2B

AutomatedTeller · 11-26-2006, 12:23 AM

Looks like Loretta is as good as gone - Sox haven't made offers and I guess he's gotten some. So it's looking like it's the Dustin Pedroia era in Boston!!

Unless there is a new Mark Bellhorn out there, that is.

Are we happy with this? I happen to like giving kids a shot, though I worry that the Sox are putting too many kids on the team for it to truly be a contender.

WhosyourPapi???? · 11-26-2006, 12:42 AM

I am a huge Dustin Pedroia fan. I would love to see him play everyday next year. I would sign someone though incase he starts doing bad. Or maybe we could just have Alex Cora play if Pedroia starts to fail.

Rice4HoF · 11-26-2006, 12:43 AM

I love Dustin Pedroia. I want him to be the our starting 2nd baseman all year. I agree with not putting too many kids on the team, but I think we can survive if he's the only inexperienced player we start.

Congrats on becoming a mod.

Zen653 · 11-29-2006, 12:26 PM

Cora/Pedroia will be fine at 2B.

I don't like Pedroia as a SS. He doesn't have the arm for it. He's already an adventure at 2B with that double clutch of his.

AutomatedTeller · 11-29-2006, 12:54 PM

I agree - Dustin at SS is stretching him some. Sure, he can succeed - David Eckstein has been a fine SS - but it's not his best position, I don't think.

kelleigh1 · 11-29-2006, 02:31 PM

I think Pedroia is ready to take over the starting job. And I agree that he shouldn't be at short. He's just not comfortable there, and it shows. Granted, he is young in years, but he has a talent that surpasses his age.

Zen653 · 12-01-2006, 05:10 PM

With Ray Durham re-signing with San Francisco, Mark Loretta suddenly doesn't have any suitors. If I'm the Red Sox, I offer Loretta arbitration and hope that he accepts it. He's a steady borderline All-Star who plays adequate defense and delivers big hits. He's a prototype No. 2 hitter and a good clubhouse guy.

Julio Lugo might be a better player than Mark Loretta but he's not worth more than twice the salary. Lugo wants $9 million per year for 4 years, whereas Loretta would probably come in at around $4 million for 1 year. I think retaining Loretta would be the more prudent move. How many other All-Stars are signing for relatively short money?

The only problem this would create is some shaky defense at shortstop. Loretta would presumably return to second base, meaning Pedroia would platoon with Cora at short. While Pedroia primarily played shortstop last year, I don't know if he can handle that position at the big league level. He double clutches all his throws and he just doesn't seem to have the requisite arm strength for the left side of the diamond. I do recall him showing some good lateral range, though.

I say we take our chances with Pedroia's defense at shortstop and bring Loretta back for one more year at second base. The difference between Loretta and Lugo is not worth $5 million this year, plus an additional $27 million through 2010. Save every extra penny for finishing off the uber-rotation by signing Roger Clemens.

Rice4HoF · 12-02-2006, 02:03 AM

Well, we didn't offer him arb. In the old days, that would have meant that he was gone, as he wouldn't be allowed to sign with us until May. (like Clemens with Houston last year). But with the new CBA, I believe they removed that rule, so nothing prevents us from signing him.

Personally, I like the idea of Dusty at 2B. But I'm not a Lugo fan, so I'm not sure what options we have for SS that I like.

3rd Handler · 12-04-2006, 11:16 PM

If Lugo comes to Boston it will be at the Shortstop position. The Sox did the right thing last year by giving Dustin a taste of the bigs. He showed flashes, hopefully in 07 we see more of them.

Rice4HoF · 12-06-2006, 08:22 PM

Quote:

He showed flashes, hopefully in 07 we see more of them.

Amen!

cjelephant · 12-06-2006, 08:43 PM

he's going to have to hit better than .191 - I didn't see any "flashes" last year.

I hope there is a plan B.

Rice4HoF · 12-07-2006, 08:54 PM

Well, I'm a big Dustin fan, so I noticed his "flashes", maybe because I was looking closer than most people.

And to answer your questions, Plan B is that he plays like he did after his initial few games.
After starting off 4 for his first 40, he finished the season with 13 hits in his last 49 at bats (.282). Along with a couple of HRs and a few walks, his line (BA/OBP/SLG) (and again, excluding his first 40 ABs) was 282/345/449 for an OPS of 794.

For comparison, only Manny, Oritz, Pena, Lowell and Youk had higher OPS last year. Among the regulars, Loretta ended at 706, Tek 725, Crisp 702 and I won't even mention AGon.

So, if he can just maintain the level of hitting he kept over the last 3 and a half or so weeks of the season, we'll do just fine. Of course, I expect him to continue developing and improve on those numbers.

AutomatedTeller · 12-08-2006, 09:39 AM

I assuming those numbers (.340/.450) are about the most we should expect, over a season, from Pedroia. With the improvements the Sox have made to the offense, getting that out of the #9 spot will likely make the Sox the best offense in the league.

11-26-2006, 12:23 AM	#1 (permalink)
AutomatedTeller Moderator Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 545	2B Looks like Loretta is as good as gone - Sox haven't made offers and I guess he's gotten some. So it's looking like it's the Dustin Pedroia era in Boston!! Unless there is a new Mark Bellhorn out there, that is. Are we happy with this? I happen to like giving kids a shot, though I worry that the Sox are putting too many kids on the team for it to truly be a contender.

11-26-2006, 12:42 AM	#2 (permalink)
WhosyourPapi???? Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Calgary Posts: 36	I am a huge Dustin Pedroia fan. I would love to see him play everyday next year. I would sign someone though incase he starts doing bad. Or maybe we could just have Alex Cora play if Pedroia starts to fail.

11-26-2006, 12:43 AM	#3 (permalink)
Rice4HoF Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Calgary, Canada Posts: 60	I love Dustin Pedroia. I want him to be the our starting 2nd baseman all year. I agree with not putting too many kids on the team, but I think we can survive if he's the only inexperienced player we start. Congrats on becoming a mod.

11-29-2006, 12:26 PM	#4 (permalink)
Zen653 Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 6,902	Cora/Pedroia will be fine at 2B. I don't like Pedroia as a SS. He doesn't have the arm for it. He's already an adventure at 2B with that double clutch of his.

11-29-2006, 12:54 PM	#5 (permalink)
AutomatedTeller Moderator Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 545	I agree - Dustin at SS is stretching him some. Sure, he can succeed - David Eckstein has been a fine SS - but it's not his best position, I don't think.

11-29-2006, 02:31 PM	#6 (permalink)
kelleigh1 Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 34	I think Pedroia is ready to take over the starting job. And I agree that he shouldn't be at short. He's just not comfortable there, and it shows. Granted, he is young in years, but he has a talent that surpasses his age.

12-01-2006, 05:10 PM	#7 (permalink)
Zen653 Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 6,902	With Ray Durham re-signing with San Francisco, Mark Loretta suddenly doesn't have any suitors. If I'm the Red Sox, I offer Loretta arbitration and hope that he accepts it. He's a steady borderline All-Star who plays adequate defense and delivers big hits. He's a prototype No. 2 hitter and a good clubhouse guy. Julio Lugo might be a better player than Mark Loretta but he's not worth more than twice the salary. Lugo wants $9 million per year for 4 years, whereas Loretta would probably come in at around $4 million for 1 year. I think retaining Loretta would be the more prudent move. How many other All-Stars are signing for relatively short money? The only problem this would create is some shaky defense at shortstop. Loretta would presumably return to second base, meaning Pedroia would platoon with Cora at short. While Pedroia primarily played shortstop last year, I don't know if he can handle that position at the big league level. He double clutches all his throws and he just doesn't seem to have the requisite arm strength for the left side of the diamond. I do recall him showing some good lateral range, though. I say we take our chances with Pedroia's defense at shortstop and bring Loretta back for one more year at second base. The difference between Loretta and Lugo is not worth $5 million this year, plus an additional $27 million through 2010. Save every extra penny for finishing off the uber-rotation by signing Roger Clemens.

12-02-2006, 02:03 AM	#8 (permalink)
Rice4HoF Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Calgary, Canada Posts: 60	Well, we didn't offer him arb. In the old days, that would have meant that he was gone, as he wouldn't be allowed to sign with us until May. (like Clemens with Houston last year). But with the new CBA, I believe they removed that rule, so nothing prevents us from signing him. Personally, I like the idea of Dusty at 2B. But I'm not a Lugo fan, so I'm not sure what options we have for SS that I like.

12-04-2006, 11:16 PM	#9 (permalink)
3rd Handler Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 27	If Lugo comes to Boston it will be at the Shortstop position. The Sox did the right thing last year by giving Dustin a taste of the bigs. He showed flashes, hopefully in 07 we see more of them.

12-06-2006, 08:43 PM	#11 (permalink)
cjelephant Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 47	he's going to have to hit better than .191 - I didn't see any "flashes" last year. I hope there is a plan B.

12-07-2006, 08:54 PM	#12 (permalink)
Rice4HoF Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Calgary, Canada Posts: 60	Well, I'm a big Dustin fan, so I noticed his "flashes", maybe because I was looking closer than most people. And to answer your questions, Plan B is that he plays like he did after his initial few games. After starting off 4 for his first 40, he finished the season with 13 hits in his last 49 at bats (.282). Along with a couple of HRs and a few walks, his line (BA/OBP/SLG) (and again, excluding his first 40 ABs) was 282/345/449 for an OPS of 794. For comparison, only Manny, Oritz, Pena, Lowell and Youk had higher OPS last year. Among the regulars, Loretta ended at 706, Tek 725, Crisp 702 and I won't even mention AGon. So, if he can just maintain the level of hitting he kept over the last 3 and a half or so weeks of the season, we'll do just fine. Of course, I expect him to continue developing and improve on those numbers.

12-08-2006, 09:39 AM	#13 (permalink)
AutomatedTeller Moderator Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 545	I assuming those numbers (.340/.450) are about the most we should expect, over a season, from Pedroia. With the improvements the Sox have made to the offense, getting that out of the #9 spot will likely make the Sox the best offense in the league.