Today is the day that kickstarts the season for us Sox fans!

The Equipment Truck Leaves Fenway Bound For Florida!

The 08 Red Sox are going to be a very powerful team.

They just signed Youkilis to a year deal.

Their young players are ridiculously talented. Pedroia and Ellsbury shut up alot of doubters, even Sox fans, last year.

Their pitching staff, even WITHOUT Schilling, is going to be at or near the top rotation. Now that Dice K has had a year to "adjust" (and he wasn't all that bad last year despite a few struggling regular season games), he will be on fire. Then you have Beckett (who was robbed of the Cy Young) and another youngster in Buchholz.

Oh yeah, then there are these guys named Manny and Papi. Forgot about them.

Wow.

It seems that Coco Crisp isn't too happy that Jacoby Ellsbury came into the end of the season and post season blazing. Crisp doesn't want to settle for fill in play, he wants the starring role, and Ellsbury proved that he can do the job.

All teams should have the problem of two very good outfielders contending for playing time. Oh, whatever will the Red Sox do?

Personally I think Coco's an overrated hitter.

This year may finally be the season that somebody - other than the Yankess challenge the Sox for the AL East. Toronto will have an improved lineup with a healthy Vernon Wells, coming off shoulder surgery, a more confident Alex Rios, an improved bat with the addition of Eckstein at short and Rolen at 3rd and if BJ Ryan is back on form and AJ Burnett can stay healthy - the Jays may have the best pitching in the East.

And the other good news locally for Jays fans relates to the home schedule against Red Sox this season. Last year MLB had Red Sox and Yankee games against each other loaded on to weekend series, leaving Toronto with 18 midweek home games against the Yankees and Red Sox with no games against them here in Toronto on the weekends - which tradionally draw larger and louder crowds (i.e. more beer consumed). This season all 9 games that the Red Sox play here will be on weekends - including the Blue Jays home opener on Friday April 4 which I have tickets for.

I think the Red Sox still have to be clear favorites in the East - but I think Toronto is a legitimate contender for second over the Yankees and if they can stay healthy (unlike last year), they may be right there nipping at the heels of the Red Sox.

Dear Theo,
Thank you for adding another hot bear to the roster.

WOOHOO! lol

Red Sox give Terry Francona a 3-year extension.

"........skipper with at least 20 playoff games managed."

Which includes an 8-0 record in World Series play.

Congrats Tito!

Anyone coming down here to Fort Myers for the Red Sox spring training???

Manny's at it again. God I can't f%&kin' stand him. The Sox were at the White House meeting with Shrub, and afterwards they were to go to Walter Reed Hospital and visit the injured troops. Who didn't go to the hospital? One guess.

Yeah but Tito didn't go either and you never hear anyone complaining about him.

Fact is, the Manny-Boston love-hate relationship is about as played out as Zubaz pants. I would rather hear a six-hour power-point presentation on the structure of the US Postal Service than another Manny/media bitch-session. The guy isn't a class act, plain and simple, so be it, end of story, move on to something more interesting like Pedroia's abs or a Casey vs. Youkilis hotness-at-first-base contest.

(Although, it was pretty classless for both of them to skip out. )

casey is hot but youk?

Youk is hot...in a weird way...probably like Chuck Todd LOL I can see how someone would say they didn't find him attractive, but I myself think the 2007 Gold Glove Winner (toot toot) at 1B is a hottie

i like bears, and i should be attracted to youk coz he's kinda bearish with that very thick goatee. i don't know. something off about him.

It's the shaved-head-goatee combo.

Although that is kind of played out.

Somewhere, there was a picture of him in college that was HOT.

but i think if youk were in front of me naked, i won't pass.

I'd say it's more important to visit the injured soldiers than the White House. I'd love to know why he wasn't there.

With Casey now, the Sox are officially the hottest team in baseball. The thought of their roster all in the same locker room makes me go all cardio-dangerzone.

i hate you bruno.

now i think youk is hot and can't get him off my mind. naked.

Standing between Casey and Varitek in the locker room just out of the shower, smacking each other on the bare ass with their towels.

does casey have a hairy chest?

how about youk?

i know tek is totally hairy.

Now I ask you. Varitek is amazing no doubt....

But who should be getting who's autograph here?

Who's the real hero?

Dancing With The All-Stars is a charity event hosted by Mike Lowell, and we got to see a shirtless Dustin Pedroia.

I'm pretty sure Manny skipped the entire trip -- no White House, no veterans, no DC at all.


Really?
I have a certain penchant for #33. In all the locker room interviews I've seen, the bits of chest shown were not very hairy at all.

We now own an HDTV, so I'm looking forward to higher resolution research on this matter.

The pride of Woodland, CA.

You go Red Sox!!!!!

Tell MLB to stop f**kin' around!!! Can Selig be impeached or overthrown?

edit to add, I still get a kick out of there being men in speedos with bulges out to "here" up and down the page, but we still can't say "f.u.c.k."

Had no idea what you were referring to, so here's the story. It's odd that this issue didn't come up before. Why it it take until now for the players to get upset over their coaches' pay for the trip?

Meanwhile...did Dice-K fatten up again or is this just an unflattering angle?

Is that a mullet?????

Supposedly the coaches and trainers for the teams that have made before have gotten paid, and even for this trip the A's coaces and trainers were going to be paid, while the Sox's guys weren't going to be.

No. That's not what happened.
The Red Sox were under the impression that the coaches and staff were going to be paid.
A conversation with the A's uncovered that the A's coaches were not getting paid.
They did some digging and realized they weren't going to be paid either.
Seriously, even MLB isn't F'ed up enough to pay one team and not the other.
At least, that's my understanding of the events.

That was the last way I had heard it, which was last night...but this morning I heard it the way you said, that the A's guys also weren't getting it.

$50,000 for putting your ass on an airplane? That must be to soothe the jetlag.

For what it's worth, a cool graphic of the air route, Boston to Toyko. That's one long-ass flight. 13-hour time difference from the east coast.

I believe it's "only" 40K (only LOL)

The money isn't the sole issue. Most of the trainers and bullpen catchers/coaches are regular joes like us not making the multi-million dollars that the players are...making 40/50/60 thousand a year...and granted some make more than that too. But the bottom line is, when they (the Sox) were first approached with this trip, they were told that whoever goes will get the money. Apparently this was also told to the team a couple times throughout the winter. Then out of the blue, Francona finds out NOT EVEN BY MLB, but thru the grapevine, that their guys were going to be screwed out of a nice bonus that they have been told for months that they would receive.

Just another MLB embarrassment. This trip was made official last fall. All the details should have been set by then.

It's 5:30 am, do you know where your Red Sox are?

About to kick off the season!!! Got my NESN on, and my coffee in hand!

Last year during spring training, Jordans Furniture had a promotion: You buy furniture in late March/early April and if the Sox were to win the World Series...the furniture you bought became free. Well, they're doing it again....but this time they've upped the anite.....They gotta sweep again for the promotion to kick in.

Brandon Moss, the game-saver for the Red Sox today, apparently celebrated by giving himself a huge woodie. It only adds to his extreme hotness in this pic.

My heart goes out to this Red Sox fan in the extremely tragic incident

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8107040?MSNHPHMA

Just proves that not only are the skanks a criminal organization, with criminal players and criminal owners, but now their fans are murderous pieces of garbage.

This proves over and over that the Skanks are the least classiest organization in all of professional sports, and their fan base just proves it.

Josh

I wouldn't go that far. The Yankees are about as responsible for that crazy fan as Barak Obama is responsible for that crazy pastor.

From a battle with lymphoma to winning the final game of the '07 World Series, and now this: Jon Lester just no-hit Kansas City.

congrats, lester!

that was awesome!

and you looked HOT tonight!

The Palm Beach Post says that the Red Sox may deal Manny Ramirez to the Marlins as part of a 3-team deal also involving the Pirates. The tentative deal sends Ramirez, the money to pay the rest of his 2008 salary and a prospect from Boston to Florida, Jason Bay and Josh Grabow from Pittsburgh to Boston, and Jeremy Hermida, 2 Florida prospects and 1 Boston prospect to Pittsburgh. Of course, Manny has to give his approval to be traded, and other teams are said to be trying to get Manny from Boston, and Bay from Pittsburgh.

Manny had another idea...



Makes sense. One diva for another...

I am so glad that selfish arrogant muthaf**ka is gone!

Well....... I don't know if arrogant, selfish diva is really a fitting epitaph for Manny.

He performed very well and made contributions toward winning two world championships that I don't think the Sox would have won without him. Mind, I'd say the same thing about several members of those winning teams, so his was not a singular contribution. Fair to say he gave us his best years.

I wonder if he ever sold that gas grill?

That being said, he certainly was more tolerated than loved. He had an amazingly laid back attittude for a professional athlete. " I just go out and play beisbol man. That's what I do." When he didn't feel like it, he just called in sick. The implications are a little different when you're being paid millions. This never goes over well in the high-intensity environment of Boston baseball. It was similarly the undoing of Garciaparra who just wanted to play, collect his paycheck and not have to deal with all the crap. Couldn't stand the heat (or didn't want to) - got outta the kitchen.

I wish him well. I think it's an amicable divorce. Everyone involved is happy to be movin' on. Why pretend to be bitter about it?

I think Bay is way cuter (and I think somebody probably wrote that sign for Manny).

Agreed that Bay is cuter LOL

But yes, Manny was on both championship teams, and got some hits. But I wouldn't go as far as to say it couldn't have been done without him. And I still can't figure out why he got the MVP of the '04 WS.

I wished I coud've gone up to Theo and kissed him when he said something to the effect of they traded who could arguably be the greatest hitter of all time, and in return got a great player.

I thought that was great, because a lot of people think Manny is this great player. He isn't. He's a great hitter, not a great all around player.

I was hoping that Bay's ball was just a bit higher to go over the Monster, that would've been awesome!

And the irony? If Manny had hit that ball and it bounced in the field and he actually had to run? He wouldn't have. 99% chance of him making it only to first and not scoring the winning run. While Bay ran like a bat outta hell and got a triple. Manny would never ever do that.

And the kicker that had me bust out laughing? Manny has a chance to do something in L.A.....and grounds into a game ending double play LOL

bay is a solid player, but he's definitely not manny. not even close.

this hurts the red sox now, but they're still a very good team and can make the postseason.

bay is 29 and can help the red sox in the long-term.

And for that, I am grateful.