Boston Red Sox Information

The Boston Red Sox are a Major League Baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. The team's also known as "Ye Old Town Team", and "The Bosox", a combination of "Boston" and "Sox". They are often familiarly referred to by papers and fans as simply "The Sox".

A member of the American League East Division, their home division is Fenway Park, which opened on April 20, 1912 and is the oldest major league ballpark still in operation. The Red Sox won the first World Series as the Boston Americans in 1903 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. They won their most recent World Series championship in 2004, after an 86-year interval.

The Red Sox have one of the longest standing and most storied rivalries in North American sports with the nearby New York Yankees. The Yankees-Red Sox Rivalry has centered around the supposed Curse of the Bambino, and has gained even more signifigance with the creation of the Wild Card in 1995, which allowed the two teams to meet in the playoffs.

GM Theo Epstein's first major step toward restocking the team for 2007 was to pursue one of the most anticipated acquisitions in recent history. On November 14, Major League Baseball announced that the Red Sox had won the bid for the rights to negotiate a major league contract with Japanese superstar pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. Boston placed a bid of $51.1M, and had 30 days to complete a deal. On December 13, just before the deadline, Matsuzaka signed a 6-year, $52 million contract.

In the hopes of solidifing the starting rotation, it was announced that closer Jonathan Papelbon would become a starter in 2007, partly to protect his arm from the workload that had sidelined him near the end of his rookie season. With Papelbon becoming a starter and 2004 World Series hero Keith Foulke declining arbitration and leaving the team, the Red Sox began building up their bullpen in search of a new closer. Japanese lefty reliever Hideki Okajima (formerly of the Yomiuri Giants),and Puerto Rican lefty J.C. Romero were signed. Brendan Donnelly was added in a trade with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Reliever Joel Piñeiro (formerly of the Seattle Mariners) was signed to a 1 year, $4 million contract.

However, no clear closer candidate emerged during Spring Training. Eventually, Papelbon wanted to return to the closer role, and Sox officials believed Papelbon had rehabilitated himself so well in the offseason that his health of this shoulder was no longer a concern. The Red Sox had a star closer once again.

Shortstop Alex Gonzalez was allowed to leave via free agency for Cincinnati. The Sox replaced him with Julio Lugo, who has historically been a better offensive player. Mark Loretta also was allowed to leave, joining Houston, opening a spot for Dustin Pedroia.

Fan favorite Trot Nixon filed for free agency, and agreed on a deal with the Cleveland Indians. With an opening in right field, the Sox pursued J.D. Drew, who had recently opted out of the remainder of his contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers to become a free agent. However, the Red Sox medical staff had concerns about Drew's previously injured shoulder. On January 25, 2007, the Red Sox and Drew agreed to a 5 year, $70 million contract. Under the terms, the Red Sox have the option to opt out of either of the final two years of the contract if Drew spends a certain amount of time on the disabled list because of the shoulder. Another fan favorite, outfielder Gabe Kapler, announced his retirement at age 31 to fulfill his life long dream of becoming a coach. The Red Sox named him manager of their Single A affiliate, the Greenville Drive.

With the final cuts of the spring, the 2007 Red Sox will carry 13 pitchers and 12 position players. The starting lineup is expected to include: Varitek (C), Youkilis (1B), Pedroia (2B), Lugo (SS), Mike Lowell (3B), Manny Ramírez (LF), Coco Crisp (CF), Drew (RF), and David Ortiz (DH). The bench will include OF/1B Eric Hinske, infielder Alex Cora, outfielder Wily Mo Peña, and catcher Doug Mirabelli. The starting rotation will include Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, Matsuzaka, Tim Wakefield, and Julian Tavarez with a bullpen of Papelbon, Joel Piñeiro, Brendan Donnelly, Mike Timlin, J.C. Romero, Hideki Okajima, Kyle Snyder, and Javier López.