Red Sox sign SS Marco Scutaro

Another year, another shortstop. Ever since July of 2004 when Theo Epstein dealt away Nomar Garciaparra, the Red Sox have essentially had a revolving door at shortstop. We have seen the likes of Pokey Reese, Orlando Cabrera, Edgar Renteria, Alex Gonzalez, Julio Lugo, Jed Lowrie and Nick Green come and go and not one has been able to stick. Lowrie is still around, but he has yet to prove he is both durable and dependable enough for an entire season. So Theo took another shot to hopefully end the revolving door for the next two or three years ...at least until their star shortstop prospect, 19-year old Jose Inglesias, is ready.

Enter Marco Scutaro. The 34-year old ex-Toronto Blue Jay and Oakland Athletic brings his game to Fenway in 2010. He is coming off a career year in 2009 where he batted .284 with 12 home runs and 60 RBIs along with career highs in on-base percentage (.379) and slugging percentage (.409). He is considered an above-average fielder, so his bat brings more value than does his glove.

I'm somewhat neutral on this signing - leaning a bit more towards the positive side of the spectrum. Scutaro has only been an everyday player the past 2 seasons, prior to which his career was primarily as a utility player for both the A's and Blue Jays. However, perhaps his case is one of late bloomer. I do believe he has the chance to very productive at Fenway. He has tremendous plate discipline and is able to hit the ball to all fields with a bit of pop at times. No doubt Theo fell in love with his plate discipline, as that's an almost prerequisite to get paid with the Sox. Take pitches at a high rate, make pitchers work, and you may have a job with the local 9.

You'll most likely see Terry Francona insert him near the bottom of the lineup - perhaps 8th or 9th. In Toronto, he was their leadoff guy, so the pressure to get on base was extreme. To me, this makes his year last year that much more impressive. I am confident in two things related to the Scutaro signing -- #1 he should make us all forget previous shortstop signings (see Julio Lugo and Edgar Renteria) and #2 he should be a perfect bridge to the future of Jose Inglesias.

Let's hope Theo finally has a shortstop signing he can call a success. Based on the fact Marco took less money to come here and win a championship bodes well for all parties included. Now if only Marco can make it past year one of his contract ...