[Moriarty9]

Although the 2010 Boston Red Sox roster is quite different from the pennant-winning 2009 team, ownership still expects the team to put together another World Series caliber season.

One reason for those lofty expectations is the pitching staff.
Two-time Cy Young award winner Johan Santana leads the rotation after putting together a 17-8, 3.73 ERA, 247 strikeout campaign in 2009. Roy Oswalt will back up Santana. Oswalt, acquired in a trade deadline deal, struggled in Boston last season (7-2, 6.88 ERA in 12 starts) but still put together a Cy Young caliber season by going 21-9 with a 3.76 ERA.
Hard-throwing lefty Scott Kazmir (8-4, 4.10 ERA in 21 starts) will open up the year as the #3 starter in the Red Sox rotation. Josh Johnson grabs the #4 spot after going 12-8 with a 3.39 ERA while 2008 Cy Young winner Erik Bedard rounds out the rotation with the #5 spot after putting together a 13-8 record and 4.35 ERA last season.
With Joe Nathan now closing out ballgames in St. Louis, the Red Sox went out and acquired three closers - Manny Delcarmen, Hong-Chih Kuo and Patrick Misch - to compete with relievers Jonathan Papelbon and Joba Chamberlain for the closer's role. Misch, a lefty who went 4-4 with 47 saves and a 2.76 ERA with the Detroit Tigers in 2009, won the job in spring training and opens the year as Boston's closer.
Kuo, 1-5 with 30 saves and a 4.06 ERA with the Cardinals last year, and Manny Delcarmen, 5-6 with 31 saves and a 2.75 ERA with the Cincinnati Reds in 2009, will start the season as setup men and alternate closers for when Misch is unavailable.
Chamberlain (3-3, 1 save, 3.78 ERA in 55 games last year) struggled mightily in spring training and was optioned to AAA Pawtucket to start the year. Papelbon, 7-1 with 3 saves and a 4.13 ERA will work as a middle reliever in 2010.
Joining Papelbon in the bullpen will be long reliever and spot starter Jered Weaver (10-5, 1 save, 4.96 ERA in 24 games, 21 of which were starts, in 2009), Gary Majewski (0-0, 2 saves, 3.47 ERA in 18 games with AAA Pawtucket last season) and lefty Terry Allen (2-1, 1 save, 2.79 ERA in 21 appearances in 2009).

The question mark surrounding the Red Sox lineup in 2010 is its lineup. Boston lost Ryan Howard and Victor Martinez to free agency and Matt Kemp is expected to miss the entire season with a neck injury.
Returning, however, is leadoff man Ichiro Suzuki (.300, 9 HR, 106 R, 42 SB) and sluggers Miguel Cabrera (.385, 33 HR, 141 RBI) and Manny Ramirez (.309, 41 HR, 116 RBI). Also returning is shortstop Hanley Ramirez (.274, 10 HR, 79 R, 22 SB) and Nick Markakis (.298, 14 HR, 89 RBI, 14 SB).
After being pushed to the DH and left-handed pinch hitter off the bench, Todd Helton will return to full time duty at first base for the Red Sox. Helton hit .224 with one home run and 11 RBI in 85 at bats last season. He last played on a fairly regular basis in 2007, hitting .317 with 13 HR and 62 RBI in 112 games. Helton is a career .323 hitter with 340 home runs, 1,226 RBI and 1,934 hits.
Dustin Pedroia takes over for Dan Uggla - traded to the Cincinnati Reds in the offseason - at second base this year. Pedroia hit .285 with 3 home runs, 17 RBI and 24 runs in 123 at bats last season.
Chris Iannetta, a 26-year-old Rhode Island native, will open the year as the team's starting catcher. Iannetta hit .266 with 9 home runs, 58 RBI and 78 runs in 117 games with AAA Pawtucket last season. In five games with Boston, he hit .214 with a homer and 3 RBI over 14 at bats.
Howie Kendrick, a 26-year-old rookie, is expected to get time at second and compete for time as the designated hitter. Kendrick has not yet played in the big leagues but is a .327 career hitter in AAA and hit .348 with 9 homers, 75 RBI and 70 runs last season.
Josh Phelps (.248, 9 HR, 66 RBI) will share time with Iannetta behind the plate while David Murphy (.262, 2 HR, 19 RBI, 20 R, 164 AB) and Reggie Willits (.304, HR, 3 RBI, 23 AB) are the team's extra outfielders.
Switch-hitting 26-year-old rookie Kendry Morales will spell Helton against lefties and be an option off the bench for Kevin Kennedy's Red Sox club. Morales is a .317 career hitter at the AAA level, hitting .344 with 17 HR, 92 RBI in 120 games with the PawSox in 2009.
A possible addition to the lineup for next week's homestand is veteran David Eckstein, currently on the disabled list with a dislocated finger. Eckstein can play each infield position. In his 10-year career (nine of those years were with Boston), Eckstein hit .287 with 18 home runs and 575 runs scored. He has 179 strikeouts in 2,003 career at bats. With the Toronto Blue Jays in 2009, Eckstein hit .333 with 6 RBI in 35 games. The team has not divulged what they plan to do when Eckstein is eligible to come off the disabled list in six days.