2007 Boston Red Sox Preview
David Ortiz and Jonathan Papelbon will Lead Red Sox to 2007 Playoffs
The Boston Red Sox enter the 2007 season with a lot of questions. How players answer those questions will determine whether they can get back to the World Series.
2006 Record: 86-76 (3rd in AL East)
2007 Red Sox Significant Additions
Last season, the Boston Red Sox fell to third place in the American League East for the first time since 1997. In the first of a series of reactionary moves, Boston spent $103 million to acquire Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. Based on early reports from spring training, the man they call Dice-K may be the real deal.
Then they signed J.D. Drew to a 5 year, $70 million contract. That’s a lot of samolians for a “slugger” who has only reached 100 RBI once in his career, and has missed huge chunks of three of the last five seasons with major injuries.
Finally, the team extended a four year, $36 million deal to Julio Lugo. Another intriguing signing by Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein.
2007 Boston Red Sox Offense
Last season, the Red Sox ranked only sixth in runs scored, after leading the American League for three straight years. The additions of Drew and Lugo will help, but they will not add sufficient 'pop' to the lineup to bring the Sox offense back to the top the AL. Because they have Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz, however, the Red Sox will still be able win a lot of games with the bat. This team is not as potent as it was from 2002-2004, but it is good enough to finish in the top three in offense in the American League.
2007 Red Sox Starting Pitching
The Bosox starting pitching is a large collection of “ifs.” If Curt Schilling can stay healthy all year, and if Josh Beckett can rebound from his disastrous 2005 season, and if Jonathan Papelbon can adjust to the starting rotation, and if Daisuke Matsuzaka is all that he is cracked up to be, well then the Red Sox will be fantastic. But that’s a lot of ifs.
2007 Red Sox Bullpen
This is the team’s biggest weakness. Boston lost its ace closer when they decided to move Jonathan Papelbon to the starting rotation. Realizing they needed to fill this rather large gap, the Red Sox signed six new relievers in the off-season to battle it out for the closer’s job. Brendan Donnelly, Joel Piniero and J.C. Romero are among the lucky half-dozen. The defeated five will then have a chance to compete for middle relief jobs. The Sox are hoping that at least two of the new pitchers work out, and that some of their current young relievers mature during 2007. Look for Donnelly and Romero to anchor the bullpen; although they certainly aren’t a dream team, they are tough veterans who are good enough to keep the team in ballgames.
Keys to Success: If the Red Sox are going to return to the playoffs in 2007, they will need Crisp to return to his 2005 form (.300 BA, 42 2B, 16 HR), Josh Beckett to keep his ERA below 3.75, and for one of their hired-hand relievers to emerge as a true closer. If all of that happens, they win the Wild Card. If Drew has a career year and Papelbon is a true starter, the Sox will go a lot further than that. The team is truly up in the air right now.
Predictions: Manny and Ortiz will have big years, as always. Dice-K will win 15 games and Crisp will play well, but Beckett will continue to struggle. Schilling will be limited by injuries to roughly 100 innings. Papelbon will shine as a starter.
2007 Record: 92-70, American League Wild Card winner
Click to see 2007 Baseball previews for the New York Yankees, the Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins.
