We've reached the halfway point of the season and what a half it has been. A 2-10 start, a 8-1 record vs the rival Yankees, an offensive barrage to bring the Sox to first place in the East, then an inter-league fall-off all leading to a 47-34 record. A quick doubling of the record points to a 94-68 record for the season (but remember this includes the 2-10 run which is highly unlikely a second time). So, barring a huge fall-off we are looking at a 94-98 win team and a run in the playoffs. Epstein has been quoted in the media that the team cannot take on a large amount of payroll this season, so we are unlikely to see a Bay/Martinez type of deal, but that does not mean that moves will not or cannot be made.

So its time to be the Armchair GM. What would you do with a team that is good to great but needs some tweaks and has supposed limited financial resources? My go after the jump

First lets take a look at the current roster:

Rotation: Lester, Beckett, Lackey, Miller, Wakefield (Buchholz-DL)

Bullpen: Aceves, Albers, Bard, Jenks, Morales, Papelbon, Wheeler

Catchers: Salty, Varitek

Infield/DH: Gonzalez, Pedroia, Scutaro, Sutton, Navarro, Youkilis, Ortiz (Lowrie-DL)

Outfield: Drew, Ellsbury, McDonald, Reddick (Crawford-DL)

Now lets look at potential needs

1. RH Outfield Bat, or Starting Rightfielder

2. More consistent reliever/left-hander

3. Starting Pitcher

4. Catcher

My Moves

1.  Get healthy. The addition of Carl Crawford and Clay Buchholz clears up some obvious problems that the team has had of late. Subsequent moves: Drew Sutton/Franklin Morales back to Pawtucket (or Jenks to DL again - please?)

2. Trade a Kyle Weiland, Che-Hsuan Lin, Franklin Morales/Hideki Okajima and lower level prospect to Chicago Cubs for INF/OF Jeff Baker and RP Sean Marshall. Baker is a lefty killer and has two major things going for him - versatility and cheapness. Marshall is a lefty reliever with a 9+ K/9 and a 2.09 FIP. Marshall is also signed for 2012 at 3.1 million, saving the Cubs a bit of salary. While I would hate to lose Weiland, the Cubs are starting pitching poor and could use a close to ML ready starter. Lin provides the Cubs with a potential CF/lead-off hitter who's skills translate better to the NL. Morales/Okajima give the Cubs a short-term replacement for Marshall. Subsequent moves: Darnell McDonald DFA'ed, Dan Wheeler DFA'ed or Wake DL'ed.

2nd Half Roster

Rotation: Lester, Beckett, Buchholz, Miller, Lackey 

Bullpen: Wake/Wheeler, Aceves, Albers, Marshall, Bard, Papelbon

Catchers: Salty/Tek

Infield/DH: Gonzalez, Pedroia, Youkilis, Scutaro, Navarro, Ortiz

Outfield: Crawford, Ellsbury, Reddick, Drew, Baker 

Bring on the Armchair GMs! Let's see your moves