Who will be back?

Johnny Damon, Bill Mueller, Tony Graffanino, Kevin Millar, Mike Timlin, John Olerud and Matt Mantei are all up for new contracts this off season, so let's take a look at who will be back, who should be back and who will be overpaid additions to the Mets... I mean off to free agency.

When you look at the starting rotation, the club has Schilling, Clement, Wells, Wakefield, Arroyo, and Papelbon. Unfortunately, Arroyo will be 29, Clement 31, Schilling 39, Wakefield 39, and Wells 42. Theo is already talking about Jon Lester (down in AA) making an impact next year. Don't forget about Wade Miller who, even if the Sox do make a deal with him (which I don't), isn't expected to be ready for spring training after surgery this year. Lenny DiNardo and Abe Alvarez are also expected to compete for starting spots (although DiNardo with his September performance has a much better chance). Wells is set for off season surgery and may either retire or request a trade back to the West Coast.

The Sox need to make a decision about Timlin and Foulke. Expect a lot of trade rumors to be floated with Foulke in mind, but with this year's performance, off season surgery, and a large contract, don't expect him to be traded. Timlin's age may become a factor in any negotiations. I expect his future here depends a great deal on who else the Sox look at in the off season. Also, expect Craig Hansen, 21, and Manny Delcarmen, 23 to become major parts of next year's bullpen.

Hopefully, whatever hold Millar has on Francona will lapse and he will be gone. The experiment is dead. I expect the Sox to make a play for Olerud, but probably won't get it done (would you want to sign with a club that had you play back up to Millar even though you were the better player, injury and all?).

Despite Graffanino's performance, error, and forgiveness (that double in the 9th really made up for it in the fan's mind, if not the beat writers), he probably won't be back. He'll lose out to Alex Cora, who is under contract for next year. But Cora's just a place holder until Dustin Pedroia is ready.

Renteria is the shortstop for the foreseeable future, although I'm still puzzled by his long term, big money contract last year. The Red Sox seem to have Hanley Ramirez on the brain, and haven't traded him away yet. So I'm left scratching my head on this one. I would expect they hoped to trade Renteria in the near future, maybe after one more year, while getting Ramirez some more playing time when they can.

Expect Kevin Youkilis to take Mueller's place at third. At 35, and with his contract up, it looks like Bill's going to lose this one.

Manny's time with the Red Sox is at hand as well (no more will we hear Manny being Manny). After requesting a trade every year for the past three years, Manny's tenure as the league leading offensive power for the Red Sox is up. Ortiz' numbers will probably suffer as a result, but Theo is just salivating at the prospect of having Ramirez's contract money to play with. Johnny Damon's time with the Red Sox is also up. I expect the Red Sox to make a play for him (unless they are more concerned with an injury than they let on), but they will be out bid just as they were last year with Pedro. So, say good-bye to the long haired WWJD fan shots at fenway.

So, after reviewing all of the positions, it looks like the Sox are going to get younger (read: less experienced) next year, with less power (read: who's going to replace Manny?) in the field. And unless the free agent market opens up some more, their bullpen woes are going to continue. Their starting pitching is getting older and younger at the same time, which is going to lead to all sorts of trouble. Hopefully, the older starters will start passing on all that experience to the young pups and quickly. Otherwise, you can expect a quick exit from the playoffs next year, too.

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