Category Archives: rick porcello

2018 MLB Season Preview: Boston Red Sox

The AL East is always a marathon. A team will need to stay healthy and be consistent over the course of the entire season. Also, the division winner will need to be willing to give up prospects at the trade deadline to acquire talent.

The Boston Red Sox definitely ‘went for it’ by giving up a lot of prospects for starter Chris Sale and it paid off last year. He picked up the slack when other former elite starters Rick Porcello and David Price were replacement-level starters for the Red Sox. Can he strikeout 300+ batters again this season?

Boston is once again in an arms race with the New York Yankees. The Sox had to make a big splash and signed slugger J.D. Martinez after the Yankees added Giancarlo Stanton. The AL East looks to be a two-team race again after the Orioles and Blue Jays took a step back last season.

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Boston Red Sox.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Boston Red Sox

2017 MLB Season Team Preview Boston Red Sox Chris Sale funnyThe AL East is always a cut-throat division. Teams tend to make really bold moves just to show their fanbase they are trying to compete. The Red Sox have made some bad moves in the past when trying to keep up with the Yankees (Carl Crawford, Dice K), but they usually know when to go for it.

The Red Sox definitely ‘went for it’ by giving up a lot of prospects for starter Chris Sale. They have him under contract for three more years, so it’s not like they gave up a ton for just a rental player.

Pablo Sandoval arrived at Spring Training in great shape. Can he maintain this weight or will it be an issue again by the All Star break?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Boston Red Sox.

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The Tigers’ Season Rests On A 20-Year Old

The Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins are going to play in a one-game playoff to see who wins the AL Central on Tuesday. The Twins are going to send out Scott Baker (15-9) who could be considered their ace and the Tigers are sending out 20-year old, Rick Porcello (14-9). The Twins are smart to send out Baker, but the Tigers are stuck in a tough situation with Porcello coming in next in their rotation. They have no other options but to start him, do the Tigers have a chance?

Rick Porcello started out the season very nicely for a 20-year old. He was a darkhorse to even make the team coming into spring training, but he pitched himself into the rotation. The Tigers have rested him quite a bit in the 2nd-half and he has already pitched more innings than he did in the minors last season. He has pitched against the Twins three times this season and has an ERA around three against the Twins. This is the biggest game that he has pitched in his career, but with Jarod Washburn going down with a knee injury, the Tigers have to use the young man in this position. He could be their best option, since Edwin Jackson has been inconsistent and Nate Robertson has had a horrible season.

Scott Baker started the season on the disabled-list and had a bad April/May this season. His best month game in August, when he had a 3.18 ERA, but he had an average September. Baker has been groomed to be the Twins ace, since he has dominated at every level that he has pitched. It was only a matter of time before he would start pitching up to his ability in the Majors. He has set personal records this season in games started (32), strikeouts(160), and wins(15). Baker has had trouble against Detroit this season, he has pitched in four games against the Tigers, pitching 20 innings and giving up 15 runs. He did do well last week against the Tigers by pitching five innings and giving up no earned runs.

The games will be played in Minnesota on Tuesday and I give the Twins an edge in this contest. They have been playing for their lives the last two months and the Tigers have been sliding during that time. The Jarod Washburn trade was supposed to send them to the next level, but it has had the opposite effect on the team. The way Edwin Jackson has been pitching lately, they would probably like a mulligan on that trade too and get Matt Joyce back in return. The Twins have been swinging the bat very well and it’s nice to see Delmon Young playing up to his potential.

The winner of this game goes on to play the New York Yankees in the ALDS and if the Twins win, Carl Pavano will be a scheduled starter against his old club. Can you imagine the backlash that would happen if he would win the clinching game? I’m just saying….

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Play Ball! – 2nd Half Predictions

Now that the All-Star game is over and all the “drama” that surrounds the event is in the books, the baseball races and trade rumors will start to heat up. It seems that at least 20 teams are still in their division races and weird things could happen. The trade deadline is July 31st and most teams will wait until a few days before that date to assess their team’s chances of making the post-season. A lot of stuff will happen this off-season and since this blog loves speculation and opinionated banter, here are some of my predictions of what will happen in the 2nd-half this season.

– Mark DeRosa will bat under .200 for the rest of the season with the Cardinals.

– Albert Pujols will hit 60 homers this year.

– The Cubs will end up with 90 wins this season, but will not win the NL Central.

– Freddy Sanchez will be trade to the Cubs for Sean Marshall

– Joe Mauer will only hit 4 more homers the rest of the season.

– The Detroit Tigers will win the AL Central

– Matt Wieters will hit over .300 and hit 12 homers in the 2nd-half.

– Eric Wedge will be fired by Labor Day.

– Boston will edge out the Yankees in the AL East, but New York will win the Wild Card race.

– Jerry Manuel will be fired after the last day of the season.

– The full list of failed steroid tests will be leaked during the playoffs, thus putting the actual product on the field out of the spotlight.

– The Phillies will land Roy Halladay in a trade for Kyle Drabek and two other prospects.

– Pedro Martinez will have an ERA over 5.00 and will make less than 8 starts for Philadelphia.

– Tim Hudson will come back at the end of the season and win 4 games.

– Stephan Strasburg will sign with the Washington Nationals by September 15th.

– Raul Ibanez will hit 55 homers this season.

– Jimmy Rollins will hit under .210 in the 2nd half this year.

– Alex Rodriguez will hit 35+ homers, but his average will be below .245

– C.C. Sabathia will lead the AL in innings and win 20 games.

– Carlos Quentin will come off the DL and hit 10 homers the last 2 months of the season.

– Jason Schmidt will only make two starts for the Dodgers and end the season on the DL.

– Texas will win the AL West and make it to the ALCS.

– Tommy Hanson will edge out Colby Rasmus for the NL Rookie Of The Year

– Rick Porcello will have an ERA over 4.50 in the second half.

– The Mets will become sellers by July 31st.
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