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Sources: Phillies/Cleveland deal could send Coco to Sox

The Philadelphia Phillies and Cleveland Indians reached agreement today on a deal that could trigger a bigger swap involving the Red Sox, according to two sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

If the Indians complete the deal sending reliever Arthur Rhodes to the Phillies for outfielder Jason Michaels, the Indians could turn around and send center fielder Coco Crisp to the Red Sox to fill the gap left when free agent Johnny Damon left for the New York Yankees.

Boston had been trying to send third base prospect Andy Marte and reliever Guillermo Mota to Cleveland, but a deal involving the three teams hit a hitch earlier this week.

Crisp was a spark plug and fan favorite for Cleveland, hitting .300 with 16 home runs, 69 RBIs, and stealing 15 bases.

- The Associated Press

Posted by Andrea Panciera  at 5:15 PM | Permalink

Schilling speaks: I ''feel right again''

Curt Schilling says his ankle is finally back to normal and he'll head to spring training ''in as good a shape as I was when I went in at the beginning of the 2004 season,'' a year in which he went 21-6 with a 3.26 earned-run average for the Red Sox.

Schilling spoke publicly this morning for the first time this offseason, appearing on WEEI Radio's ''Dennis and Callahan'' show. Schilling is a regular contributor to the show during the baseball season, with the station making payments to Schilling's fund toward the treatment and cure of ALS in return.

Schilling touched on a number of topics during the 15-minute interview, including:

His health
''I'll be in as good a shape as I was when I went in at the beginning of the 2004 season, there's no doubt about that.''

His ankle, which was surgically repaired after the 2004 season and hampered him throughout 2005
''About 14-17 days ago, I woke up and my foot was normal. Going through workouts and doing the stuff I'm doing here [at his Arizona home] . . . I don't know what the combination was, but it feels right again. It feels normal. It [feels] normal for the first time in a long. long time.''

On his weight, which was up last year because of his inability to work out after ankle surgery (the question was prompted by a photo of Schilling at a recent Phoenix Coyotes hockey game in which he looked noticeably slimmer)
''I don't know, [I'm down] a couple of pounds. Being able to run and being able to move extensively to do workouts has changed my body [composition] dramatically in the last month, month-and-a-half. That's something I haven't been able to do for a year.''

On the front-office turmoil this offseason
"Theo's back. That's all I care about, and that's all any of the players care about . . . Because of the kind of person he is, the confidence I have in him . . . I know there's not a minute goes by in the day that he's not trying to make this team better. As a player, that's all you can ask for. As a player, it's up to me and the 24 other guys to win a world championship . . . I was probably as upset, if not more, about changes in other areas of team, the clubhouse personnel. But we understand this is a business and if [principal owner] John Henry wants to make changes in clubhouse personnel, that's his right.''

On the 2006 Red Sox
''It's going to be a tremendously different team chemistry-wise, and I'm not sure that's a bad thing.'' [When asked to elaborate later in the interview] "You can't put a value [on] what [we] lost. Doug Mirabelli was one of the leaders of the team. Johnny Damon, at 7:05 [the normal game time], was one of the hardest-playing people I've ever been around. Kevin [Millar] was Kevin, and all that that entails. But your chemistry [is built] by what you do on the field. I just think that the guys that I know [joining the Sox] are going to be very comfortable making the transition [to Boston].''

On new teammate Josh Beckett
"I'm biased, I know, but you're talking about one of the top five arms in the game. That, to me, is huge. He's the kind of guy who's [going to have] a plaque at [the Baseball Hall of Fame in] Cooperstown waiting for him if he stays healthy for 10 or 12 more years. I fully expect that kid to come in and win a whole lot of games this year.''

On second baseman Mark Loretta and third baseman Mike Lowell, both of whom he knows
''You could not find two more quality human beings. I've never heard a bad word said about either one of them. I fully expect Mike Lowell to have a Mike Lowell-type season this year. Loretta fits right in with the [offensive] philosophy here. He's a fantastic ballplayer.''

On the pressure for the new players in Boston
''Boston is merciless if you suck, but I don't [think] any of the guys coming in here [are going to] suck.''

On the strength of the team's pitching staff
''I think the pitching staff is phenominally deep, very, very strong with a ton of power arms. The thought of making [Jonathan] Papelbon a reliever . . . he's a potential No. 1 or 2 starter-type guy. You don't get near the value of his worth in 60 innings [as a reliever] instead of 200 [as a starter]. I look at guys on their potential best days, and Jon's potential best day is a no-hitter . . . We have power arms up and down the staff.''

On whether not not Theo Epstein could have prevented the loss of Johnny Damon
''Damon wanted to go after someone who was going to pay him the most money. I don't think the Red Sox were going to offer him as much money as he got from the Yankees, so he was going to leave here anyway.''

On teammate Keith Foulke, who struggled worse than Schilling on 2005
''Foulkie's probably in the best shape he's ever been in. I think he'll bounce back and have as good a year as he had in 2004.''

On the upcoming season
''I'm nervous, I'm excited. There's a lot of things to hopefully make up for from last season, both personally and as a team.''

Posted by Art  at 9:58 AM | Permalink

Who coulda thunk it? Theo will return

He's back -- and who else could we mean except Theo? After months of speculation and talks, the Sox announced that the former GM will rejoin the team, in an e-mail sent at 7:23 tonight:

"As you know, we have spoken frequently during the last 10 weeks. We have engaged in healthy, spirited debates about what it will take over the long-term for the Red Sox to remain a great organization and, in fact, become a more effective organization in philosophy, approaches and ideals," the statement said.

"Ironically, Theo's departure has brought us closer together in many respects, and, thanks to these conversations, we now enjoy the bonds of a shared vision for the organizations future that did not exist on October 31. With this vision in place, Theo will return to the Red Sox in a full-time baseball operations capacity, details of which will be announced next week."

The statement came from Epstein, principal owner John Henry, chairman Tom Werner, president Larry Lucchino and Epstein.

Posted by Andrea Panciera  at 7:58 PM | Permalink | Comments 1

Rice fails to make Hall of Fame

Jim Rice, the slugger who embodied the Red Sox teams of the late 1970s, has failed again to make baseball's Hall of Fame.

Relief pitcher Bruce Sutter was the only inductee today.

Rice was named on 64 percent of the ballots, with 75 percent needed for election. Sutter barely cleared the bar, with 76.9 percent.

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art  at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments 7