There are a lot of people picking the Sox to do great things this year. Articles spray the net...Do they have the best pitching staff? Is their lineup better than the Yankees? Let's slow it down, boys. Spring training has just started.
Not to sound jaded, but...
Ellsbury is coming of a full year of injuries.
Pedroia's foot is NOT 100 percent, and he will likely miss time this year.
Drew is already hurt and the Boston Globe had an article about him speaking of retirement DURING SPRING TRAINING!
Gonzalez, one of the big studs in the lineup, is coming off shoulder surgery.
Those are four big question marks for the lineup.
For the pitching...
Lackey is basically what we saw last year. Do not expect major improvements. He won't be the top guy in the rotation, AND he might be your number four starter.
Beckett is coming off a terrible year.
Daisuke is Daisuke.
That leaves the non-question marks as Lester and Buchholz.
Don't get me wrong. This team is stacked IF healthy. To me, though, it is too early to be crowning them the AL East champs.
