Rob Bradford at WEEI.com says that the Sox have tendered a one-year offer to Jason Varitek that is not the kind of money agent Scott Boras had in mind. They certainly won’t take this deal, but I’m beginning to wonder if Tek has that many other options out there.
The Red Sox have thrown their hat in the ring with the Braves and Mariners, offering a $6M contract to 22-year old pitcher Junichi Tazawa. NPB Tracker says that Tazawa has already made up his mind to join the Red Sox, after being wooed by Craig Shipley for two years!
The rumors surrounding Mark Teixeira continue to grow. John Perotto at Baseball Prospectus says that he’s heard that Boston is prepared to outbid everyone for Big Tex, up to $200M. That would be shocking, making him the highest-paid player in Red Sox history. Perotto also says that the Sox are only mildly interested in A.J. Burnett.
This isn’t the first time that Jacoby Ellsbury has been compared with Johnny Damon. I think it’s pretty clear that he won’t have the power Damon had, so I wonder if his career won’t look more like Carl Crawford.
Awesome news on Tazawa.. I wonder how long he will be in Triple A.
The unofficial report is that he will start at Double-A. There are mixed reports about his stuff and ceiling, but in any case the Sox would not be paying too much, and could have a very good pitcher on their hands if he signs.
[...] Posts Breaking down the Red Sox lineup: Dustin PedroiaBreaking down the Red Sox lineup: David OrtizLinkage: First offer to Varitek, Sox getting serious about Tex?2009 Offseason: Sox inquired on MonteroTrade rumors: Tavarez, Aardsma, Lopez, LugoOn the Farm: 2008 [...]
Fire Brand doesn’t think Teixeira is the best fit for us either.
http://firebrandal.com/2008/11/24/why-red-sox-should-not-sign-mark-teixeira.html
Great player, wrong timing. Great point that Tex is not the only desirable free agent, just the most desirable this offseason. We should not shoot ourselves in the foot by being short-sighted.