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Message: [QUOTE="billsin01, post: 3017789, member: 837"] Interesting to see the offense take off this way. It will be interesting to see where they settle in b/c the tear they're on right now is insane. 100 runs in 13 games is (7.7 rpg), obviously, not what they're going to do all season. But, by the same token, JBJ and Pierce have been atrocious even during this stretch, Mookie's numbers (as good as he's been lately) are still down in terms of his overall pace from where they were last year, JD hasn't hit for much power, etc. Obviously a bunch of that has been offset by Moreland hitting homers on a pace to put up 40 for the season (won't happen), Chavis going off (won't continue to hit at this pace), Devers blowing up (he could even get better when we see the power come around, which it will), and Vazquez quietly putting up decent numbers at the bottom of the lineup. The key to any good lineup is how much depth you can muster. I have to think Pierce and even JBJ will get a little better and you've got four legit bats in X, Beni, Betts and JD and you may be seeing the emergence of a fifth in Devers -- he certainly has the pedigree and resume to be a really good player. If Moreland/Pearce is a solid combo at 1B, and JBJ can at least improve while Vazquez at least functions as a non-black hole at catcher ... this is an interesting lineup. Not sure what to expect long-term from Chavis. I'm a little skeptical once the book is out on him but I see him as Middlebrooks per se in that he was productive at every level whereas Middlebrooks always had potential but was underwhelming until catching fire the year before he got called up. But who knows, really? The interesting thing is that as crazy as the offense has been, this team has actually gotten back to playing good all-around baseball. In the past 13 games, the pitching has given up two runs or fewer 7 times and that's even with Thornburg giving up 5 runs in 5 innings over 4 appearances in mopup duty in that stretch. Sale has come around, Eduardo has pitched well after his first two starts (even his bad start in oakland was basically one bad inning), Porcello has put up five straight solid-to-good starts (even the last one against seattle was a bad first 2/3 of an inning and then 18 excellent outs after). Bullpen has been OK -- Brasier has been hurt by the HR but has a WHIP of under 1, Workman has one of the weirdest statlines I've seen with just 2 hits surrendered in 18 innings but 14 walks (?!) for a WHIP of under 1, Hembree is prone to the HR but he will give them decent innings, Barnes was solid before the injury and Marcus Walden has been outstanding. And defensively, Chavis has (surprisingly?) helped out at 2B, X has played solid at SS, JBJ continues to shine in center and the outfield defense in general has been great. Moreland/Pearce are good at 1B and Vazquez/Leon are good behind the plate. The question of course is Devers but otherwise it's really good all-around baseball. I also think Dombrowski, who takes a lot of heat for always being in GFIN mode, has shown a lot of restraint in free agency and trades -- not re-signing Kimbrell was smart, really sort of had to take the gamble on Eovaldi, the X extension makes sense b/c where else do you go at SS?, he smartly cut bait on Hanley, all the trades have been small moves with big returns (Pearce, Eovaldi, Eduardo Nunez in 17, etc.). He's also been pretty solid at finding under-the-radar solutions to issues. Walden, Ryan Weber, Brasier, Chavis ... a bunch of guys have been big contributors from mostly out of nowhere. [/QUOTE]

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