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Hmm, I didn’t see this one coming. Not at all. The Red Sox today traded LHPs Hunter Jones and Jose Alvarez for the rights to 25-year old OF Jeremy Hermida, who is entering his second year of salary arbitration. The 6-2, 222 Hermida has been slightly above average playing for the Marlins in the NL. As far as we can tell, he is potentially the fourth outfielder for this club in 2010; he may also be a trade chip as part of another deal. I think the latter may make more sense, because Hermida is pretty wretched with the leather and the Sox have more need for a right-handed OF reserve to spell J.D. Drew. So let’s take a look at what we got:
The Red Sox plan to meet with Josh Beckett to discuss his future with Boston. This is a contract year, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him locked up for a 2-3 more seasons.
Despite interviewing with the San Diego Padres and their new GM Jed Hoyer, director of player development Mike Hazen has decided to stay with Boston. That’s despite the fact that Hazen was a player in the Padres’ system at one time; that’s an encouragement.
Dustin Richardson has been selected to the AFL All-Star team. After his star dimmed a bit over the last year or so, the lefty looked impressive with the Sox this year and is throwing harder than ever. Casey Kelly and Jose Iglesias are splitting time at shortstop, and Kelly hopes to decide soon – offense or defense?
Brad Mills has been tapped as the new manager of the Houston Astros, and Terry Francona is happy for his good friend. Word is that the Sox may promote from within, and the rumors are swirling around current Pawtucket manager Ron Johnson.
The Red Sox met with Aroldis Chapman this week, but it’s not clear how serious the talks were; he’s met with at least nine other teams, which to me spells bidding war. Meanwhile, Yusei Kikuchi will play for the Seibu Lions in the Nippon League next year.
Tim Wakefield had successful back surgery yesterday, and is expected to make a full recovery in time for Spring Training 2010. I hope this means he can come back for an encore. Outfield prospect Zach Daeges also had surgery to remove an extra bone in his ankle, which sidelined him for the 2009 season. His prognosis is also good going forward.
Just a few items to catch you up on.
You know about Kevin Youkilis and Victor Martinez, but Jonathan Papelbon also tweaked his back the other day, after losing his footing on a warmup pitch.
Tim Wakefield is not really improving, but he wants to give it another shot. He’s slated to start Monday in Kansas City against the Royals. Personally I don’t want to see him get hurt, but with the wild card race shaking out, if he can give us some innings, it can’t hurt, right? More rest for our playoff rotation.
Congratulations to David Ortiz, who recently set the record for most career HR by a DH with 312.
As the minor leagues wrap up their seasons, there’s a lot of activity to report on. Adam Kilgore gives his nominations for best performances at each position. Congratulations to the Lowell Spinners, who won the Stedler Division title this year.
Things are going swimmingly for the Red Sox so far in September. They are winning and players are returning to health – sort of. The Sox recalled Josh Reddick last week, and they added Dusty Brown and Jed Lowrie this week to deepen the bench and hopefully get people healthy.
Look up Daisuke Matsuzaka’s latest rehab start for the Portland Sea Dogs, and you’ll see a very ugly line there: 2IP, 5 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks with 1 HR. The silver lining is that all the damage came in the first inning, and he zipped through the second inning on nine pitches with good control while throwing close to 100%. Let’s hope he can show some more of that up here with the Sox.
