Sox Land Tazawa

Junichi Tazawa has decided to accept the Boston Red Sox offer and will officially sign in early December when he is officially allowed to. Reports say the offer from Boston is for three years at $1 million per and that he will begin at AA Portland. He will remain a starter and will be provided with a personal translator. The deal is a major league deal. The signing doesn't come as much of a surprise as most expected he would sign with Boston. UPDATE: Signed, sealed and delivered.

What If Boston Lands Teixeira

A lot of talk recently within the Boston sports world is about what happens if Boston signs Mark Teixeira to a contract this winter. As I write this I had just finished reading a post at Fire Brand of the American League, it is a decent look at the recent Coco trade and what it could lead to over the rest of the winter. The commenter's on the post also get into the discussion and one name mentioned in the comments led me to write this post... Lars Anderson. The signing of Mark Teixeira does not necessarily mean the end of the road to Boston for Anderson. Anderson just turned 21 at the end of September and with David Ortiz turning 33 next week there certainly is a possibility that in the near future Boston will have a DH spot open in its lineup. Ortiz is signed through 2010 with a team option for 2011. A safe bet would be that in 2009 Anderson starts the season in Portland and by seasons end will be in Pawtucket and we could assume 2010 will be in AAA as well but certainly with the likelihood that at some point in 2010 Anderson gets a call to Boston. Assuming Ortiz has regained his bat and is still productive the team would pick up his 2011 option and Anderson would also be part of the 2011 team in some capacity. Following 2011 the Sox will have as good an idea on where Anderson is as a hitter as they ever will and a decision can be made whether its time for him to be an everyday player in Boston. In 2012 when he would then take over as an everyday player he would still just be 24 years old. Boston would now have two decent first basemen (by then Kevin Youkilis would have already taken over at third base) who can split time between first and DH. This could take place a year sooner if Boston felt Anderson were ready. There of course is a issue that will be on the front burner much sooner with a Teixeira signing, what to do in 2009 with David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell and Teixeria all under contract with three positions available between them. There's no reason you cant be creative here. Ortiz is a year older and more rest wouldn't be a bad thing for him, same with Lowell. Giving Youkilis rest could also be beneficial in the second half when he has usually fallen off in the past. The Red Sox could move the lineup around where each gets regular rest and is available late in games to pinch hit. Would you rather see Ortiz pinch hit in the 9th or someone like Alex Cora? Youkilis of course can also play the role of an emergency OF if it was ever necessary. Some may remember the constant talk of mixing in Dustin Pedroia, Julio Lugo and Alex Cora early in 2007 when Cora was off to such a hot start, the same idea can be used here. One day you play Ortiz and Lowell, the next Ortiz and Youk and then Youk and Lowell. They each play two in a row and then have a day off. Occasionally you give Teixeira a day off and have the other three all in the lineup. The situation would be easier to resolve if Boston were able to trade Mike Lowell if they do Sign Teixeira, but at no point would I want Boston trading Youkilis or Ortiz, I'd rather have a 3 man rotation.

Why Is Boston Making A Run At Burnett?

Just days ago it appeared Boston wouldn't make a big splash in the expensive market for free agent starting pitchers, that apparently has changed. Several sources have said the Red Sox have gone heavy into the chase for AJ Burnett. What could have caused this? It probably all points towards the rumors of Tim Wakefield leaning towards retirement being true. If Wakefield does retire there would be a big hole in the Red Sox rotation that Boston would need to fill either in free agency or from within the organization. With Boston likely already going with one young pitcher from the system in the rotation they probably feel the safer route for the other slot would be a proven veteran, and that's where Burnett enters the picture. Boston had and probably still does have interest in having Derek Lowe return to Boston, but probably not at the price he is reportedly seeking, Burnett while likely commanding similar dollars is younger the Lowe so in a way a safer bet. Boston is also said to be in the running for Kenshin Kawakami, a Japanese free agent pitcher who could slot into the back of the rotation, by signing Kawakami and a veteran like Burnett, Boston could keep Justin Masterson in the bullpen helping strengthening it for the 2009 season or using him in a deal to land a catcher from Texas. Should Wakefield retire, Boston could also move past having a special catcher on the roster for him, they could then have a younger guy like Jarrod Saltamacchia playing more often and giving Varitek more rest. If I had to make a guess right now, I would lean towards Varitek having already thrown his last pitch. Being after Burnett points that way. Update 11:34PM: Here's a look at how the pitching staff would look if Boston signed Burnett and Kawakami. Rotation Josh Beckett Jon Lester Daisuke Matsuzaka AJ Burnett Kenshin Kawakami Burnett could slot in at #2 and move Lester down to #4. Bullpen Jonathan Papelbon Justin Masterson Manny Delcarmen Ramon Ramirez Hideki Okajima Boston would have two bullpen slots still to fill. It's unlikely, but possible Daniel Bard could win a spot in spring training, but its more likely he would be someone added mid season.

Coco Traded

The Red Sox have made their first move of the offseason. The Sox send Coco Crisp to Kansas City for reliever Ramon Ramirez.

Pedroia Wins MVP

At this time two years ago, many in Boston doubted the abilities of Dustin Pedroia, the one man who's opinion mattered stuck by him then and again in the early parts of the 2007 when it appeared Pedroia was in over his head. By the end of that season Pedroia was the American League Rookie of the Year and all doubt was gone from the minds of Sox fans from coast-to-coast. If somewhere there was a doubter remaining, there no longer is. Today Dustin Pedroia joined an elite class of Red Sox player to have won an American League Most Valuable Player award when he won a rather easy battle against Justin Morneau, Kevin Youkilis and Joe Mauer. Pedroia was named first on 16 of the 28 ballots, and amazingly one voter felt Pedroia wasn't among the 10 most valuable players of 2008. Pedroia becomes only the third player to win ROY and MVP in back-to-back seasons, though others have won both in the same season. The second baseman in just his second full season has already collected a great deal of awards. 2007 American League Rookie of the Year 2007 World Series Champion 2008 American League MVP 2008 American League Silver Slugger Award 2008 American League Gold Glove 2008 American League All-Star Starter

Red Sox Will Be Busy This Month

Theo Epstein and the Boston Red Sox should be quite busy this month as they have several targets on their radar. Kevin Davidoff of Newsday reports that the Red Sox will aggressively pursue Mark Teixeira during the offseason. Boston also seems set to make a run at a trade with Texas for catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Boston would likely have to give up two of their top pitching prospects in a deal for Salty. Boston also has some Japanese pitchers to look at. The consensus is that Junichi Tazawa will end up with Boston, he was passed over by every team in Japan and is free to sign with anyone he wants. Theres also Japanese veteran Kenshin Kawakami who is a free agent and has expressed a desire to play for Boston, signing him could add depth to the rotation, especially if Boston has to trade Justin Masterson and Clay Buchholz to get Salty. Kawakami could slide into the 5th spot in the rotation with Michael Bowden sitting at AAA as the top insurance policy incase of injury in the rotation. If Boston did trade Masterson in a deal for Salty that would give Daniel Bard an opportunity to win a bullpen spot in spring training. The question would be what to do with Tazawa if he signed. At just 22-years-old there would be no hurry to get him to Boston and he would likely start out at AA Portland, though if Boston was concerned about the early season weather, he could start out at the new A-Advanced team down in Salem, Virginia before moving to Portland in May.