Predictions

Back in February, Firebrand writers and readers collaborated to establish one bold prediction for some key Red Sox players this season- Coco Crisp, David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis, Curt Schilling, Keith Foulke and Jonathan Papelbon. Now that the season is nearing completion, let??s reveal how big of idiots we really are.
Coco Crisp: .304/.357/.476, 19 HR, 48 doubles
Actual: .264/.317/.385, 8 HR, 22 doubles
Crisp was the newly acquired centerfielder replacing Johnny Damon, a move that, at the time, seemed a bit jeopardous. We surrendered top prospect Andy Marte, our lone catching prospect Kelly Shoppach and Guillermo Mota, who we definitely could have used this season. Some preferred Jason Michaels. Nonetheless, Theo pulled the trigger on a young, switch-hitting, centerfielder who was beginning to reach his peak and had exceptional outfield range. All but a few moments, this season has been a disaster for Crisp. It has been revealed that he was actually injured the entire campaign, which put a little asterisk by his disappointing numbers. We??ll see if he can improve in 2007.
David Ortiz: .292/.398/.600, 43 HR, 134 RBI
Actual: .286/.408/.633, 52 HR, 133 RBI
Not bad. Ortiz actually did more in terms of production than we projected before the season. We all know what Big Papi has contributed to the 2006 team, and I??m completely convinced the Red Sox would have been flailing near third place about a month earlier if not for Ortiz. Still we cannot trade Manny. His presence on deck is a huge reason why Ortiz is so successful. It??s practically irreplaceable unless Soriano signs, and that??s still not nearly as good.
Kevin Youkilis: .274/.380/.407, 12 HR, 117 games
Actual: .283/.384/.432, 13 HR, 143 games
Again, nice work everyone. The key numbers are very close. We didn??t know what to fully expect from Youk entering his first full season as a starter, so he went out there and said ?