TPetey

Jackson, Sanchez, and Ohlendorf for Cabrera? Maybe if the package also includes Hughes. Otherwise, that's crazy talk.

True enough, but since Youk usually takes two strikes before his first swing, batting him second radically reduces hit-and-run opportunities. An effective 2 hole hitter should be a guy who makes contact and is able and willing to go the other way. Youk is anything but that hitter. Mark Loretta, even though he turned out to be very ineffective at moving runners over, comes much closer to the ideal of a #2. Youk's high K rate is related to the fact that he goes deep into counts, but it's also a result of his high swing-and-miss rate. A #2 hitter shouldn't be so easy to fool.

IMHO, Youkilis is a much better fit as a leadoff (or #9) hitter than as a 2 hitter. A 2 hitter that strikes out 120 times (like Youk) would sound the death knell for the hit-and-run.

Good article, and I was surprised to see the (informed?) speculation that DM is seeking only a 3-yr/$30 mill deal -- I'd have thought Boras would set his sights higher: longer deal, at least $12 mill per. Let me correct a couple of factual errors from earlier posts: 1) Matsuzaka hasn't actually been posted yet; Seibu has merely confirmed everyone's speculation and announced that they've agreed to post him sometime during the offseason. The earliest date he can be officially posted is November 1st. Once he's posted, the process moves quickly. Teams will have only 72 hours to submit their blind bids to Bud Selig, and after that 72 hours expires, Seibu will have 4 days to accept or reject the bid. We haven't reached that point yet. 2) The posting fee is not paid if the posted player fails to sign. Seibu gets the money only if a) Seibu accepts the posting bid, and Matsuzaka comes to terms with the highest bidder within 30 days. If he doesn't sign within that 30-day window, no money changes hands and Matsuzaka can pitch only for Seibu next year. Those who speculate that the MFYs or the Mariners have some advantage because of their established relationships in Japanese baseball don't understand the process. Only the money matters. If the Sox take the risk and make the largest bid, then they get the exclusive right to negotiate with Matsuzaka -- who, by the way, will have a strong incentive to sign because signing represents his only chance to play in the US in '07. On the other hand, the highest bidder will have an even stronger incentive -- if they can't manage to sign him, Matsuzaka will be a free agent in '08. If that happens, no team will have exclusive negotiating rights (which will allow competition to drive up the price significantly) and the entire amount will be counted in the salary calculation for the luxury tax (the posting fee is not salary, and thus has no luxury tax implications). I don't have enough posts to post a link, but a good summary of the posting process can be found on the baseball-reference.com wiki under "Posting_System".

I'm a bandwagon fan. I jumped on the Red Sox bandwagon back in midsummer of 1967, and I haven't fallen off yet (although I've leaned over the edge a few times). Looking forward to an active winter from the FO. Matsuzaka, anyone? I don't usually enjoy making introductory posts, but I absolutely had to get rid of that annoying "Why not make your first post?" reminder at the top of the page.