Red Sox Offseason BluePrint v.2 : Holliday, Harden, Scutaro

Like most teams, the Boston Red Sox offseason will be defined by the willingness of their owner to open his wallet. Fortunately for Sox fans nationwide, Uncle John certainly has some deep pockets. However, the amount he is willing to spend will have a lot to say about the direction that this team will be headed. The prudent move by the Red Sox will be to look for incremental gains in what is partly a transitional year, while also being a year of opportunity. The club has nearly its entire 2009 starting lineup under contract, including its entire starting staff and at least seven of nine position players. For a team that won 95 games last season, that’s a recipe for success. Still, the American League gets more competitive every year, as the AL West, the Yankees, and our little brother Rays make it harder and harder to buy the Wild Card.

Anaheim Angels’ ALDS Roster

Mike Scioscia released his postseason roster on Sunday, giving fans even more to feast on as the postseason nears. The team will consist of 15 position players and 10 pitchers. Position Players Catchers (3) Primary: Mike Napoli Reserves (2): Jeff Mathis, Bobby Wilson While Napoli is the Angels' primary catcher, Mathis will begin the series catching Lackey - much to the Sox' benefit. Mathis is a very poor hitter (.211/.288/.308), so his free at-bats will kill any rallies when he limps to the plate. Wilson, the team's #3 catcher, will provide depth and late-inning roster flexibility.

BOS 12, CLE 7: The Long and Winding Win

It may not have been the way that Clay Buchholz wanted to head into the post season, but a win is a win in professional sports, as the Red Sox took their 95th win of the season off of the Cleveland Indians, 12-7, on Sunday. Buchholz only lasted three innings, but the run support was there in droves, as J.D. Drew clocked two, Jed Lowrie belted a grand slam, and Alex Gonzalez made sure that everyone knew he was doing just fine with another home run, just to name a few.

BOS 11, CLE 6: Bats Boost Beckett Past Indians

The Boston bats had Beckett's back last night, in a big way. Alliteration aside, the Red Sox starter struggled through five innings, but came up with the win, his seventeenth of the season, as the Sox took a third game from the Cleveland Indians. With only one game left in the regular season, the quiet Red Sox backs woke up, as Aaron Laffey and the rest of the Tribe's pen were lit up, on the way to an 11-6 loss.

BOS 6, CLE 2: Sox Take Two from Cleveland

“Effective” isn’t a term often used to describe Daisuke Matsuzaka’s outings, but that’s exactly what he looked like in last night’s start, as the Red Sox took a second win off of the Cleveland Indians, 6-2.

Fireside Chats #61: Where we are the champions….errr…wild card my friends

[podcast]http://360thepitch.com/firebrand/61_10_1_09_firesidechats.mp3[/podcast]

Paul and I catch up after a week off with the end of the regular season looming. The Red Sox have clinched and instead of painfully breaking down the teams' miserable performance in these "exhibition games", we look forward with initial thoughts to another match up with the Anaheim...Los Angeles Angels in the ALDS. All after, of course, a little prayer for Jon Lester and Josh Beckett's health.

All that and more on Episode #60 of Fireside Chats on MVN!

Projecting the Angels’ Post-Season Roster

Shrowded in as much secrecy as a Cold War nuclear test or New England Patriots injury, the California Angels have yielded very few signals as to the makeup of their postseason roster. While the starting lineup is generally set, the rest of the team is in a state of flux.

There have been some indications, however, from sources close to the team of what their roster will look like in the ALDS. Most pundits agree on the following roster developments:

1) The team is confident in its first three starters: John Lackey, Jered Weaver, and Scott Kazmir.

2) The team will opt to go with either Joe Saunders or Ervin Santana in the fourth spot, though Saunders seems to be the frontrunner at the moment...

Sizing Up the Angels: The Hitters

Now that the Magic Number is down to zero (special thanks go to Texas for their Heimlich Maneuver on the Red Sox choke job), the Sox can safely prepare for the Anaheim Angels.

Make no mistake, this is not the Angels teams of past years, who had been thoroughly cooked by the Sox and served on a platter. They have a lot of advantages over the Boston club: they are healthier, have a deeper rotation (though not as top heavy), and they have momentum from four straight wins and a recent division clincher over the Rangers.

Still, with a new sworn enemy for the next two weeks, let's remove the veil from the Angels and find out who this team really is.

Where to start? Hmm... how about the sluggers?

The Sluggers

1B Kendry Morales: This guy has had one of the biggest turnaround seasons in recent memory. It looked like he was headed straight for the former-prospect label after three lackluster stints with the big club. He's been a completely different hitter in 2009, however, as he's added power and learned how to hit major league off-speed and breaking pitches (particularly the change-up and curve). He has had problems making contact this season though, which is probably the only part of his game that has regressed...

Laundry List: Lowell’s Hip, Kotchman’s Bat

Two items for today's laundry list:

1) Hope that Lowell's hip heals

2) Pray to Pedro Serrano's voodoo gods (yeah, that crazy guy from "Major League") that if he doesn't, Casey Kotchman's bat will rise from its slumber.

Mike Lowell came into this season on the heels of a revolutionary labrum surgery, one so new that it is yet to be named (that Lowell, incidentally, hopes will be named after him). As a result, he's already had one DL stint this season due to the hip and received another Synvisc injection Monday.

For Better or For Worse: Terry Francona

Wrapped in the title "player's manager" is both a complement and an insult. Personable and charismatic as to relate to players, these managers are too cowardly to make tough personnel decisions, too soft to win championships.

Yet, what is often overlooked, is that many of the greatest skippers in baseball history have managed in this style. Arguably the two best managers of the last decade have been of this "undesirable" type: Terry Francona, winner of two World Series titles since installed as Red Sox skipper in 2004, and the legendary Joe Torre, manager of the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees, and Dodgers during his storied career.

Terry Francona, in many ways, can be considered a latter-day Joe Torre. Francona, in particular, faces many of the unique challenges that Torre did, while also being among the best at managing personalities and egos in his MLB clubhouse...