This baseball off season has been pretty good to me. On a day when Boston sports has nothing going on rumors start to trickle out of Yawkey Way and give me something to write about. That’s a good thing considering your first place Bruins and Celtics are off until Wednesday night.
Let’s start with the Jason Varitek rumor. WEEI, Peter Gammons, and the Boston Herald were all reporting yesterday that the Sox had offered Varitek a one year contract not in the neighborhood of the $13.1 million that Jorge Posada signed last year. Bad news for Lauren, Buster Olney reported the Red Sox are preparing, full steam ahead, to play 2009 without Jason Varitek.
I’m split on this for two reasons. If the Sox sign Teixeira, Mike Lowell is gone. To lose Lowell and Varitek is losing a lot of that veteran leadership in the clubhouse. I think that if Varitek wants to come back he will, but with Boras pulling the strings he may end up leaving for more years/money. The Sox need to abandon the idea that Wakefield needs his own valet catcher and get a young guy platooning with Varitek. This way Tek grooms the young guy with the staff and prolongs his career by not being overused.
The other news from the Sox front office yesterday was that they were close to signing Japanese import Junichi Tazawa. The report said the Sox were offering him a contract in the $6 million range. A similar report said that he had already made the decision to sign with the Sox for 3 years at $3 million a year and the deal should be done by early December.
So the question begs, who is Junichi Tazawa? I’ve heard he’s no Daisuke Matsuzaka. Rumors had him in the mid-nineties, but here’s a scouting report I found:
“His fastball is 88 to 93 [mph],” said a scout for one team who declined to be named. “He has a forkball, a curve, but the command of his fastball is so-so. His lower body is stiff.”
No news on Teixeira other than the rumor that he’s leaning towards an East Coast team. That could be the Sox, Yankees, Nationals, or Orioles. He said he wants this all done by Christmas, so let’s hope Sox fans get a nice present in the middle of the lineup before Christmas.
Back tomorrow with who know what.
Oh stop with the sentimental bullshit!!!
The team moves on… with, or without Tek and Lowell! Time doesn’t stop for old men! Its a “what can you do for me know, and tomorrow” league…
The light is fading kids… Time for change!
Timlin… GONE(thank god)
Tek… will stay. Uhhh,Heidi Whatney anyone???
Wake… will be back, in a smaller role…
Crisp… bye bye bitch
Lugo…. LOL, as if…
Lowell… love this guy, always welcome at the salt and pepper game…
… GONE!!!! All gone! Get over it, change happens! In Theo I trust! He still has yet to really fuck up! I think even Theo would say that Lugo was a bust! But his record speaks volumes!!!