Looking At Some Links re 2013

We all assume the Red Sox will finish 2013 with a better record than they managed last season (69-93). They almost have to. But how much better? If they improve by 12 wins, that will get them only to .500. For the optimists among us:

Worst to First - Since 1991

Worst First Team        Win Diff
1990  1991  Atlanta       +29
1990  1991  Twins         +21
1992  1993  Phillies      +27
1996  1997  Giants        +22
1997  1998  Padres        +22
1998  1999  Diamondbacks  +35
2006  2007  Diamondbacks  +14
2006  2007  Cubs          +19
2007  2008  Rays          +31
2010  2011  Diamondbacks  +26

An improvement of 20 wins would give Boston a 89-73 record and an outside shot at a wild card spot.

ESPNBoston: "Execs rank Sox 2nd-most improved team"

Marc Normandin, Over The Monster: "Just what is Boston's plan this off-season?"

Matt Clement of Alexandria, Sox Therapy: "A Hundred Fifty Million Dollars for This"

Tony Massarotti, Globe: "Do Red Sox have something big in works?"

***

James Gentile, Beyond The Box Score: "Do hitters 'step it up' when their ace is on the mound?"

Matthew Carruth, Fangraphs: "The Size of the Strike Zone by Count"

In what he happily terms a "useless" exercise, SG (Replacement Level Yankees Weblog) projects AL East wins, with R.A. Dickey in Toronto, Stephen Drew in Boston, and a few other small changes (Boston's projected wins were unchanged from the simulations SG ran on December 10):

Blue Jays (90), Yankee (88), Rays (87), Red Sox (84), Orioles (77)

Here's a sobering thought: The Red Sox could rebound in 2013, have a very good season, and still finish fourth.