vjcsmoke

I'm not really opposed to trading anybody if we can land an Ace for our rotation. That is the one position that trumps imo. You have to have the goto guy that you have a losing streak, but you put him on the mound you know you will get back on track with a win. The Red Sox offense should be much more potent in 2015. But we need that guy who can hold the other team to 3 runs or less and we can count on for around 20 wins. BTW we just obtained Varvaro so our bullpen got a little deeper and stronger. http://www.ajc.com/news/sports/baseball/braves-traded-varvaro-to-red-sox-for-pitching-pros/njTwf/ Stilll need to address the pink elephant though BC. If we land Shields or Hamels I would be satisfied. If we get a stud like Zimmerman, Scherzer, or Sale I would be ecstatic!

So back to the pitching staff. Does anybody else covet Zimmerman of the Nationals and what would it take to pry him away? I know there's only 1 year of contract control left but I feel this guy is coming into his prime and would be a true staff ace if the Red Sox could get him.

Just read an article that says the Nationals are shopping Zimmerman. This guy has really hit his prime. Being selected to the Allstar game twice, and top 10 in Cy Young voting twice. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/z/zimmejo02.shtml I know there's only 1 year of contract control left on him, but that's exactly why he might be gettable. Should the Red Sox make a move for Zimmerman and hope they can sign him to an extension? http://www.overthemonster.com/2014/12/15/7393467/jordan-zimmermann-trade-rumors-red-sox-nationals

I was just about to post about the same thing: http://www.overthemonster.com/2014/12/8/7353377/red-sox-allen-craig-trade-rumors-brewers There is a market for Craig if we are looking to unload an OF/1B. He does not make that much relatively speaking at 6m per season, so it doesn't really hurt us if we keep him. However if we can use him as part of a package to get something useful, it behooves us to explore those options. Maybe another BP arm could help us. We resigned Uehara but how are we bridging that 7th/8th inning gap to get to him in a closing situation? Not to mention the bright pink elephant in the roam that is our lack of #1 pitcher. Who could we aquire on the trade market besides Cole Hamels. Is Cueto obtainable?? http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2014/12/9/7364315/reds-trade-rumors-johnny-cueto-aroldis-chapman

Jumping ship? Well don't let the door hit you on the way out. Seriously. You're spoiled rotten and you don't even realize it. The Red Sox won WS championships in 2004, 2007, and 2013. All of this after a nearly 80+ year drought after selling the Bambino. You have no idea how lucky you are/were to be a Red Sox fan. Management is temporary. Theo came and went. Cherington and Farrell etc. won't be here forever. But they caught lightning in a bottle in 2013. There is no way we should have won coming off last place the year previous. But they did it. The level of ingratitude here for the magic of 2013 is amazing. The offseason isn't even done and people are already writing off the 2015 Red Sox. Ok good luck with that. Go ahead be a hater. Change the laundry that you root for. I won't. I don't like fair weather fans and I don't care who else you choose to root for. GOOD BYE. CYA. DON'T COME BACK!

Santanna only cost 55m? Wonder why we didn't go after him. We paid 100m for Lackey and he sucked for his first couple of years with us. Redeemed himself at the end, but wow that could have been an albatross contract if he had continued to suck. Anyways, let me fantasize about Scherzer at the top of our rotation. Most likely we end up with Shields or Hamels though... if we are aggressive.

Do the Red Sox have anyone in their farm system ready to take over a sizeable role? I know I keep hearing about how good our prospects are. But will we throw anyone into the fire and hope they become a homegrown ace? How does Henry Owens' future look for example? http://www.csnne.com/boston-red-sox/scouting-report-henry-owens-whos-headed-pawtucket

I see Craig as a possible RFer/1B backup. This guy averaged over .800 OPS before his injury plagued 2014 season. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/craigal01.shtml And who knows if Victorino can come back healthy? It looks to me like they are both wait and see candidates. Who can win the RF starting job? The Red Sox see Hanley Ramirez as their LFer and I believe Castillo is seen as their CFer. Which means for the RF spot we have a 3-way battle between Betts, Victorino, and Craig. If Craig can't win a spot, he's going to have to be a platoon player. The good news is that Victorino is signed only until 2015. If he doesn't win a starting spot, it should be pretty easy to trade him to a contender who needs speedy defensive outfield depth at the deadline or just let him walk at the end of the season. Really don't know what we'll do about Craig if he doesn't bounce back though. He's got pretty big contract.

Porcello is an interesting player. Big tall guy, innings eater. But a groundball pitcher. Last year was his best yet. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/porceri01.shtml His control is very good to excellent, averages around 40-50 walks per season. The negative is that he has given up more hits than innings pitched in just about every season. And that is a concern. With a groundball pitcher, you really need a strong infield defense to back him up. His strikeout rate is also quite low, so he's not going to get you a lot of free outs that way. I think the key for Porcello is how he plays to our park. If he can pitch to his strengths in the confines of Fenway and our defense gives him good to very good backup he could reach the next level. Which I envision would be a top flight #2 pitcher if he continues to improve. Would I rather have Cueto? Of course. But Porcello is not a bad guy to get to help out a rotation that was clearly in bad shape and needed an overhaul. It's a start.

So the Red Sox have been very active this hot stove. In addition to Panda and Hanley Ramirez, the Sox still needed more pieces. They just added 3 starting pitchers. Granted none of them look Ace quality, but they could be solid rotation pieces. http://espn.go.com/boston/mlb/story/_/id/12014434/boston-red-sox-acquire-pitchers-rick-porcello-justin-masterson-wade-miley-deals-trade-away-yoenis-cespedes How do you feel about what the Red Sox have done so far? I feel like they have opened the purse strings and are making a bid to be truly competitive for the upcoming 2015 season. They still need an Ace though. Will they make a move for Cole Hamels or will they back up the brinks truck for Scherzer? What would you like to see happen next?

I'd love to have Lester return and then have the Sox add Cole Hamels to the mix. That would give them 2 proven, ace-quality pitchers at the top. If we can't get Lester back, we'll probably target Cuetos from the Reds and again Cole Hamels from the Phillies. Gotta give up some to get some. The question is who do we give up to get that starting pitching? You've got to think that Middlebrooks days in Boston are numbered ever since we signed Pablo Sandoval. And Cespedes has been on the block and is the odd man out now that we signed Hanley Ramirez.

I'm fine sticking with Vazquez. You can have catcher who hits 220-250 and that's fine as long as his defense is superb. BTW we already have one of the best hitting C prospects in Swihart so I have no problem with Vazquez holding the fort until Swihart is ready.

Still dreaming of a Cespedes, Castillo, Stanton OF but it's unlikely to happen. If Stanton is Untouchable, Does anyone think that Nelson Cruz could be had? He's a RHB veteran Dominican slugger who recently exploded for 40 HRs for Baltimore. http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=443558#gameType='R'&sectionType=career&statType=1&season=2014&level='ALL'

Of course the Sox are interested. An OF of Cespedes, Castillo, and Puig would be one of the best offensively in the AL next year. The question is how much would it cost to put that all together. The package demanded would probably be huge.

Maybe that's because the Yankees already have Jacoby Ellsbury? It's true that right now Jackie Bradley Junior looks like he is playing with a wiffle bat. IE No idea how to hit. But considering that our only OF locks are Rusney Castillo and 1 year of Cespedes, there's room for a 4th outfielder who can field and run the bases. I'm not a believer in the rest of the current Red Sox outfield and unless by some miraculous chance we land Giancarlo Stanton, there's still big ? marks about Victorino and/or Allen Craig. JBJ is the least of our problems and right now JBJ's value is low. What can we even get for him? This is the same problem we face with Buchholz. He has low trade value but he's way too inconsistent to be a dependable top of the rotation starter for us. Sure I'd like to upgrade on him and I'd be willing to move him, but who could we get in return?? Now if we could trade a package of Buccholz, JBJ, and prospects for Cole Hamels, I would drive them to the airport myself. But realistically, are these guys wanted by anybody right now?

I know we're talking small sample size but Rusney Castillo has been raking for us. http://nesn.com/2014/09/red-sox-notes-rusney-castillo-already-looking-like-five-tool-threat/ .333 batting average (11 for 33), 2 HRs, 6 rbis, 3 steals, and a .934 OPS. I guess the Ben Cherington and the Red Sox aren't idiots after all. This move might work out for us. ;-)

Looking forward to seeing him live! Hope he lives up to the hype! But remember the law of small sample size. :-)

It makes sense to shut Pedroia down. This also gives the youngsters a chance to prove themselves. I'd like to see Holt and Betts get regular playing time and see who wins that 2B position in the meantime.

A 31 year old Cano seeking a 10 year deal is different from a 25 year old Stanton who is in his young prime. Yankees paid top dollar for AROD's deal and for Teixeira. I wouldn't put it past the Yankees to ink Stanton to a huge deal if he made it to free agency. We're not going to win that bidding war. The only way Stanton realistically gets to the Red Sox would be via trade with the Marlins and we negotiate a long term deal that satisfies Stanton to stay. It's too bad we couldn't get him before he completely blew up statistically. Anyways here's an article that gives a different viewpoint - a skeptical one about whether the Marlins will actually give Stanton the big contract that he desires. Not to mention even if it is enough money, he probably won't get the No Trade Clause. http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/pulp/2014/09/why_the_marlins_giving_giancarlo_stanton_the_largest_contract_in_team_history_is_a_load_of_crap.php

If Middlebrooks wants to salvage his career he better be on the darn bus or plane when Winter Ball starts. They might be able to give him some kind of regimen where he plays less so that he has more time in between to heal, but he better play ball if he wants to get better and show the brass that he WANTS to get better. And if the vision issues as rumored are true, he better darn well get Lasik surgery in the offseason if he can't wear contacts. PS In a trade for Giancarlo Stanton, I'd say there's really not a player who is off-limits right now. Assuming we extend him long-term, Stanton would solidify our lineup for the next generation of Red Sox teams.

Right now, JBJ is a gold glove CFer with no bat. You can afford to carry one of those types of players in the OF if the other two starters are well-above average to all-star level. However we have not seen that level of play from our LF/RFers this season. Therefore overall the OF offense was a disaster. With Rusney Castillo added to the mix, it appears to me that JBJ's days are numbered in Boston. Even if he turns into a Coco Crisp level player, I doubt he will get the chance to prove that with a 70m dollar centerfielder signed longterm with a starting role in mind by both Cherington and Farrell.

I think Holt will be a good player. Maybe not a starter but with his ability to play multiple positions, lead off, and hit, he's a good player to have on a very good contract. I feel we keep him unless we can get another piece that can help the team. As far as Middlebrooks, yes he has struggled. But I laugh at the idea that he won't even be invited to ST next year. The kid has the potential to hit at all-star levels for the 3b position, .800+ OPS and possibly .850+ if he can ever find his form again and grow from there. The people giving up on Bogaerts already make me laugh even harder. Yes our team struggled, and our young players have struggled. This doesn't mean they are unsalvageable. I'd only trade our talented youngsters in a package for proven talent that would upgrade our roster.

Does anyone else feel like Buccholz needs to be dealt? I feel like we've hold onto him too long and he has regressed. He has been named an all-star twice, so when he is good he is really good. But when he is bad, he is a worse than average starter. Only 2 good seasons out of 7 so far. [i'm not going to count his 22 ip in 2007 as a season.] http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/buchhcl01.shtml?redir I say if we can get a decent return, we should flip him. I don't feel that he is consistent enough to ever be a #1 starter like Lester was for us.

Youkilis might not have been a 'homerun hitter' but he was a very, very good offensive player for his position, over his career he averaged > .850 OPS and he was famed for his ability to carry out long at bats that either tired out a pitcher or could get him on base with a walk if he didn't manage to get a hit. For me right now Middlebrooks projects to be a 3b with slightly better power but significantly worse OPB than Youkilis. Offensively I feel that a Youkilis type is more useful when you already have some sluggers in the lineup such as David Ortiz and Cespedes. If Rusney Castillo gives us speed at the top, the Red Sox have been missing that leadoff hitter type since Ellsbury left. My only concern is Castillo's relatively low walk rate. But if he can maintain a .360 or higher OBP in the Majors with decent hitting to go along with his speed he should be an asset for our lineup. Differing opinions on Castillo: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/boston-red-sox-rusney-castillo-future-of-cuban-free-agency/

I'll agree with that. Manny may have been a knucklehead but he was a genius hitter. And even genius hitters don't stay at such a high level unless they work at their game. Manny always struck fear when he stepped into the box. As a fan you held your breath because you knew at any time, with one swing he could change an entire ballgame. Ortiz+Ramirez were the 1-2 punch that formed the heart of the Red Sox lineup during their championship wins in 2004 and 2007.