Late in the 2010 season, it seemed as though Jason Varitek’s tenure with the Red Sox had come to an end. Not so fast. The captain is back.
Today, the Red Sox came to an agreement with Varitek on a one-year, $2M deal with $300K in incentives. However, this move is hardly the solution to the Sox’s gaping hole at catcher.
More than anything, this move leads me to believe that the Sox think Jarrod Saltalamachia will be best served starting 2011 at Pawtucket.
At age 39 in April, it is beyond obvious that Varitek’s body can no longer hold up over the long haul of the season. In 2010, Varitek hit .323/.364/.774 with four home runs in April, but his numbers fell off each month thereafter and he missed significant time with injuries along the way. At this point in his career, he’s more of a player/coach and spot start catcher than anything. If the Sox don’t make another move and head into 2011 with Saltalamacchia as the everyday regular, Varitek will serve as a mentor and help with Salty’s mental game both behind the dish and at the plate.
However, going into the 2011 season with the combination of Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Jason Varitek is risky. Actually, risky is too positive a word to describe that scenario. Not only has Salty never proven himself at the big league level, but he has yet to stay healthy over a full season. Heading into next year with two injury risk catcher, one in decline and one unproven, is not ideal.
With the winter meetings around the corner, more moves could be on the way. The Sox have some free agent options to pursue. Rod Barajas, A.J. Pierzynski, Bengie Molina and possibly Miguel Olivo are still looking for work, but none of those options will make us forget about Victor Martinez. Mike Napoli, Russell Martin, John Baker and Felipe Paulino are all candidates to be traded this offseason, so the Sox are likely to look into those options as well.
Having the captain back in a Red Sox uniform is a feel-good move, but one that doesn’t do much to help the team’s void at catcher. There is no questioning what Varitek brings to the clubhouse and the knowledge he could provide for young catchers like Saltalamacchia holds value in itself. However, this move seems more like a prelude to another, higher impact acquisition.
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evanbrunell: 
alexconvery: 
CharlieSaponara: 
I have a few statistics that I was able to compile while reading this article. You went 0/1 in the first paragraph spelling his (our beloved captain) name properly. Second paragraph has you turning around the trend to bring you .500 with a solid 1/1 showing. Third paragraph only seemed to serve as a speed bump for what would be a reckless high speed pursuit of epic proportions in the fourth as you would find yourself on 3 occasions reverting back to “Veritek.” Seemingly on the road to redemption was the fifth glorious stanza when you struck gold with the proper Varitek. What followed was a quiet sixth. Everything moving nicely to a stirring conclusion, only to see the total slide further in the seventh finishing up a dismal 2 for 7.
Hey, that's a .286 AVG! If I hit can hit 500 home runs, I'll be in the Hall of Fame!
Besides, the spelling of Varitek or Veritek really all depends on what accent one is using, which in my case was back and forth between Bostonian and Minnesotan.
i hope (and assume) that you took my windy critique in jest. i certainly had fun with it
Tim Dierkes was a perfect 4 for 4 in his Varitek offer.
You may be correct that a Barajas or Benjie Molina will be signed before the season starts. And perhaps time in Pawtucket could get his groove back, but maybe not as much as working with Tek at Fenway. A Barajas/Tek tandem isn’t sufficiently better in all its parts than Salty/Tek and would block the development of Salty. So I’m OK with saving $10MM from Victor and putting it into Beltre, Agon, etc.
However, if you are talking Russell Martin, that’s another story.
Barajas is close to signing with the Dodgers, so Russell Martin looks like a real possibility at this point (he was non-tendered).
I hear your point with Salty developing under Varitek, but can the Sox afford to take that liberty? Tek is a solid backup regardless of who the main man is behind the plate, but I\’d prefer if that main man has a bit of a track record.
Either way, it looks like the Sox won\’t spend a ton at catcher, so they\’ll be putting more $$$ into a bigger name free agent.
Im shore that Veritek will be good this year cause he can still hit homers! TEK IS THE MAN IN BOSTION!! TWO CHAMPOINSHIPS!!
Salty will be a very good major league catcher. The tools are all there. Catchers do take a little longer to develop – Tek and Posada didn't lock down a MLB gig until their mid/late 20's. He's got a couple holes in his swing and some confidence issues but when he puts it all together I think this kid will be a stud. Yes, I know I am in the minority.
All that being said, sign Russel Martin right now.