Discussion: What’s Next For The Red Sox?

We discussed what the Cardinals may do this offseason following their season ending loss yesterday, and now that the Angels have swept the Red Sox out of October, let's talk about what could be in store for Boston this winter.

The team has a few impending free agents, most notably outfielders Jason Bay and Rocco Baldelli. Billy Wagner will also hit the open market since the Sox have agreed not to exercise his $8MM option. Josh Beckett's $12.1MM option for 2010 has already vested, and you would think Victor Martinez's $7.7MM option is a no-brainer pickup. The team still has decide what to do with the options they hold for Jason Varitek, Alex Gonzalez, and Takashi Saito, though Varitek also has a player option that could keep him in, well, red socks next year regardless of what the club decides to do.

Boston should be prepared for Jonathan Papelbon, Casey Kotchman, Manny Delcarmen, and Ramon Ramirez to receive raises via arbitration, then of course there's Tim Wakefield's perpetual $4MM club option. The Red Sox posted the third best run differential in baseball this year at +136, but let's hear from the readers; what should the Sox do this winter to improve their team?