Since the Boston Red Sox recent free agent signing of outfielder Carl Crawford, all I've been reading is people saying that the Sox now have a surplus of outfielders and guys like Jacoby Ellsbury are now "prime trade bait".
With that in mind, lets take a look at the current outfield situation and what it may look like for 2012 as well.
If the season were to open today the Red Sox outfield would be Carl Crawford, Jacoby Ellsbury and J.D Drew with Mike Cameron as their fourth outfielder and right-handed bat off the bench.
Ryan Kalish would be sent back to the minors for more seasoning and a possible call up later in the year if or when injuries occur (in Drew's case, it's when). Also, send down guys like Daniel Nava, Darnell McDonald and Josh Reddick. Some aren't ready and some just aren't Major League caliber.
Sure looks like a lot of options doesn't it? Now let's look at the opening day outfield in 2012. Of course, this would be excluding any additional moves.
J.D. Drew's contract will have ended and they certainly won't be asking him back as that was one of the worst signings of the Epstein era and fans have been dying to get that one off the books.
Mike Cameron's contract will have ended. 2011 is the final year of the two-year $15.5 million deal he signed in 2009. He'll be 39 by then and the Sox will have no interest in signing a 39-year-old center fielder.
Darnell McDonald and Daniel Nava are simply career Minor Leaguers who were brought up last season due to the fact that Boston sustained so many injuries in the outfield.
I do believe that in 2012 Ryan Kalish will be ready to take J.D. Drew's vacated spot and be the everyday right fielder. So the outfield would look like this: Crawford, Ellsbury, Kalish. with a possible fourth outfielder of Josh Reddick, McDonald or Nava.
Does Ellsbury still look like trade bait?
Would you want to go into 2012 with Carl Crawford being the only starting outfielder with a significant amount of Major League playing time? Maybe if you were the Padres, but not the Red Sox and not in this division. Not if you want to make the playoffs.
Aside from all that, wouldn't it be great to watch a few years of Ellsbury and Crawford together? Two exciting players with dynamic game changing speed. Speed makes things happen. It forces the opponent to make quicker decisions which often leads to more mistakes.
If you want to trade an outfielder then trade Mike Cameron. He's in the final year of his deal and will make $7.25 million this year. The Sox could eat a couple of million of that and ask for a solid reliever in return. I think they'd have a lot of takers.
I'd rather they keep the younger, cheaper and more dynamic, Jacoby Ellsbury.
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