Manny Trade (?)

Well, they traded Manny. Part of me thinks this is great for the club. Papi will lose a close friend, but the rest of the clubhouse will breath a sigh of relief. Manny should like to see his former teammates (Nomar and D Lowe) in LA, and they really need a bat.

Pittsburgh should enjoy all the prospects they get. Clearly, the Sox were EAGER to see Manny leave. They will say goodbye to two great player (though not top shelf player, both major league ready ones) in Mose and Hansen. LA Dodgers threw in two other prospects as well, including LaRoche, who has had better years, but will help out the Pirates.

We will welcome Jason Bay (from the Pirates) with open arms, and I think he should do pretty well here. He is young, like much of the clubhouse, and has a bright future ahead of him. He will bring power (though not as much as Manny) to the lineup. With three errors this year, he is NOT a gold glove, but he's NO Manny. He has more speed on the bases than Manny, though he will certainly NOT be leading the team anytime soon. He also appears to have lost a step as compared to a few years ago. Really this is the closest thing to replacing Manny there was on the market.

I look forward to seeing Bay in front of the Green Monster.