Red Sox 2012/2013 Offseason Thread

[a700hitter]

Well, take Edwin Jackson off the list, he has signed with the Cubs 52M/4yr.

I'm not quite sure what Theo's plan is. He had plenty of money to spend, and Jackson is his big acquisition. Even when the Cubs have sucked, they have always had some interesting players that drew fans to the ballpark. Theo has put together a completely boring roster that is destined for last place now that the Astros are in the AL. I would not be surprised to see them top 100 losses again.

[a700hitter]

I think if Napoli deal goes through, then Salty will be traded. He's not a great C, but he has value as a power bat that can sometimes pass as a C. That gives him some measurable value. Not a ton though. I'm still hoping for a Salty Floyd swap.

 

I think the Red Sox are stocking trade chips. If things are looking bleak around the TDL and some young talent has earned a look, I could see them moving Dempster, Ells, Drew, any of the BP arms and possibly Lester(if he pitches good not great he would have huge value at the TDL imo).

They should be moving Salty regardless of whether the trade goes through. We don't need 3 catchers, and it is time to give Lavarnway his shot. After Napoli is signed, the logjam becomes worse, and other teams will be sitting and waiting for us to DFA him then we will get some lowball offers.

[SoxSport]

They should walk away from that Napoli deal, and sign Swisher. Pierzynski just signed for $7.5 mil, which gives you an idea of how much they overpaid for Napoli. Now Napoli can also play 1B, but at what sacrifice to the defense? Unless they sign LaRoche, they aren't going to have much defense at 1B next year. The papers are saying Seattle walked away from Napoli because of the hip.

 

Right now, I don't like this team, and neither do a lot of the pundits out there. They have suddenly gotten old again--without the stars, and have no spending leverage--again.

[SoxSport]

The problem is we're stocking these "trade chips" BSN, but with the glacial way Cherington moves we may still be overburdened with surplus players in the same position by ST and it will wind up either sending prospects down to the minors "for more damn seasoning", sure condition for more waste of young talent or we trade them in a hurry then for ten cents on the dollar. Cherington should be busy right now working on deals and perhaps some of you out there will tell me that he most likely is However, I think we all know that Ben is a very slow mover and hesitant to pull the trigger on a trade. The guys's risk aversion is just sickening to me.

 

The Red Sox just announced a bunch of new "interns" joining the organization--assistant this and assistant that. What kind of baseball experience do they have? Doesn't say, except for Lombard, who didn't quite make it. These are the guys who will be the brains of the organization down the line a few years. And right now, they almost look like a bunch of kids off the street--or out of school. Are they paid as "interns"? I read a while back the former Houston GM started in the organization as a mail boy. That says a lot.

 

Regarding Cherington, I think that's an impression from his shy personality. Seems a bit withdrawn. What's more disturbing to me are his public statements of optimism about the team going back over a year. He was all wrong on his reading of the team. And the Napoli signing is going to haunt him if they go through with it.

[Bellhorn04]

Breaking news: the Giants have claimed Sandy Rosario off waivers from the Cubs.

[mvp 78]

s***, now people have started worrying about the FO interns... Jesus...

[a700hitter]

I am worried that the FO interns will be our pitching depth.

[onlybereaved]

s***, now people have started worrying about the FO interns... Shux...

 

Right? I read the news update on those 10 or more FO (more like back office) position changes and thought...hrmmm, don't care.

 

It almost seemed like the media was bridging the gap between news worth mentioning, while nothing exciting or important was happening lol.

[Palodios]

I am worried that the FO interns will be our pitching depth.

 

:lol:

[Palodios]

I'm not quite sure what Theo's plan is. He had plenty of money to spend, and Jackson is his big acquisition. Even when the Cubs have sucked, they have always had some interesting players that drew fans to the ballpark. Theo has put together a completely boring roster that is destined for last place now that the Astros are in the AL. I would not be surprised to see them top 100 losses again.

 

Edwin Jackson is an innings eater. He's not a stud, he's not an ace. The idea is by signing him, Theo gets a solid mid-rotation guy who will protect his bullpen and younger arms, which in theory will be built almost from scratch in the next 5 years through the draft, and trading away high value pieces on the ends of deals.

 

The Cubs signed a pile of AL pitchers to short team deals. I would not be surprised if Baker yields a top prospect at the deadline in 2013. Garza definitely will. Villanueva and Feldman will definitely benefit from getting out of Toronto/Texas.

[mvp 78]

I am worried that the FO interns will be our pitching depth.

 

I don't care about all these other moves. The fact that there has been no substantial change to the pitching staff speaks volumes on how much the FO wants to compete this year.

[a700hitter]

Edwin Jackson is an innings eater. He's not a stud, he's not an ace. The idea is by signing him, Theo gets a solid mid-rotation guy who will protect his bullpen and younger arms, which in theory will be built almost from scratch in the next 5 years through the draft, and trading away high value pieces on the ends of deals.

 

The Cubs signed a pile of AL pitchers to short team deals. I would not be surprised if Baker yields a top prospect at the deadline in 2013. Garza definitely will. Villanueva and Feldman will definitely benefit from getting out of Toronto/Texas.

Five years? Theo is on a 6 year plan? That would strain patience to the limit. If they lose 100 games for a second year in a row, that would be atrocious. Looking at their roster, they are a bucket of s*** and a boring one at that.

[a700hitter]

I don't care about all these other moves. The fact that there has been no substantial change to the pitching staff speaks volumes on how much the FO wants to compete this year.

What I don't understand is all the other acquisitions when they need pitching to be competitive. Why bother with Napoli, Victorino, Drew, and Gomes if they don't intend to compete? These are not guys who will put fannies in the seats, so they are not a fan appeasement moves designed to keep the turnstiles humming while not trying to win. I just don't see the strategy.

[SoxFanForsyth]

What I don't understand is all the other acquisitions when they need pitching to be competitive. Why bother with Napoli, Victorino, Drew, and Gomes if they don't intend to compete? These are not guys who will put fannies in the seats, so they are not a fan appeasement moves designed to keep the turnstiles humming while not trying to win. I just don't see the strategy.

 

As of right now, I think the strategy is to build the pen, and here's why.

 

ERA in the 7th inning last year:

 

Lester: 7.02

Buchholz: 6.23

Doubront: 11.57

 

They seem to be trying to bolster the bullpen so that these fires can be put out this year without allowing all of the inherited runners to score. So they are working on getting some arms who can put out fires and keep the team in games when the starters begin to falter.

 

I'm not saying I agree with this strategy. But I can certainly see how this is the strategy they're taking.

 

Also, they could move a combination of Ellsbury, Bailey, Salty, and some prospects and get a SP in return.

[mvp 78]

It has something to do with LL's deep depth nonsense. Overworrying about injuries and not having adequate replacements?

[mvp 78]

SFF, wouldn't fixing the SP better serve the 7th inning issue?

[Palodios]

Five years? Theo is on a 6 year plan? That would strain patience to the limit. If they lose 100 games for a second year in a row, that would be atrocious. Looking at their roster, they are a bucket of s*** and a boring one at that.

 

This is the Cubs we are talking about. They're probably the most patient fanbase in baseball at this point.

 

Theo gets a #2 draft back this year. He restocked his rotation big time this year, and it is probably better than the Red Sox's this year. Soler, Rizzo, Castro make a strong core for the future, and they have pretty insane payroll flexibility in the coming years. They're probably a .500 team the next few years but they'll be back to prominence soon enough.

 

What I don't understand is all the other acquisitions when they need pitching to be competitive. Why bother with Napoli, Victorino, Drew, and Gomes if they don't intend to compete? These are not guys who will put fannies in the seats, so they are not a fan appeasement moves designed to keep the turnstiles humming while not trying to win. I just don't see the strategy.

 

They have 15 million more under the luxury threshold. 19 million if they trade Salty. 31 million if they trade Ellsbury too. That's more than enough room for Marcum, but at the beginning of the offseason, the word was that Ben was looking to trade for starters, not buy them, so we'll see.

[Palodios]

Report saying the Pirates are asking for Iglesias for Hanrahan. I get the feeling that is something the Red Sox are very willing to do.

[SoxFanForsyth]

SFF, wouldn't fixing the SP better serve the 7th inning issue?

 

110% agree.

 

I just don't see any options worth pursuing this year, so I think they had to kind of alter their plans, think outside of the box, and create less exposure to the SP and more exposure to a very strongly built bullpen.

 

That's what it looks like so far at least. Bank on a couple of very high caliber arms that have proven to be effective in the majority of their careers in Lester and Buch, bank on them bouncing back.

 

I also think that Farrell has some say in this, I.e. Cherrington may ask if he thinks Lester's or Buchs stuff has diminished enough that they can't count on them to lead the staff, or if he feels like they are just a couple tweaks away from being Cy Young contenders again.

[SoxFanForsyth]

Report saying the Pirates are asking for Iglesias for Hanrahan. I get the feeling that is something the Red Sox are very willing to do.

 

Yeah I think a deal will get done with this. Sounds like an offer that the Sox would strike on quickly.

[jung]

IMO the Sox would dearly love to have somebody actually say they wanted Iggy and if a pitcher is what's coming back I think they would be packing Iggy's bags for him.

[SoxFanForsyth]

IMO the Sox would dearly love to have somebody actually say they wanted Iggy and if a pitcher is what's coming back I think they would be packing Iggy's bags for him.

 

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/blog/mlb-rumors/21435848/report-pirates-targeting-dee-gordon-and-jose-iglesias-in-talks-for-joel-hanrahan

 

There's the report that everyone is looking at.

 

From what I recall, the Dodgers say that they have to get a monster return for Dee Gordon to trade him.

 

My guess is that the Sox get Hanrahan, and the Dodgers sign Soriano.

[Spitball]

 

He restocked his rotation big time this year, and it is probably better than the Red Sox's this year.

 

First, I am not a Cub fan. During their brief return to almost respectability, I found their fan base in central Arkansas to be very obnoxious.

 

I respect your opinions, so I'd love to know how you feel Scott Baker and Scott Feldman are "big time" additions.

[Palodios]

First, I am not a Cub fan. During their brief return to almost respectability, I found their fan base in central Arkansas to be very obnoxious.

 

I respect your opinions, so I'd love to know how you feel Scott Baker and Scott Feldman are "big time" additions.

 

Feldman isn't all that exciting to me, but Scott Baker is one of those guys who gives you big innings at respectable ERA. Take him out of the AL, and he's probably a 3.50 ERA guy if he recovers from surgery well.

 

Villanueva saw quite a bit of success as a swing man this year in the ALE, so he's definitely going to enjoy throwing to NL lineups.

 

They didn't pay much for any of those guys either. Add Jackson and a healthy Garza to the mix and their rotation might be respectable this year.

[a700hitter]

Feldman isn't all that exciting to me, but Scott Baker is one of those guys who gives you big innings at respectable ERA. Take him out of the AL, and he's probably a 3.50 ERA guy if he recovers from surgery well.

 

Villanueva saw quite a bit of success as a swing man this year in the ALE, so he's definitely going to enjoy throwing to NL lineups.

 

They didn't pay much for any of those guys either. Add Jackson and a healthy Garza to the mix and their rotation might be respectable this year.

Garza seems to be a TJS in waiting. The Cubs roster as it is looks to be atrocious. They will no longer get to play the Astros 19 times, so they should have the basement all to themselves. Cubs teams throughout the years have had a few exciting players even though the team sucked. This roster offers the Cub fans nothing-- a boring losing group.

[Palodios]

Just to be clear, I did mention that I thought that they will be a good team in about five years

[Palodios]

Just to be clear, I did mention that I thought that they will be a good team in about five years

[example1]

IMO the Sox would dearly love to have somebody actually say they wanted Iggy and if a pitcher is what's coming back I think they would be packing Iggy's bags for him.

 

I think you are highly undervaluing Iglesias here. I'm not sure the Sox should expect a great return, but guys with virtually no MLB service time and all-star skills in a pretty important category have value to other clubs. Hell, minor league rosters are filled with guys who have significantly less upside than Iglesias and I could see him having some success in Pittsburgh. This is the kind of trade that makes some sense.

[jacksonianmarch]

Iglesias has limited value due to the total minus of his game on the offensive end. Even if he could hit at the level of a replacement level SS, he'd be worth it. But he hasnt shown that ability, hence his value is down. If the sox hold onto him and he gets big league time and hits .260 or so, then he'd be in big time demand

[BSN07]

Ya pass on Iggy for one year of Hanrahan.

 

I also find it a bit suspicious that a team as close to contention as Pittsburgh seems to be, is ready to trade away their closer? I'd rather they save the chips and sign Wilson.