Video: Reaction roundup

The best team won so thank goodness those stupid beards will not be on TV again this year. For goodness sake boys, grow up, Youkalis and the rest just look silly.

Mazz has absolutely the right outlook. The Sox were a competitive, entertaining team this year. I'm sorry they did not win, but there's no disputing a great season-long effort that resulted in a very exciting playoff. (Count your blessings - you could be a Yankee fan.)

And again, I agree completely with Mazz re the team's overall status. The pitching is basically sound, and there's reason to believe at least two pitchers will find their way up from the minors next year, while Timlin and at least one other will find their way to another team (or retirement). Pitching is not the Sox' problem - and how many teams can honestly say THAT?

Mazz sums up the Sox' problem nicely - their lineup is not as feared as it was. Manny and Ortiz were once such a force that they overcame team deficiencies or mistakes in other areas. Manny is, of course, gone, and Ortiz sadly has gone the way of Mo Vaughn. Big men's bodies do tend to break down under the grind of long sports seasons.

Further, there's no guarantee Lowell will/can return. And should he return, there's no guarantee he can play effectively, or without further absences due to injury.

Varitek is also done being an offensive force, though I believe the Sox will work something out with him and he will return for 3 years with an option. That's good for the pitchers, but that's an offensive hole the team will have to carry going forward.

The key is to get Teixeira. With him, the Sox will carry 4 'starting' outfielders who tend to be injury-prone (except for Bay, knock wood) and 3 'starting' corner men, one of whom is certainly fragile.

If Lowell can return and be fairly productive, the Sox can rotate players in and out of the DH position as needed. Drew has already shown he can handle the role, and I suspect Youk can do it as well, among others. Considering Papi's lack of production this year, platooning the position should easily result in a net gain.

Aside from Tex, I would not give up on regaining another almost-Red-Soxer: Hanley Ramirez. Note the reason for his team's delay in signing him - the Marlins did NOT want to give him a no-trade contract. That was the hang-up in signing his deal, and Ramirez gave in. Clearly the Marlins are NOT opposed to trading him if it makes sense to the team, or at least they have left the door open for 'an offer they can't refuse'. And the Sox have a good deal of institutional regret about letting him go in the first place. The Sox have lots of good, young (i.e., cheap) prospects to offer the cost-conscious Marlins - including the now-league-tested Jed Lowrie, who could step right in for Florida.

Mazz did not say anything about Ramirez - but I'll bet he's been thinking about it.

Getting Tex, in itself, would be huge for the Sox. Getting BOTH players would make the Sox the new Beast of the East, despite the fact that they will play in the same division with the eventual-world-champion Rays.

Great job as always all. I thoroughly enjoyed your video roundups as well as your columns this year. A very well rounded staff here at the globe. You all kept the line moving.

Wow, you could be a Yankee fan ? Huh ? Is just making the playoffs good enough ? Yankees suck, off year in winning 89 games yeah they suck. You like the Yankees lost to a team with a payroll of Beckett, Dice K Ortiz Papi and Drew combined. How do you feel about yourself ? Yankees will return, so just worry about yourself bigboy.

Can someone please translate whatever Hank Steinbrenner (yankees4ever) just said?