…It Begins Again

After an interminably long and miserable winter, New Englanders are on the eve of a brand new baseball season just as the last of the snowbanks have melted. The Red Sox fell one game short of another trip to the World Series last October and the off-season provided a number of interesting twists and turns.

The Sox were big players in the Mark Teixiera free-agent sweepstakes only to find themselves having been played by the first baseman and his agent. The ownership and management traveled to Texas to “seal the deal” with Teixiera, only to discover that it was a just negotiating ploy. The Yankees were laying in the weeds and stepped in at the eleventh hour with the winning bid. In retrospect, perhaps this is for the best. Teixiera ought to have a terrific year in the new Yankee Stadium, as it has been configured identically to the old one with its short right-field porch. Teixiera was made for Wall Street and Madison Avenue with his clean-cut corporate image. While he says all the right things, and appears to do all the right things, maybe it's no accident that he's working on his fourth team in the last couple of years. He’s a stone cold mercenary, pure and simple, the sort of guy who evokes about as much sentiment as a human being has for a robot. Just plug him in and he’ll be good for 35-40 homers and 125 RBI’s.

The Yankees will be opening their billion-dollar palace in April, and to that end, committed nearly a half of billion in salaries to three free agents: C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Teixiera.

But not all is peaches and ice cream in the Bronx. A-Rod's off-season has been well chronicled and needs no further elaboration here. Another kiss-and-tell book is on the way right around the time he returns to the lineup after having rehabbed a hip injury. It ought to make for great theater. Around here, we really don't care what the Yankees do or don't do other than the 18 times we see them during the regular season. The Yankees are an older, more defensively challenged team than Boston or Tampa Bay. Instead of building a core group from within that brought great success from 1996-2000, the Steinbrenners have reverted to their previous ways of trying to buy a pennant with big names and bloated salaries. Maybe it will work this year, but chances are Tampa Bay will be equally if not more competitive with one quarter of the Yankees' payroll.

Despite having missed out on Teixiera, the Red Sox ended up having a very busy off-season. First, Mike Timlin retired after a very long and successful career as a reliever. But he had been largely ineffective in 47 games last year and it was time to go. Also retiring was "The Mayor", Sean Casey, who took a job as an analyst on the brand-new MLB Network. Casey was also a great pro but had to see the handwriting on the wall. He is a loquacious sort who ought to have a great career in broadcasting. Alex Cora also signed with the New York Mets as a free agent. Cora is a great "baseball man" who someday will probably make a very good big-league manager.

Coco Crisp was traded to Kansas City for reliever Ramon Ramirez. Ramirez had a great line for the Royals last year, pitching in 71 games, striking out 70 with a very respectable WHIP of 1.228. He did struggle in spring training however, so it remains to be seen how effective he'll be coming out of the bullpen this year. It was kind of sad to see Crisp leave Boston, because he made a number of spectacular catches in center field during his tenure with the Red Sox. However, he regards himself as a full-time player, and he wasn’t going to get the at-bats with the emergence of Jacoby Ellsbury the club's everyday centerfielder. He handled this situation well as a professional last year and did not whine or bitch as some others have done in the recent past (Jay Payton), so we wish him all the best with the Royals.

Mark Kotsay re-signed with the Sox as a free agent in January, then promptly had back surgery that will keep him out of the lineup until some time in May. It obviously begs the question whether Kotsay was forthright with the Red Sox about his medical condition before signing on the dotted line. Julio Lugo entered Spring Training bound and determined to reclaim his starting shortstop role from Jed Lowrie and was having a terrific spring until he suffered a knee injury that will keep him out of the lineup until mid-April. When he returns to the team, the situation regarding his playing time will be one that bears watching because he has made it clear that he considers himself a full-time starter while Lowrie is developing into a really good player.

As far as the notable additions to this year's team, the Sox signed four guys are coming off injury/illness situations that make them low risk/high reward possibilities. The first is Brad Penny, the extremely large right-hander who had success with Florida and the Dodgers before going through a subpar year in 2008 with shoulder woes. He had a good and healthy spring and is projected right now as the number five starter. Also coming over from the Dodgers was Takashi Saito, their one-time closer who suffered an elbow injury last year. He was nursed along during Spring Training and was lights out in March. The Sox also brought in Rhode Island native Rocco Baldelli, who was ticketed for superstardom with Tampa Bay before his career was derailed with injuries and a form of "channelopathy," which had been previously misdiagnosed but now appears to be a treatable condition with medication. The Sox brought him along slowly during spring training where he struggled at first, but his power really picked up in the final two weeks of the grapefruit league schedule. Because he's in New Englander, and a really decent down to earth young man who has been humbled by injury and illness, Sox fans of pulling very hard for this kid to succeed. Last but not least, the Sox signed John Smoltz from Atlanta. Smoltz is coming off of major arm surgery and won't be seen around Fenway until June at the earliest. He'll still be rehabbing in Fort Myers for a while before tuning up in the minors. Smoltz is a Hall of Famer in the waiting with an incredible work ethic and no stranger to performing when the stakes are at the highest in October. Hopefully, he'll be raring to go when crunch time rolls around.
As far as the returning starters, there are big question marks regarding Mike Lowell, David Ortiz and Jason Varitek. Lowell is coming off of hip surgery and his nose was a little out of joint when he learned that the Sox were hot and heavy in the Teixiera sweepstakes. He was brought along slowly during spring training and progressed about as well as could be expected. Ortiz also had a down year last year trying to work through a wrist injury and the departure of Manny Ramirez. He created a little friction when he called upon the management to go out and get another power bat and was somewhat rebuked by Kevin Youkilis, who offered that it was already sufficient power and balance in the lineup. Varitek had a dreadful 2008 both on and off the field. His contract expired at the end of last year and he did not win any fans in Boston by rejecting arbitration, thus becoming a free agent. Had Varitek accepted arbitration, the Sox would have been on the hook for $10 million or so for this year. However, he and his agent badly misread the marketplace and he wound up signing a two-year deal for the same money. If not for the fact that he was team captain and starting catcher for two World Series winning teams, he would not have been back for 2009 despite his hard work and intense pregame preparation. Varitek's backup/knuckleball catcher for this year will be George Kottaras, the young Canadian with the Sox picked up from San Diego in exchange for David Wells a few years ago. Kottaras was out of options, so it was either keep him or let him go. At this point, unless Kottaras performs above expectations, the Sox still have not addressed the need to find Varitek's eventual replacement.

Until Lugo and Kotsay returned to the lineup, their spots will be filled by the well-traveled Nick Green and Chris Carter, a promising young power hitter that the Sox picked up from Arizona a couple years ago for Wily Mo Pena (who was recently waived by Washington).

In looking at the prospects for the 2009 edition of the Red Sox, they ought to have a good year and be in the thick of contention for a postseason berth. Their chances hinge largely on the health and effectiveness of Lowell, Ortiz and Varitek. The pitching should be just fine. Enjoy the games for what they are and have fun with the new season as it unfolds day by day.
Once more, it's time for our annual “Pointless Predictions”

AL EAST
1. Tampa Bay - the only thing stopping them is potential bullpen issues.
2. NY Yankees - $200 Million only buys so much these days.
3. Boston – Too many “if’s”.
4. Baltimore – Still dreadful, but mixing youth into the lineup.
5. Toronto – Too many changes too soon, especially with the starters.

AL CENTRAL
1. Cleveland – Big Bounceback for the Tribe.
2. CWS – Lack Of Pitching Depth, Very Good Lineup.
3. Minnesota – Always In the Thick of Things.
4. Detroit – Zero Pitching Depth
5. Kansas City – Better than in years past, still a ways to go.

AL WEST
1. LA Angels – Still the Best of the West.
2. Oakland – Despite the New Thump, Still Pitching Questions.
3. Texas – Great Hitting, Poor Pitching (The Song Remains The Same)
4. Seattle – No Noticeable Improvement From Last Year.

NL EAST
1. NY Mets – This is the Year (New Closer & Set-up Guys)
2. Philly – World Champs Have A Hangover Year.
3. Atlanta – Retooling For Another Run.
4. Florida – Still Trending Up.
5. Washington – Still Treading Water.

NL CENTRAL
1. Cubs – Could This Really, Seriously (No Joking) Be The Year?
2. Cincy – Great Young Talent Makes Their Mark.
3. St. Louis – Always Competitive
4. Milwaukee – Potent Lineup, Lacks Pitching Depth. As
5. Houston – Meh…
6. Pittsburgh – (Shakes Head In Disgust At Penurious Ownership).

NL WEST
1. Arizona – Most Well-Constructed and Balanced Team In Division.
2. LA Dodgers – A Very Good Team With Manny, Not A Great One.
3. Colorado – Another Sideways Year.
4. San Diego – A Lost Year As Fans Pay For Owner’s Messy Divorce.

Let’s Play Ball!!!