Tim Wakefield Will Be Hard Pressed to Crack the Red Sox Starting Five

Ever since Theo Epstein took over as the Boston Red Sox GM, he has made sure the Red Sox have gone into each season with a quality starting rotation.

Starting with moving Derek Lowe into the starting rotation back in 2002, Boston has always had two upper-level pitchers at the top of their rotation.

The 2010 version of the Red Sox rotation might be their best ever under Epstein. With the addition of John Lackey in the offseason, Boston will go into the season with three potential No. 1 starters.

Lackey will join Josh Beckett and Jon Lester as 1A-1B-1C. Rounding out the rotation will be Daisuke Matsuzaka and top pitching prospect Clay Buchholz.

The Red Sox rotation is so deep and so formidable that it leaves very little room for anyone else to steal a spot—even Tim Wakefield.

Since the knuckleballer came to the Boston Red Sox in 1995, he has done everything that has been asked of him. He has been the pure definition of the good soldier.

He has started, he has closed, and he has eaten more valuable innings than anyone could have ever asked for. I still believe that if Wakefield didn’t take one for the team in Game Three of the 2004 ALCS against the New York Yankees, the Red Sox wouldn’t have had the pitching to come back in that series.

Now that he is approaching the end of his career, he wants to start one last time.

“I’ll be one of the five starters,” Wakefield said in The Boston Globe. “As long as I’m healthy during spring training, no setbacks, when we start the season, I’ll think I’ll be one of the five.”

I love Wakefield’s confidence, but unless one of the five above pitchers gets hurt in spring training, I don’t see it happening. Wakefield’s best role on the Red Sox would be an old-fashioned swingman.

Wakefield can pitch in games that are blowouts or in long extra-inning games and make a spot start if need be. Because he throws a knuckleball, he can still give the Red Sox quality innings.

Wakefield will have a role on the 2010 version of the Red Sox—it just won’t be in the starting rotation.

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