Poll: Does Lackey deserve a spot in the rotation? - Talksox

Palodios · 01-01-2013, 03:03 PM

I love polls. Polls polls polls.

Everyone seems to be saying the same thing about the Red Sox-- they spent an absolute ton of money, but didn't fix the biggest problem for this team -- the rotation. It appears that the front office is counting on Lackey to return to his career averages, despite having a historically bad season in 2011.

How does everyone think Lackey will perform in 2013?

jopete19 · 01-01-2013, 03:16 PM

This is what Spring Training is for. Hopefully JF will get him in shape and he'll return to his Angel numbers. Hopefully.

a700hitter · 01-01-2013, 03:46 PM

When a staff is full of "ifs" and you need all of those questions to be answered in a positive way, you will have a bad team. Our "ifs": Buchholz staying healthy and putting up 200+ innings, Lester returning to form, Lackey returning to the pitcher he was for the Angels, and Doubront's late season failures were just fatigue. We need all of these to work out in a positive way in order to be competitive. All of them working out is unlikely. We need another pitcher.

Bellhorn04 · 01-01-2013, 04:12 PM

I'm going with unbridled optimism. Why not. It's January.

RedSoxNC84 · 01-01-2013, 04:34 PM

Hahaha "Trade the fucker."

I wonder who voted that way

a700hitter · 01-01-2013, 04:37 PM

Some fans suffer from Stockholm Syndrome. Not that long ago I predicted that we wouldn't add the 2 new starters that we need and that people would make excuses for the FO and come up with arguments why our pitching was good enough. Most people said that there would be no excuses if the FO didn't address the pitching situation. As hopes for getting pitching help fades, people will start to formulate these arguments that we are good enough and improved and that the FO did the best it could. Preemptively, I say hooey. Signing Ryan Dempster and a couple of bull pen arms does not address the issue. Spare me all the "ifs". If the Queen had balls she would be the King. Lots of "ifs" means that you are going to be a loser. I love baseball and I will always root like crazy for the Red Sox, and I will hope for all the "ifs", but I have opened eyes. They have not done what needs to be done. Unless there is more to come, they have not adequately addressed the team's biggest need. To those who say that 2013 is going to be a bridge year like it or not, I say why spend $170 million on a bridge year payroll.

mvp 78 · 01-01-2013, 05:33 PM

The upside on Lackey is nil. He should compete for a spot. If he doesn't earn a spot, they need to move on from this disaster.

reYoukalis · 01-01-2013, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by a700hitter

Some fans suffer from Stockholm Syndrome. Not that long ago I predicted that we wouldn't add the 2 new starters that we need and that people would make excuses for the FO and come up with arguments why our pitching was good enough. Most people said that there would be no excuses if the FO didn't address the pitching situation. As hopes for getting pitching help fades, people will start to formulate these arguments that we are good enough and improved and that the FO did the best it could. Preemptively, I say hooey. Signing Ryan Dempster and a couple of bull pen arms does not address the issue. Spare me all the "ifs". If the Queen had balls she would be the King. Lots of "ifs" means that you are going to be a loser. I love baseball and I will always root like crazy for the Red Sox, and I will hope for all the "ifs", but I have opened eyes. They have not done what needs to be done. Unless there is more to come, they have not adequately addressed the team's biggest need. To those who say that 2013 is going to be a bridge year like it or not, I say why spend $170 million on a bridge year payroll.

But how do you balance that against not signing long term deals? Great players want long term deals.

Also I think its obvious that the FO knows that they have the potential for a trade with our excess of catchers, center fielders (Vic & Els) and relief pitchers and are waiting for the right player and right deal.

jung · 01-01-2013, 06:35 PM

Nobody is going to give much for Ells or Vic or any combination of Els or Vic and Salty. So I am not at all convinced that the SP situation gets resolved in trade at this point. It probably just does not get done this off season. Ells does not have enough contract left and has his one big year to go on....big deal.

The bigger issue for me is one that 700 put in his post. They have spent a ton of money to turn themselves into the Boston Mid-packs.

Bellhorn04 · 01-01-2013, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jung

The bigger issue for me is one that 700 put in his post. They have spent a ton of money to turn themselves into the Boston Mid-packs.

Maybe so. But there is a big difference in spending a ton on 1-2-3 year deals and spending a ton on 4-5-6 year deals. Let's keep it in perspective.

User Name? · 01-01-2013, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bellhorn04

Maybe so. But there is a big difference in spending a ton on 1-2-3 year deals and spending a ton on 4-5-6 year deals. Let's keep it in perspective.

Perspective is the correct word. You can't have your cake and eat it too. People want the Red Sox to give themselves a chance to win without sacrificing the future, and this is basically the way to do it.

a700hitter · 01-01-2013, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bellhorn04

Maybe so. But there is a big difference in spending a ton on 1-2-3 year deals and spending a ton on 4-5-6 year deals. Let's keep it in perspective.

You don't need to spend $170 million if you are in a bridge year.

jung · 01-01-2013, 07:56 PM

There was not enough depth in this year's FA pool to even make several 4-5-6 year deals possible. So I am not ready to anoint what they have done as genius at this point.

I am not convinced that spending all the way up to the LT cap limit to build this kind of a team makes much sense. I suppose they could make the case to the fans that they are willing to spend money. I have to believe that was part of upper management's logic in setting BC off in this particular direction. They have done so much more for show and so little for go in the last couple of years that it sounds just like them to give themselves a ready made argument for why we should spend our dollars to watch this team play. We spend our dollars so you fans should reciprocate and spend yours.

But if the team is not going to win enough games and not be particularly interesting to watch...who cares? I just don't think this is likely to work out from either perspective....business or performance.

Way back when Napoli was first signed, people were suggesting that we were building a team that nobody is going to care particularly about and I agree. Victorino will likely be worth watching and I like Ross as a catcher. I frankly don't see myself much interested in Gomes or Drew or Napoli especially as a full time 1st baseman. From what I can see Drew was on the downside, before he got injured. What are we hoping for, a Steven Drew of about 5-6 years ago? Even if we got that Drew, a full year of Napoli at 1st and the outfield as planned, where does that leave them with their pitching?

Looking at the O's effort last year does not help. This is not the same thing.

IMO, they stand a very good chance of not satisfying either their business or their performance objectives with this team.

User Name? · 01-01-2013, 08:40 PM

Are you serious?

Hamilton, Greinke, Sanchez, Bourn, Upton, Swisher, and even Napoli and Victorino were guys who either signed, could have signed or will sign 4+ year deals and could have fit into the Sox. That argument holds little merit. They could've gotten themselves into more stupid long-term contracts had they wanted to.

Palodios · 01-01-2013, 08:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by a700hitter

You don't need to spend $170 million if you are in a bridge year.

The simple question here is: If the Red Sox are committed to making the team better, then why not? With all of the contracts they've signed, they're keeping the seats warm for their prospects. Not a single one of their top 10 prospects are blocked from reaching the majors. Keeping the team respectable isn't important just to keep fans in the seats-- it is a big factor in signing free agents, as well as international players.

You said it yourself-- the 2012 team played some of the worst baseball that many of us have seen. If they get lucky with pitching in 2013, there is a very good chance they'll go to the playoffs. I would much rather that than be a team like the Marlins who have no shot.