Wednesday night linkage..
- The Royals could use Robinson Tejeda as a trade chip, writes Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.
- Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets that the Tigers signed first baseman Scott Thorman. Thorman belted 22 homers for the Royals' Triple-A affiliate last season.
- Joel Zumaya and Armando Galarraga are unlikely to be nontendered, writes MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- It's going to be a while before we see Cliff Lee sign with a team, a league source told Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.
- Sam Merten of the Dallas Observer wonders if the Rangers have the money and desire to keep up their winning ways.
- It makes sense for the Tigers to retain Magglio Ordonez, writes MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic likes the D-Backs' signing of Wily Mo Pena.
I really see a zero chance of the Red Sox offering Beltre a deal. Imagine if he accepts…That means not only a chance of Beltre regressing a huge deal from his second breakout campaign before free agency, but they would not be able to sign A-Gon or Prince when they hit free agency…And I think that is one of their goals…So I say Beltre to the Sox at 0%.
I agree with you. I feel like the Sox prefer a bigger power bat at first base than they to do retaining Beltre.
I say 25%. I continue to stand by my belief that even if Beltre doesn’t pop out another 7 WAR season, he’ll still provide significantly more production than he did in Seattle, thanks to the friendly confines of Fenway. It’s still unlikely because of the big first basemen opportunities available to them if Youk plays third, but I don’t think a huge regression is really in the cards. There’s a chance, but not a considerably higher one than with any other player.
Why would they not be able to sign A-Gon or Prince? Did you forget the position called “DH.” Next year, Ortiz will be a free agent, and the Sox will likely let him walk and sign A-Gon or maybe Prince. Simple as that. Theo has always talked about how he wants a versitle DH spot and this would work perfect.
In no way does signing Beltre have any effect on the Sox signing Gonzalez or Fielder. If the Sox want Gonzalez next offseason, they will sign him.
A-Gon is arguably the 2nd best defensive 1st baseman in Baseball…He isn’t going to sign to play DH and he is going to get a Tex like contract. You don’t pay a DH that kind of money. Same goes for Prince.
Youk is already gonna be 33 when 2012 starts. If you sign Gonzalez to a 7 or 8 year deal, it would make sense to shift Youk to DH. Do you really think the Sox would pass on Gonzalez to be their slugging 1B just because they don’t want Youk to play DH??? I would think that the Sox ideal plan would be to sign Beltre this year and Gonzalez next year to replace Papi’s bat.
I just don’t think that you get maximum value out of Youkilis if he is DHing. I could see the Sox possibly trading for Prince and signing him to an extension, or signing someone like Konerko, Lee, or trading for a 3B…possibly a veteran or someone on the rise…Maybe even shift Lowrie to 3B if they don’t trade Scutaro…You get what I’m trying to say…There are a lot of options for the Sox, but I honestly feel that signing Beltre to a multi-year deal is the wrong way to go.
For Prince, something like Casey Kelly, Drake Britton, Anthony Rizzo, and Felix Sanchez would work for me.
I just think Beltre is a perfect fit. He is outstanding at defense and would hit around the #6 spot. If you think about it, would you rather have Beltre & Gonzalez/Youk gold glovers at 1B & 3B. Or would you rather have Youk (average D at 3B) and Gonzalez at 1B?
The Sox will need a lefty slugger to add to the lineup to replace the old Papi and Gonzalez is just that. Sure, you would get max value out of Youk playing 1B, but if you have both Gonzalez and Youk, there isn’t much of a difference. Also, you would be paying for Gonzalez’ defense long-term. Youk is already paid for and is coming pretty cheap.
Plus, Youk would only have 2 years left on his contract by the time we can sign Gonzalez. I see no reason to let Gonzalez walk right past the Sox just because Youk will have to DH/1B for 2 years.
I hear what you are saying and don’t disagree at all. The thing to me is, defense never goes into a slump, but the last time Beltre had a career year, he signed a huge multi year deal and was underproductive with the bat during most of his time on the Mariners. I’m not going to say he played poorly, but he didn’t live up to the expectation. By the time Youk is a free agent, Wright and some other very good 3B may be on the market, therefore, it isn’t the end of the world if you sign a stop gap 3B this year and deal with Youk’s bad 3B defense in 2012 while getting about 3.0 more wins by not letting A-Gon DH. Plus, if you give Rizzo sometime in the bigs this season, you can showcase him.
Wouldn’t the team be worse off with Youk at 3B and Gonz at 1B, then Beltre at 3B and Youk/Gonzalez at 1B? Not only defensively, but offensively too. It seems pointless to get a stopgap for Gonzalez when there is gonna be room for him anyway.
Also, with Beltre, I realize that he has put up inconsistent numbers over the years. However, if you look at his road numbers, he hit .279 .292 .288 .283 in the last 4 years outside of Safeco. That is about what I would expect him to produce over his contract.
I don’t agree that defense doesn’t go into a slump. Players can have down years with range for whatever reason. It’s naive to disreguard all fluctuations in a players UZR as calculation errors (Elvis Andrus sure looked like his defense went into a slump in the second half last year).
That would be, conservatively speaking, $22mm for A-Gon, $15mm for Beltre, and $12mm for Youkilis. So almost $50mm for a 1B/3B/DH trio. That’s a hefty price, but it could worth it if it avoids injuries. Youkilis would be the key here, as he’s able to flip between first and 3rd.
Dont forget that after signing Gonzalez, the Sox would only have 2 years left on Youk’s contract and 3 years on Beltre. Although its 50M for 3 positions, its 50M for 3 of your best positions in the lineup (3, 4, and 5or6). The rest of the lineup would obviously come cheaply (Ellsbury, Kalish, Iglesias, Salty, Lowrie).
I don’t see why Beltre would severely affect them going after Agonz. I’m sure Theo would much rather have 3B Beltre, 1B/DH Youk, 1B/DH A-Gonz over 3B Youk, 1B Agonz, DH-(up in the air). Not only is the defense a lot better in the first set but it wouldn’t be that much more. DH/1B guys like Pena and Berkman are probably going to make 7mil this year coming off bad seasons. Assume the DH makes similar figures and you have a situation where those 3 big positions are worth just 8-10mil more in the first proposal with the Red Sox losing a lot of payroll that offseason. Plus the lineup would be much better in the 1st proposal. You could make an argument against needing Agonz if he weren’t the perfect type player for Fenway.
I think he would be great for Fenway, as well as hitting in every other ballpark in the AL East. And don’t get me wrong, I think he or Prince will sign a multi year deal with the Sox, but I just think plain and simple, for that to happen and work best, I think a stop gap for one season plus august/september of Rizzo would be the best way to go…That way, they could also showcase Rizzo for a trade for a good reliever…
I disagree – I think the Sox have the prospects to work a deal for Adrian Gonzalez today, and I’ll tell you what they would offer and work around. 2 of our top 10 prospects, 2 top 20 prospects, and an MLB ready player. Rizzo + Doubront + Lowrie + Middlebrooks + Fuentes. Here’s why we wouldn’t miss these players.
Rizzo – Once we get A-Gon and Youkilis, we have no room for Rizzo.
Doubront – Sox have already said they’re willing to dish him, and they have Kelly and Ranaudo up and coming as our next star pitchers.
Lowrie – With Scutaro playing as the stop-gap for Iglesias, Lowrie will have no room with the Sox anytime soon, and would be most beneficial as a trade chip.
Middlebrooks – a 3rd baseman, same reason as Rizzo
Fuentes – Outfielder comparable to Ellsbury. Great speed, high ceiling, but with Crawford – Ells – Kalish roaming the OF for years to come, we can use him as a chip easily.
So there’s the 5 prospect/MLB ready player deal. If Hoyer thinks he’d be better off trying to take 2 extra draft picks in the 2012 draft, then more power to him, but he’s got to realize that the 5 players being offered have already proven high worth and are a much safer bet than 2 draft picks.
Wouldn’t we be better off saving all the prospect and simply signing Beltre this year and Gonzalez next year? Theres no need to get rid of all the young guys. I understand that we don’t need all of those prospects, but they should be used more efficiently than that.
I don’t think we’ll actually sign Beltre AND Gonzo. I think we’d be much more likely to have Gonzo this year and let Beltre walk, get his 2 extra draft picks and, along with Victor’s draft picks, rebuild what we lost in the Gonzo trade. By the time we actually see the impact prospect-wise of the Gonzo trade, we will have allowed time for our new prospects (the ones that we received for Beltre and Vic) to progress and be MLB ready.
See, my plan is to just sign Beltre & Gonzalez, where you don’t lose any prospects. this way, you dont have to “rebuild what we lost.” The Sox have plenty of draft picks coming, whether we sign Beltre or not. We obviously have the 1st & 2nd round picks, 2 supplemental picks for Lopez & Varitek, and a 1st round and supplemental pick for VMart too. Also, right now we need a 3B (Beltre). Next year when Papi leaves, we will need a lefty slugger (Gonzalez). Trading prospects now is just something the Sox don’t have to do.
True. I just don’t see us out-bidding the Angels for two big name players. We’ll have to overpay for one, or both, of those players (Crawford and Beltre). I don’t think the Angels let us outbid them for both.
I completely agree here. I don’t think the Angels would let it happen, but I hope that Theo can somehow make it happen. I assume that Beltre would wait for Crawford to sign to set the market. However, since Crawford is the Angel’s top priority, maybe the Sox could find a way to sign Beltre first, meaning they just have to outbid the Angels for Crawford. Although it might mean the Sox have to pay big $, I think getting both not only makes the sox much better offensively and defensively, but it kind of takes the Angels out of direct contention (wild-card…). I guess we just hope that things work out. Who knows, Beltre might really really wanna play in LA…
If you sign Beltre and AGon long term and you still have Youk then what are you saving the prospects for? Better to use them to acquire talent than to just let them rot in AAA until they get picked up by another team.
Also, how do you know Papi is leaving? If he puts up another good year wouldn’t you be better off with AGon at 1st, Youk at 3rd, and Papi at a little bit cheaper rate than he gets now and use some of the money that you don’t commit to a risky Beltre to pay Crawford?
Well, I’m saying don’t give up the prospects if you don’t have to. The alternative makes the team better now and in the future. As for the prospects, I wouldn’t wanna give up on Iglesias, Kalish, or Doubront/Kelly. As for Rizzo, IF we are able to sign Gonzalez, we could trade him for an area of need when the time comes.
As for Papi, I’m pretty much just saying that if the Sox do keep Beltre, then next offseason, the choice will be between keeping Papi or going after Gonzalez. I would think it would make sense to get the younger slugger. We very well could keep Papi, but as he’s getting older, it is risky. So ya, if Beltre leaves, I would just keep papi and sign Gonzalez. Beltre is somewhat risky offensively (although he hit very well outside of Safeco while he was on the Mariners, around .280-.290 every year), he is a gold-glove defender year in, year out. Youk is closer to average D at 3B.
I’m still trying to figure out where Kelly is supposed to fit in, too.
Do you mean in the rotation if he stays with the Sox? Assuming that is what you mean Dice-K is gone after ’12 and Kelly is likely to get his first taste of the majors at some point in ’12 and could potentially be ready to take over a spot in the rotation in ’13 (assuming he progresses enough to make the majors and doesn’t bomb).
With a really good bounce back season next year he could potentially be a September call-up in ’11 but I think it is doubtful given that this was his first full year as a pitcher and would likely still need refinements even with a really good showing and would definitely be on a pitch count limit.
I guess with the slow pace that the Sox like to bring their pitchers along at 2013 isn’t hard to believe. It just seems like Kelly gets a lot of hype for a guy that is still that far away.
Yeah, that actually tends to happen a lot with the Red Sox prospects. We started hearing about Kalish and Anderson a couple of years ago and they just finally made their first appearances this year. I think it is likely partially due to the fact that the Boston media talks about prospects quite often and the draft is followed pretty closely and is even broadcast on NESN so people first become acquainted with these players on the day they are drafted or possibly even before that.
We started hearing about how great Kelly was on the day he was drafted and how he was so good he could make it to the Majors at two(!) positions and just had to decide which one to play… Don’t get me wrong I like Kelly quite a lot and I think he has the potential to be a front of the rotation starter but the Boston media tends to hype things way too much way too fast, which is why we are sometimes left wondering why these guys aren’t ready yet.
The idea of the Boston Reps being in Houston meeting with Crawford and his representatives got me more excited than meeting with Boras.
I agree. This article is kind of a buzzkill after seeing the one about Crawford.
I feel the same way. I feel like having Crawford in the line up will be more of a benefit than adding Werth. In 2008 and 2009 Ellsbury had 98 and 94 runs scored. Pedroia had 118 and 115 those two guys get on base and score a lot. Both would most likely be hitting a head of Crawford. With runners on base Crawford hit .350 and with runners in scoring position he hit .359. Werth however hit .255 with runners on base and .186 with RISP. Seems pretty obvious to me Crawford is the better choice.
RISP is mostly luck. There isn’t anything to show that it is based on skill (though something could be said for a hitter who has shifts pulled on him). It’s kinda like BABIP, it tends to fluctuate a lot from year to year.
Fair dues I do see your point. However in the last 3 years Crawford’s average with RISP is .294 and Werth’s is .244. So I suppose Crawford gets lucky more often. At any rate I still feel Crawford is the better player, and fit for Boston.
RISP is kinda like blindly picking 200 random abs from a season and using them to try and make a point. A hitter really can’t pick and choose when to get a hit, so if when they get a hit runners happen to be on, it’s lucky for them. The more RISP data collected, the closer the batting line resembles their career numbers. Putting weight in it makes Cano a curious case as he was dead last in BA/RISP in 2009 and among the leaders in 2010.
Again I did not say I disagreed with his point. I am just saying I was going by what the stats happened to say, and they show Crawford being better in that situation. I still feel regardless of RISP that Crawford is the better player. Defensively, Offensively, and on the base paths Crawford is better. Not to mention he is 2 or 3? years younger than Werth. I guess you could say Crawford is worth it more than Werth is.
The stats do say what happened, but it is not a skill or trend that has any future meaning. It’s like if my favorite team won 60% of the time I wore a green shirt. Wearing the green shirt has nothing to do with them winning, but it’s a stat telling what happened.
Cmon….the green shirt thing is a little bit of a drastic analogy. At least with RISP they have a chance to make a difference on the outcome of the game because they are actually on the field PLAYING. Wearing a green shirt on game day does not put you on the field making a difference.
You’re right, a hitter can’t pick when to get a hit. However, he can learn how to channel pressure into positive intensity that ultimately improves his performance. It’s the same reason why so many successful closers perform poorly in non-save situations, because they don’t have the increased adrenaline available to channel.
How else could you explain David Ortiz batting .338 in 963 plate appearances with RISP over a 5-year period (2004-2008) and also batting .272 in bases-empty situations during the same period of time.
It is explained by the fact you are choosing two small pieces of a big puzzle and over emphasizing them. If hitting w/RISP is a skill, why do so many hitters # there fluctuate by over 100pts each way?
It’s luck – 3 years or 1 year.To illustrate this, look at Crawford and Werth w/RISP in ’09…Crawford: .245, .670 OPSWerth: .279, .917 OPSin ’08:Crawford: .267, .715 OPSWerth: .274, .838 OPSSo in two of the last three seasons, werth was better. It’s a completely meaningless, luck-based stat. As for Crawford being a better fit…I think either guy would bring about the same improvement, it’s all a question of how the lineup is arranged.
Again I did not say I disagreed that it was a luck based stat. I was just stating what I saw. As for me thinking Crawford is a better fit. Crawford is younger and I feel a better all around player and is used to playing LF. While Werth is more suited for RF. Yes the Sox could sign Werth, and move him to RF when Drew’s contract is up, but I’d rather see an outfield with Crawford in left and Kalish in right at the end of Drew’s contract.
If you argue that RISP is mostly luck, then you can argue that RBI’s are mostly luck too. How often do you get to the plate with RISP and less than 2 outs? How many “RBI opportunities” do you get in a year? etc, etc. I’m not arguing that it’s not mostly luck, I’m just contributing to the notion that a lot of stats have to do with luck and being put in opportunistic situations.
RBIs are luck and Show no reflection of a player. In 2008 DeJesus had a higher % of inherrited runners knocked in than Ryan Howard, but Howard came to the plate with ~450 runners on base that year to DeJesus’ ~250, thus he knocked in a ton more runners.
Useless tidbit: holding Alt and pressing 247 on the number pad makes the ≈ (you can’t use the numbers above the letter keys for some reason…)
I’m on my iPhone.
Oh, nevermind…
I would say that rbi depend on how good your teammates are to a great extent, too. Hard to drive in anyone when no one gets on base.
Oh I agree RBI are all opportunity/luck. No question about it.
So what you’re saying is when someone like David Ortiz hits .338 with RISP over a 5-year period (2004-2008) while hitting just .272 with the bases empty during that same period, he wasn’t a great run producer in high pressure situations. He was merely “lucky” over the course of those 755 AB’s with RISP.
In 2004 he batted .350 with RISP and .281 with the bases empty.
In 2005 he batted .352 with RISP and .285 with the bases empty.
In 2007 he batted .362 with RISP and .293 with the bases empty.
In 2008 he batted .336 with RISP and .210 with the bases empty.
I guess he just happened to be extremely “lucky” for all those years, right?
You wouldn’t by chance believe there’s no such thing as a clutch hitter, would you.
If he can somehow become a better hitter with runners on, why does he not replicate that approach with the bases empty and become a better overall hitter? That is a condeming thing if he takes at bats off if there is no RBI situations.
It’s not that he puts less effort when the bases are empty, he’s just one of those guys who feed off pressure situations. He channels the pressure into positive intensity when he steps to the plate with RISP. It has to do with adrenaline, focus and confidence. The adrenaline actually increases oxygen flow to the bloodstream which helps the athlete perform better.
Sports psychology is an interesting subject, it’s definitely worth reading up on.
It’s also overstated and has no weight. How did Cano go from the worst in the league to among the best in his RISP #’s? Did he suddenly have some mental breakthrough, or are you overemphasizing a small sample of random plate appearances? (hint; it’s the second one)
That might have to do with the shift. The defense can’t over commit to the right side as much with a runner on 2nd.
That’s a valid point, but I’d say most of Ortiz’s hits with RISP were not impacted by the infield’s positioning.
Think about if we had
Ellsbury (.355 OBP/94 runs scored/70 SB in 2009, last healthy season)
Pedroia (.371 OBP, 115 runs scored in 2009, last healthy season)
Crawford (.356 OBP/110 runs scored/47 SB in 2010)
Youk (1.075 OPS with RISP in 2009, last healthy season)
Gonzalez (1.282 OPS with RISP in 2010)
Ortiz (.981 OPS with RISP in 2010)
Talk about having the potential to put up some big runs early.
Man no kidding that offense coupled with Lester, Buchholz, healthy Beckett(hopefully), Lackey rebounding, and who knows with Daisuke. Along with a revamped bullpen. Man they would do work.
Crawford is making Theo’s decision to let Bay walk look better and better every minute…
No kidding at first I was a little sad that I had to retire my Bay t-shirt but a trade off of Bay for Crawford man I will take that any day of the week.
Agreed but lets not get ahead of ourselves here (although Werth would still make it look marginally better)
The Tigers really should re-sign Ordonez, they need his bat. If worst comes to worst, V-Mart can “catch” and Maggs can DH. Unless they fill RF with someone like Jayson Werth, but I’m not sure if they have the money to do that.
What’s the record for most DH’s on one team?
That would likely go to the yanks in another couple years, no offense Yankee fans (or should I say no defense Yankee fans?)
EDIT: Sorry for the bad pun but I had to do it.
Sam Merten wonders if the Rangers new regime has the money and desire to keep up their winning ways…..I guess he is referring to the winning ways that were established under this new regime? The Rangers appear to have a bright future ahead. This seems like the first time in awhile they are doing everything possible to make a run at a championship, an odd time to be questioning the desire.
Maggs deffinitly makes the most sense for the Tigs. Werth and Crawford are going to command too many years and too much money. Ordonez Cabrera and Martinez is a very nice 3-4-5.
Good luck with Victor. Definitely loved having him on the Sox and watching him come to play every single day. Never had to worry about him taking a play off, much less a day off. He’ll do well in that group of 3. I don’t have a single bad thing to say about that guy. Wish him all the best.
Sign Werth dammit, the Phils want that pick!
Back off, we got here first!
I’d sign Werth, Downs, and Pavano, and stick the Twinkies with a fourth rounder!
That second round pick that the Tigers have is about No. 83 after you add in a full round of comp picks in the supplemental round. They can use that pick to talk some kid out of his college education, but they could do that in any round. Go for broke and start hoarding Type A picks. If they remain Type A’s, they’ll bring back first round picks and comp picks down the road anyway.
Crawford to the Angels, Beltre to the Angels, Werth to the Red Sox, Ordonez to the Tigers, Lee to the Yankees, Greinke traded to the Rangers, and after that it starts to get boring.
I WANT TO KNOW WHERE RANDY CHOATE WILL END UP
the Tigers would be a nice fit. They need to replace Coke in the bullpen. Brad Thomas and Schlereth are the only lefties after they moved Coke to the rotation, and outrighted Fu Te Ni.
Lee to the Athletics DUH !!
I think Crawford to the Red Sox, Werth to the Philies, other than that, I agree.
Why can’t Boston keep Beltre AND get A-Gon, AND let both of them play in the field along with Youkilis? Waaaah! Come on baseball. Change your rules so I can have my dream team! xD
Seriously though…I love Beltre. So much. But if they can make a deal for A-Gon, I’ll have to agree that it would make sense to let him go…Youk/A-Gon is just such a great offensive combo, and while Youk isn’t as dazzling at 3B as Beltre, he ain’t all bad neither. But I want to see some A-Gon rumors soon….all this waiting is making me nervous. I really don’t want to see Beltre snapped up soon by another team, simply because it kind of forces Bostons hand with San Diego, giving the Padres some more negotiating power. And then who knows maybe we end up not getting either player…and then I’ll be disappointed.
I think the best idea is sign Beltre this year and sign Gonzalez next year. That gives us the best possible defense and offense. This year we go with Beltre/Youk/Ortiz at 3B/1B/DH. Next year, let Papi walk and sign Gonzalez. Youk and A-Gon can easily split time at 1B/DH. Plus, Youk will only have 2 years left on his contract anyway and will be 33 at that time.
Magglio can still play a decent RF. Think if we signed Werth, we could get Magglio to move to left?
We aren’t getting both. Hopefully we stay away from Werth.
Werth would be atrocious in that park. A lot of his HR are oppo and I just can’t see that happening in Detroit.
Little trivia to anyone interested – What do the Red Sox opening day opponents from the past 3 years all have in common?
They all lost.
Nope. Anyone else?
Except I’m right.
Alright. Im sorry. I meant from 2009, 2010, and 2011. All 3 teams represented the AL in the World Series the year before. Rays, Yankees, Rangers. Crazy, huh?
they are all named the yankees?
any chance baseball also non-tenders jim joyce?
Why? He did the classiest thing I’ve ever seen an umpire do.
As a die hard tigers fan, I say leave Joyce alone. He has no business being mentioned to anything other than class. Forgive Joyce and never forget galaragga and the magnificent class shown by all sides involved.
Jim Joyce is a credit to the game.
You know, at the time i hated Jim Joyce more than Joe Buck, which says a lot, but he etched his name in the record books, never will there be three perfect games in a season, even two was quite a feat, but i will always remember Jim Joyce for his missed call and his horrible mustache….without googling, who was the umpire that called Halladay’s gem or Braden’s?
wow more than joe buck? he wasnt that bad of a person. calm down. i agree. my sacrasm turned up good comments. joyce is class, but also blind
Jim Joyce is a beloved ump. He makes 10000 good calls in one year and is continually praised by the players. So he makes one bad call and know his name has become infamous?? That is such a discredit to him and the game. People make mistakes and Joyce manned up to his. How many times do you see ump apologize to players?? You dont. Who cares who called those other games. Its a moot point.
If anything, Joyce did galaragga a favor. Besides larsens and hollidays playoff games, Armando has thrown the most talked about perfect game ever and will be talked about more than Braden or anyone else for that matter for the years to come. Jim Joyce should be an example for everyone else to live by; even after your darkest of mistakes you need to face the music. Joyce did with class and honesty. What more could you want from a human being?
I’m sorry – 3 years including the 2011 opening day, so 09, 10, 11.
Hey i live in Las Vegas, who plays the Sox on opening night, perhaps i will pull a Pete Rose and place a wager on baseball.
Willy Mo Pena fits in great with this line-up, he’ll add a good 110-160 strikeouts depending on how much he plays.
Wonder what the chances are that Beltre resigns with the BoSox. He clearly likes hitting in Fenway, but will they offer him the most money/years?
Sign Beltre & Crawford. Trade Ellsbury and prospects ect for Upton. Forget about Adrian & Prince. Remember Youkilis is a great 1B. Settle for a great upgrade in the outfield. Make Lowrie the Starting SS.
Crawford
Pedroia
Upton
Youk
Beltre
Ortiz
Drew
Lowrie/Scutaro
Salty/Varitek?
I would have no problem watching that next season
Sox meet with Crawford & Werth today, Boras tomorrow (about Werth & Beltre). Hopefully these deals get finished up before the week ends. The Sox can’t really make any other moves until they know about Crawford/Werth/Beltre. I suspect the Sox will end up with either Crawford (maybe Beltre too) or Werth&Beltre.