Call Me Crazy.. but The Red Sox Should Sign Jason Bay

I know I know, Red Sox Nation was supposed to already move on from Jason Bay but Massachusetts is the Bay state and he should stick with the Sox.  All corniness aside, Bill Madden wrote for the New York Daily News that Jason Bay's agent Joe Urbon tried resurfacing negotiations with the Red Sox regarding his client.  After filling the left field void with Mike Cameron, it seems that Bay was as good as gone, but why not sign him?

It seems like right now the only team in the running for the all star left fielder is the New York Mets.  Let's compare Bay signing with Boston and with New York.  The Red Sox are an elite team in the MLB, Bay has a fan base in New England, Fenway is a good ballpark for right handed hitters and the contract offered by the Sox is similar to the Mets offer.  The Mets are a team with good potential, but get struck by the injury bug worse than most teams, and have more holes than the Red Sox and have had a rough past couple years.

Jeremy Hermida has recently said that if the Sox signed Bay, he would request a trade.  The Sox then signed Mike Cameron and Hermida doesn't seem too interested in being the fourth outfielder.  He doesn't seem to committed to Boston.  Keep in mind when reading this article, I'm under the assumption Lowell has surgery and is traded for near nothing during spring training.  The Sox seem to be willing to part ways.  Here are possible options if the Red Sox signed Bay.

1) Trade Jeremy Hermida. Put Jason Bay in left field and Mike Cameron would be the fourth outfielder.  With this scenario, the Adrian Gonzalez trade could still be a possibility if we could keep Ellsbury.

Red Sox trade: Clay Buccholz, and prospects

Catching: Victor Martinez
Infield: First to third: Gonzalez, Pedroia, Scutaro, Youkilis
Outfield: Left to right: Bay, Ellsbury, Drew
DH: David Ortiz
Bench: Cameron, Lowrie, Kotchman, Varitek

2) Use Ellsbury as a trade chip to acquire Adrian Gonzalez.  Mike Cameron moves to center field, Jason Bay plays left.  When Mike Cameron's stint with the Red Sox is over, the job can be taken over by Ryan Westmoreland, Ryan Kalish or Josh Reddick.

Red Sox trade: Clay Buccholz, Jacoby Ellsbury, and prospects

Catching: Victor Martinez
Infield: First to third: Gonzalez, Pedroia, Scutaro, Youkilis
Outfield: Left to right: Bay, Cameron, Drew
DH: David Ortiz
Bench: Hermida, Lowrie, Kotchman, Varitek

Call me crazy but I think these situations are possible.  The Padres are in complete rebuilding right now and should trade Gonzalez while his value is through the roof and they can get prospects.  If they don't complete a trade right now, the Red Sox, among other teams have options in the free agent market.

Jason Bay has NO market right now.  I can almost guarantee he would accept the Red Sox original offer if they make it available again.  He enjoyed his time in Boston and they are favored to make it into the playoffs especially if they get another bat (or two).

We can all pretend that our current Red Sox team has enough to win the world series this year but I truly don't think it can.  I have heard the phrase "pitching wins championships" but the Yankees and Phillies are too good for the Red Sox to not make more offensive moves.  Lowell is a liability, I love the guy but his age and injuries slow him down from an offense stand point and especially defensively.  Even if we trade him, our current option is Martinez/Kotchman at first and Martinez/Varitek catching.  Those options leave us with holes in our lineup.

The Red Sox need to get another bat and I feel that the Adrian Gonzalez trade is very possible due to the Red Sox strong farm system and the Padres pathetic current roster.  Signing Bay is a stretch unless the Red Sox could complete one of the mentioned scenarios.  If both are done, then the Red Sox will be the best team in the MLB, if neither are done, the Sox will fight hard to make the playoffs.