Is Japan Trip a Good Thing?

It depends who you ask. The Japan trip will be good for MLB's bottom line. It will be good for the home-country fans of Dice-K.

How about the fans in Ft. Myers? They only got 13 home games at City of Palms Park when most teams get 16 home games in the Grapefruit League.

A 6:04am Eastern start time on a Tuesday isn't good for any baseball fan. Opening Day is a big deal. It's hard to get fired for a game that starts before the sun rises.

I think it will be hard to see how the Sox season benefits from the trip. The jet lag may well take a toll. I think future Japan trips should be exhibitions at the start of March, not official games at the end.