Hot Stove

The Boston Red Sox are entertaining trading Jackie Bradley Jr. despite what management has said. No General Manager or Manager of any kind would admit to offering up a player as part of a trade strategy. I for one think it is a mistake to put JBJ on the block. This team needs strength up the middle and we all know how Jackie can save runs with his defense. The reality is that the Sox must find a slugger who can win games with one swing of the bat, but giving up Bradley for that bat is not the answer. Would the Cubs be a willing trading partner with the Red Sox and trade Kyle Scwharber straight up for Bradley Jr? The Cubs would win that trade.

Thinking that Hanley Ramirez is going to have a better year at the plate is foolish. Hanley may start out strong but will eventually revert back to his pouty self when things do not go his way. Where do the Sox turn for the power? Free agent Eric Hosmer would fit the need to fill the first base position in place of Mitch Moreland. His clubhouse leadership cannot be underestimated and Alex Cora could use all the help he can during his first year tenure of Red Sox manager.

Tiger Returns

 

Tiger Woods made a celebrated return to competitive golf this weekend at the World Hero Challenge. Golf fans throughout the world watched with anticipation to see if he could withstand the rigors of four rounds of golf after being absent from the game since early last February. This wasn’t your typical major or even minor tournament. Only a field of 18 elite golfers participated so there wasn’t the pressure of a missed cut. Woods looked like the Tiger of old during the first two rounds. His power off the tee was strong and he hardly missed a fairway. He was pedestrian with his chipping game which may have been the result of the long layoff. Day three however saw Tiger come back down to earth and he finished tied for ninth behind the champion Ricky Fowler by 10 strokes. Tiger posted scores of 69,68 75, and 68 so he certainly was consistent.

Is the golf game better off when Tiger is in the field? If you talk or listen to his peers, they are pulling for him to be successful. Today’s stars of golf include Fowler, Spieth, Reed, and Dustin Johnson. These four young men kept our interest in the game with their skills and we never knew who was going to be the leader from week to week. Tiger dominated for so long that it actually got boring for a lot of golf fans. I for one welcome back Tiger to the game and look forward to see how many tournaments he eventually can finish during 2018.

Welcome back Tiger