Day: September 10, 2009

New Shortstop Prospect Jose Iglesias

With the recent signing of shortstop prospect Jose Iglesias, the Sox now have four shortstops among their top 20 prospects.

Soxprospects.com rates the 19 year-old Cuban defector as the 14th best prospect in the organization and second-best prospect behind #12 Yamaico Navarro, third-best if you include Casey Kelly.

The 5-11, 175 pound infielder rates very well with the glove, with at least one scout grading it an 80 on the 20-80 scouting scale, according to Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus. His arm rates as a plus, as does his range, though his speed is of debate to some scouts.

What to Do With Daisuke, The Transformation of Lester

MLB Florida Marlins vs Boston Red Sox
With Daisuke finalizing his rehab stint for Class-A Salem, a September 15th return seems within reach. But what does Dice have to offer for the big club?

Through five months of the 2009 season, Jon Lester has morphed himself from above average starter into one of the best starters in the American League. What is at the root of this transformation?

What to Do With Daisuke?

As the Boston Red Sox get set for their weekend series against Tampa Bay, embattled starter Daisuke Matsuzaka gets prepared for a return to the Red Sox rotation.

Under any normal circumstances, the answer would be simple: bench him.

But these are not normal circumstances.

The dream of sending Daisuke to the pine, alive and kickin' since his horrifying yet successful 2008, is D.O.A. due to the size of his contract. Players who earn as much as Dice does will always get their playing time. That's just the way it is. The team has invested so much in him that they have to give him every opportunity to succeed.