Checking In On Spring Training

Now several weeks into Spring Training and through the first week of Grapefruit League exhibition games, all I can think about is one thing: pitching.

That's the key, isn't it? Outside the whole "Manny's-coming-late" story and the Schilling contract saga, there's not much to talk about. The offense is the offense, looking good for the most part with predictable producers in Lugo, Ortiz, Ramirez, and Drew making up the core group of what could potentially be one of the best offenses in the majors this year. The defense is going to be average, no big standouts outside of Varitek and Lowell, and (depending who you ask) Drew. Thing is, when you get to pitching, nobody knows what we're going to get.

Here's what we do know. The brightest upside of the Red Sox staff is going to be their starters. Curt Schilling promises to do his usual thing, winning upwards of 12 games and exuding confidence at the top of the rotation. On the other end, an older Tim Wakefield hopes to pencil in 200 innings and a decent number of wins as the guy everybody wants to lean on at the end of the rotation. In between, Josh Beckett will hopefully have learned his lesson and spent the winter months reflecting on his errors. He has professed a desire to listen to Jason Varitek more often this year, trusting his knowledge of lineups. Jonathan Papelbon, fresh off a rookie season full of giving New England fanboys a summer's worth of late-inning wet dreams, looks to transfer his poise and potential into a 7 inning tool. Even Daisuke Matsuzaka looks a bit more convincing in his role of savior from the East, after causing scouts, general managers, and the above-referenced fanboys to go slack-jawed in his appearance against the Marlins several days ago.

The real question, then, is the bullpen. Then again, when is it not? We're all making a huge deal out of the fact that Brendan Donnely, Joel Pineiro, Julian Tavarez, J.C. Romero, Hideki Okajima, et. al. are what we have to choose our closer from, but how much worse is it than last year? Keith Foulke, our "closer" was coming off a disastrous, injury-ridden 2005. Mike Timlin was 40 and had pitched in the World Baseball Classic, putting his arm in game situations weeks before he should've. Julian Tavarez and Rudy Seanez were known for their gopher-esque tendencies, and Manny Delcarmen was still a young lad. There was zero certainty going into 2006, only the positive thoughts being projected by the club and optimists.

Up until today, Mike Timlin was the guy being focused on for the closer role, but he's 41, and his back has done everything in it's power to make sure he doesn't get a proper look prior to Opening Day. Joel Pineiro, after a rough opener, has made some noise with several scoreless appearances, but his celebrated new arm slot is just as new to him as it is to the hitters and hangers-on. Hideki Okajima, as a curveball-tossing lefty, probably has no real chance at the job, and J. C. Romero never even entered the conversation.

Fact of the matter is, it's going to be the biggest question this team faces. There is no guarantee that they will be able to fill the role effectively, even if they put together a package for Washington's Chad Cordero, as his fly-ball tendencies have taken some of the shine off his talent.

Jonathan Papelbon's success in that role last year was a godsend. The most successful closers seem to have an innate talent for it. Despite the arguments it's not a position for which one can be groomed. So, despite the protestations of the medical staff and the trepidation of the ownership, it may make the most sense in the end to just put Papelbon back where he grew up: in the last three outs of the game.