Red Sox Are Essentially Trading Adrian Gonzalez for a Brighter Future – A Bleacher Report Article

There are no words to express how much I want this trade to happen.
You know what trade I am talking about. THE trade. The trade that will help wipe away 2011 and 2012 and move the Boston Red Sox forward.

In my latest for Bleacher Report, I make the argument that dealing Adrian Gonzalez is worth having a hopeful future for the team.

The new era of the Red Sox starts now.

You can read the whole article HERE.

 

I hate being right about Crawford and Buchholz

I was on a podcast this March talking about the Red Sox on a panel. One of the other guests was asked about Carl Crawford and his chances for a bounce back season.

He talked about how he had no doubt that Crawford was going to come back to being an elite player after a disappointing 2011 season.

Then another one talked about how Clay Buchholz is going to be back and regain his All Star stuff.

And I of course wondered what planet I was on at that time.

They came to me and I said “Crawford is done. I expect nothing from him.”
One of the other guests got upset with me and said “How can you say that?”
I replied, well other than the fact that he is injured, has wrist issues, is getting older which will affect his speed and doesn’t seem like a good fit in Boston, everything seems fine with Crawford.

Then I compared (Feet of) Clay Buchholz with Ben Sheets and Rich Harden. All are talented pitchers who just can’t stay healthy and bring no ACTUAL value to the team, just that remarkable “potential.”

I pointed out that the next year he logs 180 innings will be his first.
The next time he makes 30 starts will be his first.

Yes he was a fragile 22 year old when he threw that no hitter in 2007.
He’s now a fragile 27 year old.

I also said the Red Sox starting staff was garbage besides Lester and the bullpen unreliable.
I was told I was being too pessimistic.

Well here we sit a month later.

Carl Crawford is walking the Earth (like Kane in Kung Fu) trying to find someone to give him good news about his shoulder. He still hasn’t played for the Sox since diving for the final fly ball of the 2011 season.

And Buchholz? Oh he looks great. A fantastic 8.87 ERA, averaging less than 6 innings a start, letting up homers left and right and almost a 1 for 1 walk to strike out ratio.

HOORAY!

I don’t WANT to be correct.
I WANT to be wrong!
I want Carl Crawford to be a 5 tool star and Clay Buchholz to be a stud.

But Crawford isn’t playing and Buchholz isn’t helping by playing.

Being right can be such a burden.

Slamming out the string

Carl Crawford should have a nice talk with J. D. Drew. Drew’s first year in Boston was a mess as expectations for big stats were flushed down the toilet in 2007 and he looked like a bust.

Then he hit that grand slam in the ALCS and had a great World Series. Say what you want about him. The Sox don’t win the 2007 World Series without him.

And if the Red Sox won the 2008 ALCS, Drew would have been the MVP.

So Crawford’s first year in Boston has been up and down. But if today’s grand slam was any indication, he has a little in the tank to contribute in October.

As for the post season, it is looking more and more like it is in the bag.

Yeah they can get into a dog fight with the Yankees for the Division. But for what?

The Red Sox have a Magic Number of 16 to make the playoffs with 24 games left.

If the Sox go 12-12 in their last 24 games, the Rays would have to go 21-3 just to force a one game playoff.

I’m not saying the Red Sox should start sitting their regulars, but the only way they aren’t playing in October is if their September looked like their April.

The Sox and Rays play each other 7 times between September 9th and September 18th. If the Red Sox go 3-4 in those games, that would take 6 off the Magic Number right there.

Maybe even J. D. Drew will be healthy for October.

Nahhhh.