Michael, You on ‘Da Line

I should have made this clear in The Post Heard Round The World, but these changes are not something that are ALL going to happen this offseason, but they will be addressed in either THIS offseason OR the next. Being that Lowell, Varitek, and Ortiz are all off the books after next year at least one of them will be back, but realistically I think 1 WILL be gone. But that really isn't what this post is about. This post is about me, calling on you guys to pinch hit in the ninth, and unlike Jed Lowrie, You guys come through. Another excellent bunch of observations/questions from one of my, oh so dedicated followers. And it goes a little something like this:

Michael wrote: We need a catcher, and I know the Rangers have a lot to offer in that spot. Why not go after Saltalamacchia. He idolized Tek growing up and could learn a lot from him this season. Plus he has a gun behind the plate. I don't like the thought of losing Buch right now he was a horse in the playoffs (all of the one game he pitched) but he's a future guy for us. I also tend to agree with Julia that trading Ellsbury would be crazy after he just swiped 70 bags for you. What about an SS? We could sign Gonzo as he solidified the spot for us down the stretch but what about bringing back OC from the Twins or Jack Wilson? Some of the Guys we should be looking at are: Dunn, Prince, A-Gonz (from the padres), Harden(Cubs), King Felix, Lee(Philly), Webb, Sheets, Salty(rangers), Yorvit Torrealba(young enough to get the job done from Col). PS. What about NOMAR!

 

Dear Michael,

You are correct in saying that the Rangers have a lot to offer in that spot. But Saltalamacchia is not the catcher you want out of that group. Saltalamacchia has, and will most likely always be labeled as a offense first catcher. I don't know where you are getting that he has a "gun" behind the dish unless you are comparing it to Varitek's in that case it's an absolute pea shooter. Just to make sure I wasn't mistaken and in no scouting reports have I seen "plus catcher" "plus arm" or anything of the sort. He is also average at best in his accuracy at throwing to bases as well. To put it in perspective, last year Victor Martinez had 4 errors in 85 games behind the plate, and Salty had 7 errors in 83 games. He chose a good role model in Tek, to look up to, but the only thing that he could learn from him is pitch selection. After looking up some facts, not once in Varitek's career was he above the league average in CS%. Here's an interesting link talking about the best defensive catchers that you may find interesting. Taylor Teagarden is the BEST defensive catcher that Texas has to offer, with a PLUS arm and actually has some power when hitting. He has developed into a solid all around player and should be a full-time catcher within 2 years in the majors.

With regards to your comments about Buchholz, I am also not completely in agreeance. While Buchholz was good, he was NOT dominant in that game vs. the Angels. Don't get me wrong he gave us EXACTLY what we needed, a chance to win, but to say that he wouldn't be worth trading to get either a Felix Hernandez or Adrian Gonzalez would be ludicrous. He very well could be a BIG piece in the future of the Red Sox rotation, but he is still an unfinished product and until he's thrown 200 innings in the big leagues or somewhere near that mark, he will be.

Oh, the dreaded Ellsbury comments. I'm starting to think that reading comprehension is lost upon some people. I NEVER said that it was going to happen. I was saying that it made sense, but probably wouldn't happen. You're correct in that he did just swipe 70 bags for us, but if you have a healthy Jose Reyes he would do the same thing at a position that we have been constantly doling out donkeys. That being said, I DON'T THINK ITS GOING TO HAPPEN. I was just bringing to fruition one of the many trade scenarios that enter into my head.

Alex Gonzalez did ONE HELL OF A JOB for us down the stretch, that being said. He's NOT coming back for 6 million per year, when Bobby Abreu only made 5 million this year. NOT GONNA HAPPEN. If he is willing to take a pay cut, he will be back, if not its someone else's position to take. Orlando Cabrera is in the same boat. He will be 35 next year and his range is not what it used to be. I would LOVE for them to kick the tires on Jack Wilson; he is as solid as they come at short. He's not much of an OBP guy but if you're looking for ONLY defense he could be your guy. Another person that I've heard recently that they will look at is JJ Hardy. Hardy is basically getting run out of town because of the emergence of uber-prospect Alcides Escobar taking the reins at short.

After looking over your list of targets for the offseason the ONLY way you sign Adam Dunn is as the DH. His defense is so poor that he makes Julio Lugo look like Ozzie Smith. So if you are ready to write Big Papi off, then he is DEFINITELY your man! Prince Fielder for me is a notch below Gonzalez, and ONLY because his defense is not as good. That being said, his ferocious swing makes babies cry in Indonesia and I would love to have him. But if they are going to spring for Fielder, they might as well spring for Gonzalez because they would be getting Gold Glove Caliber defense from him. But if Fielder comes here I would expect that Hardy comes over in that deal as well. Yorvit Torrealba is NOT a good defensive catcher. This is evidenced in that he has the 2^nd worst CS% in the game behind, you guessed it, Jason Varitek. Chris Ianetta who had a down year would make MUCH more sense if they are going to deal with the Rockies because he has a LASER for an arm and is a RI native. Nomar is NOT a SS anymore. He would be a utility player for this team and someone that I would love to see them get for their bench. But to think he could play more than 100 games at Short is unrealistic given his age and injury history.

Onto you're pitching prognostications. Harden is a LEGITIMATE possibility in that the Cubs don't want to exercise his option and he is one of those vaunted reclamation projects that the Red Sox love. Webb and Sheets we've already talked about. Cliff Lee would be a god-send but it looks like he loves the City of Brotherly Love and will exercise his option to stay there next year and that's probably a good move to have that much offense around you. King Felix is a monolith. This kid is Bob Gibson all over again. No one wants to face him. But in order to get him, who is VERY affordable for another year or 2 they are going to have to part with Buchholz and one of Bard or Ellsbury AND 3 Type A prospects from their farm system. That is not my opinion that is actually what Peter Gammons and Ken Rosenthal have said. If you can SOMEHOW keep Bard and Ellsbury out of it and maybe use Papelbon in that move I would do it, other than that I don't know that we have the prospects anymore.

I realize that this was a very long and thoughtful response. And for those of you looking for a quick fix of Bottom of the Ninth, I'm sorry. But I write for you guys and gals, as well as myself and thought it be best that I do my best to explain each situation thoroughly. Please keep the questions coming and you will DEFINITELY see them on here!

Stay Tuned

Ryan