The Red Sox are among baseball's most disappointing teams so far this season, due in part to injury. Closer Andrew Bailey, outfielders Carl Crawford and Jacoby Ellsbury, and starters John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka are among the players the team has lost for a significant length of time already in 2012. Boston also lost Kevin Youkilis, an important right-handed bat in their lefty heavy lineup.
Youkilis, 33, is currently on the disabled list with a lower back strain. It's his fifth trip to the DL in the last four years, part of a laundry list of injuries that includes an oblique strain (2009), thumb surgery (2010), back tightness (2011), and a sports hernia (2011). Since the start of the 2010 season, Youkilis has played in just 240 of 352 possible games (68.2%).
Prior to being placed on the DL, Youkilis had a .219/.292/.344 batting line in 72 plate appearances. Dating back to last year's All-Star break, he's produced a .205/.307/.345 batting line in 231 plate appearances. His performance during his peak years – .308/.404/.560 from 2008-2010 – appears to be very much a thing of the past right now. A player with injury concerns and declining performance as he approaches his mid-30s usually isn't someone a team tries to keep around.
To make matters worse for Youkilis, the Red Sox have a ready-made third base replacement already in-house. Top prospect Will Middlebrooks has burst onto the scene with three homers and four doubles in his six games with Boston, continuing the hot streak that saw him hit nine homers in 24 games in Triple-A games before being recalled. Baseball America ranked Middlebrooks as the 51st best prospect in the game before the season, and the 23-year-old is doing his best to show the team he deserves to play the hot corner on the full-time basis.
The Red Sox owe Youkilis $12MM this season and hold a $13MM club option for his services next year ($1MM buyout). It's seems very unlikely that they'll exercise the option at this point, though the decision still isn't due for another seven months or so. A lot can change between now and then. Youkilis is in a difficult position as an injury-prone and declining player with a young hotshot rookie ready to take his job. If the Red Sox decline to bring him back in 2013, his stock as a free agent will be poor without a strong return from this latest back ailment.
Photo courtesy of US Presswire.
How is it a “make or break” year for Youk? He might get traded, but he already made it.
2 World Series. Gold Glover. All star. Not a Red Sox fans but yeah no kidding he has made it…
Next week.. Make or break year, Roy Halladay
U-kill-us has already proven himself. The only “break” in his career is whether his body holds up.
trade him to the phillies.
I don’t know if I’d trade Cole Hamels for him… (at least straight up) I mean, he was a great
player but his performance and injury history recently would make it a
steal for the Red Sox.
No, likely not straight up, but I could see a trade centered around him making sense for both teams. It would help that he has a cheap option for next year as well (while Hamels is only under contract until the end of this year).
Cheap option? 13 million isn’t cheap even to the Red Sox and Phillies.
For a guy who was on pace for 5+WAR for the fourth straight year before getting hurt last year it is very cheap.
The WAR to $ conversion isn’t perfect by any means, but on average guys are getting about $5.5M per WAR, so to be worth that $13M option Youkilis would only have to be able to put up about 2.3 WAR, or just barely better than a league average player. He can do that no problem.
It would be strange to see him in another team uniform. He was a big part for the Red Sox winning to two World Series rings. I still think he could bounce back and show his good hitting play again.
How about a Youk for Ervin Santana type swap? obviously would need to exchange some money and/or prospects to even it out but i could kind of see it happen.
But where would Youk fit into that lineup? Like defensively. They already have to play Trumbo in 4 different positions to get him ABs
The Angels really need to trade Trumbo or trade Morales to get Trumbo a spot to play because he is a pretty good hitter. Just off the top of my head, the Phillies might be interested in Morales? He can play first until Howard comes back and then the outfield. That would give them some much needed offense….
Good luck trying to trade an 0-6 pitcher with a crazy era. Although he does get no run support…Youk is worth more.
Santana would be our number three, and santana is worth more
Thats cause our pitching sucks lol but thats really irrelevant. Santana worth more than Youk? He is terrible, he gave up 12 homeruns this year already!!!
so he had 4 bad starts to start the year so what?
Hes had 1-2 good years…hes a number 4 pitcher or a 3 in a bad rotation. Honestly Id rather have Johan Santana than Ervin.
I think everyone would rather have Johan over Ervin…..
But that does not come by trading Youkilis.
he would fit right in!
yeah that was kind of my point. Hell, he might be our ace
an ERA of 5 isnt crazy, and his run support thus far has been worst in the league (before his last start he had 5 starts with 0 runs). not saying it would happen, but i thought it would be a somewhat interesting swap
It is crazy…I mean its a small sample so far but it has been really ugly. The run support is not that important because he hasnt pitched well anyway. This trade would depend on the prospects…
People once said this about David Ortiz… that panned out. Youk has earned the right to ‘a few’ second chances.
ortiz is very much an exception to the rule. having said that, there’s reason to believe youkilis could sustain a high level of offensive output if he were only a DH like ortiz
Youk is getting old the Redsoxs have to get something out of this guy otherwise they don’t have a playoff shot
Reds would probably take a shot at him. Rolen likely to retire after this season.
I was thinking this. Youk is a Cinci guy. I could really see something like this happening
Dodgers
Maybe Billy Beane would still like a shot at his “Greek God of Walks”
Too bad Youk and Middlebrooks can’t pitch because that is what the Sox need desperately.
Some people saw Middlebrooks as a pitching prospect. Not that that is worth anything at this point.