PawSox Look Forward to 2008 Season

It's amazing what happens to baseball fans when the calendar pages change from March to April. Spirits get lifted in anticipation of a new baseball season. And it's no different for fans of the Pawtucket Red Sox.

"Life begins on Opening Day." said PawSox President Mike Tamburro as he and the 2008 edition of the club assembled before the local media yesterday at McCoy.

Much has been made of the Red Sox farm system and its transformation since the John Henry ownership group took over the club in 2002. Many of those early investments in talent are already up with the big club in the form of Jacoby Ellsbury, Jonathan Paplebon, Dustin Pedroia, Jon Lester, and Clay Buchholz.

Much of the next crew expected to make a big impact are still at the lower levels of the minors. But there is still a strong mix of talent in Pawtucket. The PawSox enter the 2008 campaign with a mix of veterans and rookies..some of which will get a chance to make an name for themselves in Boston.

One of those players has already made his presence known in Boston. Brandon Moss homered in the season opener in Japan against the A's. The depth of talent in the Boston outfield necessitated his trip back to Pawtucket, a move with which Moss has said he's satisfied. The PawSox will play Moss much of the season at first base as a way to diversify his skills.

"With a team like Boston, the opportunity to get the most at bats there is to get the most experience at a lot of positions." Moss said.

Shortstop Jed Lowrie was mentioned in a number of trade rumors over the offseason, specifically as the Sox were talking with the Twins on a deal for ace Johan Santanna. Lowrie said he had no problem dealing with all that trade talk.

"It's something you can't control as a player. When you come down to it, it's a business. It could happen at any time. You just have to take it as it is."

Joining Moss and Lowrie in the infield for the PawSox will be Chad Spann, who spent the end of last season in Pawtucket, as well as veteran newcomers Keith Ginter, Joe Thurston, and Gil Velasquez. Ginter has had considerable big league experience with stints in Houston, Milwaukee, and Oakland. Thurston has also spent time in the Majors with the Dodgers and Phillies.

The PawSox outfield will have at least one familiar face in veteran Jeff Bailey. Bailey begins his third full season with the PawSox and appreciates his role as one of the team's veteran leaders. In 2007 Bailey primarily played first base. He was called up to Boston to spell an ailing Kevin Youkillis and homered for his only Major League hit of the year. Playing the outfield this season, along with his experience at at first base, will make Bailey a player of interest in Boston. But to get back to the bigs Bailey knows he needs to be more consistent at the plate.

"I need to hit left-handed pitching more." he said, "That's what I'm set out to do and whatever happens, happens."

Chris Carter joined Pawtucket late last season, showed a lot of promise this spring, and is expected to get a lot of playing time in the PawSox outfield. Expected to also see time in the outfield are Sox veteran and World Series hero Bobby Kielty and free agent Jonathan Van Every.

The PawSox have two catchers who each shows potential but who both need further polishing. It will be interesting to see who between Dusty Brown or George Kottaras will do what it takes to see the bulk of the playing time.

On the mound the PawSox have an experienced starting rotation, with all of them having pitched multiple innings in at either Triple A or the big leagues. It's still unknown how long Bartolo Colon will spend in Pawtucket after pitching tomorrow's opener. Behind Colon are the expereinced arms of Davern Hansack, David Pauley, Charlie Zink, and Michael Tejera. Hansack and Pauley have both spent time with Boston.

In the bullpen, expect the experience of Dan Kolb to be an influence on the other young arms of the staff. Back for his second extended stint with the PawSox is right hander Craig Hansen. His offseason consisted in numerous training sessions and surgery to improve his sleep patterns. He also has gone back to the basics.

"I looked at a lot of video from college and got some of my mechanics back" he said, "I worked on those to make them more consistent."

Elsewhere in the pen the PawSox will be bolstered by right handers Edgar Martinez, Lincoln Holdzkom, and Lee Gronkiewicz and lefties Abe Alvarez and Jon Switzer.

For PawSox Manager Ron Johnson, the development of his players is paramount but getting wins is important as well.

"I would love to be twenty games over .500" Johnson said, "Then (the media) would be talking to me about how great a manager I am."

Hope does spring eternal this time of year. For the fans of the PawSox, let's hope Johnson's wishes become reality.