Kuzul

Spring is in the air, meaning baseball is on the horizon: the best sport there is and will ever be. Players are reporting to camp and rosters are all but set. Many teams have improved this offseason, including bottom-dwellers such as the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Boston Red Sox managed to have the best offseason of them all, signing speedy Carl Crawford out of the blue, bolstering their bullpen, and trading for Adrian Gonzalez, the power-hitting first baseman they have long coveted.

Gonzalez, whom they acquired for some of their best prospects, should destroy opposing pitching this upcoming season, especially at hitter-friendly Fenway Park. Barring injury, clubbing 40-plus homers and plating 100-plus runs is to be expected.

Still up in the air is whether he, who has a contract that expires following the season, will be signed long-term.

The 28-year-old is recovering from shoulder surgery he underwent in October. He was cleared to swing when team trainers determined he had “full range of motion, no tenderness and excellent strength”, according to NESN.

He isn’t expected to play in a spring training game until late March, but his health doesn’t seem to be of great concern.

What is really newsworthy surrounding him is his aforementioned contract situation.

There is nothing but good news on that front. He won’t take the disastrous approach Albert Pujols took with the St. Louis Cardinals, as he is confident an extension will be signed without setting a deadline.

He is three years younger than Pujols, who declined a contract offer from St. Louis believed to be worth $180-200 million over eight or nine years. Pujols is believed to want Alex Rodriguez money, meaning $275 million or more over 10 years.

What does this ridiculousness mean for Gonzalez? His asking price will be high, but Red Sox president Larry Lucchino said the team won’t let Gonzalez reach free agency.

“We’re not going to let him get away,” he said on WEEI’s The Dennis and Callahan Show. “We’re going to get him signed for sure.”

Even after signing Crawford for $142 million Boston has the money to do what Lucchino says they will.

Signing a player to such a long-term deal is always risky, but Gonzalez has everything quality a team could ask for in a power-hitter. He hits the majority of his homers to the opposite field, hits switch, gets on base 40 percent of the time, bats in the .280-.300 range, and plays a Gold Glove caliber first base.

Even still, money in baseball is worrisome. Among those concerned is Chicago White Sox general manager Kenny Williams. He lashed out at the possibility of a team paying Pujols $30 million annually.

”For the game’s health as a whole, when we’re talking about $30 million players, I think it’s asinine,” Williams said, as reported by ESPN Chicago. “We have gotten to the point of no return. Something has to happen. And if it means the game being shut down for the sake of bringing sanity to it, to franchises that aren’t going to stop the insanity, I’m all for it.”

For perspective, the payrolls of the Pirates and San Diego Padres were $35 and $38 million last season.

Williams is right in saying baseball’s at “the point of no return.” I’m glad someone—especially a person with as much power over his club as Williams—brings attention to the ludicrous demands of players.

Here’s what it has come to: either poor teams have had to trade their franchise players, knowing they wouldn’t stand a chance in a bidding war during free agency, or they sign them to long-term lucrative contracts, thereby handcuffing their chances to sufficiently build around them.

And then there’s the case of Pujols, who says he wants to remain with St. Louis but is greedy beyond belief—balking at a $200 million deal because it’s not enough.

Gonzalez won’t make baseball—a game—more of a business than it already is, and soon enough he will receive what he’s evidently worth to stay with his ideal team.

Nonetheless, a significant dent will be made in Boston’s wallet, which is sadly inevitable in this day and age.

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Spring training is upon us. The Red Sox have been busy this offseason. The Yankees, on the other hand, were uncharacteristically quiet. How could the New York Yankees make noise this offseason with a payroll of over 200 million dollars? Yes, even the “Evil Empire of New York” has limitations on how much they can spend.

This article will break down the Red Sox/Yankees rivalry as it stands today and forecast what the 2011 season may hold for each team and/or their players.

Looking at the resurgence of the Boston Red Sox this offseason by means of key acquisitions Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez, one has to wonder, will the Red Sox push the Yankees around in 2011? Are they better than the Yankees? 

When Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman was asked if he agrees that the Red Sox are better on paper today than the Yankees, he said,

“I would agree because they have a deeper starting rotation. I’m not saying they’re going to beat us. We’re not conceding anything. But if somebody asked me right now, they might be a finished product. We’re an unfinished product,” he said last night at a charity event.

“But you don’t win championships in the winter, you win them in the summer. We’re looking forward to going head-to-head with everybody and anybody.” 

“That does not discount anything I have got here,” Cashman said. “It’s just that I have more work to do. I might have the answers right here in front of me. I like what we have coming. Is it ready right now or not yet for an American League pennant race? We’re going to find out and weigh that vs. what becomes available over time. But what I do have, I’m very proud of. And what I do have is going to compete for that title. Can I make it better? I can make it better.”

His opinion that, as of now, the Red Sox are better is shared by most in baseball. There are of course exceptions, including Hank Steinbrenner.

On Tuesday, Hank Steinbrenner had this to say about Brian Cashman’s comments and where his team stands heading into the 2011 MLB season..

“I think we’re the hunter. At the end of the day, listen, no one’s conceding anything. No one’s conceding anything. But as I described the other day in full force, if this was the start of a race..from their winter, they (the Red Sox) qualified for the pole position. Their pole position right now is better than ours because of the winter that they had compared to the winter that I personally had.”

“When you guys are looking at me straight-faced in the eye and (say) what did you think about their winter and where does that put them compared to you, I think they’re the hunted, we’re the hunter and that’s as simple as that and I don’t think anybody would disagree with that,” Cashman said.

“You can make with it whatever you want, I don’t really care, but that’s not selling us short. I like our talent. I like our talent a lot. I give myself an incomplete. Simple as that. If you want to insult anybody …I’m insulting myself. It’s as simple as that. I have more work to do.”

Brian Cashman also was quoted as saying, “We have a lot of talent here because they (the Steinbrenners) allow us to go the extra mile to try and find as much as we can to put us in position to succeed,” Cashman said.

“We almost got back to the World Series but almost obviously is not good enough in our market, so every now and then, a healthy reminder of what comes with not crossing the finish line, that’s going to happen. Why we fell short, how we fell short, the bottom line is we fell short.”

Now that we have heard the sentiment from around the league, let’s now analyze for ourselves which team is better. A good place to start is by looking at the projected opening day lineups. Next, an assessment of the two team’s defenses and pitching staffs will be in order. Lastly, every team is only as good as the coach(es) behind it, so we will take a look at each team’s coaching staff.

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With spring training just starting up, optimism about the upcoming season is at its highest. There is not a better time to make predictions about the upcoming season, which should be a great one.

The American League MVP award is awarded annually to the player who is considered most valuable to his team throughout the year. Recent recipients of the award include Josh Hamilton and Joe Mauer.

In anticipation for the 2011 season, I have decided to rank the five American League preseason MVP favorites.

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As teams prepare to begin the exhibition season, the fans continue to prepare for what the upcoming season may bring from their favorite teams and players.

With plenty of unexpected movement this past offseason, we are guaranteed to experience some more major surprises, as the season is just over one month away from the first pitch.

After all, how many people predicted that the San Francisco Giants would defeat the Texas Rangers in the 2010 Fall Classic? If you did, can you please tell me who you like in 2011?

The Giants will try and defend their crown, while 29 other teams will look to dethrone them. Many new players will be heavily counted on to bring their new team to glory, while the teams who stood pat this past Winter will be expecting to take the next step toward reaching their destiny.

So even though most fans are expecting the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies to meet in the 2011 World Series, nothing can ever be counted on as a foregone conclusion.

Like I already said, how many of you had the Giants and Rangers squaring off last year before the season started?

Exactly. That is why they play the games.

The games may not start for a little longer, but the questions have already begun. Here is a look at a few pesky questions that each team will face heading into the 2011 MLB season.

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As spring training gets underway in Florida and Arizona, we take one last look at the recent Major League Baseball offseason and how the various trades and acquisitions will affect the fantasy landscape for 2011.

While there was much more movement than the players listed below, this is a fantasy roster comprised of the most notable players per position that will be wearing different uniforms from Opening Day 2010 and should be on radars come draft time 2011. Not all players in this article are necessarily top-tier options, but each carries some value all the way through the mid-to-late rounds if you have a position of need during your draft.

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Now that spring training has begun, it’s time to look back at this offseason. And what an offseason it was. Spending was up and it was like 1999 all over again.

However, some teams spent wisely and made some good acquisitions, while other teams didn’t spend their money so wisely. As the knight said in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, “They chose poorly.”

We’ll look at the teams that chose poorly later, but for now, we will look at the five winners from this offseason.

 1. Boston Red Sox

 To get Adrian Gonzalez seemed like a stretch. To sign Carl Crawford seemed like a reach. To get them both seemed impossible. Yet, GM Theo Epstein managed to do both within a week.

The Red Sox acquired Gonzalez from the San Diego Padres for four prospects and then signed Crawford to a seven-year, $142 million contract, giving Boston two superstars at the top of their order. Not only are Gonzalez and Crawford great hitters, but they are great defenders as well and will improve Boston’s overall defense.

The Red Sox gave up some top prospects for Gonzalez, but they didn’t gut their system. They still had three prospects land in Keith Law’s top-100 for 2011.

The Red Sox also brought in Jarrod Saltalamacchia to catch and shored up their bullpen with the additions of Dan Wheeler, Bobby Jenks and the re-signing of Hideki Okajima.

2. Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies already had a top starting rotation with messers Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, and Roy Oswalt. Then they go out this offseason and sign Cliff Lee to give them a rotation baseball hasn’t seen in years.

Lee was the biggest free-agent prize this offseason and he signed with the Phillies for five years and $120 million with an option for 2016. The fact that Hamels is now their No. 4 starter is a joke.

The Phillies did lose Jayson Werth to the Washington Nationals, but should be able to adequately replace him with Domonic Brown.

3. Milwaukee Brewers

Brewer starters finished 15th in ERA, 15th in WHIP, and 14th in innings pitched amongst National League teams in 2010. So what did GM Doug Melvin do to fix this issue? He went out and acquired a legit No.2 starter in Shaun Marcum and then hit the mother load when he acquired the 2009 American League Cy Young award winner in Zack Greinke from the Kansas City Royals.

In two fell swoops, the Brewers went from having one of the worst rotations in the NL to, on paper at least, having one of the best. Marcum, Greinke, and Yovani Gallardo as a top three is pretty legit.

The Brewers also brought in Takashi Saito to help out with the bullpen and signed Rickie Weeks to an extension.

4. Toronto Blue Jays

I don’t care what other moves a GM makes during the course of an offseason, anytime he unloads the worst contract in baseball, he is a winner. When GM Alex Anthopolous unloaded Vernon Wells and the $86 million remaining on his contract, the Blue Jays became a big winner this winter. This one move alone will allow the Blue Jays to aggressively pursue other free agents or put more money into their farm system.

I wasn’t a big fan of the Jose Bautista extension because I thought there is a big risk involved, but I liked their other acquisitions of Rajai Davis, Octavio Dotel, Jon Rauch, Frank Francisco and Scott Podsednik. I also thought they did well in acquiring Brett Lawrie, who they will move over from second to third, in the Marcum trade.

5. Oakland A’s

The A’s finished 11th in the American League in runs scored, 13th in HRs, and tied for 10th in OPS. Offense was a top priority for Billy Beane’s ballclub.

While Beane didn’t land Adrian Beltre like he hoped, he did go out and get Josh Willingham from the Nationals, David DeJesus from the Royals and signed Hideki Matsui away from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Beane also spent money in the bullpen as he brought in Grant Balfour and Brian Fuentes to compliment Andrew Bailey and Brad Ziegler.

Later, we’ll take a look at the five losers from this offseason.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghosofmlg

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

As the title suggests, there’s rampant optimism among Red Sox fans after this winter’s acquisitions. The club traded for Adrian Gonzalez, a highly-prized first baseman whom the Boston brain trust has coveted for years. That grab was followed by the signing of Carl Crawford, the former Tampa left fielder who was the top free agent available this offseason.

The team then made some other changes, bringing in Bobby Jenks and Dan Wheeler to shore up an ailing bullpen, moving Kevin Youkilis back to third base after Adrian Beltre signed with Texas, and inking a diverse supporting cast of role players.

Adding two big bats to an already productive lineup got fans excited and competitors scrambling to devise ways to combat an offense that could be historically great. It’s true that these Sox need to prove themselves on the field before we can crown them division champs (or better), but the enthusiasm is justified.

Let’s quantify just how good this offense might be.

In doing so, it’s important to remember that offensive production doesn’t necessarily equate to wins. You could have the best lineup in history and still struggle if adequate pitching isn’t in place. But this year’s Sox have an improved bullpen and a serviceable rotation. In fact, if John Lackey and Josh Beckett can rebound from last year’s poor numbers, the starting five might be among the better rotations in baseball.

So if we take it as a given that the pitching can hang in there and keep the team in games, how good might the offense be, and what might that mean for the win column?

To figure it out, I took a look at the franchise’s historical data, specifically team OPS. OPS, which is on-base percentage plus slugging percentage, is one of the better metrics at providing a snapshot of how good a player or team is (or was) at the plate.

Going all the way back to 1901, the franchise has a correlation of 0.92 between team OPS and runs scored. A value of 1.00 would have been perfectly positive, indicating that higher OPS always equates more runs scored, so a value of 0.92 is very strong. In simple terms, it’s been statistically true that the better the team does in one of those categories, the better they do in the other.

This doesn’t mean that an increase in OPS causes an increase in runs (or the other way around), but it doesn’t mean that two are connected.  So if we want to figure out how the 2011 offense might produce, we can draw some reasonable conclusions based on the OPS numbers its likely to put up.

Taking a look at the recent and career stats for each player likely to make a significant contribution, I came up with some ballpark expectations of what we might see.  

These are crude predictions; I can’t really estimate what effect the team chemistry might have, or what advantages the better players might enjoy as a result of having more big bats in the lineup. It’s also hard to determine how adjusting to Fenway will impact the newcomers. And there will almost certainly be a handful of other guys playing in a handful of games whose numbers will also factor in.

But on the whole, these are pretty defensible.

I also made some assumptions about playing time, guessing that Lowrie and Scutaro will share time at short, that Cameron and Kalish will rotate in the outfield taking some time away from Drew and Ellsbury, and that Ortiz will have some days off periodically.  In short, I applied percentages to make these 13 guys add up to nine full-time players.

The result is an estimated team OPS of .836.

So what does that mean?

These calculations assume that everyone does more or less what he’s been doing recently. At that “average” pace, the team’s OPS of .836 would be the third best in Red Sox history.

In 2003, the Sox posted an OPS of .851 while scoring 961 runs, and back in 1950 they finished with .848.  The 1950 also featured a team record 1,027 runs.

Are you starting to see what all the excitement is about?

If doing the expected could net that kind of output, what might happen if even one guy breaks out? What might happen if Big Papi repeats his .899 from last year? The 2011 season is, after all, a contract year for him. What if Gonzalez proves that Petco Park and the weak-hitting Padres were holding back and breaks the 1.000 mark? Or if Youk improves? Or if Lowrie plays well enough in the field to keep Scoots on the bench?

Just a two percent increase from these estimates would be a new all-time mark for the 110-year-old club.

All kinds of good things can happen that would make this team even better than I’m suggesting, and that, as Bostonians might say, is a wicked good thought. 1,000-plus runs is within reach, and if a few things break the team’s way, we could very well witness the best offense in Red Sox history.

And that would almost certainly lead to a playoff berth, a deep postseason run, and possibly more.

So fire up the DVR. Take some extra time off work. And plan on staying up for the West Coast games. Because it’s not too hard to imagine that 2011 might just be a record-breaking year.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

A majority of MLB position players will be at the site of their teams’ Spring Training camps by the end of the day Wednesday, and that certainly includes Albert Pujols. The St. Louis Cardinals and Pujols remain far apart on a potential contract extension, meaning a Jamesean (LeBronian?) season of media hoopla lies ahead.

In the meantime, though, there will be real live baseball, with bats and balls and gloves and (hopefully) other things to talk and think about than Albert Pujols’ contract. Read on for some fun and fascinating tidbits from around baseball.

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Spring training is a great opportunity to get a sense of how a player’s offseason went, and what to expect in terms of improvement or regression. How a player performs during spring training often helps scouts see how players are recovering from injury or whether or not to expect a player who disappointed the previous season to bounce back.

An example of a player’s spring training being indicative of a player’s regular season performance is Chris Johnson. In 2010, his spring training stat line was: .323/8/22 in just 63 at-bats. While he did not continue this 65-75 home run pace, he did have a strong season. The same idea goes for Jose Bautista, who had a phenomenal spring training.

Spring training is not always accurate, however, it is the best way to get an idea of a player before the season starts. So, in this article, I will examine the 15 most important players to watch this spring training in the American League East.

This list includes prospects, bounce back candidates, new acquisitions and more. The rank is based on a combination of how important the player’s return is to his respective team and how controversial the player’s 2011 projections are. 

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After the Boston Red Sox acquired Adrian Gonzalez from the San Diego Padres for prospects, anyone who does projections for the upcoming season has been salivating at the thought of what Gonzalez will do at Fenway Park.

Gonzalez has spent the last five seasons in the very pitcher-friendly PETCO Park, so a change to a much smaller park should give Gonzalez a big boost to his numbers this season.

He’s still recovering from offseason shoulder surgery and he has yet to begin swinging a bat, despite having already arrived at Spring Training. Gonzalez was expected to be handling a bat on March 1, but he claims he’s ahead of schedule.

So with all the projections for Gonzalez in 2011 being thrown around, I thought I’d throw one out there, more like a question really.

Can Adrian Gonzalez collect 100 extra-base hits?

In five seasons in the very spacious PETCO Park, Gonzalez averaged 32 home runs and 99 RBI each season. His average number of extra-base hits was 69.

So can a move to Fenway Park make 100 extra-base hits a realistic possibility for Gonzalez?

Last season, Gonzalez batted .298 with 31 home runs and 101 RBI. He collected 44 XBH, including 33 doubles, 12 at PETCO.

He sent 17 of his 33 doubles, more than half, and 13 of his home runs to the opposite field. Overall, 65 of his 176 hits (36.9 percent) went to left field.

So it’s safe to assume that once Gonzalez sets his eyes on the Green Monster, he’s going to look to bounce balls off of it all season long. Gonzalez had an estimated nine outs at PETCO last season which would have gone for extra bases or home runs at Fenway Park, according to Michael Hurley of NESN.com.

The most home runs Gonzalez has ever hit in a single season was 40 in 2009, and his highest total for both doubles (43) and triples (3) came in 2007. So that would be 86 extra base hits.

Let’s assume Gonzalez gets at least one triple. Last season he didn’t have any, but in each of the previous five season, he had at least one, so I think it’s a safe assumption.

If Gonzalez can improve his career highs in home runs by just six and doubles by just 10, and he gets that one triple, that’s 100 extra-base hits.

Is a projection of 46 home runs and 53 doubles out of the question for a hitter of Gonzalez’s ability, in a lineup like Boston’s? I don’t think so.

In case you’re curious, Babe Ruth holds the all-time, single season record for extra-base hits with 119 in 1921. The only active player to collect 100 or more extra-base hits in a season is Todd Helton, who actually did it twice—103 in 2000 and 105 in 2001.

So it’s clearly not impossible, though Helton’s feat needs to be kept in perspective for obvious reasons.

Overall, 12 different players have done it.

Will Gonzalez add his name to that list this season? Red Sox fans certainly hope so, and I’m sure Gonzalez himself wouldn’t mind either.

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