With that, below is the latest edition of the Red Sox Lineup, nine thoughts to get you through the next winter storm intact.
1. Spring training may not have too many storylines this year. The Marco Scutaro-Jed Lowrie situation bears watching, as does the return of a few injured players. But one question that will be posed to Terry Francona on a daily basis will have to do with the status of Adrian Gonzalez. He is the one guy, and a pretty important one, that may not be able to play in many Grapefruit League games. However, there was word Wednesday that he was able to throw a baseball for the first time since surgery on his right shoulder Oct. 20. Gonzalez is a lefty thrower, but the action it takes to toss and catch a ball was not possible until now. The new first baseman is expected to begin swinging a bat by the end of February. He may be a little ahead of schedule.
2. With the signings of Jonathan Papelbon and Jacoby Ellsbury to a total of $14.4 million, the Red Sox payroll will settle in around $163 million, roughly the same as in 2010. The remaining contracts will be doled out to Clay Buchholz, Daniel Bard, Jed Lowrie and Darnell McDonald, none of whom are eligible for arbitration. Of course, payrolls are calculated in numerous ways, but we know that with medical compensations and salaries for players on the 40-man roster but not on the 25-man roster, among other things, the overall payroll will probably push past the $178 million luxury tax threshold. If and when that occurs, the Sox will be taxed at a rate of 30 percent on anything they spend over that mark.
3. He was already in town for a handful of events, but it was still refreshing to see Ryan Kalish working out with the minor leaguers at the rookie program. Director of player development Mike Hazen called Kalish the "shining example" of the program after the way in which he did almost everything well (on and off the field) last season upon his promotion. It was also refreshing to hear Kalish talk like a guy who is not getting too far ahead of himself.
"I keep talking about that even keel that we all need to have as players," Kalish said. "It's something that I learned a lot about in here [at the rookie program], taking that attitude you can’t really look ahead too much. … I'm still jittery. There’s still a lot to be done, a lot I want to happen. [I want to] be part of a championship team here. With all that, I'm a little bit restless. I'm on edge. There’s a lot more to be done."
Fans will grow to love Kalish in time.
4. From the youth of the organization to one of its elder statesmen. Tim Wakefield will be among those honored Thursday at the 72nd annual awards dinner for the Boston chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America. Wakefield will be given the inaugural Community Service Award. Others set to attend include Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington, umpire Jim Joyce, Detroit Tigers reliever Joaquin Benoit and former Red Sox prospect Anthony Rizzo. In addition to Wakefield, Kalish, Clay Buchholz, Scott Atchison and Darnell McDonald are expected to be honored. Tickets for the event, to take place at the Westin Copley Place, can still be purchased here.
5. Given its location and the time of the dinner, parking may be tough to come by. It also will be much more expensive in Brookline next year on game days. This is an issue we’ve updated each of the past two weeks in this space, but now that there’s some finality, we can leave it alone. Consider this as one last warning for those of you who like to use those meters along Beacon Street. Time to save up, or find another option if you can’t fork over $20-plus for parking.
6. There is no reasonable segue from parking in Brookline to the Tampa Bay Rays' bullpen, but it must be addressed. After Grant Balfour signed with Oakland, we discussed the mass exodus and its impact for the Red Sox rivals. At the time, they were still linked with Brian Fuentes and Jon Rauch, but they have since signed with Oakland and Toronto, respectively. To rehash, six of the eight leaders out of the bullpen in terms of innings pitched have left, and Kyle Farnsworth may be the closer to start the year. Could the best bullpen in the AL in 2010 be the worst in 2011?
7. Speaking of relievers, there was a Bobby Jenks sighting in Boston on Wednesday. He was at the rookie program at Boston College, looking fit, goateed and lending his full support to the Chicago Bears. Sporting a Bears T-shirt that looked as if it had been through a few battles, he played catch and caught up with new pitching coach Curt Young before taking off.
8. And speaking of Young, he met briefly with reporters. He said he has talked with every member of the pitching staff, with the exception of Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima, and was particularly impressed with Josh Beckett, whom Young described as healthy. Young added that he was appreciative of the opportunity to meet with guys like Jenks and Papelbon this week. "Getting a chance to come here and meet everybody in the organization is really going to help me down in spring training, and the process of going through spring training will help," he said.
Young has also spoken with former Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell, the new manager in Toronto. "Just one good conversation, kind of got his opinion on some of the pitchers," Young said. "He kind of let me know some things that can help the guys, and that’s a great thing."
9. Before signing off, it’s worth noting two former Boston favorites are keeping their careers alive in new locales. One-time Red Sox infielder Alex Cora signed with Washington on Monday and Gabe Kapler inked a deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday. Both are minor league deals for the 35-year-olds, who may be opposing one another as managers at some point down the road.
