Red Sox Offseason Preview: Infielders

SEAN CASEY
"The Mayor" is now a free agent. Casey is an awesome clubhouse guy, but the Red Sox seemed to lose faith in him as the season went on. Eventually, Mark Kotsay took his spot on the depth chart. I think a lot of it had to do with Casey's lack of power (0 HRs), and below average fielding ability. Casey showed he can still hit for average (.381), and I think someone team would love to pick him up, just don't expect it to be the Red Sox.

KEVIN CASH
Cash is under the Sox control till 2011, and caught "The Wake" well in the field this year. Still, Cash gave little to no offense this year. I think he could be back, but a lot of that might depend on what the Sox decide to do with Varitek. My theory is no matter what Cash will be back, as long as Wake is on the team.

ALEX CORA
Cora is a free agent, and he is another player that might be looking for a new team next year. Cora is still good in the field, and does a lot of the small things for the team (bunts, sac flies, ect). The question will be what the Sox decide to do at SS. Boston would love to get rid of Lugo, but if they can't then there will be a lack of roster space with Lowrie and Lugo already on the team. Basically, if Lugo is still on the team, there is very little chance Cora will be back.

MARK KOTSAY
Its weird putting him as an infielder, but he played very well in the postseason at first. He is a free agent, but I would like to see him back next year. As long as he doesn't mind being a backup in right field and first base, the Sox could bring him back. Lowell and J.D. need a lot of days off, so he will get plenty of at bats. Most likely Kotsay is going to want to play everyday, so I think he will be gone. Yea, the Sox are going to have some holes to fill.

MIKE LOWELL
Mikey Lowell is signed through 2010 for about 12.5 million a year. He might have the most heart on this team. He showed he will try to battle through any injury to be able to play. Still, the problem is that he is getting old, and the Sox are going to have to make sure that have someone around that can eat up some at bats. I think he will be more productive next year, but the Sox have to be happy that they have someone like Youk that can shift over to 3rd when needed.

JED LOWRIE
Under the Sox control till 2014. He showed he can play in the big leagues. I think he is going to be starting next season, but the Lugo question still hangs over their heads. Lowrie is a solid hitter, that plays a lot of Pedroia. I think in time he could be a lot like Pedroia actually, but only time will tell if he gets the opportunity.

JULIO LUGO
Signed through 2010 with an option for 2011 for about 9 million per season. Lugo sucks, and the Sox once again find themselves in a position where they might have to eat his contract in any trade that they try. Lowire is 10 times the shortstop that Lugo is, and it seems like Lugo has even lost the ability to be a solid defensive replacement. I want him off the team so bad. There is not a single thing I like about him.

DAVID ORTIZ
Big Papi is signed through 2010, with a club option for 2011. He only makes 12.5 million a year, which is a steal if you look around the league. Ortiz struggled with injuries for the better part of this year, but hopefully his wrist will be better before next season. Still, the Sox can't bank on this guy being around forever. His knees are on borrowed time, so the Sox are going to need the bottom of the order to play a lot better. I still think Ortiz will be a solid 30 HR 100 RBI guy for the next season or two, after that I think you may be asking too much.

DUSTIN PEDROIA
The Sox have this guy tied up till 2012, but I think he is going to get a long term deal before the All-Star break of this coming season. I don't understand why he is so good, but he gets it done. Pedroia may even be the MVP for the AL this year, and the Sox have to be happy that they have a very productive second basemen for as long as they want him around (how many teams can say that?).

JASON VARITEK
The captain is a free agent, and most people are saying that he will be gone, but I'm not so sure. The players on the team love this guy, and there is a reason why the put the "C" on his chest (I hate it). I really hope he isn't back, but there is still something in the back of my mind that says he will get a 1 year deal. He calls a great game, but his offense has gotten to the point that he is an automatic out, and the Sox do not have the kind of lineup that can overcome something like that.

KEVIN YOUKILIS
Youk is under the Sox control till 2010. Most people don't remember, but the Sox actually approached Youk about a contract extension before last season. He turned it down, and said ti was way to low, then went out and had an awesome season. The season was so good that he may even be in the running for MVP with Pedroia. Youk works hard everyday, he gets on base, and plays great defense. He even showed he can hit for power this year. Not to mention the fact that he can also play first. There is a good chance he will also be getting a long term deal before next season ends.

Offseason Previews done:
Starting Pitchers
Relief Pitchers
Infielders

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-BMack

Red Sox Offseason Preview: Relief Pitchers

JUSTIN MASTERSON
Just another young guy that the Red Sox have control of for a long time. Masterson is signed through 2014 for cheap money. He was a stud for the Sox this year, but I don't think that he will be a starter next year. They projected him, as he was coming up through the minors, to be a reliever, and I think that will be the Sox greatest concern going into next season. Masterson really improved that bullpen a lot at the end of the season. Imagine what he can do with another year under his belt.

JAVIER LOPEZ
Lopez is eligible for arbitration this offseason, and I think the Sox will bring him back next year. It is tough to get lefty relief pitching, and he can be very affective when used correctly. Hopefully the Sox will have a deeper bullpen next year, so they won't be forced to use him for more then one batter.

MANNY DELCARMEN
The Sox have Delcarmen under control through 2012. I have to say of all the players this year, I was most disappointed with Delcarmen. I really thought this was going to be his breakout year. He could still do it, but I am beginning to lose faith that he is going to be anything more then a average to below average reliever.

HIDEKI OKAJIMA
Okajima is signed through next season, and the Sox have to be happy to have this guy still on the team. He struggled for a good part of the season, but really turned it on at the end, and I think he will still be a great setup man next season (especially if it is a combo of Okajima and Masterson).

MIKE TIMLIN
Had a great career, but it is time to retire. He just had nothing left, and by the end of the season he was a 1 pitch pitcher. I'll miss him, but he should have retired a year ago.

JONATHAN PAPELBON
Paps is under the Red Sox control till 2011. One of (if not the) best closer in baseball, had another great year for the Red Sox. There are rumors that he may have injured himself at the end of last season, but I expect him to be fine. Still, the Sox need to find a way to use him less, and try to keep him to one inning (or not pitch him on back-to-back days). We have seen him have to be shut down if he is over used.

Offseason Previews done:
Starting Pitchers
Relief Pitchers

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-BMack

Red Sox Offseason Preview: Starting Pitchers

Over the next couple of days I am going to go over where the Sox players stand. Later I will go over possible moves, and what I think may happen. Special thanks to the Globe/Herald for the updates on the players' contract status.

Starting Pitchers:
Josh Beckett
Becket is signed through next season the Red Sox hold a club option for 2010. Next year he will be making 10.5 million, and the option (which they will almost certainly pick up) is worth 12 million. Beckett had a tough season, and he needs to get healthy, but what people forget is that he came into this season out of shape. I would hope next season he would learn from his mistakes. DP also made a good point, it seems like this guy has a good season every other year. I would expect that if he is to have a good year next year (which I think he will), that the Sox will sign him to an extension, probably 4-5 years in length.

Jon Lester
Best lefty in the AL, and the Sox have him tied up for very low money through 2012 (Awesome). Though I expect if he has another great year, that they will give him a contract to keep him happy. This kid has the determination, and stuff to be a great pitcher for the next 10 years. He doesn't seem to be injury prone, and looks like a guy that will be able to eat up innings. The best part is that he is a lefty, and great lefties are hard to find. Overall, Lester will be a Red Sox for a very long time.

Daisuke Matsuzaka
The Sox have signed through 2012 for about 9 million a year. Not a bad deal for the Sox at all. Dice-K had a great year record wise, but I think everyone can agree that they would like to see him let up more hits, if it meant he could extend his outings into the 7th inning (he just tries to be too perfect). Overall you can't complain about his season, and we saw a lot of growth out of him since 2007. So, hopefully that means he will be even better next season. If he could find a way to limit his pitches every inning this could be a guy that could throw a lot of complete games, as he is able to throw 120-130 pitches a game.

Tim Wakefield
As of right now the Wake is a free agent. The Sox hold a club option for next year worth about 4 million. I see them picking it up, since he still eats up innings, and he is a team leader. The only thing with Wakefield is that you need to have a starter behind him, because at some point in the season his back will act up, but for 4 million that's still a good deal.

Curt Schilling
Basically ripped the Sox off for 8 million, but whatever he got us two rings, and he is now gone. Most reports say that he will retire, but I expect that he will pull a Clemens and come back half way through a season. It will not be in a Sox uniform, and I would think most likely it will be to a NL team.

Paul Byrd
He is a free agent, and most likely he will not be back. I think the Sox are going to go after another pitcher, or try Clay Buchholz or Michael Bowden in the rotation. Still there is a part of me that thinks they could use a 5th starter that is durable and can eat up innings. Only problem is I don't like a guy who lets up a lot of hits, because at Fenway a lot of hits can be a lot of HRs very quickly.

Clay Buchholz
He is tied up much like Lester. Clay had a tough year, and I actually blame some of that on the Red Sox. They played with this kid too much, changing his arm angle, and pitches. I am starting to wonder if he can take the pressure of playing in Boston, and I have been hearing rumors of the Red Sox talking to the Rangers for a possible deal that would include Buchholz for one of their stud catching prospects. I will get more into that in a later post about possible deals.

-BMack