MVP Has It's Privileges

I come back from lunch, and find out that ESPN is reporting that the Boston Red Sox and Dustin Pedroia have come to an agreement on 6 year (through 2014), $40.5 million contract with an option for 2015.

Usually, you here sniffs of a deal like this before it happens. I listen to WEEI sports radio all of the time, and there was no mention of the possibility of this type of deal happening, so it was quite a nice surprise to read this.

This is a nice deal for both sides. Pedroia made about $500,000 last year. He will now average $6.75 million over the 6 years, but not sure how the individual years breakdown. It ends up being quite a raise for a deserving player like Pedroia. For the Red Sox, it eliminates the arbitration years and 2 (3 is the option is exercised) of Pedroia's free agent years, which will end up saving the Red Sox money in the long-term.

Congratulations to both Dustin and the Red Sox, as it is great to be able to watch Pedroia play and knowing we will be able to for at least 6 more years is nice.

Congrats Dustin

Congrats to Dustin Pedroia. He was named the 2008 AL MVP. The first Red Sox player to win the award since Mo Vaughn back in 1995. Kevin Youkillis finshed 3rd. The 1st pair of Red Sox players to finish in the Top 3 in MVP since Roger Clemens won and Jim Rice finished 3rd back in 1986.

Free Agent Frenzy?

Now that players who filed for Free Agency are able to sign with any team, the transactions are flying fast and furious. (Note the sarcasm dripping from that sentence.) The action has been slower than anticipated, with the biggest news of the Yankees desperate attempt to make sure they sign Sabathia. Supposedly they have offered $140 million over 6 years and if that is only their initial offer, one has to wonder how high they will go. So far, the only free agent to change uniforms is Jeremy Affeldt. He will not be returning to Cincinnati, instead choosing to sign with the San Francisco Giants.


In Red Sox news, several Sox players and coaches are awaiting to hear some results. Bench coach Brad Mills and 3rd Base coach DeMarlo Hale both interviewed for the Seattle Mariners manager position. The Mariners are supposed to announce their selection today. Although, rumor has it that the Mariners will select Oakland A's bench coach Don Wakamatsu. Good luck to Mills and Hale.




Meanwhile, Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis are 2 of the top candidates for AL MVP. We will find out the winner around 2pm today. Even though I think Youk is more deserving, my guess is that Pedroia will be named AL MVP. Go Red Sox!

Steve had a nice post over at his The Boston Red Sox Blog about a Julio Lugo - Dontrelle Willis trade that may be in the works. I'd like that.

Finally, if you have never checked out this blog: U.S.S. Mariner, it is one of the best blogs around. Anyway, one of the creators of that blog is trying to win a college scholarship for bloggers. Here is his post about it. So, let's support our fellow baseball blogger, and help him win. Vote for David Cameron!! He was winning for a while, but is now about 200 votes behind.

Good News On Tek....

He's a Type "A" Personality.

The Sox and Tek haven't come to an agreement on a contract. Who knows if they even will? However, the MLB Player Rankings have been published by the Elias Sports Bureau and Varitek has been rated as a type "A" player. This is good news, because a type "A" free agent will get their former team a supplemental round pick between the first and second rounds and a compensatory pick from the signing team.

Now, the Sox will only get these 2 draft picks if:

1) They offer Varitek salary arbitration and he declines it.
2) If Varitek signs with another team before the deadline for teams to offer salary arbitration to their free agents.

This rating makes it a virtual no-brainer that Varitek will be offered arbitration. If Varitek accepts arbitration, it means that Varitek will be a Red Sox in 2009 at the least. That basically means that the Sox and Tek have agreed to a 1 year contract and if the two sides can't agree on a salary, it will be decided by an arbitrator.

However, if he rejects arbitration, he can still sign with the Red Sox. However, they will have to come to an agreement based on the terms negotiated by the team and Tek's agent, Scott Boras. Boras has come out to say that the starting point of negotiations for Tek is a Jorge Posada's recent 4 yr, 50 something million deal. If any other team signs Tek, the Sox will get 2 draft picks, as stated above.

So the good news translates to: Red Sox will either get something for Varitek (2 draft picks) or have a chance to get him for only a 1 year deal via arbitration process. Both are good results for the Red Sox. As there is no way the Sox are going to give him a contract similar to Posada, especially when Tek would be 41 years old at the end of the deal.

Since Tek has already filed for free agency, here is the likely scenario that will happen:

1) On Nov 14, he is eligible to sign with any team in MLB (if he does, the Sox receive 2 draft picks.)
2) Red Sox will offer him salary arbitration. They have until December 1, 2008 to do so.
3) Varitek will reject salary arbitration. Tek will have until December 7, 2008 to do so.
4) Tek will sign a contract with some team other than the Red Sox, and the Sox will get 2 draft picks.

A lot of this will depend on how Boras and Tek feel the about the offers they get from other teams, if any. If Varitek decides to accept arbitration, we will know that there was not much interest from other teams in him OR he REALLY wants to stay with the Red Sox. The good thing about arbitration for Varitek, is if he does file, the worse his contract will be for is the same 10 million he was making, as the chances of him getting a larger salary in an arbitration case would seem to be not too good, especially considering his putrid offensive production this season.


A quick congratulations to Dustin Pedroia who is going to be named the winner of the AL Gold Glove Award for 2nd Basemen. It could be just the first award he may receive this off-season, as there is a chance he could win a Silver Slugger and a Bronze....errr I mean MVP award.

WOW! CRAZY! UNBELIEVABLE!

Let’s recap my evening last night.

I get my son into bed and back downstairs ready to watch the game at about 8:40 or 8:45. I turn on the TV, flip over to TBS and it is the top of the 2nd and the Rays already have a 2-0 lead. Christ! I sit down at the PC and head to ESPN.com to see how it happened. Iawmura hit followed by another Upton HR. Damn!

The Sox get a couple on against Kazmir, but can’t deliver. Kazmir seems to be pitching okay. Certainly not the Kazmir of old, but definitely not the Kazmir of recent either. However, it’s just a matter of time before the Sox get to him…right?

Top of the 3rd, and Upton gets another hit. Can we get this guy out yet? Pena HR, next. Longoria HR next. Gawd! Well, when 1 team is hitting on all cylinders and out pitching the opponent, what are you going to do? You just have to give credit to the Rays. It’s not going to be the year this year.

I check with the wife, see if she wants to watch a show. We’re both tired (my wife works nights, and worked Wed night, so she’s way more tired than me. But you know how it is with kids, your ALWAYS tired.), but I pull up the DVR and see what we have waiting to watch. How about Survivor? Great! We watch the Fang tribe (which could be like the Rays of old, or the Pirates, always losing) lose both challenges and GC get voted out.

The wife’s ready for bed, so she curls up on the couch with a blanket and is off to dreamland as I turn the game back on. It is the Top of the 7th, and Delcarmen just walked the 2nd of two batters, so the Rays have 1st & 2nd with nobody out and Upton (him again?) coming up. Francona, in a desperation moves, brings in Papelbon. However, after a double steal, runs are at 2nd and 3rd. Papelbon works back to a full count on Upton, but gives up a wall ball double that extends the lead to 7-0. That just about sealed up the MVP for Upton.

I get back on the PC, as I’m thinking about going to bed, and type up a little blog to congratulate the Rays, as I’ll probably type up more in the morning.

However, even though I am tired, it is a bit early for me to go to bed. I am a night owl. I like to stay up late. Not sure why, but I’ve always been that way. Sometimes I regret it in the morning, but most times I’m fine.

So, I start surfing the net, checking out some other blogs. I went to a message board that I frequent. I played a few games, all as the game was still on.

Maddon decides not to bring Kamir out for the 7th, and goes with the flame thrower Grant Balfour. Lowrie crushes a ball to RF, that just misses a HR. However, that gets you to take notice. Then when Varitek and Kotsay fly out, oh well. However, Crisp lines a single, but too hard for Lowrie to score. Pedroia then singles, and the Sox are on the board. At least they won’t be shut out.

Now, up comes Papi. He crushes one deep into the night.

Fenway is rocking again, and now your thinking how HUGE those 2 runs the Rays just got in the top of the inning are. That HR could have made it 5-4, but Upton gave the Rays plenty of breathing room at 7-4. Maddon brings in Wheeler, and Youk flies out to end the inning.

Papelbon comes out and gets the Rays 1-2-3 in the 8th. Sweet!

Then, a 4 pitch lead-off walk to Bay, and you can just see how tightly Wheeler is squeezing that ball. Drew crushes a HR to right, and WOW! But, your still thinking how HUGE those 2 runs the Rays got in the top of 7th are. Walks will kill you. But, the Sox are now down a run. If you’re going to lose, if you’re going to get eliminated, this is the way to go out. Not some pathetic 7-0 loss. Wheeler gets Lowrie and Casey, and is almost out of the inning. But here is where some “weird” things happen:

- Kotsay’s line drive goes off the glove of B.J. Upton in CF )who has been tracking down EVERYTHING) for a double.

- Gabe Gross’ throw to home goes straight into the ground, allowing Kotsay to score on Crisp’s single to tie the game.

- Carlos Pena (who had ground into only 2 DPs all season) grouned into an inning ending DP with the leading run on 2nd.

- Evan Longoria, one of the best fielding 3B in the league, makes an error. That runner ends up scoring the winning run on J.D. Drew’s game winning hit.

There I am, dancing around the living room while my wife is fast asleep on the couch. Haha. But, who would have thought? Seriously!! Down 7-0 in the 7th?

We go back to Tampa. There is still a lot of work to be done, but ANYTHING can happen, as we just witnessed. There are lots of questions though:

Can Beckett be Beckett?

Is the offense back?

Should Francona swap Lester to game 6 (on normal rest) and Beckett for game 7 (on extra rest)?

Saturday can’t get here fast enough for me.

Whew!

What a night!

Go Sox!

*images from this post courtesey of AP/ESPN and CBS

Time to Panic?

It’s been a busy week, both for me and for baseball. Sorry for the absence of posts, however, I was helping the little woman prepare the house for a party in celebration of our daughter’s 1st Birthday / Baptism which took place on Sunday. The event was a success, while the Patriots game later that night was not a success.

Anyway, a lot has happened. The Phillies are on the verge of returning to the World Series for the first time since 1993 (oh Mitch Williams, your redemption may come) after taking a 3 – 1 series lead over the Dodgers. Game 3 of the series provide a weak attempt at recreating the Red Sox – Rays brawl from this summer. It was another humorous square dancing event, rather than a fight.

Meanwhile, our beloved Red Sox started out great, shutting out the Rays in Game 1 behind a great pitching performance by Dice-K. Red Sox fans had visions of a 3 game to zero lead in their head with Beckett and Lester to follow, but the Rays bats through in a monkey wrench. Tampa’s offense came alive with back-to-back games of 9 runs, bashing 7 HRs in the processes, reducing Beckett and Lester to the likes of John Wasdin and Matt Young (minus the walks).

Meanwhile (I feel like the narrator from the old Batman TV series with all of these meanwhiles), the Red Sox lumber have seem to take an extended slumber. Aside from Pedroia (.545), Youkilis (.429), and Bay (.455) not another batter is batting above .250. Ellsbury, Ortiz, and Varitek are all hitless in the series.

Should we be worrying? History says no. We all remember 2004, down 3 games to zero to the Yankees, don’t we? How about 2007 where we were down 3 games to 1 to the Indians and had to face their 2 best pitchers in games 6 and 7? So, being down 2 games to 1 while troublesome, is not worrisome on the whole.

Tonight, we have Tim Wakefield slated to start against Andy Sonnanstine in Game 4. In 3 starts this season versus TB, Wakefield is 0-2 with a 5.87 ERA. The Red Sox have lost all 3 of those games. Sonnanstine, in 2 starts, is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA. He has given up only 7 hits, 2 walks and 2 Unearned runs in 13 innings while Tampa has won both of those games. So, looking at those numbers, it doesn’t look good for tonight.

However, so far in these 3 games, nothing has really gone as anticipated. I mean, how many people predicted that Jacoby Ellsbury and David Ortiz would combine for zero hits and 1 RBI in the 3 games? Would you be surprised if Wakefield went 8 innings of 3 hit baseball? Well, maybe! There is still lots of baseball to be played, and lots of thing could be happen. That one thing that would truly be surprising, though, is if Ortiz finishes the series still without a hit.

Go Sox!

Young Guns

It is amazing the young talent we are seeing in this post-season. Evan Longoria hits home runs in his first 2 at-bats while going 3-3. Cole Hamels pitching 8 shut-out innings. Ellsbury doing it all in the field, at the plate, and on the base paths, just like last October. Lester going 7 strong innings. Ryan Braun putting the Brewers on his back to claim the Wild Card. Dustin Pedroia doing what he's been doing. These 6 guys are all 25 or under.

Then you have Alexi Ramirez, Prince Fielder, James Shields and more I am not thinking of. There just seem like a bunch of young players who are not only on the verge of being the games next superstars, but who are basking in the spotlight of October baseball.

It should make for a great October, no matter if you have a team in it or not.

Grades Are In

It's that time of year again. The final grades are in. The Red Sox beat writer from the Boston Herald, Michael Silverman, has published his 2008 Red Sox regular season Report Card. Who went to the Head of the Class? Who flunked out?

Not surprisingly, Silverman gave the top grade of A to: Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, John Lester, Terry Francona, and Theo Epstein. All 3 of those players had career years this season, and Pedroia and Youkilis are the top canditates for not just team MVP, but AL MVP. Lester has emerged as a potential ace, nicely picking up the slack from Josh Beckett's performance that was muddied due to injuries. Francona may be the best manager in Red Sox history. He's lead the Red Sox to the play-offs in 4 of his 5 seasons in Boston, winning it all in 2004 and 2007. I think his grade here stems from the Manny circus he had to manage through and around and how he was able to keep the team focused in the aftermath of that mess. Theo's grade seems to stem from the results from the Manny trade, along with the key additions of Paul Byrd and Mark Kotsay down the stretch. Let's take a look at the rest of the grades:

A- Grade
Jason Bay
Javier Lopez
Justin Masterson
Daisuke Matsuzaka
Jonathan Papelbon

B+ Grade
Sean Casey
Jacoby Ellsbury
Jed Lowrie
Manny Delcarmen
Hideki Okajima

B Grade
Coco Crisp
Mark Kotsay
Tim Wakefield

B- Grade
Kevin Cash
Mike Lowell
Josh Beckett
Paul Byrd

C+ Grade
Alex Cora
J.D. Drew
David Ortiz

C- Grade
Jason Varitek
David Aardsma

D+ Grade
Mike Timlin

D Grade
Julio Lugo

D- Grade
Clay Buchholz

F Grade
Bartolo Colon

For the most part, I think these are right on. Varitek's grade appears to be a bit high. He was terrible at the plate. However, most of his grade stems from his handling of pitchers. That is a thing that really can't be quantified and too me is a bit overrated. Varitek gets a lot of the credit with Lester's success and catching 4 no-hitters over his career, but when Buchholz didn't perform this season falls more on Buchholz than Varitek. I'm not saying Varitek takes any credit, just talking about how the sportwriters/"experts" give credit.

Finally, Silverman did take a cheap shot by putting Colon in here with an F-grade. Which he admits in his blurb:

"It's a good thing Colon appeared in the second half, even it was only for one start, since it gives us an excuse to rip his makeup. Any player who decides he is too big - we will pass on the obvious rip opportunity - to accept a different role (Colon was asked to pitch out of the bullpen) is a small-minded prima donna."

I don't really remember too much said about this at the time. In fact, I don't even remember reading or hearing about the team asking Colon to move to the bullpen and him declining. But, it wasn't a big deal at the time, and quite frankly I think, based on his performance, that it wouldn't have worked out with bringing him out of the bullpen.

I can't wait for Wednesday night. What a long too days with out any Red Sox baseball. Although, back-to-back win to move on baseball games is fun.

Go Sox!

Sweet & Sour

Sundays are great days to be a sports fan in New England. You get a dose of the Sox and the Patriots. Last Sunday was great, because you had the Sox at 1:35, and when they finished around 4:00pm it was almost time for kick-off between the Pats and Jets. You can't beat a doubleheader like that, especially when it's a sweep. We all know the difficulty of sweeping a twin bill.

This weekend, though, didn't go quite as planned. While the Sox help up their end of the bargian, and clinched a tie for the wild-card in the process, that Pats fell flat on their face.

Nobody, except for Chad Pennington's mother (seems we've been hearing a lot from QB's mothers lately, Hi Mrs. Young, Hi Mrs. Jackson), could have expected this. Luckily, I did not really get a chance to full watch this game, as I was preparing for my son's 4th birthday party. I got to take a detour and avoid seeing the wreckage. All I can really say is that this is going to be a long two weeks for the Patriots.

Last night was the final game at Yankee Stadium. As a baseball fan, I MUST visit the Stadium before they tear it down this winter. Unfortunately, I will never get to see a baseball game from a seat inside the stadium. However, with the history that has taken place there, I am going to do my best to take a tour of it. I'm actually glad the Yankees were able to win their final game, but how strange is it that Johnny Damon almost went down as the last player to hit a home run in the "House That Ruth Built"?

The last week is shaping up to be a fun one for MLB. With the Rays, Angels, and Red Sox all lined up for the playoffs, we get to watch the Twins-White Sox battle for the Central division starting Tuesday. Meanwhile, we have the Phillies-Mets battling in the East; the Dodgers-Diamondbacks battling in the West; and the Mets-Brewers-Astros fighting for the Wild Card. This is why I love baseball.

Also, we have Dustin Pedroia looking up at Joe Mauer in the race for the batting crown. Ever since appears on WEEI's The Big Show, Pedroia has been in such a slump. He must have chowed down some of the free food that is always in the studio, thus slowing down his swing. I think Big O was trying to morph Pedroia into the same shape of himself, as Big O was a bit jealous of Pedroia being taller than him. Anyway, Pedroia is at .324 while Mauer has taken over the lead with a .330 average. Pedrioa has also seen Ichiro catch him for league lead in hits, both have 204 coming into the final week.

Congrats to Jonathan Papelbon for becoming the 5th Red Sox closer to reach 40 saves in a season. He joined Jeff Reardon, Ugueth Urbina, Tom Gordon, and Derek Lowe. Quite an accomplishment.

Finally, I've noticed that Red Sox seem to have a unique starting OF now and again. I am not sure there has been another one like it, and not even sure how to research it. However, when the Sox acquired Mark Kotsay before the end of August, they were able to put out a starting OF where all 3 OFers last name end in the letter Y. Jason Bay, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Kotsay. I wonder if there has been anything similar with rarely used letters. I bet maybe it has been done with U. Oh well, just a random thought.

Final week of the season. GO SOX!

Where'd August Go?????

Wow! A month since my last post. Work and vacation can do that to you. To all my loyal readers (all zero of you, I guess), I apologize for that.

However, the Sox were busy in August. Aside from playing .667 (18-9) ball, they acquired Paul Byrd and Mark Kotsay in trades, while signing David Ross and Jason Lane to minor league deals to bolster their depth.

Despite their great August, they went from 3 games behind the Rays to 5 1/2 games behind as Tampa played an amazing .750 ball in August, winning 21 out of 28 games.

With one month left to play, the Sox will definately have their work cut out for them, to catch the Rays. A lot of "experts", are expecting the Rays to fold under the pennant race limelight. However, I do not think that will happen. The Rays have solid pitching (in both their starters and bullpen) along with a solid defense. Even if their offense does cool down, their all-round ability should be able to carry them through to the end.

The Sox and Rays are pretty much a lock for the playoffs, as I don't think the Twins or the White Sox will overtake Boston in the wildcard. That leaves just the Twins and White Sox to battle it out for the Central Division and last AL Playoff Berth.

How about Dustin Pedroia. What a month!!! .374 average, 1.060 OPS, 43 hits, 10 2Bs, 6 HRs, 20 RBIs, 5 SBs without being caught. AL Player of the Week, and likely Player of the Month. Clean up Hitter?? Who would of thunk it.

Pedroia on fire. David Ortiz is heating up. Coco Crisp is almost as hot as Pedroia. Beckett and Lowell back soon from the DL. Youkillis, Bay, Kotsay, Varitek all playing well. Going to be a wild September and October.

Go Sox!!!!