2012 What do the Red Sox need?

[Mudge]

The Yankee thread on this topic is hopping, and now that runningshoes is on board (and Mickey Mental is back with his mental thoughts), let's take a look at the Red Sox and what they need:

GENERAL MANAGER: Ben Cherington -- set

MANAGER: Bobby Valentine -- set

CATCHER: Jarod Saltalamacchia & Kelly Shoppach -- set
FIRST BASE: Adrian Gonzalez -- set
SECOND BASE: Dustin Pedroia -- set
THIRD BASE: Kevin Youkilis -- set
SHORTSTOP: Marco Scutaro -- questionable
INFIELD: Nick Punto & Mike Aviles -- set (although I'm unclear as to whether Aviles is signed)

LEFT FIELD: Carl Crawford -- set
CENTER FIELD: Jacoby Ellsbury -- set
RIGHT FIELD: Josh Reddick -- questionable
OUTFIELD: Darnell McDonald & Ryan Kalish -- questionable

DH: David Ortiz -- set.

ROTATION
1. John Lester -- set
2. Josh Beckett -- set
3. Clay Buchholz -- questionable
4. Daisuke Matsuzaka -- questionable
5. Alfredo Aceves -- questionable
6. Daniel Bard -- questionable

BULLPEN
Daniel Bard -- questionable
Mark Melancon -- set
Matt Albers -- questionable
Alfredo Aceves -- questionable
Michael Bowden -- questionable
Franklin Morales -- questionable
Bobby Jenks --questionable
Felox Doubront -- questionable
Scott Atchison -- questionable

[RickD]

I agree with this. The Red Sox appear to have many more holes in the rotation and bullpen than anywhere else.

[Mickey Mental]

To begin with, I would't mind seeing them sign Ryan Madson as their closer.

[WilsonC]

I could see Beltran as a possible option for them if they're not confident in Reddick or Kalish as an everyday player - it's really the only position player where there's a clearly available upgrade. The lineup as is led the league in scoring despite a down year from Crawford and nothing from Drew though, so the lineup's set as is.

The pitching's kind of like that of the Yankees in that there's a ton of question marks, but they have enough to be competitive with the offense they have. They could use more pitching, but barring a trade, aren't likely to find a long-term option this year, so I see them taking the patchwork approach in 2012 with an eye on the Free Agency market next year.

They won't need a lot of tweaking, though; they have a contending core as it is, and had some definite underachievers who should bounce back (most notably Crawford).

[astrosfanatic]

at the beginning of last year i would have laughed at the thought of Beckett being one of the "set" pieces of the Sox rotation. After 2011 though, i guess the joke is on me. He was amazing last year for the Red Sox, possibly their team MVP.

The bullpen needs help, but they are in pretty good shape. I think Mick was right about adding a guy like Madsen to come in and close games. add 1 good reliever at the end and everyone scoots one spot down the totem pole and the group as a whole becomes better. Melancon is a perfect 8th inning guy, and Jenks would be one of the best 7th inning guys out there...It's too bad they are talking about moving Bard to the rotation because he would be a great asset to an already weak bullpen.

As far as SP goes, they got 2 great pitchers at the top and then a bunch of question marks like you noted Mudge. A trade for Gio would be ideal, but i think it is unlikely. They really need to hit the trade market and try to find an innings eater who can come in and just keep them in ball games. Like WIlson said, with their offense it wont take an ace pitcher to come in and win 12 ball games for them. Jon Garland would be a cheap option if they want to go that route. OR, the y could sign a guy like Oswalt who only wants one year supposedly. He seems like a perfect fit. Jackson and Kuroda are 2 other solid options (although they would cost more and require more years on the contract i believe)

with 2 Wild Card teams, the Sox are at least guaranteed the playoffs this year, so it could be worse

[WilsonC]

Yeah, Oswalt would be a great fit. If the reports are accurate of him just wanting one year are accurate, then every team with thoughts of contention and without a full rotation should be inquiring on him. Even for a high cost, a one-year deal is low-risk, and the reward high if he's healthy.

[Mudge]

Oh, I forgot to add:

DH: David Ortiz -- set.

By the way, when I say set, I mean that it is clear that the player specified is set to start the year in that position and -- barring injury -- should also finish the year in that position.

A designation of questionable could either mean that it is unclear whether that player will start the year in that position, and if he does, whther he will finish the year in the same spot, again injuries notwithstanding.

Daniel Bard will play a part in the Red Sox 2012 campaign; it is just not clear at this point where. Same probably with Alfredo Aceves.

[astrosfanatic]

Is Salty going to be the primary with Shoppach being the back-up, or are they going to do a platoon deal??

[Mudge]

Is Salty going to be the primary with Shoppach being the back-up, or are they going to do a platoon deal??

I don't have any specific information that confirms this, but I'm fairly sure Saltalamacchia will be to primary catcher.

[Mickey Mental]

Jason Varitek in 2011:

Starts: 64
Red Sox winning pct. when JV started: .646
Red Sox winning pct. when JV didn't start: .490

Pitching staff's ERA when JV caught: 3.57
Pitching staff's ERA when JV wasn't catching: 4.65