[Corsi Combover]

The Red Sox are leaving few stones unturned in their search for finding an extra infielder. You can now add the name of free agent second baseman-third baseman (and outfielder) Adam Kennedy and free agent shortstop Adam Everett to the list of names the Red Sox have contacted multiple times this offseason to express preliminary and ongoing interest, according to major-league sources.

Kennedy, who will be 34 next season, is a good left-handed hitter with below-average defensive rankings. The Red Sox like his versatility and opposite-field swing, and could use him as a super-utility type, using him at third base, the outfield and even first base. He could also be an insurance policy at second base for Dustin Pedroia, should he get injured or, as has been mentioned once or two hundred times today, in the unlikely scenario he moves to shortstop.

http://www.bostonherald.com/blogs/sports/r...s-adam-everett/

[Freddy Linn]

Felipe Lopez is a possibility. Type B.

Pros:

UZR of 7.8 at 2B last year
OPS+ of 111 in '09, 158 in limited action in '08
.802 OPS from the right side, .835 from the left
4.6 WAR
Switch hitter
High opposite field OPS as a lefty, highest OPS as a pull hitter righty
30 in May of next year
Fair amount of 2Bs available, might not be as expensive as originally thought

Cons:

Fielding sucked prior to last year, mostly at SS
Likely looking for a multi-year contract

[Jack Sox]

If the Sox are serious about moving Pedroia to short - and the more I think about it, the more I think it could actually work - why not take a look at Mark DeRosa to man 2B? He's a very versatile player who could seemingly cover 1st, 2nd, 3rd, LF and likely RF as well. I'm not sure how well he projects defensively at any of those positions due to sample size issues, but I find the flexibility he would grant Tito to be very intriguing.

It doesn't look as if he's going to be offered arbitration (he's only type B, anyway).

Worst case scenario, you sign him to be your 2B and Pedroia flames out at SS, you shift Dustin back to 2B, call up Lowrie and have a pretty good bat off the bench in DeRosa who can play all over the diamond. For a team with several offensive starters past the age of 30, having DeRosa available to give them a blow seems like a pretty decent investment in my books.

[Adirondack jack]

Just as important as to whom would play second is who's on third. A defense with Pedroia and Lowell on the left side would be putrid. To put it kindly. A plus defender at third would be a necessity.

Not that I like Uggla all that much, although if he brought with him Josh Johnson, I could endorse it unconditionally.


edit: well within reason, therefore unconditionally would be a bad word. You get the gist...

This post has been edited by Adirondack jack: 01 December 2009 - 04:22 PM

[Yazdog8]

The Dodgers just declined arbitration on Orlando Hudson. He wouldn't be a bad choice.

[Rough Carrigan]

Pokey Reese is tanned, rested and ready!

Mark Bellhorn is . . well, he's rested and ready.

[BucketOBalls]

If the Sox are serious about moving Pedroia to short - and the more I think about it, the more I think it could actually work -

Well....ugh, I hate this but...

UZR has David Eckstien as an above-average fielding shortstop for his age 27 and 28 seasons. He was then around average(small-) for three more years and then got by on grittyness. I'm not fond of basing anything on players having a minor physical similarity, but I'm not sure how else you project other than just lopping something off of his 2B defense.

The idea that Pedroia could play an acceptable shortstop for a little while seems somewhat credible at least. Looks like he probably wouldn't suck at least.

[Corsi Combover]

Felipe Lopez is a possibility. Type B.

And the Brewers just declined arbitration on him.

Brewers aren't offering arbitration to any of their five Class B free agents -- Cameron, Kendall, Lopez, Looper or Weathers.

http://twitter.com/Haudricourt/status/6250154286

[Corsi Combover]

The Tigers decided to offer arbitration to Type B free agent relievers Fernando Rodney and Brandon Lyon, but not to Type A free agent Placido Polanco.

http://beck.mlblogs.com/archives/2009/12/r...arbitratio.html

[TomRicardo]

And the Brewers just declined arbitration on him.

http://twitter.com/Haudricourt/status/6250154286

Not at all relevant to the conversation.

Type B's cost the signing team nothing. So it doesn't make a difference at all for the Red Sox if they are offered arbitration or not.

[TheYellowDart5]

Having to pay zero compensation for either of the three best FA 2B on the market -- Lopez, Hudson and Polanco -- would seem to give legs to any move of Pedroia to SS. And it's not like either of those three guys will require more than a one-year deal.

On the other hand, as noted elsewhere, if the FO is going to follow through with moving Pedroia, they're going to need a better 3B than Lowell to pick up the slack. Although I'd be interested to see what Pedroia's numbers are (if they're available) on balls hit to his left vs. to his right.

Could we be in line for an infield next year of:

1B: Youkilis
2B: Hudson/Lopez/Polanco
SS: Pedroia
3B: Beltre

[MoGator71]

I'm not sure if he's still a viable option there, but you could add Chone Figgins to the list I suppose. He was discussed as a 3B option, and assuming he can still play a solid 2B his bat would be much more valuable there.

[Corsi Combover]

Add another name to the Red Sox-have-expressed-interest-in list: Mark DeRosa.

http://twitter.com/MikeSilvermanBB/status/6270609069

[86spike]

The point about needing a better fielding 3B than Lowell with Pedroia at SS is a very good one. (I wonder if this realigned configuration might have something to do with the 'Sox will eat half of Lowell's money to move him' news from a few weeks ago)

So this thread should really be "If Pedroia plays short, who plays second and third?'

Personally, I want Lowell either traded (long shot, IMHO) or made into a RHH platoon DH. I'm not sure if the team can or would make that happen though.

Now, if the above happened with Lowell, I'd list my personal targets as:

3B:
Beltre
DeRosa

2B:
Hudson
Polanco
B. Phillips (requiring a trade)
Lopez

I also think going into this new scheme would require the addition of a Great-Defense utility IFer for late in close games (potentially to play SS late with Pedroia shifting back to 2B and whomever starts at 2B benched). This would be about maximizing SS defense late above what Dustin can do. Adam Everett would be great at this, but I bet some team will make him a starter.

As I think it through... we're looking at a set of about 4 cascading roster moves that would follow a Pedroia to SS switch. That's a lot of churn.

[Rudy Pemberton]

One thing to note about DeRosa is that he's not regarded as a very good defensive 3B (better than Lowell last year, of course, though).

-8.7 UZR / 150, and the Fielding Bible has him at -9 runs saved for '09.

[Arock78]

As I think it through... we're looking at a set of about 4 cascading roster moves that would follow a Pedroia to SS switch. That's a lot of churn.

If the Sox asked him if he could make the move, it's possible it was because they had something like these other moves in mind, which would require they shift him over. That is, his switch could be part of the churn subsequent to another move.

I love that they're being creative, considering how lousy other SS options are. What a bargain Pedroia would be if he turns out to be ~average or + at SS.

[absintheofmalaise]

The point about needing a better fielding 3B than Lowell with Pedroia at SS is a very good one. (I wonder if this realigned configuration might have something to do with the 'Sox will eat half of Lowell's money to move him' news from a few weeks ago)

So this thread should really be "If Pedroia plays short, who plays second and third?'

Personally, I want Lowell either traded (long shot, IMHO) or made into a RHH platoon DH. I'm not sure if the team can or would make that happen though.

Now, if the above happened with Lowell, I'd list my personal targets as:

3B:
Beltre
DeRosa

2B:
Hudson
Polanco
B. Phillips (requiring a trade)
Lopez

I also think going into this new scheme would require the addition of a Great-Defense utility IFer for late in close games (potentially to play SS late with Pedroia shifting back to 2B and whomever starts at 2B benched). This would be about maximizing SS defense late above what Dustin can do. Adam Everett would be great at this, but I bet some team will make him a starter.

As I think it through... we're looking at a set of about 4 cascading roster moves that would follow a Pedroia to SS switch. That's a lot of churn.

In your scenario are you talking about if Lowell is killed off or if he's still around? Because, if he's still around as the RHH DH, they've just wasted two roster spots that have zero value defensively on DH. Not to mention a super utility guy that has zero offensive value.

[maufman]

In KC, rumors are swirling that the Royals will shop second baseman Alberto Callaspo. Here's what I wrote about Callaspo in my Royals' 2009 recap in the Adopt-A-Team subforum:

In the minors, Alberto Callaspo was a .300 hitter who didn't walk or strike out much. I don't have data, but I suspect the track record of such players in The Show is poor. If so, Callaspo took a big step in 2009 toward proving himself an exception, hitting 300/356/457 in 155 games in his age-26 season. UZR doesn't like his defense (-7.5/150), but his numbers during the season were better, suggesting a possible late-season defensive slump. His career UZR/150 at 2B is -2.9, further suggesting that Callaspo's glove might be better than his 2009 UZR suggests. He won't be much more than he is, but defensively competent second basemen who hit .300 don't grow on trees.

Some teams will regard his 2009 breakout as a fluke, some will remain concerned about off-field problems he had a few years ago, and others will underrate his defense based on traditional metrics (Callaspo was last in fielding percentage among regular MLB second basemen last year). Consequently, it's distinctly possible that the market will undervalue Callaspo. I like Callaspo a lot. The Royals' eagnerness to trade him is concerning, but Dayton Moore is hard to figure; his infatuation with Chris Getz appears to be his latest head-scratcher.

Callaspo might not be the best fit for the Sox-- in theory, his cost-controlled status should make him more valuable to someone else than to us-- but he belongs on any list of potential replacements for Pedroia at second base.

[bosockboy]

The point about needing a better fielding 3B than Lowell with Pedroia at SS is a very good one. (I wonder if this realigned configuration might have something to do with the 'Sox will eat half of Lowell's money to move him' news from a few weeks ago)

So this thread should really be "If Pedroia plays short, who plays second and third?'

Personally, I want Lowell either traded (long shot, IMHO) or made into a RHH platoon DH. I'm not sure if the team can or would make that happen though.

Now, if the above happened with Lowell, I'd list my personal targets as:

3B:
Beltre
DeRosa

2B:
Hudson
Polanco
B. Phillips (requiring a trade)
Lopez

I also think going into this new scheme would require the addition of a Great-Defense utility IFer for late in close games (potentially to play SS late with Pedroia shifting back to 2B and whomever starts at 2B benched). This would be about maximizing SS defense late above what Dustin can do. Adam Everett would be great at this, but I bet some team will make him a starter.

As I think it through... we're looking at a set of about 4 cascading roster moves that would follow a Pedroia to SS switch. That's a lot of churn.

I'd be stunned if they had anyone in mind other than Beltre and Hudson. Both cost cash only with no draft pick compensation. I'm almost to the point that I'll be disappointed if this doesn't happen now.

[Return of the Dewey]

The first thing that I thought was that Aaron Hill's name may have come up in the reported discussions with TOR about Halladay. Looking at Hill's reasonable contract, it's not likely.