Ortiz figures all Red Sox need is slugger, bullpen help
David Ortiz believes the Red Sox could use another bat, maybe one held by free-agent Mark Teixeira. Whether Boston can sign the superstar first baseman remains to be seen, but Ortiz would like to see a little more support around him than was left vacant when the Red Sox traded Manny Ramirez to the Dodgers in July.
For Free Agent Pitchers, its buyer beware
For the Red Sox, in particular, big pitching contracts have been few and far between during Epstein’s tenure. Even the signing of Matt Clement (three years, $25.5 million) was not nearly as debilitating as it could have been, particularly when compared with other pitching contracts signed following the 2004 season. That year, the best deal awarded any starting pitcher (from the team’s standpoint) was the four-year, $36 million contract given by the Los Angeles Dodgers to Lowe, who averaged 34 starts and 213 innings while going 54-48 with a 3.59 ERA for a team that consistently had difficulty scoring runs.
The other pitchers who signed that winter? Pedro Martinez (four years, $53m), Carl Pavano (four years, $40m) and Brad Radke (two years, $18m), all of whom now have careers in varying states of disrepair. (Radke has retired, Martinez may be on his way there, and Pavano made 26 starts over the life of his contract.)
Get the picture?
Red Sox hold 2009 ticket prices at 2008 levels
The faltering economy has led the Red Sox [team stats] to announce that they will freeze all ticket costs for the 2009 season at 2008 prices. This will also pertain to spring ticket prices in Fort Myers.
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The move marks the first time in 14 years that the team has held ticket prices across the board.