Looking Forward

[bigpappi2004]

I am talking offseason here.

 

What do you see the Sox doing and do you see us as a contender next year (might be a little early )

[jsinger121]

well they will bringing up pedroia to play secondbase for likely the next 10 years. i want to see him now but we know they will never cut a veteran like loretta.

[Toshi]

I think this year exposed our weakness in the pitching staff. Yeah sure we have some bright spots in Shill, and Pap, but what else? Beckett was a great pick up and should be a force in years to come, but we need about two or three more long relievers or starters to make a run. I wonder if trading Arroyo was a good idea, I know Wily Mo has been producing as of late, but is it a little toolate? Besides, we got more power than we need, and the last few games showed it. Everyone went long, but what, sweep by the ROYALS???? There better be some arms in the minors that we can call on or we'll be in for another long winter.

[jsinger121]

Arroyo has been fading if you haven't noticed. He is coming back to what he is and thats an average pitcher. Wily Mo is starting to come into his own here and could form a great 3-4-5 with manny and ortiz

[a700hitter]

The FA crop of pitchers is not all that attractive this year. I'm not a big Zito fan.

[Toshi]

Yeah, but where do you put Wily Mo in the field? Up till now, he's been a good fill for the regulars, but who can he replace? Coco? Nope, can't hold a candle there. Trot? OK for now, but when he comes back, what happens? I just think that Arroyo would be more useful down the road, not necessarily that he's a better player of value. Bottom line, we need starting pitching.

[SCM33]

Yeah, but where do you put Wily Mo in the field? Up till now, he's been a good fill for the regulars, but who can he replace? Coco? Nope, can't hold a candle there. Trot? OK for now, but when he comes back, what happens? I just think that Arroyo would be more useful down the road, not necessarily that he's a better player of value. Bottom line, we need starting pitching.

 

 

Trot Nixons days in Boston are over.

 

Arroyo or not, This team was not going to win anything this year. Again, Arroyo does not make this team a World Series contender. Who the hell cares we traded away an average pitcher.

 

Heres the spoiler for next year. Before you get all hyped up over the offseason, they are not going to win the World Series next year either, and they arent trying to. No FA pitcher on the market makes them WS contenders.

Heres a spoiler for 2 years from now....Schilling will be gone, so will Wake....and they wont be competing for a WS then either.

 

I dont understand why Sox fans can't just understand what they are doing. They were not going to keep Arroyo, bc they knew they werent going to seriously compete. Arroyo had more value as a trading chip than a SP. Theo knew they didnt really have a chance with the current club, he knows this years FA SP crop is weak. He is gunna fill and plug holes until all of our young talent is ready, THEN he will pull the trigger on a move that SIGNIFICANTLY helps the club and makes them WS contenders a few years from now.

 

So for you fans out there who are unhappy with the team and how its going, Id say you have to get used to it for a few more years, because Theo isn't going anywhere and I believe the FO believes in his plan.

[guapo34]

The interesting thing about this offseason is we have some money to spend. There are not alot of big names out there this year. If you assume Wily Mo in right and pedroia at second that leaves SS and pitching. In the rotation you have Schilling, Beckett, Wake, Lester, and Clement. Clement probably gets traded for whatever we can get. Available starting pitchers are: Zito, Schmitd, Lilly, Mulder, followed by alot of risky pitchers. The only real SS available are Gonzalez and Lugo. It would be interesting if we bring Gonzalez back, and spend our cash on the japanese pitcher Matzusaka, but that will probably cost lots of money.

[riverside sluggers]

Catcher- Jason Varitek

Backup-- Doug Mirabelli (He is chained to Wake if he stays in the rotation)

 

1st base- Kevin Youkilis

Backup-- Daryle Ward http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/6002

 

2nd base- Dustin Pedroia

 

Shortstop- Alex Gonzalez

Backup-- Alex Cora

 

3rd base- Mike Lowell

 

Left Field- Manny Ramirez

 

Center Field- Coco Crisp

 

Right Field- Wily Mo Pena

Backups-- Gabe Kapler

David Murphy

 

Starting Rotation:

Curt Schilling

Josh Beckett

Jonathan Papelbon (if he remains closer, free agent aquisition like Jason Schmidt)

Jon Lester

Tim Wakefield

 

Bullpen:

Julian Tavarez (strictly mop-up)

Craig Breslow (lefty reliever in Pawtucket)

take a chance on Joey Eischen? http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/5266/career;_ylt=Aj2YdXQ4yydkhnB8.3yZV1qFCLcF

Craig Hansen

Manny Delcarmen

Justin Speier

If Papelbon isnt closer, acquire free agent acquisition like Eric Gagne

[jacksonianmarch]

The FA crop of pitchers is not all that attractive this year. I'm not a big Zito fan.

 

I really disagree with you there. There are a ton of left handed arms available, and there are two righty power arms that teams will be fighting over. Here are the guys to target.

 

1. Daisuke Matsuzaka- the MVP of the WBC. This guy is absolutely nasty. Take a look at this link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsptUfnhVcc

He throws 95mph consisently and has 3 plus off speed pitches. He ha a sharp slider, a great change and a gyroball. In the above link, he K's a guy with a gyroball. It seems to defy physics. He will be posted in the offseason and will likely draw a 20+ mil posting fee, then he will have to be signed. I know George has targeted him for awhile now, but at 26 yrs old, he should be a target for any team looking for pitching. Prediction on amounts- 24mil posting fee and a 5 yr 55mil contract.

 

2. Barry Zito- For those who want to say he "isnt the pitcher he was before" you are wrong. Barry had one career season in 2002 where he had an era of 2.75 and had 23 wins. Cancel that out with his career worst in 2004 where his era ballooned up to 4.48 and you have a very consistent pitcher. His ERA has been between 3 and 4 for of his 6 full seasons with it being below 3 once and above 4 once. He has allowed many less hits than IP and he will K batters to a tune of 7 per 9IP. He does walk a lot of batters, but his career WHIP is acceptable (1.24) for the upper class of pitching and his innings eating ability and the fact that he is left handed will draw him a lot of attention.

 

3. Jason Schmidt- A power pitcher who will be 34 by the start of spring training next yr. That seems to be a dicey pick here, but when he is healthy, he can bring it. He can throw upper 90s and has two plus off speed pitches. Ever since coming to the Giants in 2001, he has had a 3.38ERA with around 9K/9IP. He will walk his fare share, but not like Zito, but will also give up many fewer hits. This season has been one of his better personal years, but as usual, this guy is in the low 3's in ERA like clockwork. He should be high on any teams's list if they are looking for a power starter. Prediction: 4yrs 50mil

 

4. Mark Mulder- Consistency is one word you can use for Mulder. He, like Zito has kept his ERA under 4 for his entire career save one season. But this year has been different. He has battled through shoulder injuries and without a solid finish he may end up with a short term deal with incentives. Left handed, proven winner, innings eater, and proven AL arm for hire. Prediction- Incentive laden 1 yr deal or for the gambling type, an AJ Burnett deal 5yrs 55mil.

 

5. Andy Pettitte- no need to break him down, all on here are familiar with him. Essentially, he had some shoulder issues earlier this yr and was awful. He has battled back and is again an elite in the status of most. He will turn 35 next yr in June and will likely be headed back to an AL team when the time comes. If anyone wants to see ace #s, look to last yr. Prediction- 3yrs 39mil.

 

Those are 5, top of the rotation arms that will hit the market this yr. The Yankees will grab one, likely the Japanese player. The sox will have the pick of the rest and man are there some good ones. There are many others in the lower tier as well.

[Cocos Disciples]

Pettitte doesn't get 13 million IMO, as his contract year was a big disappointment. As for riverside's post, Ward was a guy who I thought they may target as a backup for this year, but they ended up with JT Snow. We'll see how it pans out, Loretta and Nixon are likely done.

[MANNYHOF24]

I still havent given up hope! We can turn it around

[RoyNHSox]

Forget Zito as Boras will be looking for a multi-year deal for something like 5 years/$75M. Given the Sox FO's dislike for long-term contracts, I see no chance in hell the Sox will even sniff on this one.

[Pesky]

It's definitely too early to be talking about next season. But whatever.

 

We need to go after a big time starter. Next year is Schilling's last year, maybe.

 

Schilling, Beckett, Lester, Papelbon?, Wakefield is fine, but I think getting a guy like Schmidt would obviously be great.

 

Don't get Zito, he couldn't beat the Yankees if his life depended on it.

 

The offense is fine. It has kept up with the Yankees all year, and unlike them, we have a young offense. Wily Mo, Manny and Coco will be the outfield. Youks, Pedroia, Gonzo, and Lowell will be the infield. That will work fine.

 

Their will be no good closers on the market, besides Gagne and Wickman...so maybe keeping Paps in the closer spot for at least some of the season is a good idea. I am not sold on Hansen yet.

 

 

Getting an ace is key. You can't have enough pitching, which we learned the hard way this year.

[Cocos Disciples]

It's definitely too early to be talking about next season. But whatever.

 

We need to go after a big time starter. Next year is Schilling's last year, maybe.

 

Schilling, Beckett, Lester, Papelbon?, Wakefield is fine, but I think getting a guy like Schmidt would obviously be great.

 

Don't get Zito, he couldn't beat the Yankees if his life depended on it.

 

The offense is fine. It has kept up with the Yankees all year, and unlike them, we have a young offense. Wily Mo, Manny and Coco will be the outfield. Youks, Pedroia, Gonzo, and Lowell will be the infield. That will work fine.

 

Their will be no good closers on the market, besides Gagne and Wickman...so maybe keeping Paps in the closer spot for at least some of the season is a good idea. I am not sold on Hansen yet.

 

 

Getting an ace is key. You can't have enough pitching, which we learned the hard way this year.

 

Does anyone ever say we learned it the easy way? Like I hear people always talking about learning s*** the hard way, but nobody says I learned it the easy way. If there is no easy way, then it's all hard! :(

[Pesky]

Does anyone ever say we learned it the easy way? Like I hear people always talking about learning s*** the hard way' date=' but nobody says I learned it the easy way. If there is no easy way, then it's all hard! :([/quote']

 

The easy way would be like the Angels seeing what happened to us, and realizing that they shouldn't ever trade away their surplus of pitching, and then never let it happen. Or Theo using common sense and seeing that all the recent world series winners won on pitching, and realizing that giving it up isn't smart.

 

However, I don't think we'd be any better off if we had kept Arroyo, and Foulke stayed healthy which meant Paps become a starter.

 

You just can't have too much pitching, ever. Ever. I am sure Theo wont make the same mistake twice.

[jacksonianmarch]

It's definitely too early to be talking about next season. But whatever.

 

We need to go after a big time starter. Next year is Schilling's last year, maybe.

 

Schilling, Beckett, Lester, Papelbon?, Wakefield is fine, but I think getting a guy like Schmidt would obviously be great.

 

Don't get Zito, he couldn't beat the Yankees if his life depended on it.

 

The offense is fine. It has kept up with the Yankees all year, and unlike them, we have a young offense. Wily Mo, Manny and Coco will be the outfield. Youks, Pedroia, Gonzo, and Lowell will be the infield. That will work fine.

 

Their will be no good closers on the market, besides Gagne and Wickman...so maybe keeping Paps in the closer spot for at least some of the season is a good idea. I am not sold on Hansen yet.

 

 

Getting an ace is key. You can't have enough pitching, which we learned the hard way this year.

 

Let's not delude ourselves here. The Yankee offense is built with a lot of early thirty something hitters. They will be mashing for the next 3-4 yrs on just these guys alone.

[rician blast]

You just can't have too much pitching, ever. Ever. I am sure Theo wont make the same mistake twice.

 

but thank the heavens we have Wily Mo...oh, sorry, there I go beating that horse again.

 

you are right though...we all know that pitching is the key, would be nice to land a big game pitcher this coming offseason.

[Papelbon58]

I don't think Gagne is worth the risk. I think we should get Zito and a decent number 4 guy, put Wake in the pen and get rid of Tavarez, leaving Paps as closer

[schillingouttheks]

I don't understand why some people are so high on Zito. Even the year that he won the Cy Young, it didn't belong to him, it belonged to Pedro. Zito would get eaten alive at Fenway with the monster. You can guarantee opposing managers will stack their lineups with right handed hitters to take advantage of Zito as a lefty, and the monster, at the same time. Besides, would you really want to spend 75 million over 5 years on Zito?

[Pesky]

I don't understand why some people are so high on Zito. Even the year that he won the Cy Young, it didn't belong to him, it belonged to Pedro. Zito would get eaten alive at Fenway with the monster. You can guarantee opposing managers will stack their lineups with right handed hitters to take advantage of Zito as a lefty, and the monster, at the same time. Besides, would you really want to spend 75 million over 5 years on Zito?

 

I agree, he isn't worth it.

 

Zito in Boston= disaster. He should be a last resort. From 03-05, his ERA vs. the Yankees was 5.44. This year it is pushing 9. He is notoriously bad verse the Yankees. Living in New York, I watch a lot of Yankee games. My most vivid memories are Zito getting shelled by them. I just couldn't take it. I don't think he would thrive under the pressure either.

 

He is an overrated pitcher.

[rician blast]

Zito is Fenway might be bad, but he is 12-8 with a 3.73 era...not too shabby...and I wouldn't be all that surprised to see the Yankees make a run at him.

 

Some righty FAs (in some cases don't know if they've recently signed extensions or if team has option):

 

Schmidt 9-7, 3.15

Contreras 10-4, 3.75

Radke 11-8, 4.65

Smoltz (team option) 9-5, 3.54

Ramon Ortiz 9-6, 4.60

Gil Meche 9-6, 4.35

 

Some Lefties:

Mulder 6-5, 6.09!!

Pettitte 10-12, 4.96

Redman 7-6, 5.49

Ted Lilly 10-10, 4.01

[ORS]

I think Contreras was extended, not sure though, and Radke has said he would probably retire at the end of the year. I like the idea of picking up Schmidt. He'd be a good veteran to lead the youngsters when Schilling hangs up the spikes at the end of next year.

[Cocos Disciples]

Dark horse is Gil Meche, obviously not as an ace, but as a 4 or 5, he's a quality pitcher.

[schillingouttheks]

I dunno what happened with him this year, but something's going right. Assuming he can continue to just do what he's been doing, he'd fit right in to the back of the rotation.

[Cocos Disciples]

He works out of jams well, he has a .216 or something opponents average with RISP.

[SCM33]

Zito is Fenway might be bad, but he is 12-8 with a 3.73 era...not too shabby...and I wouldn't be all that surprised to see the Yankees make a run at him.

 

Some righty FAs (in some cases don't know if they've recently signed extensions or if team has option):

 

Schmidt 9-7, 3.15

Contreras 10-4, 3.75

Radke 11-8, 4.65

Smoltz (team option) 9-5, 3.54

Ramon Ortiz 9-6, 4.60

Gil Meche 9-6, 4.35

 

Some Lefties:

Mulder 6-5, 6.09!!

Pettitte 10-12, 4.96

Redman 7-6, 5.49

Ted Lilly 10-10, 4.01

 

Schmidt in Boston would be nice, probably a pipe dream.

Contreras will be resigned I am assuming.

Radke will also resign, he has stated he wants to stay in MIN.

Smoltz will most likely go to DET or stay put if ATL wants him.

Ortiz....no thanks.

Meche is interesting.

Mulder is someone i might consider if he is cheap and swallows his pride.

Pettite is someone who has always intrugued me, he is a winner.

Redman...no thanks

Lilly...no thanks, those walks would kill him in FEN, not to mention he gives up about a hit per inning. 1 hit per, plus a walk every two would kill him.

[noonanberg]

i wouldn't mind making a pitch for buerhle. a solid lefty who should be good for roughly fifteen wins and is still pretty young. also a long shot, but a potential big reward if lucky could be kerry wood. yes i know he's hurt more often than david beckham in the world cup, but he could be cheap because of all the injuries. if by some stroke of luck he stayed healthy and was still effective, he could be a steal. other than those two, i don't think there's any starter out there really worth the amount of money it would probably cost.

[jacksonianmarch]

i wouldn't mind making a pitch for buerhle. a solid lefty who should be good for roughly fifteen wins and is still pretty young. also a long shot, but a potential big reward if lucky could be kerry wood. yes i know he's hurt more often than david beckham in the world cup, but he could be cheap because of all the injuries. if by some stroke of luck he stayed healthy and was still effective, he could be a steal. other than those two, i don't think there's any starter out there really worth the amount of money it would probably cost.

 

Kerry Wood is going to convert himself to a reliever.

[Beckett95]

i think we should go all out and spend money on the best FA pitcher available this offseason...

 

http://www.japaneseballplayers.com/en/player.php?id=matsuzaka

 

 

i would bring him in for 5 years/55 million.

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2006/08/will_the_lions_.html

i hope he does get posted, and it will probably come down to the Sox and Yankees for him.

 

Yuliesky Gourriel would also be on my list, when he comes available.