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Well, they do have that catcher they picked up from SD in the Wells deal - Katteras, I think his name is - that is just about major-league ready. There must be someone in Pawtucket who can handle the knuckleball from catching Charlie Zink until they call him up to split time with Varitek.

I've read a theory that this was to prevent him from going somewhere within the division as a free agent, and it might be worth it to the Yankees to eat some of that contract if they trade him to the NL West or something - the Red Sox probably aren't going to have another post-deadline injury...

As a Red Sox fan, I approve. The more great players who leave other AL East teams, and the more time Brian Cashman spends on this as opposed to his club's real problems, the better. Of course, it's not like the Cubs have a whole lot to offer in trade.

No, it's a general opinion. As silly as I sometimes find grandstanding, it seldom really bothers me - if someone hits the ball just right, so that you know it's going 400 feet as soon as it leaves the bat, you've got a reason to strut a little. If you do it unnecessarily, then you'll generally...

I think people who complain about a baseball player stopping to admire his home run are generally at least as full of themselves as the people they complain about. This case specifically illustrates that it's a stupid complaint, because what was initially taken as arrogance or showmanship was...

I think Manny being a space cadet helps him get those assists: Other teams discount his general attentiveness so much that they forget that the man makes strong, accurate throws. Lord knows that whenever a ball went to left-center the last few years, I always hoped Manny wound up with it rather...

Sele's still playing? Huh.

Well, that makes my rooting interest a little easier - L.A.'s got Nomar, so they're my team this year.

Of course, if he'd played better at the start of the year, maybe the Twins wouldn't have had to make a big turnaround.

Just watching that on Gamecast was embarassing - it looked like Wang couldn't find the plate and nothing was being done to turn that wildness into runs.

Indeed. It... Is... On! Also, the people of New England would like to thank the Baltimore Orioles and Jaret Wright for making sure that the Yankees had to empty their bullpen the day before a double-header with the Red Sox, with Sidney Ponson starting one of those games. Every little bit helps.

I'm just waiting to see how Hillenbrand makes his exit from the Giants ugly. I suspect he'll find a way to alienate his teammates even more than A.J. Pierzinski did. Also, I'm waiting for the September call-ups so that the Red Sox can have an all-Javier Lopez battery.

Hell no. Even if I thought Theo Epstein and John Henry were willing to put up with that jackass again, I can't think who he would be an improvement over among the the trio of David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis, and Mike Lowell, especially if Wily Mo is half-decent filling in at first base.

I don't know about that. A good AL team playing a good NL team in an NL park has roughly the same quality starting line-up, but has a nuclear weapon on the bench - when the Red Sox play in Miami this weekend, each game will have either Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell, or David Ortiz available for...

Nomar was loved pretty much unconditionally in Boston until the press started to stir up shit toward the end. And what they tell you is usually more useful than what gut instinct and conventional wisdom tell you. A dozen posts or so upthread, we show how A-Rod isn't quite as good...

Well, Pierzinski sort of shoulder-checked Barrett on the way by - he certainly didn't look like he was "stumbling around looking for his helmet" to me. I mean, Barrett had no excuse, no matter how frustrating being on the 2006 Chicago Cubs may be, but A.J. kind of helped start it.

I'm not so sure Bonds will get the record, honestly. He's got 42 to hit and I don't think it's a given. He's in his forties, he's having injury issues, and sooner or later pitchers are going to realize that he's not the juggernaut he once was and stop walking him. If he gets 20 more this year, I...

Ouch. This is the reason Theo likes his depth. Further expansion on #191 - A-Rod is about the same "close and late" (972 OPS becomes 945), Ortiz turns it on (983 becomes 1132), and Jeter... Does dropping from 835 to 744 make you a choker? :)

Fixified. See, Ortiz is just better than we think.

He's not, really. If you search hard enough, you can find his stats for "close and late", and IIRC, they're pretty respectable over the course of his career (ESPN's Splits Page has a ton of useful breakdowns). A 945 OPS close-and-late isn't bad at all. Of course, Ortiz has an 1132, but Captain...

See, that's why they wait five years after retirement before considering someone for the Hall of Fame. While I'm sure that short-term, you may get some satisfaction from that, you may feel differently ten or twelve years down the line. The footage could be played for a long time, and it would be...

I got to go to that game yesterday. :) I was in right field and had a good view of Ichiro going up the wall to take Ortiz's third homer of the day away. It's about five feet from first base to the Red Sox dugout, but Ortiz took it slow, giving Ichiro one heck of an angry stare.

Yeah, just think, he could be hitting those home runs in Boston. Oh. Wait. Never mind. I'm gald he's having a good start in Cincinatti; Lord knows they need pitching more than we do here. And Theo's looking pretty smart for getting some outfield depth, too.

He was on the Reds.

Making up for last year's lost time, clearly. 114 isn't so much, and it's not as though he is becoming ineffective toward the end. 100 pitches is a good rough guideline, but even at his age, Schilling's not like Pedro in that he really wears down quickly.

And I'm willing to bet that the Marlins get at least that much from the TV and Internet deals alone, without factoring local revenues in at all (which, are, admittedly, unimpressive because of the lousy stadium lease). But the Marlins aren't victims because of that. They're parasites.

Oh, crap, he didn't get hurt again, did he? I love the guy, but geeeez... Of course, this is entirely predictable and a good reason not to release Hee Seop Choi.

Yeah, it was Texas. He's in Arlington because Tom Hicks invited him to opening day, likely hoping to woo him, but Theo is an opportunistic shark.

I'm hearing that Theo Epstein has been in a closed-door meeting with Roger Clemens and his agents today, while he's with the team in Texas. I was already feeling pretty good about the team, but adding Clemens, for a potential rotation of Schilling/Beckett/Clemens/Clement/Wakefield, with...