Theo Epstein was on a conference call today, and Extra Bases dishes by saying the LaRoche deal had been in the works for months and was not a knee-jerk reaction to the recent offensive struggles.
LaRoche will not be activated until Friday (the Sox have an off-day tomorrow). Epstein also hopes to make more moves before the deadline:
I think we plan to be very active in discussions in talking to just about every club out there and pursuing every player that can make us better now and in the future. Certainly, there are no guarantees. Certainly, we hope to make another move between now and the deadline.
Epstein went on to mention that he would like to upgrade the position player depth and performance against right-handed pitching but would not marry himself to those statements.
Peter Gammons updated his ESPN Insider blog recently, and has this to say:
This deal has been on the table for three weeks, and after losing their fourth straight game on Tuesday and declining to trade Clay Buchholz for Victor Martinez, Theo Epstein took LaRoche.
The Red Sox will work LaRoche, Mike Lowell and David Ortiz in the first base, DH and third-base spots, with Kevin Youklis moving back and forth between first and third.
…
The Red Sox felt they had to move Wednesday because the Pirates had a deal to send LaRoche to another team in exchange for a better offer than Argenis Diaz and Hunter Strickland, but Boston was willing to take on his entire salary. This trade will not preclude Epstein’s pursuit of an impact player such as Victor Martinez, Adrian Gonzalez or others.
I’m not surprised Theo turned down moving Buchholz for Victor Martinez — the word is that Clay moves only for a young power-hitter. Victor doesn’t qualify as young anymore. If the Indians were willing to do a trade with Michael Bowden, I think Theo would pull the trigger.
Loading ...
In Theo we trust… right?
I just edited the article to include what Peter Gammons said. Take a look.
Right now I’m of the position that given the information we know and detailed above, Theo made the correct move.
PS, to MAG: Hope’s not dead for an elite bat!
How could it not be considered the correct move though, when you think about it? Worst thing that happens is we have a .770 OPS guy coming off the bench. Best thing that happens is we either have a solid first baseman to rest a bunch of people, or we get a truly premiere bat.
Pirates have sent Diaz to Triple-A: http://bit.ly/IPH55 “>link
MLBTR is now posting Lugo to the Cardinals for Chris Duncan.
If true, this could be the end of Mark Kotsay.
I don’t think so; Duncan is likely to head to AAA.
sounds like Theo is looking for a stud bat
i have a feeling the everyday lineup may be shaken up in the coming days
I personally like the LaRoche trade, if only because he keeps the corpse of Mike Lowell out of the lineup. He’s also one of the best 2nd half hitters in the game, I believe he’s got a career .902 ops in the 2nd half.
Glad to hear the FO is looking for an impact bat. Even if we dont get it right now, I feel better just knowing Theo is being proactive.
And I also like the LaRoche deal. He is a very intriguing player and we have acquired him for next to nothing. So, no complains here. A platoon of LaRoche against righties, and Lowell against lefties sounds good to me.
i like that in the deals made for LaRoche, Duncan (and PTBNL), Theo hasn’t really done much to hurt the everyday compostition of the team. there may be a hit in the clubhouse losing Lugo (he is close to Papi among others), but overall the impact of what was lost in these deals was minimal. I think that’s key in moving forward in acquiring a big bat as they will certainly be parting with one or more regulars in the Sox clubhouse.
definitely think the trades leave VMart and Gonzales out of the picture. just couldn’t see them trading for another 1st basemen. What position will they look to for the big bat? can’t wait for the next 7 Evan!
After acquiring LaRoche, trading for another 1st baseman looks improbable. If we want a guy like A-Gon, it looks like we are gonna need to wait until the end of the season.
But I think the idea of looking for a new shortstop is still alive.
J.J. Hardy is in a horrible slump. But I wonder if this means he can be acquired at low cost. I don’t want to pay too much for him at this point, but what if, like Evan has suggested, he can be acquired for Penny, Green and some reliever?