Report: Mark Kotsay Set To Re-sign With Red Sox

Mark KotsayAccording to Sean McAdam and Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, the Boston Red Sox are set to re-sign 1B/OF Mark Kotsay to a 1-year deal worth $1.5 milllion plus incentives.

Kotsay will be the primary backup at first base for Kevin Youkilis and will also provide the Red Sox with a fifth outfielder as well.

He hit just .226 with no home runs and 12 RBIs in 22 games with the Red Sox after coming over from the Atlanta Braves. With his combined stats between the two clubs, he hit .276 with 6 homers and 49 RBIs. In 10 games during the playoffs last year, he hit .250 (10-40) with 3 doubles.

I think this is another great signing for the Red Sox as Kotsay showed that he could play excellent defense at first base as well as in the outfield. Plus as I have said with the Rocco Baldelli and John Smoltz signings, it’s another low-risk, high reward signing by the Red Sox and for Kotsay as well.

Plus now we get another year of this:

Jaime Kotsay

The Winner of the 3rd Annual SOX & Dawgs College Football Pick’em Contest Is….

3rd Annual SOX & Dawgs College Bowl Pick'em Contest

WAYS1.

BCS National TitleCongratulations to WAYS1 for winning the 3rd Annual SOX & Dawgs College Football Pick’em Contest. As the new champion, they will receive a guest post here on SOX & Dawgs. As always anything goes.

It was a strong fight as WAYS1 came from behind down the stretch to overtake Adam. Ladd B made a valiant effort but was hampered by the Ball State loss down the stretch as was Adam.

Thank you to everyone for participating in the contest.

And phew, I don’t have to rename the contest.

Here are your final standings:

Name Total Name Total
Ways1 21 Under M C 17
Adam 20 Barry 17
Ladd B 20 GM 17
Ian 19 Sam 17
Carl L. 19 David Lusk 17
Smokey Bones 19 Nick L 16
Scott 19 Michael 16
Matt 18 Cash Money 16
Ken 18 SethRTR 16
Keith B 18 Marcus Hill 15
Mr Intangibles 18 Dan 15
Scott LV 18 Sue B 14
Burney 18 Christopher L. 14
Pandyora 18 Boomer 14
– Jamee Sacco 12

Donald Brown Named ECAC Player Of The Year

Donald Brown Named ECAC Player Of The Year

Seniors Cody Brown And Darius Butler Also Honored

Donald BrownCENTERVILLE, Mass. (January 8, 2009) — University of Connecticut junior running back Donald Brown has been named the 2008 ECAC Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) Player of the Year.

The nation’s leading rusher finished the season with 2,083 yards and 18 touchdowns, placing him 11th all-time in FBS history for rushing yards in a season. Brown led the Huskies to a 8-5 mark and an International Bowl victory over Buffalo. In that game, Brown rushed for a career-high 261 yards.

Brown was also named First Team All-America by the Sporting News and was a Second Team All-America by the Associated Press and the Walter Camp Football Foundation. He was also named the BIG EAST Conference Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-BIG EAST.

Following the International Bowl, Brown announced that he would be entering the National Football League draft.

Brown was named named to the All-ECAC FBS team along with senior defensive lineman Cody Brown (Coral Springs, Fla.) and senior cornerback Darius Butler (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.).

U.S. Naval Academy freshman defensive lineman Jabaree Tuani has been chosen as the 2008 ECAC Football Bowl Subdivision Rookie of the Year. Tuani led the Midshipmen in forced fumbles with three and tackles for loss with nine, while also recording 42 total tackles. Navy finished the season 8-5, making a trip to the EagleBank Bowl against Wake Forest.

The ECAC will honor the players and rookies of the year in each division and region on February 24, 2009 at the annual Eastern College Football Awards Banquet presented by FieldTurf Tarkett, an event held in the Pegasus Restaurant at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, N.J.

The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) is the nation’s largest athletic conference and only multi-divisional conference, with 321 member institutions and over 122,000 student-athletes ranging across 16 states from Maine to North Carolina and westerly to Illinois.

Boston Red Sox Introduce Rocco Baldelli

Newly acquired Boston Red Sox Rocco Baldelli holds up his new number 5 Red Sox jersey during a news conference in Boston on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)Before the Boston Baseball Writers’ Association dinner tonight in Boston, Theo Epstein and Terry Francona introduced the newest member of the Boston Red Sox, Rocco Baldelli.

Baldelli will No. 5, a number which hasn’t been worn in Boston since Nomar Garciaparra was traded. Baldelli talked about that and few other things at the press conference.

Baldelli on wearing Nomar Garciaparra’s and George Scott’s No. 5:

It was brought to my attention that obviously this has always been a special number in this town and I recognize that as much as anybody. It was brought to my attention that there was a possibility that I was going to be able to wear it. It being the number that I have worn my whole career. I accept it and I think it’s great and I am very happy about it.

Baldelli on childhood dream to play for Sox:

I’ve always said as much as anyone what it means to be a Red Sox fan and somewhat around the game. My family and friends are as crazy as any other Red Sox fan out there. I know the loyalty that these people here have for this team and it’s really an honor for me to be a part of it.

Baldelli on how he feels physically:

At this point I really couldn’t be happier with the way that I feel. I started working out this off-season earlier than any other off-season that I have. This is pretty much all I could ask for. I have been continuing to see and consult anyone that I need to and I think it’s going to be an on-going process for me and I am going to have to embrace and understand that there will always going to be something different that maybe able to help me and I am willing to do whatever I need to.

Baldelli on his durability:

Once I get to spring training and I start to get on my feet again, I am going to have a lot better idea of how I am feeling. I feel very good right now and the Sox have been helping me – consulting people to further help me feel any better than I already am. I anticipate being able to do more than I was doing last year and that’s pretty much it.

Baldelli on advantages of being home:

It’s tough to put my finger on that. Like I touched on earlier there’s a lot of reasons that this was the right team for me to go to. I think the most important reason is my family is that they get to come see me play all the time which is very important to me too and what makes them happy make me happy. I think that a big reason too.

Quotes courtesy of Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe.

Like I said this afternoon, I like the signing as it’s a low-risk, high reward proposition for both the Red Sox and Baldelli.

2008 Aon Insurance FWAA Freshman All-America Team

FWAA and AON Insurance LogosThe UConn Huskies are once again represented on the AON Insurance FWAA (Football Writers’ Association of America) Freshman All-America Team as offensive guard Moe Petrus was named to the team.

Petrus was a big reason why Donald Brown was able to rush for over 2,000 yards this season. He is also the only representative from the Big East Conference on the team.

A full look at the team after the jump.

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Boston Red Sox News & Notes – 1/8

Boston Red SoxThe MLB Hot Stove is starting to heat up for the Boston Red Sox with the news last night that Rocco Baldelli and John Smoltz would be joining the team for this season. And today we learn that the the Baldelli deal is official and that the Smoltz deal should be finalized later this afternoon.

Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald has a look at the contract details for Baldelli.

For me I like both deals although I think that the Red Sox should have made a run at Mark Kotsay. He still hasn’t been offered any deals that we know of and his versatility would be an asset to the Red Sox. Who knows, they still may try to sign him.

If both Baldelli and Smoltz can stay healthy, this is a low-risk, high reward proposition for both sides.

Baldelli will provide the Red Sox with a right-handed bat off the bench and could spell Jacoby Ellbury, Jason Bay and J.D. Drew in the outfield or fill-in in the case of an injury. With the health concerns of Baldelli, the 4th outfielder role is perfectly suited for him to prove that if healthy, he can still play the game he loves. Look for Baldelli to become a fan favorite in Boston due to his local ties.

On the other hand, Smoltz won’t be ready until May or June to pitch. He was acquired to provide the Red Sox with some starting pitching depth in a similar fashion to what Bartolo Colon did last year. While Smoltz prefers to remain a starter, he could also end up helping the Red Sox out of the bullpen as well, a bullpen which I feel is one of the best in the American League coming into 2009.

As Joe McDonald of the Providence Journal notes, a catcher is now the primary concern for the Red Sox.

With the lack of offers out there for Jason Varitek, Peter Gammons and Buster Olney of ESPN.com both say that he should have accepted the offer of arbitration from the Red Sox.

Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe says the Red Sox are building their team piece-by-piece.

Alex Speier of WEEI.com takes a look at the Red Sox buy-low approach during this offseason.

If you missed the news, Dustin Pedroia has been named as the cover athlete for MLB 09 The Show.

Maureen Mullen of the OT takes a look at the Red Sox prospects gathered for the rookie development program.

Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald tells us about tonight’s Boston Baseball Writers’ Association Dinner.

The Red Sox also announced some moves yesterday in the Baseball Operations department.

Gary Marbry of WEEI.com has some nuggets on John Smoltz and Rocco Baldelli.

The Inside Track gals let us know Dustin Pedroia will be shooting a commercial for a local bank on Friday. Let’s hope he’s learned how to act.

Dan Lamothe of Red Sox Monster has been following the votes for Red Sox great Jim Rice in the Baseball Hall of Fame voting.

2009 NHL All-Star Teams

2009 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal

The 57th edition of the NHL All-Star Game will take place on January 25th at 6 PM at the Bell Centre in Montreal. The game will be broadcast on VERSUS in the United States and CBC and RDS in Canada.

A full look at the rosters for the Eastern and Western Conferences after the jump.

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