Spudboy

Even if the Marlins sign Stanton to a 10/300 contract there is always a strong possibility that he gets dealt near the beginning of the term. From what I have heard, they have a knack for doing that type of thing. As always, I am not in favor of these mega-deals. But I guess if you are going to take the plunge for 10 years, Stanton ( and Trout ) would be the guys to do it with. At least they are young.

In any case he did show signs that he could control his pitches and even the game. Even if in small samples.

Cervelli is gone? Too bad. I though he was pretty good.

Money does not cure stupidity or immaturity.

How is he any better than Ross on a one year deal? Is his defense that much better? And will this be a significant benefit over 50-60 games? The Sox should trade for a catcher with good D and no bat when they can get about the same thing in FA? I've seen Avila play. He does have good defensive skills. But nothing worth trading for if Ross can be had. Just my opinion.

This is exactly as I see it. But the grass is always greener or something like that. People get all worked up in the emotion and hope of a player from another team coming to their team and being all-world. A similar thing happened when Cespedes came to Boston.

What kind of deal do you see the Yankess reaching with Miller? I've heard 4 years but little else.

I'm not tattooing him anywhere. He had 400 ab in Pawtucket in 2014 and a total of about 640 above High A ball. Yes, his numbers are a little down from Portland. But not substantially. He's just progressing at a decent , not raking pace. He's still young and learning.

How has Cechini "Plateaued"?

The 33 year old thing worries me to some extent. My memory of Shields is that he was a very tough pitcher while with Tampa and his 2014 stats are still pretty good if you can get past his no-show in this off season. Also, I don't see making anything more than a 2-3 year deal. I doubt that he would do that.

Not even Papelbon. Mariano was.

Maybe the Mets would be stupid enough to grab Cespedes from the Sox? Do the Met's have any worthwhile chips? Maybe the Mets would be in on signing Cespedes long term?

Kind of a shame to give up on him that way now, though.

So he would be platooned at 1st base?????? Oye. As Fred said, why create more problems unnecessarily.

I fully endorse this post!!!!

I see all of your points and agree with a lot of what you have said. I did not consider the XB suspect defense as a factor in integrating what would be essentially an inexperienced rookie 3rd baseman. Still, I think that Graig could do the job. I was not aware that he had played so much 3rd base in the minors. I did not do any research on my ideas. I'm just bored and thinking of some different ideas. I'm guessing that his low fielding percentage was when he was still raw in his fielding skill set. I'd be very worried if his errors were mostly from throwing. But in any case he does seem to be a decent 1st baseman so he has that going for him. The skills are somewhat similar with 3rd baseman doing much more throwing. I say that it is worth the shot. Especially with the redundancy the Sox enjoy with Holt being available. I also think that you may be underestimating Holt but I concede that either of us can be wrong here because we would only be able to speculate at this point. I agree that Victorino should not be counted on for very much. He has had back surgery. I don't care how well his rehab is going or what he and Farrell say. It would be great to see him traded but until he's healthy and demonstrates that he can play well his value is low. Maybe just a second or third player in a deal at best. I really don't care where Betts plays as long as he is a starting player on this team. It is possible that he will have a Sophomore slump but I bet he ends up hitting at least .280/.340 with about 12-15 hr. Just a guess. I don't want Panda at 6 years or anywhere near 100 mil.. I think he is a mid tier talent whose value has peaked at just the right time. Otherwise he is not worth much more than 12-13 mil. I can see signing him for 4/60 if I am the Sox. I would not go 5/75 or 6/90. That is insane money for a player of his talent and girth. I know that I am just bitching about how much these guys make. I always do! But here it is a little different. I don't want the Sox to overpay for 3rd base. Especially with Cechini knocking on the door. He may not be a sure thing but he sure looks like he has the tools to become very good. I do not want the Sox to spend more than they need to just to have an average type talent on the team. The market has devolved to the point where even average players are getting absurd money. One can argue that Sandoval is above average, I guess. But not by much if at all. From a purely business perspective I believe that it is wise to use current assets to make money rather than spending too much money on something that the business does not need from an external source.

If they decide to sign Headly for more than a Victorino deal ( 3/39 ) then they are wasting money that they will most likely have to eat later on if Cechin is ready for 2016 or if Headly fails or disappoints. The more I think about it, the less I want the Sox to sign an external 3rd baseman. Certainly not for more than I mentioned. It's just not worth it.

With the news that Headley seeks a 4 year deal I have been thinking more about internal options at third base. I may have my head firmly planted assward but I do have ideas and questions. If the Sox beg off free agents asking for too much at 3rd, is there a viable candidate in house???? Why not Craig? He has the build and profile of a corner infielder. He already plays a decent 1st base. Start spring training with him at 3rd and hope that his bat returns to previous form. I am a believer that talented hitters just do not forget how to hit. Case in point, Ortiz about 4-5 years ago. Many said that he was done because he could not hit lefties and was hitting about .230+ at the time. It turned out to be just the accumulation of injuries. Now Ortiz is back to being one of the most respected power hitters in the game. I am not sure what Graig's problems are. He claims his foot was not bothering him this season. Maybe he was just being a Pedroia? Not revealing the extent of the injury and it's impact on his batting. In any case, I suspect that he will return to being a near .300 hitter with some pop. That is exactly what a 3rd baseman should be. He is one option. I think that Brock Holt hit the wall and was also injured in the second half. He is too much of a very good contact hitter to have totally lost it. He may be a very good 3rd baseman. He has the range and arm. He does not have power but his on base skills supplant that. Super sub or not. I bet he could play 3rd all season. His natural position is 2nd base just in case anyone did not know. Oh, he's a leftie bat, too. How about Mookie Betts? Sure, he does not profile as a 3rd baseman. He is much quicker and faster and does not have the build of a power hitter. Nevertheless, he is an infielder with decent ball skills and range. I know, no one want to mess up his development by moving him to 3rd as the Sox did with XB. But Mookie continued to hit well after being moved to the outfield so I see this as a no risk situation. On the downside, his speed may be wasted at 3rd. Who cares? These three options may not be as flashy as the accusation of the popular Panda but the talent is on board already and the Sox outfield is crowded. I bet the Sox are considering these options.

Thanks for posting that article by Gammons. I read it as soon as you posted it. Your 6/138 sounds very near what I suspect would be a successful bid for Lester. Gomes has a valid point. Lester would have to walk away from about 25 mil. or more. It does not sound likely but if anyone would do it it would be Lester. He loves it here. His family loves it here. He had a very good life going for all concerned while here. Lester seems to be a guy that values that comfort more than the extra money a bloated deal elsewhere would bring. I'm still very skeptical about the Sox getting Lester back regardless of the rumors from un-named sources.

I realize the Sox have several formidable roster building challenges. I just don't think that they have to or should move him in the process. He is a Sox strength at a position of weak depth in the system. I say while no one other than Betts is untouchable in trade ( except for Stanton ), hold onto proven veteran players that are likely to produce many runs. Especially since Napoli is the Sox second best power hitter and a great fit on the Sox roster and in the Boston market. It's not like Napoli is on the decline. His production fell after he mangled his finger sliding into second base. That is an injury sustained from aggressive play, not from age. While I am strongly against moving Napoli in trade ( I would even like to see him extended after 2015 if all goes well ), I would trade him if the return was huge. Otherwise, keep the strong components of the roster intact.

No way should the Sox sign Headley for 4 years. That would be stupid. I had heard that he was looking for at least a 3 year deal. I wonder what it would take to snag Beltre? Would the Rangers even consider a trade? If so, what would they want? I too would prefer to save the trade chips for a deal on a good starting pitcher. Who know what could happen? Maybe both?

Hahahahahahahha!!! I'm not surprised! I have mentioned this a couple of times. I don't think the Sox will make an offer in the 6-7/150-175 range that is speculated to be the market for Lester. While still with the Sox, I had sugested that 4-5/125-135 would get it done. Now, I say maybe 5/135-145 with an option for a 6th year COULD do it. I hope so! Before I read SFF most recent comment I was thinking that Lester's Newton Highland home had not sold yet. I find it interesting that it has been withdrawn from the market. The Sox brass has egg on their faces with the Oakland trade. Those guys have enormous egos. Reacquiring Lester would be a fantastic PR move and help to save face for the front office. Let alone being a very strong baseball move. Still, the Sox are reluctant to make this type of commitment. Especially to a non-position player. I hope that it gets done. And soon! Then move onto getting a 2 and or 3 starter and a 3rd baseman. Sign Badenhop or other mid reliever and call it a day. One thing has occurred to me. The Sox fans will welcome Lester back with open arms, of course. But with a huge salary, how will expectations change for Lester? If he falters, will the Sox fans boo him? After all, with a big ticket contract, fans expect big performance. We'll see.

I agree with both Bellhorn and Gomes. I am not confident that the Sox will be in contention for a playoff birth in 2015. However, the Sox brass is selling the idea that they will do everything possible to get back to being competitive. Trading away a good veteran player with swat and very good defensive skills sends the wrong message to the fan base. Besides, he is the best 1st baseman in the organization. As long as his finger and jaw recover, he will most likely be back to something close to his 2013 offensive production. Which is pretty good. I say keep him and see how it goes. It's a little ironic that Dojji has proposed unloading Nap. Several years ago Dojji campaigned to bring Napoli to Boston to be the catcher and part time 1st baseman. Most people poo-pooed the idea. I'm glad that Nap is the Sox 1st baseman and until he falls off a cliff I say hold onto him. His power and on base skills are useful and he plays good defense, too.

Webster did look better late in the year. He could not have looked much worse! I think that it's way too early to make an assessment about his command or even mental toughness. He has very good stuff at times. He just has to learn how to pitch! But a stint in the pen certainly won't do him any harm unless he is a piece slotted for trade.

The real difference is about 50 pounds. I have not seen either player much. Mostly I have seen Sandoval in the playoffs and Headley in some Yankee games. Headley does look like the better defender. Other than that, it's a wash as far as I'm concerned. Headley has had some health issues and Sandoval is a likely candidate for injuries with the excessive weight that he carries. My guess is that his knees or back will start to have problems sometime within a six year deal so I say pass. Also, I believe Cechini and Brentz are not that far from being brought up. A short deal on Headley or moving Graig to 3rd would be my move for now. To hell with 6/100. I'd rather approach the Rangers about Beltre.