BoSox Add a Key Bat

As if the Yankees did not have incentive enough to land Cliff Lee and possibly Carl Crawford for good measure, the BoSox traded for one of the elite hitters in the game in Adrian Gonzalez.  Many like to refer to the Red Sox's young GM Theo Epstein as Boy Genius, but it doesn't take a genius to realize that this was a great trade to execute.  In fact, a GM with sub-par intelligence would have pulled the string on this deal as quickly as Theo did.

Adrian Gonzalez was the best hitter on a Padres team that was inept on offense last year.  Pitchers were able to work around Gonzalez in San Diego, but that will no longer be the case in Boston.  His swing is tailored made for Fenway Park, as Gonzalez has excellent plate discipline and power to all fields.  He can practically play pepper with the Green Monster in left for fun and go yard to rightfield when pitchers try to sneak fastballs by him on the inside corner. 

Each of the 81 home games at Fenway carry the intensity of a playoff game in laid-back southern California.  The intensity in a baseball fueled city such as Boston tends to bring out the best in players of Adrian's caliber.  His quiet, confident demeanor will be a perfect fit for the Red Sox clubhouse, which is notoriously small and void of large egos with the exit of Manny Ramirez.

The only question remaining is how the Yankees respond to this arms race between the two perennial powers in the AL East.