Today, longtime Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek filed for free agency from the team. There will now be a 15 day period in which the team has to negotiate with him, otherwise, he will be able to sign with other teams.
Now I foresee many future pros and cons to this.
If the Red Sox plan to pursue Varitek, first they will have to go through the Medusa of baseball, Scott Boras. With Boras at the helm of negotiations, it can be almost guaranteed that there will be no deal done in this 15 day period. Therefore, relinquishing the Sox's rights on him, and he will most likely sign with another team. Possible teams include Detroit, Seattle, and Toronto.
In my opinion, Varitek is not worth the hassle of bringing him back another year. We have seen the likes of George Kottaras, who seems very poised to step into a new role. Tek's stats recently have just been horrible, clearly displayed by the disappointment that was the '08 playoffs. He is old and not worth the time. Did I forget to mention he has been some form of "hurt" every year for the last five or so years?
On the other side of things, Varitek has been a staple of this lineup for years dating back to days I can't remember. Without a doubt he is the smartest catcher in the league. There is no other player at his position who could possibly call a game as great as he does. He may not have a chance to impact the game with his bat, but every pitch still has something to do with him.
The defensive aspect could be the only reason the Red Sox would consider bringing him back. But are the numbers not good enough to keep this team in contention? Could the youngsters surprise like Pedroia. Only time will tell.
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