The Cubs have asked the Red Sox for permission to interview GM Theo Epstein, whose contract expires after the 2012 season. Here are some updates on the Red Sox, who will presumably require compensation from Chicago if they lose their longtime GM…
- In a series of tweets on his personal account, Red Sox owner John Henry says he's confident that the team will end up with a "great manager." Epstein and assistant GM Ben Cherington briefed top Red Sox executives on the managerial search this week and calls and interviews could start as soon as next week. "Excited to once again bring in smart, creative, hands-on leadership," Henry wrote. "We have the right people looking."
- Adrian Beltre’s three homers carried the Rangers to the ALCS today and while it can’t be fun for Red Sox fans to watch their former third baseman excel for a new team, Alex Speier of WEEI.com reminds us that Beltre himself thought the Red Sox “made a good decision” when they let him go.
- Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal suggests that the Red Sox will exercise their $6MM option for Marco Scutaro in the offseason. I wrote last week that I expect the Red Sox to pick up the option instead of allowing Scutaro to explore the open market. As MacPherson explains, Jose Iglesias could use more experience against minor league pitching and Jed Lowrie has had trouble staying healthy.
Reading his tweets were interesting. The other finalist with Tito was Maddon, so maybe they know what they’re doing. But that was a long time ago, and if Theo interviews for the Cubs, who knows what effect that has on this whole process.
adrian beltre provided 7 WAR plus prospects blake swihart and jackie bradley – all for 1 year/$10M
but epstein is a has-been loserface
Theo put 2getha a great team this yr. now they just gotta learn to play 2getha as a team. at the beginning of the year Theo was a “genius”
Scutaro has trouble staying healthy also like was missing from the article in many ways and it hurts his defense a great deal with his erratic throws for the last 2 seasons. maybe let Scutaro go and keep Lowrie and Aviles for next season because ave a feeling that if Scutaro stays they will about give away Lowrie in the end and keep Aviles for the utility guy since both Lowrie and Aviles can play 5 or so positions fairly decent and 2.
I see zero reason not to bring back Scutaro in 2012. He has been one of the best signings by Theo during his career. Having backups to rest him and replace him if he gets injured is a luxury the Sox should take advantage of, ESPECIALLY since Lowrie has shown to be fragile as well and Aviles has shown nothing with the glove (-6.2 UZR in 2011 and -4.3 in 2010) or with the bat (.318 career OBP) to displace anyone. If the ROYALS saw fit to send him to AAA then why would the Sox want to put all their eggs in one of his baskets?
After all the injuries the Sox have endured, depth should be priority #1 for 2012. Bring Scutaro back, retain Lowrie and Aviles as backup depth from 3b to 2b and keep Iglesias in AAA for as long as he needs w/o setting a deadline to bring him up.
It’s just a thought and I for one hate to see Lowrie moved as a 2nd, or even 3rd piece in a trade that will probably happen, or Avilles sent to Pawtucket to hide in case of emergency, much like Atchisson has been the last year plus.
Was not advocating for Aviles to start by the badly negative UZR and Lowrie is a worse SS than a 2B even, but both could really split time waiting on Iglesias or year or 2 if need be. I understand old friend you don’t watch a ton of Sox games. Scutaro’s shoulder in the latter part of the last 2 seasons has gotten in really bad shape. His throws from the position have been poor to say the least. In 2010 it was a bit easier to hide it since Pedey was injured and they moved him to 2nd base to shorten them up some, but this past season late since he was hitting later on he had to make them and they were erratic to say the least.
I really do like the guy and have no problem should they exercise his option, just hope that possibly in ST they can find a way to get some reps in the OF for either Lowrie or Avilles if they do not go out and get extra OF depth and hang onto them both. Good utility players like those 2 is something they have lacked for years as Billy Hall and his awfulness proved.
No need for compensation, Cubs. Just take John Lackey with Theo. That’s fair!
Lots of mentioned of “Theo AND Ben” and use of the plural “we have the right PEOPLE looking…” Couple that with the leaks about them “discussing how to respond” to the Cubs and it looks an awful lot like they’re sending up trial balloons about a switch from Epstein to Cherington.
When the reports of Theo to the Cubs surfaced, I thought they were the most ridiculous shoe-horned fantasy stories I’ve heard from the national sports media all year. But with the way things have changed in the past 2-3 weeks, I’m pretty confident Cherington is going to be GM by next week and Theo’s going to be gone.
I mean look. If they were keeping him, there’d be no reason to drag feet. There’s zero reason for the Red Sox to want the Cubs to talk to Theo when he can use the Cubs’ offer as a billy club against them in negotiations. The only chance he’s staying is that they’re trying to work out some sort of succession deal where he becomes CEO and Cherington ends up as GM, but still. Seems like a long shot. Every story i’ve read about Theo says he’s not interested in that gig. So I’m err-ing to him leaving.
Larry Lucchino has officially gone insane and looked like a petulant child when asked point blank at the Francona presser last week. I think he’s wanted Theo out of there for a while and I think he may get his way. Just the way they’ve blatantly dodged the question has led me to think he’s going to be gone soon.
I really hope they do exercise Scutaro’s option. Good guy, solid player. Anyone think he’s a future manager?
Ok, you can have Theo, but we want to swap the rights to Aramis Ramirez for Kevin Youkilis, and we want Trey McNutt as compensation.
Isn’t Aram a free agent? Why the hate for the Youkster? Isn’t he a “gamer”, “grinder” or whatever ppl use to describe his type of “intangible”?
Yup, either we sign him to play 3B or we get compensation after offering him arbitration. Not hate for Youk, but realization that he can’t stay healthy, he is not as good as he used to be at 3B, and he has had some internal tiffs with other, younger players that will be with us for a long time to come (hopefully). It would be good for him, too. He would benefit greatly from facing National League pitching.
Completely random, baseless, and probably awful trade proposal, but what about Jason Bay for John Lackey?
I’m a Met fan and was against Bay’s signing because I rather they have signed Lackey to be the the 2nd starter behind Santana. That obviously would have been just as much of a disaster…
The rationalization is Bay’s last success was with the Red Sox. The OF could be crowded but he (or Crawford) might be able to play RF or even have him DH if the Red Sox let Ortiz walk.
Lackey is a bum, but getting out of Fenway Park/AL East and into Citi Field/National League would probably help. It is New York but there’s no real pressure on the Mets, winning 81 games would be an accomplishment.
Contract wise, Lackey makes $15.25M the next 3 seasons plus $0.5M if he’s traded, $46.25M total. Bay makes $16M over the next 2 seasons plus a $3M buyout, $35M total. He also has a full no-trade clause that would have to be worked around, but I think he might be willing to go back to Boston.
Both are pretty awful and not cheap, but I’d rather take the chance on Lackey since the Mets’ rotation is probably going to suck. They may actually have too many starters if they get Lackey, Santana comes back, and Pelfrey and Capuano are re-signed, but rotation depth can vanish pretty quickly. As for Boston, I’m assuming they’re just dying to get rid of Lackey.
Just a suggestion. I probably wouldn’t even do this in MVP Baseball (yes, I still play it after 6 years).
Funny I called into WEEI and they practically hanged up on me when I suggested it amidst a discussion on Lackey destinations. I think it works well for a lot of reasons.
1.) The money isn’t that different – years are about the same. should be easy to work out.
2.) There’s a need for both teams – Mets need an arm. Sox need an OF.
3.) With both it boils down to comfort. Lackey is in a situation where he talked about coming to Boston having a lot to do with his soon to be ex-wife’s family wanting them closer. Now with the clubhouse issues, his spats with management, the media killing him on a daily basis and what I’m sure is an awful home situation right now… any idea that he’s going to pitch well in Boston should be out the window, IMO. Bay’s had health problems, but that LF in Citi Field completely exposes his weaknesses as a defender while Fenway always masked them. The wall plays to his strengths in Boston while the wall at Citi saps his power. He never REALLY seemed to want to be there, and really only went there because they were the only people who’d give him five years. With both guys, I think the problem isn’t skill as much as focus and comfort. I think there’s a good player left in both of them.
4.) Lackey in NYC is a fresh start for him in a hitter’s friendly park in front of weaker lineups. Plain and simple. Bay’s got a successful history in Boston to boot. He’s a good clubhouse guy as well, which there’s probably something to be said for in Boston right now.
5.) The Mets could probably get Boston to shell some extra cash and trim a little payroll to go along with it.
So I dunno, as trash for trash deals go, it seems like a good fit for both players and the teams and probably would warrant some consideration.
Glad to see someone thinks its not a stupid idea. I forgot one of the reasons Lackey signed with the Red Sox was because of his wife’s family. If his family issues are real, it’s more of a reason for him to get out of town.
The issue with the trade is the money and years. Acquiring Lackey is almost the same as giving Bay an extra year. So the Mets would have to determine if it’s worth it. I personally think they’d get more out of Lackey than Bay. Plus they can trade Lackey if they’re not competitive and he pitches adequately.
I forgot to add that the Mets getting rid of Bay allows them to play Duda everyday in LF where he’s much better suited.
As a Sox fan, I would go for this. Crawford would have to move to right, even though he doesn’t have the arm for it. At least he’d be able to cover the ground out there, which Bay couldn’t. Then they could deal Reddick while he still has some value and bring Kalish along as Bay’s replacement over the next couple of years.
Well that’s the other piece to that, too. Crawford’s range is taken advantage of in RF as opposed to LF. He takes long runs at the ball and never seemed comfortable with the monster. A move to right would be good for him. I agree with moving Reddick, maybe he’s a part of a package to acquire a SP via trade. Just a lot of flexibility there.
They need to let Ortiz walk …… he is on the juice again snd only a matter of time before he gets caught. Ellsbury belongs in the 3 hole. Maybe Pedroia, Crawford, Ellsbury, Gonzalez, Youkalis, DH, Reddick, Salty, Scutaro
Easy there Sid. Don’t be so vicious.