For Red Sox, Not Much News...or Is There?
Back to baseball for a moment. There has been very little news of the Red Sox in on any moves or deals. The general theme so far this off-season has been that the Red Sox are in good shape and were one game away from making it back to the World Series.
That's all fine and good, but I would be stunned if Theo Epstein and co. decide all that is needed is a catcher.
If it were up to me, I'd address catcher, evaluate Mike Lowell's health and consider trying to upgrade there, granted his deal is a major roadblock in that regard, and see if any of the other positional starters can be improved.
As for the pitching staff, the bullpen and bottom of the rotation need work or at least attention.
I would be surprised if the Red Sox go back into regular season play in 2009 without at least 1 significant trade or free agent signing. Varitek to me is not a major signing at this point in his career, by the way.
Anyway, what little news there is for the Red Sox involves Epstein getting a new 3-year deal with the Red Sox that was done "a few weeks ago." I suppose this is big news, but not a surprise.
The Red Sox and Scott Boras are in the feeling out stage on what it will take to re-sign Varitek.
Apparently Mike Timlin and Sean Casey are not coming back.
All members of the coaching staff except Luis Alicea are coming back. No word on why Alicea was dismissed.
MLBTradeRumors.com says that the Red Sox are a natural fit for Japanese League player Kenshin Kawakami.
The Red Sox are expected to be players for Mark Teixeira, although not front-runners, but it is expected he will take his time picking a team.
Lastly and of greatest interest is that Sean McAdams, now of the Boston Herald, is reporting that the Red Sox lead in the chase for highly touted Japanese amateur Junichi Tazawa. Tazawa's story is much different from most Japanese players in that he has not turned pro and was not drafted by any of the Japanese League teams because he told them it would be a waste of their time (or as it was reported, they respected his decision to pursue a MLB job).
Instead, he has managed to bypass the "posting" process and is available as a free agent to any MLB team. Obviously with no professional experience, he is no more or less risky than a draft pick is here, but there have at least been some good things said about him.
Of course, one player that isn't available yet is Yu Darvish. That kid can pitch...
News as it arrives...or as I get to it.
