redsoxfan3

Same here. He seems to be very content with his role as a starter. I hope it works out for him and this team. He could be a key component in the rotation.

It looks like we are not going to be getting Oswalt. I don't know if anyone expected us too. It has also been reported that he might just accept an offer from the Cardinals. Also, I do know that Jon Heyman reported it is not going to be the Red Sox or Rangers, but that is also not official yet.

I like the enthusiasm! :thumbsup:

I am excited about baseball starting up again. I like basketball, football, and hockey, but I love baseball. I always looks forward to baseball season. A part of me is optimistic about this season. There are a lot of question marks, but that is what makes baseball exciting.

Oswalt's agent said he would make an announcement today. No one knows what the announcement is going to be. It could be that he is waiting to sign with a team until later in the season, it could be that he is retiring, or it could be that he is signing with a team. It would not surprise me if the announcement is him not signing with a team at this point. I don't know the chances of him signing with the Red Sox as this point, but it sounds like the Rangers and Cardinals are out of the picture, unless he wants to settle with a role in the pen.

I am not saying it is outrageous. I am just saying I do not want to pay to do that. I have spent over $600 on spring training tickets as it is. I will just see the stadium then. The tour is not "in depth." You do not get to see the clubhouse or anything I am pretty sure. It is just a quick tour to let you see what it's like. My uncle works for Lee County, so after spring training is over I am going to get a free in depth look around the stadium.

I thought about doing this, but not for $5.00. I would probably go if it was free. I will be at the park three times for games this Spring. I will just take a look around the stadium when I watch the first game at JetBlue Park. I have seen pictures of the clubhouse and it looks sick. Ellsbury posted a picture of it on his Twitter. I do know they are opening up the stadium two hours before games (or at least the area outside of the stadium). They have a shops and stuff outside so it has a similar feel to Yawkey Way. I am interested in seeing what that is like. I might try to go to the park tomorrow or Friday to watch practice. If I do I will let everyone know what it is like.

I was not expecting anything huge in return for Epstein. We didn't land a great prospect. There was no way we were going to get Jackson. Carpenter's ERA last year with the Cubs was deceiving. He needs to get his WHIP way down. I would give him a couple years before we say that he is complete garbage. I know that he is already 26, but if he can stay away from injuries and work on his control, then he might turn out to be a big surprise. As said before, he is probably a AAA filler. Only time will tell.

I know that you cannot just say that after he hit two homers in a game that he is ready for the majors, but the reason everyone is saying that is because he was solid in AAA and AA last year as well. Scouts all mainly agree that he is major league ready offensively, but I want him the be major league ready defensively as well. One more year in AAA could put him right on track to where he needs to be defensively. I hope Lavarnway is our future catcher, not our future DH. I do agree that he has not proven himself to be a big league hitter, because he doesn't even have much experience. I just want him to continue to develop, so that when he is given the chance, then he will be as ready as he can be.

Does anyone know much about Pat Sandora? He is our strength and conditioning coach. Is he someone that will make sure that this team will stay on top of things and do their workouts? Any other coaches that will make sure these players will stay focused this Spring? I know a little about some of the coaches, but not really enough to know if they will make sure this team stays on top of everything.

Odds are the 4th spot is going to either Bard or Aceves. That leaves one of the two in the bullpen. If one of these guys does not pan out, we could give either Bard or Aceves a try (whichever is in the pen). That would be a scenario if we had no other options. Trading for a pitcher before the deadline is always an option. Dice-K will be back in the summer sometime. We do have options that we could explore. I just hope one of these guys can either have a decent bounce back year or at least get us by until Dice-K comes back or until we can trade for a pitcher by the deadline. I might be overly optimistic about Dice-K, but I think he might be more valuable to this team this season than a lot of people think (I just hope he has half a season left in him).

I just see him in the same category as Silva, Cook, Padilla, etc. I do admit that in 2009 and 2010 that his numbers were okay. Last year he was garbage. I am not going to say that I can see this working out, but let's just say by signing him we have a lot of guys competing for that 5th spot and it would not surprise if one turns out to be decent for us. If he can regain his 2009 and 2010 form, then I would be more than happy to give him a shot in the 5th spot. Let's just hope one of these guys to have a rebound year.

I finally have all of my tickets to Spring Training. I am going 3/3 to see the Red Sox take on Northeastern University in the opening game at JetBlue. I am going the Miami game on 3/12 and I am going to the Twins game on 3/16. I spent $600 on 6 tickets to three games. Next year I am waiting in line to buy tickets cheaper. I must say I am happy with my seats. I got tickets right behind the dugout in one game, right behind home plate, and in left field. I am excited about this Spring.

Is anyone doing the Fenway All-Time Roster voting?

You can't expect everyone in the starting lineup to be above average as a hitter, it is almost impossible. We have Pedroia, Gonzalez, Ellsbury, Ortiz, Crawford, and Youkilis as guys who are going to carry this offense. If Youk and Crawford improve and do what they are capable of doing, and Ortiz and Ellsbury don't have a devastating dropoff in production, then those six will be able to carry this offense. It is fine that Salty is right around the league average. At SS, Aviles will be decent offensively. I expect improvement in RF offensively as well. Our offense isn't the concern for this team. Salty will be fine with his production.

First thing to know when shopping online, if you feel like something is sketchy, then stay far far away. I do not know much about that site. It could be reliable, but then again it could also be a knock off site that sells you cheap jerseys. I have three replica Pedroia jerseys (one red alternative, one home white, and one red spring training). I am hesitant to buy jerseys online. The same Spring Training jersey I have is listed as $60 online and I bought it for $30 in the store. I I bought the home white one in Gatlinburg, Tennesee on vacation. It is the last place I would have thought to buy a jersey, but this sports store sold it to me for $40 and it was listed as $100. They told me that they would sell it to me for $40 on the spot because they were looking to get rid of it. The alternative Red Sox one I got for $50. I have no idea how or where, but I remember that I got it for cheap one year with money I received for Christmas. Just be smart whatever you choose. Do research before you buy, look on ebay, look on amazon. You probably can find a deal. If you use Yawkey Way Store, I do have a free shipping code that they have on twitter, so that would save you some money. Jerseys are usually fairly expensive.

I got my hopes up too high. When we were in the dicussion for Kuroda, Oswalt, Jackson, and Saunders, I thought we were for sure going to land one. I specifically remember when they were saying we were close to completing a deal with Kuroda and that didn't work out. My thought process is that our team is what it is, and if we somehow get Oswalt then that would be fine, but at this point I have given up hope. Spring Training is too close to start for me to care. I just got my refund check back, so I am going to a lot of games in March. I am ready.

Well, let's just say he can't really do any worse than he did last year. I see him improving his numbers. I don't see him have a career year, but I hope to see him get back in the right direction which would be a big boost for this team offensively.