Jed Lowrie

After a busy offseason for the Oakland A's, they will fight to retain their standing on top of the American League West.

During said offseason, the A's have moved around a lot of infielders through addition and subtraction.

Gone are the days of Cliff Pennington at shortstop or second base, after he was traded to Arizona. Stephen Drew is gone as well after being the A's shortstop down the stretch.  

Say what you will, but Billy Beane is not averse to making decisive moves.

After an 0-6 start to the 2011 Major League Season, the Boston Red Sox have finally come around and are starting to play like the team most people thought they'd be: unstoppable.

Just 12 days ago, Daisuke Matsuzaka was booed off the mound by the hometown Boston crowd after allowing seven runs in just two innings of work, on Saturday night, Dice-K threw his second consecutive one hitter as the Red Sox blanked the Los Angeles Angeles 5-0.

Last week I told you about the #LegendofSamFuld hashtag that Tampa Bay Rays fans have been using on Twitter to glorify the extraordinary play of LF Sam Fuld in MLB Twitter Trends: The Legend of Sam Fuld, Tampa Bay's New Hero.

It's that time of year again. The time when managers pull out their stat sheets, turn on the computer and enjoy the smell of virtual hot dogs, peanuts and beer (okay, maybe not that).

It's fantasy baseball season.

My focus here today is on two players, Jed Lowrie and Jarrod Saltalamacchia of the Boston Red Sox, and what their potential fantasy impact could be in 2011.

When the Red Sox traded one of their all-time best players, Nomar Garciaparra, they entered a state of turmoil with regard to the shortstop position.

The Red Sox acquired Orlando Cabrera in 2004, followed quickly by Edgar Renteria and Julio Lugo. A combination of Lugo, Jed Lowrie, Alex Cora, Nick Green and Alex Gonzalez were used between 2007 and 2009.

Finally, the Red Sox signed Marco Scutaro, who started for the Red Sox in 2010. All in all, nine Red Sox started at least 50 games for the Red Sox since 2004.

In trying to assess players at Spring Training for the Boston Red Sox this season one can take several different approaches from a few different angles. You can look at those current roster players on the depth chart and say you need to pay attention to those guys since they are slated to play in the majors as it stands today, or you can look at the guys who have made their living in the minors and are ready to make the jump by replacing the major leaguers if they slip up in Ft. Myers this spring.

The Boston Globe's Dan Shaughnessy recently entertained the idea the Red Sox would make a serious run to sign free agent shortstop Derek Jeter.

One month ago and this conversation would not have even scratched the surface of Red Sox nation.

But after Jed Lowrie's 4-for-4 performance (including a home run and three singles) in a 10-8 win over the New York Yankees, the debate suddenly becomes a valid one.

Lowrie has become Boston's starting shortstop after a rotator cuff injury sidelined opening day starter Marco Scutaro.

Scutaro will be healthy for 2011 and will be in the final year of his contract. Lowrie, however, will also be healthy for a change and offers more upside than the 34-year old journeyman. 

During his time in Boston, infielder Jed Lowrie has been the butt of many jokes by Red Sox fans. He has been criticized constantly for his apparent lack of any visible baseball skill set and has been labeled "injury prone" by the hometown fans.