average for Sox relievers).

You may be right that he is a lock just based on the fact he's been around the whole year and Cora knows what he's got in him, but my butt will be thoroughly clenched anytime he is on the mound.
I guess it's a matter of whether this thread is about how individual posters would structure the post-season roster or how they think Cora and Dombrowski will do it. If we're talking about what we think will happen rather than what we want/wish to happen, then there should be no question that Kelly makes the roster.

Personally, I'm not all that warm and fuzzy about Kelly and I imagine
I'll be butt-clenching when he enters games too. But all evidence suggests Cora does not feel the same way.
 

Reverend

for king and country
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Jan 20, 2007
64,026
Barring an injury, Kelly is making the roster. I'm not sure why people think he won't.

He leads the team in relief appearances. He'd have to melt down something awful in the next couple weeks for Cora to lose so much confidence in him that he leaves him off the roster completely. Except for his outing on Friday against the Astros, he's been pretty good since the beginning of August. From August 1 until last Friday...16 games, 15.2 IP, 1.74 ERA, 3.4 K/BB, 1.21 WHIP, .659 OPS against. I think he'd have to have a couple more stinkers like the one on Friday to even consider leaving him off.
All other things being equal, i.e. if there is a rough equivalent pitcher, they'd be nuts nut to bring him along just for his clubhouse presence.
 

lexrageorge

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2007
18,095
I assume that this thread is for the ALDS, as the ALCS/WS rosters could be slightly different. I would expect Cora to keep more pitchers on the roster in the later series. I also assume that I this thread is for what will likely happen, not what we want to happen.

OK, let's start with what should be 13 obvious and undebateble locks to anyone that has any remote interest in this team (the numbers such as SP1, UT2 should be ignored):

1B: Moreland
2B: Kinsler
SS: Bogaerts
OF: Benintendi
OF: Betts
OF: JBJ
DH: JDM
3B: Nunez

SP1: Sale (assuming good health)
SP2: Price
SP3: Porcello
SP4: EdRod (assuming good health)
RP1: Kimbrel

For the rest, I'm going to assume that Cora keeps 12 pitchers for the ALDS. So, I'll start with 8 "likely's". These guys are probably on, barring a major regression in performance or injury:

C: Sandy Leon. Probably the most at-risk of this group for being left off, but I don't see Cora benching the guy that's been their primary catcher all season.
UT1: Former MLB All Star Brock Holt!!
UT2: Steve Pearce
RP2: Barnes. Some of his mid-season correction was due to BABIP regression. Hopefully he got the home runs and aches and pains out of his system.
RP3: Joe Kelly. BABIP caught up to him a bit in August as well. I think Cora knows the game threads here will explode when he comes in, so he'll be on just for that reason alone.

RP4: The appropriately monikered Workman
RP5: Brasier. He's earned it, but his track record is miniscule, so this could still change.
RP6: Poyner. A lefty out of the pen is always a good idea. Pomeranz, OTOH, isn't.

Now my best guess for the remaining 4 slots:

C2 & UT3: Swihart. I'd say this is the most interesting position battle, and this one really could go either way. I'll venture Swihart as he does bring some additional utility capability.

UT4: Brandon Phillips. I could just as easily see Vazquez as C2 and Swihart taking this role, however. Or Devers.
RP7: Steven Wright. I think he really brings a different angle, and there's still time to stretch him out a bit for him to be a 1+ to 2 inning guy.
RP8: Eovaldi. He's shown just enough in his good stretches that he can fill the early inning relief role. OTOH, he's the most likely to sit if Cora goes with 11 pitchers.


The following are the guys most likely to make the roster if the any of the above don't make it for whatever reason (injury, manager decision, etc.):

C: Vazquez. See above.
3B: Devers. I'd say that Swihart, Vazquez, Phillips and Devers are in competition for 2 spots (3 if 11 pitchers).
P: Brian Johnson. Slight edge over Velazquez, but could go either way. I'll slot him as the first injury recall among the pitchers if a starter goes down.
P: Velazquez. See above.
RP: Hembree. Probably needs an injury or a major regression from Brasier.
RP: Robbie Scott. Ditto, except he's Poyner's backup at this point.


The following guys are almost certainly not sniffing the post-season, barring a disaster elsewhere:

IF: Tzu-Wei Lin
IF: Sam Travis
P: William Cuevas
P: Drew Pomeranz (please make this so, Alex)
P: Tyler Thornburg. A shame, but let's see how he responds after a normal and hopefully healthy spring training in 2019. I guess he could still end up ahead of Hembree in the depth chart, pending how the remaining 3 weeks go.
 

NJ_Sox_Fan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 2, 2006
10,736
NJ
For those advocating to keep all 3 catchers on the postseason roster; why? The SP prefer Leon, who cannot hit. Vazquez also cannot hit. Swihart, the hitter of the group, also cannot hit, but at least he can not hit at several different positions. I know you have to keep 2 catchers on the postseason roster, but why take a third over another bullpen arm, or over a guy like Devers who has obviously struggled mightily, but at least has an OPS over .700?
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,673
Maine
For those advocating to keep all 3 catchers on the postseason roster; why? The SP prefer Leon, who cannot hit. Vazquez also cannot hit. Swihart, the hitter of the group, also cannot hit, but at least he can not hit at several different positions. I know you have to keep 2 catchers on the postseason roster, but why take a third over another bullpen arm, or over a guy like Devers who has obviously struggled mightily, but at least has an OPS over .700?
Swihart's versatility is what gets him on the roster. The flexibility it gives them to be able to pinch hit for any of the catchers (using someone like Holt or Pearce) is a big plus. So is Swihart's baserunning ability.

Besides, I don't see it as Swihart vs Devers. There's room for both of them.

My expectation of the roster is something like this...

C- Leon, Vazquez, Swihart
1B- Moreland, Pearce
2B- Kinsler, Holt
SS- Bogaerts
3B- Devers, Nunez
OF- Benintendi, Bradley, Betts
DH- Martinez

SP- Sale, Price, Porcello, Rodriguez
RP- Kimbrel, Barnes, Kelly, Hembree, Brasier, Wright, Eovaldi

I could see an argument for someone like Poyner instead of Wright just to have a lefty in the pen though I'm not convinced it's necessary since there are very few LHHs among their potential opponents who necessitate a LOOGY.
 

Lose Remerswaal

Experiencing Furry Panic
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
For those advocating to keep all 3 catchers on the postseason roster; why? The SP prefer Leon, who cannot hit. Vazquez also cannot hit. Swihart, the hitter of the group, also cannot hit, but at least he can not hit at several different positions. I know you have to keep 2 catchers on the postseason roster, but why take a third over another bullpen arm, or over a guy like Devers who has obviously struggled mightily, but at least has an OPS over .700?
This line deserves more love
 

nvalvo

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
21,478
Rogers Park
I'm not sure why people think Brandon Phillips is a much more likely inclusion than Tzu-Wei Lin, who is a better, more-versatile defender, and hit comparably in AAA this season — .810 OPS for Lin in 302 PA, .824 for Phillips in 161.

I like Phillips as a player, and he has a very impressive resume. 30+ WAR ain't nothing to sneeze at. But Lin can play six positions well, including CF and SS, which seems potentially useful. I'm not sure who'd be better as a PR.
 

Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat

has big, douchey shoulders
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
I'm not sure why people think Brandon Phillips is a much more likely inclusion than Tzu-Wei Lin, who is a better, more-versatile defender, and hit comparably in AAA this season — .810 OPS for Lin in 302 PA, .824 for Phillips in 161.

I like Phillips as a player, and he has a very impressive resume. 30+ WAR ain't nothing to sneeze at. But Lin can play six positions well, including CF and SS, which seems potentially useful. I'm not sure who'd be better as a PR.
I think these roles will be filled by Holt, Nunez, and Swihart. I doubt there is a need for either of these two.
 

NJ_Sox_Fan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 2, 2006
10,736
NJ
Swihart's versatility is what gets him on the roster. The flexibility it gives them to be able to pinch hit for any of the catchers (using someone like Holt or Pearce) is a big plus. So is Swihart's baserunning ability.

Besides, I don't see it as Swihart vs Devers. There's room for both of them.

My expectation of the roster is something like this...

C- Leon, Vazquez, Swihart
1B- Moreland, Pearce
2B- Kinsler, Holt
SS- Bogaerts
3B- Devers, Nunez
OF- Benintendi, Bradley, Betts
DH- Martinez

SP- Sale, Price, Porcello, Rodriguez
RP- Kimbrel, Barnes, Kelly, Hembree, Brasier, Wright, Eovaldi

I could see an argument for someone like Poyner instead of Wright just to have a lefty in the pen though I'm not convinced it's necessary since there are very few LHHs among their potential opponents who necessitate a LOOGY.
I understand the argument for Swihart, because of the flexibility he provides, but then why the need for Vazquez as well?
 

Cuzittt

Bouncing with Anger
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Nov 20, 2001
20,301
Sinister Funkhouse #17
I think Vazquez is a waste of a roster spot
Be that as it may... on a 25-man roster over a 5 game series... there is a lot of waste on roster spots.

We joked for half a season how useless it was for the Sox to have Swihart taking up space on the 25-man roster but never playing. Until injuries happened and then he did. And, good thing, because when he got injured (with Vasquez already on the shelf), we had the Sandy Leon show with Dan Butler getting service time.

The point I am making is that in a normal 25-man roster... with 9 Offensive Starters, 4 Bench Players, 5 Starting Pitchers, and 7 relievers... a lot of time the 4th bench player and 7th reliever see limited action. This doesn't change in the postseason where each team is going to ride their best players.

While there are many questions within the roster making for the postseason, the main one is this: Do you replace the 5th starting position spot with an 8th reliever or with a 5th Bench Player? Unlike the regular season, there are complications as the rosters are locked for the series... they can be changed but with some consequences.

The secondary question on the bench player situation is this: Is there someone specific on the team that would not normally make the roster but has a unique role to play, a la Dave Roberts? This is the reason some are including Lin or Phillips... and I don't think either truly fit the role. Which is why I don't see either of them making the roster whether the Sox go with a 4 man bench or a 5 man bench.

I think the offensive side of the equation is likely largely settled (absent injury) in the eyes of the decision makers for the Red Sox. The pitching... well, I think we can debate that until the day of the ALDS... and I think the Red Sox will be as well.
 
Last edited:

AB in DC

OG Football Writing
SoSH Member
Jul 10, 2002
13,616
Springfield, VA
Barring an injury, Kelly is making the roster. I'm not sure why people think he won't.

He leads the team in relief appearances. He'd have to melt down something awful in the next couple weeks for Cora to lose so much confidence in him that he leaves him off the roster completely. Except for his outing on Friday against the Astros, he's been pretty good since the beginning of August. From August 1 until last Friday...16 games, 15.2 IP, 1.74 ERA, 3.4 K/BB, 1.21 WHIP, .659 OPS against. I think he'd have to have a couple more stinkers like the one on Friday to even consider leaving him off.
Putting aside today's self-immolation for a moment -- take a look at last season's ALDS roster. The bullpen was full of guys with very few relief innings that year (Carson Smith, Reed, Maddox, plus David Price). And that was with probably the #1 bullpen in the league.

This year, we know there will be at least two new-ish guys in the playoff bullpen: Eovaldi, who lets Cora quick-hook a struggling starter, and Wright, who (knock wood) may finally be healthy. Kimbrel and Barnes are locks, health permitting. That's four. Brasier has clearly earned a spot. That's five. Hembree has been Cora's go-to guy with runners on base, so he's probably a favorite. Cora is giving Poyner every chance to win a spot. That would make seven. Do you really need an eight-man bullpen when there are so many off-days baked into the schedule? I don't know.
 

iddoc

New Member
Nov 17, 2006
137
Recency bias, game threading, etc, but why the heck put Kelly on the roster instead of Workman? On another note, I’m a bit surprised that Scott isn’t getting more of an audition. Perhaps that speaks to Cora’s belief that a LOOGY isn’t necessary.
 

lexrageorge

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2007
18,095
Recency bias, game threading, etc, but why the heck put Kelly on the roster instead of Workman? On another note, I’m a bit surprised that Scott isn’t getting more of an audition. Perhaps that speaks to Cora’s belief that a LOOGY isn’t necessary.
I think Poyner has the edge over Scott for the lefty reliever role.

Hembree and Workman are probably battling for the same spot. I gave the edge to Workman, but as Cuzittt noted, the bullpen slots probably don't get finalized until everything is turned in to the league office.
 

phenweigh

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 8, 2005
1,379
Brewster, MA
Recency bias, game threading, etc, but why the heck put Kelly on the roster instead of Workman? On another note, I’m a bit surprised that Scott isn’t getting more of an audition. Perhaps that speaks to Cora’s belief that a LOOGY isn’t necessary.
If the decision needed to be made today, I think Cora puts Kelly on the roster. I also think he has time to pitch himself off the roster.
 

patinorange

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 27, 2006
30,660
6 miles from Angel Stadium
If the decision needed to be made today, I think Cora puts Kelly on the roster. I also think he has time to pitch himself off the roster.
I think you’re right. He’ll get a few more chances, but damn, he looked awful tonight. Getting squeezed is part of the game and he did not respond well after that walk. And I really don’t like the way Vaz was calling pitches in that sequence.
 

Sandy Leon Trotsky

Member
SoSH Member
Mar 11, 2007
6,344
As far as the starting pitching goes.... I think Price and (a healthy) Sale are THE most dominant 1,2 punch in the playoffs. Who will be the Sox number 3 in a short series? Eddy has had two very good starts since returning and one stinker but Porcello isn't pitching himself into that role either. Rick seems to have a dominant start and then a turd.... and alternates (I'd look this up but I've got to hit the road in about two minutes) between them.
A 5 game series we may see Rick or Eddy in bullpen role or possibly even left off the roster (doubtfully...but possible). At this point I'd go with Rodriguez as the no. 3.... although I like that Rick can go 9 efficient innings at times.... but presumably Cora will make that call pending their (both?) remaining 2 starts.
 

AB in DC

OG Football Writing
SoSH Member
Jul 10, 2002
13,616
Springfield, VA
On a similar vein, assuming the travel schedule is the same as past years (I haven't seen an announcement for this year), I would actually like to see Price start Game 1, and Sale start Game 2. That way Price might be available to go a couple of innings in Game 4 (on three day's rest), and then Sale would be on regular rest for Game 5 (if necessary) or ALCS Game 1.
 

EdRalphRomero

wooderson
SoSH Member
Oct 3, 2007
4,472
deep in the hole
I believe Kelly has pitched himself off the roster at this point (particularly considering his similarity to a more reliable Eovaldi).

SP (4): Sale, Price, Rodriguez, Porcello
Pen (7): Kimbrel, Barnes, Brasier, Wright, Workman, Hembree, Eovaldi
Starting (9)
C: Leon
1B: Moreland
2B: Kinsler
SS: Bogie
3B: Nunez
RF: Mookie
CF:JBJ
LF: Beni
DH: JD

Bench: (5): Vaz, Swihart, Holt, Devers, Pearce

I hold out hope that Devers really puts it together in the coming weeks and bumps Nunez to the bench. And I think you carry three catchers to pinch hit often for them.
 

benhogan

Granite Truther
SoSH Member
Nov 2, 2007
20,111
Santa Monica
SP- Sale, Price, Porcello, Rodriguez
RP- Kimbrel, Barnes, Kelly, Hembree, Brasier, Wright, Eovaldi

I could see an argument for someone like Poyner instead of Wright just to have a lefty in the pen though I'm not convinced it's necessary since there are very few LHHs among their potential opponents who necessitate a LOOGY.
Agree with your position players and the idea of 11 pitchers + 14 position player roster split.

But like playoff tested Workman over both Hembree and Kelly.

Think Poyner's auditioning for a spot the last few weeks. Cora should aggressively use Poyner against a tough LHH most nights to see if he can be our LOOGY.

Also, like Eovaldi piggybacking off Sale starts to see him out of the pen for multiple innings these next few weeks. But if he falters Velazquez could be in the equation for long/first man called RP.
 
Last edited:

Jim Ed Rice in HOF

Red-headed Skrub child
SoSH Member
Jul 21, 2005
8,248
Seacoast NH
On a similar vein, assuming the travel schedule is the same as past years (I haven't seen an announcement for this year), I would actually like to see Price start Game 1, and Sale start Game 2. That way Price might be available to go a couple of innings in Game 4 (on three day's rest), and then Sale would be on regular rest for Game 5 (if necessary) or ALCS Game 1.
As an FYI here is the schedule. Looks the same to me:
Game 1 10/4
Game 2 10/5
Game 3 10/7
Game 4 10/8 (if necessary)
Game 5 10/11 (if necessary)
 

jungleboy

New Member
Mar 1, 2016
153
As an FYI here is the schedule. Looks the same to me:
Game 1 10/4
Game 2 10/5
Game 3 10/7
Game 4 10/8 (if necessary)
Game 5 10/11 (if necessary)
The actual ALDS schedule (both series) is this:

Game 1 10/5
Game 2 10/6
Game 3 10/8
Game 4 10/9 (if necessary)
Game 5 10/11 (if necessary)

Postseason schedules have been the same for a few years now: a day off for each travel day and that’s it. There are never two scheduled off days in a row.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,673
Maine
As far as the starting pitching goes.... I think Price and (a healthy) Sale are THE most dominant 1,2 punch in the playoffs.
Hard to argue that, but Verlander and Cole are a damn good 1-2 as well, certainly based on this season's results. They're the first teammates to both exceed 250 K since Schilling and Johnson in 2001 and 2002. Cole matched Price pretty well a week ago.

I think a seven game ALCS between the Astros and Sox, where everyone is healthy and dealing, would be a series for the ages. I kinda hope we get to see it.
 

Jim Ed Rice in HOF

Red-headed Skrub child
SoSH Member
Jul 21, 2005
8,248
Seacoast NH
The actual ALDS schedule (both series) is this:

Game 1 10/5
Game 2 10/6
Game 3 10/8
Game 4 10/9 (if necessary)
Game 5 10/11 (if necessary)

Postseason schedules have been the same for a few years now: a day off for each travel day and that’s it. There are never two scheduled off days in a row.
Oops. I royally f'd that up and I had the thing printed in front of me. Too much alphabet soup on that thing. It will be easier to read once they actually have teams in there.
 

geoduck no quahog

not particularly consistent
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Nov 8, 2002
13,024
Seattle, WA
I'm with Lucky Sox on the roster bit, with Poyner the only question mark (let's see how he auditions out, he'd probably be the Hembree replacement and I can't see that happening).

A point the post made that can't be overlooked is the importance of a Wright and/or Eovaldi in any series: There's always a decent chance that a starter screws the pooch, leaving 7 innings of relief. You can't burn 5-6 of your relievers in a lost cause when there are critical games on the horizon.

It's the Wakefield Paradigm.

Those guys need to make the roster, leaving 4 other setup relievers necessary: Kelly, Barnes, Hembree and Brasier

Also, let's not overthink the rest of the roster. Cora is showing his hand. Vazquez and Swihart make the team, as do Nunez and Devers and Holt. The only bubble is Phillips and I can't see the manager pushing him ahead of someone who's been with the team since spring training (Devers).
 
Last edited:

AB in DC

OG Football Writing
SoSH Member
Jul 10, 2002
13,616
Springfield, VA
Also, let's not overthink the rest of the roster. Cora is showing his hand. Vazquez and Swihart make the team
I'm not 100% convinced of this yet. The fact that Cora is rotating all three catchers this month suggests that he's giving each of them an opportunity to prove something to him. Leon catches Sale and Porcello, obviously, but not necessarily the other guys, and he will almost certainly be replaced with a PH during the third or fourth time through the line up. The other two are still up in the air.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,673
Maine
This is a little bit of a tangent, but does anyone know how long before the scheduled start time teams have to submit who the starting pitcher will be? And are the rules different in the post-season? My google-fu did not turn up anything concrete.
I imagine they're free to leave the starter unannounced until the official lineups are exchanged at home plate right before the game begins. But unless they've got secret bullpens hidden away somewhere, there's usually plenty of clues to be had during pregame warm-ups. I don't think there's any way to surprise the opposition or trick them into starting, say, a lefty-heavy lineup then springing a lefty starter on them.
 

effectivelywild

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 14, 2005
466
I imagine they're free to leave the starter unannounced until the official lineups are exchanged at home plate right before the game begins. But unless they've got secret bullpens hidden away somewhere, there's usually plenty of clues to be had during pregame warm-ups. I don't think there's any way to surprise the opposition or trick them into starting, say, a lefty-heavy lineup then springing a lefty starter on them.
What if they have the starter warm up using the opposite arm? And what if we discover that Sale throwing right handed is <hushes voice> even better?
 
I imagine they're free to leave the starter unannounced until the official lineups are exchanged at home plate right before the game begins. But unless they've got secret bullpens hidden away somewhere, there's usually plenty of clues to be had during pregame warm-ups. I don't think there's any way to surprise the opposition or trick them into starting, say, a lefty-heavy lineup then springing a lefty starter on them.
If that is the case, then I wonder if there is some potential here. It's not a question of deception at all, and I doubt it's an experiment that should be run in the postseason... but would Steven Wright actually be an incredible candidate to be an opener?

My logic is basically this:

  • Wright should be able to handle a pretty significant workload. I'd imagine 1-3 innings twice in 5 days is not too much, and I wonder if it might be possible for him to go three times in 5 days.
  • The knuckleball is notorious for screwing with hitters. When in the days of Wake, there was endless talk of how hard it was for hitters to transition from trying to deal with the knuckleball to dealing with gas out of the bullpen. Starting the game with a knuckleballer should theoretically have a similar effect while guaranteeing you bring him for a clean inning, thus mitigating the problems of bringing in a knuckleballer out of the bullpen in a situation with runners on.
  • Wright doesn't seem to require his own personal catcher.
  • Ideally this gives the team an opportunity to evaluate how the knuckle is tumbling on a given day before committing to Wright. If he were the real starter, you can't exactly scratch him just because the weather/feel is off that day. As an opener though you can either just decide to skip him and start with the "real" starter if the knuckler is off or replace with a different bullpen opener for an inning or two. Of course, this would require the team to develop a reliable way of measuring likely knuckleball effectiveness based on warmup/pregame stuff, but I don't see why that wouldn't be realistic.
Am I missing something critical that would stop this from being a reasonable idea?
 

NJ_Sox_Fan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 2, 2006
10,736
NJ
If that is the case, then I wonder if there is some potential here. It's not a question of deception at all, and I doubt it's an experiment that should be run in the postseason... but would Steven Wright actually be an incredible candidate to be an opener?

My logic is basically this:

  • Wright should be able to handle a pretty significant workload. I'd imagine 1-3 innings twice in 5 days is not too much, and I wonder if it might be possible for him to go three times in 5 days.
  • The knuckleball is notorious for screwing with hitters. When in the days of Wake, there was endless talk of how hard it was for hitters to transition from trying to deal with the knuckleball to dealing with gas out of the bullpen. Starting the game with a knuckleballer should theoretically have a similar effect while guaranteeing you bring him for a clean inning, thus mitigating the problems of bringing in a knuckleballer out of the bullpen in a situation with runners on.
  • Wright doesn't seem to require his own personal catcher.
  • Ideally this gives the team an opportunity to evaluate how the knuckle is tumbling on a given day before committing to Wright. If he were the real starter, you can't exactly scratch him just because the weather/feel is off that day. As an opener though you can either just decide to skip him and start with the "real" starter if the knuckler is off or replace with a different bullpen opener for an inning or two. Of course, this would require the team to develop a reliable way of measuring likely knuckleball effectiveness based on warmup/pregame stuff, but I don't see why that wouldn't be realistic.
Am I missing something critical that would stop this from being a reasonable idea?
The knuckle ball being flat, and teams teeing off for 2-3 home runs before the next guy is ready to come in? Maybe? Although 2-3 runs in the first seems to be the postseason status quo the last couple of years sadly.
 
The knuckle ball being flat, and teams teeing off for 2-3 home runs before the next guy is ready to come in? Maybe? Although 2-3 runs in the first seems to be the postseason status quo the last couple of years sadly.
Isn't this directly addressed by the ability to just scratch him if the knuckleball is flat in the pregame warmup (the fourth bullet point in my list)? This gives you the opportunity to have either the normal starter or a different reliever ready to open the game if the signs don't look promising. To me, that's another advantage of using him as an opener -- you have more time before the game to make sure that the knuckler is moving adequately, which might not be possible if you are bringing him in out of the pen.
 

joe dokes

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
30,233
Isn't this directly addressed by the ability to just scratch him if the knuckleball is flat in the pregame warmup (the fourth bullet point in my list)? This gives you the opportunity to have either the normal starter or a different reliever ready to open the game if the signs don't look promising. To me, that's another advantage of using him as an opener -- you have more time before the game to make sure that the knuckler is moving adequately, which might not be possible if you are bringing him in out of the pen.
I dont think pitching works this way. Baseball history is littered with guys who pitched CGSO's after having shit in the pen, and guys who got lit up despite having their "best warmup ever."