Recent content by themactavish

  1. themactavish

    Do You Want John Henry To Sell The Red Sox?

    This feels like one of those questions you can't confidently answer unless you have some idea of what sort of owner you might get if Henry sold the team. Of course, if someone thinks "Anybody but Henry," then the leap into the dark makes perfect sense. But without any good idea of what sort of...
  2. themactavish

    What if you could change one thing - Red Sox edition

    I suppose Fisk. The Rice break was terrible for what it meant for '75, but Fisk leaving was forever. I would have loved to see him spend his whole career in the correct color socks.
  3. themactavish

    What if you could change one thing - Red Sox edition

    Having lived through Conigliaro being beaned, Rice breaking his wrist in '75, and Fisk and Lynn leaving, I'd agree with you that losing Betts was my biggest disappointment in my years as a Sox fan. Ouch.
  4. themactavish

    Offseason rumors

    Two seemingly contrary reactions can be psychologically compatible. A Sox fan can react to the Dodgers strategy with the big deferrals by thinking it feels a bit out of bounds, something at least with the scent of not playing fairly, but had the Sox engaged in the same business to sign a bunch...
  5. themactavish

    How much does winning and losing affect your fandom?

    I'm not keen on watching baseball played poorly. The team can play well and come up short (just like they can play poorly and win because others teams are worse or the Sox are just luckier). The performance on the field is certainly related to how the people in charge construct the team, but...
  6. themactavish

    What does the Red Sox outfield look like in 2024?

    Maybe it's nothing, but watching Sox games lately, Verdugo's demeanor seems entirely different than usual. He has always seemed like a happy-go-lucky fellow, smiling a lot and doing a good amount of chatting with players. But lately, he never seems to smile, and his body language just looks...
  7. themactavish

    When Is It Okay To Worry About Triston Casas: An Attempt at the Reverse Jinx

    Maybe I'm miscomputing (I haven't figured these sorts of things since my olden days), but I get .316/.415/.588 for Casas for June/July. If I'm right, then he's been even better than your numbers suggest. (If I'm wrong, never mind.)
  8. themactavish

    What does 2023 look like?

    https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/05/rays-finalizing-major-league-deal-with-jake-diekman.html The Rays are signing Jake Diekman. The more the Rays use Diekman, the better chance the Sox have of making up some ground. 55 walks and 8 HBP in his last 69 innings.
  9. themactavish

    When Is It Okay To Worry About Triston Casas: An Attempt at the Reverse Jinx

    I wonder if the following seems so to anyone else. Casas often seems really jumpy in the box to me, like he's about to swing at everything, and then must suddenly engage in last-moment contortions not to swing, along with following the ball into the catcher's mitt, like he's trying to see...
  10. themactavish

    4/3 - Pittsburgh @ Boston - APRIL FOOLS PART TROIS

    When Wong is up, it feels a little like a pitcher is hitting, only Wong looks better producing the same result.
  11. themactavish

    The new running game

    It seems to me that alert runners with any speed can embrace a great strategy. Draw a pickoff throw with a generous lead where you're leaning to get back to first, not stealing. Pitchers are apt to be really conservative with any second pickoff move, since you're then out of moves, unless you...
  12. themactavish

    Jordan’s Frozen River

    Ah, you needed the Wheaties 'n Raisins with Heiden on it. He was really something.
  13. themactavish

    Jordan’s Frozen River

    Good sleuthing! I actually teach philosophy at St. John's University, but I live a short walk from SCSU. The college I referenced was where I went to school and taught for a couple of years, Colby College (Maine). I was a big Heiden fan, both skating and cycling. Unfortunately, I grew up in...
  14. themactavish

    Jordan’s Frozen River

    Ah, you must be too young to remember the great Eric Heiden. He skated in the 1976 Olympics as a 17-year-old, but then he owned the 1980 Olympics, sweeping the men's speedskating events with 5 gold medals. The physical therapist at my college (Carl Nelson) was the head Olympic trainer for a...
  15. themactavish

    Baseball America Top 100 ‘23: 5 Red Sox

    Bleis must be a pretty speedy fellow. He had 18 steals in 2022. Take away the 5 homers and 4 triples from his 46 hits, and add his 10 walks and 3 HBP, and it means he stole 18 times in 50-ish on-base opportunities. Of course, he could have been on base other times on a fielder's choice (and...
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