A few items on the Red Sox as they get set to take on the Blue Jays in Toronto..
- The Phillies and Diamondbacks have been in Toronto scouting third baseman Kevin Youkilis, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Earlier today, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com identified the Phillies and D'Backs as two of ten clubs that could be in the chase for the veteran.
- Youkilis is too good to just simply give away, opines John Tomase of the Boston Herald. Instead of selling Youkilis now because plays the same position as rising star Will Middlebrooks, Tomase would like to see the Red Sox find a way to keep him in the lineup.
- The new draft regulations will handcuff what the Red Sox are able to do, Tomase writes. One of the best examples of Boston taking advantage of their ability to spend in the draft came in 2007 when they gave fifth-round pick Will Middlebrooks $925K rather than the recommendation of $130K.
I’m not familiar with John Tomase, but it seems he may not be the brightest bulb…one article on the elimination of a draft strategy EVERYONE has used for years on how it will impact the Red Sox more than other teams and one on finding a position for Youkoulis (which they’ve already tried and don’t believe will work) instead of trading him.
Why can’t we stick Youk in left for a few games and have Middlebrooks and Gonzo man the corner spots… I may be wrong, but didn’t Youk play LF while coming up the system? Fenway has a small LF and i’m sure he can play that position for a couple of games here and there and just keep his bat in the lineup for the time being… Personally, I’d rather have Youk in LF then Gonzo in RF
youkilis was open about his desire to never play the outfield again when gonzalez came to boston and he was moved to third. i don’t know if he’d make a big deal about it now, but whoever is out there absolutely needs to be in fenway’s left field instead of right
It was awful enough watching Jim Rice, Jason Bay and Manny Ramirez attempt to play LF.. IMO Youk would put them all to shame for butchery at the position…
No one wants to see Youk in the outfield again. It’s just abysmal.
Despite being small, that’s a difficult LF to play.
yeah, but think about it… We had a lot worse guys out there in left, Youk can definitely hold that position down until Crawford returns. Its smarter and we have all 3 bats in and it wouldn’t be that bad since our outfield is depleted
I mean, at this point, give anything a shot.
I think the sox will need to be blown away by any offer for Youk. Come this offseason they can give Ortiz a qualifying offer — and he’ll turn it down. Sox get the draft pick and they have Gonzo, Middlebrooks, and Youk for 1B, 3B, and DH. If Middlebrooks struggles, they put Youk back at 3B.
I honestly don’t know why you would do that at all. Ortiz is a far superior offensive player compared to Youk and will probably make only slightly more than Youk is slated to make next year if they do the arbitration dance again.
Meanwhile, if Youk is still in Boston next year, Middlebrooks will continue to feel like he always has to swing at every pitch to get a hit each time he comes to the plate instead of being able to refine his plate discipline knowing that the position will be his regardless of whether he walks more instead of being a free swinger.
They could very well get prospects that have already shown potential in the minor leagues and have had some development under their belt if they traded Youk now as opposed to the total crap shoot that the draft can be sometimes.
Trade Youk for the best deal you can get for him.
Thanks Zach for posting an article from the Boston herald’s better writing staff and especially John Tomase.. Tomase is one of the BETTER sports writers covering the Sox in the NE area in my opinion and hope this site continues posting some of his articles here.
How about they play Middlebrooks at SS just enough to gain eligibility for my fantasy team.
Mike that may seem logical but to keep Youk next season will cost them $13 M or a $1 M buy-out. To keep Ortiz they will pay about the same.
I would rather see them trade Youk for two proven prospects in AA or higher.
this had better be a good move for Cherington , or Sox Nation will be out for his scalp
I agree, no need to trade Youk unless their is something to be gained. They can fit him on the roster for this season as we do never know if he may be neede down the line. It may mean optioning Middlebrooks to AAA fo awhile but if that’s what needs to happen then that is what they should do. If they can get a blue chip pitching prospect from the Dodgers then maybe you do that but you do not just give him away.
Youk for Joe Saunders and Jason Kubel maybe?
Good suggestions certainly