Spitball

I hope he goes to the NL so I can continue to root for him.

I bet the Sox have to eat most of his salary and only get grade C+ to B- prospect. He has been injury prone and hasn't been hitting, not to mention a soon to be free agent. He has no value at this point and will be difficult to get rid of in my opinion...and I have always been a Youkilis fan.

Drew Sutton was just DFA.

Actually, Millar was a first baseman before he came to Boston. I remember watching him play first base, and a some third base, for the Portland Sea Dogs when they were a Marlins' farm team back in the late '90s. He played 446 minor league games at first, 133 at third, and only 30 in the outfield. He was trained as a corner infielder. In the majors with the Marlins, he never played more than 30 games in the outfield in a season. If it hadn't been for the acquisition of first baseman Derek Lee by the Marlins, Millar would probably not have played any games in the outfield. He was never primarily an outfielder.

I agree. He isn't Gonzalez. He isn't Youkilis...but he has performed acceptably for a back-up at first.

I have been pushing for Dempster for awhile. He is a bulldog and would be much more affordable than Garza.

There is no way Cincinnati trades Mesoraco for Saltalamacchia. No way. First of all, no one in Cincinnati is unhappy with the kid. He is a former number one pick and the reason they traded another former number one pick Yasmani Grandal this winter and let Ramon Hernandez walk. He starts and catches when Homer Bailey or Mike Leake is pitching. Mesoraco is their catcher of the future but is being broken in slowly. Second, their GM is Walt Jocketty and he places a premium on defense at the catching position. He has always drafted and employed defensive specialists at catcher. In St. Louis it was always a Pagnozzi, Metheny, Molina type. The Reds' current starter, Ryan Hanigan, is a defensive specialist (with good on base skills). Mesoraco was voted the best defensive catcher in the International League Cincinnati is probably one of the last destinations for Salty. They are in first place with Hanigan and Mesoraco providing their pitchers with excellent defense. I can not see them deviating from that.

Thanks, 33. Interesting article.

Whew! A color commentator should know that.

You can't say, "probably headed for 3b." He makes lots of errors, but most are on long throws, much like he would have to make from third base. I see him being much like Hanley Ramirez. He is only 22, and the Cubs will give him time to develop into a shortstop. His value as a middle infielder capable of being a major offensive force makes shortstop his best position if he can develop defensively.

The Red Sox really do need to restore the farm system and getting into a bidding war for Garza would be foolish right now. Besides, I feel he will be over-rated as an AL East veteran. His numbers were showing indications of decline before he went to the NL, and his numbers against some of the AL powerhouses were not stellar.

I still think the Sox need to target more affordable pitchers like Dempster or Joe Saunders. Saunders could be a bargain since he is essentially blocking Trevor Bauer from their rotation.

Unlike Hamels and Greinke, Garza is under control for more than a couple of months. This is a list of top 100 prospects for 2012. You can find other lists, but most are about the same. The Red Sox don't have many names there. http://www.rotosummit.com/home/index.php/2012-rankings/318-fantasy-baseball-top-100-prospects-for-2012-and-beyond There will be other teams also looking for pitching. Teams with more minor league depth to deal. The Rangers suddenly need starting pitching and have a great deal of minor league depth. The Cardinals have depth and injuries to Carpenter and now Garcia. The Dodgers have new pro-active ownership plus the need and prospects. The Yankees could also be in the hunt for a starter. These teams and others go into the bidding with deep pockets as far as prospects go. You may think Garza is worth secondary prospects but some team will ante up a better deal than the Sox can possibly muster right now. Besides, the Sox have to climb over four teams in the East and four teams in the wild card. I'm not sure they are need to be using their bullets (prospects) on this season.

One and a half years still leaves a lot of time left on the control clock. Frankly though, I doubt Bard and Anderson even will get the Sox Dempster and his half a year. The Cubs need to get a haul for Garza and Dempster. They have to replenish their farm system. Bard is a question mark and Anderson is not even an elite prospect in the Sox' organization. I doubt the Sox can afford to drain any more talent from their system to compete for Garza. I think they may be in the market for Dempster, though.

If other contenders sit back and let the Red Sox get Garza for Bard and Anderson, there will be some general managers fired. If all Epstein and Hoyer can get for Garza is Bard and Anderson, then they will be cheating their organization. They simply have to rebuild that organization's farm system. They are not trying to turn this season around or even seriously compete next year. They are trying to rebuild with many good young prospects like the prospects they traded for Garza. Garza is a better pitcher now than he was when the Cubs sent the Rays their best prospects in starting pitcher Chris Archer, catcher Robinson Chirinos, shortstop Hak-Ju Lee, and outfielder Brandon Guyer. How can they settle for less than that now?

Hamels will be a great target over the winter, but I doubt the Sox have the prospects to ante up for a top free-agent-to-be-type-starter at this point. I doubt they will be in on Garza, Hamels, or Greinke because of the prospects that will be required. To further deplete the Sox' farm system in a season filled with questions would not be a wise move. A Hamels type pitcher would be great but not logical. That is why I have been advocating buy low targets like Francisco Liriano, Ryan Dempster, or Wandy Rodriguez. Guys who are not number ones but who should help fill out the rotation with quality starts.

Speaking of Oakland, Manny asked for and received his release.

The Cubs don't want any more older players with big contracts. They have those already. They need youthful and inexpensive players to develop into stars in the coming years.

But markets shift. Garza's price tag will depend on what Epstein can extract from other clubs. He won't have to look at Lavarnway and say that is a fair exchange. He will be able to go from Baltimore to the Yankees to Toronto to Boston. As odd as it seems, Epstein could hold the key to the AL East...and the future of his new team with one key player, Matt Garza. One and a half years of control is still valuable, and Epstein simply has to cash in on that value, or he is better off keeping him. The Cubs already depleated their farm system by sending the Rays their future shortstop, a potential top of the rotation pitcher, probably their future starting catcher and their future starting leftfielder, as well as Super Sam Fuld. Epstein has to play his best card very effectively to replentish the Cubs' farm system. I believe he will have to command at least one pitcher and one position player in the #11-50 prospect range. I believe he will also have to get some very good lower level prospects with potential to develop. Epstein has to score with Garza. What he brings back to his organization will be key to his early success and evaluation.