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.
