By Jim Callis
December 15, 2002

The Red Sox have been looking for a first baseman this offseason, and efforts to pry Erubiel Durazo from the Diamondbacks ended when he was traded to the Athletics on Sunday. Boston quickly recovered, however, getting Jeremy Giambi from the Phillies later in the day for righthander Josh Hancock.

The Red Sox now can match the Yankees with a Giambi of their own at first base, though Jeremy isn't in his older brother Jason's class. His addition makes it likely that Boston will nontender incumbent Brian Daubach, coming off a .266-20-78 performance in 137 games, rather than offer him a 2003 contract.

Giambi, 28, is a gifted offensive player whose flaky behavior wore thin in Oakland and Philadelphia. The Athletics opened the season with him as their leadoff hitter but traded him to the Phillies in May for John Mabry. Though Giambi was clearly a better hitter than Travis Lee, he didn't play regularly for Philadelphia. Still, there's no denying his bat. His value extends far beyond his .259 batting average in 2002, as he posted quality numbers in the on-base (.435) and slugging (.538) departments. In particular, his OBP was very attractive to a franchise that's emphasizing that statistic. He also added 20 homers, 45 RBIs and 79 walks in 313 at-bats over 124 games. Because he's thick and bulky, he's not much of a runner or defender. He has played more outfield than first base in the majors, and could move to DH if Boston finds his glove wanting. Giambi will get a significant raise in arbitration after making $1,065,000 in 2002. His career totals are .269-47-194 with a .381 on-base percentage and .437 slugging percentage in 460 games.

Hancock, 24, was a fifth-round pick from Auburn in 1998. He was as close to major league-ready as any pitching prospect in the Red Sox system, but his chances of making Boston's Opening Day roster were diminished by his November surgery to repair a small tear in his pelvic wall. There's little concern about his ability to bounce back, however. Hancock had his jaw broken by a line drive in June but returned after a month, cutting his expected recovery time in half. He doesn't have a true out pitch, but all three of his pitches are above-average at times. He commands his 91-94 mph fastball to both sides of the plate, and he'll show a plus curveball and changeup. Hancock just needs to show greater consistency with his secondary pitches. He throws across his body a little bit, but the Red Sox weren't concerned that his delivery would lead to injury. He went 7-6, 3.56 in 23 games (22 starts) between Double-A and Triple-A in 2002, with 98 strikeouts in 129 innings. He also went 0-1, 3.68 in three games with Boston in September. He should be able to pitch in games by the end of March.