Kuzul

As the Boston Red Sox now sit at home for the third consecutive postseason, it feels like decades ago since the storied franchise was one of baseball's elite teams.While remaining relatively competitive since the 2009 campaign, it is evident that the Red Sox have lost their way since their last World Series triumph. Finishing last place in the AL East for the first time since 1992, the Boston Red Sox must now endure a rebuilding process that is several seasons in the making.Following the collapse of September 2011 and the departure of Red Sox staples Theo Epstein and Terry Francona, a decade of dominance came to a disappointing conclusion.Pitching was nowhere near the level it once was, and Boston was primarily focused on "feeding the monster" as opposed to making smart baseball decisions. As a result, Ben Cherington took the reins as the new general manager, and Bobby Valentine was ...

Well, it's now official.Now confirmed by USA Today and several other media outlets, the Boston Red Sox have completed a monster trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers that will send Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, and Nick Punto to LA in exchange for James Loney and four prospects.In a deal first reported by Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston, Boston will be shipping off four of their top players to the very aggressive Dodgers' ownership in exchange for Loney, prospects and $260 million in salary relief.For the Red Sox, this is an active pursuit for GM Ben Cherington to rid the Red Sox of some of the worst contracts in franchise history, as well as to build the farm system. As for the Dodgers, this is a crowd pleasing move that will potentially help the Dodgers make a serious championship run.However, what I am here to evaluate is what exactly ...

With all of the injuries this season, the Boston Red Sox have been, arguably, the least fortunate team in the MLB. However, the biggest disappointment has come from the perfectly healthy Adrian Gonzalez.Gonzalez, 30, is currently in the worst slump of his career. He's hitting only .267 with five home runs, 35 runs batted in and just 18 walks (one intentional). These stats are absolutely the worst of his career, although his 2009 season wasn't all that much better. It is easy to say that the $154 million dollar man has yet to live up to his expectations. Now the big question is, what is wrong with Adrian Gonzalez?When signed, Gonzalez was projected to increase his power numbers greatly, especially seeing as he was transitioning from a pitcher-friendly ballpark in Petco Park, to the smallest one in the league, Fenway Park. The change didn't seem to shake up Gonzalez too badly ...

It seems as though Theo Epstein has finally found a suitor for struggling veteran outfielder, Marlon Byrd. Reported by ESPN Chicago, Byrd is apparently shipping up to Boston. The trade is reported as "imminent" and may be officially announced at any time now. This deal would mark the first major in-season trade for Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer's administration in Chicago as well as Ben Cherington's first in Boston.Byrd, a 35-year-old center fielder, has struggled this season, much as he did at the end of his 2011 campaign, after a hit-by-pitch sidelined him with a face injury midseason.He only has three hits in 43 at bats thus far, all of them singles. Ben Cherington will hope a new environment will help Byrd turn around.With Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford on the disabled list, as well as Jason Repko injuring himself on Friday, Boston is in dire need of outfield depth. As ...

As reported over the past few days, it is now confirmed that now former Red Sox shortstop, Marco Scutaro will be headed to the Colorado Rockies, according to ESPNBoston. The Rockies look like they've found their solution at second base.Scutaro, who is 36 years old, has been on the Red Sox since 2010. He has proven to be a very consistent part of the bottom of their lineup, hitting .275 in 2010 and .299 in 2011, Scutaro's option was supposedly picked up from Boston, meaning he'd have earned $6 million in 2012.However, it seems that Ben Cherington had other plans. Thus, the Rockies found their man.In return, the Boston Red Sox acquired a former first-round sandwich draft pick in 2007, Clayton Mortensen. Mortensen, in three MLB seasons, has a career earned run average of 5.12 to go with a 4-8 record. He's coming off of a 2-4 record with a ...

For the first few months of the Cubs new administration, it has been relatively quiet on the forefront despite being in the running for several free agents throughout the offseason. However, yesterday Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer acquired first baseman Anthony Rizzo and Zach Cates, a 23-year-old pitcher from the San Diego Padres in exchange for Andrew Cashner and Kyung-Nin Ma according to MLB.com writer, Carrie Muskrat.Although this trade is not in the same league as signing Prince Fielder, nor does this mean that Rizzo will be the projected starting first baseman for the Cubs this season, but Rizzo is undoubtedly a promising prospect that will be a serious component in the Cubs future. It seemed evident Rizzo would be on his way out of Chicago after the Padres traded for Yondo Alonso. With this move, Epstein and Co. were able to jump and grab a premier prospect. Rizzo was called ...