Thoughts on the Encarnacion Signing: How Much Will it Really Impact the Indians

Now that the Edwin Encarnacion signing has settled, I have been able to distinguish my thoughts on the matter. The first thing is that Encarnacion needs to fire his agent. After he declined the Toronto Blue Jay’s deal of four years, $80 million guaranteed, he got less in Cleveland’s three year, $60 million deal. But that is beside the point and if you want to read an article about the subject matter, I direct you to Jarred Carrabis’s article here.

            The purpose of this article is to distinguish what this does for the Cleveland Indians which in fact, it does not impact their team and World Series chances as much as every other sports writer says. Yes, they did just get a 40 home run hitter in an already good lineup and will get two top pitchers back next season. But as a whole, this signing does little for the team.

            With signing Encarnacion, the Cleveland Indians will not bring back Mike Napoli. At first, it seems like a no brainer, anyone would trade Napoli for Encarnacion. But dive into the statistics and it doesn’t make for a huge upgrade. Last season, Napoli hit 34 homers and 101 RBI, along with a .239 batting average. Encarnacion hit 42 homers, tied for most of his career in one season, and 127 RBI, the most he has hit ever in a season. His batting average is relatively similar, coming in at .263 and he gets on base relatively the same amount as well. Encarnacion had a .357 On base percentage last season while Napoli had a .335 On base percentage. In 600 at-bats, that’s a difference of getting on base 13 more times.

            Encarnacion’s bat replaces Napoli’s, not adds to it. Statistically, there isn’t a whole lot more going on. Encarnacion knocks in more runs and hits more homers, but the team’s record get any better than the 94-67 record the Indians had last season? Maybe by a couple of wins.

            The hope with this signing is that Encarnacion adds to the post season production that in reality, was terrible for the Indians last post season. The team’s best hitters hit .230 or worse (Jason Kipnis .230, Carlos Santana .192, Napoli .173) while Fransisco Lindor was the only consistent hitter, hitting .310 with two home runs and six RBI. I say consistent because Kipnis did hit four well timed home runs and eight RBI. Encarnacion adds his four home runs and 14 RBI to the mix, along with his .280 batting average.

            The main focal point here is that most believe that by getting back two of their better pitchers in Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar for next season fully healthy, it makes for a viable World Series Champion. I don’t necessarily believe the two pitchers will have a huge impact. If you watched last postseason, you saw manager Terry Francona perfectly use his bullpen and starter Corey Kluber to dominate each matchup. The two starters probably help the cause but I don’t put faith in them until I see them pitch in the post season. I have seen too many pitchers pitch well during the season and flop in the post season (see David Price, Clayton Kershaw).

            The Indians picked up a 40 home run hitter at a relatively cheap price at $20 million per season. Encarnacion’s bat adds consistency to the Indian’s lineup. Time will tell if it brings a World Series ring to Cleveland. My guess is that the team performs well again in the 2016 season. They probably win the division and make some noise in the playoffs again. However, I don’t believe the move makes them the best team in baseball and in fact, I wouldn’t even say the Indians win the World Series in 2016. If they do, Francona’s ability to navigate their bullpen wins it for them not Encarnacion’s bat.

Should the Red Sox consider Rich Hill?

Rich Hill has had an interesting journey in the MLB and with the Boston Red Sox. Once a promising pitcher with the Chicago Cubs, Hill pitched to an 11-8 record with a 3.92 ERA in 32 starts during the 2007 season. His career command issues and arm injuries derailed his career ever since that season.

Hill eventually signed on with the Red Sox in 2010 as a starter. The team eventually converted him into a reliever where he performed well. In 2012, Hill had a 1.83 ERA in 19 innings before he suffered yet another arm injury.

Hill eventually was phased out of the MLB and into independent baseball. In 2015, he came back to the MLB with the Red Sox where he rejuvenated his career. He pitched to a 1.55 ERA in 29 innings with 36 strikeouts in four starts.

This season Hill has been hindered by blisters, starting only 20 games. But he’s pitched well in those 20 starts, going 12-5 with a 2.15 ERA with 129 strikeouts in 110 innings. The main point however, is that Hill is currently signed only for this year.

The Red Sox have another chance at acquiring Hill via free agency. The team needs starting pitching. It makes sense.

However, the age is a factor. At 36 years old, Hill will most likely command a multi-year deal, that is a two year, maybe three year deal worth upwards of $10 million per year. Personally, I see him getting a two year, $28 million-dollar deal. For a 36 year old pitcher, a lot that could go wrong, especially with a guy that has had multiple injuries in his career. This doesn’t even mention the Red Sox need to fill a void that David Ortiz leaves, a void that doesn’t come cheap. The team has a lot of money tied up in pre-existing contracts as well, which makes money somewhat tight with the franchise.

But I think the Red Sox should spend the money on the Hill. They need starting pitching. It showed in the postseason. No starting pitcher had a quality start or made it out of the fifth inning. This is horrendous.

However, Hill has pitched well in the NLCS in his one start so far, going six innings with six strikeouts and getting the win. He showed he has the capability to win in the playoffs with his start.

The Red Sox need a quality starting pitcher. With the inconsistency of Steven Wright, Clay Buchholz, and Eduardo Rodriguez, combined with the average quality pitching from Drew Pomeranz, the Red Sox have few solid options. Hill would be a consistent option for the Red Sox. If they spend money, they should consider Rich Hill as a third option after David Price and Rick Porcello.

The Red Sox skipped out on Hill last season. They shouldn’t make the same mistake this offseason.

Pomeranz More Successful Bet than Espinoza

Dave Dombrowski stayed up late Thursday night wheeling and dealing, sending MLB’s 14^th ranked prospect Anderson Espinoza to the San Diego Padres for left handed pitcher Drew Pomeranz.

The trade should not come as much of a surprise to Red sox fans. Dombrowski has a history of trading prospects for established major league talent.

Still, the price for Pomeranz, the fifth overall pick in the 2010 MLB draft, seemed high. A pitcher without much history who caught on as a starter in San Diego—home to a pitcher’s ballpark—currently has an 8-7 record and a 2.47 ERA in 17 starts, pitching 102 innings while striking out 115. Most would attribute his season to a “career year” and something he will never accomplish again.

I disagree with that notion, siding with Dombrowski on this trade.

Pomeranz began his career with the Colorado Rockies after being traded by the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez. He had little success in Colorado, as most pitchers do, pitching to a 4-14 record and 5.20 ERA in 34 games (30 starts). After then being traded to the Oakland Athletics, Pomeranz began to assert himself as a big league pitcher. In his age 25 season, Pomeranz had a 2.35 ERA in 20 games (10 starts) with 64 strikeouts in 69 innings. The following year Pomeranz pitched 86 innings in 53 games (9 starts) and had a 3.66 ERA and 82 strikeouts.

Now in his age 27 season, Pomeranz has continued his success with the Padres. He is what some would call a “late bloomer,” similar to pitchers R.A. Dickey, Koji Uehara (to an extent) and player Jose Bautista. At 27 Pomeranz, how is much younger than those named, is just finally living up to his 5^th overall selection.

I don’t blame Dombrowski for wanting this guy. I don’t blame him for trading Espinoza for him either.

At 18 years old, Espinoza is nothing but a lottery ticket. He has great promise, with great signs of success. He can hit 95 mph regularly on the radar gun with his fastball, warranting a comparison to Pedro Martinez. But how many 18 year old pitchers receive the comparison to Martinez? A lot and not many of those pitchers live up to the hype.

At 18 years old, a lot can change from Espinoza that no one can project. Getting Pomeranz is a more secure bet on a pitcher who has already had success at the major league level.

Dombrowski has also had a successful track record of acquiring/dealing pitching. He traded away pitchers Jair Jurrjens, Andrew Miller and Burke Badenhop while acquiring Max Scherzer, Joakim Soria, Anibal Sanchez and David Price. Although Miller has panned out much later in his career, and was traded for Miguel Cabrera—a move we would all make—Dombrowski has a great track record with his pitchers. I believe that Dombrowski knows more than the public about Espinoza. This is why I agree with the trade.

Although it feels rather sad for Red Sox fans to be giving up a player who could become an ace, Pomeranz was a much needed addition to the rotation. The Sox needed a reliable pitcher to give six quality innings each start if they wanted to compete for a playoff spot and in the playoffs. The price might seem hefty now, but in a couple years, Sox fans will be glad they made the deal.

Do We Have the Next Derek Jeter in Xander Bogaerts?

For some reason, there is just something sexy about baseball’s shortstop. Growing up, our favorite players play shortstop (Derek Jeter, Nomar Garciparra, Jimmy Rollins just to name a few household names). As children, we would take on their personas, yelling out “I call Nomah!” while playing whiffle ball in the back yard.

Their on field production supported why every kid wanted to become them. Derek Jeter is the greatest to ever play the position. Not only did he play superb defense, winning five gold glove awards throughout his career, Jeter also hit his way to 3,000 hits, a .310 lifetime batting average and an average of 15 home runs and 70 RBI per year. Jeter also averaged 113 runs as well as 32 doubles.

As the greatest shortstop to date has retired, as well as some of the other greatest shortstops to ever man the position, the field currently lacks a suitor to fill the void. Candidates include Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor and Addison Russell, names that have potential but ultimately have not yet produced at the elite level. To call them the next Derek Jeter would be premature.

There is one player that I failed to mention that interests me that many people overlook as well, our very own Xander Bogaerts.

Bogaerts gets overlooked because of his 2014 season where he switched between third base and shortstop and hit a to a lousy .240 batting average with 12 homers, a low 46 RBI and only 60 runs. But Bogaerts bounced back in 2015. He hit to a .320 average, good for second in the AL and fifth in the league, with 81 RBI and 84 runs, albeit only seven homers.

Bogaerts has maintained his production this year. He currently bats .346, first in the American League, ahead of our very own Jackie Bradley Jr (.342). He leads the league with 63 hits and is on pace for 231 hits as well as 123 runs, 15 homers, 96 RBI, and 23 stolen bases.

Bogaerts will probably not maintain those numbers—which would put him in the running for Most Valuable Player—but he could produce something just a tad below those numbers. Say Bogaerts produces at a 10-85-15 clip with a .320 batting average with 110 runs. A realistic possibility, those numbers come close to Derek Jeter’s stat line.

Is Xander Bogaerts the next Derek Jeter? His production and top prospect status, a former second overall prospect in baseball, makes me ponder the thought.

Bogaerts is two inches shorter than Jeter (6’1” to Jeter’s 6’3”) while maintaining a similar build. The two have a very similar batting stance as well. Look at the two.

Nearly identical.

Bogaerts has turned into an elite baseball player with the stats and the stance to back up the claim that he could become the next Derek Jeter. At 23 years old, Bogaerts is still hitting his prime. Will Bogaerts name one day be in the same sentence as the greats? Only time will tell. 

Red Sox Rant: Vazquez, Kimbrel, Sandoval

At 6-6, the Red Sox have played to their exact potential, a team that will probably end a couple games above .500 with huge inconsistencies in their roster. You can spend hours, week and week talking about their starting rotation. You can go on and on about the exacerbation of the bullpen and their demand to log 30+ innings every week. I don't want to exhaust those points. I’ve got a couple different points I want to make about last week:


Christian Vazquez
The kid knows how to catch. He's clearly better than both Blake Swihart and Ryan Hanigan when it comes to controlling a game. Amazing since he's missed an entire year. In the one game he has played this year, he made Rick Porcello look like a respectable pitcher. He had poise when controlling base runners and clearly knows how to frame pitches better than the rest of the Red Sox battery. It makes me wonder about Swihart’s role with the Red Sox going forward. After getting sent down to Triple A, it makes me believe he will get used in a trade for a legitimate starting pitcher,mi clear number one or two guy. The Red Sox won’t keep both and Vazquez is just so good behind the plate while Swihart could get cashed in for some needed pitching depth that it makes the most sense.

Craig Kimbrel
I know I said I wouldn't talk about the bullpen, but I can't leave out Kimbrel. After his one bad outing (which comes once every other year for him) he has been throwing gas. Kimbrel is a guy I can picture people rooting for and trusting when it comes to October baseball. He's just a likable guy. I went to the Red Sox game on Wednesday, and the atmosphere was like nothing else. He ran in from the bullpen to “Welcome to the Jungle” with flames on every scoreboard. I know it's a cheap Red Sox gimmick but I'm buying in. I like Kimbrel’s demeanor and ability.

Pablo Sandoval
If you haven't kept up with the news, Sandoval basically has an undiagnosed eating disorder. I honestly feel bad for the guy. He gets so much crap from the fans and media about his weight, and he's just a guy that can't control it. I know there are two ways to look at it, but I can't help but feel bad for the guy. You wouldn't go around making fun at the average joe with an eating disorder, so lay off Sandoval. Let him work out his problems. Hope the guy gets some help.



Today is always one of the greatest games on the Red Sox schedule, Patriot’s day baseball. It's the one day of the year where the Red Sox play baseball in the morning, 11:05 sharp. I always remember being home from school on April vacation, and I would watch the pregame in my pajamas while eating breakfast. Truly like no other game. Clay Buchholz pitched pretty good, the team just couldn't hit behind him. I bet being at the actual game is such a great experience too. Maybe one day, but for now, in the wise words of Tom Werner “Let's Go Red Sox? Let’s Go Red Sox?”

Red Sox Rant: The Highs and Lows of Week One

After a long winter and many public outcries about the Red Sox, baseball season officially returned with already a week’s worth of play under our belts, which in Pablo Sandoval’s case is too much and has caused the belt to literally snap (video here). But with all that said, it wouldn’t be a Red Sox season without Red Sox Rants. So here I present you the first Red Sox Rant of the season with a couple of hot topics on the table.

Brock Holt

I rag on Brock Holt or @BrockStar4Lyf a lot. His value diminishes as a one position player and his production drops off exponentially after the all-star break. But I have to give it to him so far. He has carried this Red Sox team on offense this season to date. You could make a case for Hanley Ramirez, but that is an entirely different topic. Holt has started the year 7-17 (.412 batting average) with four extra base hits, two home runs, eight RBI, four runs. Absolutely crushing the ball. He hit a home run in Wednesday’s bullpen meltdown in order to keep the game close. He basically said “Screw the Blue Jays” Friday night, hitting five RBIs and a grand slam that put life back into the Red Sox. They were down 7-2 and Joe Kelly was getting absolutely nailed and when the team was down but not out, Holt stepped up. It’s a breath of fresh air from these entitled veterans. Thank you Brock Holt.

The Starting Rotation

The best way to describe it: S.S.D.D. We all knew that David Price would dominate. He pitched lights-out on opening day, creating this weird feeling amongst Red Sox fans that maybe this team will actually do something good for once. Mookie Betts also hit a home run, Travis Shaw and Holt stepped up, the two last minute decisions to the lineup by manager John Farrell, and it all seemed great in Red Sox camp. Then Buchholz pitches four innings of suck. Joe Kelly followed up with his inability to hit the side of a barn. Both Rick Porcello and Steven Wright pitched like fifth starters. This will be the Red Sox rotation the rest of the year. Price will pitch amazingly followed by a roulette spin for the other four starters. I also feel bad for Dave Dombrowski. He is stuck with Porcello, the guy he traded away in Detroit because he didn’t want him on his team. Now he has to pay him an absurd amount of money as a fifth starter.

Koji Uehara

When Koji Uehara literally threw his entire body at a ground ball last year, causing the trainers to come out on the field, I stated loudly and clearly that Uehara would not pitch the rest of the year. I was right, he broke his wrist. I then doubted Uehara. Going into his age 40 season coming off a broken wrist, I questioned whether Uehara would return to form due to a combination of age and the fact that he relies on off speed pitches with sudden movements and I did not think he would get the same kind of movement post injury. I can say so far that I was wrong. Uehara has pitched three solid innings while only giving up a walk. He looks like the same pitcher prior to surgery. So far so good for Uehara.

The Red Sox have started the season on a good note, going 3-2 and taking a couple games in Toronto, the team to beat in the American League East. I’m still not convinced with the team after week one however. Last year the team started out 6-2 and we were all on board with the team winning 90+ games. Then they went on a really bad losing streak, falling to 12-10 by May and then 22-29 by June. So verdict is still out on this team, but congrats on the accomplishments in week one of the season.

Cheer up Patriots fans, all is still well in New England

Oh how the mighty fall.

After the New England Patriots started their season 10-0 averaging 32 points per game during that span, fans spoke about the Patriots as the best team ever to grace the game of football. Most agreed that the Patriots could trounce any opponent that stood in the way of “Tom Terrific” and the gang.

Now the improbable and what most said would never happen has occurred. The Patriots have lost to the Miami Dolphins, their last two games in a row, and four of their last six games.

As I listened to sports radio throughout the week, I remember radio personalities Tony Massarotti and Adam Jones say that there was no way that the Patriots could lose their last two games of the season. Boston Globe writer Chris Gasper, who appears occasionally on the radio show “Felger & Mazz” said on air that the Patriots could easily beat the Dolphins with half of their reserves in the game, that he believed the Patriots would easily defeat the Dolphins.

Well the Patriots lost the game Mr. Massarotti and Mr. Jones, and they lost playing every available starter Mr. Gasper.

The lack of offensive weapons are not to blame for this historical collapse. The Patriots have who some call the best quarterback to ever play the game in Tom Brady and a tight end who will probably retire as the best ever to play his position in Rob Gronkowski. Sure the losses of Dion Lewis and Julian Edelman hurt their offensive production, but it cannot be the only reason for such a collapse. They are still the fourth best offense in the NFL and ranked second in passing.

There are other reasons to blame. The Patriots loss against the Philadelphia Eagles solely because of their lack of efficiency on special teams by allowing the Eagles to score on a blocked punt and on a punt return. The loss also includes one of the weirdest plays Bill Belichick has ever concocted by allowing defensive back Nate Ebner to drop-kick the ball on a kick-off.

It came down to a terrible call on the coin flip in the Patriots overtime loss to the Jets. The Broncos rallied from a 21-7 fourth quarter deficit to beat the Patriots in week 12 when the Patriots were without their four top targets.

So maybe part of it is unfortunate luck on the Patriots end, combined with some bad calls. Surely it doesn’t help that Brady’s has to throw to Brandon LaFell who has dropped 50% of his passes either.

It looks bad for the Patriots right now. Their offense looks defeated, their defense beat up. Losing four of their last six doesn’t help the situation. I sure don’t feel the same about the team as I did in weeks 11, five, week one even. But they certainly are not out of the Super Bowl hunt.

The two wild card teams should be considered so called “weak” playoffs teams, along with division winner Houston Texans. The Kansas City Chiefs played San Diego twice, Cleveland once, Baltimore once and a not so tough NFC North division. The Pittsburgh Steelers have lost a couple questionable games this season and once to the Patriots as well, albeit coming during week one of the season. The Steelers defense can show up one game and not the next. The Texans are well, the Texans.

I forgot to even mention the Cincinnati Bengals. Prone to horrendous playoff efforts, the team could be without quarterback Andy Dalton once again for the divisional round of the playoffs.

Even though it seems bleak in New England, it isn’t as bad as it feels and seems. I would still put the Patriots as the AFC favorites to make it to the Super Bowl. The recent losing streak, as well as the injuries suffered just create a fog not a blizzard over the path to Super Bowl 50 for the Patriots.

So maybe the might haven’t fallen.

Maybe they are just under repair.