Nothing Arbitrary at All

Not long ago I was contacted by Martyn of the blog Arbitrary Crap. He had some cards off my wantlist he was willing to send my way. I gladly accepted the kind offer. The generosity of the blogging community never ceases to amaze me. Especially in this case since Martyn is from across the pond. That’s some extra effort! Let’s take a look at some of what he sent over.

Starting off with my all-time favorite set. I’ve said before that 1975 Topps is the only one I’m actively trying to build a complete set of. Although, the definition of “actively” may be stretched a bit. This was a welcome addition. Same goes for the 1977 card next to it. My selection of cards from the 70’s is severely lacking. It’s always nice to add a new one. Speaking of stars from the 70’s, the 2010 Topps National Chicle Yastrzemski is a nice looking card. So many of the Chicles are a mess, it’s nice to see design not go too crazy on this one.

The three in the middle have a special place of honor. They are the last three I needed for my 2011 Topps set. WooHoo!

The Eckersley Chicle is an example of one that is just a bit too abstract for me. I don’t know what it is, but the card just looks “off.” Of course the scans of the Topps Finest cards don’t do them justice. Althoguh, it was a good job by my scanner to capture Dice-K before he slid into oblivion. I love the Finest sets, even though I never seem to get many of them. They are always much appreciated in a package.

So thank you Martyn for the wonderful gift!

Catchers and First Basemen

A new voting category opened today for the All-Fenway team over at FenwayPark100. Now we can vote on the best first baseman, and best catcher in team history.

For catcher, the candidates are: Rick Ferrell, Carlton Fisk, Rich Gedman, Birdie Tebbetts, Jason Varitek, and Sammy White. Even though Rick Ferrell is on the Hall of Fame, I think this argument really comes down to Carlton Fisk and Jason Varitek. If you look over the career numbers for catchers with the Sox, those two dominate the lists. Even though Fisk is in the Hall of Fame, and Varitek probably won’t be, I have to give the nod to Tek. His career numbers with the Sox are at least as good, if not better, that Fisk’s. And, he didn’t bolt the team the first chance he got. I’m going to count that for something.

At first base, the candidates are: Bill Buckner, Jimmie Foxx, Stuffy McInnis, George Scott, Mo Vaughn, and Kevin Youkilis. Of the group, only Foxx is in the Hall of Fame. I can’t vote for Youkilis since he’s played less than 600 games at first. Really, it’s a pretty clear choice. Foxx is the best first baseman the Sox have ever had.

Who’d you vote for?

Why Aren’t the Sox favored?

I heard the EEIdiots discussing Roy Oswalt the other day. They were suggesting that there was no reason for him to come to the AL East, and especially the Red Sox. Why would he leave the comfort and ease of the NL unless it was for a chance at a ring? That ruled out the Sox, they said. Why would that rule out the Sox?

Last off-season, the Red Sox were overwhelming favorites to win the World Series. What’s changed? A couple pieces of the starting rotation? Were expectations really that high for Lackey and Dice-K that we should expect a dramatic drop off? I didn’t remember anyone singing their praises last April saying they were the keys to the season. Can it really be about the number four and five starters?

Or a questionable shortstop? Is the ability of our number nine hitter the key to it all? Were we expecting an MVP season from Scutaro? I know I wasn’t.

Or closer? That can’t be it. Flipping one all-star closer for another all-star closer can’t possibly be the downfall of the season. Can it?

The questionable bullpen? Is there a bullpen in baseball that isn’t questionable? Weren’t there questions last year? Is this a new concern?

Isn’t the answer to all of this “no”?

It can’t possibly be because of the end of last year, can it? Are they really not the favorites because last season their #3 starter got hurt? He’s back now, remember? Are they not the favorites because last year Tim Wakefield was a distraction? Did they not see the wonderful retirement ceremony? Did they not see this offense almost carry a pitching staff that injuries left in shambles? Are they planning on the 3-5 starters going down again? Because you can play that game with any team.

If anything, shouldn’t the events of last year be a good sign for this year? Will this team take even one game for granted? Will they start Kyle Weiland against the Rays in September? Will they be anything but the most driven team in history? In 2006, the Sox missed the playoffs. In 2007, they kicked butt as they had the best record in the league.

Why won’t that happen again?

Crawford, All in Order

It looks like Carl Crawford has solved my earlier questions about where the Red Sox should put him in the batting order. He likes to be at the top.

Crawford has been getting a little bit of heat for this revelation. Half the people seem to be wondering why he didn’t come out and say this last year. If that would have fixed everything, just tell Francona and go on your way. I think the answer lies with what the other half of the people are saying today. “Just shut up and hit.” Can you imagine if Crawford had come out last season and said he was having trouble because he wasn’t hitting second? They’ll call for his head. How dare he ask to be moved up when he’s hitting .220? He’s lucky to be in the line-up at all. So, he stuck with it. He battled. He didn’t whine. He tried to do it. He just couldn’t.

I think he was a big mess last year. New contract. New fans. New expectations. He couldn’t play up to his salary in the minds of most people, but he still tried. It was just a huge spiral. Hopefully, he’s decided that there’s no reason to do all that. There’s nowhere to go but up. He can just go out and be Carl Crawford again.

So, what about where to hit him? First or second. I still like Jacoby at the top. So, today I’m leaning towards:

Ellsbury

Crawford

Pedroia

Gonzalez

Youkilis

Ortiz

Ross

Salty

Iglesias

There are some options. Do you move Ells behind Pedroia? Not a bad idea.

This is going to be fun.

Spring Training Thoughts

So, I turned on my radio this afternoon to hear that the EEIdiots were cutting to Spring Training to hear the announcement on Theo compensation. Then I hear Ben’s voice, “The Red Sox have acquired Chris Carpenter…” Before I can even finish my elation at an apparent three-team deal landing the Red Sox a stud, I’m crushed when Ben finishes with “…26-year old reliever from the Cubs.” Damn. The other Chris Carpenter would have been more fun. But, a reasonable major leaguer is a pretty good option.

I’ve also been a big fan of the Carl Crawford turn of events. Crawford showed up in camp this weekend, with a lot of the focus on his wrist surgery. We’ve been hearing that he’ll be out all of April because of it. Crawford comes in and simply says he feels Opening Day is a reasonable return. Huh? Where did we get the three weeks? Oh, yeah, that’s right. The media has been saying they got all that from Bobby Valentine. Crawford mentions that Valentine didn’t know that he was throwing already. So, he might have been a bit off. Which could be a whole he-said, he-said thing. But, when you look back at the actual quote from Bobby V, it’s not like he said that he talked to medical experts and with Carl at length to come up with his answer. He just said he wouldn’t be surprised if he missed a few weeks. Well, of course he shouldn’t be surprised. He’s the manager. He needs to have plans in place just in case. But, the media needed a story about it. They were either too lazy to actually check on it, or thought there was a better story if they left it at three weeks. Crawford waited too long to have surgery. Why would he hide the injury? Why didn’t he take care of it early enough to make it back for the season? How much of a bust is this guy? $20 million, and he’s not even a home-run hitter? It gets right down to the main purpose of a reporter. You’d think it’s to report to news. You’d be wrong. It’s to sell advertising. Nothing sells papers better than a little bit of conflict…real, or imaginary.

Basically, I need reporters to give me facts that I can’t get on my own. I don’t need to know whether they feel they’re owed an apology. I don’t need to know if they think Carl Crawford is overpaid. Frankly, if they simply printed news releases from the Sox, I’d be thrilled.

The rest I can do on my own.