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| Tony Gutierrez—AP |
You might say the Red Sox "drew" a line in the sand for shortstop prospect
Jose Iglesias. As if to reinforce their earlier statements that Iglesias can only "compete" for the SS job,
Boston signed free-agent Stephen Drew to a one-year, $9 million deal. Drew, the younger brother of former Boston right-fielder
J.D. Drew, is coming off a mixed 2012 season which saw him hit just .223 between Arizona and Oakland after recovering from a 2011 broken ankle. He did hit .250 in 39 games for the A's, but hit only .211 in the ALDS against the Tigers. Drew has historically been a solid defensive player as well—possessing above-average range and a solid arm. This is a good insurance move by BenCher—he couldn't have gone into the season with too big a question mark at short. This move at least gives us some protection up the middle.
