Today the Red Sox signed outfielder Cody Ross. Ross will make about $3 million plus incentives this year. I expect he’ll platoon with Ryan Sweeney with Ross hitting lefties and Sweeney hitting righties. With the money they saved from the Scutaro trade they only spent half of it on Ross, so there may be another move on the horizon.

Since the end of the season the Sox right field picture has looked hazy. With several options no one knows where Bobby, Ben, and the Sox will go.

Interal Options

Ryan Kalish: Kalish was the favorite to land the opening day nod until today. Today he annoucced he had surgery on his throwing (left) shoulder. Once he’s fully healthy which, will be in May or July, he’ll most likely start a rehab stint in Pawtucket then platoon in right.

Ryan Sweeney: Sweeney was part of yesterday’s Andrew Bailey trade. Sweeney is an average outfielder, but don’t expect to see him out there opening day. The reason I say that is because he’s a lefty who can’t hit lefties, the oposite of what the Red Sox need. I expect him to be an effective fourth outfielder.

Darnell Mcdonald: Mcdonald is a longshot, and even that’s an understatment. He’s just not good enough to start everyday. Maybe Bobby will surprise us, but I doubt it.

Free Agents

Johnny Damon: How crazy would it be if Johnny Damon came back. He’s not a horrible fit, but he still doesn’t work well. If he comes back he’ll recive mixed review and heavy scrutiny from the fans. I’m not a Damon hater anymore, but he’s a questionable fit.

Coco Crisp: Here’s another former Sox who could return. I loved Coco when he was Sox. He brings a great attitude and a quality bat to the team I wouldn’t mind seeing him back in Boston.

Ryan Spilborghs: Spilborghs is a great fit in Boston. He’s a cheap effective outfielder. I really wanted the Sox to get him at the deadline, but now they can get him to play everyday in 2012. He’d make an excellent right fielder.

Cody Ross: Ross had huge expectations for a contract only to have them shattered. This is where the Sox come in. Once his asking price is reasonable they could pick him up. Ross is a guy with warning track power so he’d benefit from playing at Fenway. I’m not a huge fan but if he produces I won’t complain.

Trade Market

Seth Smith: I like Smith. He’s a lot like his former teammate Ryan Spilborghs. A cheap effective outfielder. Smith is a better player then most of the guys above, but he’d cost prospects which isn’t ideal.

Carlos Quentin: Quentin is the best player on this list without a doubt. He’s a fantastic hitter who brings a lot to a club. He’s a perfect fit, provided that he can handle the strange right field corner. The only stipulation is it’s via trade so it takes something to get something. I’d like to see him playing for the BoSox, but I don’t see it happening anytime soon.

If you any questions or ideas e-mail me at tricher00@gmail.com or send me a tweet @thebestsoxblog.

Yesterday the Red Sox acquired Andrew Bailey from the Oakland A’s. The Sox gave up Josh Reddick, Miles Head, and Raul Alcantara for Ryan Sweeney and Andrew Bailey. Although I wasn’t a huge fan of Bailey, I like this deal. Reddick won’t be much more than a fourth outfielder despite what many fans believe. Head and Alcantara are both at least 3 years away from playing in the big leauges. Also Head isn’t projected to be much. He’s an undersized out of shape first baseman. Alcantara, is expected to be the real prize. He could become a top level reliever one day.
The reason I like this deal so much is not because of Bailey, but Sweeney. Ryan Sweeney is nothing more than an average corner outfielder, but what makes him special is power to the opposite field. He’s a terrible pull hitter, but he becomes great when he hits out to left field. He’s a lot like Adrian Gonzalez except Gonzalez has the ability to be a pull hitter. Sweeney will thrive at Fenway and is a fantastic throw in. Bailey on the other hand is a great closer. They’re questions about his health, but even when he’s not healthy he puts up great numbers. Overall this is great deal because of what they gave up for the two of them.

The past two weeks have been the most interesting week for the Red Sox. They actually made some moves at an attempt to improve the team for the first time this offseason.
I’ll start off with the two “big” signings. The Sox picked up catcher Kelly Shopach and infielder Nick Punto. They both add some depth to an already good bench. Shopach came up in the Red Sox system, but was traded to the Indians for Coco Crisp shortly after his big league debut. He’s been a fairly succesful backup over the past several seasons and I expect the same in Boston. Terrible hitting and average game calling, but that’s all you need from a backup backstop anyways. Punto is your prototypical ultilty man. An above average defender who leaves something to be desired at the plate. He won a ring last year with St. Louis and will hopefully bring some winning to Boston.
Now I’ll discuss the somewhat confusing trade. The Sox sent Jed Lowrie and Kyle Weiland to the Astros for Mark Melancon. Melancon projects to be the closer this year, but his lack of success pitching in a big market (struggled with the Yankees a few years back) makes me a bit wary. Hopefully he’ll prove me wrong, but there’s nothing to lead me to believe he’ll be successful here. Also we lost a great trade chip in Jed Lowrie and a big prospect in Kyle Weiland. Weiland could’ve been the fifth starter this year, but now the Sox must search for one. And Lowrie could’ve been part of a bigger deal. It just seems like too much for a boderline closer.
Lastly I’ll talk about what almost happened today. The Sox were trying to land both Gio Gonzalez and Andrew Bailey in one “monster deal”. Instead the A’s decided to trade Gio to Washington. For a few moments I thought the deal was going to happen, only to be crushed by the Nats. I’m still not sold on the Bailey deal but if he came with Gio I’d be perfectly fine. Now it’s a questionable move considering what was already given up for Melancon.
Hopefully the Sox make a splash soon, but until then we’ll just have to wait. Any questions or ideas send me a tweet @thebestsoxblog or leave a comment below.