Once again Terry Francona has pandered to Tim Wakefield and his fragile psyche. Wakefield would be more of an asset as a so-called mop-up man to save the rotation and bullpen, and make the occassional emergency start. The phrase "eat innings" really should pertain to guys like him.

"Last season, Matsuzaka pitched in front of Lester. This year, that's switched. Francona said the reason for the move was not based on performance, but rather because of Matsuzaka's World Baseball Classic schedule."

Probably has nothing to do with the fact they will go .......

Righty-Lefty-Righty-Knuckle

When will Wake retire already...

How to handle all your good pitching -- not a bad problem to have!

i would take penny, masterson or bucholz over wakefield, just bring wake in 2 spot start or give the rotation anothers day rest. in tito we trust, go sox.

Pick and save pitching, bargain basement prices

i think you need to start clay at the 5 spot to start the season, i think if we dont then hes going to start getting frustrated in not getting a chance. If he does good then you have one of the best young rotations ( and bucholz's stock rises for trade bait). If he falls on his face like last year you have penny sitting there

i'm not too confident in the sox this year............

It drives me crazy listing to folks b*tch about Wake. He's never been a top of the rotation guy (and he's never been asked to be), but in the 4 or 5 spot, you could do so much worse. On his best day, he's near spectacular. Sure he'll get roughed up from time to time, but who doesn't - ESPECIALLY FOLKS WHO OCCUPY THE 4 OR 5 HOLE! In the meantime, he's been a rock for the franchise ... does whatever he's asked to do, does miracles in the community ... Basically, the same respect Tek gets, Wake deserves too. You can't expect Boston to just try to plug every hole with big name guys - that's what the Spankees do, and we see how well it's worked for them.

I AM SO SICK OF WAKEFIELD. YEAH, HE CAN GET YOU 12-15 WINS, BUT HE ALSO GUARANTEES ABOUT A DOZEN HORRIBLE STARTS WHERE HE DOESN'T GET TAGGED WITH A LOSS BUT HE KILLS THE BULLPEN AND PUTS MORE PRESSURE ON THE NEXT DAY'S STARTER. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT DICE-K NEEDS, RIGHT? WAKE NEEDS TO GO TO THE 'PEN AND LET'S GIVE CLAY ANOTHER CHANCE FROM THE START.

why dump on Wake? Did the other #5 guys have as many wins last year? You are falling for the old (ALWAYS MISTAKEN) thought that you can have too much pitching.

Watching the game, Penny looks like crap, only hitting mid-eighties on the gun. I know the arguement is that Wake can eat innings, but so could I with a 7.00 ERA. Buckholz should get the five spot.

no, no, no... masterson's innings need to be minimized until the late season, and playoff push begin. if they need him as a starter, they can't use him up too early.

Tim Wakefield has been a starter since 2003. He has 73 wins over those six seasons, which is an average of 12+ wins per season. How many #4 pitchers are giving their teams double-digit wins at $4 million per season?

Until Wake can't do it anymore, he's earned a spot in the rotation.

Davey, Spaceman and Mike: GO GET YOUR HEADS EXAMINED!!!!!!! Wakefield is one of the most reliable pitchers in all of MLB. Why is it that every year people want to Wake in the pen or just get rid of him? He had a 4.13 ERA last year! In other words, he had a better ERA than Bucholtz and Penny and it was only ONE TENTH of a run higher than Beckett's who's the ace of the staff. Do you guys just not like the knuckleball or something? What, bc Wake doesn't throw in the 90's that must mean that he sucks right? Have any of you even looked at Wake's career stats? He has a career ERA of 4.32, has won 178 games (that puts him second btw on the Soxs all time wins list behind only Cy Young and Roidger and ahead of some guy named Pedro Martinez, he's also thrown 2800 innings in his career over 541 games (400 of them starts) and he's struck out over 1900 batters. By the end of the year he'll have over 2000 Ks! Over the last four years, Wake has won 50 games and would have won more except for the fact that he almost never gets run support and he only make 23 starts in 06 b/c of injuries. As I have said b4, Most teams would KILL to have a guy with Wake's stats and abillity to eat innings (he tossed 181 last year) as their number 2 or 3 starter. Wakefield is our num 4 starter. He's also been with the Sox for almost his entire career. Why can't you show the man a little love?

If Bucholz falls on his face again, he might never fully recover and fulfill his potential. Go easy on the kid. He's at the beginning of his career and might be first rate for years to come if he isn't screwed up now.

I love the depth, but the was to win is more aces. Trade Clay and a prospect for Jake Peavy. Same with position players. Depth is good, but you need the really good hitting. A team of 4 all stars and 3 also-runs will win over a team of 8 pretty good players. Make the Padres your Kansas City!
Rick in San Diego

Wake takes a lot of pressure off the staff. Sure, I don't want him pitching in the clutch games in the second half, but I like the idea of him eating up innings April thru June or July. Sure, he'll only win half of the games he starts tops, but he'll eat up innings and help keep the staff fresh. I'd rather have a staff full of live arms down the stretch and come playoff time. By the end of June or July, it's probably going to be Beckett, Lester, Daiske, Penny, and Smoltz. Not too shabby! But, it's not the pitching or defense this year that's the question mark, but the hitting. With the starting pitchers and bullpen the Sox have, if the offense can produce four, four and a half runs a game, they'll win 95 plus and take the AL East.

Wake is an excellent value at $4 mil per season and yes he has averages 12+ wins since 2003, but that's not the reason that he's in the rotation this year. There are more price efficient options for the rotation such as Buchholz and Bowden (granted, Bowden could use another season at AAA). The reason Wake is in the rotation and not the pen is because he has a partially torn labrum in his right (pitching) shoulder, which is why the last 2 years he has had to shut it down late n the season. I honestly don't know how far back this injury goes, although it may help account for his horrible post season record (aside from when he was lights out in 2003). Basically, His shoulder can't handle pitching days too close together. When Wake can no longer perform in the mid 4's in ERA or when he decides to call it quits, the Sox will be ready to replace him, until then they can save money for another position, or another quality starter such as Dice (~18 mil per season if you include the initial bid).

Lets all agree that Wake is now a liability. Why can't the Sox say no. Especially with Clay throwing stones in Camp....

um lets not agree that wake is a liability as its not the case

I love Wakefield; he's been great. But it's time to give Buchholz another chance. If Penny is ready, then put Wakefield in the pen for mop up and spot starting. Wakefield would still have a valuable role to play. Terry: "Start your top 5 starters!" Think, how would Bill Belichick handle this?

Thank you, Dave & JB.

I wonder if people realize that only Lester pitched more innings than Wake in '08.

Casual fans know how easy it is to get a reliable #5 (let alone a #4) under perpetual contract for $4 million/year.

Anyone who posts comments here is certainly able to spell Buchholz. (Here's a quick mnemonic: It has two H's as in "shut the bleep up.")

Let's all agree that Wakefield has never ever had a season with an ERA higher than Buchholz's career average of 5.56.

AND... we're all good Sox fans. We know where the capslock is. Oh. Wait. I could be wrong...

I agree Zack. Wakefield's coming off one of his best seasons in terms of ERA 4.13, one that would was lower before he got hurt. What would have happened last year if the Sox dumped him because they had Buccholz and Masterson coming up. Bucholz flopped and Masterson ended up being needed in the bullpen.

If we're going to "agree" on anything it's that Wakefield is one of the best No. 4 starters in baseball and if Penny or Buchholz come through and you want to change designations, he's the best No. 5 starter. A veteran presence. And since one poster wanted to discuss his affect on the next starter. How many times has he helped the next starter because his knuckleball screwed up the timing of the hitters.

Not only is Wake still a good pitcher, he would have won another 6 or 7 games last year had the team actually been behind him and not bungled so many of his games. I kind of felt sorry for him last year, because it seemed like each of his games were cursed by a poor defense and bullpen.

Wake will win 14 and lose 12. Certainly good enough for the fourth starter. He's a class act, and he'll know when to stop.

Wake will retire when he's not logging in between 180-200 innings pitches and 13-17 wins the last like 5 years... I don't know anybody that wouldnt want his rubber arm, that $4mill option was a no-brainer... him in the bullpen could also pay huge dividends... could be worse, just look at Kansas City's rotation LOL..

u got ride of becket!? if u did ur stupid!

Q) How many pitchers since 1901 have a .531 win percentage and 400 starts?

A) 78.

Q) Who on the Sox is one of the 78 ?

A) Tim Wakefield.

love reading all the comments from the baseball professionals out there!
how many major league games and teams have you manages?
how many world championships have you won?
how many of you have actually pitched in the major leagues?
get over yourselves!
just because you're Red Sox fans does NOT give you the right to second guess Francona or his pitching rotation...jerks.

No one here has mentioned arbitration rules, and I'm no expert, but if keeping Buchholz down until May gives us another year (like David Price) than it makes sense. Otherwise, no.
The question isn't whether Wakefield can give you 200 decent innings. Buchholz is an extremely talented young pitcher who has been lights out in spring training. The kid is on a roll, and absent an arbitration incentive, any franchise other than the Yankees would have ran with it and put him in the rotation somwhere.

Stop with the history lessons on Wake...boring...
This is supposed to be about the Sox for 09..........No reason to root against Wake, and we all know what results we have got in the past for his efforts.. We need .... Penny, Smoltz and especially Buchholz, to have great seasons and not worry about hurting Wake's feelings if that happens...............Why not root for a pitching staff that has the potential to be much stronger than last year's....change can be good....staying pat catches up with you at times......... That is why Theo brought in Smoltz and Penny...............

It is nice to see that Wake seems to have a good catcher.

"I'm not too confident in the sox this year............"

-- Stop acting like Shaughnessy
Sox in 2009!

With all due respect to the gentlemen and ladies of this forum; you are idiots if you do not realize Wakefield's value to a major league pitching staff.

Thanks for those there to defend Wakefield. I realize that it is not a real reason to consider his position in our rotation in 2009, but no discussion of Wake this long should go without the hat tip to him for the 3rd game of the ALCS in 2004. Wake took the ball midgame in a blowout to save the bullpen, sacrificing his own start the next day. Because Foulke didn't have to pitch, he was there for the 4th game to help hold the fort until Papi could win it.

Look, that's not too relevant to 2009, but if every writer doesn't at least take a deep breath before bashing him, and remember he's paid his dues, we're not doing the right thing.

It's difficult to talk sense to people who think starters 1 through 5 should all be all-stars.

Wakefield is a cost-efficient veteran bottom-of-the-rotation starter who's going to give you solid production. Nothing more, nothing less.

And please, for God's sake, learn how to spell Buchholz. It's not that difficult. One C, two Hs, no K.

I love problems like these. If Penny is OK he's number five. Best thing is to have Buchholz go down to start the year and keep the momentum going. That and be ready. It needs to be impressed upon him that he's coming up in June at the latest to fill somebody's spot due to injury. Then let's say Wake or Penny goes down for an extended period you've got Smoltz ready around the all-star break. This cannot be better. Masterson can start too if necessary but he's going to be a great setup man and double play guy. I really like this staff. Plenty of vets and good live young arms. I like Wake too. He stays until he says basta.

What is this "fragile ego" BS? Wakefield shows the maturity of his years, a team guy all the way. Thanks to usmcssgt for quoting actual stats in response to the previous misconceptions. One other stat - Wakefield averaged just over 6 innings/start last year. That's not evidence of "a dozen horrible starts".

Ah, dont even respond to these cretons who have their heads up their arses on Wake. #5 starter = 200 innings = 12 -12 = 4.30 ERA = 4 million dollars.

Now if they would only get a job, i think they might see the light.

The first three starters on this staff are capable of 20 wins, Wake is great esp. as a 4th starter, Penny could be lights out again, and Bucholz could be a future ace (He already has a no-hitter, Curt never got one), and how can we forget Smoltz coming in June to a stadium near you!
On top of that we have an excellent closer, and a good bullpen in front of him.

This team is without a doubt the best pitching staff I can remember the Red Sox having.

And in other breakiing news, Jonathan Papelbon will be the closer. Adam Kilgore has strong command of the obvious.

To all Wakefield bashers:
Your lack of knowledge about baseball is astounding.

I am stunned by the negativity towards Wakefield by some of you out there. The innings this guy eats out of the 4 or 5 spot is something any team would jump at, and he's good for 12 wins. And, as already pointed out, at $4 million per year he's a bargain. Not to mention that he singlehandedly saved the 2004 ALCS for the Sox by taking the ball in that brutal game 3. I think Theo and Tito have proven that when a guy isn't "worth" having around anymore they will do the dirty work. Let's let Bucholz continue to build confidence, even if that's in Pawtucket this year.

the starting rotation should be:
1-beckett
2-dice-k
3-lester
4-bucholz
5-masterson

i'm sick of seeing the old and lame trotted out just because they're been around forever. baseball isn't some old age charity event, it's about winning, and the young guys are just better than wakefield and penny. and who cares if wakefield's feelings are "hurt." not like he doesn't know his time is done. every time i see him lob that stupid knuckler (for which he needs a special catcher, btw) at 40mph, i know it's just a matter of time before the hitters adjust to his minor league girls softball speed and just murder him. he's at less than 50/50 on good starts and it's just going to get worse from here. what are they waiting for, until he's 1 win and 30 losses? he needs to retire, like yesterday.

penny is a fat slob who doesn't stay in shape and his arm feel off because of it. he's this years curt shilling, the curt schilling who didn't throw one pitch and collected 8 million dollars. sure, penny has a few more innings in him than curt did last year, but not much and that's why he's perfect for the bullpen. but who knows, maybe i'm wrong and he'll be an ace. even so, he needs more time for rehab and delaying his start until May would probably do him a lot of good.

Gatordave, hate to disapoint you, but the reason no one has mentioned Buchholz arbitration clock is b/c its already running. He is no longer considered a rookie by MLB. His clock started running last year I believe.

this teams problem will be hitting not pitching.

Wakefield is the 6th best starter on thir Red Sox team.When Penney and Smoltz get healthy he will be #8.If he had any self respect he would retire instead of letting Francona throw him sympathy starts and forcing pitchers that he knows are better than him to remain on the bench

It is obvious from reading these posts that there are those who know and the no nothing Wake-Bashers. Why comment on baseball if you don't do your homework?

True that Wake can win 10 to 12 games BUT often on many of his starts Sox are out of it early on.

No it isn't evidence of "a dozen horrible starts". Even though the best pitchers, have around a dozen bad starts every season. Only 21 of Ryan Dempster's starts were Quality Starts last season, and he had an ERA under 3. Of Wake's 30 starts, 18 of them were Quality Starts. I'm taking bets from people who think Lou will keep Dempster out of the rotation this year.

Wake was 24th in ERA amongst A.L. starting pitchers last season. Divide 24 by 14 AL teams and Wake was better than a lot #2 starters.

Anybody who doesn't appreciate Wake and his value to the team, simply doesn't understandMLB

Wake is a friggin disaster. I love what he's meant to the club but he's 3 years past a starter and certainly not a #4 starter. Penny, assuming he's healthy, and Bulcholz should be 4 & 5 and would make the rotation so much better. The loyalty to Wake is infuriating and bad decision making.

As the longest-tenured member of the Red Sox, and a consistent, reliable performer who has always put the team first, I don't understand any of the anti-Wakefield sentiment. That said, I would like to point out to the wit who suggested we have no right to second-guess Francona that as the people who ultimately pay the bills we fans have not only the right but the responsibility to second guess any and everything management does. I don't have anything personal agains blind cheerleaders -- that's part of being a fan, too. But please, save your sanctimony for the proper forum . . . if there is one.

We won't need a number 5 starter for the first few weeks and when the times does come for that need- it should be Penny if he's ready to go.

People might not know this but Clay Buchholz has pitched more innings in the MLB than he has in AAA. Yes, he DOES have a fragile ego. There is no doubt at all that his "stuff" is top notch but he needs to work on his mental approach to the game and grow some thicker skin before he moves to the MLB.
I have a feeling that Wake's back/shoulder will start acting up and that he'll require a few days on the shelf. ALso- with Dice-K's high WBC pitch count and yearly second-half struggles, there'll be plenty of opportunity to use Clay sparingly. If everyone stays healthy- i'd advocate a 6-man rotation for the second half of the season with smoltz's long teath, wakes' and dice's history.

I love Buchholz as a sixth starter. It gets him a few starts in the ultimate low-pressure role for the beginning of the season, and you know at some point one or more of the starting five will miss time.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if he ended up with fifteen starts and a spot in the rotation by August.

Just a reminder: it's not even April yet. Players will earn their way in and out of the rotation throughout the season and I am sure it will look a little different in October. Fortunately, the Red Sox have pitching depth. Who cares who gets left on or off the roster and is stated for the 1st, 2nd, etc. spots right now? Get some perspective on this.

All these people who bash Wake need to "wake up and smell the coffee". He could have been 18-9 last year with some luck. He was 5th in the AL in WHIP! He can't go much more than 180 IP, but with Penny, Smoltz, Buchholtz and Masterson, he shouldn't have to.

Wake may have the number 4 spot out of necessity, but he's the Sox number 5 guy. How is that a bad thing? Name me any number 5 guy in all of baseball who is better than Wakefield. Bucholz needs to stay in the minors for now, where he can be dominant, because last time he got called up, it was a bit of a struggle. If they were going to keep Clay, then yeah, they'd have to call him up eventually. But NOW is the time to trade him. Just like with stocks, you sell high, and Clay's stock is high now. Trade him when he's struggling and you get a lot less. If the Sox could get Peavy in some deal that involved Bucholz, that would be great.

The inexplicable hate headed Tim Wakefield's way is simple: he's a knuckleballer. Not one of those he-manly power pitchers who throw the ball 100+ mph. He's just a junkballer with a fastball that tops out at what Joe Sixpack, shifting his beer gut in front of the TV, fancies he could throw himself. Toss in that he's merely good, not great, and that he's been around forever (irritating to Joe Sixpack's short attention span, given the "boring" comments above) and there you have it.

Duinne's right; too many expect that all five starters should be all-stars, and it ticks some folk off that Wake isn't one and isn't going to be one.

TIM WAKEFIELD SUCKS

Wakefield's a good pitcher, but putting him in the rotation is a crap-shoot. He either confunds the batters with his knuckleball or the batters box is like a revolving door putting one runner on base after another . . . put him in as a mop-up man . . . throw the other team a curve (pardon the pun) when they're having their way with the starter . . . Penny or Buckholz should take Wakefields place in the rotation or, at least, share it with him . . . let them play for the position . . . see whose ERA earns them the job . . . jmho

i would take julian tavarez over tim wakefield.

XOS, what are you smoking? B/c if you actually believe what you just wrote, I'd like to talk to your dealer. He's obviously giving you the good stuff. I'm going to guess that you don't know anything about baseball. Wake has been in the league for what, 17 years? And in all that time, hitters still haven't adjusted to his knuckleball. As for him being under 50% in decent outings, he threw 18 quality starts last year out of 33. Over the last few years, he's actually gotten better, not worse. In 07 he won 16 games, in 05 he won 17 (which btw is a career high). As for your rotation, Masterson is destined to be a reliver. Either a top notch set up man for the Sox or eventually a closer on another ball club. Buccholz still needs seasoning, but should be ready for the show by the All Star break and will prob. be one of the Sox starters out of camp next year. Penny, I'll wait and see on b/c I'm not familiar with him, but you're also forgetting Smoltz, a surefire HOF pitcher who is still very good. You really should try and learn something about baseball b4 posting on a site dedicated to baseball.