Red Sox interested in Kelvim Escobar among others

The Boston Herald's Michael Silverman is reporting that Boston has requested medical records on free agent Kelvim Escobar, along with reliever Rafael Soriano. They've also inquired into Marcos Scutaro. While Soriano and Scutaro represent higher upside, let's talk Escobar for a second. Other than one June start, he hasn't seen the bigs since 2007 thanks to massive shoulder injuries. If it's a minor league deal, I would be okay with the signing. Not particularly thrilled, though. While all these low-risk, high-upside signings have inherent value, the Brad Penny/John Smoltz signings proved not to work at all. Should that prevent Boston from continuing to seek low-risk, high-upside starters? No, not at all. But I feel that the team waited way, way too long on Penny as well as Smoltz, before finally pulling the plug. I don't want that same mistake made again. In Escobar's case, two years of injuries and rehabilitation really make me question if the stuff is still there to even be a difference.

Will the Sox Acquire Adrian Beltre to Replace Lowell?

As the hot stove whisperings grow louder, the eyes of the Boston powers have shifted to Mike Lowell. Rumors have been building in strength over the last few weeks surrounding the future of the third baseman within the Sox' organization. Growing in popularity among the potential scenarios involving Lowell is the signing free agent third baseman Adrian Beltre, which would inevitably precede a trade of Lowell. According to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com, the Red Sox have been looking to trade Lowell with the condition of paying for $6 million of his $12 million salary in 2010. Replacing Mike Lowell with Adrian Beltre is certainly an interesting avenue for the home town team. However, such a move itself has a number of roadblocks that could preclude, including teams picking up Lowell’s $6 million and the likelihood of aggressive suitors for Beltre’s services. In addition, such a move would prevent the team from acquiring Adrian Gonzalez, who is coveted by the current front office.