smoltz aka fuck yeah!

espn.com's spring training preview excerpts

Most important injury comebacks

1. John Smoltz (Red Sox)
2. Brad Penny (Red Sox)
3. Takashi Saito (Red Sox)
4. David Ortiz (Red Sox)
5. Mike Lowell (Red Sox)
6. Rocco Baldelli (Red Sox)

FUN POLL FACTS: The Red Sox spent only $23.1 million on free agents -- but those extensions to Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis inflate their winter IOUs to $105.65 million

Best free agents $2 million and under:

(1) The Red Sox take a one-year, $500,000 chance on Rocco Baldelli's odds of finding health and happiness in New England; (2) the White Sox hope the $1 million they tossed Bartolo Colon's way buys them some semblance of what used to be a Cy Young winner, and (3) the Red Sox guarantee a mere $1.5 million to a reliever (Takashi Saito) who, when healthier, spent the last three seasons turning all the hitters on earth into Gookie Dawkins (numbers of opposing hitters: .182 average, .246 on-base percentage, .264 slugging percentage).

espn.com's spring training preview excerpts

Most important injury comebacks

1. John Smoltz (Red Sox)
2. Brad Penny (Red Sox)
3. Takashi Saito (Red Sox)
4. David Ortiz (Red Sox)
5. Mike Lowell (Red Sox)
6. Rocco Baldelli (Red Sox)

Projected Standing

Baseball Prospectus has projected the 2009 standing and the Sox edge out the Yankees for first by one game, ending at 98 wins. Further, they project the Sox to outscore the Yankees 864 to 838 over the entire season. The Rays finish a distant third.

Pitchers and catchers will be in Florida soon. So it begins.