vjcsmoke

Yup, if he took an 8/110 deal like Pedroia did, he would remain in Boston for a long time. But with Boras his agent I very much doubt that would happen.

Well if they trade him in 2011 we don't win the WS in 2013. So I'm glad we kept him. Red Sox had the lowest team batting average of any World Series Winner!! David Ortiz WS Batting average .688 2nd highest in WS history. Ortiz .465 career WS batting average - highest in major league history of any player with at least 50 plate appearances.

Cherington gets an A+ from me for this season. 1. You have to give him credit for unloading the huge and unwanted salaries of Crawford, Gonzalez, Beckett, and Punto. The salary relief was HUGE. Getting those headcases out of the clubhouse was probably even bigger. Not to mention the Dodgers kicked in a few prospects as well. 2. He acquired World Series winning skipper John Farrel for Aviles. Yes he pried away a WS quality manager for the price of a backup infielder. That is also HUGE and we don't wins the WS without Farrell. Brilliant move there. 3. Amazingly enough his free agent acquisitions pretty much ALL made positive contributions to the championship run. It's always risky to go for bulk purchases in free agency because it is uncertain how they will all fit together. But to his credit he targeted high character guys who really turned around the atmosphere in the clubhouse. How about getting the best closer in all of baseball for just 4.25m? Awesome! http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/27/sports/baseball/in-bulk-purchase-of-free-agents-the-red-sox-go-7-for-7.html?_r=0 Yes, Cherington had some luck on his side, but he also made a lot of smart moves to put together this championship winning roster. BC has earned all the praises that are coming his way. It looks like Boston chose the right man for the job to take over for Epstein.

Tell that to his agent. I don't believe there's any way Boras will agree to only 5 years. He is gonna milk Ellsbury's last big contract for all its worth. And I see no indications Ellsbury will ever hit 20 homeruns. Outside of the one freak year, he has never hit double digit homers. That's just not his strength. “Two things separate Ellsbury [from Crawford]. Carl Crawford was never proven as a leadoff hitter, and Carl Crawford is not a center fielder,'' Boras said. “They are two different animals. It's not a consideration because he's a corner outfielder. Just think if Carl Crawford could play center field.” Boras went on to mention a few other differences between Ellsbury and Crawford. “Carl Crawford never had success in Boston. And he never won a ring in Boston,'' Boras said. Plus, "Crawford never hit twenty home runs, and Jacoby hit 30," Boras added. http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/writer/jon-heyman/23495290/boras-compares-ellsbury-to-carl-crawford-and-an-aircraft-carrier Boras is obviously trying to upsell Ellsbury from Crawford. Considering Crawford got 7/142 what will he be asking for Ellsbury?? Short answer: Even More.

I think that Middlebrooks will be end up getting traded. If we can get an elite 1st base prospect, maybe we move him for someone who is MLB ready to play 1st but is blocked in the pipeline. It is no sure thing that we get back Napoli. I think 3/30 is a bit much for a guy with no bat. Love Drew's defense but his hitting makes me cringe. He was like 5/40 in the World Series or something like that?

Take a 'flyer' on him? I think your idea of a 'flyer' is misplaced. We're talking about 7 years 140m here or 8/160. That's not a flyer that's a huge financial investment and risk. If we were talking 5/75, I'm all on board for resigning Ellsbury. But his agent Scott Boras, is one of the greediest in sports. I don't expect any hometown discount. And locking up a guy for 8 years at 20m plus per year when he is known to be injury prone is a BAD idea. Another way to think about this, how many impact at bats did Ellsbury have this World Series? How many impact steals? I can't really remember any memorable moments for him in the WS. Will it hurt to move on from Ellsbury? Of course. And I appreciate what he has given Boston. But you can't hold on to everyone. And some risks are not worth taking. We're talking about taking a 30 year old Ellsbury and signing him into his year 38 season at over 100 milion dollars plus investment.

In light of the Red Sox' appearance in the World Series this year, and Victorino's contributions to our cause, do you care to RETRACT your statements now?

Why can't Victorino lead off and JBJ bat at the bottom of the order until he gets fully acclimated? His numbers are quite similar to Ellsbury and he even offers a little more pop at the plate. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/v/victosh01.shtml http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/e/ellsbja01.shtml If you compare the two, Victorino has pretty good speed and OBP. I don't see why he couldn't bat leadoff in an ellsbury-less lineup. Also consider that Xander Bogaerts will likely make huge strides in the near future. It wouldn't surprise me to see him as our #3 hitter in a couple years. 1. Victorino 2. Pedroia 3. Bogaerts 4. Ortiz 5. Napoli That's not a bad top of the order. And JBJ should be fully ready in a couple of years time as well.

What is this power of which you speak? Are you talking about that one outlier year where Ells hit 32 homeruns, slugged .552 and has thereafter NEVER eclipsed double digit dingers in a season since? You overestimate Ellsbury and I'll take a professional scout's opinion over that of a message board poster, no offense. Jackie Bradley scouting report 2012: Hit 50/60 Power 40/40 Arm 50/50 Fielding 70/70 Speed 50/50 In other words JBJ should be above average in just about every major league category. Don't know where you took math but that doesn't add up to be 50% of Ellsbury. Ellsbury is GOOD but he's no Rickey Henderson. And like I said before, we got over losing Johnny Damon, who was a better hitter than Ellsbury btw, we'll get over Ells. I'm not saying I want to lose him, but you have to be financially practical when building a team.

Seriously. Ellsbury plays nothing like Bonds. Even if Bonds wasn't stealing bases, he'd be hitting homeruns. And even when he wasn't hitting homeruns he was getting on base through walks at an astronomical rate. Not going to even get into Bonds slugging, but his career OBP alone is .444. Ellsbury career OBP is .350. They aren't even CLOSE. As for should we keep Ellsbury. No, not if it will cost us a 100m+ deal. And I am sensing his agent wants something like 7 years 140m or even 7/150. The Red Sox should not put that much payroll into ONE player. Haven't they learned their lesson already with Carl Crawford? If Jackie Bradley Jr is even 80% of Ellsbury, his MUCH reduced payroll rate means we should give him a shot. We can't completely replace Ellsbury and I will always be thankful for what he has given to Boston but not at the monster price tag being demanded. Remember when we thought - what will we ever do without Johnny Damon? Well we got over that. We'll get over Ellsbury as well. If Ellsbury was demanding 15m per year, I'd say keep him, but his agent is going to be asking for a TON more.

Troll post is troll. I think people should be required to have 100 posts before they are allowed to start new topics in the forum. Red Sox have the Best record in MLB. Please crawl back under your troll bridge. Anyone else want to talk real baseball? Because this thread should have be locked so that real fans don't waste their time with it. Ignore the troll. It's probably a bitter yankee fan just joined the forum to stir up $%!# cos his team is out of the playoffs and he's J-E-A-L-O-U-S.

I'd go 5/75 for Ellsbury. He would be a stabilizing presence in the lineup. But I would not go for the reported asking price of 20m per year. 8/160 or 10/200, I want ZERO part in that. Jackie Bradley Junior will likely be at least 85% as good and will cost a lot less money. I'd rather spend the big money on a star starting pitcher or power hitting 1B or LF in next year's free agent market.

Iggy has a magic glove. And that I think will stay but his bat turned back into a pumpkin in July. The Red Sox had a unique opportunity because Detroit's SS was about to be banned/suspended for 50 games, and they needed a defensive SS badly. We had what they needed in Iglesias and they took it, in exchange we got what we needed , Peavy, a solid #2/#3 veteran pitcher to bolster our rotation for a playoff run. Really hard to get upset about this trade. I think Iggy's upside is a 250-270 batter with maybe a 650-700 ops with a great glove. We might miss his defense but not his bat. Plus we've got Xander Bogaerts waiting in the wings. Bogaerts has Hanley Ramirez type upside.

With Buccholz situation in the air, this is the kind of pitcher you need to get back to solidify the rotation. I still think Lester/Lackey are your top guys until CB comes back. But remember even WS contenders need a Derek Lowe type of pitcher. At this point in his career that's how I see Peavy, and that's not bad at all. He's a veteran pitcher who has seen a lot, and will probably get better as he settles in with the Sox.

I would go 4/52 for Ellsbury. A Johnny Damon type deal. Max I'd go would be 4/60. Jacoby's main asset is his speed and that diminishes with age and injuries. If we want comparable defense, we would get that from JBJ for just .5 million per year. The question with Jackie is will he develop the hitting ability. He struggled mightily vs big league pitching. But that could change just a year from now.

ROFL. Did you just compare Ellsbury to Trout? All your credibility just went out the window. Mike Trout hit 30 homeruns at age TWENTY. He's a 950 ops CF. Ellsbury has more speed than Trout but can't touch him in terms of power or getting onto base consistently. Ellsbury has also been off and on with injuries and hasn't sniffed double digit homeruns since his one great year in 2011. To me that 2011 season is looking more and more like a statistical outlier. Was he on the juice or was he just in 'the zone' that year? Who knows, but it does look like he will Never have that kind of season again. I'd trade Ellsbury and top 10 farm prospects for Mike Trout easily, and LAA would just laugh and hang up the phone if that offer were made. And JUSTIFIABLY so. Hate on Pedroia if you like, you're entitled to your opinion. 13.75m aav for an elite two-way 2b is good value though imo. And once Cano signs his deal, Dustin's will look like a huge bargain. In any case the Ellsbury to Trout comparisons are ridiculous.

Cliff Lee would be an amazing add. But realistically, the White Sox drop their asking price and throw in a reliever plus eat some of Peavey's salary. We'll see. Philadelphia is gonna ask the moon for Lee because he is a proven playoff performer. But consider that Lee is 34, 2 years older than Peavey, and Lee's K/9 has dropped slightly each year over the past 3 years. Why, I don't know why. But makes you wonder if the added asking price is worth it. Not to mention the NL tends to make pitchers ERAs look a lot nicer than they should be if brought over to the AL. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/leecl02.shtml Philly's asking "a lot" for Lee: http://philliesnation.com/archives/2013/07/rosenthal-phils-talking-lee-with-other-teams/

Short answer yes. Buccholz health is the main issue for us. Lester just put up 7 shutout innings to earn the win against the Orioles. I have confidence in Lester rounding into form for the stretch run. But we need that extra starter because Buccholz is still a questionmark. But Lackey and Lester are our go to guys right now. Doubrount and Dempster are also keeping us into games. But that 5th starter is a ?? for the playoffs. And honestly I'd like to see an upgrade cos I don't have a ton of confidence in Dempster for a 4 man postseason rotation.

LOL how is Peavey a has-been? As lately as last year, 2012, he posted 219 IP with a 3.37 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in the AL and made the All-star team. This year his era is higher at 4.28 but his whip is about the same at 1.13 and his K/9 rating is the best it has been in the past 3 years at 8.6. It looks to me like Peavey is coming off injury but has rounded back into form the past couple of years. Considering you are talking about a former Cy Young award winner who is still only 32, I think if you can acquire him for a guy who doesn't fit on the team long term anymore, Peavy is not the worst you can do, particularly if the white sox will throw in a bullpen arm who can help us down the stretch. It's also possible that the White Sox might even be willing to eat some of that salary to get him off the books. Peavy for 15m per year is a lot, but for 10m per year with the White Sox picking up 5? That's pretty darn reasonable. I think what you are getting with Peavy at this stage of his career is a rich man's Derek Lowe. And that's not bad to have when you are making a playoff run.

The Red Sox definitely sound interested in Peavey. And Crain is another bullpen arm the White Sox have who might help us for the stretch run. Considering that Bogaerts is on the way up soon. That Middlebrooks was recently demoted with struggles, albeit still a very talented kid. And the fact we have a top 50 prospect at 3rd base named Cecchini, do you feel comfortable dealing a guy who could potentially be a perennial all-star at 3b if he hits his ceiling? This kind of reminds me of the Hamley Ramirez situation. We got Beckett and a couple of WS rings out of it. But Ramirez turned into everything we expected and more. SO if the price for Peavey and Crain are Middlebrooks plus prospects, do you make that deal as the Red Sox?

LOL. Heard most major league hitters can punish middle-middle pitches. So is WMB fixed yet? Iglesias is starting to cool off a bit. And we are now past the all-star break.

Well if Middlebrooks can convert to 1B, I think we can keep him around. 1B isn't exactly a strength for us. Imagine an infield of 3b Bogaerts SS Iglesias 2b Pedroia 1b Middlebrooks The incredible thing about that infield would be that they are ALL homegrown players. Hopefully Middlebrooks regains form.

There will always be a pretty face coming up. Question is, are they any good at reporting baseball?

It's not that easy to find an ace pitcher. Lester, Buccholz, and Doubront form a solid core. And we can let whatever youngsters we have battle for that 5th spot or sign a few cheap vets and see who sticks for #5 starter position. Not sure where that ace is coming from though. I think we avoid spending Lackey type money on starters unless we are sure they can come in and play in fenway under the microscope of the boston media.

The answer is Papelbon... oops we let him walk. Not a bunch of great options there. Just throw stuff against the wall and see who sticks. Seriously though, I used to think Bard was well on his way to being our closer but he fell apart when we tried to 'stretch' him into a starter. Does he just not have the mental makeup to be a closer? I still remember the fireballer who used to rear back and throw it 98-100 mph and nobody could touch his stuff. Is that pitcher still there?