The Anger Builds....

We're 19 games into the season, six games behind a studly Rays team in the AL East (4.5 behind the Yanks), and we're rolling out a Triple A type lineup tonight:

1-Scutaro SS,
2-Pedroia 2B,
3-Youkilis 1B,
4-Lowell 3B,
5-Drew RF,
6-Varitek C,
7-Beltre 3B,
8-Hall LF,
9-McDonald CF


I know a lot of it is out of Tito's control, but still, I never thought a 170 million dollar payroll could look similar to the Pirates lineup.

Some additional numbers to consider as you watch the Bruins instead of the Sox tonight:


-Adrian Beltre leads the team with a .286 average (with 0 taters)

-Pedey leads the team with 5 taters (Tek is alone in second with 4)

-Pedey also leads the team with 13 RBI

-Buchholz has the best era at 2.70

-The Sox are on pace to give up 1892 stolen bases (ok, that's not true, but they're going to shatter the record either way).

-The defensive upgrades of Scutaro and Beltre already have three errors a piece

-The Sox are 5-8 at friendly Fenway

-I'll end it with some optimism....Lars Anderson is currently batting .328 with 5 taters and 18 rbi for Portland

Go Bruins, I mean, Go Sox...

A Few Short Videos From Ft Myers

You gotta love reality slapping you in the face. There is nothing like returning from Florida to the low 40's and pouring rain. With that in mind, a few short videos below help bring us back:

Dice-K taking on a minor league hitter at the training complex (ITM note: the hitter in this video is 16 years old. Yep, 16).

Here's Iggy tagging a triple in a Double AA game. Terrible camera operator, but we'll blame it on the beverages.

A near senseless video, but look at the quick hands! Man love for Iggy.

A close up look at Casey Kelly's mechanics. Short stride?

Lars Anderson, our 2008-2009 hero in the making....with the whiff.

We'll post a few more pictures etc sooner than later as well.

State of Bay

In an offseason where the Sox have made great efforts to lock up their young talent, one young-ish talent is still wondering where he stands. Jason Bay isn't part of the home-grown youth movement Theo's spent the offseason negotiating with, but he does have a contract up at the end of the year, and he's talking like he wants to make Boston his home.

The first few days in camp, Bay let everyone and their mother know that he's willing to be reasonable when it comes to contract negotiations. Over the last few days, however, he's hardened a bit and is starting to sound more like a man getting some advice from his agent. Nothing wrong with that, but Sox fans have had precious little information on where the Sox stand on Bay. And arguably, this will be one of the franchise's more important development decisions this season.

Early in camp the Sox announced they were going to work top prospect Lars Anderson into various outfield schemes to see how he did. Possibly this is a short-term maneuver---a way of getting Anderson up into the big league this year as a...sixth...seventh outfielder backing up the MGH platoon. On the other hand, the Anderson move could be long-term. Nobody in the Sox organization seems to think too highly of his defensive skills, and no one seems excited about the prospect of him anchoring down an infield position. Young guys almost never come up at DH, so the eyes seemed to have turned to left field. Which is where Bay stands, looking back.

So the Sox are at a cross-road. Sign Bay to an extension, keep him in left, roll the dice long-term with Anderson developing as a first baseman, and if Anderson's ready to step in, move Youk to his preferred third base. But Mike Lowell has two years left, and the Sox are showing signs that they want Anderson up sooner rather than later. Another option: let Bay leave at the end of the season, keep Youk and Lowell in the infield for another year, and insert Anderson into an outfield platoon and hope he thrives.

Both scenarios make some blind assumptions, namely---that the Sox aren't going to look to move or phase out Lowell somehow (that'll depend on this season's bounce back from injury no doubt) and that the Sox plan on keeping Anderson long-term. It also depends on who appears to be on the market later this year. It could very well come down to the talent pool for outfielders v. first baseman.

That said, the Bay situation is more than just your typical contract negotiation. This has a lot of moving parts. But for the time being, Bay is the one talking about contracts. Politely, but still talking. The Sox, as usual, are playing it close to their vest.

Lars Anderson: Coming to a Left Field Near You?

Currently, Lars Anderson only has a first baseman's glove, but that could all change soon. Rumors are flying around the organization that Boston's number one prospect could be moving to the outfield in order to increase future position flexibility.

According to Red Sox farm director Mike Hazen “Right now he’s a first baseman. We feel like he’s going to be good at that position,” ........“But if he’s the best guy available (in the minors) and his only way onto the team is to play left field, even to stand in left field, I have a hard time thinking we’re not going to run him out there for a few games to see what he looks like.”
Anderson has never played anything but first base in the pros, but admits to occasionally manning the outfield in high school (along with pitching at times). He is still learning the nuances of the first base position, but some believe the organization will experiment with him in the outfield once he reaches Pawtucket (which in all likelihood will be this year). There remains a lot to be hammered out on the big league club before finding a place for Lars, as Jason Bay and others will have upcoming contract negotiations, perhaps this is the Red Sox merely being proactive.

Personally, I understand many players are shifted around once they reach Triple A, in part to align their skills with the big league club's positional needs, but I don't think tossing Anderson in left is the best idea here. Let's be honest, everyone is extremely excited to see this kid come up to the bigs, he's one of the most hyped prospects within the Red Sox system in sometime, and certainly the best power-hitting option to come up through the minor league ranks in years.....but forcing a young kid into a new position may prove damaging. If this was Pittsburgh; with no media spotlight and an easy left field to handle, that would be one thing, but running a 21 year old out to play left field at Fenway, an extremely difficult position to play, and under the extreme pressure that is baseball in Boston, that's a totally different world. So much of young player's success is contributed to overall confidence and comfort levels, why challenge that at this point?

For now, I'm perfectly fine with Lars continuing to build on his skills and test his talent against upper minor league players. The 6'4", sweet-swinging lefty has been performing well thus far, and could provide a much needed, long term power solution for the Red Sox lineup....let's keep running with that and see where it takes us over the next year or two, and as Tito says "things will fall into place".

Lars Anderson: So Who is This Guy?

Many of us have read a lot about some guy named Lars Anderson this offseason. From expectations to be the next Mark Teixeira to admissions he is still just a young prospect, there are varying degrees of excitement for this guy. The issue is, not many of us have actually seen him play or have even heard him speak. He is perhaps the biggest jewel in a Red Sox farm system chalk full of talented prospects.

Personally, given the right situation, I'm usually in favor of taking the proven player over prospects. However, after doing some additional research on Anderson, this is one guy I may deem untouchable...too many memories of the Jeff Bagwell come to mind. Here is a summary of some of the information I've dug up over the last few days:

ITM Spotlight: Lars Anderson
Born: Sept. 25th, 1987, Oakland California
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 210lbs
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Drafted: 18th round, 2006

Attitude:
Anderson is a California surfer guy through and through. At such a young age and with so much pressure on his shoulders, he retains the "i'm just having fun attitude". He understands he has the skills to be special and according to his coaches, puts in extra work to make sure he reaches his really high potential. Work ethic is certainly not an issue here.

Hitting:
According to Soxprospects.com, he has a great hitter's fram with an "elite power ceiling"...I love typing the phrase. The Red Sox have had many good prospects come up through their system lately, but none have had the same level of power of Anderson. Many fear an upcoming lack of lineup power over the next few years for the Red Sox, but Anderson could change all that. His smooth and fluid swing is said to be "tailor-made" for Fenway Park as he has great opposite field power. Anderson has great plate discipline and high OBP numbers, something Boston management surely loves. He swings and misses a little too much, especially against off-speed pitches, but that is something the Sox can both deal with and try to fix as he matures.

Fielding:
At 6'4", he's a big target at firstbase, but has limited range as a result of his size. Overall position presence is solid with good hands and the ability to digg out many low throws coming across the diamond. While he has played firstbase throughout his short time in the Sox farm sytsem, he played the bulk of his high school baseball in left field, so while unlikely, that has not been ruled out as a possible location should firstbase be blocked in the long term.

Future:
Most basball scouts compare Anderson to Justin Morneau, nothing wrong with that. Most expect to see Anderson up with the big league club this season when the rosters expand in September. That said, injuries or an explosive year from Anderson in double A could push things along faster than expected.

After writing this I have to remind myself that he is still just potential, that's all, nothing proven, nothing etched in stone....but it's tough not to get excited about this guy.