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January 13, 2008

Every Given Sunday

Time Flies

by John Perrotto

The Boston Red Sox have a very short offseason. They were one of the final two teams playing last season, sweeping Colorado for their second World Series victory in the last four years. Because they and Oakland open the 2008 regular season with a two-game series in Tokyo on March 25-26, the Red Sox will begin spring training earlier than normal: Feb. 15 in Fort Myers, Fla. “The offseasons do seem to get shorter every year,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. “It just seems like we finished the World Series two weeks ago and now we’re on the verge of starting spring training. The time flies.”

Francona's not complaining. “Actually, I’m anxious to get going,” he said. “Now that the holidays over, it’s time for baseball again.” The enthusiasm of Francona and the Red Sox is understandable. Though General Manager Theo Epstein has had a relatively quiet winter--with the exception of his continued effort of trying to land ace left-hander Johan Santana from Minnesota--the Red Sox still look like the team to beat with spring training on the horizon.

“I would like to think we have a good chance of defending our championship,” Francona said. “I really like our club. Obviously, it was good enough to win it all last year and I don’t think we have any glaring weaknesses. “There is still some offseason left and I’m sure Theo will do some things before we get to Fort Myers, but it’s easy to get excited when you think about what our team is capable of doing.” The Red Sox would like to add some bench and bullpen help, but the roster is indeed set for the most part.

The biggest moves the Red Sox have made this offseason have been retaining two of their own free agents by signing third baseman Mike Lowell to a three-year, $39 million contract and getting right-hander Curt Schilling to return on a one-year, $8 million contract for what very well may be his final season. Lowell was 16th in the American League with a 46.5 VORP last season and chosen Most Valuable Player of the World Series. Schilling’s 4.3 SNLVAR was 27th in the AL, though he missed a month with a tender shoulder.

“They are both very important parts of our ballclub and I thought it was really important to bring both of them back or it would have created two very big holes, both on the field and in the clubhouse,” Francona said. “What really impressed me the most about Mikey and Schill re-signing, though, is that they left money on the table. They could have gone elsewhere and gotten more years and more money, yet they decided to stay with us. “I think that speaks a lot about the organization we’ve built. The Red Sox are a team people want to play for.”