Alex Speier

Alex Speier

@alexspeier.bsky.social

Boston Globe reporter. Registered in the Ecktionary as “Stat Masterson.” Author of “Homegrown” (https://bookshop.org/p/books/homegrown-how-the-red-sox-built-a-champion-from-the-ground-up-alex-speier/8023395)

12.5K followers219 following4.4K posts

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

In the Era of Air Pull, the World Series features the two teams with the lowest pull rates in MLB. (The Brewers have the lowest air-pull rate in 10 years.) On a different approach that is capturing a lot of attention: www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/26/s...

bostonglobe.com‘It’s the purity of the game’: How the Brewers and Rays are bucking the industry norms of hitting techniques - The Boston GlobeIn an era of pull-side fly balls, the Brewers and Rays prioritize making contact.
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

That was great work by Dan Bellino. But also: Hawk-Eye became famous for calls on the lines in tennis. Don’t understand why it’s not employed for fair/foul calls.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

No matter how the World Series ends, the final word in it will likely be provided by a product of the amazing PawSox/WooSox broadcast pipeline, with Andy Freed calling the Rays and Jeff Levering and Josh Maurer with the Brewers. “The Pawtucket Red Sox survive!” www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/22/s...

bostonglobe.comWhen either Rays or Brewers win their first World Series, a former PawSox announcer will be on the call - The Boston GlobeAndy Freed has called Rays games for 22 seasons, and Jeff Levering is in his 12th year calling Brewers games. In this year alone, a Sox AAA alum has called the Super Bowl and the NBA Finals.
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Amazingly, in one calendar year, PawSox/WooSox broadcasters have had the Super Bowl (Bob Socci, Patriots), NBA Finals (Tyler Murray, Knicks), and World Series (Freed, Levering, Murray). www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/22/s...

bostonglobe.comWhen either Rays or Brewers win their first World Series, a former PawSox announcer will be on the call - The Boston GlobeAndy Freed has called Rays games for 22 seasons, and Jeff Levering is in his 12th year calling Brewers games. In this year alone, a Sox AAA alum has called the Super Bowl and the NBA Finals.
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Velocity is once again at an all-time high in the postseason, but with a wrinkle: For the first time, starters are throwing harder than relievers in the playoffs. How did that happen and what does it mean? www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/21/s...

bostonglobe.comMore than ever before, starting pitchers with high-velocity heaters are dominating the MLB postseason - The Boston GlobeAs outings have gotten shorter for starters in the postseason, pitchers have been successful by throwing maximum effort fastballs.

Alex Speier reposted

Sarah Langs
@slangsonsports.bsky.social

Junior Caminero!! His 38.66-second home run trot is the 2nd-slowest under Statcast (2015) on an undisputed HR/uninterrupted trot Behind his own 40.65 sec on 9/15 I LOVE BASEBALL! The energy!!

Alex Speier reposted

Mike Petriello
@mikepetriello.bsky.social

Junior Caminero hit that ball 110.7 MPH at 29 degrees. Statcast history, 110-111 between 28-30 deg. 180 previous balls. 180 previous HR. Cold weather, and the deepest part of the park, and ... well, just bad luck, too. Brutal.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Also in the notes: Caleb Durbin on the “bittersweet” feeling of watching his former team celebrate (and his outlook moving forward with the Sox), a Sox-Chourio connection, a LARGE Red Sox attraction in LIDOM, and more…. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/17/s...

bostonglobe.comThe Brewers, Guardians, and Rays have proven this MLB postseason that money doesn’t equal might - The Boston GlobeThe Dodgers are spending more on their luxury tax bill than the Brewers are on payroll, but it's Milwaukee headed to the World Series as LA's two-year championship reign ends.
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Globe Sunday Notes, pinch-hitting for @peteabeglobe.bsky.social: The Brewers are a force - not just in 2026, but across years, in a way that underscores that money (while important) isn’t everything. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/17/s...

bostonglobe.comThe Brewers, Guardians, and Rays have proven this MLB postseason that money doesn’t equal might - The Boston GlobeThe Dodgers are spending more on their luxury tax bill than the Brewers are on payroll, but it's Milwaukee headed to the World Series as LA's two-year championship reign ends.
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

This feels stunning, but the Brewers have been so much better than everyone else for nearly two years. Best records since 5/25/25: Brewers, 156-88 (.639) Dodgers, 144-100 Yankees, 142-102 Over a large sample, they’ve been baseball’s best team. It’s translated this year to smaller samples.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Gavin Williams has been historically unhittable this postseason. Through 3 innings today, he's struck out 53 percent of the batters he's faced. The single-postseason record for K rate by a pitcher with 10+ innings entering 2026 was 48% (Skubal last year).

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

According to the Stathead database, the Jake Bauers homer was the first postseason homer in a plate appearance of of 11+ pitches that turned a deficit into a lead.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

With the Red Sox entering the offseason, where does their 2027 payroll stand? And what does that -- and the looming work stoppage -- mean for the start of the offseason? www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/14/s...

bostonglobe.com2027 Red Sox payroll: Looming labor fight clouds possibilities to improve. See our projections. - The Boston GlobeBecause of the lack of a new CBA, teams don't know what levels of spending will trigger penalties. Here's what we do know about the roster make-up.
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Misiorowski never threw more than 33 pitches in an inning in the regular season. The Padres made him throw 33 in the first inning of NLDS G1, and the Dodgers made him throw 35 in the 2nd inning of G1 of the NLCS. Incredible approaches.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Misiorowski averaged 101 mph in the first inning. It’s the highest average first-inning velocity in a postseason game in the pitch tracking era.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Caleb Durbin had surgery to reconstruct the PIP joint on his left pinkie. Despite the “only a pinkie” statements, he acknowledged during the ye ar he hoped to fix an issue that prevented him from being able to straighten his pinkie for the last 2 months of the season.

Alex Speier reposted

Mike Petriello
@mikepetriello.bsky.social

I know we do the "lol velocity" thing way too much here, but I can't help myself sometimes. The average FB this postseason is 96.1. In 2008, it was 92.1 4MPH! that's huge.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

#birthdayfeats

Sarah Langs@slangsonsports.bsky.social

Today is Mookie Betts’ birthday. Birthdays are important. This will be the fourth time he plays a postseason game on his birthday, most in MLB history

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

As Xander Bogaerts came up through the minors, there were plenty of people who thought he’d never be a big league shortstop. He’s comported himself passably at the position.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Since 2022, 20 of the 30 MLB teams have had at least one home playoff game. Teams that haven’t: A’s BOS CHW (about to host one) CIN COL LAA MIA PIT SFG WAS

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Tracy says that all the pitching change decisions were his. "Not one time since I've been here has anyone scripted a game. ... As far as that specific one (Gray), that falls on me."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow on key roster needs: "We're in the initial stages of evaluating the season and thinking about our approach to 2027. ... It's not hard to look at the composition of our roster and recognize .... our offense was inconsistent. ... I'm not sure we took advantage of the unique venue we play in."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow on power notes several players had career highs, and that Mead could add power to the lineup, but the Sox will also need to look at available opportunities to add power from outside the org.

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Sam Kennedy at Red Sox end-of-year press conference: "While we are proud of some of the things that happened and proud we got to the postseason, we are definitely not satisfied....We obviously fell short of that goal (of the World Series)." He describes WC loss as "painful and deeply disappointing."

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Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow: "We believe we are a team capable of winning more than 87 games. .... This is not about excuse-making, but about opportunities to improve."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Kennedy on building a roster with labor uncertainty: "We're moving forward, business as usual. ... We'll leave the labor stuff to the Commissioner's Office."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow on Roman Anthony - says he's had a number of follow-up appointments: "At this point, there doesn't seem like there's any type of surgical intervention."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Sam Kennedy at Red Sox end-of-year press conference: "While we are proud of some of the things that happened and proud we got to the postseason, we are definitely not satisfied....We obviously fell short of that goal (of the World Series)." He describes WC loss as "painful and deeply disappointing."

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Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow on scouting: "I would push back on the notion that the role of the scout has been diminished in this organization. ... The value of scouts, the role they play here, is not diminished."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Sam Kennedy at Red Sox end-of-year press conference: "While we are proud of some of the things that happened and proud we got to the postseason, we are definitely not satisfied....We obviously fell short of that goal (of the World Series)." He describes WC loss as "painful and deeply disappointing."

View full thread
Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow on Contreras comments, says he and Tracy met with Contreras for over two hours yesterday. "It was incredibly constructive and covered a wide scope of things. ... He spoke very, very highly of his time here and how much he looks forward to 2027."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Sam Kennedy at Red Sox end-of-year press conference: "While we are proud of some of the things that happened and proud we got to the postseason, we are definitely not satisfied....We obviously fell short of that goal (of the World Series)." He describes WC loss as "painful and deeply disappointing."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow on evaluating the season: "It's complicated. ... This season was incredibly unique. ... We didn't capitalize on our summer success, is this feeling that's echoing in our head. And ultimately, we fell short of the goals we set out to accomplish."

Alex Speier
@alexspeier.bsky.social

Breslow: "I'd push back on this was 35 games of excellence and 125 games of mediocrity." He says from 7/1 on, the Sox played at a 104-win pace, and were a .500 team in September while banged up - while acknowledging that's not good enough. "We obviously have a lot of work to do to get where we want"