Wild American Gooner

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Category Archives: Red Sox


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Why the Red Sox Should Trade Koji Uehara

Things are bad for the Red Sox right now. Getting swept at home by the Cubs should be the final sign that there won’t be any magic from this year’s team. Now nine games below .500, the reigning champions have been brutal offensively all year. It’s hard to think of a single player other than Brock Holt who is having an above-average season offensively. The promising Xander Bogaerts has only 6 hits in his last 77 at-bats, yet compared to everyone else, he hardly stands out as an underperformer. To quote old favorite Shea Hillenbrand: “the ship is sinking.”

So what now? Surely the Red Sox won’t be buyers at this point, as it would be a shame to waste any minor league assets for any trades in a doomed season. So I think it’s time to sell. This will be an unpopular suggestion, but I am coming to believe that the Red Sox should trade star closer Koji Uehara, among others. Shipping the popular postseason hero out of town would be a shocking move by Ben Cherington a year after Uehara’s unprecedented success, but the Red Sox must capitalize on his value while they still can.

At age 39, Uehara has become one of the very best closers in the game. For the most part, he’s picked up where he left off, posting a 1.40 ERA and a strikeout to walk ratio of 9.8 this year. He’s had a few outings like the one Tuesday night that might suggest he’s going to come down to earth soon – especially given the fact that he’s said he feels slightly fatigued this year – but for the most part, he has been excellent on the mound. At only $4.25 million dollars a year, the Red Sox are getting great value for their dollar.

But that will all change when Uehara hits free agency this winter, as the Japanese star will likely demand a multi-year contract for at least two or three times the amount he is making this year. And as one of the game’s best closers, you can’t say he doesn’t deserve it. However, the Red Sox should be hesitant to sign Uehara to that kind of contract as he turns 40. There is no telling when he might break down at that age. Whether or not he’ll be as effective in two years is unknown, but it’d be a huge gamble for any team that signs him for multiple years.

So if the Red Sox don’t plan on re-signing him, they should capitalize on his value and see if they can start a bidding war this month. Every team would want a closer as reliable as Uehara, so there would certainly be a market out there. Essentially, the team would be renting him for two months plus any games in October, but his postseason success would make him worth sacrificing a prospect or two.

Trading Uehara would be the ultimate sign to the players and fans that they are giving up on the season, something Cherington might not be willing to do. But if he doesn’t believe the club will contend this year – and all results point there – he should start preparing for the future. The Red Sox have a deep minor league, but they do not have much in the way of right-handed power, especially in the outfield. If they can steal a top hitting prospect from someone, they have to make the trade.

There are a lot of pieces that the Red Sox can sell if they deem themselves out of the race in the next couple weeks – namely, Jonny Gomes, Felix Doubront and Stephen Drew among others – but Uehara will be the only one who can command prospects that can significantly enhance the club’s future. It would be a huge letdown to see our high-fiving superstar go, but at some point, frugal decisions must be made. A similar conclusion could be reached about Jon Lester, but I think the Red Sox would be less inclined to trade him given their desire to bring him back on a long-term deal.

I’m not saying I’d give up and trade Uehara this week. But I do think Cherington needs to stir up conversation among general managers around the league. If he hears a good offer, he must listen, because Uehara’s success might do a whole lot more for the Red Sox’s future than it can do for the present.

 


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Cameroon’s Embarrassment, John Lackey and Today’s Picks

Good morning, all. Strange one last night between Cameroon and Croatia. After the Indomitable Lions’ bright start, it was surprising to see them implode as they did. Benoit Assou-Ekotto should be ashamed of what he did. Never, and I mean never, should you show up a teammate on the field, much less headbutt him. If he isn’t suspended by the Cameroon soccer federation, it will be a crime. There is simply no place for that anywhere. And on another note, I guess Alex Song doesn’t read my blog. His action was rather childish as well, and cost his team dearly. As I said before, he needs to be better.

The Red Sox had a big win yesterday. It seems like the kind of stuff that could turn the season around. Nine shutout innings from John Lackey and then some tenth inning heroics from David Ortiz and Mike Napoli. In my eyes, Lackey deserves to be an All-Star this year. When the Red Sox have needed a stopper, he has been the guy, even if he isn’t piling up the wins. He and Koji Uehara should be the only Boston representatives in Minnesota this summer.

Now, to my picks. They’ve been going better lately.

Colombia 2 Ivory Coast 2

I expect this game between the two top teams in Group C to be an exciting one. Coming off of a strong performance against Greece, James Rodriguez will impress once again, setting up Teo Gutierrez for Colombia’s first. The Ivorians will strike next via Yaya Toure. With a match under his belt to regain some fitness, Toure should be better today. Colombia will score their second shortly after half through Victor Ibarbo, whose excellent play will be rewarded with a fine goal. But the scoring won’t be done, as a late penalty will see Didier Drogba tie the game from the spot.

Uruguay 2 England 1

The outcome of this game will depend completely on Luis Suarez. Initially, it looked like he was going to play. But recent reports suggest he won’t. If he does play, I think he scores a brace against many of his Liverpool teammates. Gary Cahill and Phil Jagielka won’t be able to contain both him and Edinson Cavani. If Suarez plays, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Uruguay score three. But if he doesn’t, England will dominate. Whether or not that will manifest itself in a win is another matter, but Daniel Sturridge should have his way with the shaky Uruguay defense that will be without Pereira and Lugano. I’ll settle for in between my two predictions. Cavani will score first, and Suarez will add one off the bench for the winner. Sturridge will have set up one for Sterling earlier to get England on the board. This game should be fascinating.

Japan 2 Greece 0

I’m still disappointed in Japan’s performance against the Ivory Coast last weekend. But I expect them to be less intimated by Greece’s frontline. As a couple of my friends pointed out recently, there aren’t too many strikers like Greece’s Georgios Samaras – ones who specialize in not scoring. He certainly shouldn’t cause the same degree of fear that Drogba did. If Greece starts Konstantinos Mitroglou, this might be a match. But should he be on the bench, the Greeks won’t have much going. On the other side, Shinji Kagawa will have his way in midfield. He will set up Shinji Okazaki nicely for Japan’s opener, before scoring the second himself. He will put the Japanese back in the Group C race.

As always, thanks for reading. Check back later for more World Cup coverage. Please share any thoughts or suggestions for content, and have a great day.

 


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Daniel Bard’s Tragic 175.00 ERA

It’s not often that you see a professional baseball player with a 175.00 ERA. Or one with 9 walks, 7 hit batsmen, and 2 outs in 18 batters faced. You’d assume that pitcher had no talent, no hope for making the major leagues. You wouldn’t assume that pitcher was a 28 year-old Daniel Bard.

Most casual baseball fans would know Daniel Bard as the smoke-throwing Red Sox set-up man, the heir apparent to Jonathan Papelbon at closer a few years ago. Some might remember his famously failed move to the starting rotation in 2012, one that saw him lose his ability to throw strikes. But few would recognize Daniel Bard on the mound these days, as he is hardly a shadow of his former self.

When people ask who my favorite Red Sox player is from the last few years, I say Daniel Bard. He was everything I loved in a pitcher. He had a triple-digit fastball and a nasty breaking ball. I watched his University of North Carolina team that made it to the final of the College World Series and instantly liked their number two pitcher (Current Red Sox Andrew Miller was their ace). I then closely followed him as he sailed through the minor leagues. He was the first Red Sox player that I had watched in college, in the minors and then in the majors.

With the big club, Bard was incredible at times as the Red Sox’s 8th inning man. In 2010, he had a 3.1 WAR while posting a 1.93 ERA in 73 appearances. And in 2011, he was even better for most of the year, owning a scoreless streak of 26 and a third innings over the course of the summer. Like most of the Red Sox that year, he imploded in September, but there wasn’t too much concern about Papelbon’s exit that offseason, as Bard seemed more than capable of replacing him. However, Bard wanted to be a starter again like he was in college and implored the Red Sox to give him a chance.

Bobby Valentine did a lot of things wrong in Boston. But his most harmful decision has to be letting Daniel Bard try to become a starter. Bard started the year okay, but quickly lost all control, walking more men than he struck out. A particularly ugly start in Toronto was the beginning of the end. He went to the minor leagues to figure things out but only saw things unravel further. The Red Sox finally gave up on him last September, letting Theo Epstein and the Cubs have a shot at straightening out Bard’s problems on the mound.

The final blow to Bard came this past January when he underwent surgery for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, an injury that might have caused all of his problems from the start, one that forced Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter into retirement. I’m no doctor, but the injury sounds pretty gruesome. After the surgery, Bard faced a long road back.

The Rangers offered him a new start this year. He worked hard to get himself back on the field, and finally returned in early June. But in four appearances in low-A this month, Bard has only gotten two men out. Technically, he hasn’t allowed a single hit. But he’s walked nine and hit seven batters. Bard simply is not the same pitcher he once was. At this rate, his career will probably end soon, and for a player who was seen as the Red Sox long-term closer as recently as thirty months ago, it is truly a remarkably upsetting turn of events.

Alfredo Aceves took over Papelbon’s closer role for Boston in 2012. But Bobby Valentine could have made the simple choice of putting Daniel Bard in that role. That decision cost the young man a long career, millions of dollars, but most of all, it caused Bard to lose his dignity on the mound. One has to wonder what might have been. There aren’t too many baseball stories as tragic as this one.


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Some Thoughts on Arsenal, the World Cup, and the Red Sox

We’re almost there. Only two more days until the big day. Today I want to share a few thoughts on a couple different subjects. There will be some Arsenal, some World Cup and even a little Red Sox.

In the Arsenal calendar year, June might be among the most frustrating times to be a Gooner. The season is over, and the transfer market is open. Well, open for everyone else it seems. There are hundreds of silly transfer rumors every day that I try to avoid, but inevitably get carried up with. Just this morning, I’ve seen reports linking us with Bernard, Sami Khedira, Nigel De Jong and Steven Caulker among others.

Sometimes, these reports are so mouthwatering that I want to believe them. The Sami Khedira rumor in particular has me seeing trophies lining up before my eyes. And I find that one piece of information – in this case, that Özil is known to be close friends with Khedira – that makes me believe it might just happen. But on the other side of that, some rumors – like the Caulker one – are so strange that I fear another Park Chu-Young signing. Please, Arsene, don’t sign Steven Caulker.

Regardless of what I hope or fear, Arsenal will not be signing any of these players anytime soon. Recent history suggests the good ones will sign for Chelsea – Juan Mata and Eden Hazard were both heavily linked with Arsenal before opting for the Blues – and us Gooners can go back to waiting for Wenger to figure out his plans once the market price for everyone has gone up. Maybe he’ll splash some cash, or maybe he won’t. But I’m fairly confident that none of the big stars linked with Arsenal this month will sign anytime soon.

I wish I could stop reading those articles, but they’re the only Arsenal ‘news’ out there, so I can’t help myself. I end up driving myself crazy with nightmares of Cesc Fabregas wearing blue. But as long as we make it through June and July without any major letdowns, I have faith that this will be a good summer for Arsenal. Until then, all I can do is worry and hope.

Now, to Brazil. Many people ask me for whom I will be rooting once, in their words, “When the U.S. is out.” After I tell them off for their lack of patriotism, I usually stall long enough for them to express their views instead of pressing me for mine. By this point, most people change the conversation, and I am safe. Safe from having to declare my secondary fandom. It’s a complicated question for me. For while many of the people that ask me will be rooting for the countries rather than the players, I will be rooting for great soccer.

Great soccer comes from the best teams, and as a result, I want to see the best teams and the best players do well. I would rather see a semifinals with Brazil, Spain, Germany and Argentina than one with lesser teams on exciting runs, with the exception of the U.S. So while I like rooting for an underdog in some sports, the World Cup is not where I do that. I want the games to be close, but I want the best players to decide the games with moments of brilliance.

I guess if you are going to force my hand at naming a second team that I will cheer for, I might say Germany. They will have the most Arsenal players, and I have a bit of German blood, so they would be the natural choice. But even so, I can’t rule out rooting for another team against the Germans should I so choose. I also enjoy teams that attack more, so I want to see teams like Italy and Japan do well.

Lastly, I want to say a few words about the Red Sox. They are struggling right now. It seems every time they take a step forward, they leap back three. But while this team is frustrating, these players have earned my trust that they will fight out of the hole they are in. These are the same players that continuously stepped up for big moments last year, and I expect them to try and do the same again this summer. Dustin Pedroia will heat up, Jake Peavy will win a second game, and at some point, they will start to pull things together.

This team’s struggles have reinforced how spectacular a season last year was. Everything that needed to go right, did. Every time I see Daniel Nava strike out nowadays, I think back to the player he was a year ago, and how lucky we were to have him hitting as well as he did. I thus can’t be disappointed with this team, because they gave everything to the championship run and delivered. For the rest of the summer, I will patiently wait for them to turn things around. I know things are different this year without Jacoby Ellsbury. But this group of players and the manager have earned my trust for the considerable future. The Red Sox will figure it out.

Have a great day, and check back tomorrow for some final pre-World Cup thoughts. Leave any comments and give me feedback as I try to make this blog the best it can be. Thanks for reading.