Redsoxchickie: Just This Side of Stalking

At the end of this season 5 players will be eligible for free agency: Lowe, Pedro, Veritek, Nixon, and Nomar.

Any way you look at it we’re going to suffer some kind of loss as the chance of the owners laying down the cash for all five is about as likely as me passing a Dunkies without stopping…Possible but not probable.

So if you had oodles of money and the controlling interest in the team what would you do (besides roll around in the money naked)? Well, with a flashback to Clemens in his “twilight” years passing before my eyes, I’d have to let Pedro go. Emotionally I’m ready to let go, in fact I’ve decided I’m done with even defending him. His antics were dismissible when he was striking fear in hearts of any hitter in the American League. Now that he’s not the powerhouse they once feared? Those antics and most recently his foray into Jerry Springer-like dealing of his contract negotiations are no longer acceptable, and generally lack class. He keeps saying he wants to be respected and paid what he’s worth? I’d hate to tell him that he’s one more stint on the DL away from being a blue light special.

Nomar? Well seeing as how he’s been on the DL all year, in a contract year no less, I’d say his stock has plummeted from what it was last year when we offered him a solid contract. You can bet his kicking himself now for passing that up. Keep him or move him…depends. His price has probably gone down from the injury and overall dip in baseball players’ worth in this market – buy decent talent cheap and hope for a miracle…Angels’ style. Like the saying goes, I wouldn’t kick him out of bed.

I’d only keep Lowe if he promised to see a shrink on a daily basis. He’s more of a head case than Chuck Knoblauch. He’s making the “Derek Lowe” face that was a hallmark in his last disastrous year as a closer…you know, when we ate half a bottle of Tums whenever he came into the game. He’s been shelled what? 4 games in a row now? Unless he goes undefeated for the rest of the season is sayonara.

I’m selfish and I want Nixon back…he’s cost effective, consistent, and a decent guy. He’s the Chevy of baseball players. Sure he hasn’t played one game this year, but I don’t care, he was nice to me at the picnic in the park ;) Oh, and if your ever in a base-brawl, he’s definitely the guy you want on your side.

I am hereby pleading, imploring, begging and offering up slave labor in order to keep Veritek. If the owner are completely moronic to let him get away, the will have effectively ripped the still beating heart out of the team like the bad guy in the second Indian Jones movie. I’m fairly certain there would be rioting in the streets, or at least I’d be rioting. It in no way would make sense to get rid of the guy who keeps the team from imploding on a daily basis. Forget the fact he’s offensively great, the job he does behind the plate can’t compare to ANY other catcher in either league. I would be so distraught if they lose Veritek that I would seriously have to think about not being a fan next year because they would have taken the heart and soul out of the game and out of Boston.

So hopefully Larry and Co. will heed my advice and/or open up the purse strings, because after last fall, I may not make it through any more disappointments.