Happy New Year!

Best wishes to all of you for 2007!

First Photo of Matsuzaka in Sox Uniform

Here.

(Taken December 26, during the shooting of a beer commercial in Tokyo.)

Slow Week

Not a lot of news this week -- and we are finishing up our packing for our January 2 moving date -- so things should be light around here.

In the DR, David Ortiz gives us more reasons to love him.

Also: I am changing servers for my 1918 Red Sox site, so it might be down for a short time in the next week.

The Night Before Christmas or A Visit From Saint Manny

Courtesy of Jack Marshall (frequent commenter and JoS poet laureate):

'Twas the night before Christmas, and at Fenway Park
Theo Epstein was plotting alone in the dark.
The bullpen was painted and furnished with care
In hopes that a closer would soon settle there.

Poor Tito had wakened, upset from a dream,
In which Manny was traded for cash and Sid Bream.
While John Henry, in secret (you can probably guess),
Was printing more millions on his personal press.

When suddenly outside arose such a squall
That they ran to the field and looked up at the wall.
Why, was it a vision? A joke? Or a stunt?
No, a vintage year Porsche, with eight Red Sox in front!
And driving the sports car, costumed to appear as
St. Nicholas, there he was: Manny Ramirez!

And he shouted, "I've flown from the Gulf, past Atlanta,
Just to give you a gift, so let Manny be Santa!"
Then down from the Monster the flying Porsche came
Pulled by all of the line-up as he called them by name:

"Now, Youkilis! Coco! Now, J.D. and Papi!
Let's deliver our present and make the brass happy!
On Varitek, Lowell, Pedroia and Lugo!
Make sure you pull straight, 'cause I’m going where you go!"

As a Wily Mo homer blasts into the sky,
That Porsche went soaring a Coke bottle high!
Then it swooped to the infield and stopped on the mound
And out of the car Manny came with a bound.

A mysterious bag he had flung on his back,
And its contents were squirming, 'til he gave it a whack.
"I've read all your letters," Manny said, "and it's clear
"That a superstar closer's what you all want this year.

"So the guys pooled their pocket change, hired a lab,
"Got Bill James to advise us and picked up the tab
"For some scientists, cloners and grave-robbers too
"To whip up a closer both classic and new!

"He's got Eckersley's fastball and Gossage's nerve;
"He can throw Wilhelm's knuckler, and Flash Gordon's curve;
"With Bruce Sutter's splitter, and Bob Stanley's sinker
"(We would have used D-Lowe's, if he wasn't a drinker...)

"Plus Stu Miller's slow-ball, with Jeff Reardon's head,
"On Dick Radatz's body, even though he's still dead."
Then out of the sack, all covered with stitches,
Crawled a composite closer who had six perfect pitches!

"DADDY!" he cried, as he hugged and kissed Tito,
While Epstein's mouth gaped, and John Henry said, "Neat-o!"
"And the best part," said Manny, as he slammed the car's door,
"Is he'll play just for fun, and wants nothing more!"

He revved up his car, gave the line-up a holler
"But the rest of us promise to earn every dollar!"
As the car flew away, Manny's voice rang out clear:
"Happy Christmas! Let's win the World Series next year!"

Jose "Keys to the Game" Melendez has a Christmas offering also: 'Twas The Night.

Catching Up

Ex-Yankee pitcher Alex Graman, Daisuke Matsuzaka's teammate on the Seibu Lions last season, on the adjustment from Japan's six-man rotation and 136-game schedule:

That probably will be the biggest adjustment, going with four days' rest, but it probably won't be that big a deal. I'd heard a lot about him before going over there, but I was pretty impressed. He throws such a wide variety of pitches and throws them for strikes. He has a lot better control than I thought. I think he tried to overpower people when he first started, but he's learned how to pitch. He can throw in the mid-to-upper 90s, but in the lower 90s he locates so well, he'll just dial it up when he needs to blow one by you. His changeup when he got it going was unhittable.

Boston has invited eight players to spring training: "Super Joe" McEwing, outfielder Kerry Robinson, catcher Alberto Castillo, pitcher Travis Hughes, and infielders Jeff Bailey, Luis Jimenez, Ed Rogers and Bobby Scales. ... The Sox also signed former Royals RHP Runelvys Hernandez and well-travelled RHP Adam Bernero.

This year's Patriots Day game will start at 10:05 -- that's 7:05 AM (!) for fans of the visiting Angels.

Darryl Strawberry offers some advice:

I hope Jeter would embrace him [Slappy] this year, in spring training, and bring him into the full circle as a part of the Yankee family. If Jeter does it, I think everybody else will respond. ... I remember them when they were young and they went to dinner together and they did everything together. ...

I think the Yankees' problem is that they just don't support each other enough. I mean, back when I played in those years we were winning, we all supported each other, we all cared for each other. I think they need to get back to that, because the talent is there, but everybody seems like they're going their separate ways.

Upgraded

I finally upgraded to the new version of Blogger.

I changed the font from Verdana to Trebuchet and put the post titles in the same red font as the blog title. The very cool thing for readers is the Archives, which are way down on the right hand side. You can use the arrows to expand the years and months -- and go directly to any post.

The only bad thing I can find so far is the re-emergence of the search bar at the top of the page. I really liked not having that.

Mark Your Calendars

Pitchers and catchers report on February 16, 2007.

Nick Cafardo of the Globe says that what BP's Will Carroll wrote about J.D. Drew "is consistent with information the Globe has received". ... All Theo Epstein will say is: We're working with the language on the deal with Boras and we're expecting to get it done early in the week."

Daisuke Matsuzaka is back in Japan. He intends to return to Boston with his wife in January to look for a place to live and then begin training in southern California. Dice said the contract process

was mentally draining. It was tough. I'm not used to having an agent, and leaving everything up to him was something that was new to me. ... I know the expectations will be high. The fans in Boston gave me a great reception and I look forward to being able to please them.

Here's a shocker: Murray Chass of the New York Times -- at one time a respected baseball reporter -- simply makes shit up. In this case, it's in no small part because of his white-hot hatred of the Red Sox. (After his mind became seriously unglued after October 2004, Chass is little more than a bitter old man banging haphazardly on a typewriter.)

Drew Getting Second Opinion On Shoulder

Nick Cafardo, Globe:

J.D. Drew was scheduled to receive a second opinion Monday on a shoulder issue the Red Sox have concerns about, according to a major league source familiar with Drew's condition.

No comments from either the Sox or Drew.

Don't Miss It

Don't miss Gordon Edes's excellent story on the Red Sox's years-long pursuit of Daisuke Matsuzaka.

When Henry decided to send his plane to southern California last Monday, the Red Sox logo on the plane's tail was covered. ... The flight plan showed the plane was going not to California but to Houston -- all the better to make snooping eyes believe they were headed for a meeting with the agents for Roger Clemens. ...

It was no accident the Sox waited until the last moment to submit their $51.1 million bid. Call it paranoia, call it well-placed fear, but the Sox were taking no chances the posting process might be rigged. ... They decided they would have to bid high because of their fears there might be an artificially high bid by a team that had an under-the-table agreement with Seibu. ...

About two weeks ago, the Sox made their first offer to Matsuzaka, a six-year, $36 million deal. Boras did not respond. ...

Last Sunday in a conference call, the decision was made to fly to California the next day on Henry's plane. ... Should they call and let Boras know they were coming? Lucchino and Epstein both said no. Call from the plane. Forget it, they decided. Let's just show up. ...

The next day, the Sox presented an improved offer -- six years for $48 million. It was rejected. ...

After dinner, the Sox returned to their hotel. Boras called Epstein. Could the two of them meet alone, he asked. He wanted to make a counteroffer. If it was for more money, don't bother, Epstein said. Boras came, and the counteroffer was indeed for more cash: $66 million for six years. ...

They had checked out of the hotel and Shipley and Epstein were in the car when they called Boras and asked them again to be at the airport. Boras said no. Lucchino got into the car, and they decided to call one more time, but this time delivering the message with more urgency. Be there, or no deal.

BP: Drew Deal in Trouble?

Will Carroll, Baseball Prospectus:

Tony Massarotti of the Boston Herald got the story first, but I have more details on the specifics of the J.D. Drew physical. Drew took the physical shortly after the announcement of the deal in Orlando, but sources have told me that Drew showed problems in his shoulder that "could shut down his power." Drew had minor surgery on his shoulder after the 2005 season, so it's possible that there's more damage in there.

It's important to note that in free agent acquisitions, a team often does not have the benefit of requesting medical records from his previous team prior to signing. Speculation centers on the damage to Drew's shoulder being more like Scott Rolen circa 2005. As Massarotti reports, it is more likely that the Red Sox get protection in the form of a very limited escape clause rather than scuttling the deal altogether.

Hmmmm. Stay tuned.

One Nickname That Must Go

D-Mat.

I hate it. It must be retired. Eliminated. Wiped from our vernacular. Now. ... Please?

Theo calls Brendan Donnelly "a very interesting piece of the [bullpen] puzzle". And "We see [J.C. Romero] as a buy-low guy, someone who's a couple of adjustments away from being a very valuable addition to our bullpen."

Donnelly, to the LA Times:

It stinks that I'm leaving the Angels, because they were the only team that gave me a chance ... The flip side is, I'm going to Boston, and the fans there embrace baseball like no other. I'm excited about getting a fresh start, being with a team that's going to win. I'm leaving a good rivalry with the Angels and Oakland and going to the biggest rivalry of all, Boston-New York.

Curt Schilling says he is "ecstatic about the [Matsuzaka] move ... The potential for this rotation is pretty impressive." ... Are there problems with the results of J.D. Drew's physical?

Johnny Damon, on the Sox spending money:

That's water under the bridge. I got a great offer and a great contract from the Yankees and I'm happy. ... Maybe [Boston] learned a lot from what happened last year. They finished in third place ... [We] brought back Andy Pettitte - a guy who knows how to play in New York, knows how to deal with pressure and how to work big games, especially in the postseason.

(Not always, Noodle-Arm.)

BDD is already hinting at the special treatment Matsuzaka will get:

Special-K's Not Going to Be One of the Guys ... Reports Persist That Roger Clemens May Have to Carry His Luggage ... Wait Until Pedro Hears About This

Sigh. I guess it's never too early to annoint a new "diva".

Wanna know how to say "Yankees Suck" in Japanese?

What He Said

Globe:

One member of Red Sox Nation who's fluent in Japanese translated Matsuzaka's comments directly, and some weren't exactly as his translator relayed. Thanks to former Newton resident and Columbia University grad student Taka Tanaka for passing along this information, which includes some translated questions as well as Matsuzaka's newly translated answers.

Enjoy.

Snip:

Q: Congratulations on finalizing the contract. During the month-long negotiating period, media in both Japan and the US covered you very closely. This month-long period, did it feel long? Did it feel short? What was going through your mind during this time?

DM: It felt extremely long. Maybe over here, it's the norm to keep negotiating all the way to the deadline. But I have an impatient personality, so I wanted things to be decided either way much sooner. I would have liked to decide sooner. ...

Q: Matsuzaka-san, which matchup are you most looking forward to? Any player in particular you'd like to face? ...

DM: As I said before, the person I want to face most is Ichiro-san. We faced each other for two years in the Pacific League, and we haven't since.

That matchup could come at the very beginning of the Fenway home opener, April 10.

Theo on Papelbon's Role

There has been some question as to whether Jonathan Papelbon could return to the bullpen if the Red Sox don't find a tried and true closer.

Not that they need a household name in that role. Theo Epstein: "It's too early to start assigning exact roles other than to say that the guys who are pitching the best will have the most important roles."

Epstein on WEEI yesterday:

The determination we made in September when he had the subluxation was a medical determination based on the way his shoulder looked at the time that certainly he had a much better chance of returning to health and maintaining good health through a starter's routine -- building up strength in the shoulder, only having to pitch once every five or six days, getting on a shoulder strengthening program between starts and being able to have a very regimented maintenance routine.

That certainly is the best way to attack this specific condition. He's already started that. He's had a fantastic winter so far with the shoulder and it's really strong.

The single most important thing is his long-term health and as long as that determination is still valid -- as long as the medical people think that condition would be best-served with a once-every-five-days routine -- then he's going to be a starting pitcher.

I guess it's fair to say, "Never say never." We want to take a look at Jonathan again and will examine him again soon and examine the condition of his shoulder. But I think we really can't go wrong. As a starter, which is what we groomed him to be, I think he has a really high upside. And obviously everyone saw what he could do as a closer last year -- one of the best in baseball.

We can't go wrong. We just can't get greedy. We have to let what's best for his long-term picture determine the decision.

In addition to his shoulder, I believe the Red Sox believe that Papelbon is a greater asset to the team as a starter.

Henry Explains Posting Bid

John Henry explains how he arrived at the $51,111,111.11 bid for the rights to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Also: he and Dice share a September 13 birthday.

Brendan Donnelly Joins Bullpen

The Red Sox have traded LHP Phil Seibel to the Angels for RHP Brendan Donnelly. Nice.

We also signed JC Romero for 2007.

01 Schilling
02 Matsuzaka
03 Beckett
04 Wakefield
05 Papelbon

06 Timlin
07 Delcarmen
08 Tavarez
09 Okajima
10 Donnelly
11 Romero
12 ? Lester/Hansen/Snyder/Breslow/
     Hansack/DiNardo/Gabbard/Corey

Lost In Translation

For those of you who watched the Matsuzaka press conference yesterday evening, Matsuzaka's "translator" is a Boras employee named Tak Sato. With any luck, he's out of a job this morning.

He was horrible -- guaranteeing the Q&A would be worthless. Daisuke would speak for a minute -- laughing, gesturing -- and Sato would offer one short, inaudible sentence in fractured English. Or, as he said a couple of times, "Engrish".

Theo could have wandered out on Landsdowne Street and dragged in the first Asian-looking guy he saw and things probably would have gone smoother. ... Sato "struggled to communicate Matsuzaka's answers" and "his command of the English language was shaky".

The Herald was blunt:

Matsuzaka's translator was universally panned by the English-speaking media, which discovered afterward that many of the pitcher's responses were shortened, changed or butchered. Members of the Japanese media helped provide the accurate comments.

The Globe has a transcript. It is far from complete -- and some things I remember are missing -- but this exchange gives you a flavour of the proceedings:

Q. Welcome and I wonder if you could tell us at what point in these negotiations that you realized that you would be coming to the Red Sox, and did you have your doubts that this day would come to pass?

Matsuzaka: My nickname is Japan is Monster.

If anyone can find Dice's actual answers to the media's questions, that would be great.

P.S. Both the Herald and Globe have stories about how the deal almost fell through at the last minute. ... Some great quotes about Dice from Craig Shipley, Boston's vice president of professional and international scotuing.

"Diamonds In The Snow Sparkle"

Excellent work from The Boston Blogger.



Great choice of music also, with the twin themes of Xmas and travel.

The Deal

The deal:

2007  $ 6 + $2 signing bonus
2008  $ 8
2009  $ 8
2010  $ 8
2011  $10
2012  $10

Both the 2009 and 2010 base salaries would
increase to $10 if Matsuzaka:
a) wins the Cy Young in 2007 or 2008;
b) finishes in the top 3 in Cy Young voting
in 2007 and 2008;
c) wins the AL MVP in 2007 or 2008; or
d) finishes in the top 5 in AL MVP voting
in 2007 and 2008.

Both the 2011 and 2012 base salaries would
increase to $12 if Matsuzaka:
a) wins the Cy Young in 2009 or 2010;
b) finishes in the top 3 in Cy Young voting
in 2009 and 2010;
c) wins the AL MVP in 2009 or 2010; or
d) finishes in the top 5 in AL MVP voting
in 2009 and 2010.

The agreement also includes travel from Japan for Matsuzaka and his family, plus provisions for a trainer, a masseuse, an interpreter, an assistant and housing.



The Red Sox have a press conference scheduled for 5:00 PM.

Tony Massarotti, Herald:

[T]he Red Sox appear to have won this one by knockout. There is really no other way to look at it. ... Matsuzaka's average annual salary [stands] at $8.67 million, only a shade more than the Sox are paying Matt Clement.

An interesting rumour from the Herald:

Matsuzaka may have had additional incentive. According to rumors that appear to have originated in Japan, word may have reached him that the Lions, who are counting on the enormous cash infusion from the Sox, were considering sending him to the minor leagues if he returned. That would have set back his free agency by another year.

Nick Cafardo, Globe:

The Sox also got a thumbs-up from former major league third baseman Mike Pagliarulo, who for years has run a sophisticated scouting service for international players, with emphasis on the Pacific Rim. ...

When asked what he would have recommended as a posting figure for Matsuzaka, Pagliarulo said, "Fifty million. That's what I had written down long before the figures came out. That was based on the talent level of the player, the market for the player, and the value of the player to a team."

You can still order downloads of two of Daisuke Matsuzaka's three WBC starts for Japan at MLB.com, which will give you a better idea of his pitching style than the short clips on YouTube.

The games are:

3/14 v Mexico: 5-1-0-2-2, 73; Japan  6-1
3/20 v Cuba:   4-4-1-0-5, 62; Japan 10-6

The Cuba game was the WBC final, after which Dice was named the MVP of the tournament. His first start -- 3/14 v. Chinese Taipei (4-3-1-1-3, 68), which Japan won 14-3 -- is not among the for-sale games.

Bill Reynolds of the Providence Journal has a revelation:

Baseball is all about money.

And he doesn't like it one bit, dag nabit.

Only Two Months To Truck Day!

The Plane landed at about 5:30 PM and Daisuke Matsuzaka was driven to Massachusetts General Hospital for his physical. (Empy was there.)

Ian Browne, RedSox.com:

It was quite a scene at the Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford, where Matsuzaka touched down in Massachusetts for the first time. There were roughly 50 Red Sox fans on hand to greet Matsuzaka as he disembarked. The pitcher went straight for the back seat of an SUV, which was escorted by a state police car.

With a smile that seemingly lit up the window of the car he was sitting in, Matsuzaka waved to the fans who hope to be cheering his every pitch at Fenway in 2007 and beyond.

Epstein, on submitting of a second offer without receiving any response to the first:

It's highly unusual, but it's showing that Matsuzaka is extremely important to the Boston Red Sox. It's normally not a good ploy, but we want to demonstrate to Matsuzaka, and the fans of Japanese baseball, just how important he is to us.

Most of SoSHer jayhoz's notes on John Henry's WEEI interview late this afternoon:

Got sleep last night while the others did not.

Did not realize you could track a private plane.

No agreement in place. Close enough that all are on the plane together. Negotiations were ongoing when they took off from Cali. May be more negotiations need after the plane lands.

Knew prices were going to be high in general this year based on "simulations".

Branding: not a lot of thought on branding in Japan. MLB owns the license to the brand so it does not mean a lot of $ to the team. Sox get <1/30 of the revenue. ... Prime driver of branding is winning.

Why so confident in Matsuzaka's performance? Many clubs very confident he is a front of the rotation guy. Henry had to be convinced by the scouts [Shipley] in Japan for every game.

Everyone has overblown the alternative revenue streams due to the high posting fee. Sox wanted to ensure the rights to negotiate for potentially 6 years of control.

Fear Boras could challenge the posting process? Thought it would be difficult to do, so no.

Bullpen has holes. Concerned? No, every team has plusses and minuses. Sox will have a strong bullpen. Due for better luck. Hopefully not done yet. Closer? We'll have a closer. May or may not be a current player, ask Theo.

Surprised Manny is still with Sox? No. Set in stone that Manny is on the team? Would have made a deal if it makes sense, but how can you replace Manny in the 4 spot.

Other Sox

The Red Sox officially announced the signing of Julio Lugo this afternoon.

Lugo:

Every time I came here, the fans were different. They love the game. When you're on the other side, they drive you crazy. I just want to feel how it is to be on the good side, to be on their side. It's great. Every time you get a hit, they cheer for you. They care for you. Not only in the stadium but outside the stadium. That always came through my mind.

Tito:

Starting in '04, David Ortiz used to bug me every time we played down in Tampa. He said, 'We've got to get this guy, we've got to get this guy.' I used to make a point of, after BP, kind of running into him by accident just because I wanted to get a feel for [him] myself. I used to tease him, I said, 'You'll play for us one day.' I think he thought I was teasing. We've thought a lot of him for a long time.

Ortiz:

He's going to being a lot of energy. This guy, the best part about his game is that he's very aggressive. He's the kind of guy that prepares himself to come out every day and do his thing. I love watching him play. He's a great player. We need guys like this to come around this ballclub.

The Red Sox agreed to a one-year deal with Doug Mirabelli. Tony Massarotti calls Mirabelli "a perfect complement" to Jason Varitek. Umm, no. The man cannot hit anymore (.193/.261/.342 in 176 PA last year) and I do not want to see him in the lineup next year. Not. At. All. Is there no other man on Earth who can catch Wakefield? Maybe George Kottaras will have a great spring.

Gabe Kapler has retired and will manage the Greenville Drive, Boston's South Atlantic League (A) farm club, next year.