Jason Varitek and The Sox

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Captain. Tek. Gritty. Those words all describe Jason Varitek. Career .300, 30 HR, 100 RBI per season does not. That describes Victor Martinez.

Varitek is a fan favorite. One problem. Tek can't produce. Sure, Varitek is one of my favorite players, and he is valuable to a team in more ways than one, but he just can't hit like Martinez. The Sox can't have a .250 hitter without pop. So this begs the question, will Jason Varitek be with the Boston Red Sox next year?

Martinez and Tek are eerily similar. Both are catchers, the most demanding position in baseball, both play for the Red Sox, arguably the toughest town to play baseball in. Both field well. But there is one difference( when it comes to baseball), the hit tool.

Victor Martinez came to the Red Sox in a trade for Justin Masterson, a side-slinging setup man, and 2 prospects. This was another of Young Theo's bold moves, and a good one, to say the least. Major league managers just drool over the thought of a trade like that( unless you are the Pirates), give up a slightly above-average major leaguer and two prospects for a great bat. Also, Martinez can play two positions effectively, catcher and first base.

Martinez will be back next year, as he has a $7 million club option that the Sox will officially exercise any day now. Varitek has a $5 million club option that the Red Sox will be highly unlikely to pick up. Varitek has a $3 million player option for 2010, but will he come back? Will Varitek want to come back to be at best, a backup, or at worst, a third string catcher? (George Kottaras is Wake's designated catcher, and a very patient hitter, sometimes too patient. George will wait for the pitch in the exact square inch he wants it, sometimes even with two strikes.)

There are other options for Jason Varitek, too. He could retire, and at age 37 he is getting up there. Also, right after Brad Mills left to manage the Astros last week, thousands of rumors popped up. The rumor has it, that Tek could possibly retire and become the Red Sox' new bench coach. Now the odds of that happening are slimmer than an anorexic, but hey, Varitek might be a good coach.

So as this off-season will get rolling in the coming weeks, one thing to look out for is Jason Varitek's future with the Boston Red Sox.

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