Lucienbel

That's sort of what I'm seeing too. It'll be interesting to see what happens as time starts to dwindle away. Maybe that'll make Napoli budge a little. Unless the Red Sox are making a big deal about nothing, I can't imagine another team would be offering him a better deal.

Agreed. I don't see him taking a discounted deal even if it is for a lot of time either.... It'll be his first real chance on the market and he's been an absolute monster. I'd imagine his goal would be to go into free agency. With as much as the Marlins will ask for him, I'm not sure he'll be headed anywhere at least this off season. It seems that a lot of teams that would be able to give him a mammoth extension probably wouldn't or don't have the package to get him away from Miami. Hopefully he doesn't become one of those players that just kind of dies there. It's clear he isn't super excited to play there, so hopefully that doesn't effect his play too much. I guess if it did it would lessen his value, but then teams are banking he puts it back together.

If we could get around a 4.00-4.50 ERA and a decent amount of innings out of him it wouldn't be terrible. Hopefully the need for the TJ surgery was a big part of his problem since he's been in Boston, because if it was we could reasonably expect that 4.50 and some innings.

All the news I've heard on him say he's throwing well too. I said it in another thread too, but if you can get him on a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training it wouldn't be a bad idea really. The Nationals seem to be offering him a minor league contract with an opt out if he isn't called up to the majors by a certain point. I'd like to see the Red Sox offer something comparable to this. The one advantage the Nationals have is he seems to be pretty driven to play for a contender, so I'd imagine he'd favor them.

Not the greatest thing to hear but likely true. Quietly, Tazawa showed he was very capable of pitching last year. It'd be a shame for him to not get slotted in. The fact that he proved whatever roll he was put in he could handle is also a plus. Shame to see this happen. I'd prefer to see him over Breslow honestly. While Breslow has pitched well, never truly understood why he was traded for. Always just seemed like a trade to make Bobby V's goofy bullpen work out the way he wanted, plus it was a guy he knew.

I'd agree. He hasn't shown his bat in a while, but if he has to fill in for a while if someone goes down he's a good option as of right now. It'll be interesting to see if he gets a shot at a platoon with Gomes.... I thought Gomes platooning was sort of the idea by signing him but I guess we'll see with that.

I feel decent in the fact that he'd be depth and I seriously doubt he'd be any kind of investment. Seems like someone who would probably just get a minor league deal with an invite at most.... Couldn't hurt really. While I don't really see him as the kind of depth I'd like the Red Sox to add, I don't see a real downside to this. He's always thrown a lot of innings so he's somewhat interesting at the least.

I'll also agree. It seems like that if this team has things go right, they could end up surprising some people. Even if those players we did pick up don't get traded at the deadline, we're not particularly tied down to them.

Not to speak for everyone, just stating my own point. I don't think Salty brings the pitching staff down all on his own. At the same time, I don't think that he's doing them any favors. A better catcher behind the plate with an already struggling pitching staff could certainly help support them, and that seems to be what Ross was brought in to do. I just think that with a solid catcher behind the plate these guys that need to rebound would at least have a little help.

Either way, still a great way to become a fan. Nothing like actually being there and realizing that they're your team. I've only ever lived as far as two hours away from the park my whole life and I'm a whole lot closer now too, so I guess I was always lucky in that regard. I'm part of the camp that isn't going to judge you on being a fan for x amount of time though either.... As long as you really mean it, that's all that matters. And you certainly seem to.

This. I don't see him as the guy we want behind the plate at all and he certainly isn't helping an already struggling pitching staff. I was also hoping that we would see him traded, but that doesn't seem to be happening. Hopefully Lavranway will start hitting well and force this team to have to do something.

I said he should have to compete for a spot. It's tough to know how a guy is going to be coming off TJ surgery, so he at least deserves the chance. If he is capable of pitching decent there's no reason he shouldn't. If he can't I'd rather see him slotted into the pen as a long man, but as a few others have noted we didn't really go out and pick up anyone else who would be capable of breaking the rotation.

I'm kind of happy to see them move away from that philosophy. There's still an upside to this sort of spending more carefully and building the farm mentality that a lot of other teams doing this don't have the opportunity to do as well.... We still have a ton of money. For the right player and at the right time there could potentially be a "big splash" or two to be made. While this offseason wasn't that time, I wouldn't count the Red Sox out on a big player if they fit the bill and the timing was right.

Realizing that Doubront has no other options than going to the big leagues I assume that they'll do everything they can to keep both of them in the rotation. I have a tough time seeing them just sticking Lackey in the pen. I suppose an option like that will likely become an absolute worse case scenario. I suppose if he does end up in the pen he won't be able to whine in his post game interviews though, because he probably won't get them.

That's an excellent way to end up a fan. I still remember my first time walking out to the actual seats and seeing the field, it was amazing. While I do think Gomez wouldn't be a bad fill in at first if someone goes down for a week or two, I wouldn't want to see him there all year. They need to figure something out. The more I see talks about it, the more and more it does end up looking like it'll be Napoli.

Me either. Very strange..... I hope this isn't some sort of "backup plan". Either way, not the most thrilling thing to hear.

None the less, I think you stick Gomes in the proper platoon position and you end up happy with what you get out of him. Certainly an overpay and a defensive liability, but if we're smart with him we'll get production. Edit- Read what I wrote and thought about it, $10 mil is a lot for being that situational.

This is exactly where I'm at on him too. I don't see signing him hurting us in any way, and at the very least he could be reinforcement for the rotation.

Certainly. I do think there's a possibility the Marlins do deal him at some point in time, but I don't know if what we'd have to give up would be worth it even assuming we could compete with what other teams are giving up. As for Ellsbury, there's no way Boras lets him just sign an extension with the Red Sox unless something terrible happens to him...... In which case I don't think an extension would really be worth it. I think Ellsbury is replaceable, be it through a prospect of our own or free agency eventually. If he spent more time on the field and proved what he did in 2011 I'd feel different, but it'd be tough giving a guy the kind of money he'll want for what we've actually got out of him. I completely agree with extending Pedroia. Pedroia is quality, on the field every day he can possibly be out there, and dedicated to playing. I think it's unrealistic to think we could have moved Lackey over Beckett no matter which you prefer. With Lackey having Tommy John surgery and making that much money, he would have been nearly impossible to get rid of.

I'm also riding on the Marcum train. Granted he had some health stuff last year, when he's going good he's shown he's at least capable of pitching in a solid rotation in a competitive division. Still a little baffled as to why he hasn't drawn more interest from teams. I think this team has some potential to surprise some people. Not blow people away, but I think they could end up being surprising. To me, they seem to be building in the right direction. Not sure why they leave the rotation alone so much, but maybe that's something their holding out for the future for better options. I really don't think they're out there with a goal of going to the playoffs this year. As others have said, if things work out good they'll have an outside chance still.

At this moment I also agree that Bailey's stock is down. While I'd like to see him go for Porcello the truth is that the Sox would probably have to give up a lot more than just Bailey to make that happen. The Tigers have a team that by all rights should be in the playoffs next year, unless something really weird happens. It makes sense that they wouldn't want a closer who has a history of injuries and didn't perform well last year...... They want a guy they know will be able to do it. I'd assume any other teams looking to move a starter would want similar. As for the bullpen and starter argument, we need to be solid in both areas. Starters will have to be good enough to get us into the bullpen with a lead, and the bullpen will have to be good enough to hold onto that lead. The reality of it is, on some days the bullpen will be needed in the 5th/6th inning, and in others late in the game. Either way you bend it the offense also figures into this. I don't think the Orioles rotation or pen are the greatest example, as what they were able to do with both last year was an extreme. Either way, the fact is that there's no way you'd be able to move a closer with a lot of questions about his health and ability for a starter without a lot of questions, unless that lack of question is the statement "he sucks". I agree that Bailey has a lot more value with us at the moment. Maybe if he pitches well he could be moved at the deadline if the bullpen plays itself out like that, but right now it seems you'd be under selling him.

I also don't believe in paying (money or prospects wise) a ton for set up or closers. We've certainly been burnt by it in the past enough where it's concerning every time we do do it. Watching Tampa and other teams always able to fill in these rolls year after year also makes me think it can be done that way. Lastly, I also hate this overemphasis of the Yankees and do not want to be like that either. With all of that said, Hanrahan is someone I'm interested in. If he can solve those command problems I don't think any of us will be questioning this trade. Hanrahan is solid and has really good stuff. To me, this has much better potential than the Bailey trade right out of the gate. I assume they weren't interested in Sands for one reason or another or they would have held on to him. I have a feeling this one may actually work out.

Ah, didn't know he was around. LaRoche would still be my preference at this point, but if things go south and you could get him on a one year he wouldn't be a bad choice.

I'd also give Doubront the edge here, and for many reasons. He's shown he can go a full season, even if he had some decline down the stretch, which I'd guess was a fatigue thing. He definitely has the sort of stuff to pitch in the majors. If he can build some stamina and get deeper into games he'd be really good. With that said, I don't think it's worth tossing Morales out the window. He's shown in the past and he's shown stuff last year that said he still could do it. Not that I want him taking that spot right out of Doubronts hands, but I don't think he should just be tossed aside either. Now if they add another arm or two (and I really wish they'd try Marcum maybe) this would change a bit. Adding another arm or two to compete with Doubront wouldn't be a terrible thing though.

The fact that the first basemen does have the ball that often indeed makes defense at first base important. As far as fielding goes, the first basemen is involved in the most outs made on the field besides the pitcher (if we look at it like that). That's a large chance for those outs to not get made. With that said, for the most part, when it comes to taking throws from Pedroia and Drew I'm not incredibly concerned as Pedroia is more than adequate and from what I've seen with Drew he's fine too. I know people are a little down on Middlebrooks in this area but I think he'll shape up well too, though it may take some time. None the less, if we allow the middle infield and third basemen the faith they don't have to make a throw perfect every time and can still get the outs things seem to go a lot smoother. While first base may not require the greatest range on the field and may not look the best, you know you're always going to be taking throws from your infielders. The more of those you can pick and stretch out the better.