jacksonianmarch

I dont think position matters so long as you make up a solid lineup. Take a look at the 2004 lineup. 1. Damon- .304 20HR 94RBI 123R .380OBP .477SLG .857OPS 2. Bellhorn- .264 17HR 82RBI 93R .373OBP .444SLG .817OPS 3. Ortiz - .301 41HR 139RBI 94R .380OBP .603SLG .983OPS 4. Ramirez- .308 43HR 130RBI 108R .397OBP .613SLG 1.020OPS 5. Varitek- .296 18HR 73RBI 67R .390OBP .482SLG .872OPS 6. Millar- .297 18HR 74RBI 74R .383OBP .474SLG .857OPS 7. Nixon- .315 6HR 23RBI 24R .377OBP .510SLG .887OPS (149AB) 8. Cabrera- .294 6HR 31RBI 33R .320OBP .465SLG .785OPS(228AB) 9. Mueller- .283 12HR 57RBI 75R .365OBP .446SLG .812OPS the bolded parts are why this team was so damn good. Up and down the entire lineup was power and on base ability as proven by the .800+ OPS in every position (almost in the terms of OCab). There were no breaks. The 2006 version looked like this and the bold is comparison to that spot int the lineup in 04 1. Youkilis .810OPS translated to 100R, but down from 04 2. Loretta .706OPS translated to 75 runs. In the 2 hole in front of Manny Ortez, that is not useful, way down from 04 3. Ortiz 1.049 up from 04 4. Manny 1.058OPS up from 04 5. Varitek .725OPS way down from 04 6. Nixon .767OPS down from 04 7. Lowell .814OPS down from 04 8. Pena .838OPS up from 04 9. Crisp .702 way down from 04 Ortiz and Manny did much better in OPS than they did in 04. The 8 spot, when WMP was there, was mildly better than Cabrera's OPS was. Other than that, the 1,2,5,6,7,and 9 spots were not as productive, not even close. This is why the O was so anemic this yr. The 04 sox proved that you dont need superstars at every spot. They had 2 superstars and the rest were guys who had enough power and RBI potential to be a threat, and enough OBP ability to be there when the big guys got up. They missed that this yr. Loretta and Crisp were weak breaks in the lineup. Varitek was a shell of himself. Ditto for Nixon. Lowell and Youk are the kind of guys that the sox had previously, very comparable to Mueller and Millar of 04. But you need a lineup full of those guys to be seriously competitive. On an island alone, they will get exposed.

Nomar would never come back after the way he was let go.

his attitude never cost him a job because he was younger and had the numbers. Now he is 39. He must put up big #s if he will get a good contract, and it will be harder for him to do at this age.

it doesnt matter. Sheff can bitch and moan all he wants to, but the fact is, he'll be suspended and lose all his money if he sits out. He wont sit. He'll get traded, he'll be unhappy, but he will mash as hard as he can so he can get another contract. The guy is all about himself, and there is no way he sits out and leaves 13 mil on the table.

Right now it would be dumb to move him, I agree. But, after the big fish fall, there will be plenty of power hungry teams out there. Right now, the interested clubs per the post are the angels, Guardians, astros and cubs. The only small market team on that list is cleveland, and even they can absorb some pay because of the youth that they have. Right handed power is at a premium these days. Sheff offers that, and in a weak market, he will fetch something better than nothing.

young will not be a FA after the season. He will resign.

The onion actually had a great story about Mark Prior. The story was something like this. Mark Prior signs 2 yr 8 million dollar deal with the disabled list, a huge coup against the cubbies.

Congrats on a great life. The guy was a legend and it is a major loss that he is gone. 89 yrs, I'd sign up for that in a heartbeat.

then are you going to say that Matsui has rebounded well because he came back with a .412AVG and a 1.092OPS in september?

oh no, they will eat money, no doubt. Thing is it wont show up on their lux tax seeing as sheff will be on another teams roster, so that is out. But, if I were Cashman, I'd make this trade with cash depending on what I could get for the cash. If I could get a backup minor league ballboy for no $$ and could get Prior for eating 10mil, the f*** it, I'd eat 10mil.

last yr

It will be an interesting situation. I have a feeling many on here are underestimating his true value. When the top 2 power hitters sign, the others will fall in line to go after Sheffield. I heard a disturbing rumor that a team called just to kick the tires, and Cashman essentially blew him off, giving the "unnamed GM" the feeling that he already has some serious interest. Who knows if it is posturing, but many older teams who think they are one bat away will certainly look his way. Plus, if they could get him for a high potential high problem type player and get the yankees to eat some salary, then it will be worth it. If the market were different, I wouldnt be singing this tune, but we all know the market is horrible for power and sheff is one of the best in that category.

the sox do their fare share. I still remember when the sox bought every hotel room in the city when they were negotiating with Contreras. It is all a game, on and off the field.

Lowell isnt any better bro. Lowell- .814OPS Youkilis- .810OPS. That includes the dip in his production when he was injured. He is also younger, hence worth more.

Lowell has one yr left on his deal and he is 4 yrs older. Youk can be controlled for 3 more yrs I believe.

Youk should be the 3b of the future in this organization. As a 3b, he will be worth more than the average. As a 1b, he is below average. Deal Lowell for bullpen help, move Youk to 3b and get a true 1b.

Like I said before, market and desperation will determine his destination and how much the yankees get back. There is not much power out there, and everyone knows that Sheff has bat speed to spare, even at his advanced age (which is the first thing to go). There are a few teams that will be desperate enough to deal, like Chicago, who has a wastrel of a pitcher sitting around injured and a yankee team desperate enough to take the gamble. Last yr, Prior could have gotten Tejada, but the cubs balked. Now prior may not be worth anything, and with arbitration coming up, I think the cubs may want to move him instead of deal with an arbitration case that could have him over 7 mil in his first season of eligibility.

correction, why is ANYBODY concerned with their team saving money. The better the product, the better for me. I dont collect from the profit margin.