2024 Spring Training Stuff

JM3

JM3

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Whitlock on what it's like to be an Rule 5 pick in Spring Training:

Life as a Rule 5 pick peaks in peculiarity during spring training, when every face is unfamiliar, every teammate’s situation is unrelatable and every day is an audition.

“We’re basically the red-headed stepchild,” said Red Sox pitcher Garrett Whitlock, a Rule 5 selection in December 2020. “Like, no one wants us. You’re always trying to earn your spot.”
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& a quote from Justin Slaten:

“It’s weird knowing you’re the only one in spring training in the situation that you are,” said Red Sox pitcher Justin Slaten, a Rule 5 pick by the Mets in December who was promptly traded to Boston.
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Whitlock has advised Slaten this spring, too. Ahead of Boston’s Grapefruit League opener, Whitlock assured his new teammate: “You’re not going to make the team today and you’re not going to not make the team today.”
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“My mentality was, just don’t send me back,” Whitlock said. “The only thoughts running through my head were, ‘I’m going to do everything I can to not get sent back. But it’s always in the back of your head, knowing that this could be a very short stint.

“It’s a whirlwind, for sure.”
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The article is a pretty thorough one about the whole R5 process from the player perspective & includes lots of others players/teams.

https://theathletic.com/5339521/2024/03/15/life-as-mlb-rule-5-pick/
 
mwonow

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Interesting article, though I wish they'd talked to Song, too, to get a flip side perspective
 
JM3

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LogansDad said:
Thought Pivetta looked okay today, but had some problems locating. The stuff is real, though. He could be nasty if he can find a season full of consistency.
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Here is a really long, thorough & well done Pivetta breakdown. Will just quote the last paragraph, but the whole thing looks worthwhile:

Regardless of the critiques and questions, there’s still a world of potential for Pivetta to reach and he showed he could still get there last season. His last 82.2 innings of the season (when he made the changes) saw him work to a 3.27 ERA, 35.8% strikeout rate, 6.8% walk rate, and a .194 batting average against. There’s a great pitcher in there. All that’s left is for Pivetta to find him.
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https://pitcherlist.com/is-this-nick-pivettas-year/
 
JM3

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The tic tac toe is going to be a tie. Not sure how I feel about Mayer being a corner starter, though.
 
JM3

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Cora said he expects the rotation to be set by the time the Red Sox leave Fort Myers next Sunday (March 24).
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Bello
Pivetta
Crawford
Houck
Whitlock

Maybe.

Cora sees a scenario where a pitcher competing for the final two starting rotation spots might be optioned to Triple-A Worcester to begin the season there as a starter instead of making Boston’s 26-man roster as a reliever. That way, he will remain stretched out as a starter.
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Criswell & Murphy? Winck, but meh, think he'll just be in the bullpen.

Brayan Bello and Nick Pivetta are locks to begin the season in the starting rotation. Kutter Crawford is close to a lock. That leaves Tanner Houck, Garrett Whitlock, Josh Winckowski and Cooper Criswell competing for the final two spots.
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This all seems to track.

Winckowski is in the running for a rotation spot after he pitched out of the Red Sox bullpen all last season. He made 59 relief outings and one appearance as an opener. He logged 84 ⅓ innings. It seems logical for him to begin the year in Boston’s bullpen if he doesn’t make the rotation. But he also could begin the year in Worcester’s rotation to keep him stretched out.
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SoxProspects has been pushing this for a while. I wonder if Winck would prefer being AAA 6th starter or MLB reliever? I don't think it would take too long to stretch him out if someone gets hurt, so unless there's something he needs more experience with in terms of becoming a better starter, seems kind of pointless. But who knows?

MassLive’s latest Opening Day roster projection has both Winckowski and Criswell making the team as relievers.
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Seems unlikely. Why did I just LiveBlog this article?

https://www.masslive.com/redsox/2024/03/alex-cora-tough-red-sox-roster-decisions-might-make-someone-very-upset.html
 
Cassvt2023

Cassvt2023

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I wonder if/when they post the lineup for today's Spring Breakout game, someone could post it here?
 
simplicio

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I'm pretty confident that JM3 will do so, but I also think this is likely to be an all star game type of situation where they try to feature everyone on the roster.
 
JM3

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Ask & ye shall receive...

View: https://twitter.com/RedSox/status/1768997808093237400


Today’s lineup for Red Sox @ Braves… it’s the spring breakout game:

1. Roman Anthony RF
2. Marcelo Mayer SS
3. Kyle Teel C
4. Ceddanne Rafaela CF
5. Nathan Hickey DH
6. Miguel Bleis LF
7. Nick Yorke 2B
8. Blaze Jordan 1B
9. Chase Meidroth 3B

Wikelman Gonzalez starts. 1:05 first pitch on
@NESN. This is as good as it gets as a prospect guy.
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View: https://twitter.com/tylermilliken_/status/1768979409774461089

View: https://twitter.com/RedSoxPlayerDev/status/1769000735386030188
 
JM3

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LogansDad

LogansDad

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JM3 said:
Damn, not sure if it's a weird angle, but Roman looks monstrous in this picture.

View: https://twitter.com/IanMBrowne/status/1769009917338263654

As does Bleis in this one.

View: https://twitter.com/IanMBrowne/status/1769017499889062369


Also, I think this is my first time seeing Teel swing from that angle. The way he locks his hands back from his high starting point and the amount he gets his back into it is just incredible too me. It is somehow incredibly controlled (all three of his swings look nearly identical) and ridiculously violent all at the same time.
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JM3

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Ale Xander said:
I would switch Rafaela and RA but that looks nice.

Reserved tickets just $3 + fees on Seatgeek, yikes.

This is a solid lineup! Arguably more entertaining than the Big Team. Weird.
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YTF said:
My guess is that the RA leading off is an attempt to get him an additional AB before substitutions. Probably similar thinking for having Mayer and Teel in the top three slots.
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Borrowing these posts just because I feel like talking about it.

Maybe, but Roman is a more patient, higher OBP guy who is also fast enough (16 steals last season) to not clog up the bases, so he makes sense as a leadoff guy & batted leadoff a lot last season. C Note led off some, but in my recollection hit 2nd & 3rd a lot more last year.
 
LogansDad

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JM3 said:
Borrowing these posts just because I feel like talking about it.

Maybe, but Roman is a more patient, higher OBP guy who is also fast enough (16 steals last season) to not clog up the bases, so he makes sense as a leadoff guy & batted leadoff a lot last season. C Note led off some, but in my recollection hit 2nd & 3rd a lot more last year.
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Even as someone who is pretty excited about this season, I can't wait to be doing realistic 2025/2026 lineup projections.

Really hope one or two of the pitchers breaks out this year. This team's offense could be really good for a long time very soon.
 
YTF

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The northwest corner of the Commonwealth
JM3 said:
Borrowing these posts just because I feel like talking about it.

Maybe, but Roman is a more patient, higher OBP guy who is also fast enough (16 steals last season) to not clog up the bases, so he makes sense as a leadoff guy & batted leadoff a lot last season. C Note led off some, but in my recollection hit 2nd & 3rd a lot more last year.
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Thanks for the input.

Just to piggyback off of this, assuming we see at least 3 of Duran, Rafaela, Mayer and Anthony on the roster next season I'm excited to see these guys run the bases. Hopefully they will be well coached in this skill as smart base running coupled with good speed from multiple players will make for a lot of fun, excitement and hopefully success.
 
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JM3

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LogansDad said:
Even as someone who is pretty excited about this season, I can't wait to be doing realistic 2025/2026 lineup projections.

Really hope one or two of the pitchers breaks out this year. This team's offense could be really good for a long time very soon.
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Since it's not time for realism yet...

LF Roman
RF Bleis
DH Casas
3B Devers
CF C Note
SS Mayer
C Teel
1B Blaze
2B Grissom (or ideally Yoely)

C/1B Hickey (or Wong)
OF Abreu (or Castro)
UT Yorke (or Valdez)
UT Meidroth (or Paulino)
 
Ale Xander

Ale Xander

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SWBA = SouthWest Baseball Academy out of Sarasota, if anyone is wondering who those kids are.
 
Ale Xander

Ale Xander

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JM3 said:
Since it's not time for realism yet...

LF Roman
RF Bleis
DH Casas
3B Devers
CF C Note
SS Mayer
C Teel
1B Blaze
2B Grissom (or ideally Yoely)

C/1B Hickey (or Wong)
OF Abreu (or Castro)
UT Yorke (or Valdez)
UT Meidroth (or Paulino)
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You need another defender for the 2 premium positions (CF and SS). An injury to C Note would be rough with that bench.

I think Romero would be the UT/backup SS, and Yorke shipped off for SP.
 
JM3

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Ale Xander said:
You need another defender for the 2 premium positions (CF and SS). An injury to C Note would be rough with that bench.

I think Romero would be the UT/backup SS, and Yorke shipped off for SP.
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Bleis & Anthony both also project to potentially be able to stay in CF, so I don't think that would be a big problem. Cespedes, Arias & Romero may be more appropriate for the '27 version of unrealism.
 
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