Position Players
1B, Adrian Gonzalez: Gonzo's first season as a Red Sox was a successful one, if somewhat lopsided in favor of the first half. He hit .338 with a .410 OBP and .957 OPS. The home runs were down a bit (27) but he led the league in both average and RBI (117) for the better part of the season. Coming off of shoulder surgery, that was pretty impressive. Participating in the Home Run Derby with a shoulder that wasn't 100% didn't do him any favors, however, and his numbers tailed off at the end of the season. This season, I expect the average to be not quite as high, but an uptick on the power, seeing that his shoulder has completely healed. He'll provide the usual Gold Glove-quality defense at first base.
2B, Dustin Pedroia: Pedey is now sans foot screw and I expect a Pedeyesque season from him: .300-ish average, around 25 steals and 15-20 singers. Last season he hit .307/.387/.474 (.861 OPS), 21 HR, 91 RBI and stole 26 bases. His defense earned him a Gold Glove.
SS, Mike Aviles: Aviles was acquired at the trade deadline in exchange for Yamaico Navarro and won the starting shortstop job after an impressive Spring Training. There shouldn't be too much drop off from last year's SS, Marco Scutaro. In fact, Aviles may even be better, both in the field and at the plate. He's 5 years younger, so that helps too. While Iglesias is in Pawtucket trying to learn how to hit his way out of a wet paper bag, Aviles should do a fine job at short.
3B, Kevin Youkilis: Oh Youk, please tell me you're not the next Mike Lowell or JD Drew in the rapid baseball player aging department. Spring Training didn't provide any reassurances that the Youk of a couple of years ago is back and 3B is a very physically demanding position. Youk's 2011 numbers: .258/.373/.459 (.833 OPS) with 17 HR, 80 RBI, and 3 SB. I honestly don't know what to expect from Youk this year. I'm hoping he can improve on the .258 and hit at least .270. Oh, and if it's not too tall and order, stay healthy!
C, Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Salty's first full year at the major league level was last year and he hit .235/.288/.450 (.737 OPS) which was not too bad for a catcher. He hit 16 long balls and knocked in 56 runs. He did a decent job throwing out base runners. I anticipate his numbers this year will be similar to last year, maybe better if the majority of his plate appearances come against righties. With Kelly Shoppach's numbers against lefties, that could very well happen.
LF, Cody Ross: Ross had a down year last year for the Giants after his heroics in the 2010 postseason, but he has shown a lot of promise (and opposite field power) in Spring Training and, in the absence of Carl Crawford, he will be the starting left fielder for at least the first month of the season. I'm thinking he'll hit around .260 with 20+ homers and around 60-70 RBI. He'll launch his share of taters over the Monster.
CF, Jacoby Ellsbury: 2011 was huge for Ells. He hit .321 with a team-leading 32 homers and knocked in 105 runs. The homer total was staggering, given that he had never hit in the double-digits in dingers before. Was the power surge a one-season fluke or is he, like Jose Bautista in Toronto, coming into his own as a power hitter. Another season with 25+ round-trippers would go a long way in favor of the latter, but it will also drive his price up in free agency. Ells is 28 and will be 29 in September--he is in his prime and I expect a small amount of regression, but still all-star numbers from the guy who came in second in the MVP voting.
RF, Ryan Sweeney: Sweeney came over in the deal for Andrew Bailey. He's known for hitting for a decent average, but with a conspicuous lack of power for someone with his build. He's an excellent defensive player. He'll probably hit in the .270s or .280s with maybe a home run or two. Once Crawford comes back, he'll be competing with Cody Ross for the right field job.
DH, David Ortiz: Big Papi's 2011 resembled the kind of seasons he had in his prime. He hit .309/.398/554 (.953 OPS) with 29 HR and 96 RBI. He tailed off a bit toward the end, especially in September, but his numbers were good enough to keep him in Boston for another year, albeit at a price way above market for a DH. He isn't getting any younger, so it's hard to predict what he'll do in 2012. It would be nice if he hits around .300 again and goes yard at least 25 times, especially considering his salary.
OF, Darnell McDonald: D-Mac burst onto the scene in 2010 when Ells collided with the freight train known as Adrian Beltre. That season he hit .270 while playing serviceable defense and became one of the feel-good stories of the season. Last season he had trouble adjusting to the reduced playing time and hit under the Mendoza line for most of the season. He came around in the second half and raised his average to .236. He impressed Bobby V in Spring Training and earned the 4th outfielder spot, but what will happen when Crawford comes back? Presuming (though it's dangerous to do so) that everyone else is healthy, will V carry 5 outfielders? D-Mac can make his case for sticking around by playing like he did in Spring Training.
IF, Nick Punto: Punto was signed in the off-season to be a defensively-minded utility infielder. He had a decent season with the bat last year, hitting .278, but he's a career .249 hitter. He can play all four infield positions and, if you're superstitious, maybe he'll lend some of his World Series mojo to his new team (he was a member of the 2011 World Champion Cardinals).
C, Kelly Shoppach: Shop is back in Boston, having started his career with the Red Sox in 2005. After four seasons in Cleveland and two in Tampa Bay, he was signed as a free agent this winter to back up Salty behind the plate. Overall, his bat isn't too impressive, but he can hit lefties and he's got some power. He's an excellent thrower-outer of base runners.
To Be Continued
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