V-Mart's Red Sox days are history as he agreed to a deal with the Tigers yesterday that the Sox would not match. Apparently it came down to dollars rather than years. The Sox appear content to have injury-plagued Jarrod Saltalamacchia be the starting catcher for next year. Don't get me wrong, I think Salty would make a fine starting catcher--in Pawtucket. He hasn't shown any indication that he's ready to start behind the plate for a major league team, let alone one in the AL East.
V-Mart was familiar with the pitching staff and could even catch a knuckleball. If Wake comes back next year, who catches him? Can Salty handle the knuckler? What about Buchholz, who blossomed with V-Mart behind the plate? How will V-Mart's departure affect him? Pitchers rely heavily on routine and not having V-Mart catching him will disrupt that routine.
How about replacing his offensive production in the lineup? The Sox will most likely lose Beltre as well, so that's two big bats that need replacing. Sometimes I feel the front office looks too far into the future at the expense of the present. Next year is just as important as 2013 or 2014. The onus is on them to fill as many holes as possible this offseason and they just created another huge one by letting V-Mart go.
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