No Need To Ask Jason Bay: Jack Wilson Is Not for the Red Sox

With Nick Green and Julio Lugo fielding .934 and .940 respectively, and with neither hitting like Hanley Ramirez, it is no surprise that the Red Sox are scouring the league for a suitable upgrade at the shortstop position.

Jack Wilson is not the answer they're looking for—not by a long shot.

This year, Jack Wilson is hitting under .260, has a .280 OBP, and is fielding .969 through 43 games, which places him well outside of the league's top-10 fielding shortstops. All this, yet his salary sits at $7.4 million, which is almost as high as the combined salaries of Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis.

Despite this less-than-inspiring stat line, the swirling baseball rumor pool has floated Wilson's name as a likely or actual Red Sox target for weeks. In the past week, newspapers from Boston and Pittsburgh, as well as ESPN's Buster Olney, have speculated about the terms of a prospective trade. As recently as yesterday, NESN.com's Michael Hurley reported that the Sox consulted former Pirate Jason Bay in an effort to better "gauge [Wilson's] value."

It doesn't take a former teammate to tell Sox management that Jack Wilson is a fine starting shortstop. His career fielding percentage at short is an impressive .977, and he hits to all fields, though not for a high average, as previously mentioned, and without walking very much at all.

It seems that the Red Sox interest stems from their serious dissatisfaction with the current tandem rather than from any expectation that Wilson will prove more than just another horse on the shortstop carousel.

Is that all the Red Sox want, an offensive vacuum with a solid glove for a half a year? If that's the case, why not wait for Jed Lowrie to come back? At least he drew two walks in the five games he played. That's TWICE AS MANY as Jack Wilson has drawn in the last two months!

Pirates' fans seem to love Jack Wilson, and considering the embarrassment their team's management suffered in the wake of the McLouth deal, the asking price and salary obligation will be twice what Wilson is worth and much more than what the Red Sox should be willing to give up for a moderate defensive upgrade.

J.J. Hardy would seem to be a better target, but are the Red Sox willing to give up equal value for a top-five defensive shortstop with a power bat?

I hope not and I think not.

Hardy is an amazing shortstop, and a great power hitter. His bat would be an exciting, albeit inconsistent, addition to the lineup and his glove would be as good as the Red Sox have seen. That being said, he, too, is not Hanley Ramirez, Miguel Tejada, or Derek Jeter, nor is he really on par with Troy Tulowitzki or Yuni Escobar.

Once again, though, the asking price for Hardy would be very high and the Red Sox are simply not in the sort of desperate position where it makes sense for them to mortgage pitching depth for a short-term fix.

The Red Sox have a great 'pen, more starters than they know what to do with, and several solid pitching prospects waiting in the wings. Take a guy like Lars Anderson into consideration and they have the chips to pull off just about any blockbuster Theo Epstein and John Henry could set their hearts on (not that that's really their style).

With a two-game division lead, Ortiz beginning to hit home runs, and Smoltz and Lowrie returning shortly (I'm knocking furiously on wood!), the Red Sox are already in an enviable position with the All-Star break approaching. By July offers will come, and with all probability they'll be more attractive ones than currently seem available.

Until then, the Sox can afford to sit tight. It may not satisfy the manic itch of many of the armchair GMs out there, but it could lead to a bigger, better deal down the road or in the offseason.