Congratulations Sox!

[jimmytheg]

I think the Sox will make an effort to get Cabrera back for 2 years, possibly with an option for the 3rd. Especially if they can get him for 6 or 7 mil. Hanley is the talk of the board on SOSH, concerning minor leaguers, but what about next year? And it's tough to just pencil a guy in for 2 years from now...what if he isnt ready, or gets hurt.

I think Cabrera was a monster part of this team, and I hope he doesnt go somewhere else. He should be affordable, and he must LOVE it here after being stuck in Montreal for his whole career. I really think he's coming back.

[eddo31]

to be honest i dont think that cabrera i going to be that affordable. i think we would be talking about 8 mil a year for three years at least, which really is a bit high.

i know that it is tough to bank on minor leaguers to step in at any specific point in the future, but the sox have four legitimate shortstop prospects waiting in the minors. now i know that a couple of them are a ways away, but having that many good options for the future suggests that we should go for a short term fix, and then if in 2 years we realize that none of the other guys will work out, then we go out and get a top free agent, or at least we get a great defensive guy.

i really believe that hanley is the real deal, especially because he has had to deal with some adversity on the way up, and he got by it. i have played pretty high level baseball, both with and against a number fo guys who were first round picks in the draft, and hanley is so far above any of those guys it just doesnt seem fair. he will make it in the bigs, i just hope that it is for us.

[jimmytheg]

Let's say Cabrera goes, which I really hope doesn't happen, but let's say he does. Who do you think we will replace him with? Pokey? Or someone from another team?

[eddo31]

omar vizquel, jose valentin and barry larkin are the three names that i ahve heard thrown around. i dont think larkin has much left in the tank, but the other two cold be valuable players on a very good team. all of them are veterans who know how to play the game, and vizqual and valentin both have excellent defensive reputations to go along with decent offensive skills.

julio lugo was also a name i heard thrown around, but i am not sure that the devil rays will let him go as a non tender guy.

if the sox had to use pokey as the everyday shortstop i think that would be a huge hole in the lineup,but with how good the rest of the roster is i think they might be able to overcome it. i wouldnt want to have to try though

[GeoffM]

Pedro wants nothing to do with being a #2 starter. Lets see, Atlanta, Dodgers, Yankees, the money will be elsewhere and I don't think the Sox have a #1 starter position available.

His career record in Boston was 117-37, .

[eddo31]

i really hope that pedro is going to stick around, and fo rsome reason i think that he will, but if he doesnt i hope that his brilliance here doesntget lost.

as geoffm said, 117-37 is just absurd.

i dont think that atlanta will be on the list of suitors. they have had some serious cutbacks since ted turner got ousted and aol/time warner came in. i dont think that they can afford him. i could see pedro going back to the dodgers, unless he holds a grudge against them for trading them at te beginning of his career. they thought that there was no way that he could hold up for more than a couple of years, and while they were right in some regards, they were definitely wrong overall. the angels will also be suitors, but you have to wonder when the money is going to dry up out there. they have been spending like its going out of style, and they have a couple free agents they have to worry about themselves this offseason (glaus primarily).

as for the yankees, i am not sure that i see that as the best fit. pedro does not have many friends in their clubhouse, and sure everything would be water under the bridge once he joined the team (like it was for clemens), i am not sure that he has an interest in playing there. i believe that pedro is one of the smartest, most analytical athletes i have ever seen, and that he has continually dropped the possibility of going to the yankees as a scare tactic. i think it is just a bargaining chip, and that when the dust settles he will not sign with them.

when he told ortiz earlier in the year that boston was the best place for him to sign, i took that as a sign that pedro would also be back. that there woudl be a lot of posturing, but that in the end pedro would take some sort of hometown discount.

maybe i am just being naive because i dont want to see pedro in another uniform.

[eddo31]

i just caught gammons on sportscenter, and he said that he feels that pedro will be coming back to boston. i hope that his instincts are right in this situation.