May 5 last year, Gonzo was hitting .190 with 6 RBIs. That’s comparable to Pedroia’s .180 and 3.

Meanwhile, Loretta was at 227 with 12 RBIs, comparable to Lugo’s .231 and 13.

Overall, so far, the dropoff is marginal and asthetic.

But seriously Bill, I agree with all points except for the Dice K concern. Both in general and in even more so in Boston, we tend to de-humanize athletes and expect their salary to equal their performance on the field day in and day out. If I’m correct, Josh Beckett attributed some of his struggles land inconsistencies last season to issues off the field- including making the move from Florida and his parents divorce. Couple that with adjusting to a division with the toughest lineups in basball and a bullheadedness to throw fastballs in every count and he had some problems.

Now heres Dice K, who packed up his family and moves to another country accross the globe where he knows only basic communication skills. He lands in Boston- arguably the hottest of baseball hotbeds- and is trying to settle into a new living situation while facing Major League hitting at 7:05pm. Now add the demands for interviews and other obligations and the fact that every time he takes the mound it’s a frickin media holiday of international proportions. He’s learning hitters, learning Varitek, and learning the strike zone in the midst of all this.

I’m not saying you should treat him like a wounded bird, but this is one guy you have to give some time to get going here. Anyone who thought he was going to come in and be dominant from day one is neive and unrealistic.

We signed the guy becasue he’s young, has significant upper level experience, and shows promise with a number of pitches. This year won’t determine whether or not he’s a bust. I hope he makes a smooth adjustment soomer rather than later, but at the same time I’m not ready to slot him as an ace.

I’d be curious to know what you know from a media standpoint: the demands on him, his attitude in the clubhouse and his overall adjustment to Boston. I look forward to your response.

Thanks

Joel

1. The days of 2003-2004 are over. This team will not score over 900 runs. That’s fine. I think the reason is that we have taken that money out of the offense and put it into pitching. That may sound a bit strange given the contracts that were doled out to Lugo and Drew. But that still doesn’t make us the Yankees. NY obviously has the means and the willingness to pay for All Star-caliber offensive players at every position on the field. The Sox arguably have those means also. But I don’t necessarily know that I want that from my team. I like the idea of the Sox using young (Wily Mo), relatively inexpensive (Coco), and in some cases home-grown talent (Dustin) to fill roles. Yes, I’d love to see all those players blossom into .300/25/100 guys. And yes, we’re going to need big bats to compete in the AL East. But, pitching will ultimately determine how far we go. And so far, I love our rotation and our bullpen.

2. I could not possibly be less concerned about Dice-K. He’s making a huge adjustment, one that I think perhaps a lot of us fans don’t appreciate. If he has a year in ‘07 like Beckett had in ‘06 (good, not great), I’d take it. Anything more is gravy. Beyond that, I’d expect him to continue to improve and eventually (hopefully) become the dominant pitcher that he’s been predicted to be.

Let the kid work out his kinks with the PawSox.