Let the Offseason begin: Red Sox steal Hermida from Marlins

The Boston Red Sox hope they struck gold in acquiring Jeremy Hermida, who quite possibly may have been non-tendered by the Florida Marlins at month's end if not for the trade.

The Major League Baseball season began on April 5th. The season ended on November 4th with the New York Yankees popping champagne in celebration. That’s a span of seven months, from late spring to mid-fall. It was long, too long. But now it’s over. The offseason has begun.

The Trade Season started with a bang. The Boston Red Sox front office, having watched arch-rival New York finish off Philadelphia, decided to make a move, a sensible one at that. Before they traded Manny Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Red Sox inquired about a three-way deal that would land them Florida Marlins outfielder Jeremy Hermida. That proposal didn’t gain any traction, and Hermida stayed with the Marlins, but despite missing out on his services, Boston remained infatuated with him and his potential, hoping he would someday be part of their quest for a World Series championship.

That someday was today. In need of outfield depth, General Manager Theo Epstein traded the organization’s 44th and 45th prospects, lefthanded pitchers Hunter Jones and Jose Alvarez, to Florida for Hermida, who is only 25 years old. Hermida, a 6′3″, 200-pounder, is a former top prospect in the Marlins system, and in nearly 2,000 career appearances, has put up underwhelming numbers considering his hype: .265 batting average, 57 homers, and 210 rbi’s in 516 games.

Though he has had a disappointing first few years in the majors, disappointing enough for the Marlins to give up on him, the Red Sox believe a bright future is ahead. Epstein, upon making the trade, said “He hasn’t fulfilled his potential yet. We acquired him today to see if he can fulfill that potential.” Jones and Alvarez were a small price to pay for a low-risk player who could pay immense dividends in Boston. He has a fluid swing, plate discipline, and though he doesn’t hit for a substantial amount of power, the short porch in right field at Fenway Park, as well as the Green Monster in left, could go along ways to increase his production.

Designated hitter David Ortiz doesn’t have much left in the tank. Third baseman Mike Lowell can still hit, but a hip injury has slowed him considerably. Their lineup is getting old, and has players on the decline, so a young fresh face could do wonders for their wherewithal, especially if he succeeds as the Marlins once believed he could.

Boston seems keen on re-signing left-fielder Jason Bay, who, despite striking out nearly a third of the time last season, put up huge numbers with the team. This would be a smart move, and would allow the Red Sox to work Hermida into the system, give him some spot starts, see what he’s made of, and then give him the starting job in right-field once J.D. Drew’s contract runs out after the 2011 season.

Hermida welcomed the change in scenery:

“The change of scenery will be good for me,” he said. “Boston has a lot of older guys who can teach me about the game and we can talk hitting. I know Mike Lowell pretty well and I played with Josh (Beckett) a little. This is a great thing for me.”

“I feel rejuvenated. I had a feeling I’d be traded and going to Boston is better than I could have expected.”

The Red Sox acquired him on a whim, taking a risk that this “can’t miss” prospect that the Marlins were tired of waiting on turns into something. Having this optimism is a good start for the kid. Boston may have just found a diamond in the rough.

The drought is over: Matsui fuels Yankees 27th championship

The New York Yankees celebrate winning the World Series over the Philadelphia Phillies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

With the Philadelphia Phillies batting in the bottom of the fourth inning of Game 6 of the World Series against the New York Yankees, Pedro Martinez sat alone in the Phillies dugout. Then manager Charlie Manuel came over. The 65-year old manager with a southern drawl talked to the 38-year old Dominican and future Hall of Famer. He said something amusing, and Martinez cracked a smile. He tapped him on the chest, and another amusing remark made him laugh. He took a step away, motioned back, tapped him on the chest again, and kept his pitcher laughing.

What made this moment so memorable was that Martinez’s night was already done, having struggled mightily against the Yankees. In Game 2, a tough loss, the velocity on his fastball ranged from 91-94 miles per hour. In Game 6, he was facing the team he loves to face once more, but his demeanor and velocity were drastically different. Instead of looking confident, appearing full of adrenaline, he looked queasy and uncharacteristically nervous. Instead of touching 94 on the gun, his fastball topped out at 89 miles per hour and spent a majority of the night in the 83-86 miles per hour range. The Yankees, smelling their 27th championship and first in nine years, teed off on Martinez, who was only a shade of his former self.

He didn’t dare throw Alex Rodriguez a fastball, given its lack of velocity, but four changeups resulted in a four-pitch leadoff walk in the second inning. This conservative approach brought up Hideki Matsui, with whom he wasn’t as timid regarding pitch selection. Matsui had five hits in his previous nine at-bats this World Series, and continued his torrid hitting in what might be his final game in pinstripes. Matsui, a veteran and accomplished hitter, faced Martinez, a veteran and accomplished pitcher, and dueled in exhilarating fashion. Matsui took changeup with surprisingly little bite for a called strike, fouled off a fastball, took two 85 mile-per hour lifeless fastballs, one high and the other outside, fouled back a fourth fastball that reached its pinnacle, 89 on the radar gun, and then a slider inside. The count that was once 0-2 in Martinez’s favor, was full. Martinez had thrown every pitch in his repertoire he was willing to throw to the Japanese legend, so he tried to put him away with the pitch that’s made his career illustrious, the changeup. But Matsui waited for it, calculated its movement, and fouled it off. Martinez tried his fastball, attempting to hit an outside target set by catcher Carlos Ruiz so to lessen the chance of Matsui, a pull-hitter, turning on the offering. He missed the mark, instead firing 89 right down the pipe. Matsui, holding an eerily clean white bat similar to that of Roy Hobbs in The Natural, swung powerfully. The ball rocketed off the sweet spot, right on the barrel, and shot off towards right field like a cannon.

The 56,000-plus donning Yankee black jumped for joy as the ball fell deep into the seats. It was a two-run homer by Matsui. He was just getting started. The fans, anticipating the end of a World Series drought, would be in for a busy night as well.

Martinez struck out Brett Gardner to begin the next inning, and then got himself into more trouble. Derek Jeter benefited from a misread by Phillies center-fielder Shane Victorino and reached with a single. Johnny Damon battled Martinez and coaxed a walk. This brought up a struggling Mark Teixeira, who didn’t get a chance to break out of his slump, as Martinez’s tailing fastball tailed in too much, hitting the Yankees $180 million investment first baseman squarely in the thigh. Alex Rodriguez followed by striking out, but this was one of the few bright spots of the night. Matsui was next, and things went good to bad very quickly.

He fouled off the first two pitches, and then, once again, connected soundly with a fastball, ripping it into center-field to score two runs. Manuel had left Martinez in too long. Reliever J.A. Happ was warming long before Matsui strode in for the second time, but Manuel turned into a subtler version of Grady Little, who infamously stuck with a fatiguing and ineffective Martinez in Game 7 of the 2003 American League Championship Series against these Yankees.

This Game 6 start may have been Martinez’s last World Series appearance. Manuel wanted to give him one last shot to pitch on the highest of stages, and give him the chance to beat the Yankees. Martinez pitched well enough in Game 2 to earn this start, but clearly wasn’t the same pitcher. Manuel wanted to win, and taking a Pedro Martinez on his last legs out gave his team the opportunity to fight back. Martinez just didn’t have much to offer here at perhaps the end of his outstanding career.

After Phillies shortstop and leadoff hitter Jimmy Rollins couldn’t take advantage of a one-out walk by Yankees starter Andy Pettitte to Ruiz, grounding into an inning-ending double play, Chad Durbin replaced Martinez on the mound, and was similarly ineffective. He allowed a leadoff double in the fifth to Derek Jeter, a single to Mark Teixeira with one out, and then walked Rodriguez to load the bases, forcing Manuel to make the slow walk to the mound to remove him and put Happ in his place. Matsui was the hitter. He tagged Martinez for four rbi’s on two hits, and drove in two more off Durbin, lining a double into the left-field gap. He had a two-run homer, a two-run double, and now a two-run single. All that was missing was the two-run triple.

He wouldn’t complete the two-run cycle, but he had six of their seven rbi’s, which speaks for itself. Philadelphia, behind 7-1, received a two-run homer by Ryan Howard in the top of the sixth, but they couldn’t make the most of other opportunities, and the four-run deficit carried into the eighth.

After Howard compiled his 13th strikeout of the series to begin the inning against Damaso Marte, Mariano Rivera came in to attempt the five-out, World Series-clinching save. The Yankees were five outs away from winning their first World Series since the Subway Series of 2000, and they had the best closer of all-time ready to save his fifth championship. With the Yankee crowd on their feet in anticipation, Rivera struck out Jayson Werth and after Raul Ibanez socked a double to left, threw a cutter in to Feliz, forcing a defensive swing and pop-up. Now, three outs remained.

Rivera, looking for his 39th postseason save (39th!), took the hill in the ninth. Pinch-hitter extraordinaire Matt Stairs worked the count full, and nailed a frozen rope, but right at Jeter. Down to their final two outs, the Phillies continued to battle, refusing to hand the Yankees and The Sandman the World Series. Ruiz came after Stairs, and had an at-bat that made me and Rivera crack a smile. The catcher, who had a brilliant series at the plate and behind it, took a cutter over but low, and then one right down the middle. He had no intention to swing, presumably scared to make an out. He just wanted to get on, and hoped he could do so by coaxing a walk. He took a cutter just off the outside corner for ball-two, and then one just inside. He stared at strike-two, but his wish was granted as Rivera’s sixth pitch and sixth cutter missed inside.

Rollins wasn’t as patient, swinging at the second pitch. He hit it well, but right at right-fielder Nick Swisher, who celebrated the second out with the fans beyond the fence. Rivera and the Yankees were one out away from accomplishing a feat their organization has demanded annually for many decades. Shane Victorino, badly bruised hand and all, stepped in and took a first-pitch strike. A ball followed, and then the Hawaiian native swung through a cutter from the Panamanian. Anyone who wasn’t standing in Yankees stadium rose to their feet–one strike away. A cutter barely missed inside and the 50,000-plus let out a groan. Victorino fouled off the fifth pitch, then the sixth, seventh, and eighth. How painful, on this cold night in the Bronx, to foul off pitch after pitch with the hand, battered and bruised, taking the vibration over and over again. Victorino didn’t care about the injury. He wanted to battle to the end, try to extend the Phillies season. The ninth offering was well inside, but Rivera’s 41st pitch found the heart of the plate. With the cutter’s late movement, Victorino didn’t get good wood on it, pounding it into the infield, right at Robinson Cano at second.

Cano fielded the grounder cleanly and threw to Teixeira. The Yankees ran into the middle of the diamond from the outfield, the bullpen, the infield, and from the dugout, to meet Teixeira, Cano, and Rivera.  New York, the players, the fans, the city, jubilantly celebrated the 27th championship in franchise history.