I'm not sure what is so bad about possibly sending McCarthy to the minors. He's young. He didn't do that hot in a limited role, not sure why he should be expected to be a reliable starter. If the pitching staff thinks he's ready, why not move Vasquez into the pen? Javier has some sick stuff, but seemed to run out of gas in the 5th and 6th and then get shelled. Seems like he'd be a deadly middle reliever. Why do the Sox have to move anybody?
They don't HAVE to move anybody, but I think they would like to if they can get some younger pitchers in return, and free up some $$$ from the pitcher they would be moving.
I'd like them to have a nasty pitching staff. If they can get better pitching, I'm all for it. But I don't see why a team who is a contender would want to unload veterans for prospects. I don't want to see some experiement in the rotation with a younger, unproven guy just because he is cheap. Unless they have lost confidence in a guy like Vasquez or Garcia and don't feel they are worth what they are paying them, I don't see a move to prospects as necessarily a good thing. Detroit had success with their young guys, but I'd imagine a prospect the caliber of Verlander would cost more than Garcia or Vasquez. The only hole I see is center, but I seem to be in the minority with my criticism of Anderson compared to most Sox fans.
I'm in agreement with you for the most part, but I do believe that McCarthy can step in and pitch no worse than what we saw in the rotation from Garcia, Vasquez etc. So, from that line of thought, they could keep the rotation as strong as last year, get McCarthy out of the bullpen, and add 1 or 2 high level prospects because it's unlikely the Sox are going to be in the free agent market much for starting pitching, given that they don't offer anything beyond 3-4 years tops.Don't be surprised if the Sox, should they trade, get a top level prospect back - there are so many teams desperate for veteran starters, and Chicago has a few with proven track records.