Monday, December 13, 2004
Hot Stove Entry 1
This morning I woke up, poured some leftover coffee, and realized there was a bug in it. I won’t tell you what I did next, only to say that I am nicely caffeinated right now.
More importantly we are smack in the middle of the hot stove season of baseball, probably the fourth most exciting month of the baseball season after October, September, and April. Since this blog pretends to be masquerade itself as baseball-related, I am going to comment on the Red Sox moves, both those that have happened and those that are rumored.
Actual Moves
David Wells: 2 years 8 million, with incentives bringing the value of the contract up to 18 mil if he makes 31 starts. 41 years old with chronic back problems. Not only that, Wells’ lifetime Fenway stats are atrocious, few pitchers suffer more against the Wall than Wells. But at least he is good in the clubhouse. As far as the money goes, I guess Theo’s thinking is that if Wells is good enough to start 31 games, he’ll be worth the money, I'm far from convinced Given the fact that I also hate him, the Wells move gets a D+
Matt Mantei: Ex flamethrower recovering from arm surgery. We have the cash, and you can always use more arms in the bullpen. B
Rumored Moves:
Edgar Renteria: ~4 years 40 million. As much as I would enjoy going to Fenway and singing the Edgar Renteria song, I question the logic of overpaying for a player who mans the same position as the top prospect in our organization. Since we cannot spend as much money on players and the Yankees, it’s essential that the Red Sox develop some players from within that can contribute on the cheap. Hanley Ramirez is by all accounts our best chance for this. Renteria is a good player, but his offensive output dropped last year and he has been around for a while. I would rather keep O-Cab for cheaper if they are looking long term. They should have given Nomar a one year deal…Ha!
Manny to the Mets for Cliff Floyd and Kaz Matsui- Obviously the Red Sox still think Manny is overpaid, and I guess he is. This deal stinks however, even if the Sox use the money on a replacement such as Magglio. Some of the moves the Sox have made or have considered making this offseason remind me of someone who has won a few grand playing blackjack, then walks to the roulette table and starts throwing 5 dollar chips on number at the roulette table, figuring he is invincible. A few hundred dollars later, he is still up, but not as much as he used to be.
Pedro to the Mets: Really this is out of the Red Sox hands, as the Mets have gone four years while the Red Sox only want to go three. Fair enough. Of course if the Red Sox had gone three in their original offer, Pedro probably would have taken it. Crappy negotiating in my opinion. If Pedro goes, who do the Sox expect to replace him? Wells? Hudson (who they are rumored to be after.) I can’t see Oakland trading Hudson to one of the four teams they can expect to be competing with for the playoffs.
Varitek and Lowe also remain unsigned, with conventional wisdom that Lowe is gone and Varitek will stay. I’ll miss D-Lowe for sure, but a 5.42 ERA is what it is, even if he did come up big in the playoffs. Lowe’s 2003 season wasn’t exactly stellar either. As for Varitek, if the Red Sox lose Pedro, they’ll almost certainly have to sign Tek, especially since there are no other catchers on the market. Of course, Red Sox Nation is so high off their world championship that they’ll gladly fork over 75 dollars a seat to watch the PawSox play. The fans will not hold this front office accountable, but I will damn it. Stop getting rid of my favorite players and replacing them with ex-Yankees!
More importantly we are smack in the middle of the hot stove season of baseball, probably the fourth most exciting month of the baseball season after October, September, and April. Since this blog pretends to be masquerade itself as baseball-related, I am going to comment on the Red Sox moves, both those that have happened and those that are rumored.
Actual Moves
David Wells: 2 years 8 million, with incentives bringing the value of the contract up to 18 mil if he makes 31 starts. 41 years old with chronic back problems. Not only that, Wells’ lifetime Fenway stats are atrocious, few pitchers suffer more against the Wall than Wells. But at least he is good in the clubhouse. As far as the money goes, I guess Theo’s thinking is that if Wells is good enough to start 31 games, he’ll be worth the money, I'm far from convinced Given the fact that I also hate him, the Wells move gets a D+
Matt Mantei: Ex flamethrower recovering from arm surgery. We have the cash, and you can always use more arms in the bullpen. B
Rumored Moves:
Edgar Renteria: ~4 years 40 million. As much as I would enjoy going to Fenway and singing the Edgar Renteria song, I question the logic of overpaying for a player who mans the same position as the top prospect in our organization. Since we cannot spend as much money on players and the Yankees, it’s essential that the Red Sox develop some players from within that can contribute on the cheap. Hanley Ramirez is by all accounts our best chance for this. Renteria is a good player, but his offensive output dropped last year and he has been around for a while. I would rather keep O-Cab for cheaper if they are looking long term. They should have given Nomar a one year deal…Ha!
Manny to the Mets for Cliff Floyd and Kaz Matsui- Obviously the Red Sox still think Manny is overpaid, and I guess he is. This deal stinks however, even if the Sox use the money on a replacement such as Magglio. Some of the moves the Sox have made or have considered making this offseason remind me of someone who has won a few grand playing blackjack, then walks to the roulette table and starts throwing 5 dollar chips on number at the roulette table, figuring he is invincible. A few hundred dollars later, he is still up, but not as much as he used to be.
Pedro to the Mets: Really this is out of the Red Sox hands, as the Mets have gone four years while the Red Sox only want to go three. Fair enough. Of course if the Red Sox had gone three in their original offer, Pedro probably would have taken it. Crappy negotiating in my opinion. If Pedro goes, who do the Sox expect to replace him? Wells? Hudson (who they are rumored to be after.) I can’t see Oakland trading Hudson to one of the four teams they can expect to be competing with for the playoffs.
Varitek and Lowe also remain unsigned, with conventional wisdom that Lowe is gone and Varitek will stay. I’ll miss D-Lowe for sure, but a 5.42 ERA is what it is, even if he did come up big in the playoffs. Lowe’s 2003 season wasn’t exactly stellar either. As for Varitek, if the Red Sox lose Pedro, they’ll almost certainly have to sign Tek, especially since there are no other catchers on the market. Of course, Red Sox Nation is so high off their world championship that they’ll gladly fork over 75 dollars a seat to watch the PawSox play. The fans will not hold this front office accountable, but I will damn it. Stop getting rid of my favorite players and replacing them with ex-Yankees!
# posted by Marmaniac @ 5:02 PM 
