Countdown to Opening Night

The Red Sox did a bunch on the way to Opening Night showdown with the Bombers, adding reserve infielder Kevin Frandsen and "Sporty Spice" Scott Schoeneweis. Frandsen, looking at the data, looks to be the classic "good field, no-hit" infielder. Schoeneweis, who has an awful strikeout to walk ratio that the Sox seem to prize when good, and a similarity score to Mike Kekich, the infamous wife swapping pitcher. On the seismic scale, this would probably rate just above a hiccup.

The Red Sox announced their opening rotation, with the Beckett, Lester, Lackey troika, to be follow by the venerable Wakefield, then back to Beckett and then Buchholz. I presume the Yankees will counter early with Sabathia, Burnett, and Pettitte.

The Frandsen acquisition may not bode well for Tug Hulett, although who can say?

How much do spring stats mean? Not a lot for Brian Shouse. The bullpen battle continues to shape up, with the locks:

• Papelbon
• Okajima
• Bard
• Ramirez

the likely:

• Delcarmen

and the bubble:

• Joe Nelson
• Scott Atchison
• Embree
• Schoeneweis
• Bonser (DL?)

I'll probably be doing a little extra research this weekend for a Preseason Special that my fellow coach and pal Ralph Labella and I will be doing on local cable TV. So keep your Sox on...