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This is the forth part in my building of the best Red Sox team I can. Here is what we have as of now, with the Timlin signing:
c - Jason Varitek $6.7 m
1b - Kevin Millar $3.3 m
2b -
3b - Bill Mueller $2.1 m
ss - Nomar Garciaparra $11.5 m
lf - Manny Ramirez $20.5 m
cf - Johnny Damon $8.0 m
rf - Trot Nixon $6.0 m*
dh - David Ortiz $4.0 m*
bench - Lou Merloni $0.7 m*
bench - Kelly Shoppach $0.3^
bench -
bench -

sp - Pedro Martinez $17.5 m
sp - Tim Wakefield $4.35 m
sp - Derek Lowe $5.0 m
sp - Byung-hyun Kim $2.75 m*
sp - Bronson Arroyo $0.3 m^
rp - Ramiro Mendoza $3.6 m
rp - Alan Embree $2.75 m
rp - Scott Williamson $3.0 m*
rp - Jorge de la Rosa $0.3 m^
rp - Mike Timlin $2.5 m
rp -

25th man (bench/rp) - Caser Crespo $0.4

Payroll - $106.55 m
Buyouts - $0.7 m (Howry and Suppan)
2004 Expenditures - $106.25 m
Expected payroll - $118 m (my estimate)
Expendable monies - $11.75 m
Total Roster space - 4
* - Arbitration eligible
^ - Player on roster but not arb. eligible yet

Of those six roster spots that are left, the holes we need filled are: Starting 2b, right handed hitting outfielder for Nixon, backup 1b, and reliever that can eat innings if need be, with the right handed setup man job going to Timlin, and the 25th man job going to the cheap and speedy Caser Crespo.

Starting 2b
Job description - Good fielder, good hitting a bonus.
Free agents: Roberto Alomar, Luis Castillo, Mark Grudzielanek, Todd Walker
Likely non-tenders: Mark Bellhorn, Adam Kennedy

Mark Grudzielanek is Lou Merloni with more pop and less walks, so he is out. Alomar and Castillo will both probably carry high price tags in the early going. Todd Walker is a good option to come back, especially since he said he would, but can Derek Lowe’s psyche really handle seeing him go after the ball like Derek Jeter (one step then flop as ball bounces under the glove)? Adam Kennedy’s extra base hits keep declining, and Mark Bellhorn was horrible in 2002.
Jeff’s take: I think the best option is Bellhorn. He’s from Boston, and he probably won’t be negotiating from a position of strength. He’s an excellent on base guy, and when he gets regular playing time, he hits for power. He was buried by Dusty, and then buried farther by Clint Hurdle. He will come cheaper then the other guys, and the idea is to find some value. Pencil in Bellhorn for $600,000.

Nixon’s platoon partner
Job description: Ability to hit left handed pitching. Play a spacious right field without embarrassing yourself.
Free agents: Jose Guillen, David McCarty, Reggie Sanders, Shane Spencer, Rondell White

The only reason McCarty is listed there is because he showed a desire to pitch next season, like Brooks Kieschnick. Guillen had a breakout year, and might not want to be platooned. Sanders, Spencer, and White all have questions about ability/injury/attitude/defense/something else.
Jeff’s Take: I’m going to go with Sanders. Not only is he good enough against the northpaws to play incase Damon/Nixon/Ramirez/Ortiz goes down for a few weeks, but he actually still has some quickness. And he treats lefties worse then Hitler. Giving him a 50% raise will probably bring him to Boston. Sanders would make $1.5 million

Back up 1b
Job description: Left handed hitting 1b to spell Millar at 1b, so he doesn’t get burned out. Good with the glove.
Free agents: Tony Clark, Robert Fick, Matt Franco, Travis Lee, Scott Spiezio

I still think Clark might break out of his slump from 2002. He’s a slow starter. Fick is a semi-insane hothead that would have gotten himself killed if Wood or Prior was on the mound from the club he gave Karros. Matt Franco doesn’t play much in the field. Travis Lee is still trying to live up to his potential. Scott Spiezio might have been the MVP of the World Series in 2002, but didn’t play well last year.
Jeff’s Take: None of the guys here really inspires much confidence. I wouldn’t touch Clark with a 10′ pole. I absolutely hate Robert Fick. He’s the type of guy I can see colliding with Nixon going for a fly in right field and then come up swinging. Travis Lee is good with the glove, but in reality, he’ll want to be paid as a full timer despite not being much with the bat. Ditto on Spiezio. Matt Franco is intreguing to me, simply because he’s never really gotten a chance to play, with 2002 being his career high with at bats with 205. Franco might be the best bet, due to his cheapness, since I don’t think he’ll command more then $900,000.

Reliever that will eat innings if need be
Job description: Relief pitcher who can be lights out, but also pitch 2-3 innings if asked
Free agents: Too many to list

Jeff’s take: Here is where I bust my wad. The moves I have described earlier leave $8.7 million to play with. Right here is where you take that amount, and you give it to Keith Foulke for 3 years. This allows you to turn games into 7 inning affairs, and if you are feeling saucy, trading Scott Williamson for some breathing room/more players to plug holes (such as Matt Franco. He doesn’t inspire the most confidence.) Keith Foulke would be the one guy available that you spend for. If you are confident in Williamson for the long haul, which I am, then you could probably sign LaTroy Hawkins for $5 million. I’m going to go with Foulke though.

Now that I’ve finished with my breakdown, I’m going to say thanks to my readers for reading since I started this site in August. I took a week off to get some school work done. I’ll be semi-regular (3-4 times a week), until the hot stove season really heats up. I’ll write something else this weekend about the awards, and how I did on picking them (not good), and I’m going to start writing reviews of the many baseball books I’ve read over the summer, and giving out my grades for the Red Sox season. Thanks again for reading.