Allen: Sox need Teixeira

The Red Sox need to sign Mark Teixeira. Desperately.

OK, I can already hear the Lou Gormans of the world: "Where would we play Willie McGee?"

Yes, the Red Sox already have a first baseman in Kevin Youkilis. They also have David Ortiz at DH and Mike Lowell at third base. It doesn't appear that either one of those guys are going anywhere.

Unfortunately, the last few months have also told us pretty clearly that Lowell and Ortiz are probably on their way down as productive, middle-of-the-lineup run producers.

No, I'm not saying they're done entirely as players, but in order for the Red Sox to stay as a serious contender, they need a strong, consistent, bat in the lineup everyday with Dustin Pedroia and Youkilis. Jason Bay has done an admirable job emulating Manny Ramirez's production since the Red Sox acquired him, but he's not the answer. I sense Terry Francona recognizes this by the fact that he hasn't hit Bay in the cleanup spot formerly held by Ramirez behind Ortiz. Instead, Youkilis has been put into that spot. J.D. Drew isn't reliable enough
to fill that spot.

Mark Teixeira is exactly the hitter that the Red Sox love to have in their lineup. He's smart, gets on base, makes the pitcher throw a lot of pitches, and he's incredibly productive. He also plays an eye-popping first base.

Yes, Youkilis is the Red Sox first baseman. But we know we can move him to third if we need to. From his comments during the ALDS series, it sounded like he might actually prefer third base, as it's the position he's always played, and it's the one his dad taught him to play. So then, what do we do with Lowell? He's having hip surgery next week, and hopes to be ready for the start of spring training. He's going to turn 35 during spring training, and coming off this pretty significant surgery, who knows how productive he's going to be? David Ortiz will turn 33 next month, and while we can hope that his wrist will heal during the offseason, and that that was really all that held him back this season, is that a sure thing? Over the last three seasons, Ortiz's home runs have gone from 54 to 35 to 23. His RBI have dropped from 137 to 117 to 89. Both are huge figures in the Red Sox clubhouse, and I definitely want them both to be part of the team going forward. But something needs to be done.

The Yankees are likely to make a huge play for Teixeira. He'd be a great replacement for Jason Giambi, and would immediately bolster both their defense and lineup. He's going to command a huge contract...perhaps even more than what the Red Sox were going to be having to pay Manny Ramirez had they picked up his options. I firmly believe he would be worth the investment, even if it takes a six year deal to get him done.

Having a 2-7 of Pedroia, Ortiz, Teixeira, Youkilis, Bay and Drew would give the Red Sox a fearsome lineup. They would have to get creative with Lowell. Somehow, they'd have to work out some rotation among 1B/DH/3B of Youkilis, Teixeira, Ortiz and Lowell. Ortiz and Lowell are going to need some time off going forward, and probably especially at the start of next season as they come back from their injuries. More injuries are bound to crop up during the season, and as they do, the Red Sox will have the personnel to fill the spots. Ortiz can get some nights off against pitchers that are bad matchups for him, and Lowell's right-handed bat can step into the DH role.

It might be a tough adjustment for Lowell, who would probably see his time cut the most. But reducing the wear on his body and keeping all four guys relatively rested and fresh throughout the year might pay big dividends come next October. This postseason, we've seen the impact that tired, injured, aging players can have on a team's chances.

Signing Mark Teixeira could go a long way towards fixing that.

Bruce Allen is the creator of Boston Sports Media Watch, which has recently been recognized by SI.com as one of the best non-corporate sports web site's on the Internet.