Vernal Revival

Minor leaguers in parachutes. Must be Spring Training!
(cache.boston.com)

My spring has now started! Even though most of the players had arrived by Tuesday, today is the 1st official day for pitchers and catchers, and it couldn't have arrived any sooner. I'm still in recovery mode from the Pats' stinker in the playoffs while trying to endure the mediocrity/downright brutal recent meltdowns from the Celts and the B's, and that doesn't include me having to cope with Barça's first league loss against Atletico Madrid on Sunday. Even the Super Bowl of NASCAR was delayed by of all things, a pothole. Does Florida even have the type conditions to create a pothole? What a joke. It has been getting to the point where my safest option for sports viewing has been the Winter Olympics, which admittedly hasn't been that bad. The speed skating and some of the skiing events have been highly entertaining (And check out these pants!!). However, I wish they showed more Olympic hockey (which is better than the NHL in my opinion), and less of Johnny Weir. But all is good, because my team is ready to get back on the diamond, hoping to set the foundation that will bring the franchise's 8th championship. So before I get all excited over some PECOTA ranking, I would like to answer some questions that have been swirling around in my brain ad nauseaum about this team leading into this year's session of Fort Myers fun.

Apparently he's tired of all this talk, too.
(weei.com)

What will happen to Mike Lowell?
Like everyone else, I think he's gone, but not as soon as everyone thinks. As of now, Lowell is still a couple of weeks away from resuming baseball activities. That means it's gonna be a couple of weeks before he even begins to prove to the rest of the league that he's still a functioning baseball player. Recognizing the fact that it will take him some time to heal up and to get at-bats in Spring Training games, Mikey might not get that immediate plane ticket to his next destination. Something tells me that he will somehow break camp in a platoon role to begin the season, where he will gain enough of a sample in time and in at-bats for a team to feel comfortable in pursuing him. It would be very welcome, considering I don't see the bench being a strong facet to our team. An extra month will delight Mikey Lowell fans like myself, as well as add a productive bat in Boston's pine corps......well until Max Ramirez comes to town.

A last laugh for the last spot.
(cache.boston.com)

Do we truly have the best rotation in baseball?
By far, and it's not because we have the best 1-2-3 since the Mulder-Zito-Hudson combo of the early 2000's. With Lester, Beckett and Lackey, the Sox have three top-tier starters that could be the ace of many rotations around the league. With Lester and Beckett, we have power pitchers that are sure to miss many bats, become solid contenders for a 20-win season and threaten for the Cy Young. With Lackey, we have a guy who is as much of a bulldog on the mound as the other two, while having the track record in both the regular season and the postseason to have Francona be more than comfortable in giving him the baseball every 5th day. But the staff's effectiveness goes far beyond the top. The dark horse not only for the staff, but for the season will be Dice-K, who has the most to prove. Can't forget that this was a pitcher that won 33 games in his first two years, while being able to miss bats in many instances. Let's face it, 2009 needs the MIB treatment. Matsuzaka's season was doomed since the arduous throwing programs of his WBC appearance, and the tensions of that along with subtle disagreements he had with management over the past three years, the powder keg was only inevitable. The recent outing of last season's hidden groin injury didn't affect me like it did the Boston media because I already accepted the fact that it was another stain amidst a season that we already know was filled with foul ups and futility that needed to be forgotten. I think the 'next year' mindset has been on the brains of Farrell and Francona with Dice-K since last September. Plus as the fourth starter, he doesn't have the previous pressure of a #1 or #2, while he will be able to match up very well against many other team's #4 starter, which many around the league will not have even decided on until the near completion of March Madness. With Wakefield, we have a solid veteran presence who will eat innings and will win around 12-15 games (if healthy of course). In Clay Buchholz, the Sox have a starter that has better stuff compared to most of the #5 starters in the league. If he can pitch with the confidence and the effectiveness he did in the second half of last season, he is sure to win many matchups against other back-of-the-rotation starters. Yes, we have 6 guys for 5 spots, but as we found out last year, you can't have enough live arms. The difference between last year's staff and this year is that it actually has true depth. In 2009, we were duped into thinking that former National League pitchers with past arm trouble were going to save our season, and we all know how that ended up. The 2010 rotation is without a doubt, the V8 to the Sox machine.

Who are you calling odd,.......man?

(cache.boston.com)

So who is the odd man out?
Wakefield is letting it be known that he expects to be the 5th guy in the rotation, however with the addition of Lackey and with Buchholz still in town, it doesn't seem as if management sees him as a full-time rotation horse. With the annual body breakdowns that the 43-year old's been having in the past few campaigns, the brass does have a legit concern. At the same time, I don't see too many bullpen situations that would suit Wake other than the last-hope long guy in one of those 15 inning marathons where you run out of pitchers. How often does that happen, 4 times a year? Meanwhile, we have to realize that Buchholz is a not-so-young 26 years old, and he's at a point where we can't send him down to AAA forever. The man has got high hopes pinned on him, so be sure will have a spot with the staff. I'm probably one of many that think the 'run prevention' strategy was a Plan B for the Sox that was put into effect after J-Bay's agent turned the cold shoulder on their efforts to retain him, hence the Lackey/Cameron signings shortly thereafter. By design, this put the longest tenured Red Sox in a bit of a limbo. So it looks like there will be an injury fake for Wake, unless Dice-K's back has a say.

Will the Boof be a boom or a bust?
(cache.boston.com)

Is our bullpen a lock?
Seems to be the most overlooked portion of the team, the part that virtually everyone has even deemed to be automatic. But I have concerns about this pen. I wonder if Papelbon will regain his splitter after heavily relying on his fastball till it ended our season. I wonder if Bard will come through in the big contests this year, all in an effort to not only be the future closer of this team, but to avoid the infamous sophomore slump. We also have to notice that Okajima's ERA went up nearly a run (3.39 to 2.61) from 2008 and wonder if the lefty is slowly losing the deceptiveness that has made him an All-Star reliever. Oh, and then there is Manny Delcarmen and his tired shoulder that caused him to have an 8.53 ERA in the last 2 months of '09, making us all wonder if he will ever reach his high potential that his high voltage stuff suggests. Now we have to figure out if a guy named Boof (5.12 career ERA) will be of use in a slot that was filled by Wagner or Saito, who recorded strong results for the most part in 2009. By looking through it all, there are as many question marks with the 'pen as there are with any of Lady Gaga's outfits. Like with the Sox offense, I'm on a wait-and-see basis with this pen.

No sign of a Youk manchu this spring.
(cache.boston.com)

Will our lineup produce?
Going into 2010, I have to admit that I have some doubts. We are minus a 30 homer, 100 RBI left fielder and I was one of many in the contingent that said we needed to acquire that 'Fear of God' bat this offseason. However, we saw last year as a down year, and that team scored more runs than the 2007 championship team. In spots 1-4 (Ellsbury, Pedroia, Youk, V-Mart), the Red Sox are stacked solid with consistent, on-base run producers, but after that it gets a little hazy. Will Papi avoid the 2-month slump? Will Mike Cameron agitate the Fenway boo birds with a whirlwind of strikeouts? Can Beltre get anywhere close to being the run-producer he once was? Granted, it's gonna be real hard to expect a career year from an 34-year old J.D. Drew, but we have to look on the bright side. A whole year of V-Mart will boost the offensive production from the catching position that has been lacking with 'Tek that past couple of years. I see Beltre being the offensive dark horse and will hit 25-30 homers with the assistance of a ballpark that is conducive to right-handed offense. And with a Cameron-Scutaro combo in the bottom of the order, the overall lineup will have more balance all the way through it than when Nick Green and Varitek were manning the bottom slots. As for Papi, he as well as the rest of the world knows he has to be more consistent. We would all love old Papi back, but if he does another Mendoza line nosedive, you can be certain that the Adrian Gonzalez circus will come to Boston once again. At the end of the day, I am slowly, but successfully talking myself into the fact that we will thrive with this lineup, but I think the main key will be the lineup's 10th man: The training staff. If one of our sluggers goes down, the bench only supplies us with question marks in terms of offensive production, not limited to Hermida (oft-injured in his young career), Varitek (can't hit from the left side anymore) and Bill Hall (definitely not the 35 homer guy he was in '06). With what's on paper now, health will be as important as ever if we are to ultimately give enough run support to our all-star pitching staff.

Great pic for the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest.
(nydailynews.com)

When it's all said and done, will the Sox catch the Yanks?
Probably the most asked question around this time of year by many New Englanders. The Lackey acquisition along with Buchholz being a full time starter should play a beneficial role, for if healthy, will play a huge role in taking away the 38 starts that were occupied by Penny, Smoltz and Byrd last season. With Cameron in center and Beltre at third, we have shored us a defense that was suspect the year prior, while bringing in players who could not only surprise, but be big contributors to a 'rebuilt' offense. At the same time, I have questions on whether the Yankee acquisitions will help them be the first team to repeat since they did it in '99-00. With that short porch in right, Curtis Granderson has a chance to chase Maris, but his inability in the past to hit lefties, draw pitch counts, and his knack for striking out make me question whether the combo of Granderson and Jeter will be better than Jeter and Damon. While we know Vazquez is one of the best strikeout pitchers in the game, but it seems as everyone has forgotten about his last forgettable stint in New York, which was punctuated by allowing 2 homers to Johnny Damon in Game 7 of the ALCS. I realize that Johnny Damon has lost a bit of his range in the outfield, but Randy Winn isn't a spring chicken either. The way things are now, I still have the Yanks winning another AL East crown, but I like where the Red Sox stand not only in the way they have closed the gap, but they're set up in a flexible position to make a move for the right piece that will make them a better team down the stretch. It's a hope, but it's that hope makes this time of year so special to so may baseball addicts like myself, waiting for the adrenaline rush that is the summertime pennant race. Play ball, folks!

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