Dave Dombrowski is Making his Mark in Boston

The Red Sox have made numerous big-name acquisitions in their quest to return to the World Series and out of the cellar. After two straight years of last place finishes, the Red Sox decided to go in a different direction to accomplish their goals.

New President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski set out to accomplish three main things this offseason: Find a #1 starter, Find 1-2 shut down relievers and Find a fourth OF. He has done just that and is making his mark on the new look Red Sox.

The David Price signing was the biggest goal Dombrowski wanted to accomplish. The Red Sox pitching staff was dreadful last year, and became even worse with Clay Buchholz succumbing to injury once again.

Price is a former Cy Young winner who immediately becomes the ace in this relatively young rotation. Dombrowski was in on top pitchers the whole time in free agency and even had Zack Greinke as a fall back plan according to numerous reports.

The plan to add Price came together quickly and signaled a drastic change from the team that lowballed their homegrown ace Jon Lester before last season began. Seven years and $217 million is a steep price to pay for an ace, but Dombrowski and owner John Henry were willing to open their pockets for something special.

While Dombrowski was prepared to spend big for an ace, his actions indicated that relievers should be acquired using prospects, and not opening up their pocketbooks. The Red Sox bullpen struggled mightily when Koji Uehara went down with injury and then Junichi Tazawa was worked into the ground. So Dombrowski dipped into the deep Red Sox farm system to acquire All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel from San Diego. But that wasn’t all he did.

Dombrowski went out and traded from a spot of depth (starting pitching) by dealing Wade Miley, to get a really solid reliever in Carson Smith, who arguably gives the Red Sox the most talented set up men in the AL East (especially after the Yankees traded Justin Wilson to the Tigers).

Beyond that, Dombrowski added Roenis Elias who put up fairly comparable stats to Miley in the deal. Elias can be multiple things for the Red Sox, like a long man, a spot starter or even a full time reliever. Either way John Farrell chooses to go, Dombrowski has revamped a bullpen that now features a fearsome 6^th-9^th inning lineup.

Finally, Dombrowksi needed to solidify a young outfielder core and got one of the best 4^th outfielders in the game in Chris Young. Young can play the corner outfield spots and no matter who needs a day, he can easily slot in. He has also had tremendous success in Fenway and against lefties, something that the Red Sox value a great deal.

The Red Sox have been remade this offseason into a potential winner, in the hands of an aggressive GM, in market that demands such a GM. Dombrowski has made his mark on an organization that is defined by the powerful figures on and off the field in its history. The improvement may not be automatic, but Dombrowski has set up the Red Sox to return to the limelight once again.