Take Six: The Red Sox have searched far and wide for stability at the shortstop position. Marco Scutaro has long sought stability in his career.
Both parties may have finally found what they were looking for.
The 34-year-old Scutaro, who entered Cleveland’s system as a second baseman in 1996, had a breakout year with Toronto in 2009 before signing this offseason with the Sox. Career highs in almost every major offensive category certainly caught the eye of Boston brass, but Scutaro feels that his play had just gone unnoticed before that.
Four years as a part-timer in Oakland can do that to a player.
"Sometimes you have no control over whether you play or not," Scutaro said of those years as an Athletic, during which he saw his playing time cut each year. "That was a learning process for me and I got a lot of experience at this level."
It translated into a .282 average with 12 homers and 60 RBIs in his second year in Toronto. Hitting at the top of a lineup for the first time in his career, the Venezuela native drew 90 walks, stole 14 bases and scored 100 runs, all career highs.
It was Scutaro’s glove, however, which stood out and made him a key component in the Red Sox’ shift to improve their defense. In some circles, he is even considered comparable at shortstop to Alex Gonzalez, the defensive whiz who went the other way from Boston to Toronto this offseason.
That remains to be seen, but in Scutaro, the Sox have someone who can keep them from searching the landscape for a new shortstop. And, for now, Scutaro can afford to stop looking for a regular job.
Other options: Jed Lowrie has proven that he can play the position. He just needs to prove he can stay healthy. Should Scutaro need an immediate replacement, Lowrie will be the guy. He had 49 straight games without an error as a rookie and was a clutch hitter in limited time in 2008 before wrist ailments obliterated his sophomore season.
Angel Sanchez and Gil Velazquez lurk in the system as emergency fill-ins.
If all else fails: No knock on Scutaro, but don’t be surprised if it does. That’s just the way it’s gone for the Sox at this spot. After all, he projects to be the oldest regular starting shortstop the Sox have had since Luis Aparicio, another Venezuelan, in 1973.
Although Scutaro is signed to a two-year deal with options for a third year, it’s always a good to see who might be available on the shortstop market. Among the potential free agents next offseason are Julio Lugo, Orlando Cabrera, Edgar Renteria, Alex Cora and Alex Gonzalez.
Surely one of them would work.
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NESN.com will be previewing the 2010 Red Sox by position.
March 7: Third base
