One of the frequently reported themes in the aftermath of the Manny Ramirez - Jason Bay trade has been how other American League teams are celebrating of the Ortiz-Ramirez combo.  With that lethal combination part of the everyday lineup, the Red Sox could use brute force to power their way to victory in any game on an any night.  There is no question that part of what made David Ortiz the hitter he has been the past few years has been the presence of Manny Ramirez protecting him in the lineup.

But now that Ramirez plays in Los Angeles and Jason Bay is manning left field for the Boston Red Sox, the Red Sox lineup does not boast the impressive power numbers it has in years past.  But that does not mean they can’t win.  The great late 90’s Yankees teams mostly had Bernie Williams batting cleanup.  They won with getting guys on base, solid hitting, great starting pitching, and an unbelievable closer.  That is exactly the formula the current Red Sox team can win right now.

It would be unfair to expect Jason Bay to exactly replace the offensive production of Manny Ramirez.  Offensively, Jacoby Ellsbury needs to get on base more and Jason Varitek can’t be a guaranteed strikeout every time he steps at the place.  Jed Lowrie appears to be an offensive improvement over Julio Lugo - who hopefully we’ve seen the last of.  But there are areas where Jason Bay improves the team.  His baserunning and fielding should be major improvements over Manny Ramirez.

Truth is, Red Sox offense is not the key to the team making the playoffs and competing for a World Series championship.  Jason Bay could bat .400 and hit 5 home runs a week, but it doesn’t matter one bit unless the Red Sox bullpen starts performing better, Josh Beckett starts showing even the slightest resemblance to who he was in 2008, and Clay Bucholz becomes a dependable fifth starter.  If those things happen the Red Sox can repeat as World Series champions.