The Red Sox are going back to the red letters on their away uniforms.[^f2855] I approve of this change.
[^f2855]: They had navy blue letters for the past few years.
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Tag: red sox
That’s…umm…impressive?
If Lester is willing to take a reasonable offer this off-season[^fn1], I say the Red Sox sign him long term this winter.
[^fn1]: i.e. less than he would probably get on the open market.
Mike Napoli, who agreed to a two-year, $32 million deal with the Sox on Friday night, ended up representing a similarly striking demonstration of the value of having created an environment where players want to be. The Red Sox managed to retain a middle-of-the-order power hitter on a deal that fits squarely within the team's preferred model of shorter-term contracts for higher salaries.
According to an industry source, the first baseman had at least one offer of three guaranteed years on the table. He could have made more money than the $32 million where he landed. And at one point on Friday – a head-spinning day of megadeals – the gap between what the Sox offered and what Napoli was sufficient to create some pessimism about the player's return to Boston.
Both Napoli and Pedrioa want to play for a winning team, and Boston is the best place for them to do that.
Speaking of remembering the World Series, this short video of what happened before and after Game 6 is definitely worth a watch.
Going back over these makes me so happy. I think my favorite might be Victorino’s grand slam in the ALCS. So much energy and emotion.
A “worst-to-World Series title” turnaround will do that for you.
Awww…look at the little Red Sox players. Aren’t they so cute with their little beards and their championship trophies?
Well done, Boston. Well done.
An excellent story by an excellent photographer. Sports Illustrated definitely picked the right guy to capture these shots.
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Gomes’ boots won’t be sold to public
This is probably for the best. I definitely would have wanted a pair and I would have looked ridiculous in them.
> But go back and scroll through the first round draft picks in 2005 after the Pirates took Andrew McCutchen at 11—better yet, between McCutchen and Clay Buchholz in the sandwich round—and the fact remains that McLeod, Epstein and Red Sox made one of their best picks ever to get Jacoby Ellsbury at 23. Eight years and $20.8M later, they have two rings and two parades and if he leaves, the expectation that when he returns, he does so to a long, thunderous standing moment of thanks.
It is going to be sad to see Jacoby go, but his time in Boston was pretty awesome.[^f0833]
[^f0833]: It is amazing how quickly a World Series win can wipe away a few years of injuries and other “collapses.”
This sums it up:
> The Sox are comfortable with the possibility that either Drew accepts the offer, thus returning and offering another year of strong two-way play, or with the possibility that he rejects the deal and signs elsewhere, in which case they would have one of the top 50 picks in next year’s draft.
Sounds like good logic to me.
Ben Buchanan sums it up
> Still, compared to just about every other team out there, the Red Sox have relatively little work to do. Only one of their departing free agents is actually likely to leave the team with no clear replacement in line, and they’ve got plenty of money to work with assuming that they’re willing to go up to the CBT threshold again.
> It’s the luxury of being World Series champions with a well-stocked farm system. There are no guarantees of success in professional sports, but at least for now the Red Sox seem poised to keep on winning in 2014 without much help.
That at least gives me some comfort.[^f4702]
[^f4702]: As you would expect, in addition to the summary, Buchanan goes position-by-position breaking things down.
So awesome.
The best baseball writer of our generation recaps the 2013 Red Sox. Quoting only a part of it does not do the piece justice. Take a few minutes and go read the whole thing.
> You can be cynical about Boston’s $159 million Opening Day payroll, and about the historic dump trade with the Dodgers, the one that gave the Red Sox enough room to make a bunch of moves over the winter. Just don’t get too swept away with revisionist history. The Sox might’ve spent a bunch of money, and might’ve caught a break when an overaggressive Dodgers team relieved them of some enormous financial commitments. But it’s not like the baseball world lined up in unison to declare the Red Sox preseason favorites this year. No one other than maybe their moms picked Boston to go all the way in 2013. Not with the memory of that nightmarish 2012 season still rattling around in everyone’s heads.
I thought the Red Sox were going to be good. I had no idea they would be *World Series Champion* good.
> If you’re looking for teams that might outperform expectations next year, scan the high minors of their farm systems for major league–ready talent. Actually, with Xander Bogaerts likely to claim an everyday job from Opening Day, and other dynamic prospects like Jackie Bradley Jr., Matt Barnes, Allen Webster, and others knocking on the door, the Red Sox could be one of those teams.
Jonah gives the Red Sox nation even more hope going into 2014.[^f5901]
[^f5901]: This column is bittersweet. I love ready Keri’s take on the season, but it is sad that the 2013 season is coming to an end. At least we have some *hot stove* action to keep us busy for the next 100 days.
> **Brian McCann.** While the Rangers, who have tried to trade for him several times and offer no state income tax, are expected to make a significant run, Braves officials think McCann could be a Boston possibility as a catcher, first baseman and eventual DH. “Never underestimate how close Brian is to David Ross,” says one Braves front office member. “Ross loves Boston, and the culture the Red Sox have built fits Brian McCann.”
The rumors are really heating up that the Red Sox are going to make a strong play for McCann. I always get nervous about investing a bunch of money in a catcher, but McCann would really fit in nicely in the Red Sox lineup.
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Series champ Red Sox honored at Gillette
> [A]s well as outfielder Jonny Gomes, who sprinted out of the tunnel and was met with raucous cheers.
Gomes is loving this. I am so glad the Red Sox signed him.