Daily Red Sox Links: Stephen Drew, Ryan Dempster, R. A. Dickey

Remember the Bridge Year? Apparently Stephen Drew is the Bridge Shortstop. (Gordon Edes; ESPN Boston)

It isn't, but signing Stephen Drew can be seen as a vote of no confidence in Jose Iglesias. (Nick Cafardo; Boston.com)

It's almost hard to believe that Russell Carleton didn't have some Red Sox fans at least partially in mind when he penned this piece on how to be unhappy about every move your team makes. (Russell Carleton; Baseball Prospectus) (free!)

The Blue Jays are going all in on 2013 and, to a lesser extent, 2014. If you believe in win curves and championship windows then acquiring R. A. Dickey was probably a good idea. (Dave Cameron; Fan Graphs)

The Yankees are old and the Red Sox are in transition. That's why the Blue Jays are going for it according to Ken Rosenthal. While those two statements aren't wrong, they also belie the quality that both teams have on hand while also ignoring the Rays and team that made the playoffs after New York, the Orioles. The Blue Jays are going for it because they can, not because they should. Three years ago the Marlins weren't offering to deal Josh Johnson and Jose Reyes and the Mets weren't refusing to give their Cy Young Award winner a two year contract extension. (Ken Rosenthal; FOX Sports)

Clearly R. A. Dickey is a terrible person and the Mets are saints for putting up with his Cy-Young-winning patoot. (Mike Bates; Baseball Nation)

The Ryan Dempster signing might not be flashy, but it's a smart move that will help the Red Sox. (Brian MacPherson; The Providence Journal)

Craig Calcaterra says Bob Ryan's latest article on the Hall of Fame may just be genius, but I don't believe he really thinks that. (Craig Calcaterra; Hardball Talk)

The peeps at Sox Prospects give you the round-up of goings-on in the Winter Leagues. (John Gray; Sox Prospects)

Cataloging the most volatile hitters including ex-Sox James Loney, who is near the top. (Bill Petti; Fan Graphs)

Anthony Ranaudo's circuitous path to the major leagues took another turn for the worst recently when he was injured playing winter ball in Puerto Rico. Fortunately it appears the injury isn't serious. (Tim Britton; The Providence Journal)