Philadelphia, PA -- (Sports Network) - Following 86 years of heartbreak the Boston Red Sox enter the year as defending world series champions for the second time in the last four seasons.

Backed by one of the most dominant pitching performances in postseason history, the Red Sox swept their way to their seventh championship in team history, knocking off the Colorado Rockies in four games.

Josh Beckett was the driving force behind Boston's championship, going 4-0 with a 1.20 earned run average in his four starts. It was Mike Lowell, though, who garnered World Series MVP honors, as he hit .400 with four RBI in the sweep.

Lowell then chose to stay in Boston rather than test the free agent market and signed a three-year, $37.5 million deal to remain the Red Sox' No. 5 hitter behind the dangerous tandem of Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz.

Lowell wasn't the only big fish the Red Sox were trying to lock up this winter, as the team was heavily involved in the Johan Santana trade talks up until the end.

When it was all said and done, though, Boston decided against giving up top prospects in addition to signing the two-time Cy Young Award winner to a $100 million-plus extension.

That may become a decision they regret, though, since Beckett has been battling back problems all spring and will not accompany the team for their season-opening series in Japan.

Another key piece of the puzzle will also be missing and that is right-hander Curt Schilling, who will likely be lost until after the All-Star break with a shoulder injury. Schilling, who signed a one-year $8 million deal this offseason, could be done for the year, but he and team officials feel that rehabbing the shoulder will do the trick and surgery won't be necessary.

Other than that, Terry Francona's crew returns pretty much the exact same lineup from a year ago and that could be bad news for the rest of the league.

One thing that bears watching, however, will be Boston's grueling schedule to kick off the year. The Red Sox will open the season with a two-game set in Japan against Oakland, then come back to the West Coast for an exhibition series with the Los Angeles Dodgers, resume their season-opening four-game series with the Athletics and after an off day travel back east for a three- game series in Toronto.

Below we take a capsule look at the 2008 edition of the Boston Red Sox, with a personnel evaluation and prognosis included therein:

2007 Finish (96-66) - First Place (AL East)

KEY OFFSEASON ADDITIONS: David Aardsma RP; Sean Casey 1B; Bartolo Colon SP

KEY OFFSEASON SUBTRACTIONS: Matt Clement SP; Eric Gagne RP; Brendan Donnelly RP; Eric Hinske 1B

PROJECTED LINEUP: Jacoby Ellsbury CF; Dustin Pedroia 2B; David Ortiz DH; Manny Ramirez LF; Mike Lowell 3B; J.D. Drew RF; Kevin Youkilis 1B; Jason Varitek C; Julio Lugo SS

PROJECTED ROTATION: Josh Beckett RHP; Daisuke Matsuzaka LHP; Jon Lester LHP; Tim Wakefield RHP; Clay Buchholz RHP/Bartolo Colon RHP

PROJECTED CLOSER: Jonathan Papelbon

MANAGER: Terry Francona

INFIELD

With so many great players it is easy to get lost in the shuffle in Beantown, but there may not have been a more important player for the Red Sox last season than the energetic Kevin Youkilis.

Youkilis played an absolutely flawless first base, as he committed zero errors in 135 games en route to his first Gold Glove Award. The former eighth-round pick got off to a blazing start at the plate as well, but faded in the second half. Despite his struggles after the break, Youkilis still hit .288 with 16 homers and 83 RBI, while reaching base at a .390 clip.

Lowell was Boston's most consistent hitter from start to finish last season. Like his corner infield partner, Lowell got off to a hot start, but unlike Youkilis, he kept it up throughout the year, finishing the season with a .324 average, 21 home runs and led the team with a career-best 120 RBI.

The native of San Juan, Puerto Rico was even better in the postseason, as he hit .353 with a pair of home runs and 15 RBI.

As good as Youkilis and Lowell were, though, it was second baseman Dustin Pedroia that was the backbone of the infield. Pedroia overcame an absolutely abysmal start to win AL Rookie of the Year honors, as he hit .317 with 86 runs scored and a .380 on-base-percentage.

The same cannot be said for his double-play partner Julio Lugo, who struggled mightily in his first year in Beantown. Lugo's difficulties came mostly on the road, where he hit an astonishing .190.

Overall he hit just .237 with eight home runs, 73 RBI, 71 runs scored and 33 stolen bases. Lugo, though, was 5-for-13 in the World Series and raised his average nearly 40 points in the playoffs.

Boston hopes he can carry his postseason success into this coming year, as he becomes the first Red Sox to open the year at shortstop in consecutive years since the days of Nomar Garciaparra.

Behind the plate Red Sox captain Jason Varitek enters his 10th season as Boston's primary catcher and his 11th year with the club. Varitek's offensive numbers have slipped in recent years, but the switch-hitter still has the knack for getting big hits and is capable of putting the ball out of the park.

Defensively, he is about as good as it gets when it comes to handling a pitching staff and there are not many better than him at blocking the plate and preventing wild pitches.

OUTFIELD

After another offseason of trade rumors, Ramirez is once again back in Boston, where he will man left field for the eighth season. Ramirez, who could become a free agent after the season if the Red Sox choose to not pick up his $20 million option, had his worst offensive year, hitting just .296 with 20 home runs and 88 RBI. His slugging percentage also dipped to .493 in 2007 - the lowest full-season mark of his 14-year major league career. Ramirez, though, was his usual self in the postseason, as he hit .348 with four home runs and 16 RBI.

Ramirez remains one of the most enigmatic figures in the game and his defense leaves little to be desired. At times he seems as if he is disinterested and will provide a few blooper-reel plays in the field, but has become a master at handling the Green Monster.

J.D. Drew will be in the other corner outfield spot and the Red Sox hope his second year in Boston will be better than his first. After signing a five- year, $75 million free-agent deal prior to last season, Drew performed well below expectations at the plate and batted just .270 with 11 home runs and 64 RBI, while giving fans in Boston one of the few reasons to be unhappy.

Center field is still up for grabs. Boston is hoping that 24-year-old Jacoby Ellsbury takes the job, but Coco Crisp is not about to give it up without a fight. Ellsbury provided a spark to the Red Sox late in the season a year ago when the team needed it most and continued his production in the postseason.

Crisp, though, is getting paid a lot of money by the Red Sox, who tried hard to deal him this offseason. While Ellsbury brings more to the table from an offensive standpoint, there are few better with the glove in center field than Crisp, who likely be relegated to being an expensive late-inning replacement.

DESIGNATED HITTER

Ortiz (.332, 35 HR, 117 RBI, 116 runs) is quite simply the best designated hitter in baseball. With Ramirez hitting behind him, there really is nowhere a pitcher can hide. Although his power numbers were down thanks in part to a balky right knee, Ortiz remains one of the most feared hitters in the game, especially late in a contest.

Despite playing on the sore knee for most of the season, Ortiz still hit .352 after the break with 21 homers and 65 RBI, while leading the majors with a .695 slugging percentage. He also hit .370 in the playoffs for the Red Sox and is batting an amazing .381 in postseason play starting in October 2004.

STARTING ROTATION

Following a so-so first year in Boston, Beckett established himself as a true ace in 2007, as he led the major leagues in wins with 20, compared to just seven losses, while pitching to a 3.27 earned run average. Beckett also drastically lowered his walks and home runs allowed, giving up just 40 base on balls and 17 homers. He had issued 74 free passes in 2006 along with 36 home runs.

The 27-year-old hurler, who upped his win total for the fourth straight season, further cementing his status as the best big-game pitcher in baseball today with another marvelous postseason to lower his career ERA in the playoffs to 1.73.

Japanese sensation Daisuke Matsuzaka slots in behind Beckett and the Red Sox hope a full year under his belt in the majors will translate into a stronger 2008.

With Beckett back in the states, Matsuzaka will be on the hill when the Red Sox kick off the year in Japan.

After the team spent over $100 million for his services, Matsuzaka responded with a wildly inconsistent campaign , going 15-12 with a 4.40 ERA, and faded down the stretch, winning just two of his final nine starts.

Matsuzaka was a big reason MLB chose the Red Sox as one of the teams to open the year in Japan. Now comes word that Dice-K may not even make the trip so he can be with his wife, as the couple awaits the birth of their first child.

Tim Wakefield returns for his 14th season in Boston after going 17-12 last year with a 4.76 ERA. The 41-year-old knuckleballer, though, endured back problems late in the season and only made one appearance in the playoffs.

Jon Lester returned from cancer treatments last season to give the Red Sox a spark and was 4-0 with a 4.57 earned run average. Lester, who started Boston's World Series title clincher against Colorado, will play a bigger role this season.

So, with Schilling sidelined indefinitely young Clay Buchholz will battle with newly signed former Cy Young Award winner Bartolo Colon for the team's final spot in the rotation.

BULLPEN

Boston's bullpen is spearheaded by one of, if not the, best young closers in the game in Jonathan Papelbon. The overly confident 27-year-old right-hander saved 37 games and pitched to a 1.85 ERA, while averaging 12.96 strikeouts per nine innings.

Like Mariano Rivera, Papelbon has been incredible in the postseason. In his 14 2/3 innings of playoff action, Papelbon has allowed just seven hits and no runs.

The Red Sox expected big things from a Japanese import a year ago, and they got them, just not from the source they expected. Hideki Okajima did a brilliant job in building the bridge to Papelbon. He was especially dominant in the first half (2-0, 0.83 ERA), as he and Papelbon combined to form the best 1-2 punch at the end of games in the league. However, he struggled in September (8.10 ERA).

Francona will also have the ageless Mike Timlin and Manny Delcarmen setting the table from the right side, while Javy Lopez will be used primarily to get lefties out.

BENCH

The Red Sox picked up Sean Casey in the offseason as a left-handed bat off the bench and insurance should either Youkilis or Lowell go down. Casey is not the hitter he used to be, but can still pick it with the best of them at first base.

Alex Cora is as useful a player as there is on the Red Sox, and because of that is a Francona favorite. He can play just about every infield position.

OUTLOOK

Boston is not only the class of the American League East but all of baseball. They will basically be playing a 162-game exhibition season, waiting for the real portion of its schedule to get underway in October. There are really no weaknesses here. Pitching-wise they could probably be a little deeper, but the Red Sox are expecting big things from the young Buchholz and anything they may get from Colon will be gravy. The bullpen was the best in baseball for the majority of last year and should again be at the top of the league thanks to Papelbon. From 1-9 the lineup is scary with one of the best middle of the orders in the game. Barring many disastrous injuries there is no reason to believe the Red Sox won't be back in the ALCS and it is not crazy to think that a second consecutive championship could be in the cards.