Random Thoughts (January 21, 2009)

As much as I love the Red Sox signing of Jonathan Papelbon yesterday (1-year/$6.25 million) because it avoids salary arbitration, I can't help but wonder why the 27-year-old closer did not sign a long term deal like his teammates Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis did this offseason. Papelbon suffered through a shoulder injury at the end of the 2006 season and his September/October numbers in 2008 (0-1. 5.56 ERA, 12 K's and 17 hits allowed in 11.1 innings) were not very good. In Papelbon's defense, he did have another phenomenal postseason (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 13 K's and 3 hits allowed in 10.1 innings), running his career postseason scoreless innings streak to 25. He has 113 career saves and is a two-time All-Star. Papelbon has a strong case to get a long term deal for big dollars but there is also some substantial doubt on the side of the Red Sox to give him a Francisco Rodriguez-like deal (3-year/$37 million with the Mets). According to Red Sox assistant general manager Jed Hoyer, the two sides will meet to try and agree on a long term contract. I think that they will agree on a three or four-year contract that will pay Papelbon somewhere between $7 or $8 million a season, with reasonable incentives. That should make all three sides (Red Sox, Papelbon, Red Sox Nation) very happy... He is getting older, he will probably demand a lot of money, he might not be considered the typical "Patriot" but wouldn't Ray Lewis be a great way for the Patriots to build up their defense for 2009... Even with all of the losses on the coaching staff and from the front office the last four years, I still feel 100% confident that the Patriots will remain Super Bowl contenders on a yearly basis as long as the guy with the gray hoodie roams the sidelines and hallways in Foxboro... It was nice to see the BC men's basketball team finally wake up after knocking off then #1 North Carolina on January 4 with a victory over Georgia Tech in Atlanta last night. The Eagles lost to Harvard, Miami, Wake Forest, and Virginia Tech in between the UNC and Georgia Tech victories. If Al Skinner's club, now 13-6, can find a way to go at least 7-4 in the ACC the rest of the way, they should find themselves in the NCAA Tournament come March. It will be very hard for the selection committee to pass over a 20 win team from the ACC who has a win over North Carolina... On the topic of BC basketball, it's a shame that the Eagles could not land either Erik Murphy or Nate Lubick of the St. Mark's School located just over an hour outside of Chestnut Hill in Southborough, Massachusetts. Murphy, a 6-10 senior and the son of former BC great Jay Murphy, will play for Billy Donovan at Florida next season and Lubick, a 6-9 junior, has already committed to play for John Thompson III at Georgetown for the 2010-2011 season. After losing out on those two talented giants, Skinner better hope that Central Catholic High School star Carson Desrosiers, a 6-11 junior, decides to stay close to home because until BC starts to land the top talent in New England, the Eagles will never be more than a slight threat (at best) to the powers of the ACC. In the past few years alone, BC has allowed Brookline's Jeff Adrien (UConn), Newton North's Anthony Gurley (Wake Forest/UMass) and Corey Lowe (BU), the Tilton School's (via Boston) Alex Oriakhi and Jamaal Coombs-McDaniel (UConn), Murphy, and Lubick to escape BC. Skinner has won many games with less recruited players and his teams are always competitive but with BC in the ACC, challenging the likes of UNC and Duke, he needs to keep the top players from his own backyard in order to keep his program successful... Enjoy Ray Allen tonight...