Roy Oswalt…sketchy
Roy Oswalt. I lack any better opinion then it seems sketchy. Did Boston low ball him with a five million dollar contract? His lower back problems last year had him starting only 23 games (3.69 ERA, nothing to scoff at) after being on the disabled list twice, I thought it was quite generous. If the Phillies decided to decline to pick him up for sixteen million sending him to free agency what is to say he will get a better offer? And after his performance last year, does he really feel comfortable picking and choosing? Oswalt seems to be leaning towards the Cardinals or the Rangers. Why, you might ask? Who would not want to be part of the legendary 100 years at Fenway? Let’s investigate.
Roy Oswalt is a great pitcher. I do not deny the fact that his competiveness would be a huge asset in Boston; if he stays healthy. So why would he not choose Boston? The speculation is he wants to be closer to his ranch and family. He and his wife (his high school sweetheart) are raising their daughter on a 1,000 acre ranch just outside Weir Miss. It would be much easier for him to manage his ranch if he could stay close. I can understand this.
Also, some believe he would like to go to the Rangers due to personal relationships he has within the Rangers staff in Nolan Ryan. The Rangers had looked at acquiring Oswalt back in June 2010. Obviously that did not happen. There is however, a connection there from when Nolan Ryan was an assistant with the Astros and he worked with Oswalt. What does this mean? It means possible security. Oswalt knows what Ryan expects of him, and vice versa. Now here is the problem with this situation. Oswalt would be brought in to replace Harrison ideally. Do the Rangers want to replace Harrison who is coming off his best year and homegrown, send him back to the pen for Oswalt who had his worst year of his career last year? The stats won’t lie to you my friends, Matt Harrison pitched better in a tougher league. Is it wise to replace Harrison, with someone who played their worst ever last year and is a high risk for injury? I wouldn’t think so either. Especially to a team that is so committed to its pitching staff. The Rangers will have leverage in that, they do not need him, and they have a fairly young team, it might be good to have a veteran like Oswalt in the mix.
All this being said, I truly believe we do not really need Oswalt. I don’t think he really wants us either. What we need is energy and youth! I think righty Edwin Jackson is a much better fit for Boston. Jackson was 12-9 with a 3.79 earned run average last season. At 28 he is in the prime of his career and shows nothing but improvement every year. I am aware of his walk percentage, but, I also think he can be grow and become better, steadier. Think about this, even Nolan Ryan had 71 games he started with seven plus walks, he is an award winning pitcher. Jackson has thrown a no-hitter before so we know he can be effective. I am all for taking a chance on a one year contract with him and letting him work some magic.
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