If lggy comes out on fire....

[MANNYHOF24]

What do we do with Stephen Drew? Try to trade him in June for pitching depth perhaps? If the bullpen depth plays out in our favor we could try to package drew and bailey for something decent. What do you guys think... Maybe it's a pipe dream to think Iggy is going to play well, but the kid is swinging a much more confidant stick this spring and his defense is out of this world good. He would really help out the pitching staff.

[MANNYHOF24]

I'm secretly dreaming of a 2014 infield of boegarts at third, Iggy at SS, Pedroia at second and Middlebrooks at first.

[kapsis21]

I'm secretly dreaming of a 2014 infield of boegarts at third, Iggy at SS, Pedroia at second and Middlebrooks at first.

 

i second that. love this idea. with a decent DH we would get power and defense. the only hope is Iggy can staty at .250

[Dojji]

Drew bats left, that will help him get back into the lineup.

 

I would not mind at all having Drew and Iglesias push each other for playing time all year. A nice best case scenario presents itself there.

[jung]

Well in the first place in the scenario as presented I don't think you get much for a combination of Drew and Bailey. If Iggy is getting the playing time, Drew won't have the means to make himself all that attractive and now he already has a contract. So for any team interested in him his money is set.

 

I would prefer to see Drew and Iggy pushing each other, presuming Iggy can keep this up. If he can keep it up, I could not be happier for him. He has not gotten a break till now. Whoever got him onto that new swing really deserves a good deal of credit regardless of what happens from here. That new shorter swing has literally been breathing new life into his baseball career.

[BSN07]

What do we do with Stephen Drew? Try to trade him in June for pitching depth perhaps? If the bullpen depth plays out in our favor we could try to package drew and bailey for something decent. What do you guys think... Maybe it's a pipe dream to think Iggy is going to play well, but the kid is swinging a much more confidant stick this spring and his defense is out of this world good. He would really help out the pitching staff.

Keep him as I'm sure Iggy will hit a wall eventually and will need some days off. Drew might be able to come in as a Utility type.

I'm secretly dreaming of a 2014 infield of boegarts at third, Iggy at SS, Pedroia at second and Middlebrooks at first.

 

Ya I got on this kick really early on this off season and I think it has a legitimate shot at happening.

[jung]

I should also mention that if in fact Iggy can keep this up and perform at something like .240-.250 for a BA, I could not be happy for the Sox either cause I think they would have ended up giving up on Iggy. It has only been ST stuff so far but at least I am not completely convinced that Iggy's future is elsewhere. Now I at least have some hope of seeing the Sox with a real live SS out there next to Pedey.

 

Did you see Pedey yesterday....He was like go for it kid....get those balls up the middle. Pedey was like wow I am likin' this!

[SoxSport]

I'm secretly dreaming of a 2014 infield of boegarts at third, Iggy at SS, Pedroia at second and Middlebrooks at first.

 

I'll have to tweet that to Middlebrooks.

[SCM33]

I'm secretly dreaming of a 2014 infield of boegarts at third, Iggy at SS, Pedroia at second and Middlebrooks at first.

 

That would be a breath of fresh air. I have my doubts about Iggy, but of course I wish he proves me wrong.

 

I do see Boeggarts at 1B however and WMB staying at 3B.

[Orange Juiced]

The Red Sox are rich in shortstop prospects. Iglesias, if his bat can be even close to mediocre, will be a true major league weapon given his superlative defense. Bogaerts, given his terrific bat, is a star in the making. But beyond those two, they also have Devin Marrero, Jose Vinicio, Brock Holt, and Tzu-Wei Lin.

 

See this article for more information on their riches at the position:

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/25620/soxprospects-stacked-up-the-middle

[a700hitter]

The Red Sox are rich in shortstop prospects. Iglesias, if his bat can be even close to mediocre, will be a true major league weapon given his superlative defense. Bogaerts, given his terrific bat, is a star in the making. But beyond those two, they also have Devin Marrero, Jose Vinicio, Brock Holt, and Tzu-Wei Lin.

 

See this article for more information on their riches at the position:

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/25620/soxprospects-stacked-up-the-middle

Holt is an inferior fielder and not a big offensive guy either. We are all waiting on this kid Bogaerts to see if he will be a bona fide star. A slick fielding SS with a barely adequate ML stick (i.e Iggy) is not something that I would call "riches". The other guys are so far away from making a run at the ML club that we really don't know what they are. People have to get excited about something I guess when there is so little that is interesting about this team.

[Thunder]

Drew will stay as a back up who gets playing time on matinee games and such. He can also play a little second to give Pedey some rest every so often. This is only IF Iggy comes out on fire... The guy who is already on fire is Bradley.

[SoxSport]

If Iggy and Bradley shine, do they have the balls to keep them in the lineup? We'll see. I don't see Cherington as much of a leadership type--but there are other forces at work--the ticket sellers who know how to gauge public interest. Mainly Lucchino. It's nice to have to deal with positive surpises. Just don't blow the opportunity.

[User Name]

And the internet psychoanalysts continue to thrive....

[BSN07]

If Iggy and Bradley shine, do they have the balls to keep them in the lineup? We'll see. I don't see Cherington as much of a leadership type--but there are other forces at work--the ticket sellers who know how to gauge public interest. Mainly Lucchino. It's nice to have to deal with positive surpises. Just don't blow the opportunity.

 

Apparently they have some sort of "balls", they did jettison Youk to make room for a hot hitting WMB.

[SoxSport]

Apparently they have some sort of "balls", they did jettison Youk to make room for a hot hitting WMB.

 

Actually, they brought him up because Youk was hurt. When MBrooks started crushing the ball, they ditched Youks. Youks has been looking good in ST. Clean shaven. But it's only ST.

Most think he's in decline. White Sox did.

[rorschach]

Actually, they brought him up because Youk was hurt. When MBrooks started crushing the ball, they ditched Youks. Youks has been looking good in ST. Clean shaven. But it's only ST.

Most think he's in decline. White Sox did.

 

As much as I love me some Youk, (still got love for him even if he is sporting Yankee pinstripes now) he has started down the road to a pretty steep decline. His BA. has completely fallen off a cliff the last 2 seasons (yes he was injured, but when has Youk ever not had to play through a series of nagging injuries.) And his plate vision has deteriorated fairly drastically as well, causing his walks to drop off, while still striking out over 100 times in each of the last 2 seasons. In only 120 games played in 2011 he had 100 K's and 2012 in 122 games played striking out 108 times with only 51 walks. While also sporting a .235 avg in 438 AB's.

 

The time was right for the Sox to cut Youkilis loose, just noticed the Yankee's pounced on Overbay as soon as we cut him. Guess they plan on using him to try and plug the hole Tex, is gonna be leaving for awhile at 1B.

[mvp 78]

Actually, they brought him up because Youk was hurt. When MBrooks started crushing the ball, they ditched Youks. Youks has been looking good in ST. Clean shaven. But it's only ST.

Most think he's in decline. White Sox did.

 

He was initially sent to Pawtucket because of concerns over his healing wrist. When he hit 9 hr's in 24 games (ops above 1.050), they were going to make room for him no matter what. If not for his wrist, he starts the season in Boston.

[Behindenemylines]

If Iggy can hit .240 - .250 you have to keep him in the lineup. Drew is on a one year contract and teams will be looking for SS when injuries start to happen. The Sox may have to eat some $$$$, but they might be able to get a prospect. Can't see them keeping him as a utility guy.

[Thunder]

If Iggy does come out on fire, it will mean that he has improved big time over the last year. That was why he was in the minors for most of last season. I can't see him hitting higher than .260-.265.

[rorschach]

How bout little Iggy huh! Bradley not a bad day either, for opening day as part of the biggest rivalry on the planet, in the bad guys back yard!

[redsoxbeatz]

I'm secretly dreaming of a 2014 infield of boegarts at third, Iggy at SS, Pedroia at second and Middlebrooks at first.

 

not so secret now that it is on this interwebz forum

[redsoxbeatz]

as long as Iggy's OBP is relatively respectable for a defensive SS i'll be happy. I could care less about his BA.

[SoxSport]

Iggy batting .600. hahaha

[Dojji]

Fantastic first day. Almost Alex Cora like.

[iortiz]

Kid left bases juiced twice, didn't he?

 

Despite that, liked what I saw.

[jung]

All I can say for Iggy is that he has what he deserves, a clean clear shot at proving himself.

 

For one thing, at no time in his career to this point could he bunt his way out of a paper bag. That was as good a bunt for a hit as you are going to see in Game 1. He got some breaks on infield hits and ends up launching into the year with a decent BA and OBP. Nobody will be looking for Slugging out of him.

 

Iggy has the best swing of his career and a chance to prove himself all converging at the same time. His defense is still sterling. This may turn out to be as good a break as the Sox have gotten in a long time. JBJ has figured to take over in CF from the moment he stepped into a AA uni for the Sox. So, his appearance in a Sox uni was only a matter of time. But Iggy was probably one season from earning himself a ticket outta' here.

 

The guy that would really benefit if Iggy can pull this off is Pedey. Pedey has really had to play 2nd standing on his head like some baseball version of a hockey goalie cause he has had nothing next to him covering middle infield. The Sox send defensively sound SS's packing as soon as they prove not to be the second coming of Robin Yount. If Iggy does pull this off I will wager that the happiest guy on the planet will be Pedey.

[a700hitter]

In interviews, Pedey has said that he has told Iggy that with his superior hand eye coordination that there is no way he shouldn't be able to hit. I guess Pedey never heard of all the good glove no stick Shortstops like Mark Belanger, Dal Maxvill, etc.

[Dojji]

True, but a lot of the best hand-eye guys figured it out eventually, at least to the point that they weren't total black holes anymore. Ozzie Smith started out as a complete waste of at bats. .573 OPS over his first four seasons. It took him a long time but he did eventually begin to put up some offensive capacity. No one would exactly mistake him for Joe DiMaggio, or even Dom DiMaggio, at the plate, but he got himself on base at least.

 

Omar Vizquel had a similar trajectory.

 

Heck, of the guys you cited, Mark Belanger by year 3 was working the count and taking his base. Couldn't hit for consistent average but he was at least making the pitcher work, which considering the team he played for and the fact that Earl Weaver was ahead of his time in that era, served him pretty well.

 

As for Maxvill, he didn't figure it out if the numbers are any guide -- but his playing time seems to have eventually suffered so I wonder if there's something else going on there.

 

I guess what I'm saying here is that I don't see any real reason not to expect Iggy to at least pick it up a bit and get himself consistently in to the .320/.330 OBP range. He does that, makes some solid plays, I'm fine with him

[a700hitter]

True, but a lot of the best hand-eye guys figured it out eventually, at least to the point that they weren't total black holes anymore. Ozzie Smith started out as a complete waste of at bats. .573 OPS over his first four seasons. It took him a long time but he did eventually begin to put up some offensive capacity. No one would exactly mistake him for Joe DiMaggio, or even Dom DiMaggio, at the plate, but he got himself on base at least.

 

Omar Vizquel had a similar trajectory.

 

Heck, of the guys you cited, Mark Belanger by year 3 was working the count and taking his base. Couldn't hit for consistent average but he was at least making the pitcher work, which considering the team he played for and the fact that Earl Weaver was ahead of his time in that era, served him pretty well.

 

As for Maxvill, he didn't figure it out if the numbers are any guide -- but his playing time seems to have eventually suffered so I wonder if there's something else going on there.

 

I guess what I'm saying here is that I don't see any real reason not to expect Iggy to at least pick it up a bit and get himself consistently in to the .320/.330 OBP range. He does that, makes some solid plays, I'm fine with him

They all have to figure it out at least enough to stay in the majors. Pedey seems to think that Iggy's superior hand eye coordination will result in him being a good ML hitter. That is far from a slam dunk.