Official Hot Stove League Red Sox Thread

[kenberman]

no disrepect intended towards the 4 great remaining teams, but I need to start talking about the Red Sox again!

Key points to discuss:

is there really a chance the Trio will be without Theo next year?

Is Manny coming back? (ie will the Mets cough up enough money for him)

Who's gonna be 3rd? Youk?

What about 2nd? Will Pedroia be MLB ready? in a platoon with Cora?

Can we make a run at Konerko? Is this dependent on Manny being gone?

Will Damon take a 4 year deal, and if not, who's our CF? Any chance Hanley Ramirez could be a fit?

(Same question as last year): What of Kelly Shoppach?

And, does any of this matter if we can't shore up our pitching? (no). Can we pencil Papelbon in as a starter? Foulke as a reliever? Hansen as a set-up man? Delcarmen?

What about Sanchez and Lester - will they be next years Papelbon and Hansen, or will they be MLB ready come opening day?

Good luck to all remaining teams...but go Sox (in the offseason [img]/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img])

Edit: trolls not allowed in this thread...but all reasonable Yankee fans are [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Groooooan... the Real Sox disposed of you guys. If you wanna talk BoSox baseball with someone, do it in PM's.

[imported_The Vibesman]

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no disrepect intended towards the 4 great remaining teams, but I need to start talking about the Red Sox again!

Key points to discuss:

is there really a chance the Trio will be without Theo next year?

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I hear they're already working on an extension. I imagine he'll be back, if he doesn't ask for the moon.

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Is Manny coming back? (ie will the Mets cough up enough money for him)

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Unless they can get value on a trade - not likely - Manny will be back. He is too hard to replace in the order to just dump him.

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Who's gonna be 3rd? Youk?

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I expect so. It's possible Mueller resigns, but they probably want to get younger, and that's one of the obvious ways.

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What about 2nd? Will Pedroia be MLB ready? in a platoon with Cora?

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They are saying Pedroia might be ready, but that would be quick if he was. I would expect a stopgap-type player to platoon w/ Cora.

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Can we make a run at Konerko? Is this dependent on Manny being gone?

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I would expect them to go for someone younger than Konerko, but I really don't know who's available. I think regardless of the Manny situation, they will upgrade at 1st somehow.

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Will Damon take a 4 year deal, and if not, who's our CF? Any chance Hanley Ramirez could be a fit?

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I think Damon ends up elsewhere, w/ a team that wants to spend money/years. Hanley could be a possibility, but all signs point to him starting at AAA next year. I think they will address this through some sort of trade, possibly involving the subject of your next question.

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(Same question as last year): What of Kelly Shoppach?


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Stuck behind "Captain" Varitek, and Doug Mirabelli (whom I keep hearing is the best backup catcher in baseball, I don't know if its true), Kelly is between a rock and a hard place. I think he ends up as trade bait, and would have already but has not been able to show himself as ML ready.

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And, does any of this matter if we can't shore up our pitching? (no). Can we pencil Papelbon in as a starter? Foulke as a reliever? Hansen as a set-up man? Delcarmen?

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Papelbon as the fifth starter, Foulke will start the season as the closer if healthy. Hansen and Delcarmen will be given chances in spring training to play their way onto the team along with as many scrap-heap relief arms as Theo can find. We will start the season with a sub-par bullpen, a mix of inexperience and washed-up ancientness, which may or may not be improved as the season progresses. This is if the past seasons have been any indication.

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What about Sanchez and Lester - will they be next years Papelbon and Hansen, or will they be MLB ready come opening day?

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More likely to be next years Papelbon/Hansen, rather than contributors from Day 1.

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Good luck to all remaining teams...but go Sox (in the offseason [img]/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img])

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Well, I'm rooting for the ChiSox to win it all, so good luck to them. I always root for the team which eliminated mine from the playoffs, unless that team is the Yankees.

[SocialWelfareIV]

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Can we pencil Papelbon in as a starter?

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Most of the opinions that I've heard on this issue seem to take it as a foregone conclusion that Papelbon starts next year. I'm little bit concerned about this, however. I know that he's not exactly a young guy and may have passed the age where injuries are an overwhelming concern, but I'm very, very worried about any plan that has him throwing 200+ innings next year. I like the idea of bringing Arroyo back as a starter to begin the year, with Papelbon in the bullpen to start the year, then flipping them after a bit. I would shoot for about 180 innings pitched by Papelbon.

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Who's gonna be 3rd? Youk?

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Either Youk is starting at 3rd next year or he's traded. In my opinion it would be a mistake to bring back Mueller. Mueller is a nice player but he really wore down at the end of the year and I'd like to see a younger, cheaper player at 3rd. Youks tore it up in Pawtucket this year; give him a shot.

[kenberman]

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We will start the season with a sub-par bullpen, a mix of inexperience and washed-up ancientness, which may or may not be improved as the season progresses.

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wow, now there's something to look forward to.

I am more optimistic than you.

Assuming Foulke can pitch effectively next year, the bullpen will be upgraded automatically. Hansen could be a big help, as could Delcarmen with another year under his belt.

[Los Feliz Slim]

The Souvenir Store is having a big sale on Damon jerseys. That should tell you all you need to know about Damon [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[imported_The Vibesman]

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We will start the season with a sub-par bullpen, a mix of inexperience and washed-up ancientness, which may or may not be improved as the season progresses.

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wow, now there's something to look forward to.

I am more optimistic than you.


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I know. I'm just a little jaded at this point, as it seems every year under the new ownership we have started with a pretty lousy bullpen. I'm starting to think that, despite their ability to build a fantastic lineup, the team knows nothing about relievers, and is just throwing a bunch of crap at the wall to see what sticks. Our best upgrade in recent years was Foulke, and he was just a case of paying the most for the best available guy. Even the inseason pickups have been hit or miss.


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Assuming Foulke can pitch effectively next year, the bullpen will be upgraded automatically. Hansen could be a big help, as could Delcarmen with another year under his belt.

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I agree with all of this. I would like to see a decent veteran arm w/o much injury history added, but so would every team. I admit, there's not much in the way of good relief out there.

[SocialWelfareIV]

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We will start the season with a sub-par bullpen, a mix of inexperience and washed-up ancientness, which may or may not be improved as the season progresses.

[/ QUOTE ]

wow, now there's something to look forward to.

I am more optimistic than you.

Assuming Foulke can pitch effectively next year, the bullpen will be upgraded automatically. Hansen could be a big help, as could Delcarmen with another year under his belt.

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When Delcarmen came into the last game of the year and they flashed his ERA, it was a sad, sad moment. Something like 3.12...ended up as 3.00 after he recorded an out or two.

The bullpen and first base almost have to be better next year. The "efforts" they got from the players they shifted through those positions were barely good enough for those players to have major league careers.

[sam h]

I'm guessing that Manny stays, as he is really tough to trade at this point. Damon, however, I think is gone. Theo knows that four or five high-priced years at 32 is a bad contract, and there won't be the same public pressure to keep him that surrounded the Varitek signing.

I would like to see them bring Mueller back for a year, but I don't know whether he would accept that kind of deal. I just don't have much faith that Youkilis is an everyday third basemen.

They will upgrade at first for sure. There was speculation during the season that they would make a run at Aubrey Huff, who I think is a free agent and would be a a good fit for a moderate price.

I don't think there is any way to tell at this point whether Pedroia will be ready. The best bet seems to be the Sox signing a guy who could either play a subpar 2nd or be a utility infielder. If Damon leaves, this player, either Pedroia or somebody else, might end up batting leadoff so this is a crucial decision.

Papelbon should get a shot in the rotation, but the question is who he replaces. Schilling, Clement, and Wakefield should be locks next year, assuming neither of the old guys retire. I think Wells might retire, which would leave spots for Arroyo and Papelbon. But there will be a lot of pressure to add another more established starter too. I can see Arroyo being dealt.

The closer's role will probably be Foulke's to lose in spring training, but he might do just that. I can't see them not reworking bullpen, keeping Hanson, Timlin, and Myers but looking for two new guys.

[kenberman]

current rumors as of last night:

Renteria on the trade block (tell me again why we didn't resign Cabrera?)

Scott Boras told Gordon Edes (Globe baseball writer) that things are 'looking good' on the Sox/Damon negotiations, and Boras usually doesn't say things like that. Could be 4 years, $45M or something like that