With the hectic offseason of Major League Baseball well underway, the Boston Red Sox will soon be solidifying their front office and managerial ranks while looking towards free agency to patch holes in the line-up. Many watched the historic collapse of the 2011 season and called for the changing of the guard in leadership and a hope for a rather significant free agency presence and active trading block.
While there is little doubt that the poor September at Fenway Park has left many Boston-faithful dismayed, it is not a time to overhaul a team that was dominant, albeit inconsistently, for a majority of the season. Rather, the Red Sox, and new General Manager Ben Cherington, should not be making large, headline grabbing moves that will leverage future season’s and leave the organization financially unable, or unwilling, to retain existing talent in the year’s to come, most notably Jacoby Ellsbury.
The demand for quality starters is great, and the Red Sox organization is possibly without an explosive new arm for 2012, as Anthony Ranaudo should take at least one more year to be ready for the Fenway mound. Felix Doubrount, Kyle Weiland, and Andrew Miller all proved to be unable to keep the Red Sox in games, and relief pitcher Alfredo Aceves, now being tapped as a member of the rotation, will sure to struggle to maintain the full season-long workload.
The first option in every team’s mind is the possible free agent signing of Rangers’ starting pitcher, C.J. Wilson. The best starting pitcher on the market, Wilson would help steady the shaky, often miserable rotation for the Red Sox. But, with Wilson seeking 5-6 years at between $16-20 million per year, the price tag for the 30 year-old, who has only two years experience as a starter, would be too high, elevated by the dearth of comparable talent on the market and a high demand for starters.
Taking a gamble on Mark Buehrle or a shorter-term solution of the aging Roy Oswalt is more appealing than spending the inflated price for Wilson over the long haul. The same can be said for Right Field. With J.D. Drew gone, a short term fix of Michael Cuddyer or a gamble of the injury-prone Grady Sizemore, at the right price, could bridge a gap for the minor league talent of Ryan Kalish to prove himself healthy or either Jeremy Hazelbaker or Bryce Brentz maturing. There are also fans of Josh Reddick, who showed bits of greatness but ultimately failed to be as clutch a member of the lineup as some believe. Also, replacing Jonathan Papelbon with Josh Bard as closer is a risk, but so is laying down big money for aging Ryan Madson or Heath Bell.
Hopefully the offseason Winter Meetings will bring long-term smiles to the face of Red Sox Nation, not in high-profile press conferences, but small moves that will pay off financially and on the field. Trades that might include Reddick, Jose Iglesias, Mike Aviles, Jed Lowrie, Ryan Lavarnway, Will Middlebrooks in order to get at least one pitching prospect that could impact 2012, i.e. Randall Delgado, Taijuan Walker, Eric Surkamp, James Paxton, Jarrod Parker, or many others.
The core lineup exists for the Red Sox, despite the struggles of last season. While the optimism of fan’s is not as high as it was at the start of 2011, one must realize that the talent and potential is still there. I look forward to another season of spectacular plays, but weary of the chance it might end in bitter heartache once more.
What are your thoughts, do you disagree with this author? Should the Red Sox make a big splash this offseason? What moves would you be making for the 2012 team and beyond?