2009 Red Sox Preview: Center Field

In 2007 the world got a taste of the future when Jacoby Ellsbury had a spectacualr postseason. His numbers slipped a bit below expectations in 2008 while he was sharing time in center field with Coco Crisp, but with Crisp being swapped to Kansas City, Ellsbury should get the time he needs to put up great numbers in 2009.

In just one month in Red Sox Nation, Ellsbury developed a large following, similar to the one that  Boston Bruins youngster Milan Lucic developed just a month later, though I doubt anybody who doesn’t follow hockey to fully understand what that one is like. Ellsbury won over the fans with his steady bat and amazing speed. What Ellsbury brought to the Red Sox was a second—and later third—base stealer, which the Red Sox haven’t had in a while. With Crisp gone, the base stealers will be back down to just two, but throw in Pedroia’s improving speed and Bay’s great base running ability, and the speed threat looks a lot worse than just Lugo and Ellsbury.

Rocco Baldelli appears to be the backup, but his health problems bring up some questions. The only other backup on the 25-man roster is Mark Kotsay, but Francona is unusually reluctant to utilize his players’ depth. The only one else, besides Brad Wilkerson, on the 40-man roster is Jonathan Van Every, but he may not be ready, even for just a game or two.

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