Nomar would have made a good addition for 50 -60 games at 3b, 1b. At $2-3M he would have been a bargain, his shirts would be back in style, and the healing would have been good. He and Orlando Cabrera have signed with the now formidable A’s. Manny, Abreu, Dunn, Hairston, Hinske, Kapler, Keilty, Garland, Ausmus, all signed.
With the ‘sky is falling’ gloom and doom re: Penny and JD, I went searching the remaining list of FA’s for help. No RF, no CF, and few of anyone else left. After the glut of available talent out there for so long that it seemed it would last into June, the cupboard is pretty bare. The hot stove is cold as the ice on Houghton’s Pond. We are on our own, we are what we are, it is what it is, and a hundred other cliches implying that it’s time to love the one you’re with. All that remains is to determine who replaces Kotsay for a month or so, who is the #5 SP on April 14, who starts at SS, and who catches with Tek, and we will know that in a few weeks.</p?
In terms of injuries, it will be interesting to see how soon and how well Santana, Posada, A-Rod, Kerry Wood, Duchscherer, Choo, McCarthy, Longoria and a dozen others recover. I’m not worried about Penny or JD. Both will give the Sox top performances for most of the season, like John Smoltz, and that will be quite enough. Let the fun begin.