It is approximately three weeks to the start of the regular season and I am getting antsy. The reason is twofold; First, I love the spring months and hearing about all the moves the Sox had made preseason. How those moves will pan out is yet to be determined. Secondly, I have started to prepare for my fantasy baseball drafts and that means perusing the Internet for the next big star. One down and one to go!

I have been watching the WBC for the past week or so and how good does Youk look? Pretty damn good if you ask me. Manny who? Ortiz, that fat mess (juice anyone?), needs to stop bitching about not having any protection in the lineup now that Manny has departed (thankfully!). The reigning MVP is in front of him and third in votes behind him: not bad Ortiz. I think his comments are a precursor to an awful season for Ortiz. I love the big guy, he has been a model citizen and teammate during his tenure but he is starting to breakdown and these comments, I believe, will be an excuse for the bad stats he puts up this year. By the way, in my auction draft this past week a member nominated Ortiz for $10 in a $160 auction and all you heard after that was the chirping from the crickets. No other bids meant a marginal player for too much money. Hey donut, you could of had him for half that.

One of the good moves the Sox made this part off-season is the non-acquisition of one Mark Teixeira. They resigned the Youk and he is entering his “prime” baseball years not to mention that he is extremely versatile, playing both first and third exceptionally. This Sox fan would have loved Tex but not at the expense of Youk going elsewhere. A good move in my opinion. I love Youk in a fantasy format because of his dual eligibility yet all the reading I have done on him has him as a major bust for this season. Maybe it is because I am a Sox fan but I do not see it at all. Granted in the auction he sold for $24, a little to much for my budget even with the eligibility. Projection: .295-33-125.

Other players on the Sox that I am excited about this year for baseball and fantasy are Ellsbury, Lowrie ( if he wins the job) and Bay. I think Elisbury is in for a monster year, not only with all those bases he steals but I believe his home-run total will start to increase. A poor man’s Grady Sizemore when he had his breakout year in 2005 but with more stolen bases. In the auction he sold for $11, again too rich for my budget. My projections: .292-19-74 with 65 sb. While driving to work this morning I hear Lugo had knee surgery and will be out until opening day, a huge opportunity for Lowrie to step in and win this job. Unfortunately, I believe Lugo will be starting because of his salary and the fact that he is ripping the ball in spring up til his surgery. I like the upside of Lowrie and by the end of May he will be the everyday shortstop because Lugo is an abortion of his former self which was not that productive to begin with. By the way, someone actually drafted Lowrie in my auction league and paid money for him. This person also paid money for Nomar and Rocco Baldelli. Apparently, he thought it was 2002 and 2005, respectively, for those two guys. Projection: .275-11-65. I draftedJason Bay last year and almost rode him to the championship when he was traded to the Sox but I came up a little short. Loved Bay this year in the draft but he sold for over $22. Do you get the trend here? Red Sox players sell for more than what they are worth. It must be because I live in the Northeast and we are either die-hard Sox fans or Yankee fans because the same can be said for the players on that team. A-rod $20 he is out until June for crying out loud. Back to Bay: a full season at Fenway hitting fifth in this lineup will result in his best offensive year. They better resume talks with him now if they want to resign him at a “discount” price because his numbers may mean more money at the end of the season. Projection: .288-40-120-15 sb. Lofty? Yes, but still attainable.

To answer the question: Right now, fantasy is more important but by the end of the summer, when fantasy is usually wrapping up, Red Sox nation will reign supreme. Then fantasy football will begin!