Conversely, the pitchers they traded get a boost from their new environments, bandbox for Lester, NL park for Lackey. So at the very least, that boost should be factored as well. These trades will work for both sides. Boston hasn't raped anyone.
I actully enjoy you as a poster for the most part so I won't do that. You help generate debate but you tend to jump into an argument all guns blazing and indignant. With a posting style like that you should expect some gentle (and not so gentle) ribbing.
Basically North American knockoffs of Belgian Whites and not a bad way to get used to the style, especially when they are on tap. I'd recommend trying Cheval Blanc from Montreal if you come across it and Hoegaarden, if only because it's the template for all the rest (although there's debate about whether it still tastes the way it did originally or whether it has essentially become a knock-off of itself).
Shocktop is LaBatt/Budweiser's answer to Molson/Coors' Rickard's White/Pale Moon (which are the exact same beer btw). If memory serves me right it's slightly better but I never made a straight up comparison and it's been awhile since I had it.
They would have been better off going year to year with him. A 10 million dollar combine salary for 2014-2015 is peanuts, more than made up for by the 4 WAR season he provided last year. Now they have committed a bit too much and need him to become at least an average player again. It's not a ton of money but given their budget it hampers them going forward if he doesn't. Not sure if there's an explanation for this. He really shouldn't be this awfurl unless he's playing through an injury.
Good article btw. I like how you take your time with the concepts. Instead of the blog thread, this article is what should be brought to Kratz's twitter people's attention.