Sox

exactly, I didn't say he was bad, he's the best closer of all time, period, that doesn't make him the best pitcher of all time, or anything close to that, as a closer, he's #1, as a pitcher, he's not even close to #1.

I can't think of anyone other than Roy Halladay & Felix Hernandez that are definitely better without any argument, Wainweight shouldn't be in the argument anymore because of his injury, MLB.com also ranked Lester #4 as well, but they had Lincecum ahead of him instead of Lee, CC Sabathia has been in the decline lately, check out this article as it talks about CC Sabathia's decline: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/622087-2011-fantasy-projections-no-58-new-york-yankees-cc-sabathia-is-on-the-decline

I think Lincecum should take Cliff Lee's place, Lee is a bit overrated because of his low BB/9, the rest of his stats aren't impressive.

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/8564/lester-among-schillings-top-5-pitchers he has Lester as #4.

Buchholz didn't say he did it anyway, the article implied that he was so good that it looks like he didn't hold back.

considering Francona told him not to throw his best stuff against the Yankees, he looked good, he was just getting ready for the season.

he was a bit lucky last year, & he did say that a few days ago, but I don't expect an ERA higher than 3.5, or less than 15 wins, he did pitch at 2010 level in September 2009. what I expect from him is 3.2 ERA, 18 wins, 200 IP. of course if he performs at last year's level with this offense, he could win 22+ games, last year he won 17 games when he actually missed 5 starts with Daniel Nava & Darnell McDonald as his offense.

2 scoreless innings for Lester, one walk, one hit, & one K. not vintage Lester, but not bad for his first two innings this year.

^^ Schilling would get in evantually (thanks to joining the 3,000 Ks club)

well, I said "on pace", as in if that player continues the same performance (or better) for the next decade or so.

David Ortiz is looking good, he might get over his April slump this year.

he suffered a freak injury, when he was injured last year, he had a higher WAR than Cano at the time, & it was a career year for Cano, he was on pace for a 7 WAR season, a mix of his rookie year & MVP year is enough to get him 3,000 hits, 200 HRs, 1,800 runs, 200 steals, & 1,800 BB, he also has one of the highest BB:K ratio in the league, he's almost impossible to strikeout, he has a pretty good chance of making it, unless he really does decline, which he showed no sign of last year. yeah maybe we're wearing Red Sox goggles, but I don't think its impossible for him to reach the career marks I mentioned earlier, in fact, if he just continues to play his career norms, nothing like his MVP season, he still has a very high chance of reaching those milestones. EDIT: his 3.3 WAR in 75 games last season was better than 80% of the Major leaguers that had a full season.

yeah, that's why I said Lester needs to improve or stay at his current level long enough to get 3,000 Ks. as for Ortiz, you kinda agreed with me, as I said he won't make it unless he hits 32 homeruns for the next 5 years, which is highly unlikely. Tek won't get in as a player, but he has very good leadership skills, & can handle pitching staff very well, & if he translates into a good pitching coach & manager, his Major League career + coaching career could get him in, but he won't get in based soley on his major league career. as for Youk, he had a late start in his career, if he ages well, then why not? I still say Pedroia has the highest chance of being a HOFer, he's way too young & already accomplished a lot, I read an article prior to last year that compared Dustin Pedroia's first three seasons to Pete Rose, & Pedroia was actually better, not that Dustin would have a career like Pete Rose, but its very promising to be compared to a player like Pete Rose.

homegrown, I'd say Lester & Pedroia, if Lester keeps improving, or performs at the same level, he could get into the 3,000 Ks club which is a lock for HOF, he could get around 260 wins, or if he ages well, he could even win 300, career ERA might be around 3.2-3.4 Pedroia could get into the 3,000 hits club, but his value is more than just that, he's an elite run producer, his career total might hover around 2,000 (which is a pretty rare feat), he could steal around 250 SBs, collect 200-300 homeruns, his BB totals could be between 1,600-1,800, career average around .310, & career OBP around .370, I think of all the Red Sox roster, Pedroia has the highest chance of making it to the HOF. with the acquired players, both have a chance of making it to the HOF, if Crawford performs his career norms throughout the rest of his contract, he's a lock for HOF, if Gonzalez could hit 500 homeruns, he would be a lock as well. Ortiz is a tough case, but I don't think he'd make it, unless he produces at the same level he did last year for 5 more seasons, which is unlikely, but possible, not to mention the PED scandal. if Varitek pursues a coaching career, & then develop into a good manager, he might get in, but with his career numbers as of now, he's not gonna make it. thoughts?

everyone predicted that, & I like it that way, better than having a good player play at the bottom of the order.

Beckett was alright, not too good but not too bad, he allowed one run, two hits in two innings. Buchholz was picking up right where he left off, no hits allowed in two innings of work. its still too early though.

Salty would be a rally killer, & Crawford would almost be useless if Salty is gonna keep ending innings.

Youk is better at getting on base, regardless, I don't like your lineup, you have Crawford at the bottom of the lineup with absolutely no protection, the top of the lineup has no speed whatsoever, pitchers are gonna get very comfortable & the stolen bases at the bottom of the order would go to waste. teams that have a very high OBP guy at the top but with no speed sacrifice the next batter to advance the first batter, we have the luxury of two of the best base stealers in the league, also, Ellsbury & Crawford at the bottom is a lot of runner in scoring position opportunities (in Ellsbury's case, a lot of sac fly opportunities too), we want as much of those opportunities as possible, & we want our best hitters at the plate with those opportunities, Ellsbury & Crawford at the bottom also means perhaps 10 less stolen bases each.