2014 Roster Projections

[redsoxrules]

Nap, Drew and Ellsbury to get QO, Salty not likely

[marklmw]

Frankly I think even considering trading Cecchini and Owens for anybody not a real star is absolutely insane. Title or not, this year was kind of bridge year that let to Heaven and we have to understand that many member of this year's team aren't going to be back next season or the season after that and we will have to put permanent replacement in for them. Cecchini is a very solid ballplayer who projects into a good left handed hitter with improving power, and if he's that good of a hitting prospect the Red Sox will find a place to put him. Owens projects as a potential solid starting pitcher along with Renaudo. I'm not looking to denude our farm system for some quick fix. Remember 2006 when we hit with key injuries to Nixon and Varitek we fell through the floor and talk was rampant about getting some reinforcements like Bobby Abreu and Ronnie Belliard to stop the bleeding? Epstein said he was NOT going to trade the kids. Pedroia and Ellsbury stayed and we won a title the next year. I think we need to project this out over the course of six or seven years rather than one. My opinion anyway.

I agree ... the Yankees overpaid for Arod for sure but they also overpaid for Sabathia.

Shields is a proven commodity but what happens when his arm shuts down because he has been so durable ... lots of miles on his arm. If you trade your best young players it would be nice to obtain a player in his prime and not downward half of his career.

Edited November 4, 2013 by marklmw

[rjortiz]

Pencil Drew at SS, Bogaerts at 3B.

[marklmw]

Pencil Drew at SS, Bogaerts at 3B.

 

You think so? That would be nice.

[rjortiz]

You think so? That would be nice.

 

It's been discussed to death, but I don't see any other fits for Drew.

[mvp 78]

Players have until Wednesday to reject the QO. We'll see if Drew thinks he can get a long term deal.

[jung]

Naps, Drew and Ells make a great deal of sense for the QO. Another job well done by the Sox FO IMO. Ells is in a salary stratosphere that makes the QO a non-factor. Whoever signs him is going to pay so much money for him that the draft pick hardly end up a rounder error in their cost calculation. Losing the pick may actually make guys like Naps and Drew less attractive to some teams. Eventually, we might find Naps signing here on a two year deal and Drew taking his QO.

[Thunder]

Shocked no QO on Salty, but grateful that there was a QO on Ells. Big news here, and I'm anxious to see how this plays out.

[jung]

I did not think Salty would get a qualifying offer for the reason I stated earlier. The Sox would be worried that he would take it and well they should be.

 

A deal can be struck for Salty well shy of what the QO would cost. Salty lost lots of points in the post season and probably cost himself some money besides.

[mvp 78]

Shocked no QO on Salty, but grateful that there was a QO on Ells. Big news here, and I'm anxious to see how this plays out.

 

How is that big news? It was a 100% certainty that he was getting a QO and would reject it soon after.

[Thunder]

How is that big news? It was a 100% certainty that he was getting a QO and would reject it soon after.

 

Why does everyone assume he'll reject it? I can understand it if he wants more, but you're acting like it's a gimme that he'll shoot it down.

[User Name]

Why does everyone assume he'll reject it? I can understand it if he wants more, but you're acting like it's a gimme that he'll shoot it down.

 

That's because it is a gimme that he'll shoot it down.

[Thunder]

That's because it is a gimme that he'll shoot it down.

 

Okay. What's the reason behind that?

[User Name]

Okay. What's the reason behind that?

 

He's the #2 rated FA on the market. Why would he settle for a 1 year/14 mill deal? Dempster is making 13 mill next year, and hell, he knows Seattle would pay at least 100 mill for him.

[Thunder]

I'm waiting to see how this all plays out. When he stays here, I reserve the right to rub it in all of your faces.

[User Name]

I'm waiting to see how this all plays out. When he stays here, I reserve the right to rub it in all of your faces.

 

Rejecting the QO has no bearing on whether or not he stays. Do you actually know how the QO/FA system works?

[Thunder]

Rejecting the QO has no bearing on whether or not he stays. Do you actually know how the QO/FA system works?

 

Yes. I expected him to reject the QO, but stay eventually. I see the Sox offering him close to what Seattle will offer him.

[Bellhorn04]

Yes. I expected him to reject the QO, but stay eventually. I see the Sox offering him close to what Seattle will offer him.

 

Any offer the Sox make will be a token offer for PR purposes. The chances that Bobby Jenks returns to pitch for us next year are as good as the chances of Ellsbury staying.

[Palodios]

I'm waiting to see how this all plays out. When he stays here, I reserve the right to rub it in all of your faces.

 

Unless Ellsbury has some kind of injury that no one knows about, he won't accept it.

 

How about we make a bet?

 

If Ellsbury takes the QO, I'll buy you a ticket to any non-Yankee game you want next season.

If Ellsbury rejects the QO, you lose the right to post a game thread in 2014.

[jung]

Nor will Ells IMO take less money from the Sox than a team like Seattle offers. I think he might take the same money from the Sox but not less money. It is all about the money in MLB.

 

There is no chance of Ells taking far less money from the Sox for the right to play here vs someplace like Seattle and taking a little less money treats Ells like a fool and makes the Sox look like nickel and dime *******s who risked losing the player for pennies. Ells has no interest in looking like a fool with his entire financial future on the line and I doubt a "little less money" makes a dif to the Sox one way or the other again IMO.

[marklmw]

Unless Ellsbury has some kind of injury that no one knows about, he won't accept it.

 

How about we make a bet?

 

If Ellsbury takes the QO, I'll buy you a ticket to any non-Yankee game you want next season.

If Ellsbury rejects the QO, you lose the right to post a game thread in 2014.

 

Come on Palodios ... cut the kid some slack. Everyone in the world knows that Ellsbury will not accept the QO. I would rather the Sox go after Tanaka than to re-sign Ellsbury if the premise is one or the other and not both. IMO... JBJ & Tanaka > Ellsbury & Dempster over the next 5 years.

[Palodios]

Come on Palodios ... cut the kid some slack. Everyone in the world knows that Ellsbury will not accept the QO. I would rather the Sox go after Tanaka than to re-sign Ellsbury if the premise is one or the other and not both. IMO... JBJ & Tanaka > Ellsbury & Dempster over the next 5 years.

 

I will probably be making him that bet all offseason to try to fend off his bad mojo in 2014:p .

 

While I do see the appeal of a half-price luxury-tax, 26 year old star pitcher with no compensation pick attached, the problem with Tanaka is that he is more likely to turn into a Dice-k than a Darvish. Dice-k and Tanaka both threw insane 15-20 inning games in high school, whereas Darvish did not. High mileage on your arm at a young age is never good.

[sk7326]

This is Ells last chance for a real big time contract - so he is not going to be stiffed. The QO was obvious there.

 

The trickiest of the QO decisions were Drew and Salty. You could flip a coin with either of them - looks like they basically did.

[Thunder]

Unless Ellsbury has some kind of injury that no one knows about, he won't accept it.

 

How about we make a bet?

 

If Ellsbury takes the QO, I'll buy you a ticket to any non-Yankee game you want next season.

If Ellsbury rejects the QO, you lose the right to post a game thread in 2014.

 

Deal, but it might have to be two tickets because I can't drive myself up there.

[Palodios]

Deal, but it might have to be two tickets because I can't drive myself up there.

 

Deal.

[BornToRun]

Yes. I expected him to reject the QO, but stay eventually. I see the Sox offering him close to what Seattle will offer him.

 

Christ, I hope not. I go 5/100 on Ells at the most and with the rumors that he's looking for Crawford money, I don't think that gets it done.

 

I love Ells and I'm ecstatic that his last great year in a Red Sox uniform helped us win it all but I don't think he's back unless we do something incredibly stupid.

Edited November 5, 2013 by BornToRun

[Thunder]

Christ, I hope not. I go 5/100 on Ells at the most and with the rumors that he's looking for Crawford money, I don't think that gets it done.

 

I love Ells and I'm ecstatic that his last great year in a Red Sox uniform helped us win it all but I don't think he's back unless we do something incredibly stupid.

 

This is what I don't get. We don't know what he and his agent are thinking. He's got to accept that he'll only get Crawford money in his dreams. No reason at all to leave.

[BornToRun]

This is what I don't get. We don't know what he and his agent are thinking. He's got to accept that he'll only get Crawford money in his dreams. No reason at all to leave.

 

I sincerely hope that Ells gets sentimental and takes less to stay here but I just don't see it. Boras as an agent, the rumors about how much they're asking for? I think he's gone.

[jung]

All the reports have the negotiations for Ells focused at Crawford money or even slightly beyond. Seattle IMO would definitely pay Ells as part of a "face of the franchise" kind of deal for one thing and that sort of intent will add $ to the contract that the Sox will simply not pay. The Sox already have their face of the franchise. I think the money will get pushed just past $20 per for 6 to 7 years with the Sox wanting to stay on the teen side of $20 and I don't mean $9-teen either. I know these sorts of numbers are mind boggling for regular folks like us or at least me but they do absolutely mean something in baseball and to baseball players. They will fight and scramble for $0.5M a year on a $20M contract...never mind a full $1M or $2M.

 

As for his agent...we absolutely know what Boras is thinking and if that was not aligned with what Ells was thinking, Ells would just fire Boras. If anything at least what has been publicized is that while Boras was going through his bout of losing clients, Ells was very supportive and adamant that he was staying aboard.

[SoxSport]

I think Ells will wind up elsewhere. They'll take the draft pick. He's 30 years old, a bit fragile, and they have a prime replacement for him in JBJ. Did I mention Boras? That's a synonym for overpaying. Him and George Steinbrenner personify salary hyperinflation.

 

I hear they made QOs to Ells, Drew and Nap for $14 mil each. With Ells you go maybe $16mil/4 yrs. Nap 2yrs. Drew is overpaid at $14 mil, especially with Bogaerts there. I don't buy the 3B argument--he's a SS. Drew is really a role player who was valuable in the playoffs, even if he didn't hit much. But Boras will try to make him look like Tulowitski. The price for him will be beyond reason for the Red Sox.

 

You figure Middlebrooks will have a good year next year after the soph slump, which affects a lot of young players. They would be foolish to give up on him--imagine having Middlebrooks and Bogaerts to play 3B and SS for the next 10 years? They are lucky.