2009 Offseason: Arbitration offers, Traber signed

Yesterday was the deadline for teams to offer salary arbitration to their impending free agents. This is important because if the player accepts, the team must go through the arbitration process to hammer out a one-year deal with the player. If he refuses, it means that if/when he signs with another team, the Red Sox will get compensated with draft picks if they are Type A or Type B status.

2008 Offseason: GM Meeting update

The first round of GM meetings is well underway at a fancy resort in Dana Point, CA. Here are some news items:

• Theo Epstein has confirmed that he has signed a new deal with the Red Sox as GM, but no details are available. He also says that on his to do list is Jason Varitek and improving the pitching staff.
• WEEI is reporting that the Red Sox will not attempt to re-sign Mike Timlin, though it is looking like he does want to give it another go in 2009. We’ll see who he ends up with.
• It is rumored that the Red Sox have offered Coco Crisp in a deal for San Diego’s disgruntled shortstop, Khalil Greene. As far as I can tell, the Pads don’t have anyone waiting in the wings beyond Luis Rodriguez; could this be part of a larger swap including Julio Lugo? Of course, GM Kevin Towers could always sign a free agent, though that crop is kind of thin. More on this potential deal in a later post; personally, I think the shortstop to target in a trade is the Brewers’ J.J. Hardy, but then we don’t match up as well with them.

2008 Offseason: Is it broke?

The Red Sox are positioned to field a highly competitive team for at least the next few seasons, with their veterans locked into various short-term contracts and young talent continuing to come in from their excellent farm system. GM Theo Epstein has already come out and said that the Sox will be “selective shoppers” this offseason.

2008 Projections roundup

At the beginning of the year, I said a lot of things. But how right (or wrong) was I?

2008 ALCS: Second-guessing the second-guessers

Terry Francona is getting a lot of criticism for some of his moves in the 9-8 extra inning loss at Tropicana Field last game. All of Red Sox Nation would have been ecstatic if the Sox had pulled that one out and all but locked up the series, but I don’t think it was poor managing that cost us the game.

2008 ALCS: Timlin added to the bullpen

It was a short ride for Gil Velazquez. The Red Sox announced today that they have added Mike Timlin to the postseason roster, making it 11 pitchers and 14 position players:

Catchers (3): Jason Varitek, Kevin Cash, David Ross

Infielders (5): Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia, Jed Lowrie, Mark Kotsay, Alex Cora

Outfielders (4): J.D. Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jason Bay, Coco Crisp

Starters (4): Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Tim Wakefield

Relievers (7): Jonathan Papelbon, Hideki Okajima, Justin Masterson, Manny Delcarmen, Javier Lopez, Mike Timlin, Paul Byrd

Roster Update: Timlin, Crisp back

Mike Timlin was activated today, and says he’s healthy and ready to go. With his return, Chris Smith was shipped back to Pawtucket.

2008 Mid-season report

At 49-32, the Boston Red Sox hold a 1-game lead over Tampa Bay in the AL East. Their .605 winning percentage is second in the AL only to the Los Angeles Angels (.608), but we have a much better run differential of +70, suggesting that they are (once again) playing over their heads a little bit and are an overrated team. That being said, the running Angels do seem pretty consistently to outperform their Pythagorean projections. So 81 games in, your Boston Red Sox are one of, if not the best, the top teams in the AL and a clear favorite to make the playoffs once again.

Timlin to the DL for Dice-K, Papi progressing

Mike Timlin has been placed on the 15-day DL with left knee tendinitis. According to Francona, he’s been playing through it for some time now. Boston will retain the services of 27-year old reliever Chris Smith for the time being. If Timlin can’t get fully healthy, they will most likely turn to Craig Hansen or Justin Masterson to fill Timlin’s role in the bullpen.

38-25: Sox reclaim 1st with sweep of the Rays

Tampa has become a pretty solid team, but I still think it’s clear who the best team in the AL East is. The Red Sox completed another three-game sweep of the Rays at Fenway, running their winning streak at home to 13 games and retaking the lead in the division.