How quickly things can change.
It’s almost easy to forget how bad it was for the Red Sox in 2010. The core of the entire team was hurt and the most dependable position player was Marco Scutaro. Darnell McDonald played a critical role for crissakes. How did they even win 89 games? Terry Francona should have won something for that performance.
Now this team is completely re-tooled with power, speed and defense and may include Jed Lowrie at shortstop, leaving Mr. Dependable Scutaro on the bench.
All these changes in Boston is making denial set in for Yankees fans.
Tom Fratamico called a spade a spade this weekend recognizing that the normally aggressive Yankees were passively sitting around, while their only legitimate threat in the AL East restocked with heavy artillery.
At the corners of the Universe, Yankees fans deny the impact of adding Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford. They point to such things as “When you look at it, Gonzalez is not much better than Adrian Beltre” and “I’d rather have Brett Gardner than Crawford and the $20 million”.
Plus gems like, “We didn’t need either of those guys anyways”.
Lies. Obviously the Gardner contract-to-WAR ratio is better than Crawford’s, but when you look across the board, the Red Sox ratios across the roster are better anyway.
Bragging about Clay Buchholz’ value and affordability compared to AJ Burnett, is painfully obvious and boring — yet this is what is happening to the Yankees fans.
Don’t twist reality just because Brian Cashman is sitting by the phone waiting for Cliff Lee to call him, while your 50-year old shortstop just inked a bloated-sweetheart deal that locks him up in a Yankees uniform until he’s as old as Yogi Berra.
If he gets hurt, it won’t hurt to miss work because the Yankees will give you money which is just as good as cash.
I understand the old hero thing too. David Ortiz is our old hero and he’s on a short leash with short money. Keep hanging on to your Gardner illusions. Your team is loaded with fat and deadweight. Too bad none of that could help you against Texas.
Yankees better win 100+ games because 95 won’t win the division this year.
Say what you want about any of this stuff — no one wins an award in December. But what these acquisitions do is put the USA on notice that New England is positioning to win another decade. Between the Celtics, Sox and Patriots we could see three parades in 2011.
Fearless Predictions
Jacoby Ellsbury will go back to his old, free-Taco Bell taco-winning self and consistently apply pressure allowing the Red Sox to establish, sustain and push leads. If Ellsbury stays healthy, he will break his own team stolen base record.
This is JD Drew’s last year in Boston, and in the final chapter of a largely-successful contract, the organization has handed him and Ortiz a parting gift.
JD and Papi,
For your final stay in our city, we give you a right-field fence that is just a little bit shorter and may help some of your lazy flyballs find their way into the bullpen. Hit some homeruns for us and go get yourself a big contract in the offseason.
Drew: 29 HRs
Ortiz: 37 HRs
A lot of chatter has been going on about how this Red Sox lineup is going to shape out and I think it is tricky no matter which way you look at it. The team has a lot of great left-handed hitters and that will be exploited at some point by a LOOGY.
People will start going crazy if it happens too much. Let’s just get ready for that now because imagining the idiot callers on WEEI and the Sports Hub this summer are already annoying me.
If I had any say, I would go:
1. Jacoby Ellsbury
2. Dustin Pedroia
3. Adrian Gonzalez
4. Kevin Youkilis
5. Carl Crawford
6. David Ortiz
7. Jed Lowrie
8. JD Drew
9. Jarrod Saltalamacchia
No matter which way you flip it — there are going to be back-to-back lefties in the lineup. Against RHP, it won’t matter but, against a tough lefty, we will see a day off for Ortiz or Drew. Ryan Kalish will end up finding his way to 450 ABs.
Josh Beckett will rebound nicely in 2011 and give the Red Sox a 5.0 WAR. His injuries and bad luck did him in last year (35% hit rate, 65% strand rate). Beckett’s base skills were excellent in the second half of 2010 and he remained a groundballer that can strike guys out. Expect a return to Ace. 2011: 15-8, 3.55 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 1.25 HR/9, 5.0 WAR
And finally, the New York Yankees will miss the playoffs in 2011 and will go on a spending frenzy that will make the most liberal of Democrats jealous.
Let’s bump this article up again in November.