Sox Finally Have a Made Hand

By Dean Geddes

Let's hope the rumors are just that. With the trade deadline less than five days away, there is a whirlwind of speculation surrounding the Red Sox. But for god's sake, the front office had better not sacrifice any future prospect for somebody they don't even need.

Rumors seem to include three groups of players: relief pitchers, first basemen and outfielders. I know its great to have a lot of options in the bullpen, but the Sox already have plenty, not to mention, you can expect either Jon Lester or Kason Gabbard to join the bullpen once Curt Schilling returns to the rotation.

As for the offense, I cannot for the life of me understand why the Red Sox would be interested in starting first basemen like Mark Teixeira or Todd Helton. Those are big names, and don't get me wrong I would love to see either one in a Red Sox uniform. But not through a trade. In order to get those guys teams will demand top tier prospects like Clay Buchholz and Jacoby Ellsbury.

Kevin Youkilis has proven to be an above average first baseman. An offensive upgrade at first base is not going to push this team over the hump because, honestly, this team is already over the hump. I don't want to sound like a homer, but I really don't see any holes in the Red Sox as a team. They have the best pitching, from starters to the pen, in all of baseball.

And I really like the bench, Eric Hinske is a good left-handed batter who can play the outfield and first base. Alex Cora is like a Swiss army knife in the infield, and although he's not a great hitter, he is great at having productive at-bats and moving runners over.

The only problem is Wily Mo Peña. I can understand the Red Sox picking up a right-handed outfielder with a strong glove. Wily Mo is a project. And the Red Sox are doing the worst possible thing with a player like this. Letting him rot on the bench. David Ortiz had a bittersweet quote about Wily Mo yesterday:

"He can be even better than me. He is one of the strongest people I've ever been around. With Wily Mo it's just playing time. With his hitting it's just timing. That's all it is. People say he can't hit the breaking ball. Well, I couldn't hit the breaking ball either. I learned to hit it. But I learned to hit it because I got the opportunity. Wily Mo hasn't had the opportunity."

I think it makes more sense to let him play in AAA if you can't get him an everyday spot in Boston. Maybe if one of the the starting outfielders goes down (and they are a fragile bunch), Wily Mo can step in and play everyday.

I hope the Red Sox don't trade him though. Not only because they will be trading him for pennies on the dollar, but also because I think he will turn out to be a great hitter.

So, Theo, for the sake of the future, turn your phone off. You can turn it back on in four days.