*** Baldelli Ready To Sign With The Red Sox...Smoltz Will Follow ***
Good morning. I awoke to good news on this Thursday morning. Rays outfielder Rocco Baldelli is said to be ready to sign with the Boston Red Sox and become their fourth outfielder. He has been hampered by a mitrochondrial disorder, a disease that causes people to tire easily. A re-evaluation by Boston this offseason determined that Baldelli suffers from a less serious and more treatable form of channelopathy. He has a .281 career batting average with 52 home runs and 234 RBIs, and he'll fit in quite nicely for the Sox. He is expected to sign a one year deal. And wait...there's more good news.
MLB dot com has reported that Braves pitcher John Smoltz will alert Atlanta that he has accepted a $5.5 million offer from Boston. He is coming off shoulder surgery but should be ready to go sometime in May. His career record is 210-147 with a great 3.26 ERA and 154 saves. If he is needed in the bullpen, he has proven that he can do it, but the Sox will want him to be a starter. It all depends on the pitching staff's health, and HIS health. Shoulder surgery takes so much work to come back from in everyday life. Think what kind of rehab a pitcher has to do! Performance bonuses could bring that $5.5 million to $10 million.
What do I think of this? I'll tell you...the Sox need a fourth outfielder and Rocco Baldelli, a New England native, wanted to play for a team near his home base. He got his wish. He'll fill Coco Crisp's role quite nicely and his bat can sometimes be sizzling. As for John Smoltz, Boston has five bona fide starters without him with a couple more waiting in the wings, but Wakefield is injury prone and Beckett is coming off an odd 2008 filled with nagging injuries here and there. He didn't come close to his '07 form. If he does in '09, the Red Sox will be in the thick of it once again. If.
And so it goes, life in the baseball off-season. Ups and downs, twists and turns, all seemingly at once. But it was a good Thursday morning for the Sox. I hope their plans reap a bountiful season and an exciting and long October. I have a great feeling about this. But I've always been an optimist, even in the bleakest of circumstances. As always, BE WELL. I'll link the Boston Globe article...just click on the title of this post. L'chaim (to life). What else is there?
posted by Peter N @ 5:19 AM
7 comments
7 Comments:
And a wave of optomisim flowed over the Nation...
LOL
Seriously though, there's nothing but upside to these recent moves by Theo. We're seeing two very different approaches to buildin ga team here and in NYC... it will be fun to see which approach works best.
Peace
Step by step, little ones compared to the pinstriped fools. We'll get there. Thanks!
Great news this day, and the portent is awesome. John S. will anchor the entire pitching staff, and we now will have a bonafide outfielder named Rico who can fit into any of the three positions and any spot in the batting order. And, oh Lord, you are truly merciful, we no longer need worry about hearing Francona rave about how fluid and quick are the feet of Mark Kotsay (he of the " I may not hit my weight, but I sure can dazzle you with my toes.").
These two additions will go a long way toward convincing the management that we really do not need to waste TWO roster spots any longer with Tim Wakefield. Put Ole Wake gently out to pasture, allow him to rove the country, interviewing young farm players, teaching them the fine art of cribbage, and extolling them to swear eternal allegiance to Cielito Lindo (loosely translated as "Fenway Park").
Now we need one more catcher. Bravo, Sox. Slainte.
It's great that we have Rocco and John, but in no way, in my opinion, will John Smoltz anchor anything. He won't even be ready to pitch until the end of May. But you're funny...Timmy will be in the rotation until he pitches his way into retirement. What I meant was that Stoltz is signed, but his health is an "if." Until it isn't.
Thanks, JB418.....and BLR.
I meant Smoltz, of course!
Peter...By "anchoring" the staff in my previous posting, I meant the presence, experience, and teaching of John Smoltz will do just that. He's been a great starter and can help out our young fellows immensely with preparation, etc. I dare say he will be of help frequently to Tim Wakefield. After all, we oldsters (OK...senior citizens) listen more closely to our peers than young whelps. He's been a record-setting closer and can keep opur bullpen concentrated, relaxed, and afraid of nothing. He will NOT be a spoon-tapper or a lead-blower (like some unnamed 41 year old before him).
This staff is simply awesome. There is no reason why the Sox this year cannot threaten that magic 116 game win total. All we need is someone to keep reminding Tito that it's perfectly OK to warm up a reliever before the 5th inning, before the other team scores 6 or 7 runs.
One last remark...in my previous posting, I miscalled Mr. Baldelli's first name. Of course, he's ROCCO. Must have been daydreaming about Petro. Mea culpa.
Ah, I understand, jb418. 116? That's a tall order, especially with Wakes in the rotation. I'd be ecstatic with 99.
I WANT TO THANK EVERYONE FOR THEIR GREAT COMMENTS! Keep 'em coming, Please.
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