Enough Is En-Huff!
Hey all!
It’s been a few days since we got to post on here and it feels good to be back at it. The SupahFans.com t-shirt promo for June was a blast and remember we are doing one every month so keep signing up and get your friends on too!
Well, things have taken a dramatic turn of events on the field with the Yankees winning 5 of their last 8 games and only the Indians and Rangers taking them on this week. They do have the Rays in town this upcoming weekend which should make for some great viewing since the Rays have played them very well this season.
The Sox have gone 4-4 in their last 8 games with 2 disappointing games against the Jays on Friday and Saturday. Yesterdays game should be a turning point for them though.
YOUUUK and Pedroia must have known they were on the free shirt today as they put together 3HRs between them yesterday to match Lesters 12 Ks. The confuzzled lineup yesterday may have just put the Sox where they wanted to be. I doubt they will see the lineup stay that way even as soon as tomorrow but Pedroia seemed to like that lead-off spot.
The big conversation now is how big of a trade do the Sox need to look for in the coming weeks and/or months. The past few years have shown us that the Sox don’t like to go out and make the big splash in the mid-season (minus Manny but that was inevitable with his 2 year option on the table) but this year just smells of something different.
Chad Finn wrote today on Boston.com of what the Sox need and where they can look to fulfill that need. Obviously with Papi missing everything, YOUK cooling down, and only JayBay really being the only one with the solid answers everyday, the Sox need to make a move and probably sooner than you think.
Here are the options Finn gave: 1B Adrian Gonzalez (SD), SS Omar Vizquel (TEX), C/1B Victor Martinez (CLE), 1B Nick Johnson (WAS), SS Orlando Cabrera (OAK), 1B/DH Aubrey Huff (BAL), OF Adam Dunn (WAS), SS Miguel Tejada (HOU), SS John McDonald (TOR), and SS Alex Gonzalez (CIN).
Of these picks, Martinez and Gonzalez got almost 60% of the vote of who to go after in a poll and I couldn’t disagree more.
Martinez does offer a credibility stand-point in the C roll with ‘Tek’s future hanging in the balance but if ’Tek keeps this season up the way he has, he should be able to come back with a few more years and get the money he wants, the Sox know they have it. Gonzalez is a great hitter but he’s also very good in the field, I am not ready to totally give up on Pappi and get rid of him or YOUUUK or Lowell for that matter. The SS core is obviously hurting and could use a serious replacement but the Sox love to check their own options before hitting the table and with Lowrie’s return shortly, the Sox may be willing to stick it out to see if he returns to form in the second half of the season.Tis leaves us with Huff and Dunn. It seems (as I wrote about in the “It’s All In The Name” article) that the Nats and Sox have probably been doing a little talking and Dunn is definately due to lose fielding rights very soon in his career so this is a very viable option. Personally, I would prefer to bring Huff into the mix more than anyone on this list.
| Huff’s 2009 STATS | ||||
| BA | HR | RBI | OBP | SLG |
| .268 | 8 | 38 | .338 | .474 |
Huff is starting out mediocre this season as he often does but how can a guy like him succeed in the Baltimore lineup? They don’t have the power in their lineup to protect Huff the way he would be in Boston. Imagine a lineup that included Bay, YOUUUUK, Huff, and Lowell as your 3,4,5,6… We would see back-to-back-to-back-to-back on a weekly basis! And Huff is a viable option to fill in at 1B along with the DH role. At 33 years of age he is probably reaching the downturn of his career but the hole needs to be filled for only a year or two and the Sox have the money to fill it in the off-season.
Realistically, any of these options will bolster the lineup and everyone gets giddy over thinking about it but what Sox fans often forget is that a trade means giving up something too and this season the Sox have the deepest pitching staff (all the way down to Portland) of any team in baseball. The farm has been manicured just that way and the Sox have to be thinking about it that way. Guys like Bowden, Buchholz, etc are looming in the balance of any big trade with many years of success ahead of them and the Sox know that. They also have a very deep relief core which they should not split up, but that’s just my opinion.
In all, the Sox have to do something if they want to keep up with the bolstered Yankees squad of ‘09 and they should probably consider doing it sooner than later. History says they will take their chances and do it later but this season has been one for the ages in the wake of everything baseball has been through recently and the group we have now may just not be enough.
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5 Responses to “Enough Is En-Huff!”
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He may not be the all-star he once was but we’re not going to get an all-star to play back up position and split time at DH. He’s the best man for the position for the next couple years.
Honestly I hope we do get Aubrey Huff just so you can see that hes is washed up and you will stop professing your love for him every change you get. Huff doesn’t lack protection he lacks youth. The power is there but really…
Its not 2001 anymore Craig and Aubrey Huff is not the all star he once was!
Really… Aubrey Huff? I don’t know if I like investing in a guy at that stage of his career… however I bet we could get him cheap anyways…
After being out of town for a few days I noticed a “change in the winds” regarding the Ortiz discussion. It has gone from he will hit, when will he it to he’s not going to hit write off talk. Based on what I read today here and what I hear I am starting to belive the Ortiz era may officially be over here in Boston. Somewhat historic in the way it happend if this is final. Nobody ever went down this far, this fast and so sadly.
Sulldog
I can’t believe Finn put Omar Vizquel on the list of potentials. How old is that guy? 50? Is he going to be playing SS in a wheelchair?