Dominos Starting to Fall

Huroki Kuroda gets a 1-year, $15 million deal & returns to the Yankees in 2013. He was on my radar for Ben Cherington to sign a 1-year deal with to bolster the Sox rotation on a short-term basis. If Kuroda performs close to his 16 wins, 3.34 ERA & 200+ innings next year it would have been a good signing by the Yankees of the 38 year old. And Lance Berkman, a 36-year old first-baseman & outfielder, is being courted by the Red Sox & 3 other teams. Berkman is a switch-hitter, but has been often injured, including last year. Berkman was on Steve's list of possible candidates for the Sox to acquire during our latest podcast yesterday. I think that a younger version of Berkman would be Nick Swisher. Swisher is 31, a switch hitter & plays 1B-Of. I hope Ben is kicking the tires on Swisher as well. Finally, I wouldn't give up just yet on Mauro Gomes at 1B. He has a nice swing & there is always room for a hitter in the lineup. But the dominos are falling. If Kuroda was on Ben's list, it's time to go to Plan B. Jackson, Haren & Garza are still out there.