Go West, Young Man

Shank weighs in on yesterday's Rafael Devers trade to the San Francisco Giants:

In dealing Rafael Devers, the Red Sox cash in their good vibes and once again trade their present for the future

This is not going to play well in Red Sox Nation.

It’s shocking.

And demoralizing.

The suddenly surging Red Sox swept the Yankees at Fenway on Sunday afternoon for their fifth straight win, got on a plane to Seattle for a nine-game West Coast trip, then traded franchise face Rafael Devers to the Giants for mediocre pitchers Kyle Harrison (1-1, 4.56 ERA) and Jordan Hicks (1-5, 6.47), plus two far-away prospects.

It’s a big bowl of bad for Boston baseball. The Red Sox are once again saving money and asking their paying population to tolerate a mediocre present in hopes of a better future.

Back then, No thanks.

My only rejoinder - didn't the Red Sox win in 2004 after they traded Nomar Garciaparra in a similar midseason trade? The only difference here - Shank led the bandwagon to run Nomar out of town.

DHL Dan CCLVII - Happy Father's Day

In this week's Picked Up Pieces column, Shank highlights the Red Sox's most recent call-up to the big leagues:

After Roman Anthony’s debut, it’s an especially happy Father’s Day for dad Tony, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while applauding NBC Sports Boston’s Tom E. Curran for asking Stefon Diggs, “What was in the bag?” . . .

Happy Father’s Day, Tony Anthony, father of Red Sox rookie Roman Anthony.

Along with Roman’s older siblings, Anthony and Lia, Tony and Lori Anthony have been enjoying our town since they arrived from Florida just in time for their son’s first big league hit, a two-run double against the Rays Tuesday night at Fenway Park. They’ve enjoyed Roman’s first week at Fenway with family and friends.

It must be interesting when Tony makes North End dinner reservations for Anthony Anthony.

Roman Anthony’s great-grandfather, father, and brother are all Anthony Anthony.

“Everybody jokes about it,” said Tony Anthony, a 61-year-old money manager from West Palm Beach. “That was my dad’s dad’s name and he died before I was born. I went to Catholic schools and was always teased about it, but I was a big kid and could handle myself. When my wife got pregnant with our first, we had no plans on naming him Anthony, but we couldn’t agree on another name, and ultimately my wife wanted to name him Anthony so we did. That’s the story.”

DHL Dan CCLVI - It Was A Bad Call, Ripley

In this week's Picked Up Pieces column, Shank gives us a little mea culpa:

Eight years later it’s clear he made the wrong call on Benintendi vs. Judge, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while wondering why Boston’s DOGE Driveline nerds don’t teach Red Sox players any fundamentals . . .

⋅ Eight years ago, Yankee Aaron Judge and Red Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi were the two best rookies in the American League. Judge was on his way to Rookie of the Year, but the Red Sox had the better team — remember those days? — and I couldn’t help but notice that Benintendi played better than Judge in the first 15 games between the Sox and Bombers that season.

And so in the Aug. 21, 2017, Globe, I wrote a column on the two rookies, citing other Red Sox-Yankees individual rivalries such as Ted Williams vs. Joe DiMaggio, Carlton Fisk vs. Thurman Munson, Wade Boggs vs. Don Mattingly, and Nomar Garciaparra vs. Derek Jeter.

Which guy would you rather have on your team for the next 15 seasons?“

DHL Dan CCLV - No Urgency

With the Boston Red Sox hitting the skids in recent games, Shank wonders if manager Alex Cora's lost his sense of urgency:

Has manager Alex Cora lost a sense of urgency despite the struggles of his Red Sox, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while watching the Red Sox circle the drain . . .

⋅ Did the reeling Red Sox “ruin our summer” before we even got to June?

With the Celtics, Bruins, and Patriots out of season, the Red Sox are all we have left, and they’ve been a tough watch since the Celtics were bounced from the playoffs. Boston’s starting pitching has been abysmal and the sub-.500 Sox were in fourth place after breaking a five-game losing streak on Friday, just 6-15 in one-run games.

“I know, I know, I know,” manager Alex Cora said with a sigh when we spoke over the telephone during Thursday’s off day. “I’ve been here since 2018. I know how it works. We’ve been inconsistent for years . . . We haven’t been good the last four years. I understand it’s still early, but it’s not early. I get that.

“Honestly, you look at our season, close games and one-run games. In my career I’ve never been in a season like this. So close, but so far. I keep saying, ‘When are we going to get our ass kicked or kick somebody’s ass?’ Every game is a one-run game and then it gets to the bullpen and [expletive] happens.”

Sounds like he's identified one problem area...