MVPedroia is ready
Watching the Sox-Phillies Spring Training game this afternoon got my dick harder than those Kim Kardashian pictures a couple posts down. I love baseball more than anything else in the world so knowing it's so close make me as happy as a little asian girl in a Hello Kitty store. It also helps that the Red Sox had one of the best offseasons ever (adding Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez) and come into the season as favorites to represent the American League in the Fall Classic.
The Red Sox finished 89-73 and 7 games behind AL East winners the Tampa Bay Rays and 1 gameb back of the Yankees. It’s unfortunate because of the fact that many teams would kill for a record like that, but for an organization with a payroll and following like the Red Sox? It isn’t enough.
Many, including myself, were worried my God (Theo Epstein, Red Sox GM) would take the summer slow, maybe improve the bullpen but nothing too big. Why should they? Without all the injuries the Red Sox certainly would have been closer to the playoffs and certainly they’ll go into next year with a similar lineup.
Not even close. The Red Sox made HUGE signings in Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez as well as picking up important bullpen pieces like Bobby Jenks, Matt Albers and Dan Wheeler. The different line up possibilities are out the roof and if the pitching performs as it should, the Sox should be a force to reckon with.
The most important parts of the team shouldn’t be the new players coming in, but instead the returning pieces. A fully healthy Pedroia, Ellsbury and Youkilis should be enough to see the Red Sox return to dominance, but the new additions make them a scary team. A perfect lineup would be having
1) Pedroia
2) Crawford
3) Youkilis
4) Gonzalez
5) Ortiz
6) Drew
7) Saltalamacchia
8) Lowrie/Scutaro
9) Ellsbury
This gives your four best hitters a chance at a fifth AB later in the game. With the game on the line you’d rather have Pedroia at the plate than Ellsbury. With that being said, batting Ellsbury ninth would basically give you another leadoff hitter. He would be hitting in front of Pedroia as the lineup turns over from 9-1.
Another huge factor of the Sox will be their speed on the base paths. While it may seem crazy, a combined 120 stolen bases between Crawford and Ellsbury isn’t too crazy. Depending on how aggressive Francona plays, expect to see both players a constant threat to steal.
Keep an eye on Gonzalez and his numbers. He’s leaving one of the most pitcher-friendly ballparks in Petco Park and entering one of the most hitter-friendly in Fenway. He's an excellent opposite field hitter so Gonzo should be able to belt doubles against the Green Monster. A Triple Crown? Alright maybe I’m getting ahead of myself but expect big numbers.
It seems everything will come down to the pitching of the Sox. While Lester and Buchholz both emerged as first class pitchers, the drop off of Beckett and Lackey caused a lot of concern. It seems Lackey realized how much harder it is to pitch in the AL East than the AL West. He seemed to calm down and utilize his fastball much better later in the season so expect him to perform much better. Beckett comes off the most disappointing season for him in a Red Sox uniform. A positive for Sox fans is after Beckett’s very lackluster first season, he entered the 2006 offseason with a point to prove. He worked harder than ever in the offseason and came back ready to pitch in 2007. Many people are saying Beckett had that same work ethic in this offseason so a rebound year may not be out of the question.
It's obvious the AL East is the most competitive of baseball divisions and the additions to the Red Sox will only add to that. The Yankees are still the Yankees and will continue to win games. The Rays, despite losing Crawford, Pena, Garza, Soriano and Bartlett have the young talent combined with the additions of Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez to continue to win. The Blue Jays are getting stronger. The Orioles, after a 66-96 season, added Vladimir Guerrero, Mark Reynolds, Derrek Lee, Justin Duchscherer and Kevin Gregg. I wouldn't be surprised to see this division win more games than it did in 2010.
