|
Written by Rob Munstis
|
|
Friday, 18 December 2009 08:24 |
|
WEEI.com - Terry Francona told the Dale & Holley show yesterday that he is a "big Casey Kotchman fan."
We can do just fine with Kotch playing first, hitting down toward the bottom of the order and catching everything in sight. I’m pretty comfortable with that.
Tito also discusses plans for Mike Cameron and Marco Scutaro in the piece. Other than adding some pitching depth, it's looking more and more like the current roster will be what you see on the field in 2010.
Fire Brand of the AL - Troy calculates that the recent additions of Cameron, Scutaro and Lackey should give the Sox an increased WAR value in 2010 - despite losing Jason Bay's bat.
In 2009 the positional total for the whole team was 27.4 WAR, which was a virtual tie with the Phillies for fourth in the league. After running all the calculations I found for the current 8 starting players (3B still TBA) the three projections give the Red Sox an expected WAR total of 29.9.
Red Sox Monster - Yesterday we discussed our own thoughts on trading Ellsbury and Buchholz for Adrian Gonzalez. Dan from RSM chimed in with a post of his own and is 100% in favor of the move... if it happens:
Listen: I get it. Ellsbury, 26, is a fan favorite, a squeaky clean wonderboy who brings a kind of excitement to Fenway Park that few Boston fans have ever seen on their home team. And Buchholz, 25, has been pitched to Sox fans as a savior-in-training for years now.
Still, they are replaceable -- and quite likely, overrated in many Red Sox fans' minds.
You can tell us what you think in the POLL on the sidebar...
One If By Land - More and more bloggers/writers are suggesting that a trade for A-Gon makes no sense for the Padres right now. But they may be more likely to move him in July to a contender looking for a bat... Brian agree and reminds us that the Sox shouldn't make a rash decision either. Many think Ellsbury's defense makes him expendable, especially with Cameron on the roster, but Brian pulled Gold Glove winner Torii Hunters fielding stats and shows us that becoming a Gold Glove defender takes time:
Consider the evaluation of Torii Hunter in center field over the past few seasons:
* 2009: minus-2.1
* 2008: minus-13.0
* 2007: minus-6.5
* 2006: minus-11.6
* 2005: 4.5
* 2004: minus-0.2
* 2003: 13.1
Before the Red Sox conclude that Ellsbury can't play center field on a permanent basis, it might be worth using the first three months of the season to see if his numbers drift back to where his physical skill set suggests they should be.
Over the Monster - The guys at OTM are counting down the Top 10 moments from the 2009 season. They're on #7 right now at it starts Jon Lester and his bid for a no-no.
Extra Bases - Speaking of Jon Lester, he was named Pitcher of the Year by the Boston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Tamp Bay Rays' Carlos Pena was named New England Player of the year.
Lastly, in Yankee news... the Yanks have signed Nick Johnson and his mustache to a 1-year, $5.5M deal and he is expected to DH. Let the Kotchman Era begin...
|
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 