David...how much of what a first baseman is responsible defensively is a factor of his range vs. fielding throws from his infielders?

I actually think Youkilis was a very fine 1B man. He made a fair amount of scoops and his fellow infielders were comfortable throwing to him.

I don't think Helton will be a dramatic upgrade at the position. I am not sure how Helton was in this regard, but I wonder if range is the best way to judge a 1B man defensively?

Moving Youkilis to third vs. Lowell however, is a decrease in defensive ability however.

I was wondering myself, if there are other aspects to fielding that the Sox (and others) are tracking. I know Alex Gonzalez had an unimpressive range score last year (I think he was average or slightly below), but just from watching him play, I felt like he was tremendous at double plays - both getting a throw off quickly (to second or first), and getting to the bag with the ball.

Youk definitely seemed good at scooping up the ball. I wonder if Helton has similar skills. I think he was a QB at some relatively high-level division 1 football school in college. And I remember either Neyer or James (I think it was Neyer) talking about how both he and Pujols would likely be able to handle themselves pretty well away from 1st base.

A good comparison, this. However, my opinion is that Helton, while he might not be an upgrade defensively over Youk at first, he won't be a huge downgrade either. And offensively, he's going to be better than Youk. Youk is a great OBP guy, he'll get the occassional clutch hits, but his power numbers are pretty ordinary. It'd be a miracle if he even hits 20 HRs. With Helton, you get the OBP, you get the BA, and even with diminished power, you still get at least 20 HR if you ask me, and quite a few doubles. Helton has never been a dead pull hitter, he has been known to go the opposite way, I can see him pepper more than a few shots off the Green Monster. Lastly, around this time last year, lots of people were crappin on Lowell, saying he was past it, he'll be no good, blah blah. We all know how surprisingly well he did. Who's to say Helton won't have a comeback like that? Like Lowell, Helton is supposed to be a pretty professional player. I really don't see him being a bad deal at all for the Sox, provided, PROVIDED, they don't give up a high ceiling prospect like ELlsbury or Bucholz.

An interesting analysis but misses the point.

First of all, first base fielding should be judged by how well he handles throws as this is where the real difference will be made. With a poor throwing shortstop like Lugo, this is even more important (which begs the point that fielding analysis has advanced signifigantly but I haven't heard any analysis on throwing).

Secondly, if the trade goes through, youk moves to third and he clearly is a downgrade from Lowell. Just by where chances occur, this is a hit for the sox.