For manager Terry Francona, filling out the lineup card every day is probably becoming as stressful as managing the game itself. He's had to juggle the lineup every day in the midst of injuries and the replacements that come with those.
Just this past week, he saw his first baseman, Kevin Youkilis, go down for the season with season-ending thumb surgery. He also saw the returns of Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Lowell, although both are tricky situations to manage in their own rights.
Lowell's return came at the perfect time with the injury to Youkilis, but Lowell's own injury situation may complicate things. Francona and the Red Sox have said that Lowell won't play every day, so that means there will be a revolving door at first base.
Looking into the future, with the signing of Carlos Delgado, that could lead to a platoon with Lowell, but that's nothing more than speculation, as Delgado may never even make it to Boston.
Jed Lowrie can play first base, but he's more likely to stay at second until the return of Dustin Pedroia, and it's uncertain when that might be. Victor Martinez is back, and he can play first base as well, but if he spends time at first base, then Kevin Cash would likely slide in as catcher. Obviously, Martinez is the better option behind the plate.
Ellsbury's return solidifies things in the outfield some. With the injury and subsequent disabled list trip for Mike Cameron, Ellsbury can return to center field where he's likely wanted to be all along.
Ryan Kalish has been an incredibly pleasant surprise since being called up from Triple-A Pawtucket to make his big league debut.
Once Francona gets the defense squared away, there's still the issue of who fits where in the lineup, something that brings questions with it as well. Who is the best option to fill in for Youkilis at the cleanup position? Martinez seems like the early candidate, but would you toy with the idea of putting David Ortiz there or moving up Adrian Beltre and his 75 RBIs?
There are a lot of options right now for the Red Sox in terms of their lineup, but if the injury situation permits it, they're going to need to find a stable lineup. Consistency is needed to go on a long hot streak, and with the injuries, a steady lineup is something that the Red Sox haven't had all year.
So assuming there are no injuries in the near future (which, with the way this season has gone, is a huge assumption), what is the strongest lineup Terry Francona can put together?
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