» 2009

When the Red Sox acquired Josh Beckett in 2006 Mike Lowell was seen as just a throw-in. Instead, Lowell brought Gold Glove defense and a very effecient number 5-6 hitter.

Let’s break down that trade a little. While it benefits the Marlins more in the long run,

Mike Lowell hopes to return to his All-Star form of 2007.

the Red Sox got just what they needed to win the World Series in 2007. Beckett had a tough season in 2006, but rebounded in ‘07 with a Cy-Young deserving performance, and he has been consistent ever since. Lowell brought all of what I mentioned earlier, though his hip may be a concern this year. They also got Alex Gonzalez for a year, but this probably did more bad than good since Julio Lugo had to play in the shadow of Gonzo’s spectacular defense.

The Sox gave up a handful of prospects, one of which threw a no-hitter (Anibal Sanchez) and the other is currently the most complete youngster in the game (Hanley Ramirez) today, but with their minor league system, it really doesn’t have much of an impact.

Lowell’s hip in injury may be an issue early, in which case Youkilis will most likely start at third and Brad Wilkerson will play first while Lowell and Mark Kotsay recover. Whenever Lowell is 100% he will have an imediate impact and he will be a great leader for the team.

With a six-year extension under his belt, Pedroia will be looking to show he is worth every single penny.

He’s a little guy but he really packs a punch. Dustin Pedroia will be entering his third season in the Majors, coming off a spectacular MVP season from a year ago and a Rookie of the Year one the year before.

Pedroia is the complete package as a ballplayer-he’s a great hitter, he can hit for power on occasion, he is a Gold Glover, and he is fast. He is definitely going to make another huge impact this year.

The Sox do have a void behind Pedroia though, as Alex Cora signed with the Mets this offseason. This probably gives Julio Lugo the edge when it comes to the shortstop positional battle, as Lugo can’t play second, while Jed Lowrie can. The Sox may address this void later in the year if Lugo struggles early, but Lugo may finally contribute and postpone this until as late as the trade deadline.

For months the Red Sox’ catching position was uncertain, with both of their 2008 catchers free agents. Jason Varitek took months to finally re-sign with the club, and Kevin Cash signed with the Yankees. So while they had their starting catcher back, Tim Wakefield was without a catcher. Josh Bard was traded from the Sox for Doug Miribelli after Bard couldn’t handle Wakefield, but Bard was signed in the offseason, and he feels he is ready to catch Wakefield again.

Bard definitely is ready to catch Wakefield again and do it effectively, and he will provide more offense that Cash. But, the Red Sox have a few prospects in Pawtuckett that may be ready, which is why they only signed Bard to a minor league contract.

Jason Varitek is coming off his worst season at the plate in his career, and he isn’t getting any younger. He will need more time off this year if he wants to stay productive. One way to regulate his playing time is to have him catch Wakefield as if he were a normal pitcher. ‘Tek says he can handle Wakefield, but when asked about this possibility, Terry Francona said they don’t want this to happen. As good as Tito is, this is a move he probably will regret not doing in the future.

The Red Sox easily don’t have the best catching, but Varitek is still great defenseively and he is probably the best leader in baseball. As for his offense, it’s not like it can get any worse, right?

The Red Sox head in to 2009 with easily the best pitching staff in baseball.

Their ace Josh Beckett is looking to improve his 2008 stats and return to his Cy Young deserving form of 2007. Daisuke Matsuzaka has had two years in the Majors and should now be able to make a full adjustment, especially considering the Red Sox could convert to a 6-man rotation when Smoltz is ready to pitch. Jon Lester is arguably the southpaw in baseball and he can only get better. Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield is back, and as long as he gets a little more run support than he did last year, he should statistically be the best pitcher on the Sox this year. Brad Penny, John Smoltz, and Clay Bucholz should all have a positive impact from the tail end of the rotation.

In the ‘pen the Sox got the pieces they needed to be able to hold leads and close out games. Wes Littleton, Ramon Ramirez, and Takashi Saito are the newcomers, joining Javier Lopez, Manny Delcarmen, Hideki Okajima, and Justin Masterson. In the back of the ‘pen is currently the best and most dominating closer in the league, as Jonathan Papelbon returns for his 4th big league season.

In the minors the Sox have top pitching prospect Michael Bowdin, as well as knuckleballer Charlie Zink. Both appeared in Boston for short stints and putting together some impressive performances. They should be a good part-time fill-in this year.

It’s finally here! The 2009 season has started (sort of). The Mets started off in very good fashion! Here is what the starting lineup looked like:

Castillo, 2B
Murphy, LF
Pagan, CF
Church, RF
Castro, R, C
Cora, SS
Evans, 1B
Valentin, Jo, 3B
Martinez, F, DH

I have to say, I was quite impressed with Church, Castillo (Yes I said Castillo), Murphy and Pagan. The Mets took this game 9-3 and banged out 15 hits.

In order for this team to have any success, this lineup is going to have to produce…especially in those late innings!

As for the pitching, Right-hander Sean Green started for the Mets and was gone after just two outs, a victim of a cut nail on the middle finger of his pitching hand. Southpaw Pedro Feliciano got four outs without allowing an earned run, and veteran Duaner Sanchez pitched an inning and allowed three baserunners and one earned run.

Anyways, this was just a quick update, Let’s Go Mets in 2009!

Another down, three to go.

Edit- I have just edited this post, it has just been announced that Derek Lee will also skip the WBC.

Aramis Ramirez arrived at Cubs Camp in Mesa Arizona, and decided that he likes it so much he would prefer to stay instead of represent his country in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.

Now my personal opinion, great decision. I admire what Bud Selig is trying to do with the World Baseball Classic, especially after baseball was dropped from the 2012 Olympics in London. However the timing of the Classic could not be any worse.

It is my personal opinion that players should not be playing at such a elite level this early into spring training. There is a big difference between Spring Training games and the games at the World Baseball Classic. You risk injury to potential stars ahead of the new season, players miss time to bond in camp. The Cubs have added some vital parts of the 2009 lineup this Winter, and Lou Piniella has already stated that he would like to experiment with the lineup, how are we supposed to do this with some of the most important parts of our lineup spread across the country? It’s near impssible to get a clear view.

I like the WBC, but it’s timing makes it impossible for me to want to see Cubs players participate.

A-Ram joins several Cubs players who have opted to stay in Mesa. Ted Lilly/Derek lee and Geovany Soto currently stand as the only Cubs players planning to participate in the upcoming classic.