+1..Enough is enough already..Boras misjudged the market ($$$) for Manny. Not to mention that he was originally looking for a 4-5 year deal. The two club option years the Sox had on him were @ $20mil/per..I'm curious to see what he ends up signing for.
A question for the Dodger fans:What can the Sox realistically expect out of Penny and Saito?
Yeah, it'll be pretty funny if Manny ends up with less than $20mil a season, I'll certainly be laughing.
Saito and Penny were quite good prior to their injuries. Saito has progressively pitched in fewer games each season that he has been over here, but his ERA for those three season is 1.95, pretty decent. Looking at his previous numbers I'd expect between 40 and 60 games, and about the same on the innings front. He's got good stuff, but he's definitely aging. My guess is that he'll alternate with Okajima as a setup man for Papelbon, and possibly close when Francona wants Papelbon to sit out; should be interesting.
Penny, I don't know about. He never really seemed the same after his last injury. He definitely has pretty good stuff, but I think it will take some work for him to find his groove again. If he does, he'll be good. Probably an ERA in the mid to high 3's with 115 strikeouts, if he gets it back.
Most of the Dodgers fans I talked to were more hesitant about Penny than Saito, but we'll see how it works out, they both have the ability to be quite good. Either way, I think the Sox will get their moneys worth out of Smoltz, Saito, and Penny; IMO, if one of them plays an important role it worked out fantastic, but I think we'll see at least 2 of them turn out well. Call me an optimist, but I see all three of them doing well. I think we signed the right guys that wan to win a World Series, with contracts that reward performance, I bet it turns out good.
I'm excited about the Sox team for this year. It comes down to the usual, if we stay healthier than the Yankees and the Rays we can win the division. I think Beckett will have fewer injuries this year and I think Dice-K will continue to improve over here. I see Lester being dominate again this year and, provided he doesn't get injured, for quite a while. And of course Wakefield will eat up innings like usual. We could have an excellent rotation and bullpen if Smoltz, Saito, and Penny work out.
Offense wise, we should be at least as good as last year, maybe better if Ortiz is healthy. Thought many disagree with me, I think Varitek will show some improvement, maybe .250-.260, respectable for a catcher. Hopefully his work load is decreased, I think that will help him to improve his batting stats. I think the Sox have a lot more depth this year than last year, we'll see whether that turns out to be true or not.
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