To the extent that there ever was any intrigue about whether Caleb Durbin, Marcelo Mayer, or someone else would be playing third base for the 2026 Red Sox, you can put that intrigue to bed. Alex Cora, while going out of his way to clarify that he wasn’t announcing anything official, basically made it official: […]
about 7 hours ago | 0 reads
If you’re a hardcore baseball fan in the 21st century, then you probably frequently find yourself in the position of being a baseball defender. Baseball doesn’t actually need defending. It’s one of the world’s great global games and is enjoyed in various forms by hundreds of millions of people every year. It’s going to outlive […]
about 11 hours ago | 0 reads
When the Red Sox signed Masataka Yoshida on December 15, 2022 it was to mixed reactions. Xander Bogaerts had signed with the San Diego Padres a few days earlier, lost to free agency sorta-kinda because of the addition of Trevor Story. Kyle Schwarber the year before had been deemed “too expensive” when he signed with […]
about 12 hours ago | 0 reads
Is it on TV? No! It is not! And you better get used to that, because NESN isn’t showing the game tomorrow or Friday this week either and the Sox are off on Wednesday. I will never in my life understand this. Even if it’s “too expensive” to do a full broadcast, why not just […]
1 day ago | 0 reads
The 2026 World Baseball Classic is well underway. Early mornings, extra innings, slaughter rules, ludicrous dingers from Kyle Schwarber, and walkoffs—so far, this tourney has had it all. With pool play set to wrap up in a few days, I thought now would be a good time to take stock into how the Red Sox’s […]
1 day ago | 0 reads
Hello and happy Monday, folks. It’s amazing that we can finally see grass again. I was going to make “How happy are you that the snow is melting?” my question of the day, but there are more pressing matters for the Boston Red Sox to attend to. What in the world is up with Romy […]
1 day ago | 1 read
Is it on TV? Yes, first pitch is at 1:05 PM on NESN. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? Honestly, this is yet another tough lineup. If you’re a fan of under-the-radar pitching prospects with intriguing stuff, then you’ll like watching Jake Bennett. And it’s increasingly looking like Andruw Monasterio is going to […]
2 days ago | 1 read
I’m not going to pretend I’m a doctor. I’m not to going to act like I know more about Romy Gonzalez’s body than the highly paid and likely excellent medical staff working in Fort Myers and on Ipswitch Street. I’m not here to second guess medical advice — I’m sure there was a very solid […]
2 days ago | 1 read
Is it on TV? Yes, after a one-day break from spring training coverage, the Sox are back on the air. You can catch the game on either NESN360 or over the air on WHDH, first pitch at 1:05 PM. What’s the lineup? What should we watch for? It’s Johan Oviedo’s third start, which means we […]
3 days ago | 3 reads
At this point in spring training, the starting second baseman remains a mystery, but Red Sox fans should be ready to go along for the ride. Bring an open mind and a hopefulness that comes from knowing that the Sox seem poised to get better contributions from the keystone position than they have been in […]
4 days ago | 0 reads
Do you know the last time the Red Sox finished a season without a single player hitting at least 20 home runs? If we’re not counting 2020 — which we shouldn’t, pretty much ever, for pretty much anything — then the answer is a loooooong time ago: 1945, to be exact. But, frankly, we shouldn’t […]
4 days ago | 1 read
I’m almost out of pitchers to write about, I swear. We’re moving on to the middle relievers. The guys who sometimes need to take it on the chin, who rarely get the credit they deserve, but oftentimes make or break close games. The Red Sox’ starting rotation depth and quality should help keep this group […]
5 days ago | 0 reads
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 […]
5 days ago | 1 read
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 […]
5 days ago | 2 reads
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 […]
5 days ago | 3 reads
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 […]
5 days ago | 3 reads
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 […]
6 days ago | 2 reads
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 […]
6 days ago | 1 read
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 […]
6 days ago | 2 reads
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 […]
7 days ago | 1 read
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. […]
7 days ago | 2 reads
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 […]
7 days ago | 3 reads
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? […]
8 days ago | 3 reads
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 […]
9 days ago | 2 reads
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 […]
9 days ago | 3 reads