MLB Preview: Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox were the class of Major League Baseball for much of the 2007 season, and aside from their late season slide in September were able to coast through the AL East. The Red Sox were able to win the World Series despite having down years for Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz, who have been the heart of the lineup for the better part of the past 5 seasons.

Despite getting poor performances from their two sluggers the team got an unexpected lift from 3B Mike Lowell. Lowell surprised everyone by batting 320 and driving in over 120 runs for the Red Sox. It is unlikely Lowell will be able to repeat that performance but after signing a multi year contract, Lowell will be expected to produce similiar numbers for the Red Sox. Despite his age Lowell should be able to contribute nicely for the Red Sox.

Although Lowell helped the lineup, the real reason for the Red Sox success in 2007 was their pitching rotation. Josh Beckett lived up to his hype and his contract by winning 20 games for the Red Sox and lowering his ERA to 3.01. The Sox also received some help from Dice K in 2007, although he didn't do as well as some experts thought, he still was a consistent cog in the Red Sox rotation. Curt Schilling also provided some stability for the Red Sox by winning 12 games, and the team also received a shot in the arm by youngsters Jon Lester, and Clay Buchholz during the latter part of the 2007 season.

Now it's time to answer 3 questions about the Red Sox going into the 2008 season.

(1) Will the Curt Schilling injury actually help the Red Sox chances in 2008?

It's hard to say an injury to a potential Hall of Fame pitcher will help any team, but if it could help one team it would be the Boston Red Sox. Entering Spring Training the team had 5 rotation spots for 6 quality arms. It was expected that Clay Buchholz or Jon Lester would be the odd man out for the last spot. Although both pitchers have only potential to rely on, they each have a lot of it. Buchholz demonstrated his potential by throwing a no hitter last September, meanwhile Lester pitched the World Series clinching game 4 last season.

Despite the potential each pitcher has, the injury will still leave a hole in the Red Sox, Schilling has been an innings eater for much of his career. The Red Sox would be best served to keep Buchholz innings down this year as he's still at an age where most pitchers are succeptible to serious arm injuries. With the injury to Schilling, Buchholz may be asked to pitch upward of 200 innings this year, which would be a big jump for him. The Red Sox other option would be to use Buchholz until Schilling comes back, and then give him some rest during August. Either scenario would not be ideal for the Red Sox, but nontheless it's still a good problem to have.

(2) What will the Red Sox do with Coco Crisp?

The Red Sox also have another good problem to have in that they have two outstanding Centerfielders, and only one position to play them. The Sox will more than likely deal Crisp at some point before opening day. Crisp is still in the prime of his career, and despite his weak offensive output, he is arguably the best defensive outfielder in the game which more than makes up for his disappointing stint at the plate in Boston.

Jacoby Ellsbury was shot out a cannon last year and never looked back as he was the main story of the Red Sox during the final months of the regular season and post season. It's important to keep his season in perspective however. Ellsbury barely received 100 plate appearances last season, and although he hit 353 during that time, Sox fans can't expect him to do that over a full season. Ellsbury still should be able to do an adequate job of replacing Crisp in CF, thanks in large part to his speed.

(3) Will the Red Sox lineup return to the pace it set in 2004?

The days where the Red Sox would outslug the Yankees 12-10 may be coming to an end, in fact the days where they were outslugged by the Yankees 12-10 may be over.

For the first time in years the strength of the Red Sox was not their lineup as four of their regulars may have showed early signs of their age. JD Drew, David Ortiz, Julio Lugo, and Manny Ramirez all saw significiant declines in their numbers. No one can for sure if none of them will rebound, but given each of their ages, it is safe to say that all four will not return to their glory pasts. Luckily for the Red Sox they have enough depth in their lineup, and in their farm club that they can make adjustments if Lugo, and/or Drew get off to slow starts this year. Despite drop offs last year Ortiz and Ramirez remain two of the better offensive forces in the Majors.

The Red Sox go into 2008 as the front runners for another World Series title, and if the starting rotation stays healthy there is no reason to think why they can't topple the Yankees again in the Al East. The Red Sox have many quality young arms that they can plug into the bullpen or rotation if there are any injuries suffered during the long grind.