Note to Theo: Just Say No to A-Rod

It’s the nightmare that never ends. Talk that Alex Rodriguez may soon be coming to Boston after he dumps the rest of his Yankee contract are again alive, now that agent Scott Boras has gone on the record as suggesting that free agency may be in his most famous client’s future. That isn’t a surprise, considering that after the Yankees’ 6-4 loss to the Indians on Monday night, Rodriguez sounded like a man intending to walk away:

"It’s been a tough ladder for me," he said, meaning the fall and climb from MVP to target to MVP. "It’s too bad it has to end like this. … The reason I came to New York first and foremost was to help this team win a championship. I must say, I have failed at that."

Not, "I have failed so far." Not, "I have to figure out how to be more productive so I can help them win next year."

Naturally, this has tongues wagging throughout New England, fan tongues and sports radio tongues alike, about how the Sox should go after Rodriguez now that Mike Lowell’s contract is up. Lowell will surely want more money than the $10 million a year he makes now, and probably for four years guaranteed, which is a long time for a guy who turns 34 in February. A-Rod is a better player, the argument goes, so the Sox should go after him as an upgrade.

Clearly, A-Rod is the better player, but is he that much better? According to his player page on ESPN.com, this year Rodriguez made $27,708,525, which is just over three times Lowell’s salary. As you would expect, Rodriguez beats Lowell in all offensive categories: his batting average this year was 24 points higher, slugging average 180 points higher, and strikeouts-to-walks ratio slightly better (though in past years, it has been worse). Most notably, Rodriguez had 54 home runs, approaching his career high of 57 in 2002. But Lowell had 21, which is third best among qualified American League third basemen. Lowell was also second to only Rodriguez in RBI.

But that’s the regular season. It’s the postseason in which Rodriguez has appropriate earned a reputation as a non-performer. In four playoff seasons with the Yankees, his batting average plummets to .245 and slugging to .436. And those numbers are inflated by a stellar 2004 postseason in which he hit .320 and slugged .600. He has a total of only nine RBI in 94 postseason at-bats, eight of which came in 2004. And he strikes out a lot. Compare that to Lowell’s one postseason with the Red Sox, which so far features a .333 batting average and .556 slugging average with 3 RBI and no strikeouts.

That’s not even to mention the oft-overlooked realm of defense, where Lowell stacks up quite well, thank you very much. He had a slightly lower fielding percentage than Rodriguez in 2007 but a much better one in ’06. His range factor and zone rating are also notably better, meaning that he manages to field balls that A-Rod doesn’t get to.

With that comparison, which you’ll notice excludes any talk of clubhouse chemistry or being a team player because Rodriguez wouldn’t have a prayer there, I find it hard to justify $18 million a year more for some extra hitting. It isn’t as if the Red Sox have nobody else who can hit. Besides Lowell’s 21 dingers, David Ortiz had 35, Manny Ramirez in a sub-par year had 20, Jason Varitek added 17, and Kevin Youkilis 16. Dustin Pedroia hit .317, joining Lowell and Ortiz in the over-.300 club. And even with such good hitters around him, Lowell still led the team in RBI.

So that leaves the age question. Isn’t the four-year contract Lowell will probably want a bit long for someone who will be 34 next year? Perhaps. But you can bet that Boras will be looking for at least twice, contending as he has that Rodriguez, who is already 32, could play for another 12 years. Call me silly, but I would think the Sox could do without a gargantuan mega-contract that will someday have them paying about $50 million a year to a guy just 5 years shy of an AARP membership.

I know nothing will be done on this until after the World Series, but since I know Theo Epstein is thinking at least that far ahead, I’m begging him to banish the A-Rod thoughts from his head once and for all. We have an All-Star, Gold Glove caliber third baseman who by all accounts likes playing here, hasn’t shrunk under the playoff spotlight, and will likely command a salary, even with a nice increase, that will leave the organization with enough money to sign, oh let’s say, another pitcher or an additional bat.

And come October, we won’t have to deal with the mysterious disappearing A-Rod.

Next Round: Indians, for Which the Clock Watchers Are Thankful

Count me among those who chuckled at the observations that the Indians defeated the Yankees on Columbus Day. But more importantly, count me among the relieved that we won’t be suffering through any of the infamous Red Sox vs. Yankees marathons that kept so many of us sleep-deprived back in 2003 and 2004.

It is said that Red Sox vs. Yankees games run longer than your average major league baseball game, but I got wondering last night if that is really true. So I did a little research on game lengths during the 2007 Red Sox season (read: looked at 162 box scores, just because I could) and found that it isn’t just an urban legend.

• Average Red Sox game time (all regular season games): 3:08
• Average time excluding Yankees games: 3:06
• Average time excluding Yankees games and extra-inning contests: 3:03
• Average time of games against the Yankees: 3:31

That’s right folks, it takes an average of 28 minutes longer to play a regulation game against the Yankees than against other teams. Interestingly, the next longest games were played against Arizona (three games averaging 3:24 in length, including one 10-inning game), which doesn’t bode well for my sleep schedule should the Sox and D-backs meet in the World Series. The Rockies series went much faster, 2:56 on average. Games against Cleveland were close to par for the season, 3:07. And just in case you were wondering, games against Minnesota were the quickest at 2:46.

So what were the team’s fastest games in 2007? Funny you should ask, as I happen to have that information right here:

1. June 7 – 2:10. This was Curt Schilling’s one-hit masterpiece against Oakland, which would have been even better if he hadn’t shaken off the Captain with two out in the ninth.
2. September 17 – 2:13. Sir Speedy, Tim Wakefield, got the win in a 6-1 game at Toronto.
3. April 6 – 2:14. A 2-0 loss in Texas, this game was also started by Tim Wakefield.
4. September 29 – 2:17. The Sox beat the Twins 6-4, which is lots of scoring in such a short game. Yep, Wakefield pitched.
5. May 10 – 2:18. It didn’t take the Sox long to score 8 runs off Roy Halladay and shut out the Jays. The Boston starter was some knuckleballer.
6. July 16 – 2:18. Kason Gabbard threw a three-hit complete game, shutting out Kansas City 4-0.
7. April 11 – 2:22. Another one-hit shutout, this one by Daisuke Matsuzaka.
8. April 18 – 2:24. A 4-1 win over Toronto. Guess who the Sox starter was. Hint: his initials are T.W.
9. June 6 – 2:25. Oakland beat the Sox 3-2. I’m not going to bother telling you who pitched for Boston.
10. June 12 – 2:25. Wakefield again, a 2-1 win against Colorado.

You may have noticed that Clay Buchholz’ September 1 no-hitter isn’t on the list. That one took 3:02, but only because the Sox scored 10 runs. Surely you remember your annoyance when our guys wouldn’t stop hitting in that interminable bottom of the 8th.

Anyhoo, back to the original topic, which is that we’re fortunate to have drawn the Indians in the ALCS, and if we advance, we’ll get the most sleep facing the Rockies. The Diamondbacks would be a nightmare, between the long games and the time difference. Arizona, though situated in the Mountain time zone, forgoes Daylight Savings Time, so they’re currently in sync with the west coast. My eyes are heavy just thinking about it.