It's Going To Take A Lot Of Money To Keep Mookie Betts

Mookie Betts, when asked for his comments on Bryce Harper's 13-year, $330 million contract with the Phillies.

He deserves it — that and more. He's a great player, so good for him. ... We're all different players. We all have different things that are important. ... I'll just continue to worry about what's going on now.

WAR (Last Four Seasons)

               2015   2016   2017   2018    4-Year Total
Bryce Harper   10.0    1.5    4.7    1.3       17.5
Mookie Betts    5.9    9.7    6.4   10.9       32.9

Mookie is nine days older than Harper.

Fun Fact: When Harper receives his final paycheck from the Phillies in 2031, Bobby Bonilla will still be four years away from his final paycheck from the Mets!

In three games, Jackie Bradley is 6-for-8, with a double and two home runs giving him a (ho-hum) 2.375 OPS. ... Rafael Devers is 6-for-11. ... Three of Michael Chavez's four hits have been three-run homers. He has nine RBI in six games. .. Bryce Brentz has scored six runs in five games.

Alex Cora was asked what he has "learned about Boston, about baseball, about himself, as manager of the Red Sox that he didn't learn as a player with the Red Sox":

People in Boston actually listen to what the manager says. It's hard to detach yourself from the job. It's very hard. Anywhere you go, you have to answer for the team. ... When I was playing I was able to have dinner and ... relax. But it's there every time . . . every time . . . every time. We had expectations as players, but now, and I don’t know if it's me, or the territory, or the time, but it just seems the expectations are way high all the time. Non-stop. Non-stop. ...

I turn it [sports radio] on, yes, I turn it on. Sometimes I'll laugh and say, "Come on, man, that's not true." ... But I listen more now than I used to. I want to hear what's being said. I know how it works in this city. I know there are powerful voices in this city. It's not that I really care about what they say, but you want to have a pulse of what’s going on. I don't do it on a daily basis.

Jen McCaffrey, The Atlantic:

This time last year, Ryan​ Brasier​ hadn't even​ signed​ a minor-league deal​ with the​ Red​ Sox. ...

Over six relief appearances last spring, Brasier impressed enough that when the Red Sox needed an extra arm in July, they turned to the right-hander, who'd started the year on fire at Triple-A Pawtucket — with a 1.34 ERA over 34 appearances. Brasier had last pitched in the majors in 2013. The right-hander never returned to Pawtucket, solidifying Boston's bullpen over the summer with a 1.60 ERA in 34 appearances in one of the more unpredictable stories of last season.

Now, the Red Sox are searching for the next Ryan Brasier. His out-of-nowhere success lends credence to the notion that no reliever, no matter his path, should be dismissed.

The Salem Red Sox will have the first all-female broadcasting team in professional baseball history, with Melanie Newman joining Suzie Cool. Newman: "The timing could not have been more perfect; the ability to finally work with Suzie, after bonding over social media, the way most of us women in sports have ... The cherry on top is working in the farm system of the team that my family is rooted in." (Newman grew up as a Red Sox fan in Atlanta.) There are now eight women broadcasting in professional baseball.