Jason Varitek and Carlton Fisk | The Future Blog of the Red Sox

According to the power agent Scott Boras, Varitek is not interested in a minor role, he is interested in a full time roll. Last week, Curt Schilling said that he had a conversation with Varitek, in which Varitek said that he might be willing to catch less games, but Schilling isn't sure if he's mad about that. Obviously, Varitek doesn't want a reduced roll, after all, he's in great shape, and can call games like no one else. Even though I've been told not to trust agents (even The Matrix advises us not to), I agree with the example that Scott Boras turns to, Carlton Fisk. As a fans of the sport, everyone has some degree of respect for the renowned Red Sox catcher. But interestingly enough, when Fisk was 36 (and at this time his Red Sox career was finished and he was playing with the White Sox), he batted a mere .231, sure better than Varitek... but two years later, when he was 38, he batted only .221, only one hundreth of a percentage point higher than Varitek. However, when he was 41, he batted .293. And if you continue to look at his statistics, his batting average continually went up and down, his career batting average was only .269. The guy still got inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000. The fact of the matter was, he was a great catcher, and was also a captain for the Red Sox. So this is why I think we need to keep Varitek, we don't just give up on a guy because he has the worst offensive season of his career. We need to appreciate the fact that he calls the game like no other, and according to Scott Boras there is no other catcher with a higher win-loss percentage starting a game than Varitek. So, yes, I am comparing Jason Varitek to Carlton Fisk, and I think that Varitek is just as capable to have a rebound season. I think that Theo should sign Varitek to a two year deal, and let him play everyday because that's Varitek's mentality. He's not the kind of guy who's going to sit on the bench when he's healthy and watch a game go on (unless of course, Wakefield is pitching). The body cannot function without the mind, and a team cannot function without it's leader. -Elizabeth

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December 5, 2008 10:02 AM ET

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I agree with you that Varitek can bounce back offensively, but even if he doesn't......the Red Sox shouldn't overlook his impact on the pitching staff with his game calling and defense. The Sox have enough offense that they shouldn't surrender his defense if they don't need to.

The Cardinals had a similar situation with Mike Matheny a few years back. He didn't hit much ever, but his defense and game calling were critical to the success of the pitching staff. Teams sometimes don't value defense as much as they should, because everyone looks at the stats.