It's not quite the battle of the three of us on marathon day, but, for the sake of our Reading, Running, Red Sox righteousness, I'll put forth the first overall record prediction of the three of us. My hope is that my colleagues will do the same, and at the end of the season, the poster who was closest will win a prize yet TBD.
Without anything further:
82-80.
There will be a lot of things to like about the Red Sox in 2013 - but their win-loss record won't be one of them.
ReplyDeleteSure, it might be possible for the Sox to go 82-80 -- if everyone stays healthy. But what happens when, halfway through the season, Buchholz sprains his thumb or Papi twists his ankle or Middlebrooks hurts his wrist? I don't see John Henry opening his wallet for a team that's not in contention, so they'll just have to muddle through. I'm going to split the difference between optimism and realism, and say 77-85.
While there are a lot of things that need to go right for the Sox to play well, i'm going to play it optimistically and claim the top spot by predicting 84-78. Like Joel says, a lot of this depends on health (esp. Papi, Middlebrooks and Ellsbury) and Lester and Buchholz pitching up to their talent (and Lackey becoming a competent pitcher again), but it IS possible. Something to cheer for!
ReplyDeleteFor the record, the winner will get a bottle of whiskey as chosen by the losers, unless the winner gets the record exactly right, in which case he gets to choose the bottle (within limits).
This would seem to leave me cheering against the Sox, but that's not the case!
ReplyDeleteActually, these bets leave me in a great position. If the Sox suck this year, I'll get a consolation prize. And if they do well, meaning I have to chip in to buy either of you guys a bottle, I'll be able to do it happily and in good spirits.
Opening day is right around the corner. Every game counts as much as every other, so let's hope the Sox can achieve a winning record in April for the first time since 2009!