There is perhaps no better place to start the reconstruction of your Beantown 9 than with the starting infield. For evaluation purposes, I've chosen to include catchers as apart of the infield, and David Ortiz goes without saying.
It's bizarre to think that heading into the 2013 season, the Red Sox return only Dustin Pedroia, Will Middlebrooks, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Just a year ago, Adrian Gonzalez was set to bolster the middle of the order and Mike Aviles finally gave Boston a sense of stability at the shortstop position.
Now? Well, there's work to be done.
The Incumbents
As of now, the Red Sox seem fairly set at the catching position. However, is being "set" good enough? Jarrod Saltalamacchia, otherwise known as "The Perm", is one of the more frustrating players on this team. He's possessed with great ability, 25 homers as a catcher and a SLG% of .454. But he's also extremely frustrating, as he hit just .222 last season, struck out an amazing 31% of his at-bats, and graded out as a below-replacement level fielder.
Behind him? Questions. Ryan Lavarnway, for now, is penciled in as the backup. This is a scary thought considering 2012 was 166 at-bats of pure misery for the soon-to-be 26 year old "prospect." Who is Lavarnway? Is he the catcher who hit .157 in the majors last year, striking out 24.7% of the time and accumulating a horrendous .459 OPS? Or is he the ever-improving defensive catcher who happened to hit .295 in each of his last two AAA seasons?
UPDATE: Just getting word that the Sox have signed David Ross to a 2 year, $6.2 million dollar deal. His role will be "more than a backup but not a starter." If you remember, Ross briefly played with the Red Sox in 2008. He's backed up Brian McCann in Atlanta, and is considered one of the better offensive catchers in the league.
First base is nonexistent as of now, with Mauro Gomez potentially providing a backup right handed bat off the bench.
Obviously, Dustin Pedroia returns at second base. Pedroia provided another strong season in 2012, hitting .290 with a .797 OPS. Pedroia finished the second half of the year much stronger than he started, due in part to his recovery from a nagging finger injury. Expect him to produce similar numbers in 2013.
Shortstop provides yet another issue for the Sox. After trading Mike Aviles as compensation for manager John Farrell, the team is left with only Jose Iglesias. Iglesias is a mysterious player. As strong as he is with his glove, (which is really damn strong) Iglesias is weak with his bat. Can the Red Sox really trust a player to play every day after he hit just .118 in 77 at-bats in 2012?
Will Middlebrooks provided one of the few bright spots for the current roster. Assuming he fully recovers from a nasty wrist injury, Middlebrooks is primed to take the next step as a major league hitter. The talent is there (.288avg, 15 homers) but Middlebrooks must learn to be more patient at the plate and become a more professional hitter.
Improving the Infield
If Ben Cherington truly believes he can improve this team enough in one off-season to contend in 2013, changes will need to be made. The team has no first basemen, essentially gives up an out every time the shortstop steps up to the plate. and creates a black hole due to the lack of contact hitters.
Moving forward, I will provide options and scenarios which I believe will likely happen. I will also provide sleeper, more far-fetched, scenarios. After all, who doesn't like playing GM for a day?
Free Agent First Basemen
I've seen many names linked to the Red Sox, which is natural due to the high-profile nature of the team. Among those names, I first want to focus on first basemen. I've seen everything from Mike Napoli to Lance Berkman, with Adam LaRoche, Nick Swisher, and even Kevin Youkilis in between.
Of that list, I believe the best option is Mike Napoli. Napoli will not command the years/salary of Swisher, isn't 33 years old like LaRoche, and is similar to Cody Ross in the sense that he's a perfect fit for Fenway Park. Frankly, I'm sick of seeing Mike Napoli stroll on into Fenway Park and annihilate Red Sox pitching as well.
Unfortunately, Napoli is not a long-term solution. He's a streaky hitter who will hit his share of homers, strike out a lot, and has the ability to catch fire. He's also capable of catching and playing first base. Ideally, Napoli signs a 2 year deal and bolsters the middle of the order while they search for a long-term fit.
Oh, and by the way, Kevin Youkilis isn't coming back. Stop with that. And unless Nick Swisher changes his attitude and takes a paycut, I don't want him either.
The Iglesias Conundrum
The other focus area? Shortstop.
Call me a hater, call me a non-believer, but I'm not on team Jose Iglesias. Can he bridge the position until star prospect Xander Bogaerts is ready? Probably. But is a .200 hitter worth the defense? I guess the argument comes down to what Ben Cherington surrounds Iglesias with. If 1-8 in the order can return the Red Sox to a dominant offensive team, I can learn to deal with a AAA bat at the end of the lineup.
But guess what. As of now, the Red Sox are nowhere near in a position to accommodate Iglesias' inability to hit the ball in the air.
Unfortunately, the only viable free agent at shortstop is Stephen Drew, brother of J.D Drew. Unless the Red Sox want to kick the tires on Alex Gonzalez for the 374th time or re-sign Marco Scutaro (who isn't a viable shortstop anymore, despite what talk radio tells you), they're left with Drew,
Drew is a career .265 hitter coming off a down year. When healthy, he has the ability to hit 10-15 homers a year and put up an OPS around .800. This is a superior upgrade over current production. Drew is 30 years old, injury prone, and looking for a multi-year deal. One figure I saw was 3 years 30 million, a tall order for someone who can't stay on the field. Is it worth it with Bogaerts waiting in the wings?
Lets Get Creative
For the sake of argument, lets say the Red Sox can't land a target in free agency. Perhaps the trade market is where they will make their splash.
The Red Sox are not in a position to be handing out prospects left and right for star players. But I also believe there may be second-tier deals to be made, and I think there are a few possible deals to be made.
We've spent time talking about former Angel Mike Napoli. Well, why don't we focus more on current Angel Kendrys Morales. Morales has struggled to stay healthy, but could be serviceable as a 1B/OF option, if Boston is willing to overlook his defensive deficiencies.
Morales, in theory, could offer 20-25 homers and a marginal middle of the order bat without commanding top-level prospects.
Another interesting trade option is Asdrubal Cabrera of the Cleveland Indians. Cabrera is a career .280 hitter, hit 16 homers a year ago, and strikes out roughly 16% of the time. The drawback? He's a subpar fielder. But hey, Jose Iglesias late-inning substitution anybody?
How I see it Playing Out
If I was to jump in a time warp and fast forward to April of 2013, I would expect the infield to look something like this.
C: Jarrod Saltalamacchia, David Ross, Ryan Lavarnway
1B: Mike Napoli, Mauro Gomez
2B: Dustin Pedroia, Pedro Ciriaco
SS: Asdrubal Cabrera, Jose Iglesias.
3B: Will Middlebrooks.
DH: David Ortiz
There's also the options of Ivan DeJesus and Danny Valencia as fillers, and I don't think we've heard the end of Nick Swisher to Boston rumors. Hopefully, for everyones sake, that does not happen.
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