Boston Red Sox 2013-14 Winter Offseason - bayers3's Dynasty

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Boston Red Sox 2013-14 Winter Offseason

Posted on May 22, 2014 at 10:56 PM.

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THE BOSTON GLOBE (RED SOX DYNASTY REPORT)

After winning their third World Series in ten years, the Red Sox find themselves at a fork in the road. The team either needs to rebuild in the next few years or double down on the aging core and try for one more title before a rebuild is required. While their choice isn't clear yet, where they are in the standings come August will definitely inform ownership about which direction they want to head in.

Boston opened the offseason by losing a few big names and players at key positions, but they managed to fill most of the voids rather quickly. Boston's one-year qualifying offers were rejected by OF Jacoby Ellsbury, SS Stephen Drew, and 1B/C Mike Napoli. C Jarrod Saltalamacchia was allowed to leave via free agency, so the Red Sox found themselves with a number of holes in their line up. The Red Sox first move was to sign veteran C AJ Pierzynski to a one-year contract, giving younger players like Ryan Lavarnway and highly rated prospect Blake Swihart more time to develop. GM Ben Cherington then quietly resigned Mike Napoli to a two-year contract and added former Cardinals RP Edward Mujica on a similar length deal.

Napoli back at first fills a big hole in the lineup.

With the core of Boston's team 30 and older, ownership decided it was time to start rebuilding the team from the farm up. DH David Ortiz will probably not be retained when his contract is up at the end of the season, and veterans like 2B Dustin Pedrioa and SP Jon Lester are about to be on the wrong side of 30. With this in mind the team is likely to aggressively rebuild their team with trades during the season, always opting for younger talent.

Is Bogaerts ready for a full season?

Losing Drew and Ellsbury wouldn't require FA signing because SS/3B Xander Bogaerts and OF Jackie Bradley Jr. will be called up permanently for the 2014 season. Barring injury, or a total decline in production, Bogaerts and Bradley Jr. are expected to be starters when Spring Training closes. Bogaerts was impressive during the playoffs and figures to improve with more playing time.