New Fire Brand feature: Depth Chart

Linked in the menu above, we now have a organizational depth chart available for your perusal. This is not a top prospects chart. Some of our top prospects are further away from the majors than some of the fringe guys. This is in order of people that we could dip into the pool of over the next couple years. Obviously this is subject to trades and free agent signings.

Here is a link to the Mark Teixeira article I penned about why we should not sign him; we are working on getting a link to “previous entries” at the bottom of the front page, but until then, it is hard to find articles pushed off the front page unless you click on Archives.

No A.J.

Amazed I was, in comparing A.J. Burnett’s 2008 breakout year stats against the rest of the Red Sox rotation, to find that A.J. would probably rank as the #4 starting pitcher at Fenway, while earning 2x – 40x more than the rest.

Following are what curiosity and wonderful stats from mlb and fangraphics revealed.

Red Sox acquire Rangers reliever Littleton

In a move that may be the clearest yet that the Red Sox are moving towards having Justin Masterson and Clay Buchholz battle it out for the No. 5 spot in the rotation, the Red Sox have acquired reliever Wes Littleton from the Texas Rangers in exchange for two players to be named later or cash.

Littleton, 26, has a career 3.69 ERA in 102.1 career innings. A sidearmer, his current claim to fame is notching the save in the Rangers’ 30-3 drubbing of the Baltimore Orioles in 2007, pitching three innings to close out the game.

Lugo to the Tigers talks stalled, interest in Cora

Julio Lugo’s fate next season has seemingly rested as much in the arms of the Detroit Tigers as the Boston Red Sox.

With talks between the Tigers and Red Sox regarding any potential swap of overpriced pitchers looking to rebound (Nate Robertson, Dontrelle Willis) and overpriced shortstops looking for redemption (Julio Lugo) seemingly dead in the water, the Detroit Tigers may make a move that makes it even more likely that Julio Lugo remains a Red Sox in 2009.

Meet your new first base coach: Tim Bogar

Tim Bogar will replace Luis Alicea as the first base coach next season. Bogar, a nine year MLB veteran with the Mets, Astros, and Dodgers, recently held a Major League assistant coach role with the Tampa Bay Rays.
For the grueling reality of Bogar’s baseball career (.228 average, etc) check out his profile at Baseball Reference.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Hope this is a time you can all enjoy the things that we have been blessed with.

Sean McAdam reports that Julio Lugo for Dontrelle Willis or Nate Robertson have stalled and are unlikely to pick up. The Red Sox will also offer arbitration to Jason Varitek, a move he is likely to decline.

Outside the Top 50: Building a team of free agents

The premise of the article is this: historically, as a small market team, its too risky to try to build a team around the top available free agents. If you give $20 million a year over six years to a player who is a bust, you’re ship is sunk. So my thought was this: what is the best team money could buy using only free agents who are outside the top 50 list that we created here on Fire Brand? Call it the “leftovers game,” and show us your picks! Bonus points if you figure in approximate payroll of the team.

Got an opinion about the Red Sox?

Just want to quickly point out that we’ve had some great discussions in the comments lately, and I’ve been thrilled to read them all and participate. If you have any interest in expounding your thoughts and posting an article on the Red Sox, all you have to do is register for an account and then click “Publish a post” on the right under “Community Posts” and voila!

Could Julio Lugo be 2009’s Coco Crisp?

While most people are dreaming of an off chance that Dontrelle Willis could recreate himself in a Boston Red Sox uniform, there is recent precedent that might point towards not rushing Julio Lugo out of town quite so quickly.

Tell me if this story sounds even remotely familiar?

An under-performing veteran coming off an injury plagued season, having never fulfilled his promise present at his debut as a member of the Boston Red Sox, has found his position usurped by a rookie down the stretch before entering Spring Training in the unfamiliar position of a high priced back up. Common logic from fans and the greater baseball community already has that player traded to fill other holes and to allow the rookie to take the mantle of their position without impediment.

Why Red Sox should not sign Mark Teixeira

Mark Teixeira – ccho

I am not a proponent of signing Mark Teixeira, as talented as he is.

While signing Teixeira and trading Mike Lowell are possibilities, it would mean investing money in a position that we do not have foreseeable issues at for the next two years and perhaps beyond

The premise for signing Teixeira, many people seem to believe, is predicated on the fact that they think David Ortiz is done. Sorry, I’m not prepared to write off a hitter who has finished in the top five of MVP voting five straight years after one injury-marred season.