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In most instances, a manager will focus on the opposing team’s starting pitcher when filling out his lineup card prior to a game.

But that may end up being the opposite of what Boston Red Sox manage John Farrell will do when he fills his out before Boston takes the field against the New York Yankees on April 1. It appears that Farrell will put more emphasis on his starting pitcher than New York’s, who is likely to be CC Sabathia.

Farrell has yet to announce who his Opening Day starter will be, but as Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston writes, all signs point to Jon Lester. Lester has started Boston’s first game the last two seasons, but is coming off a terrible season.

In 2012, Lester went 9-14 in 33 starts, posting a 4.82 ERA across 205.1 innings of work. Lester, however, has had a remarkable spring. In five starts, he has thrown 20 innings while allowing just a pair of earned runs. He’s struck out 16 batters and has walked just four. Giving him the nod on April 1 seems like a no-brainer.

Lester starting against the Yankees does affect who Farrell puts into the lineup, though. Farrell has to decide whether Jarrod Saltalamacchia or David Ross is going to be the Lester’s catcher when the Red Sox take the field against the Bronx Bombers.

While Saltalamacchia is the regular catcher on the roster and Ross is the backup, Ross may end up getting the start. As Edes explains, Ross has caught Lester more times than Saltalamacchia has this spring. Even though Farrell has said he won’t have specific pitcher-catcher pairings, the Boston newcomer may end up being Lester’s regular catcher.

Lester doesn’t think so, though, according to Edes.

“Salty’s the starting catcher, isnt he?” Lester said after Daniel Butler caught him in a minor league game, while Saltalamacchia was behind the plate for Daniel Bard. “I would imagine it’s Salty. I think that’s up to John Farrell when it comes down to that stuff. I would imagine if Salty’s the guy we’re going with, he’s the guy who will be catching me.” 

While Saltalamacchia may end up being the guy behind the plate most this season and the one that catches Lester more often than not, there are some extenuating circumstances that are out of his control.

David Ortiz is going to miss the start of the season as he continues to battle heel issues, leaving the designated hitter’s spot in the lineup unaccounted for. As spring training comes to a close, it appears that Saltalamacchia is a prime candidate to fill in while Ortiz is sidelined.

Saltalamacchia isn’t a fan of that notion, according to Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal.

“I’m not a DH,” said Saltalamacchia. “I don’t want to be a DH. I’m not used to sitting on the bench, even if I go in the cages [during the game]. I’m used to catching where I see a ball coming. That helps me because I’m not walking up to the plate having not seen anything. You’re seeing balls come in from your pitchers. You already have that timing down. That helps me.”

Saltalamacchia’s career splits confirm his comments. Over the course of his career, Saltalamacchia has been a .245/.308/.434 hitter as a catcher and a .231/.351/.308 hitter as a designated hitter.

So what should Farrell do?

Although Saltalamacchia is a much better hitter as a catcher, it seems probable that he’ll be the Opening Day designated hitter.

Jonny Gomes is another candidate to fill the void left by Ortiz, but Saltalamacchia is definitely going to be in the lineup, unless he gets injured in the next week or so. Since Ross has been catching Lester the most this spring, one would assume that he’d be in the lineup as well. That would mean that Gomes likely plays left field on April 1.

This situation wouldn’t be nearly as complicated if Clay Buchholz looked like the Opening Day starter instead of Lester. But Lester gives Boston the best chance at opening the 2013 season with a win.

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There are some players in Major League Baseball who just won’t go down on strikes.

These players are a pitcher’s worst nightmare—the ones who foul off pitch after pitch, battling until they find a pitch they can put into play. The batter might ground out, fly out or line out, but he definitely isn’t going to strike out.

Oftentimes, players who don’t fall by way of the K very often see many pitches and walk frequently. If you think about it, this makes plenty of sense. The batter waits for the perfect pitch, and if he doesn’t see it before the pitcher throws two strikes, he’s going to do his best to work the count. As the pitcher throws more and more pitches, it becomes more likely that the batter watches four balls get called.

But this isn’t about walking, it’s about not striking out. It’s about having a good enough eye to determine a difference between pitches. It’s about what a batter has to do to avoid swinging and missing on a pitch down the pipe or letting the umpire make the ultimate decision for him.

Here are the eight toughest batters to strike out in all of baseball.

*All statistics were obtained via FanGraphs unless otherwise noted. All contract information was obtained via Cot’s Contracts. All injury information was obtained via Baseball Prospectus.

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Shane Victorino was one of the lucky players to be selected to play for Team USA in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.

Victorino signed a three-year deal with the Boston Red Sox over the winter and departed from spring training early to go represent his country. In five games with Boston during camp, he went 0-for-11 with a pair of runs, four walks and three strikeouts.

One of four outfielders on manager Joe Torre’s United States roster, Victorino played a variety of roles. Ryan Braun, Adam Jones and Giancarlo Stanton were more dangerous threats, so Victorino didn’t see much time in the outfield. He did get his fair share of playing time, though.

Unfortunately for Victorino and Team USA, the Americans’ dream of winning the WBC came up short. The United States went 2-1 in Pool D play, but later lost two of three in Pool 2 and were eliminated from further contention. It’s the third straight year Team USA failed to make the semifinal round.

But let’s focus in on the play of Boston’s newest right fielder, examining how he did in the World Baseball Classic.

Patriotism: A+

I’ll give credit to any player that wants to play for their country. There seems to be a big disconnect between some of the top players in Major League Baseball and their desire to play in the World Baseball Classic, a topic that’s been widely discussed since the rosters were announced.

But that can’t be said for Victorino, who took part in his second WBC. It was an interesting decision considering he was new with Boston and decided that instead of developing close ties with his new teammates that he should take advantage of an opportunity that doesn’t come around too often.

Victorino is no longer in his prime, but he was more than proud to accept the offer. According to Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston, Victorino said:

To represent your country is something you dream of as a child. Putting on a USA jersey, I never thought growing up in Hawaii I’d wear a USA jersey and put on No. 50, to represent my state. I’m excited to wear 50 again. I’m pumped.

It’s encouraging to know that he so was excited to play for Team USA. Hopefully he’s just as excited to play for the Red Sox the next three years.

In-Game Results: F

I hate to say it, but Victorino was a major disappointment in my eyes at the World Baseball Classic. I understand that it’s a little early in the year to be playing such meaningful games and maybe he wasn’t as prepared as he could’ve been, but he was a non-factor for Team USA.

Here are Victorino’s game-by-game results:

Mexico vs. USA: 0-for-1 (PH)

USA vs. Italy: DNP

USA vs. Canada: 1-for-5, RBI, 3 K (LF)

Puerto Rico vs. USA: DNP

Dominican Republic vs. USA: 0-for-1 (PH)

Puerto Rico vs. USA: 0-for-4, 2 K (DH)

As you can clearly tell, Victorino didn’t see a lot of time on the field. He started just twice and came off the bench twice, sitting the remaining two games. Even still, he didn’t make much of an impact. Combined, he went 1-for-11 with one RBI and five strikeouts.

Now, we can’t just throw out the excuse that the other pitchers were just better than the Americans because some players on Team USA played very well. Take David Wright, for instance. Even though he missed the final game due to injury, he went 7-for-16 in the WBC with three extra-base hits and 10 RBI.

I’m not trying to compare Victorino to Wright; I’m just stating that hitting in the international competition was possible. In fact, Victorino was the only player on Team USA with at least 10 at-bats not to hit at least .200. His bat just wasn’t there during the WBC.

Overall: C-

Once again, I love that Victorino decided to play. Since spring training started, he’s had just as many total at-bats as many other Red Sox players despite leaving camp to play in the World Baseball Classic. You can’t blame a guy for wanting to play for his country instead of playing exhibition games with the team he recently signed with.

But as I’ve stated, despite the experience, Victorino was horrible for Team USA. The United States as a whole played poorly at times and Victorino certainly was one of the reasons why. Does he deserve all of the blame? Absolutely not, but he deserves some of it. He only had one hit in 11 at-bats. That’s not good no matter which way you spin it.

Victorino couldn’t help Team USA win the WBC title, but here’s to hoping he makes a difference with the Red Sox in 2013.

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Missing “valuable” time will have another meaning for David Ortiz once the season begins in a couple of weeks.

Over the winter, Ortiz signed a two-year, $26 million contract with the Boston Red Sox. Ortiz is expected to make a base salary of $14 million in the upcoming season and $11 million the following year. But that all could change due to a clause in the deal he recently inked.

The clause states that Ortiz’s 2014 salary may increase to $13 million or $15 million based on the number of days on the active roster in 2013, according to Baseball Prospectus’ Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Ortiz will earn the additional $4 million in 2013 if he spends less than 20 days on the disabled list with a pre-existing Achilles injury.

General manager Ben Cherington knew Ortiz might miss time with the nagging Achilles that allowed him to play in just 90 games last season. It was very smart of him to add that clause into Ortiz’s deal, admitting that he’d probably be worth more if he was able to stay healthy. If Ortiz doesn’t stay healthy, Cherington doesn’t have to pay him nearly as much.

“As with any player, you’ve got to get to the bottom of the health and figure out the risk involved,” Cherington told Joe McDonald of ESPN Boston at the time of the deal. “Our benefit is we know David so well and we know how hard he’s going to work to put himself in the best position to play and be healthy.”

Cherington went on to say that Ortiz was feeling much better and that it wasn’t a concern going forward more than any other player in a similar situation.

Well, now Ortiz isn’t feeling much better, and Cherington should be concerned. I calculated the odds of Ortiz playing on Opening Day, giving him a 40 percent chance of taking the field. That probability has gone down significantly over the last couple of days.

Ortiz recently had an MRI, which showed inflammation in both of his heels—something that’s caused him pain as he’s tried to work his way back, according to Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe. Ortiz is likely to start the season on the disabled list since he has yet to play in one spring training game, writes Abraham.

“Opening Day was my goal,” said Ortiz. “You heard me talking about it when I first got here. I was swinging good and I was pushing things the way I was being told. Right now, Opening Day seems like it’s not the case. The case is get me healthy for five or five and a half good months. You know what I’m saying? That’s what we’re looking for now.”

This is bad news for Ortiz and bad news for the Red Sox.

The longer Ortiz is sidelined, the greater the chance he’ll lose out on $4 million. Ortiz isn’t the type of player who is all about the money, but he has been vocal about his contract status in the past. Don’t think he won’t be doing everything in his power to make sure he’s back as quickly as possible without increasing the chance of re-injury.

Boston doesn’t have the best options to replace Ortiz either. I would assume that since Mike Napoli is a bit of a health risk, he’d be the immediate replacement as the designated hitter. There’s no need to play him in the field everyday. In that scenario, Boston could employ Mike Carp, Daniel Nava or Mauro Gomez at first base while Ortiz likely sits on the sidelines recovering.

The main story here, though, is Ortiz’s health and its continued deterioration. I’m not glad that Ortiz isn’t going to be ready for Opening Day by any means, but I do think it’s good that Cherington will likely have an extra $4 million to spend elsewhere in the future.

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I know what you’re thinking, but trust me, it’s not going to happen.

Spring training is a good time to evaluate players of all ages and experiences, throwing them onto a field together and seeing what they’re capable of. It’s the perfect strategy.

Boston Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington and the rest of the front office love this time of the year—it makes their lives a little easier with all the players being in one location.

But one shouldn’t rely too much on spring training numbers. Sure, they mean something, but they don’t always tell the entire story. I shouldn’t have to explain it, but I will in short.

Players are going up against an enormous pool of players that aren’t necessarily compatible. If a Triple-A pitcher gets rocked against major league hitters, well, that’s what we’d expect. Assumptions can be made on the futures of many players, but if a prospect gets hot early, you can’t take it too seriously just yet.

Here are a couple of players in Boston’s camp vying for a spot on the team, but who really have no shot at making the 25-man Opening Day roster no matter how well they continue to play.

Rubby De La Rosa, Pitcher

In the near future, Rubby De La Rosa is going to be a star in Boston’s starting rotation. But it won’t come in April 2013, and it probably won’t come until near the end of the season, barring an injury.

De La Rosa is one of the top pitching prospects the Red Sox have in their system. He shows a lot of promise, and it’s clear that he has some nasty pitches up his sleeve. Just Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates, he was making some regulars look foolish.

The flame-throwing right-hander has been all Boston could have asked for this early in spring training. He’s yet to allow a run through four innings of work (two outings) while surrendering just one hit.

After De La Rosa’s perfect performance against Pittsburgh, manager John Farrell crushed the dreams of those who thought that the pitcher could break camp with Boston, according to Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe:

Farrell said that De La Rosa “would be in the minor leagues someplace” to start the season and mentioned that could well be Double-A Portland. “At this point, probably not,” Farrell said when asked whether De La Rosa would make the team.

We shouldn’t be shocked by these comments by the skipper, though. De La Rosa is coming off of Tommy John surgery and still needs to be stretched more into a starting pitcher. He’s only thrown 61.1 innings between the minors and the majors in his career, and even though his recent performances may have you thinking otherwise, he isn’t ready.

Jackie Bradley, Outfielder

As much as every Red Sox fan would love to see Jackie Bradley make the team once spring training comes to a close, he won’t. I want to see him play at Fenway Park, but to start the season, Bradley will be in the minors.

There’s no doubt that Bradley has made a name for himself in camp. He’s 8-for-14 (.571) with four runs in five games. He’s hitting the ball to all fields, playing well defensively and showing why he’s one of Boston’s top prospects—arguably second behind Xander Bogaerts.

B/R MLB Prospects Lead Writer Mike Rosenbaum even deemed Bradley as the hottest prospect in spring training. Rosenbaum says that “although he’s a long shot to make the Opening Day roster, the left-handed hitter’s mature bat, secondary skills and defense have already made a strong impression on the coaching staff and front office.”

But once again, Farrell was there to shoot down any kind of hope, according to Abraham:

Any time you’re looking at a young player who’s still developing, if he’s not going to get a minimum of three days a week at the major league level, it’s probably working against him as he develops into what we would project as an everyday player, said Farrell.

And Farrell is 100 percent correct. Bradley wouldn’t be starting if he made the team, although he would have a strong case to if he continues to play this well. The Red Sox have three starting outfielders and aren’t going to rush a prospect through the system to see what he can do.

Bradley has only been in professional baseball for two seasons and has yet to play for Triple-A Pawtucket. At the start of 2012, he was still in Single-A. It would be stupid for Boston to advance him so quickly.

As of now, he looks good. But the Red Sox can’t afford to risk anything with him.

Jose Iglesias, Shortstop

Through the first couple of spring games, I’ve already talked about Jose Igelsias’ chances of making the 25-man roster a little bit. But I’ll expand a little bit more on the defensive-minded shortstop here.

Recently, I analyzed Boston’s options about what it could do if Iglesias continues to hit well, coming to the conclusion that the likeliest option is still sending him back to Triple-A to continue to develop into more of a hitter. Iglesias can hit in camp all he wants, but that won’t change much.

Boston would have an extremely difficult time moving Stephen Drew, who signed to be the everyday shortstop over the offseason. It would likely take an injury to Drew for him to be on the Opening Day roster. It’s a tough pill to swallow, but there just isn’t room for Iglesias right now.

So even though Iglesias won’t make the team, he has to stay positive. He still has a bit of time before Xander Bogaerts is ready to make the jump to the majors. Drew is only signed for one year, and Igelsias could easily take over at some point this season—if he hits in the minors, though.

Iglesias would then have to play well enough in that opportunity in order to force the Red Sox to transition Bogaerts to a new position—likely third base or a corner outfield spot due to his size. That’s the ideal situation for Iglesias at the moment.

Or—and this is a big or—he waits and hopes that Boston doesn’t extend Dustin Pedroia and Igelsias becomes the second baseman. For now, however, he’s a minor league shortstop and will start the season in that role.

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The Boston Red Sox dropped their first official matchup of the spring Saturday afternoon to the Tampa Bay Rays—overall, Boston didn’t play half bad.

Boston’s 4-3 loss came two days after the Red Sox defeated a pair of college programs, Boston College and Northeastern University, in exhibition games. Tampa Bay got their runs on a Ryan Roberts sacrifice fly in the first inning, an error on Jarrod Saltalamacchia in the third and a two-run home run from Leslie Anderson in the eighth.

The Red Sox were down 4-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth and were able to cut the deficit to one run, but Daniel Nava struck out looking to end the game. For a full recap of the game, I compiled a live blog of the afternoon’s events.

But it’s time to go into a little more depth about what was good and bad in Saturday’s action.  

John Lackey is Healthy, Pitches Fine

The Boston Red Sox haven’t had John Lackey take the mound for in-game action since 2011. He missed all of 2012 after undergoing Tommy John surgery and enters 2013 with a bit of a chip on his shoulder.

As he told Tim Britton of The Providence Journal, “I took a second before I went on the mound and reflected on the past year and a half. It’s been a lot of work.”

Lackey pitched the first inning against the Rays, just trying to get some work in. Ben Zobrist drew a walk, Desmond Jennings singled and Matt Joyce was hit by a pitch to start the afternoon, and before he knew it, the Rays had the bases loaded and no one out.

Jack Cust struck out swinging, but Roberts hit a sacrifice fly to Shane Victorino in right field and Tampa Bay scored its first run of the game. A Sean Rodriguez fly out to Victorino ended the inning for the Red Sox and the outing for Lackey.

After he exited, Lackey told Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston, “I was excited. It was fun. I missed playing baseball for sure. And I didn’t feel any pain in my elbow.”

It was relatively obvious that Lackey had some nerves once taking the mound, but those subsided with each batter. He found his command and was able to escape further damage. Going forward, Lackey should be fine. He’s much slimmer and just needs to keep throwing.

Jose Iglesias a Hitter?

Throughout Jose Igelsias’ entire career, he’s been known as a defensive mastermind who couldn’t hit. Well if you’d never seen Iglesias play, you would’ve thought the opposite if tuning in on Saturday.

Iglesias fielded a routine ground ball by Ty Morrison in the top of the sixth inning and made a nonchalant throw to Daniel Nava, who was getting some experience at first base. The erratic throw pulled Nava off the bag, Morrison reached and Iglesias was credited with an error.

Iglesias made up for it in the bottom half of the frame, though, as he crushed a pitch to left field for a two-run home run, tying the game at 2-2.

To say that the Iglesias home run was rare would be a major understatement. In nearly 1,000 career at-bats in the minor leagues, Iglesias only has two hits that went over the fence. Yes, in three years in Boston’s system, Iglesias has hit two home runs. He does, however, have another, coming last season with the Red Sox.

But to call Iglesias a power hitter would be a mistake. He’s still developing his play with the bat—hopefully it can compliment his glove sometime in the near future.

Iglesias would have been the starting shortstop this season if the Red Sox felt that his bat was going to get better over the offseason. Instead, Boston signed Stephen Drew, who started Saturday, and now Iglesias will likely start the season back with Triple-A Pawtucket.

But if Iglesias can keep hitting consistently and with power, who knows what will happen come Opening Day.

Shane Victorino Off to a Slow Start

When the Red Sox decided to trade Carl Crawford last season and let Cody Ross walk in free agency this past winter, they had two outfield holes to fill. Shane Victorino was one of the players Boston brought in to potentially improve on last season’s disappointing result.

Boston signed Victorino to a three-year, $39 million deal, hoping that he’d be able to hit around .295 with some power like he had done previously in his career. Over the last three seasons, Victorino has hit .264/.334/.432 with an average of 15 home runs and 62 RBI per year.

Victorino got his first chance to dawn a Red Sox uniform Saturday, hitting third and starting in right field. Although he played well defensively, he was a disaster offensively.

After Jacoby Ellsbury walked in the first and Dustin Pedroia struck out, Victorino stepped into the box looking to make an early mark on the game. Instead, he grounded into a double play that ended the inning.

The next time Victorino came up, he grounded out to second base. In his third at bad, he grounded into another double play. Going 0-for-3, grounding into a pair of double plays and leaving three men on base probably isn’t the start he was looking for.

But, of course, this was just the first of many games that Victorino will play this spring. There’s plenty of time for him to bounce back offensively after a poor first game. It’s much too early to judge his contract; it’s only been one game.

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The Tampa Bay Rays took advantage of some inconsistent Boston Red Sox pitching as they took the first game of spring training, 4-3.

John Lackey took the mound for the first time since 2011 for the Red Sox, allowing one run in one inning of work. He struggled early in the inning, but got more comfortable with each batter and got out the first without further damage.

Down 2-0 in the seventh inning, Jose Iglesias launched a ball into the replica Green Monster seats to tie the game. Iglesias, who also had an error in the game, is trying to prove the Red Sox front office wrong. Boston signed Stephen Drew, who went 0-for-1 with a walk, this winter that will likely send Iglesias to Triple-A Pawtucket to start the season.

Oscar Villareal allowed a two-run home run to Leslie Anderson in the eighth inning, putting Boston against the wall late.

Xander Bogaerts, the team’s top prospect, hit an RBI single in the bottom of the night to cut the Rays’ lead to 4-3, but Daniel Nava struck out looking to end the game with him on first base.

None of the Red Sox starters were that impressive offensively and aside from the shaky first from Lackey, a couple of poor innings from Drake Britton and the home run allowed by Villareal, the pitching wasn’t too bad.

The Red Sox travel to take on the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday, with first pitch set for 1:05 p.m. ET.

Final: Rays 4, Red Sox 3

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Spring training isn’t just about players getting ready for the regular season. It’s also about the sunshine in Florida and Arizona while most of the United States is still getting snow.

Several teams have magnificent spring facilities that include batting cages, practice fields and, of course, the actual stadium.

Creating a comfortable environment for fans to watch the rising stars of each organization is important to every club. That’s shown in the time and money the teams put into these complexes.

Spring training is a time when players and fans are closest together. Once Opening Day rolls around, it’s all business all the time.

So while teams are still basking in the warm weather, let’s take a look at the 10 best spring-training stadiums.

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The Boston Red Sox haven’t played an exhibition game yet, but they should already be worried about the future of Felix Doubront.

Last season was Doubront’s first full season with the Red Sox and he had his fair share of moments. In 29 starts, he went 11-10 with a 4.86 ERA in 161 innings of work, striking out 167 while walking 71. His inability to go deep into each game was one of the things that really held him back in 2012, averaging less than 5.2 innings per start.

Coming into 2013, Doubront’s spot in the starting rotation looks to be secure. He’ll likely be the No. 4 starter, pitching behind Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz and Ryan Dempster and ahead of John Lackey.

But that’s only going to happen if everything goes according to plan in spring training. And even though it’s early in camp, things haven’t gone Doubront’s way.

On Tuesday, Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe reported that Doubront will be limited in spring training due to shoulder soreness, according to manager John Farrell:

“Not because of injury situations,” said Farrell. “Just maybe some discomfort and overall strength that they [Doubront and Craig Breslow] felt in their long-toss program. More precautionary than anything.

“When they got aggressive in their long-toss program there was some sensation in there, a little bit of irritation. Want to be clear that it’s not an injury situation.”

Since when is shoulder discomfort not an injury situation? It certainly seems like one to me, especially if the Red Sox are going to limit his workouts going forward.

As Scott Lauber of The Boston Herald points out, Doubront was shut down for a couple of weeks in August due to shoulder fatigue. Lauber notes that Doubront did bounce back in his final four starts of the season, but that the number of innings Doubront tossed was a lot more than he’d ever thrown in the past.

Before throwing 161 innings in 2012, Doubront’s previous career-high was 129.1 innings in 2008 between Single- and Double-A. The large increase in workload makes you question whether the Red Sox pushed him too hard last season, especially since there wasn’t much to play for late in the year.

But putting 2012 behind Doubront, all he had to was come into spring training healthy and in good shape and it turns out he didn’t do either. His shoulder is already an issue and Lauber reports that he wasn’t in the best shape either:

 

Felix Doubront didn‘t report to camp in the best shape, but Cherington said he has plenty of time to be ready for season #RedSox

— Scott Lauber (@ScottLauber) February 16, 2013

 

Now I’m not stating that the Red Sox need to take a ton of action due to Doubront’s lackluster start to spring training. Boston shouldn’t sign free-agent starting pitcher Kyle Lohse and the Red Sox will probably refrain from doing so, according to Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe.

But someone like Franklin Morales should take note of Doubront’s limitations and take full advantage of them. Morales is going to be stretched out this spring and could easily end up in the starting rotation come Opening Day should someone—Doubront, cough, cough—falter.

Doubront seems to have his head in the right place, though, according to Lauber.

“The goal for every year for every pitching is the innings: more than 200 innings or close to 200 innings” said Doubront. “That’s one of my goals. The first goal is to stay healthy and the second is probably the innings. If you do that, the rest comes—ERA, wins, losses.”

If Doubront was so set on his goals, how come he didn’t come into camp in shape?

And in regard to hitting 200 innings or close to that mark in 2013, if I’m the Red Sox, I wouldn’t even test it. General manager Ben Cherington should take a page out of Washington Nationals GM Mike Rizzo’s book and put an innings cap on Doubront in 2013 like Rizzo did with Stephen Strasburg last season.

The Red Sox are going to have a lot of decisions to make in the near future with their starting rotation, but Doubront looks like he will be there for a while. If Boston wants to preserve the future of its young left-hander, they need to be smart and make sure he doesn’t really hurt himself in the upcoming season.

Boston has already taken the first step of limiting his spring training workload and don’t be shocked if the Red Sox limit his regular season as well. His future is much more important than throwing an additional 35 or so innings in 2013.

The Red Sox need to make the safe call with Doubront or else he’ll be the next young starter with plenty of potential that never panned out. 

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The Boston Red Sox have one of the better minor league systems in baseball, but not every prospect is going to be a star.

Fans rely on writers to help analyze young talent and predict who will even reach the big leagues, let alone be successful there.

Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com is notorious for his annual Top 100 Prospects lists and this year’s edition didn’t disappoint. Mayo ranked six Red Sox prospects in his Top 100 including Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley, Matt Barnes, Allen Webster, Henry Owens and Jose Iglesias.

While some of those players are deserving of a Top 100 ranking, others aren’t and some players didn’t get the recognition they have earned through their hard work and dedications.

Let’s take a look at the winners and losers of the 2013 Top 100 Prospects by MLB.com.

Winner: Xander Bogaerts, Shortstop (No. 20)

There was no question that Xander Bogaerts was the top prospect in Boston’s organization, but such a great ranking proves he’s one of the game’s best young talents.

Bogaerts hit .307/.373/.523 with 20 home runs and 81 RBI last season between Single-A Salem and Double-A Portland. The 19-year-old shortstop is rapidly moving through the Red Sox’s minor league system and Mayo believes he will reach the majors in 2014.

Here’s a quick look at what Mayo had to say about Bogaerts:

He has the ability to make hard contact and can shoot the ball to all fields with excellent bat spend and a smooth swing. He has significant raw power he’s still learning to tap into and he will be a better overall hitter as his plate discipline continues to improve.

Bogaerts is likely to start the 2013 season in Double-A Portland and most likely will be promoted at some point to Triple-A Pawtucket. The biggest question surrounding him is whether he’ll be transitioned away from shortstop or if the Red Sox want to keep him there.

Winner: Jose Iglesias, Shortstop (No. 96)

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: Jose Iglesias is not going to be a star in the big leagues. His flaws outweigh his skills which is why I find it puzzling that he’d be ranked the No. 6 prospect in Boston’s organization and the No. 96 prospect in baseball.

Iglesias has played for Triple-A Pawtucket the last two seasons and although his glove has been great, his bat has yet to develop. Ever since he was signed, many thought he needed time to progress as a hitter. It’s only been three years, but I haven’t seen much progress.

In 88 games for the PawSox last season, Iglesias hit .266/.318/.306 with 11 extra-base hits. He seemed ready for the starting spot in Boston heading into 2013, but the Red Sox clearly weren’t comfortable giving it to him.

Instead of letting Iglesias and Pedro Ciriaco compete for the job, the Red Sox signed free-agent shortstop Stephen Drew to a one-year deal—virtually keeping Iglesias in the minors for the time being.

The window for Iglesias is nearly closed unless he can put together a good offensive season in 2013. But good for him for somehow convincing Mayo that he’s good enough and has the potential to be in the Top 100 to start the season.

Loser: Bryce Brentz, Outfielder (Unranked)

For whatever reason, Bryce Brentz didn’t make Mayo’s Top 100 list of prospects. Brentz has been a star in Boston’s minor league system over the last couple of seasons which is why I question his absence.

Brentz spent most of 2012 with Double-A Portland, hitting .296/.355/.478 with 17 home runs and 76 RBI in 122. He was promoted to Triple-A Pawtucket late in the year, but only played in five games. He’s expected to start 2013 with the PawSox and potentially play for the Red Sox late in the year.

Bernie Pleskoff of MLB.com recently said this of the young outfielder:

At his best, Brentz has a well-controlled, measured swing. He finishes the stroke with good follow-through. Using a slight uppercut, Brentz gets sufficient loft on the ball to carry the fence in any park. When he’s going well, his bat speed is outstanding, allowing him to drive the ball to far-away places.

One of Brentz’s biggest struggles is plate discipline and the ability to take bad pitches instead of trying to hit them out of the park. He struck out 130 times in just over 500 plate appearances in Double-A Portland.

Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus ranked Brentz as the eighth-best prospect the Red Sox have, behind all those ranked by Mayo except for Jose Iglesias.

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