I was emailed the questions, but got busy, it slipped my mind and I missed the deadline. Here are the Q:
1. Will the Red Sox win the AL East? Will they go on to win the World Series... again?Red echoes my hunch that Matsuzaka will be the star of '08!
2. With 99% of the Championship roster returning, the Red Sox are likely to be a favorite to repeat. So what will be their biggest challenge?
3. Who will be the star of the '08 season?
4. Who will play center field?
5. Who is more likely to improve on a lack-luster '07 season: Julio Lugo or J.D. Drew?
6. Do you think Schilling and/or Wakefield will last the entire season?
7. Mike Lowell has had two solid years in Boston, most notably last season. Will he have a third or did he peak in 2007?
8. Should the Red Sox make a trade for Johan Santana?
9. The Sox have a few rookies that could make an impact in 2008. Which rookie do you expect to make the biggest splash?
10. 2008 will bring us one more year of Tek and Mirabelli behind the plate, but both players have struggled with the bat as of late and there's no solid back-up on the horizon. Is 2008 the year the catching situation catches up with the Sox or am I making a mountain out of a mole hill?
11. The winter months helped us forget about Barry Bonds and the steroid issue, but the Mithcell Report and Roger Clemens have rekindled the flame just weeks before Spring Training... How do you think it will effect the 2008 season?
Check out Parts 2 and 3 at The Bottom Line in a few days and feel free to blab here.
9 comments:
Brief answers:
1: Yes. I hope. The playoffs are too much of a crap-shoot to really predict.
2: Middle of the bullpen. Timlin is old, and Oki isn't going to be as good.
3: I think Papi is going to have another huge year.
4:Ellsburry, and he is going to be great.
5: I think they'll both be better than last year, but Drew is going to improve more.
6: No. But they'll both contribute at points in the season. They also both spend a month or more on the DL. Schilling will be ready of the post season though.
7: I think Lowell did peak in 2007, but he'll still be pretty effective. More of a regression to the mean than a collapse.
8: No, he'll cost too much is both prospects and future salary.
9: Jacoby Ellsburry: he's going to really break out.
10: Mirabelli will continue to be a black hole with the bat, and 'Tek isn't going to improve at this point, but I think the Red Sox will get above average production from the position.
11: I'm really not sure what the effect is going to be, it's probably going to make players more careful about how they buy their PEDs.
1. Yes
2. Need few injuries
3. Dice
4. Ellsbury, unless he gets off to a really slow start, than Crisp
5. Both...leaning 60-40 towards Drew
6. Both will help but expect dl or down time.
7. He peaked but if healthy, he'll be close to his last season stats...this guy is a pro and wants to keep winning.
8. Roll the dice, if Ellsbury and no-hitter are not part of the package.
9) Ellsbury or no-hitter..toss-up
10)Mirabelli looks like toast...from Ron Shandler of BaseballHQ.com " We've never seen a .177X BA before and probably won't again"
11. It will fade as always.
1 - The odds will be more in their favor than anyone else out there, but those are still long odds
2 - Injuries if they happen to the wrong people, and middle relief
3 - Easier to say who won't. I think maybe Ortiz will come back strong, but it's great that there are so many possible answers to this one.
4 - Ellsbury
5 - Drew
6 - Schiiling - no Wake - yes
7 - Yes to both. He probably did peak, but a season doesn't have to as good as his was last season to be strong
8 - Arrrgggghhhhh! Too many ifs for a yes/no answer
9 - Laura's Boy Jacoby!
10 - If Drew & Lugo improve, that 1spot sacrificed for the defense doesn't hurt. It stood out so bad last year with those 2 struggling and Coco as well. It does have to be addressed soon though
11 - Just more distraction. The game will go on. There will probably be some negative publicity to overcome and some heated exchanges to chat about, but that just keeps us busy during slow games.
Glad to see the questions have sparked some interest!
Thanks for the shout-out!
Go Sox.
I think an important question to ask is "will a fan ever go crazy from being in the virtual waiting room for tickets to long?
looks like epstein and cashman pretty much confirmed they want to keep their prospects yesterday:
http://mlbfleecefactor.com/2008/01/26/santana-update-cashman-epstein-in-favor-of-youth/
1. Sox win the east.
2. Health issues
3. Dice, think Beckett last season
4. Ellsbury's job to lose...Chisp gets if he fails, if he's not traded.
5. Both
6. They both will, but the Sox will take better care of them during the season.
7. I think Lowell can come close to matching his stats.
8. I'd roll the dice with the names I've heard thrown around, less no-hitter or Ellsbury.
9. No-hitter and Ellsbury
10. From Baseball HQ on Mirabelli: "We've never seen a .177X BA before, probably won't again. After the Josh Bard ordeal, they just must be afraid nobody else can catch him. More of the same for 'Tek. Nice OBP for a catcher, the decline is not as much as listed in some places.
11. Baseball moves on as always.
Bottom line: Sox are postioned well for another run, better suited than 05'. It's such a pleasure being a Red Sox fan now that we have owners and management who have a clue.
3. Jon Lester
I see some of the people have said Lowell has peaked and maybe down this year , but if he has 3 more seasons at 20 hr's and 100 rbi's and if his errors go down , he could arguably be the best 3b in franchise history, I know some people may gasp at that , but who is his competion, Boggs, Hobson, Petrocelli , ..Plus he has something they all don't have.....i know it maybe premature , but it may also play out to be true....
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