2012 Red Sox Spring Training Preview
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
It is understandable why that would be the case. Boston suffered a monumental late-season collapse (the worst September collapse in baseball history) to not make the playoffs. Shortly thereafter it was revealed that some members of the pitching staff were drinking beer and eating fried chicken in the clubhouse during games.
And while that may seem like yesterday’s news, the players involved in that insubordinate behavior should expect questions about it at the very outset of camp, particularly Josh Beckett who appears to be the only one who has yet to fully own up to it.
None the less, on the field, there will be some minor changes but nothing major because Boston was a relative non-player in free agency under new GM Ben Cherrington. Some suggest that this was Cherrington’s idea preferring to get back to the early days of his predecessor Theo Epstein who acquired the likes of David Ortiz, Kevin Millar and Bill Mueller none of whom were sought after free agents but proved to be cornerstones of Boston’s first World Championship in 86 years back in 2004.
Others believe that Cherrington was under strict orders from ownership to keep payroll down in an effort to avoid a luxury tax penalty. This is something that ownership denies.
Regardless of exactly what the Red Sox offseason philosophy was, they stand to field a very talented team again in 2012. In fact, one could argue that they are very capable of winning a World Championship provided they remain healthy and perform up to the level of expectation.
Time will tell if Boston can, indeed, make a run at a third title in the last 8 years. With that, let’s take a position by position look at how the 2012 Boston Red Sox shape up:
BULLPEN: Big question marks here heading into 2012 as Cherrington has essentially blown up the pen and started from scratch. Boston’s long-time reliable closer Jonathan Papelbon is now in Philadelphia and the two other most reliable and used arms in Bard and Aceves are competing for spots in the starting rotation. Enter Andrew Bailey and Marc Melencon. The 27-year old Bailey was acquired from Oakland for a package that included outfielder Josh Reddick. The right-hander has 75 saves and an ERA of 2.07 over the last 3 seasons for the A’s and Boston will need that type of production from him if not more as their closer. Melancon was acquired from Houston for SS Jed Lowrie and pitcher Kyle Weiland and saved 20 games for the Astros last season. He will likely serve as Bailey’s set-up man in the 8th inning. Bobby Jenks, Matt Albers, Franklin Morales and Felix Doubront are also likely to be in the pen. And don’t rule out the possibility of the versatile Aceves returning to the bullpen to solidify things should another arm step up and assume the fifth spot in the Boston rotation.
INFIELD: From first to third your starters should be Adrian Gonzalez, Dustin Pedroia, Nick Punto and Kevin Youkilis which, if healthy, should be very productive. However, you have to wonder if a guy like Youkilis can remain healthy for the long haul. Mike Aviles will likely play a back-up role and it is possible that the team could still look for another body to add depth as well.
OUTFIELD: The overpaid J.D. Drew is gone and will likely be replaced by Cody Ross who batted just .240 with 14 HR’s and 52 RBI in 121 games for San Francisco last season. Jacoby Ellsbury is back and coming off of an MVP-type season where he hit .321 with 32 HR’s, 105 RBI and 39 stolen bases. You should expect those types of numbers again from Ellsbury. The key to this group is the reemergence of Carl Crawford. Crawford seems to put a lot of pressure on himself in his first season with Boston last year and put up very disappointing numbers (.255, 11 HR’s, 56 RBI, 18 SB). He needs to rebound big-time or the pressure will become even greater as Boston fans will expect a lot from the $142-million dollar man. Darnell McDonald, Ryan Sweeney and Ryan Kalish will all compete for back-up roles in the outfield.
MANAGER: Arguably the greatest manager in Red Sox history is no longer here. For some unexplained reason, Boston brass did not want Terry Francona to return for another season to lead the team. Was it the September collapse which led them to this decision? Or maybe it was the beer drinking and chicken-eating in the clubhouse that did him in. Whatever the case, he and his player-friendly approach are gone and replaced by veteran skipper Bobby Valentine who is known as more of a disciplinarian. Valentine has already tried to mend fences with Josh Beckett and Carl Crawford, both of whom he was openly critical of as an analyst on ESPN. Hopefully, he will be able to get the best out of those two because they are key components of this 2012 team. As much as he will have to manage the team, Valentine will have to be careful not to screw it up. This is a veteran team with plenty of talent that is built to win now. How he handles this team will be interesting to watch.
It’s hard to say exactly where this team will finish in 2012, but they certainly have the talent to win enough somewhere in the mid-90’s which puts you right there in both the Division and the Wild Card race. Another non-playoff year would be viewed as a major disappointment for this club.
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