Though the Boston rumor mill may be idling at the moment, the rest of the AL East is gaining momentum. Here’s a summary of the recent rumors and additions from around the division – minus Curtis Granderson:
- According to MLBTradeRumors, the Yankees are planning on adding an additional starting pitcher “by the New Year.” Including the names tied to New York are Derek Lowe and Javier Vazquez.
- Yankee’s centerfielders Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera have drawn some interest from the Cubs, says FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (about ¼ of the way down the page).
- The Yankees signed Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson to a reported one-year, $5.5 million deal. He would likely slide in as DH for New York. Though Johnson delivered little power last season for Washington, the Yankee’s right field stands and Johnson’s OBP should play well in the Bronx.
- The Orioles made some noise signing former Atlanta Braves reliever Mike Gonzalez to a two-year, $12 million deal. Gonzalez tore through the National League last season, striking out 90 in 74.1 innings on his way to a 2.42 ERA.
- Baltimore also added Garrett Atkins to a one-year deal for $4.5 million, with an $8.5 million club option for 2011. Atkins, who hit .226/.308/.342 over 354 at-bats last season, was linked to the Red Sox around the trade deadline.
- To finalize the Cleveland-Tampa Bay deal for Kelly Shoppach, the Indians received right-hander Mitch Talbot. Talbot threw 54.1 innings in AAA last season, totaling 40 strikeouts and 18 walks. Shoppach is a very interesting name for the Rays. An ex-Red Sox farmhand who appeared in nine games for Boston in 2005, the catcher hit .214/.335/.399 in 2009.
- Last week, the (Devil) Rays signed quad-A vets Ryan Shealy and Joe Dillon. Shealy, 30, finally produced at the major league level last season, slugging 7 home runs in 73 at-bats on his way to a .301/.354/.603 line. Dillon, 34, last had a productive season in 2007 at AAA, where he hit .317/.405/.610 with 20 home runs in 315 at-bats.
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On the heels of the Sox’s fourth disappointing offensive game in a row, it’s becoming abundantly clear that despite the team’s top five offense, it’s a top five incapable of sustaining any sort of playoff-caliber offense.
With that in mind, I have compiled a list of the 15 bats the Red Sox may have interest in. As the trading deadline approaches, I am keen to see if Theo has the “killer instinct” in him to make a strong move instead of holding onto his prospects with an iron fist.
With Jason Bay a free agent and his agent seeking a Mark Teixeira-type deal, is the time now to get a bat for now and the future? Here are some names that could don Sox uniforms sooner rather than later — you’ll see eight names in this article (in alphabetical order). On Friday, the final seven will follow, plus a summary of what the best fits seem to be.
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Rumors abound that the Red Sox and Colorado Rockies have discussed a deal around reliever Takashi Saito for third-baseman Garrett Atkins, making roughly $7 million this year.
The benefit to Atkins is that he would give the Sox a legitimate power bat off the bench, something the team lacks. Atkins would play first and third base off the bench, providing invaluable depth should Mike Lowell’s return prove unsuccessful.
Which brings us to a more important question: are the Sox better served with an extra bench bat or an extra pitcher?
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With each growing day here in the early stages of Off-Season 2007-08, the idea of Mike Lowell taking the extra year + cash to play for a different team looks [...]
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Coin it a new term: The Papa-Jima show.
Curt Schilling called the duo of Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon the Papa-Jima show after both dominated the Colorado Rockies in the 2-1 [...]
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Dane Cook may need to make a new commercial: Beckettober.
Josh Beckett (4-0 on the postseason) proved again why he is the number one starter for the Boston Red Sox pitching [...]
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Shortened World Series Know Thy Enemy due to a chaotic couple days here for the Fire Brand scribes, but I managed to write up a quick comparison between the Red [...]
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The quest for 10-0 for Josh Beckett (9-1) was crushed by Colorado Rockies (33-33) third baseman Garrett Atkins who was 3-5 on the night including a grandslam off of Beckett.
Atkins [...]
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