If Boston can surround Pappi and Manny with some small ball players then their lineup will become even more lethal.
The Red Sox did nothing in the way of scouting or drafting good players over the years and as such had to buy their players. The 2003-05 trilogy was a good bunch that showerd their age at the end and unfortunatetly they find themselves a year or two away from seriosuly contending again. They have some arms in the minors but 24 year olds rarely come on the scene and dominate. They need time to develop and learn. The Sox also lack any real impact positional players in their system which means they have to sign other people's free agents or failures.
2007 is when I would expect to see them again.
I know... could you imagine? All season long I kept hearing/reading that "small ball isn't Tito's style". Well, geez, why not put "style" aside - think outside the box for a change - and learn small ball techniques... move those guys along the bases and score runs? And maybe do drills on bunting balls as I've heard baseball players in Japan do...