Red Sox Reality Check

Craig Hansen. Will the real Craig Hansen please stand up? The Colorado Rockies sought Hansen, the highly touted St. John's standout to be included in the proposed trade for Todd Helton. Hansen's supporters point to a ninety-five mile an hour fastball and 'sharp' slider that project him for success as a closer. And to be fair, he's shown flashes of brilliance amidst stretches of mediocrity. Maybe he's been the victim of seeing eye grounders a la Bob Stanley, but with infield porosity increasing with the Lugo for Gonzalez swap, more strikeouts and fewer groundouts might help. Or maybe it's just a psychological boost from the freshly married Theo Epstein, something to say, "YOU HAVE VALUE". I wouldn't bet that's it, but it wouldn't be the worst thing. Will Hansen and Delcarmen be able to beat out the competition (Tavarez, Timlin, Donnelly, Romero et al.) for innings or will it be the Pawtucket shuttle?

Not enough face time? Why do athletes believe that anybody wants to hear their opinions on issues of the day? It's really pretty simple, because seldom does it impact their bottom line. Yes, those defenders of the Constitution want free speech, unless it interferes with their interpretation of their rights. And yes, athletes, the clergy, and even doctors can speak out about global warming, saving the whales, religion, politics, sex, and occasionally even baseball. Once in a while you see a bumper sticker adorned with an American flag saying God Bless America. I've always wondered whether they have similar ones saying 'Yahweh Bless Israel', 'Allah Bless Saudi Arabia', and so on...and of course what 'bless' means to each of the above. I also find it ironic that the two biggest athletic icons of their time, Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods, practically never comment on social issues...which gets me back to my first point, 'the bottom line'. If I sold...

Rockies owner Charlie Monfort comes off sounding like a third world dictator saying, "we won't deal Helton 'for nothing'. Let's look at the facts, in a trending world. Let's also realize that historically players have tended to peak at about age 27, and sometimes when they go downhill, they go downhill rapidly (e.g. Jim Rice). Player A has 22 win shares in 2006, and actually plays for the Red Sox. Only 2.9 of the win shares came from fielding. ______________________________________________ Player B (Helton) has a steadily declining number of win shares, 23 last year and a megamillion dollar contract. Who the $%&#%& do you think you're talking about here, Babe Ruth? _____________________________________________ Helton has been an on-base machine, formerly with a lot of power, but something seems to have affected him, be it age or otherwise, as his production has fallen off dramatically. Helton scored 94 runs, had 15 homers, and 81 RBI last year in th...

Spring training is just around the corner, although the weather doesn't feel like it. Somehow, I'm getting that Gene Hackman moment in Hoosiers when he announces " this is your team ". Did anyone really doubt that J.D. Drew would be on the Red Sox roster come opening day? Note that being on the roster and in the lineup aren't the same for Drew. CF Crisp 1B Youkilis DH Ortiz LF Ramirez RF Drew 3B Lowell C Varitek SS Lugo 2B Pedroia That doesn't look bad at all, presuming that a healthy Crisp is a .300 hitter, that Lugo returns to AL form, and that Pedroia morphs into something unlike Pedroia 2006. Maybe Lugo has a career year, with buddy David Ortiz and 81 games at Fenway to bring more life into his stick. If the rotation looks something like Schilling, Matsuzaka, Beckett, Papelbon, and Wakefield that's pretty good, too. The downside to the upside? Every team has question marks, and the Sox pitching question marks revolve around age (Schilling and Wakefiel...

Hard to get overly enthusiastic about the boys of summer during AFC Championship Week, but nonetheless, what's the early line on roster speculation? C (2) Varitek, Mirabelli 1F (5) Lowell, Lugo, Cora, Pedroia, Youkilis DH (1) Ortiz OF (5) Ramirez, Cora, Pena, Drew, Hinske SP (6) Schilling, Beckett, Matsuzaka, Papelbon, Wakefield, Tavarez - (somebody always gets hurt, dead arm, or something) RP (6) Pineiro, Timlin, Donnelly, Romero, Delcarmen, Okajima Bubble: Hansen, Breslow, Snyder (4 inning Kyle), Hansack, Lester Surprises? Timlin will lose it (completely) one of these years, Lester (good argument to start the season in AAA if healthy). Hard to see Okajima not sticking as sidekick. Yes, Wily Mo could be trade bait (along with either of the corners for more power) or Coco could go... The paper said that the Schillings plan to live here after he retires? Maybe once you get the craziness into your system, then you can't leave. Or maybe his family really enjoys it here, or the cau...