Journalism Blog

You can find it here

Tek-Money, Youkilis

Tek-Money Prior to this offseason I pictured Jason Varitek as the sort of player who was always team first. He went behind Scott Boras’s back in the 2004-2005 offseason, when he signed the four-year deal with the Red Sox that recently expired. Not too long after that he was named the captain of the team, an honor last bestowed upon Hall-of-Famer Jim Rice. Now, the Red Sox offering him $5 million to come back and play another year in Boston (which, for the record is $5 million more than any other team is offering), giving him a chance to prove that he can still compete at the major league level. Not an unreasonable offer for a man in his late 30’s who production last year was feeble at best. Yet, Varitek says he would consider either sitting out a season or retiring before he accepted that offer. What? He would rather sit at home collecting unemployment than recieve $5 million to return to the place where his fans and teammates love him? That doesn’t make much sense to me, and I doubt it makes much sense to Varitek either. This sounds like another Scott Boras bluff, the exact same kind the Red Sox claimed they woul break off negotiations if they ever saw again. Only this time there are no Yankees waiting to scoop up Mark Teixeira (actually, according to a report that just came out, the Yankees cannot sign any more type-A or B free agents this winter, due to the latest collective bargaining agreement. So much for Sheets and Ramirez going there). In fact, no one besides the Red Sox has any interest at all in Varitek. I suppose he could wait until after the June draft, hope that a catcher got injured and try and get more than $5 million for half a season. Hey, it worked for Roger Clemens. The one difference: Jason Varitek is not Roger Clemens. He is being offered an opportunity to return to a place where he is treated like a living legend, and he, as of this moment, is set to turn his back on all of them. This doesn’t sound like the Varitek I know.

Our Captain

Yooooouk Many people are predicting that last season’s stellar performance by one Kevin Youkilis was nothing more than a fluke. They say he’ll go back to his second-half slumping ways. Let me tell you something. Before the myth of Youkilis as a second half bum was created, he was dominating the minor leagues and was one of the top prospects in baseball. In 2006, he was starting in the big leagues for the first time. In 2007, he was one of the best hitters on the team through July, went into an extended slump, as any player could, but then was one of the top players on the team in October, when it mattered, unlike, say, Manny Ramirez. If it wasn’tfor the combined heroics of Youkilis and Lowell, not to mention the incredible pitching by Josh Beckett, it’s very likely the Red Sox wouldn’t have won the World Series that year. Now, in 2008, he was one of the top players in the American League. He is just now entering the prime of his career. Am I saying the guy is a future Hall of Famer? No. Am I saying he will be in contention for the Most Valuable Player award every year? Probably not. But he will be a solid .300/20/80 guy for at least the remainder of the four year deal he just signed. You can count on it.

A Look at the Red Sox 2009 Offense

Next year, it is pretty clear that the Red Sox will have one of the more dominant pitching staffs in baseball. The only ones that I can think of that compare is the upside of a Sabathia-Burnett-Wang-Chamberlain-Hughes rotation and the Zambrano-Dempster-Harden 1-2-3 punch in Chicago. But what about the offense? Many people discussed the need for another big bat in the lineup during the negotiations with Mark Teixeira. However, it’s easy to take for granted what one has, and I think Red Sox fans may be guilty of just that.

Remember, that you have the reigning AL MVP and the man who placed third in the voting on your team. You also have Jason Bay, who would have been right up there in contention had he spent the entire season in the American League. That’s three potential MVP candidates in the lineup. In my reckoning, only the Yankees (Teixeira, A-Rod, Jeter), the World Series Champion Phillies (Howard, Utley, and maybe Rollins) and maybe the Mets (Beltran, Wright, Reyes) can say that. That’s before you add in the 20-30 home run potential of healthy David Ortiz, JD Drew, and Mike Lowell. What we saw last June from Drew is what Theo expected his production to look like throughout the duration of his contract. If he could maintain that level of production throughout the season, the Red Sox offense could begin to resemble a new-school Murderer’s Row.

Of course the back end of the lineup is nowhere near as fearsome. You’ve got Lugo/untested Lowrie and a catcher who may or may not be Jason Varitek. The combined average of those two spots will likely sit in the range of 230-250, not exactly the ideal model of production. Even if the Red Sox do pull off a trade for Jarrod Saltalamacchia, well, his batting average has never been his strong point, although that would add another potential 30 home run bat to the lineup. And all of this is without mentioning Jacoby Ellsbury, who’s performance could make or break the team. If he hits upwards of .300, and runs like he did last year, you’ll almost always have someone on base ahead of Pedroia, putting added pressure on the pitcher. However, if Ellsbury doesn’t improve into the can’t-miss prospect with envisioned, that means less RBI opportunities for the rest of the team, and less runs scored. The equals more losses, pitching or no pitching.

Finally the bench is one of the deepest we’ve seen in quite some time, especially in the outfield and at first base. You’ve got Kotsay and Baldelli already on the major league roster, with Bailey and Carter, who has great success at Triple-A last year, waiting in the wings. Add to that Chip Ambres, Paul McAnulty, and Jon Van Every in Pawtucket in case someone gets hurt, and you have an outfield that can still win games despite injuries. Something tells me we won’t see Youkilis playing left field again this year, but who knows. At third base, you can have Youk back up Lowell, playing Kotsay at first. Behind Tek or Salty you have Josh Bard and George Kotarras at catcher. Lugo and Lowrie will share shortstop and backing up Pedroia at second. All-in-all a fairly deep team.

Red Sox Offseason Report Card

In an offseason that has seen some mediocre players get horrendously overpaid (I’m talking to you Burnett and Sabathia), and some good players go unsigned (Sheets and, grudgingly, Ramirez) the Red Sox have actually managed to piece together a moderately good offseason without breaking the bank or mortgaging the farm system.

I’ve never been a fan of signing long-term deals that will keep a player with the team through their mid-thirties- there’s too much risk involved to justify the rewards. A player in their late 20’s rarely maintains that productions through their late 30’s, or sometimes even through their early 30’s (see Bartolo Colon, Brad Penny, Barry Zito, even guys like Mark Prior.) All of those guys were the most dominant pitchers in their respective leagues as recently as 2004. Look at them now. Colon and Penny are trying to regain their old form with new teams, Zito is loving the huge contract San Francisco gave him, of which he has earned not a penny, and little hope remains for Prior. The kicker is, besides Colon, none of the aforementioned pitchers are that old. In fact Colon is, what, 37? Especially with pitchers, there are way to many variables to make a long term contract worth the risk the team is taking. Zito’s contract is the best example, but in a few years we could be looking back at the Sabathia and Burnett (and perhaps Santana) signings in the same light.

On the other hand, buying low on pitchers can often reap great rewards. The Red Sox tried this strategy in 2005 with Wade Miller and last year with Colon. Colon actually put up some quality numbers before he injured himself swinging the bat (I’d blame interleague play, but that swing was so ugly, Colon deserved what he got). This year, the Sox have a few such reclamation projects. John Smoltz has the potential for the greatest reward, as a healthy John Smoltz is as dominant as anyone in the world. Right behind him is Brad Penny, who just two years ago was one of the premier starters in the National League. In the bullpen, the Sox signed Takashi Saito, formerly of the Dodgers, who is coming off surgery. He, if he stays healthy (and I see no reason why he can’t), could create a one-two punch in the bullpen at least as good as K-Rod/Putz, and maybe a little bit better. And all of these guys together cost less than AJ Burnett. AJ Burnett, who, the Yankees seem to forget, is at least as prone to injury as Penny and Smoltz.

However, the Red Sox passed on the ultimate reclamation project this winter. In fact, every team has up to this point. Ben Sheets has the potential to be the ace of any staff, and, despite injury, managed put put up an ERA right around 3.00 last year. The only problem with Sheets is that any team that signs him will lose a 1st round draft pick, a high price to pay if he does get hurt. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see the Red Sox go after Sheets after the Yankees picked up Burnett and Sabathia, but after signing both Penny and Smoltz, their adding another arm to the already crowded rotation seems unlikely, even if Buchholz or Bowden is dealt for a catcher.

Speaking of catcher, right now the Red Sox have got Josh Bard as the top catcher in the organization, not an enviable place to be. Jason Varitek has until Friday or Saturday (no one seems to know exactly which) to accept his choice of either a one year $5 million deal or a two year deal for the same $, with the second year being a mutual option or move on to another team. If Varitek (or should I say Boras) decides not to accept either of these offers, the Red Sox will likely be forced to trade for one of either Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Taylor Teagarden, or Miguel Montero. Now, none of these catchers is proven in the majors leagues. Personally, my choice would be Salty. He could develop plus power, and is already more of an offensive threat than Varitek, Teagarden, or Montero. He isn’t great behind the plate yet, but working with the Red Sox pitching staff would help him. Actually, my ideal situation would be to have Salty and Varitek platoon, with Tek teaching Salty everything he knows along the way. Where that would leave Bard and George Kottaras, I don’t know. Not to mention that Clay Buchholz is an awfully high price to pay for Salty. Maybe if the Rangers would be willing to accept Bowden + a minor prospect, perhaps an Argenis Diaz, a deal could get done.

Once the catcher problem is solved, the Red Sox will again be right in the hunt for the playoffs, although the AL East looks to be tougher than ever with the new and improved Yankees and the defending American League Champion Rays right there with them. This offseason could really go either way, depending on how guys like Smoltz, Penny, Saito, and Baldelli perform. Let’s not forget about new Japansese import Junichi Tazawa, who will be trying to prove his stuff in Portland before making the big show. All in all, this could be one of the best Red Sox teams in years, or just a repeat of the 2005 squad. We can only wait and see.

Mr. Lizotte Leaves AHS After Ten Years

The following is an article I wrote for the October 2008 issue of the Launch Pad, our school newspapper.

The man who has been the band director here at Auburn High School for the past decade is gone. Mr. Jeff Lizotte, who led the Band, Jazz Band, and Rocket Band, announced his resignation in the end of September, but remained here at AHS until Friday, October 3^rd. He will be sorely missed by both his former students and fellow teachers. “It’s a good thing we don’t have to approve his letter of resignation.” said School Board chairperson Elizabeth Gribbons, “We wouldn’t let him leave.”

Mr. Lizotte will be taking over as the assistant principal at Northbridge High School, an interesting promotion for a band director. However, Lizotte got his Masters in Education and Leadership Management, and is highly qualified for his new position. He was on the NEASC committee here at AHS and has been involved in a management role in many state-wide music competitions. With Mr. Pietrello, the long-standing head of the music department, and Coach Donahue, the new vice principal here at AHS, there was little chance for him to take a management role here at AHS. So, when the offer came from Northbridge, he accepted. “I’m always going to be a musician, that’s always going to be there.” He said in an interview “But, ultimately, in my heart I feel I will be able to help a larger number of students than just those few in band this way.”

When asked what he would miss most about being the band director, Mr. Lizotte answered without hesitation; the students. Many of them he had seen grow from 5^th graders into high school seniors, all the while improving at their instrument of choice. He said he would also miss the faculty here at AHS, who his considered to be almost a second family to him. Mr. Lizotte will try to continue to be a presence at Auburn band events, at least through the end of this year. When asked who he would support in a game between Northbridge and Auburn, he smiled and replied “Right now, I still support Auburn High School.”

He will be replaced by Ms. Bailey, a former chorus teacher here at AHS. Bailey has experience in a variety of instruments, and will be a fitting replacement. However, no one can replace Mr. Lizotte in our hearts and minds. Thank you, Mr. Lizotte, and good luck with your new career. You will be sorely missed.