The oddsmakers in Las Vegas have the over/under for the Red Sox set at 93.5 wins. Part of the reason that the number appears a little on the low side is the condition of Curt Schilling’s shoulder and the unknowns that the Red Sox have in Clay Buchhloz and John Lester. The oddsmakers also must think the Mike Lowell won’t be able to repeat last year’s career season. That might be true but I think that Julio Lugo and J.D. Drew will bounce back. With that in might I would make a small bet on the over.

The Red Sox bullpen has depth and it has talent from both the righties and lefties. 27-year old Jonathan Papelbon is lights out as the closer. The righty pitched in 59 games last season for the Red Sox and he was 1-3 with 37 saves, a 1.85 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP. He also only allowed 30 hits and whiffed 84 batters in 58.1 innings which shows what kind of stuff he has. When Papelbon enters the game the opposing team generally feels like it’s “GAME OVER!”

32-year old lefty Hideki Okajima was outstanding in his rookie season for the Red Sox. He pitched in 66 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 3-2 with 5 saves, a 2.22 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP. He also whiffed 69 batters in 63 innings which shows what kind of nasty stuff he has. Plus, it often appears that he is not looking at the plate when he releases the ball which helps his effectiveness.

42-year old righty Mike Timlin just keeps rolling along like the Energizer Bunny. He pitched in 50 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 2-1 with 1 save, a 3.42 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. Timlin might start pitching a little earlier in games as the Red Sox appear to be grooming Manny Delcarmen for the setup role from the right side. But, Timlin can still pitch and he should be effective once again in 2008.

26-year old righty Manny Delcarmen finally started to show that he is ready for Prime Time in 2007. He pitched in 44 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 0-0 with 1 save, a 2.05 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. He also whiffed 41 batters in 44 innings which shows that he has good stuff. Look for Delcarmen to turn in another solid season in 2008.

30-year old lefty Javier Lopez is a true lefty specialist. He pitched in 61 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 2-1 with a 3.10 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. Lopez will continue to be effective if he throws more strikes than he did last season because he has good stuff.

30-year old righty Kirk Snyder finally had a breakthrough season in the major leagues last year. Snyder pitched in 46 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 2-3 with a 3.81 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. A lot of teams have been scouting Snyder this season but the Red Sox might elect to keep him around in long relief.

26-year old fireballing righty David Aardsma was acquired in the off season from the White Sox. He pitched in 25 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 2-1 with a 6.40 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP. He did whiff 36 batters in 32.1 innings which shows what kind of stuff he has. If the Red Sox coaches can teach Aardsma how to pitch he will give the bullpen a huge boost.

34-year old righty Bryan Corey was outstanding in his brief tenure with the Red Sox last season and he’s being heavily scouted by teams that need bullpen help this spring. Corey pitched in 9 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. Despite how well Corey has pitched it will be hard for him to make the packed Red Sox bullpen.

36-year old side-arming righty Matt Miller gives teams headaches with his odd release. He pitched in 2 games for the Indians last season and he worked 1 scoreless inning. Miller has now pitched in 100 games in his major league career and he is 6-1 with 2 saves, a 2.72 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: A

The Boston Red Sox starting rotation looks a little banged up right now but they definately are loaded with talent. 28-year old righty Josh Beckett was the money pitcher every one expected him to be all season long and in the post season. He started 30 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 20-7 with a 3.27 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He also whiffed 194 batters in 200.2 innings last season. Beckett’s back is bothering him right now but if he’s right he will have another awesome season in 2008. Maybe he’ll win the Cy Young Award that he deserved last season this year.

27-year old righty Daisuke Matsuzaka was a decent #2 starter for the Red Sox last season but he didn’t quite live up to the hype that followed him across the Pacific Ocean from Japan. He started 32 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 15-12 with a 4.40 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. He did whiff 201 batters in 204.2 innings which showed that his stuff was there. Look for him to pitch much better in his sophomore season in the States.

41-year old knuckleballing righty Tim Wakefield just keeps pitching good enough to get by. He started 31 games last season for the Red Sox and he was 17-12 with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Look for Wakefield to have another solid record as long as his back holds up because he works a lot of innings and the Red Sox offense backs him up.

24-year old lefty John Lester made an incredible comeback from cancer and the Red Sox took it slow with him. But, with Curt Schilling out for at least half of the season the Red Sox need to take the training wheels off Lester and let him rock. Lester pitched in 12 games (11 starts) for the Red Sox last season and he was 4-0 with a 4.57 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. He also started 18 games in A+AA+AAA ball last season and he was 5-5 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Look for Lester to win at least 15 games this season as long as he can stay healthy.

23-year old righty Clay Buchholz will be the #5 starter for the Red Sox this season. He pitched in 4 games (3 starts) for the Red Sox last season and he was 3-1 with a 1.59 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He also threw a no-hitter in his 2nd major league start! Buchholz also pitched in 24 games (23 starts) in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 8-5 with a 2.44 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He whiffed an amazing 171 batters in the minors in only 125.1 innings! The Red Sox will have an innings limit on Buchholz to protect his throwing arm/shoulder but he should put up good numbers as long as he stays healthy.

35-year old righty Julian Tavarez will likely get some spot starts as the Red Sox long reliever. He pitched in 34 games (23 starts) for the Red Sox last season and he was 7-11 with a 5.15 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Tavarez is a good guy to have on a pitching staff but the Red Sox will likely be in trouble if he has to start more than 10 games this season.

35-year old righty Bartolo Colon will start the season in AAA and he will likely be the first starter recalled if the Red Sox need one. He pitched in 19 games (18 starts) with the Angels last season and he was 6-8 with a 6.34 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP. Colon should have just gotten rotator cuff surgery when he needed it two seasons ago because he hasn’t been effective at all. Colon has now pitched in 309 games (306 starts) in his major league career and he is 146-95 with a 4.10 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP.

41-year old righty Curt Schilling will miss at least half of the season and possibly the whole year based on a shoulder condition that probably needs surgery. Schilling started 24 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 9-8 with a 3.87 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Anything the Red Sox get from Schilling this season will be a bonus as they have appeared to move on without him in their plans.

30-year old righty Devern Hansack will likely be in AAA again this season waiting for a call. He pitched in 3 games (1 start) with the Red Sox last season and he was 0-1 with a 4.70 ERA and a 1.83 WHIP. He pitched in 25 games (23 starts) in AAA last season and he was 10-7 with a 3.61 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: B

32-year old lefty swinging J.D. Drew got a lot of free agent money from the Red Sox last season but he didn’t deserve it based on his play. Drew played in 140 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 126 for 466 (.270 avg, .796 OPS) with 84 runs scored, 11 homers and 64 RBIs. Drew let his struggles with the bat hurt his defense as he made 5 errors in 133 games in RF for the Red Sox last season while showing very poor range. Look for Drew to hit better in 2008 for the Red Sox.

31-year old switch hitting Bobby Kielty could get a lot of playing time in RF next season for the Red Sox as he is a lefty masher. He played in 33 games last season with the Red Sox & A’s last season and he was 19 for 87 (.218 avg, .574 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 1 homer and 12 RBIs. Kielty didn’t make any errors in 17 games in RF last season but he showed below average range there.

24-year old lefty swinging Brandon Moss got his first taste of the big leagues last season. He played in 15 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 7 for 25 (.280 avg, 819 OPS) with 6 runs scored and 1 RBI. Moss played in 133 games in AAA ball last season and he was 139 for 493 (.282 avg, .833 OPS) with 66 runs scored, 16 homers and 78 RBIs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C+

24-year old lefty swinging Jacoby Ellsbury looks like he has unseated last seasons’ starter, 28-year old switch hitting Coco Crisp. Ellsbury played in 33 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 41 for 116 (.353 avg, .903 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 3 homers, 18 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Ellsbury also played in 98 games in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 141 for 436 (.323 avg) with 82 runs scored, 2 homers, 41 RBIs and 41 SBs. Ellsbury played in 16 error-free games in CF for the Red Sox while showing outstanding range. Look for Ellsbury to have a very good season for the Red Sox in 2008.

Coco Crisp has never lived up to the Johnny Damon comparisons that were thrown around after the Red Sox acquired him from the Indians a couple of seasons ago. He played in 146 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 141 for 526 (.268 avg, .712 OPS) with 85 runs scored, 6 homers, 60 RBIs and 28 stolen bases. Crisp only made 1 error last season in 144 games in CF for the Red Sox and he showed outstanding range. Look for the Red Sox to attempt to trade Crisp before the season begins because he will likely be upset with a reserve role.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: B