Back With a Vengeance

I can't tell if it's the 60-degree weather we've been having, or the fact that Spring Training is underway. Either way, despite being fully entrenched in February, my inner clock has convinced me that spring is here.

Baseball is officially back, and so are the Sox. What's more is that this year serves as perhaps the most-anticipated season ever for Sox fans. 2011 carries more promise and expectation than ever. For decades, frantic hope was a spring tradition in New England along the lines of melting snow, blooming flowers, birds and snowbirds making their returns, and college co-eds eagerly trading their Northfaces for tank tops. But everything changed in 2004 - we're far more relaxed and rational now!...... Right!?

This particular installment marks arguably the finest Sox team ever on paper. Of course games are not played nor won on paper, but consider the following: last year the Sox finished with 89 wins and 6 games out of the wildcard. This went down with the Sox trotting out a lineup featuring 2 of this year's starting 9 in their elimination game. The team was simply ravaged by injuries. The argument could be made that the Sox would have drastically improved (to the tune of 5-10 extra wins and probable playoff status) had they simply got healthy this offseason. Re-insert Two Years Removed From AL MVP Status Dustin Pedroia; perennial top-3 AL corner infielder Kevin Youkilis; and the overrated but rather useful Jacoby Ellsbury, and that alone makes last year's 2nd-best lineup in baseball that much more potent.

Enter Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford - without question the two best position players acquired by anybody this offseason. Carl Crawford is one of the most exciting players in baseball, as well as one of the most consistent. He has been one of my favorite players in the game over the past eight seasons. A historically good all-around athlete (he received scholarship offers for both football and basketball; to quarterback the University of Nebraska, USC, Oklahoma, Florida, and Tulsa, in addition to a starting point guard offer from UCLA), he has already put together a fine baseball career at the age of 29. For the next seven seasons, he will man the Monstah at Fenway and provide good-to-great offense, 50+ steals, Gold Glove-caliber defense, and both consistency and (hopefully) longevity given his track record of good health, freakish workout regimens, and overall athletic ability.

Adrian Gonzalez has long been coveted by the Red Sox brass. Since John Henry owned the Marlins (not-so-ironically during seasons in which the Marlins drafted Josh Beckett #2 overall and then Adrian Gonzalez #1 overall in subsequent years), he has had an affinity for the first baseman. Theo had been hard at work in trying to facilitate a trade to bring in the lefty slugger for reportedly the past 2.5 years and perhaps longer. In addition to providing two-time Gold Glove first base defense, Adrian Gonzalez has a swing tailor-made for Fenway. Gonzo had been mired in the worst hitter's park in baseball (Petco Park) for the past five seasons, in addition to being surrounded by the 3rd-worst lineup in baseball over that timeframe. Blessed with perhaps the best opposite-field power in the game save for Ryan Howard, we can expect to see nearly a dozen Gonzalez bombs to clear the Monster in his 81 games at Fenway and dozens of doubles denting the green giant. Despite the unfavorable situation in San Diego and the NL West (featuring both great pitching and tough parks to hit in), Gonzo has exceeded 30 HRs each of the past four seasons. Having developed a very patient eye (a Sox lineup trademark), featuring tremendous opposite-field power, and being inserted into the middle of the projected best lineup in baseball, very big things are expected of Gonzalez. Expect him to sign a very lucrative long-term extension with the team shortly after opening day.

The Sox rotation features 2 of the very best young pitchers in baseball in Lester and Buccholz; in addition to 3 veterans who have the tools and track record of being among the best in the game. John Lackey and Beckett finished with rather subpar (a very diplomatic way of putting it) seasons in 2010. Should one or both of them respond and return to career-norm production, the Sox have the potential to finish with the best staff in the AL, despite pitching in the finest offensive division in the game. The wildcard is, without question, Diasuke Matsuzaka. With a new pitching coach; no arm-burning-out, pre-MLB-season World Baseball Classic innings on his arm; no recent injuries; and having reported to Fort Myers in tremendous shape, Daisuke looks to be in the best position to approach his legendary-status hype and promise.

Featuring a retooled bullpen and a former lights-out closer as an extra set-up man, the Sox look to have a tremendous 'pen in place. Bobby Jenks was brought in for that 7th/8th inning role to complement Daniel Bard. Jenks is not too-far removed from dominance. In 2007, the burly right-hander tied the record for most consecutive batters retired - a cool 41 batters over 14 appearances. However, he's struggled in recent years, but still has the stuff and potential to be a big-time hog cog as a late-inning setup man.

I miss the ALCS heavyweight bouts between the Sox and Yanks. It's been far too long since the last one: the oh-so-sweet 2004 ALCS, which, as we all recall, was a legendary, record-setting, historically dramatic, insert-your-own-superlative series for the ages and storybooks. Might this be the year? We'll have to wait 7 months, but it's going to be an awfully fun summer in the meantime. Buckle up, keep your limbs in phalanges inside the ride, and enjoy! You know I will.