Lowell to Texas, Beltre to Boston… And a Cherry Named Maximiliano

Lowell to Texas, Beltre to Boston? This rumor has been cooking for a long time, and it may finally be ready for consumption. According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Red Sox and Rangers have a deal in place that would send Mike Lowell to the Texas Rangers, with the Sox receiving top catching prospect Max Ramirez. Many expect the trade to be a precursor to the signing of Adrian Beltre. As per Rosenthal, the Sox would contribute a substantial portion of Lowell’s contract - in his words, with the Sox “eating nearly all of [Lowell’s] 12 [million dollar] salary.” Dan Barbarisi of the Providence Journal, on the other hand, has the Sox providing “at least half” of the deal. We likely won’t know for some time which of the two price tags will win out, but be certain that it will significantly affect the team’s outlook for the remainder of the winter. Is this the Sox answer to the Granderson deal in New York? Probably not. This isn’t the kind of blockbuster trade that substantially alters the team for 2010. In fact, the trade is curious in the sense that it would significantly hinder the team’s ability to maneuver for free agents for the rest of the off-season – and could put them out of the running for either Jason Bay or Matt Holliday...

That Damn AL East Superiority Complex

I’ve had it up to here with this “he can’t hit in the AL East" crap! Even a few select members of the Red Sox brass believe in this credo – and I feel downright shame that we would support Jason Bay over Matt Holliday merely for the fact that Bay has hit in the division whereas Holliday has never had the chance. Bogus. I ain’t buyin’ it. Would we be saying this about Jason Bay if he came over from a blistering stint in St. Louis? Remember, he hadn’t hit anywhere other than PITTSBURGH before Boston. Needless to say, it’s become one of my pet peeves – and I don’t even like saying the word “pet peeve”. I save that for only the most appropriate of circumstances. But, really, I’ve had it up to here. So I decided to look into the numbers and put my money where my mouth is. First off, it goes without saying that anyone who hits in a weak division, i.e. anywhere in the NL, or some other division where half the team’s players wear a dunce cap onto the field instead of a ball cap – has an easier time succeeding because of the poor competition. No doubt, it’s easier to hit in the AL Central than the AL East. True. No argument there. What is ridiculous is the amount of skepticism weighed against an MLB player by AL East teams because of some feelings of ultimate superiority. Hubris. That’s all it is – and it’s never been worth anything more than a lot of trouble.

Nightengale: Beltre to Sox a Possibility

According to USA Today's Bob Nightengale, a Sox acquisition of Adrian Beltre is becoming a real possibility. As per Nightengale's Twitter account,

"It wouldn't be surprising if Beltre falls into the Red Sox lap if he doesn't accept arbitration from the Mariners."

The move would be predicated by Beltre declining arbitration, which SI's Jon Heyman reports as a growing likelihood. Beltre, 30, qualified as a Type B free agent this offseason, so he would not cost the Sox a draft pick. Beltre battled injuries this past season, batting .265/.304/.379 with only 8 home runs in 449 at-bats. Beltre remains an elite fielding third baseman, however, as he posted a 14.3 UZR at the hot corner in 2009. Should Beltre regain his hitting prowess from previous seasons, he could present a nice upgrade over a declining Mike Lowell...

Thumbs Up to Scutaro

As Harold Ramis once said to Seth Rogen in Knocked Up after Seth knocked up his one night stand, "This is a good thing." It may have looked tragic at the time, but he got a beautiful daughter out of it and even got to spend the night with Katherine Heigl. Not a bad haul for a drunken mistake. The same can be said for the signing of Marco Scutaro. It wasn't quite the way we planned it (myself not included, I like Toronto import, especially given the alternatives), but it's what we have. Maybe the little guy will grow up to be a Rembrandt, maybe he'll be an alcoholic, but either way, he's ours and we need to love him. But let’s get something straight. There is a lot to like here – and signing Scutaro is like making the best of a bad situation. The nuts and bolts of Marco Scutaro are that he is an average fielding shortstop with plus offensive skills for his position. These kinds of players do not grow on trees...

Wagner to Atlanta, Pedroia to Short, Tito Really to the Tea Cabinet?

Pedroia to Short? Sometimes, the answer is so obvious that it was staring you in the face the entire time. Well, maybe Pedroia to short isn’t that obvious, but I’m surprised that it took this long for anyone to suggest the move at all, myself included. There are risks here, though. Pedroia was moved off short for a reason. Even during the minor leagues, many scouts liked him at the keystone long term. Now, three seasons into his major league career at second base, there is no saying what his arm or his range will look like across the diamond. Though he’s got great fielding skills for a second baseman, there are differences in reading grounders, going to the left up the middle, throwing distances, positional defensive standards, and a litany of other concerns when changing positions...

Matsui in Red, Varitek’s ‘C’

Hideki Matsui as a Red Sock? (Left: While not the best "action shot" out there on Matsui, it would offend our sense of decency to have pictures of Yankees high-fiving or trotting around the bases on our site. Therefore, we felt a picture of Matsui being brushed back by a fastball was much more appropriate.) Yesterday, the Red Sox official website announced a rumor linking the team to Hideki Matsui. According to sources at nikkansports.com (don’t even bother with the link, unless you can read Japanese), the Japanese website expects the Red Sox to tender Matsui a contract at some point this offseason. Though Matsui proved this season that he is still a force at the plate, the real question is whether or not he can effectively man left field.

Theo’s “95-Win Team”, Beckett’s Extension, Falling Dominoes, and the Mailbag

Theo’s “95-Win Team" In recent years, one of the most important axioms put forth by the Theo Epstein and the Red Sox front office is the law of the “95-Win Team”. According to this directive, the team’s goal is to target 95-wins annually in an effort to compete every season. This is really a great piece of wisdom, as a team that wins 95 games will make the playoffs most years. In fact, the Wild Card winner since 2003 – the first year Theo took the esteemed office of Red Sox General Manger – has averaged a record of just about 95-67. However, this doctrine relies on one major assumption – that this team will always be able to perform up to their expected level... Josh Beckett's Extension Over the past few days, rumors have been circulating that the Sox and the Josh Beckett camp have been discussing a contract extension. Adding fuel to the rumors, Beckett and agent Michael Moye have indicated that there will be no hometown discount for the Sox, so the team will have to be ready to shell out quite a bit of cash. Introducing the FireBrand Mailbag And, finally, introducing the FireBrand mailbag, where we will answer all of your darkest, most burning questions about Red Sox Baseball. If you would like to ask the writers a question to be answered on the site, please forward your inquiries to Mike_Silver_FireBrandAL@yahoo.com.

BoSox AFL Update

With the conclusion of every major league season comes the beginning of the second season of “minor” leagues in baseball – the Winter Leagues. This 2009 off-season, the Sox have placed 17 promising prospects across four leagues, including some of the most exciting names in the organization, such as Casey Kelly, Ryan Kalish, Jose Iglesias, and Yamiaco Navarro. The Winter Leagues are one of the more interesting annual rituals of the MLB, aside from maybe the Rule 5 Draft, as every team in baseball pours their most highly touted prospects into one pool where they duke it out for organizational supremacy.

Seeing Straight on Aroldis Chapman

When any new phenomenon arrives, it takes a while for people to adjust their lifestyle and accommodate these changes. Cell phones are the most recent example. The Internet was another. In the baseball world, free agent-prospects are the newest slang, which, understandably, are forcing major league teams to adjust - with varied results. Baseball's newest free agent-prospect phenom, Aroldis Chapman is expected to visit Boston today, on the heels of a visit to New York on Monday. A world-class talent, he is turning baseball economics on its head. On the one hand, he is a prospect – a lean, projectable lefty at a young age, 21. On the other, he will command the salary of a major league free agent – not what you'd expect of a “prospect”. The newest “It Kid” from overseas, Chapman comes fully loaded with everything that makes scouts salivate more than Pavlov’s dogs: a ferocious fastball clocked as high as 102 mph and a long 6-4 frame. As a result, the young Cuban is considered the best prospect to reach the MLB this side of Stephen Strasburg – and he’s a lefty to boot. But there’s a problem with taking this position; mainly, the fact that he’s even labeled a “prospect”. Sure, he has all the traditional markings of one. He’s got exceptional tools, he’s projectable, he’s raw, and, most importantly, he’s young. However, under the modern economics of baseball, with escalating salaries and widely varying budgets, there are two nonnegotiable criteria that give value to and create the allure of the “prospect”...

Wakefield, Hoyer, and Squinting at Free Agents

Wake Undergoes Surgery Tim Wakefield underwent surgery Wednesday to repair a herniated disk and loose bone fragment in his back. Wakefield is expected to pitch next year and should be ready for Spring Training. The 43 year-old vet was visually hampered last year, turning in a 4.58 ERA and 4.58 FIP despite his woeful last three starts (14 IP, 14 ER, 8 K, 12 BB). Squinting at Free Agents While we have gone at length discussing the top free agents and mapping out blueprints for the Sox’ offseason, there are a number of intriguing names on the market that are flying under the radar. Not all of them are the safest bets, with varying levels of performance or injury history, but they do have some sex appeal. Here are a few names to mull over. Special thanks to Eddie Bajek of MLB Trade Rumors. OF Rick Ankiel: Ankiel came off a sub-par season in 2009, as his power was down, his walks were down, and his K’s were up en route to a .231/.285/.387 line.