Luvofthegame
09-10-2006, 10:13 PM
Is waiting things out the best move for '07?
Boston. com
By Nick Cafardo
September 10, 2006
The finger-pointing and the blame game are getting old. It accomplishes nothing except to allow angry Red Sox observers to vent. In the end, John Henry, Tom Werner, Larry Lucchino, and Theo Epstein are responsible, and there's been no sign that they're ducking responsibility.
It's not that Epstein and his staff got dumb in a year's time. Almost every guy they gave up turned out to be a phenom or an All-Star. The players they acquired in return or as replacements produced mixed results.
In retrospect, there was no chance that the fiasco that took place last fall and winter on Yawkey Way was going to have a happy ending -- whether Epstein came back or didn't. Those who kept things together, such as Jeremy Kapstein, Bill Lajoie, and Craig Shipley, did exemplary work under tough circumstances. And so now the Sox have to regroup, admit there were mistakes made, and try their best to correct them.
They had one of those years. It happens. Big-market teams are usually able to correct mistakes, if not immediately then the following season. Such was the case with Dan Duquette and his misread of Roger Clemens in 1996. It took him a year, but Duquette was able to acquire Pedro MartÃ*nez in 1997.
That might be the way things go for the Sox this time around. With a budget likely to stay in the $120 million-$130 million range, it will take some creativity, because there isn't much coming off the books next season, and they may not want to enter a bidding war with the Yankees and Mets for Barry Zito or even Jason Schmidt. There are no closers worth spending for, which likely leaves Jonathan Papelbon where he is.
If the Sox could ever deal Manny RamÃ*rez (he would have to OK it, as a 10-5 player), they would have to find a way to protect David Ortiz, perhaps with a trade for Andruw Jones (which would move Coco Crisp either to left field or to Atlanta as part of the package) or signing a Carlos Lee.
The Sox' minor league system is not ready to spit out reinforcements; it's not quite that Braves/Twins organization that furnishes starting players virtually every season. Jacoby Ellsbury appears to be a year removed from being a fixture as a leadoff hitter in center. Top pitching prospect Clay Buchholz, who was in Single A ball this season, will likely need a year and a half before he hits Boston.
With the jury out on Dustin Pedroia, maybe the best course is to hold on and hope the injuries don't crop up again. After all, until everyone got hurt, weren't the Red Sox probably going to be a postseason team?
Josh Beckett, 26, will have another year of experience and maybe will be ready to be a No. 1. Curt Schilling could have one more stellar year left. Tim Wakefield remains Tim Wakefield. Matt Clement may rebound to win 14-16 games. Maybe Kason Gabbard becomes Jamie Moyer. Kyle Snyder could be Bronson Arroyo.
Maybe the solution to the middle infield is to keep the best fielding shortstop you've ever had (Alex Gonzalez) and a very good player in Mark Loretta. Do you have to tinker?
There will be teams looking to make deals. If Tom Hicks is serious about "blowing up" the Rangers, there are players such as shortstop Michael Young and first baseman Mark Teixeira who would help, with all due respect to Gonzalez and Kevin Youkilis.
What the Sox could really use is one of those Duquette deals -- like the one that brought Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe for Heathcliff Slocumb in 1997. The opportunity existed when David Wells was being marketed. After listening to five teams, they settled on San Diego and catcher George Kottaras. He was ranked No. 2 at the start of the season by Baseball America, but that rating didn't hold up within the Padres organization.
You can keep crying about Freddy Sanchez, Hanley Ramirez, and Anibal Sanchez. Josh Bard is a pretty good all-around catcher. Cla Meredith looks like the next outstanding National League closer when Trevor Hoffman hangs it up.
Maybe a year from now, Craig Hansen will be a closer and Manny Delcarmen a top setup man. Maybe then you can think about Papelbon in the rotation. But with the shortage of starters and closers in free agency and your best pitching prospect out of the picture, the solutions may be down the road.
Sometimes having the patience to stay the course is harder than making moves when there's public pressure to do so. The Sox probably learned that from disassembling their world championship team in '04, a team they could have won with again.
Boston. com
By Nick Cafardo
September 10, 2006
The finger-pointing and the blame game are getting old. It accomplishes nothing except to allow angry Red Sox observers to vent. In the end, John Henry, Tom Werner, Larry Lucchino, and Theo Epstein are responsible, and there's been no sign that they're ducking responsibility.
It's not that Epstein and his staff got dumb in a year's time. Almost every guy they gave up turned out to be a phenom or an All-Star. The players they acquired in return or as replacements produced mixed results.
In retrospect, there was no chance that the fiasco that took place last fall and winter on Yawkey Way was going to have a happy ending -- whether Epstein came back or didn't. Those who kept things together, such as Jeremy Kapstein, Bill Lajoie, and Craig Shipley, did exemplary work under tough circumstances. And so now the Sox have to regroup, admit there were mistakes made, and try their best to correct them.
They had one of those years. It happens. Big-market teams are usually able to correct mistakes, if not immediately then the following season. Such was the case with Dan Duquette and his misread of Roger Clemens in 1996. It took him a year, but Duquette was able to acquire Pedro MartÃ*nez in 1997.
That might be the way things go for the Sox this time around. With a budget likely to stay in the $120 million-$130 million range, it will take some creativity, because there isn't much coming off the books next season, and they may not want to enter a bidding war with the Yankees and Mets for Barry Zito or even Jason Schmidt. There are no closers worth spending for, which likely leaves Jonathan Papelbon where he is.
If the Sox could ever deal Manny RamÃ*rez (he would have to OK it, as a 10-5 player), they would have to find a way to protect David Ortiz, perhaps with a trade for Andruw Jones (which would move Coco Crisp either to left field or to Atlanta as part of the package) or signing a Carlos Lee.
The Sox' minor league system is not ready to spit out reinforcements; it's not quite that Braves/Twins organization that furnishes starting players virtually every season. Jacoby Ellsbury appears to be a year removed from being a fixture as a leadoff hitter in center. Top pitching prospect Clay Buchholz, who was in Single A ball this season, will likely need a year and a half before he hits Boston.
With the jury out on Dustin Pedroia, maybe the best course is to hold on and hope the injuries don't crop up again. After all, until everyone got hurt, weren't the Red Sox probably going to be a postseason team?
Josh Beckett, 26, will have another year of experience and maybe will be ready to be a No. 1. Curt Schilling could have one more stellar year left. Tim Wakefield remains Tim Wakefield. Matt Clement may rebound to win 14-16 games. Maybe Kason Gabbard becomes Jamie Moyer. Kyle Snyder could be Bronson Arroyo.
Maybe the solution to the middle infield is to keep the best fielding shortstop you've ever had (Alex Gonzalez) and a very good player in Mark Loretta. Do you have to tinker?
There will be teams looking to make deals. If Tom Hicks is serious about "blowing up" the Rangers, there are players such as shortstop Michael Young and first baseman Mark Teixeira who would help, with all due respect to Gonzalez and Kevin Youkilis.
What the Sox could really use is one of those Duquette deals -- like the one that brought Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe for Heathcliff Slocumb in 1997. The opportunity existed when David Wells was being marketed. After listening to five teams, they settled on San Diego and catcher George Kottaras. He was ranked No. 2 at the start of the season by Baseball America, but that rating didn't hold up within the Padres organization.
You can keep crying about Freddy Sanchez, Hanley Ramirez, and Anibal Sanchez. Josh Bard is a pretty good all-around catcher. Cla Meredith looks like the next outstanding National League closer when Trevor Hoffman hangs it up.
Maybe a year from now, Craig Hansen will be a closer and Manny Delcarmen a top setup man. Maybe then you can think about Papelbon in the rotation. But with the shortage of starters and closers in free agency and your best pitching prospect out of the picture, the solutions may be down the road.
Sometimes having the patience to stay the course is harder than making moves when there's public pressure to do so. The Sox probably learned that from disassembling their world championship team in '04, a team they could have won with again.