Boston Red Sox: The Top Five Moves They Need To Make This Winter
The Boston Red Sox are for all intents and purposes finished with their 2010 season. It has been a long and tough campaign which saw them virtually eliminated by their own inability to stay on the field.
Too many key injuries will derail any team let alone a team faced with a game of musical chairs with Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees.
The Red Sox still retain a solid core of players and with the chance that Tampa Bay may not be able to afford some its talent with expiring contracts, those Red Sox fans already moving onto the 2011 season have a few reasons to smile.
With that said this is a team that needs a few serious improvements and here are the top five changes that need to be made in order to both make the playoffs and contend for a World Series in 2011.
5. Sign Carl Crawford Away From The Tampa Bay Rays If He Hits Free Agency
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One thing that absolutely killed the Red Sox this season was a lack of consistency in the outfield.
With Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Cameron constantly hitting the disabled list with a rash of injuries, the Red Sox simply need more outfield talent for next season.
If they decide to trade Ellsbury they unquestionably need to replace his speed and defense, but even with Jacoby on the roster there is room for Crawford in Left Field.
Crawford is a major upgrade over the aging Cameron and would provide a source of stolen bases and pure hitting ability that is almost unmatched in Major League Baseball.
This idea comes in at No. 5 because it is likely the most far fetched of the lot.
The fact is with David Ortiz aging, Adrian Beltre and Victor Martinez hitting free agency, and the strategy of run prevention coming off a failure of a year, it's safe to say that the Red Sox could always use more offense.
Crawford is coming off a season in which he has hit .309, batted in 87 runs, and stolen 46 bases with a few games remaining.
4. Trade Jacoby Ellsbury
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There is a sentiment in much of Red Sox Nation that the team would benefit from trading Jacoby Ellsbury.
Although superb until last season, many believe that the center fielder milked a rib injury and must have a pain tolerance similar to that of J.D. Drew.
Red Sox management has also had their issues with Ellsbury this season as his attitude and attendance left much to be desired.
Whether or not the situation can be fixed, the Red Sox should probably start shopping Ellsbury.
If fair value can be returned in a trade (rumors have been circulating suggesting David Wright could be involved) then there is no reason for the Red Sox to not consider it.
Ellsbury is great defensive player and has unrivaled speed, but the Red Sox are not a small ball club.
If they could gain a big bat or another rising star in return for Ellsbury, they could be finding a better fit for the team both on and off the field.
3. Acquire Either Adrian Gonzalez Or Prince Fielder to Play First Base
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Prince Fielder and Adrian Gonzalez are among baseball's best hitters.
They are both also approaching the point where their respective small market teams will consider trading them in order to get some value before losing them to the high prices of the free agent market.
Another similarity is that they would both look great in a Boston Red Sox jersey.
Acquiring an everyday superstar first baseman would give the Red Sox flexibility to plug the holes potentially left by David Ortiz, Adrian Beltre, and Victor Martinez this offseason.
They would both serve as suitable exceptions for Beltre if he were to sign elsewhere, but more importantly, they would give the Red Sox some of the power the lineup has been missing since Manny Ramirez's departure.
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2. Trade Jonathan Papelbon
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While many people would wonder why the Red Sox would want to part with the closer who helped them win a World Series, the reasoning is all based in value.
Papelbon is a good closer, but while his numbers are beginning to fade his contract demands are on the rise.
Papelbon has alienated fans by expressing that if paid enough he would gladly play for the New York Yankees and his recent struggles have only made things worse.
Papelbon has eight blown saves and an ERA of 4.02 to this point in the season. Both of these numbers are by far the highest in his career.
Making matters worse, Papelbon is now one of baseball's highest paid closers and still wants a more lucrative contract.
With the hard throwing Daniel Bard sporting an ERA of 1.87, it looks like the Red Sox already have the perfect replacement.
With this in mind it looks like now more than ever the Red Sox should shop their closer in order to free up some cash for their existing free agents and potential signings like Carl Crawford.
1. Re-Sign Adrian Beltre and Victor Martinez
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While this is actually two moves they should be lumped together because they represent the only two players on the Red Sox roster that absolutely need to be re-signed.
The statistics do not lie and as far as this season goes things would have been much much worse without either of these players on the roster.
Compounding the need is the Red Sox lack of suitable replacement options at either third base or catcher.
This makes re-signing the offensive duo a top priority for a team that saw most of its lineup felled by injuries or ineptitude this season.
Both were top three in hits, runs batted in, and batting average for the Red Sox this year.
The truth is that the Red Sox bet this year on their pitching staff and the results have shown that in a division like the American League East both offense and defense are required for a playoff berth.
Hopefully the Red Sox will learn from the lessons of this lost season and use all available resources to keep the correct players and acquire a few more bats before the 2011 campaign.
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