Well, the All-Star Game will be played at Target Field tomorrow night, and although the game is the ceremonial halfway point, the timing is right to do a post mortem on the Red Sox season. Some may call me fair-weathered, but at 43-52, 9.5 games out of first place, and showing few signs of going on a tear, I have little hope I will be enjoying October baseball as much as I did last year.
Not all the news is bad. The Red Sox made a solid start prior to the trade deadline by excising a clubhouse cancer; true addition by subtraction.
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| I believe Pierzynski is Polish for "peckerhead." |
All the euphoria of the 2013 World Series run was tempered by the appearance of A.J. Pierzynski during the telecast of one of the games at Fenway. There was already talk of Jarrod Saltalamacchia not re-signing with the Red Sox, and seeing AJ in the booth with little reason brought a foreboding sense of doom. I eventually accepted the fact Salty wouldn't be with the Red Sox, but had hopes he would show up to my benefit.
Little time passed before I learned what I hope wouldn't happen, did. I still had some faith the Red Sox, a team of professionals, would be able to find a workaround to having AJ as the team's primary catcher. Other than Salty and Jacoby Ellsbury, most of the key players were returning. I chose to take a wait-and-see approach, but would have little patience if things turned sour.
The Red Sox have a lot of things to work on offensively that can't solely be blamed on Pierzynski. I do think a key component to a successful baseball team is having an established catcher. The Red Sox had Varitek for many years and were very successful when he was on the team. One of the worst seasons during his stint was when he was out with an injury. Saltalamacchia was acquired in 2010, survived the crash of 2011, the lost Valentine year of 2012, and was the primary catcher of 2013. When the Red Sox signed AJ, Ben Cherington should have announced 2014 was a bridge year, in spite of the fact the team would be defending World Champions.
Now the Red Sox have brought up many of their young players from AAA Pawtucket. I imagine some are being put through the paces to prove themselves, while others are being showcased as trade chips. Here is what I would like to see with some of the key players on the team.
Pitchers
1.) Jon Lester - Give him his extension! NOW! Treat him like Pedroia, not Ellsbury.
2.) John Lackey - He is the best No. 2 in more ways than one and a solid performer in the rotation. The Red Sox should hold onto him until Clay Buchholz figures himself out.
3.) Clay Buchholz - His last game against the Astros showed the potential he has. If he has a good second half of 2014, he should be kept.
4.) Jake Peavy - Trade him to a contender so he can have another chance to win a title.
5.) Felix Doubront - Long relief or trade.
6.) Most of the other pitchers can be moving parts, but I would like to see the team keep Tazawa and Uehara
Position Players
1.) Christian Vazquez - I think the Red Sox need to go all-in with him. The team needs consistency at catcher and it should either see what player it developed or get a long-term contract with an established catcher.
2.) David Ross - Perfect mentor to Vazquez. As good a back-up backstop as Mirabelli.
3.) Ryan Lavarnway - Probably can't trade him yet (although Theo Epstein might want him for the Cubs). Offers some interesting options as a backup catcher or 1B/DH with Napoli and Ortiz contracts drawing to a close.
4.) Xander Bogaerts - Move to SS and keep him there. Even with reports of Deven Marrero lighting it up, move Deven to 3B and have Middlebrooks go to 1B to replace Napoli eventually, or trade one of the two.
5.) Mike Carp - Goodbye!
6.) Stephen Drew - Good riddance!
7.) Brock Holt - He may have caught lightening in a bottle this year, but I think he earned the right to come back (like Nava did last year).
8.) Will Middlebrooks - I would like him to be at 3B or 1B, but he hasn't proven himself to be very durable. If he can prove to be a power hitter over 140+ games in 2015, the team could move him to 1B and not re-sign Napoli.
9.) Mike Napoli - Have him finish his contract with the Red Sox. Maybe offer another two year deal if other pieces don't fall into place.
10.) Dustin Pedroia - The Red Sox heart and soul. Will have his number retired at Fenway.
11.) Daniel Nava - Earned the right for a down year. Give him a chance to bounce back.
12.) Jonny Gomes - Would love to have him back, but probably more useful in a trade.
13.) Jackie Bradley Jr. - His glove work alone is worth having him as CF. If he can be an on base guy, he can open the offense with steals.
14.) Mookie Betts - Would like to see what this guy can do over a full season.
15.) Shane Victorino - Injury prone and I'm not sure he has the passion for the game anymore. Trade if the team can.
16.) David Ortiz - There are a lot of replacement options internally and externally for a DH. Big fan of his, but his shtick is growing tiresome. Will side with him over Dan Shaughnessy every time. The Red Sox have won a World Series in increments of three years (2004, 2007, 2013). Give him until 2016 to get a fourth ring and then move on. He will probably retire by then anyway.
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