RED SOX 2008 PREVIEW: DESIGNATED HITTER

Since coming to the Red Sox in 2003, David Ortiz has hit 208 homeruns, and has knocked in 642 runs. He's also hit 11 post-season homeruns, and knocked in 38 more RBI.

Despite battling a knee injury for most of the season, Ortiz still put up the kind of numbers we're used to seeing from him. He led the team (and was 3rd in the AL) in homeruns with 35. He was 2nd on the team (6th in the AL) in RBI with 117. He led the Sox (5th in the AL) in hitting with a .332 average.

In October, he somehow found a way to improve on his outstanding regular season performance. In 14 post-season games, he hit .370, with 3 HRs, 10 RBI, 6 doubles, 16 runs, 14 walks, an OBP of .517, and a slugging percentage of .696.

But he was still hurting. The experienced eye of a fan could just tell. He'd take a big cut, hit the ball hard, we'd expect it to leave the park, and it'd go off the wall, or fall on the warning track. There were just certain swings that lacked that last gasp of power to lift the ball over the wall.

In 2004, Ortiz had 91 extra-basehits. In 2005, he had 88 extra-basehits. In 2006, he had 85. In 2007, he had 88. That's a very consistent range for four seasons. But in '07, Papi set a career high in doubles. Normally that's a good thing, but when you hit X amount of extra-basehits, the more doubles you hit, the fewer homeruns you hit. This was where the knee seemed to hurt his production the most.

Ortiz had surgery in the off-season to repair it. This is the first time since coming to Boston that he's come back from a major injury/surgery. It will be very interesting to see how his body handles it. So far in Spring Training, he's doing just fine.

But you never know...

Ortiz, like everyone else on Francona's squad, will not play every day. He'll probably have 150 games in total. Sean Casey is your most likely replacement DH. He's the best bat off the bench, and I guarantee Francona will find ways to get Casey a lot of at-bats.

Manny Ramirez will also see some time at DH, giving Ortiz a night off, and being replaced in left by Kielty or maybe Crisp. Kevin Youkilis and Mike Lowell are both potential DH candidates if Francona wants to give them a night off from playing the field.

(Re)sources:
Baseball-Reference.com
ESPN.com

Photo Credit:
NBA.com

RED SOX "LOSE" TO DOGERS

The Red Sox fell 9-6 to the Dodgers, but 7 of LA's runs came in the 9th off minor leaguers. Wakefield was strong in his start, going 3 innings, allowing 0 runs off 1 hit and 2 walks. He struck out 3 and pitched around a big Pedroia error (that was really Jed Lowrie's fault).



Ellsbury went 1 for 4 with what could have been an RBI triple if it didn't bounce over the wall for a ground rule double. Pedroia was 2 for 4 with a double and 2 RBI. Sean Casey was 2 for 3 with an RBI double and a run scored. Lowrie didn't look so good, going 0 for 3 with a sac-fly RBI and some miscues in the field. George Kotteras went 1 for 1 with an RBI, and is hitting .667 so far this spring.

Mike Timlin didn't look so hot in the 4th inning. He allowed a leadoff homerun, which was 1 of 2 hits he yielded. David Aardsma pitched 2 scoreless innings, scattering 3 hits.

Former Sox starter Derek Lowe looked awful. He was slated to pitch 3 innings, but could only get through 2+. The Sox tagged him for 6 hits and 5 runs. He also walked 2, hit Doug Mirabelli, and threw a wild pitch.



The next televised spring training game is also against the Dodgers. It's Sunday at 1:05 and will be on NESN. The game will also be on the radio in Boston.

The Red Sox and Jonathan Papelbon also agreed to terms on a one-year, $775,000 contract. This makes Papelbon the highest paid pre-arbitration closer in baseball.

Source:
BostonRedSox.com
Extra Bases

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Steven Senne

RED SOX 2008 PREVIEW: FIRST BASE

Last year was a breakout season for Kevin Youkilis. He hit .288 with a .390 OBP. He was a versatile presence in the lineup, getting at-bats in all slots except leadoff and 9th. He knocked in 83 runs and scored 85. He also added 16 homeruns to the mix.

My one knock on Youk is a lack of consistency. He came out of the gate red hot, heated up to a supernova, then cooled off for the rest of the year. Youkilis had 152 hits, and nearly a third of them (45) came in the month of May. Half of his homeruns (8) were hit in April and May.

However, he picked it up for the post-season. In the ALCS, he hit .500 (14 for 28) with 3 homers, a double, a triple, 7 RBI, and 10 runs scored. If it hadn't been for Josh Beckett, he had a good case for ALCS MVP.

He was also a solid defensive player, winning the Gold Glove. The last Red Sox first baseman to win the Gold Glove was George Scott in 1971. Youk didn't make a single error at first base in 2007.

Pretty much every offensive number improved for Youkilis in 2007. He had more doubles, more homeruns, more RBI, higher average, higher OBP, and higher slugging.

One strange thing about his stats in 2007 was that he walked fewer times than he did in 2006. He also struck out fewer times. He's seeing fewer pitches, as you might have guessed. In '06, he saw 4.42 pitches per plate appearance. In 2007, it was down to 4.27. Youkilis is known for his ability to work a pitcher, but I don't think this dip in pitches is much to be concerned about. His strikeout to walk ratio saw a minuscule drop of 0.05. Basically, more of his at-bats are ending in hits, instead of walks and strikeouts; which is a good thing.

Youkilis fits in very nicely as the #2 hitter on this team. Last year, he hit 5th and 6th a great deal thanks to JD Drew's struggles. But to me, he's a perfect #2 hitter. He gets on base, he has some pop of his own, he works pitchers, he sets up for the big hitters. Batting #2 last year, he hit .305, with an OBP of .414. Those are great numbers for a #2 hitter.

But Youkilis might not stay at first-base all year. He's the #1 backup for Mike Lowell. Youk played 13 games at third last year, and 16 the year before. When Lowell gets a day off, look for Youkilis at the hot corner.

This means that Youkilis will be replaced at first by Sean Casey. Sean had a decent year with Detroit, hitting .296. He doesn't have the same power as he did earlier in his career, but perhaps some time on the bench, some favorable matchups, and the Green Monster sitting 310 feet away will change that.



Casey brings nothing but positives to the table. He's a well-liked guy, he's been around the block, he knows how to hit, he wanted to be here, he's got post-season experience (hit .529 in the '06 World Series), and he's a solid fielder.

Look for Casey to get more time than you'd think he would. With him, Francona can sit Youkilis or Lowell against tough righties and give them some extra rest.

Of course, for the games in NL ballparks, David Ortiz will probably see some playing time at first. Last year, the Sox worked out a platooning situation, sitting either Youk, Lowell, or Papi in National League parks. This year will probably see more of the same.

I am very curious to see if Casey keeps 21 as his number. The last Red Sox player to don that number appeared in front of Congress yesterday.

First-base is the deepest position on the Red Sox.

Sources:
ESPN.com
Baseball-Reference.com

RED SOX SIGN SEAN CASEY

With the collective eyes of New England focused on Glendale, the Red Sox acquisition of Sean Casey may have fallen just a bit under the radar.

Sean Casey is the first significant addition to the Red Sox this off-season. He was signed to a 1 year deal worth $800,000. This brings up a multitude of questions.

#1: Why Sean Casey? Don't the Sox already have Youkilis and Ortiz, why get Casey?

The Red Sox biggest offensive holes in 2007 were short-stop, right-field, center-field, and catcher. So why get another first baseman, which was already the deepest position on the roster?

Unlike Ortiz, Casey is a good defensive first-baseman. Unlike Youkilis, Casey is left-handed. And perhaps most importantly: unlike Ortiz, Casey didn't undergo knee surgery in the off-season.

Casey is an insurance policy. We have no idea what kind of player Ortiz will be post-op. Having Casey gives the Sox a viable option at DH, one who can hit around .290 and knock out a few homeruns.

Casey may also provide insurance for another position. This is mere speculation, but is it possible the Red Sox might shift Youkilis to right-field if Drew continues to struggle? Youk played 18 games in left-field two years ago. He's be no Vlad Guerrero, but he'd get by out there.

But let's say Ortiz is fine, and Drew hits like he's supposed to; what does Sean Casey do then? He becomes a good pinch-hitter. He becomes a lefty replacement for Youkilis in certain situations. He becomes a defensive replacement. He won't push the Sox over the top, but he'd still be a positive addition.

#2: Why would Sean Casey want to be an insurance policy?

Three words: World Series ring. I wouldn't be surprised if Casey's agent went out to contending teams like the Red Sox, trying to see if there was any interest for his services. The abbreviated contract length and low money total was the bait that lured the Red Sox in. So the Red Sox get some flexibility and insurance, and Casey gets an opportunity to play for the best team in baseball. It's win win.

#3: Why is Sean Casey nicknamed "The Mayor?"

He got that monicker in Cincinnati. He's known for talking to every single baserunner that stops by first base. In 2007 he was voted "friendliest player in baseball" by his fellow players. He's also deeply involved in numerous charities. In fact, he and Conan O'Brien co-founded Labels Are For Jars, an anti-hunger charity in Lawrence, MA. So he's generally a nice guy.

#4: What does this mean for the 2008 Red Sox?

It means the Red Sox have some insurance. If Ortiz or Youkilis gets hurt, then Casey can fill in for them. If Lowell gets hurt, then Youkilis can play third, and Casey can play first. If Drew struggles, then Youkilis can play right, and Casey can play first.

This acquisition also gives us a good bat off the bench. Last year we really didn't have anyone to plug into a late inning game-changing situation. If Julio Lugo was up with 2 on in the 9th, there really wasn't much we could do about it. Casey gives us more options.

And you can't beat the price. $800,000 is a lot of money to you and me, but to the Red Sox, it's a pittance. And for a guy who has a career .301 average and .366 OBP, it's a bargain.