Sources say Napoli signs with Sox.

[a700hitter]

If you believe $5 million is chump change, it's not such a bad risk. The downside is he doesn't play 10 games, or hits .227 again. In which case they take a hit at 1B. But then if their pitching doesn't turn around, it won't make any difference if Nap earns $5 mill or the full $13 mil.

That's right. The starting pitching is the key and it is much too thin. They need to add some quality depth. Also, the still need a lefty 1B/OF. I prefer Garrett Jones. The notion of Nava filling this role is a bad idea IMO.

[Palodios]

That's right. The starting pitching is the key and it is much too thin. They need to add some quality depth. Also, the still need a lefty 1B/OF. I prefer Garrett Jones. The notion of Nava filling this role is a bad idea IMO.

 

Honestly, I don't think any upgrade over Nava is going to help this much anywhere as much as an upgrade in the rotation. Assuming Upton is out of the picture, the next options aren't pretty. The Sox wanted Jones in the Hanrahan deal and were turned away.

 

Hairston is the next guy on the list. With the price he is asking for, I would much rather stick with Nava, and add some quality pitching depth.

 

Marcum and Lohse would be nice, but Jurrjens, Pavano, Vasquez, Oswalt, Saunders are still out there as well. I'm still okay with longshots like Braden, and Wood getting minor league contracts as well. And Brian Wilson won't be available till mid-season, but could you imagine that bullpen?

[Station 13]

 

Marcum and Lohse would be nice, but Jurrjens, Pavano, Vasquez, Oswalt, Saunders are still out there as well. I'm still okay with longshots like Braden, and Wood getting minor league contracts as well. And Brian Wilson won't be available till mid-season, but could you imagine that bullpen?

 

Most of those guys will not take minors contracts. The depth is Webster and De La Rosa, if both could come up and make a few quality starts like Tazawa did (beating the Tigers and Yankees) from 2009, it's better than any reclamation projects. After many fail projects in recent years (Smoltz, Penny, Cook, etc) it just better to give the prospects a chance now they actually have the pieces. Doubront was injured a lot in between those years and wasn't able to plug in the necessary spot starts.

[Station 13]

back to Napoli, from 39M to 5M, his hip must be made of foams.

[Palodios]

Most of those guys will not take minors contracts. The depth is Webster and De La Rosa, if both could come up and make a few quality starts like Tazawa did (beating the Tigers and Yankees) from 2009, it's better than any reclamation projects. After many fail projects in recent years (Smoltz, Penny, Cook, etc) it just better to give the prospects a chance now they actually have the pieces. Doubront was injured a lot in between those years and wasn't able to plug in the necessary spot starts.

 

Saunders, Marcum and Lohse absolutely will not. Pavano, Vazquez, Jurrjens, Wood, Braden? They're probably a different story.

 

The Red Sox are the absolute perfect place for a high ceiling pitcher to be in the minor leagues:

 

High exposure? Check.

High level of injury from starting staff, and potential to be promoted? Check.

High salary for minor contracts? Check.

Potential to reach the playoffs? Check... even if it may be a longshot.

[BSN07]

1 year 5M with what close to 8M in incentives? That hip must be bad. Oh well it's a good deal even if is leg does fall off. Won't hurt the team long term.

 

Def want Jurrjens.

 

Don't see them spending the money saved on Napoli as it's still possible it reaches 13M and that would mean going over the LT limit which I think they are trying to avoid if they can.

[dupree]

Jurrjens would be a nice option on a minors deal if he would take one. I think he has the potential to bounce back and at his age it could happen with a better chance than a Smoltz or Penny or Cook.

 

With the around 10million left under the cap i dont see the red sox doing much. I dont think a Lohse or Marcum will be used for that money. Lohse has a draft pick along with him so hes out plus he will want over 10million per and i would rather have a prospect come up and be giving the chance to see what hes got rather than blocking his path with someone like Marcum.

 

I could see a trade for a pitcher using one of our cathers or bullpen depth. But who i dont know or who the trade will be for but i think one could be made and prolly needs to be made and the 10million be used during the season to add more pieces.

[Palodios]

The Red Sox have publicly stated that if they are in a playoff hunt, they don't care about exceeding the luxury tax a little bit.

 

If they aren't in the hunt, Salty, Ellsbury, Drew, Dempster, Gomes and Napoli are all on one/two year deals so they can definitely bring it back down.

[a700hitter]

1 year 5M with what close to 8M in incentives? That hip must be bad. Oh well it's a good deal even if is leg does fall off. Won't hurt the team long term.

 

Def want Jurrjens.

 

Don't see them spending the money saved on Napoli as it's still possible it reaches 13M and that would mean going over the LT limit which I think they are trying to avoid if they can.

The X-rays of the hip must show quite a bit of damage and arthritis for the deal to end up at $5 million from $39 million. The Sox must have said we can't offer you the original deal. Your x-rays show that you have the hip of an 80 year old grandma. Napoli must have responded with I feel fine and he started dancing to Hey Sexy Lady, and they ended up at $5 million. Your guess is as good as mine as to what we see from him this season.

[seabeachfred]

72, woooaaahhh, Spudboy isn't even the old guy here anymore. Not even close.

 

I thought Spudboy was a kid until he told me he was in his 50's. I think I'm the senior on this board. Who else would be in his 70's and be such an ardent and passionate Red Sox fan to the point of insanity? Hell, maybe I'm just young at heart Emmz.

[seabeachfred]

The last I'll speak on the subject...

 

You guys act like Brooklyn was some mythical verbal sparring ground 50 years ago. However, it seems all it gave you was the ability to use emoticons and come up with dumb nicknames like Varipuke. It clearly didn't give you the ability to listen to anyone but yourselves.

 

It's just too easy to get you "sistas" all worked up over nothing. Good day to you, Queenie and Johnny Come Lately...

 

Good day to you too MVP. Actually you bring up a pretty going point about Brooklyn and New York in general. I can speak for y pal "Queenie" on this, but "Johnny Come Lately" can. First of all, I lived in Queens, not Brooklyn even though all my relatives lived there, but growing up in those two boroughs during the late 40's through the Mid 50's was an experience of a lifetime. New York was nicer then, a good place to live and play. We had our own games----Johnny on a pony, kick the can, Ring a Lario (Levio in Brooklyn), punch ball. We played all day and into the evening. We even had three baseball teams in the city and the arguments ringed back and forth----Yogi or Campy? Reese of Rizzuto?, Snider or Mantle?

 

And at the risk of being called a heretic, Red Sox fans during those years couldn't hold a candle to Brooklyn Dodgers fans when it came to rabidness and ardor. Yankee-Red Sox rivalry was third fiddle to Giants vs Dodgers. I said that because that was then. I have no real lingering deep seated loyalty to New York anymore save for Coney Island's Cyclone and my beloved Sea Beach subway train. I am a Californian through and through. Perhaps all the arguments we had over who was better than whom made us more argumentative and ready to verbal contact. As for those nicknames, those were mine alone and though maybe some other New Yorker might have come up with them, they are absolved of all blame for that. Anyway, let this be the last we have to say on this subject.

 

Now---what do the Red Sox do with that $34 million dollars they saved with the new signing of Napoli? Maybe a good starting pitcher perhaps?

[seabeachfred]

Signature worthy.

 

Good move User. Tell Ben that when he sends you out on another errand. Now the way I see it we get Napoli for one year and save $34 million dollars at first glance. If Mike has a big year he can earn up to $13 million with incentives. I like that. It does mean we need to resign him next year since we still will need a power hitting first baseman, but for this year we are in pretty good shape----if he and the rest of he crew can finally stay healthy.

 

With that extra money, I think a Marcum, Floyd or someone better than what we currently have in the rotation would be a good addition to the team. I'm still feeling we could use another decent starting pitcher. That what you think?

[seabeachfred]

You're kidding, right?

 

Here's the incompetence gang's reaction for you:

 

"Benny the Boob got lucky on this one because of Napoli's bum hip. It was nothing Ben did. Meanwhile, while he let this thing drag on forever, we could have signed the healthy and much better Adam LaRoche for 2 years and 24 million."

 

Well Bellie, I wonder who would say such a dastardly thing? Well since my name wasn't mentioned I'm assuming you meant someone else. Actually I'm glad this is over....almost!!!!!!!! There are now between $26 and $34 million dollars we have to play with. I think another good starting pitcher could be had for some of that money. Perhaps even an extra solid bat as well. How do you like that?

[dupree]

Fred i could be wrong but it would be 34 million total if the deal was for the orginal 3 year term but its just a one year deal. With 5 million garunteed and 8 million worth of incentives. So basiclly they saved 8 million not 34 million going toward the luxury cap. But the incentives in the contract if napoli fulfills all of them or whatever incentives he does make goes against the luxury cap. So unless the sox think nap in no way shape or form will take some of that 8 million incentive money and use on someone else. The Sox currently have around 10million to play with unless they dig into some of the incentive money for napoli which could put them over the limit with napoli being the napoli of old and spending money on another area of need.

 

I think they are gonna try to stay under the cap no matter what if they wasnt why have they been so frugal this offseason with how they spend.

[BSN07]

Well Bellie, I wonder who would say such a dastardly thing? Well since my name wasn't mentioned I'm assuming you meant someone else. Actually I'm glad this is over....almost!!!!!!!! There are now between $26 and $34 million dollars we have to play with. I think another good starting pitcher could be had for some of that money. Perhaps even an extra solid bat as well. How do you like that?

 

That's not money they have to play with. Like Pal said I believe, for this season they are about 10M from the LT. Thats what they have to play around with. Just because Napoli signed for less doesn't mean they now go out and give the rest to someone else. There's no one worth giving that money to.

 

But because of the deal, they will likely have more to play around with next off season then the did originally.

 

The team how it stands is pretty much what they will go with imo. A couple minor league signings(Jurrjens I'm hoping) and maybe a Salty trade and that about wraps it up for now.

[seabeachfred]

Most of those guys will not take minors contracts. The depth is Webster and De La Rosa, if both could come up and make a few quality starts like Tazawa did (beating the Tigers and Yankees) from 2009, it's better than any reclamation projects. After many fail projects in recent years (Smoltz, Penny, Cook, etc) it just better to give the prospects a chance now they actually have the pieces. Doubront was injured a lot in between those years and wasn't able to plug in the necessary spot starts.

 

I'm caught in between those two ideas Station. I still feel that either Marcum or Floyd would be nice additions, and Dojii is real high on Jurrgens. We sure didn't get much from those reclamation projects, did we? They turned out to be disasters. I will tell you this: We did NOT get the Dodgers' best minor league pitcher in that trade last August. Zack Lee is their big prospect on the mound. They say Webster has some great upside, but I saw DeLaRosa pitch a few times on TV and he was fast but unimpressive. His control was off and the hitters seemed to time him very well. I just don't know about him.

 

You mentioned Tazawa and 2009. Second game of a big three game series at Fenway. He shut out a hot Yankee team. We won by a big score and it was the only game we won against them the last ten times we played them. Great of you to remember that.

[seabeachfred]

Fred i could be wrong but it would be 34 million total if the deal was for the orginal 3 year term but its just a one year deal. With 5 million garunteed and 8 million worth of incentives. So basiclly they saved 8 million not 34 million going toward the luxury cap. But the incentives in the contract if napoli fulfills all of them or whatever incentives he does make goes against the luxury cap. So unless the sox think nap in no way shape or form will take some of that 8 million incentive money and use on someone else. The Sox currently have around 10million to play with unless they dig into some of the incentive money for napoli which could put them over the limit with napoli being the napoli of old and spending money on another area of need.

 

I think they are gonna try to stay under the cap no matter what if they wasnt why have they been so frugal this offseason with how they spend.

 

No dupree, you are most likely right on that. What I did was take the original $39 million offer to Napoli and then subtracted the $5 million and got $34. I do know they have some money to play with for pitching----and, face it, that is what we need. They say our bullpen could turn out to be solid this season and I sure hope that's the way it turns out, but I also don't want to see the pen gassed out by August. If we could sign a solid starter it means one of the original other five could be sent to the bullpen as the "long man" and give us another good arm from the seventh inning on. I still think it is all going to come down to pitching because I have to believe that, barring another slew of injuries, Ellsbury, Pedroia, Ortiz, Napoli Middlebrooks, and maybe a rebound by Victorino and Drew could give us a decent attack so long as we don't have to get into any 10-8 games.

[seabeachfred]

That's not money they have to play with. Like Pal said I believe, for this season they are about 10M from the LT. Thats what they have to play around with. Just because Napoli signed for less doesn't mean they now go out and give the rest to someone else. There's no one worth giving that money to.

 

But because of the deal, they will likely have more to play around with next off season then the did originally.

 

The team how it stands is pretty much what they will go with imo. A couple minor league signings(Jurrjens I'm hoping) and maybe a Salty trade and that about wraps it up for now.

 

Right BSN---Dupree set me straight on that too. I still can't quite get over the fact that we are now set for the season. I still think we can use another good starting pitcher and a good LH hitter who could play first and the outfield. There seems to be a groundswell of sorts for Jurrjens. Dojii has been talking him up recently and a few other too. I just think another starter would be good for the team. It could mean one of the starters could be long man in the bullpen which would add another short reliever to the mix for the last few innings. One thing none of the us can afford is to see how pen gassed out by early August.

[mvp 78]

Like I said you couldn't last. I'm a BayRidge boy. The Bensonhurst boys never had anything on us. They could lift a ton, but many couldn't spell it. What street did you "basically" live on in Bensonhurst?

 

"Couldn't last?" More like, didn't want to spend an additional second with my ex. Aside from J&V Pizza, Bensonhurst had little else going for it. It was on 67th, close to J&V (for me) and the porkstore (for my dog).

 

I have more respect for Fred knowing that he was from Queens instead.

[iortiz]

The X-rays of the hip must show quite a bit of damage and arthritis for the deal to end up at $5 million from $39 million. The Sox must have said we can't offer you the original deal. Your x-rays show that you have the hip of an 80 year old grandma. Napoli must have responded with I feel fine and he started dancing to Hey Sexy Lady, and they ended up at $5 million. Your guess is as good as mine as to what we see from him this season.

 

I literally imaged Napoli dancing Hey Sexy Lady

 

When you go from a 30 M+ to 5 M the question is already answered.That hip is not ok at all. You jus gave Gomes AVV money to Napoli.

 

I have understood that this contract has incentives and Napoli could end up making 13 M.

 

IMO there's still fuel in that tank. In this case my friend I think Ben made a good job here from my outside-in view.

 

On the other hand We are not set yet. We are still 1 arm away. Hopefully we could land that.

[BSN07]

Right BSN---Dupree set me straight on that too. I still can't quite get over the fact that we are now set for the season. I still think we can use another good starting pitcher and a good LH hitter who could play first and the outfield. There seems to be a groundswell of sorts for Jurrjens. Dojii has been talking him up recently and a few other too. I just think another starter would be good for the team. It could mean one of the starters could be long man in the bullpen which would add another short reliever to the mix for the last few innings. One thing none of the us can afford is to see how pen gassed out by early August.

 

Those pieces could already be on the roster and we don't know it yet. Always a few surprises every year. That and well, those could be spots the fill via trade later in the season.

[a700hitter]

"Couldn't last?" More like, didn't want to spend an additional second with my ex. Aside from J&V Pizza, Bensonhurst had little else going for it. It was on 67th, close to J&V (for me) and the porkstore (for my dog).

 

I have more respect for Fred knowing that he was from Queens instead.

First of all, I am not from Bensonhurst. I am a Bay Ridge kid. Brooklyn has many neighborhoods with very distinct ethnic and cultural feels. Bensonhurst was not one of my favorites, and Bay Ridge kids were not particularly welcome there. To tar all of Brooklyn with a few incidents in Bensonhurst is utter ignorance. Brooklyn is sprawling and diverse. With a population of 2.5 million it dwarfs Boston in population and geography. I would venture to say that more great people of achievement came from Brooklyn than any other city, and brooklyn isn't even a city.

 

I like Boston. It is one of my favorite cities. I didn't bring up the dark underbelly of past events in Boston to tar all of Boston with an undeserved reputation. But you chose to do that to Brooklyn in an unsolicited manner based on your experiences in a single neighborhood over the period of one year. That is why you are a jackass.

 

BTW, even though I am not from Bensonhurst, every one in bensonhurst and all of Brooklyn knows that the place for pizza in Bensonhurst was L&B Spumoni Gardens, not J & V.

[dupree]

I think the team is set pretty much what they are going with. I do think we missed out on some key free agents but thats all in the past now so thats over. I dont think Salty will be traded atleast not until the trade deadline, they just signed him to a deal worth 4.5million so unless a good middle of the rotation arm is dangled on the trade block i say he is here until midseason.

 

I thought a trade for Homer Bailey or Gavin Floyd would be fine with me or one of the young guys from the Athletics but none will prolly go anywhere. Floyd is prolly the most likely to move. Spring Training will give us more insight to how the team stands, also another 1;B/OF lhh bat would not be such a bad idea either but even tho a lot of us would love to see Garrett Jones i think they inquired in on him with the Hanrahan trade and found it would be a bit too much.

[mvp 78]

Brooklyn has more than one neighborhood? Wow, there's some great analysis. Does Bensonhurst represent all of Brooklyn? Of course not. I'm not here to belittle Brooklyn, just your childish "Fred and I are from Brooklyn yuck yucking" like it means anymore than growing up elsewhere.

 

Finally, I stopped caring about this conversation the second it started. We have nothing to prove to each other. You think I'm a jackass, that's fine. I don't care.

[a700hitter]

Brooklyn has more than one neighborhood? Wow, there's some great analysis. Does Bensonhurst represent all of Brooklyn? Of course not. I'm not here to belittle Brooklyn, just your childish "Fred and I are from Brooklyn yuck yucking" like it means anymore than growing up elsewhere.

 

Finally, I stopped caring about this conversation the second it started. We have nothing to prove to each other. You think I'm a jackass, that's fine. I don't care.

 

Let's get something straight. You maligned not just Brooklyn, my hometown, but all NYers with an accusation of racism leveled against all NYers. I didn't malign your hometown. Yes, it is a point of pride by people from Brooklyn that we love to argue and negotiate. We talk fast, think fast and our arguments are lively and colorful. If that point of pride bothers you, too f***ing bad. If you had a point of pride from your neighborhood, my response wouldn't be to say that your city is full of racists. If you can 't see that as obnoxious and immature, it must be because you are obnoxious and immature.

 

Edit: Fred grew up in Queens and I in Brooklyn, and we had very similar experiences, both loving where we grew up and the experiences that we had. Neither of us ever said that "it means anymore than growing up elsewhere." It's kind of messed up that it bothers you that we have fond memories and pride about our hometowns. Now go grow up.

[Lord Snow]

I absolutely love the Napoli signing.

 

$5M guaranteed? With $8M in incentives? Sounds like a great deal to me.

 

Of course the drop from $39M guaranteed to $5M suggests there might be something seriously wrong with his hip, but hopefully that isn't the case.

[mvp 78]

Now go grow up.

 

Sage advice from an "adult" who calls himself the king of a messageboard...

[seabeachfred]

Brooklyn has more than one neighborhood? Wow, there's some great analysis. Does Bensonhurst represent all of Brooklyn? Of course not. I'm not here to belittle Brooklyn, just your childish "Fred and I are from Brooklyn yuck yucking" like it means anymore than growing up elsewhere.

 

Finally, I stopped caring about this conversation the second it started. We have nothing to prove to each other. You think I'm a jackass, that's fine. I don't care.

 

Not to belabor the point but I'm sure what Ted was saying was that he and I had a lot of fun growing up when we did in Brooklyn and Queens. I would not want to live there now because I am a Californian through and through deep into my bones. However, I was once taught that if a person was ashamed of where he came from he wasn't much of a man and I can appreciate those 1 years I lived there. BTW, my maternal grandparents once lived at 1312 65th Street, just one block from the New Utrecht Sea Beach station and the

62nd St West End station.

 

Now back to baseball---what do you say? How about us getting another starting pitcher if we can and a hitter who can spell one of our regulars should one of them go down as they have so much the past for seasons?

[seabeachfred]

Brooklyn has more than one neighborhood? Wow, there's some great analysis. Does Bensonhurst represent all of Brooklyn? Of course not. I'm not here to belittle Brooklyn, just your childish "Fred and I are from Brooklyn yuck yucking" like it means anymore than growing up elsewhere.

 

Finally, I stopped caring about this conversation the second it started. We have nothing to prove to each other. You think I'm a jackass, that's fine. I don't care.

 

Not to belabor the point but I'm sure what Ted was saying was that he and I had a lot of fun growing up when we did in Brooklyn and Queens. I would not want to live there now because I am a Californian through and through deep into my bones. However, I was once taught that if a person was ashamed of where he came from he wasn't much of a man and I can appreciate those 14 years I lived there. BTW, my maternal grandparents once lived at 1312 65th Street, just one block from the New Utrecht Sea Beach station and the

62nd St West End station.

 

Now back to baseball---what do you say? How about us getting another starting pitcher if we can and a hitter who can spell one of our regulars should one of them go down as they have so much the past for seasons?

[a700hitter]

Sage advice from an "adult" who calls himself the king of a messageboard...

And you're too stupid to realize that is a tongue in cheek joke. What a dolt.