What do you think they will do at catcher? Boras stated Varitek's starting point was at Posada's level 4/52 or 13m per. I wouldn't give him 4 at 13 TOTAL.
I'm pretty sure Theo will feel the same way and not go four years. He's let big names go before (Nomar, Manny, etc...) so I think he won't be afraid to let him walk.
Do you think they'll offer him 2 at a reduced rate, or just let him go?
I don't think the Sox offer will Tek what he wants. Tek (as an offensive player) is far past his prime....however, teams with young-talented pitching staffs will forgo his poor offensive numbers, to utilize his coaching abilities behind the plate. Time and time again, Tek's pitchers have raved about his worth in that regard. Further more, there is really no way the Sox can keep him if he is asking 13 mill per year. I think the sox will offer him 10 Mill per year ( in order to save him them embarrassment of a pay cut), but they will not offer him a third year guaranteed. Obviously this will be a sticking point, and most likely cause his departure from the sox.
The Sox have adopted the mothod of developing talent from within, and building a cohesive team with the farm......yes, they will go after a big name or two ( Marc Tex), but they will not overpay for a player who is past his prime. I suspect that Theo is working on a "bomb dropper", but other than that, the sox will use their homegrown talent to plug in players where they have holes.
Aside from injuries, the sox were one game away from going back to the world series, so I think they are in far better shape than people will give them credit for.
Expect for the Sox to contend for a title next year.