by bcowett | Jul 17, 2014 | Adrian Gonzalez, Allen Webster, Boston Red Sox, Carl Crawford, Cole Hamels, Drew Hutchison, Felix Hernandez, Homer Bailey, Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, Justin Verlander, Matt Barnes, Rubby de la Rosa, Zack Greinke
Unless you’ve been living under a rock or just stepped out of a time machine, you know about the depressing state of the Red Sox’ negotiations with Jon Lester. It’s a weird state of affairs – Lester said he’d take a hometown discount, the...
by dpoarch | Nov 3, 2013 | Adrian Beltre, Boston Red Sox, Clayton Kershaw, Detroit Tigers, Jose Bautista, Justin Verlander, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Max Scherzer, Miguel Cabrera, Mike Trout, Toronto Blue Jays, Yasiel Puig
I projected the Red Sox to finish fourth in the division this season. To be fair, I am an idiot. I predicted Jason Heyward would win the National League MVP award, and he went on to be only the third-most-valuable player on his own team in terms of fWAR, with a...
by bcowett | Oct 12, 2013 | 2013 Boston Red Sox, 2013 MLB Playoffs, Alex Avila, Anibal Sanchez, Austin Jackson, Boston Red Sox, Bruce Rondon, Clay Buchholz, Detroit Tigers, Doug Fister, Jake Peavy, Jhonny Peralta, John Lackey, Jon Lester, Jose Iglesias, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Miguel Cabrera, Omar Infante, Phil Coke, Prince Fielder, Torii Hunter, Victor Martinez
I guess it was inevitable that the teams with the two best offenses in the major leagues would meet in the ALCS. Strangely enough, the Tigers and the Red Sox have never faced each other in the playoffs before in the history of baseball. Someone’s going to make a...
by bcowett | Oct 11, 2013 | 2013 ALDS, 2013 Boston Red Sox, 2013 MLB Playoffs, Boston Red Sox, David Ortiz, Detroit Tigers, Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Justin Verlander, Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino, Will Middlebrooks
Considering how time seemed to slow down a ton in the ALDS, it feels like forever since the Red Sox played a game. Yay for anxiety and years off my life! No matter how hardened the person, the postseason exacts a toll on all of us, be it our patience or our energy....
by jkeller | Sep 12, 2013 | Adam Jones, Adrian Beltre, Alfonso Soriano, Andy Pettitte, Anibal Sanchez, Baltimore Orioles, Billy Butler, Boston Red Sox, Brett Gardner, Buck Showalter, C.C. Sabathia, Chris Davis, Chris Perez, Chris Tillman, Cleveland Indians, Corey Kluber, Detroit Tigers, Doug Fister, Elvis Andrus, Ervin Santana, Evan Longoria, Grant Balfour, Greg Holland, Hiroki Kuroda, Ivan Nova, James Shields, Jarrod Dyson, Jason Giambi, Jason Kipnis, Jim Johnson, Joe Maddon, Jose Iglesias, Jose Molina, Josh Donaldson, Josh Hamilton, Justin Verlander, Kansas City Royals, Leonys Martin, Manny Machado, Mariano Rivera, Matt Moore, Matt Wieters, Max Scherzer, Miguel Cabrera, Mike Napoli, Nelson Cruz, New York Yankees, Oakland A's, Oakland Athletics, Robinson Cano, Ryan Cook, Scott Kazmir, Tampa Bay Rays, Terry Francona, Texas Rangers, Ubaldo Jimenez, Yu Darvish
ESPN’s standings currently have the Red Sox sitting at a 99.9% chance of making the playoffs. So is it a lock that Boston will once against be dancing in October? Of course not! But just how close are they to winning the AL East? Even if the Red Sox go a modest 7-8...
by huntergolden | Aug 7, 2013 | C.J. Wilson, Chris Sale, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Daniel Bard, Dustin Pedroia, Felix Doubront, Felix Hernandez, Jacoby Ellsbury, James Shields, Jon Lester, Jonathan Papelbon, Josh Reddick, Justin Masterson, Justin Verlander, Matt Harvey, Max Scherzer, Ryan Kalish, Stephen Strasburg, Yu Darvish, Zack Greinke
Sometimes I wonder why Felix Doubront isn’t held in higher regard among Red Sox fans, but then again, I’m not that surprised. After all, Doubront was signed as an international free agent in 2004 at the age of 16 – during a period in time where the Red Sox farm system...
by huntergolden | Jun 12, 2013 | Clay Buchholz, Felix Doubront, Felix Hernandez, John Lackey, Jon Lester, Justin Verlander, Ryan Dempster
As we begin to creep up on the halfway point of the season, it’s worth taking a look at the Red Sox starting rotation to see how things have gone, how they’re going and where they might be headed. While the pitching has certainly cooled off lately with nearly everyone...
by jkeller | May 30, 2013 | Alex Wilson, Allen Webster, Andrew Bailey, Andrew Miller, Andrew Miller, Boston Red Sox, Brock Holt, Clay Buchholz, Clayton Mortensen, Craig Breslow, Daniel Nava, David Ortiz, David Ross, Dustin Pedroia, Felix Doubront, Franklin Morales, Jackie Bradley, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, John Farrell, John Lackey, Jon Lester, Jonny Gomes, Jose Iglesias, Junichi Tazawa, Justin Verlander, Koji Uehara, Mike Carp, Mike Napoli, Pedro Ciriaco, Robinson Cano, Ryan Dempster, Shane Victorino, Stephen Drew, Will Middlebrooks
Every month, here on Fire Brand, I take a look at the relative value of the 25 players on the current active roster. If you missed the March or April editions check them out for the criteria of these rankings. As always, tell me if you agree or disagree in the comment...
by huntergolden | Apr 3, 2013 | Buster Posey, hot stove, Justin Verlander
So the big deal this past week has been the two monster extensions handed out to both Justin Verlander and Buster Posey. Everyone from Jonah Keri to Rob Neyer are writing about the death of free agency and how the space time continuum we know as the Hot Stove, will...
by jkeller | Feb 7, 2013 | Albert Pujols, Andrew McCutchen, Angel Pagan, Atlanta Braves, B.J. Upton, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Brandon Crawford, Brandon Morrow, Buck Showalter, Buster Posey, Chris Carpenter, Clay Buchholz, Dan Haren, David Price, Denard Span, Detroit Tigers, Edwin Encarnacion, Edwin Jackson, Evan Longoria, Felix Hernandez, James Shields, Jared Weaver, Jason Vargas, Joe Blanton, John Farrell, Jose Bautista, Jose Reyes, Josh Hamilton, Josh Johnson, Jurickson Profar, Justin Upton, Justin Verlander, Kansas City Royals, Keith Law, Lance Lynn, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Mark Buehrle, Michael Young, Miguel Cabrera, Mike Olt, Mike Trout, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, R.A. Dickey, Rafael Soriano, Ricky Romero, Robinson Cano, San Francisco Giants, Shelby Miller, St. Louis Cardinals, Stephen Strasburg, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Wade Davis, Washington Nationals, Wil Myers, Zack Greinke
Part 1: The Pitchers Part 2: The Batters Part 3: The League Once again, the same disclaimers apply: 1) Please feel free to bookmark them and come back later in September/October to see how I did — you know that if I hit on a few you’re going to hear about it. 2)...
