But Can He Pitch?
Between 1986 and 2006 15 different Red Sox players made at least 50 appearances at second base in one season: Marty Barrett, Jody Reed, Scott Fletcher, Luis Alicea, Jeff Frye, John Valentin, Donnie Sadler, Mike Benjamin,José Offerman, Lou Merloni, Rey Sánchez, Todd Walker, Mark Bellhorn, Tony Graffanino, and Mark Loretta. Barrett would also cross the […]
Is it on TV? It sure is. First pitch is at 1:05 PM on MLB Network. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? Yikes. As fun as it’s been watching Braiden Ward small-ball his way around the bases this spring, today’s lineup is absolutely brutal. And we don’t even have any fun WBC exhibitions […]
Much of the Red Sox’s offense has been in flux over the last 12 months: Rafael Devers was traded, Alex Bregman walked, Wilson Contreras and Caleb Durbin were acquired, while the infield platoon was refreshed. The combination of moves sounds awful for offensive pop, it but does offer more stability defensively. Meanwhile, he team decided […]
It’s been an interesting couple of weeks for Marcelo Mayer to say the least. Before the games even started, Alex Cora made it clear that no roster spot was guaranteed for the No. 4 overall pick from 2021: By itself, Cora’s commentary packed some punch, but when you add in Mayer’s paltry playing time out […]
Is it on TV? Oh yeah, it’s even on ESPN! You know baseball’s getting close when spring training games start popping up on national networks. First pitch is at 1:05 PM. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? It’s not the most interesting spring lineup you could see, but it’s nice to get more […]
It’s looking increasingly likely that the deal that sent Christian Vazquez to the Houston Astros for Wilyer Abreu will be remembered not only as Chaim Bloom’s best trade during his tenure at the helm of the Red Sox, but as one of the best trade’s in recent baseball memory. Abreu has already won two Gold […]
We live in a world that’s increasingly predetermined. From the results in your search engine, to the next spoon-fed video YouTube recommends, to the advertisements you’ll see in this very article (which by the way you’ll see a lot less of if you sign up for Over The Monster and join our little community). Equations […]
Is it on TV? Kind of. This is the first night game of Spring Training and it conflicts with a Bruins game, so it’s been bumped to NESN+. First pitch is at 6:05 PM. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? Assuming you can watch it, it’ll be nice to get another look at […]
When you think about the Red Sox as a team, as a collection players, as a drama, you have to think about Triston Casas. In the story of Tristan and Iseult, the knight, Tristan, is on a quest to bring the princess, Iseult, from Ireland to England to marry the king of Cornwall, his uncle. […]
The Starter Boston acquired Willson “Don’t Forget The Second L” Contreras in late December from the St. Louis Cardinals, in exchange for SP Hunter Dobbins and pitching prospects Yhoiker Fajardo and Blake Aita. A catcher for the first nine years of his career with the Cubs and Cardinals, Contreras shifted to first base a year […]
Is the game on TV? Yes, first pitch is at 1:07 PM (what? why?) on NESN. I’m guessing this broadcast be similar to a few days ago, though, when NESN simply streamed the home team’s feed, so don’t expect to get your daily dose of Tom Caron. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? […]
The calendar has officially turned to March, which means we get some honest to goodness, legit baseball to talk about. The World Baseball Classic begins this week, and in just a few weeks time the Boston Red Sox will begin their 2026 season in earnest against the Cincinnati Reds. Until the really good stuff can […]
Hello and happy Monday, folks. Happy March, too. The World Baseball Classic starts this week! That’s awesome! A total of 14 players within the organization—the baker’s dozen I highlighted a few weeks ago on OTM plus Roman Anthony—will be competing in the international tournament. That leads to the question of the day: which of those […]
Is it on TV? Yes, it’s on NESN, first pitch at 1:05 PM. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? How about this infield configuration, huh? For most of this spring — including in team fielding drills outside of a game setting — Marcelo Mayer has been at second with Caleb Durbin at third. […]
Playing in the American League East is the worst. It’s an absolute gauntlet every year, with 2026 looking to be no exception. That’s at least in part due to the quality of the starting pitching. The Red Sox have one of the better groups in the division, if not Major League Baseball. I’ll give Boston […]
Is it on TV? Once again it’s on NESN. Moreover, it’s also on WHDH for locals who don’t have cable. The Sox have gotten a lot of crap in recent years for not broadcasting more spring training games, so let’s give them some credit for an increased broadcast schedule this spring. So far every game […]
Craig Breslow brought in a lot of new talent this offseason, but he didn’t plug every hole on the Red Sox roster. So for our question of the day today, we’re bending space and time to ask you this: If you could take one player from Red Sox history and put him on the 2026 […]
It’s pitching preview time, ladies and gentlemen. Over the next several days, I’ll be writing 10,000 words or so about everyone you might see pitching for the Red Sox to start the season. We’re done with the rotation options and are moving on to the bullpen. We’ll start at the back, with the high-leverage options. […]
Is it on TV? It’s on NESN at 1:05 PM What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? It’s been an… interesting spring training for Marcelo Mayer so far. The wrist surgery he underwent last August was said to necessitate only a three-month recovery and Mayer arrived at Fort Myers claiming he was fully healed […]
Welcome back to our preview of 2026 Red Sox starting pitching. If you missed the bulk of the preview last week, check it out below. Today, we turn our attention to the back of the back of the rotation: the depth starters. Now that we’ve been through the nine pitchers who are fighting for spots […]
With Garrett Crochet taking the mound yesterday, I was reminded of how exciting it was to have two new stars on the 2025 Red Sox. Getting to know a new star — particularly an ace pitcher — is one of the most exciting things baseball fans get to do over the course of 162 games. […]
With the offseason behind us, it’s once again time to check in with the Over the Monster community and gauge fan opinion on how the Red Sox organization is doing. Below are polls covering the job performance of the front office, ownership, and the manager, followed by some other topical items. Your job is to express your […]
The rituals of Spring Training. Pitchers and catchers report. Batters and fielders report. Photos are taken that visually represent a player all year long, even if they shave their mustache (see Gonzalez, Romy). Sometimes these pictures are serious. Sometimes they’re silly, like the picture at the top of this piece, with Brayan Bello doing his […]
Despite the gigantic piles of snow outside my window, real baseball that matters is just one week away, with the World Baseball Classic set to begin next Thursday, March 5th. If you’re a really big fan of the tournament, you may also already know that exhibition matchups start on Tuesday, with Teams USA playing the […]
Is it on TV? Yes, it’s on NESN at 1:05 PM. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? It’s always fun when you get a first look at a new pitcher. It’s especially fun when that pitcher is a 6’6” beast of a man. And it’s even more fun when that beast of a […]