Say Hello To… John Smoltz

Today the Red Sox finally officially announced what everyone has known for almost a week- the worst kept secret in baseball: John Smoltz will don the Boston home whites in 2009.

And what’s more: John’s confident that once he makes his return off the DL (he had shoulder surgery that sidelined him for almost all of ‘08), he’ll be in the starting rotation. Considering that rotation is already loaded with guns Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Brad Penny and Tim Wakefield, Smoltzie should have the luxury of a generous amount of rest — and the Sox should be able to largely keep him in reserve until crunch time. It’s yet another in a series of low-risk, high-reward signings the front office has made this offseason – eschewing the big splash in favor of the smaller nibbles.

Like most kids who grew up loving baseball, John Smoltz and his partners-in-crime Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux symbolized Braves baseball for me. They were the Three Guns of Atlanta – and comprised a stellar core of aces that led the Braves to pennants again and again and again. Smoltz was the last of the Three Guns left in Atlanta – Maddux and then Glavine departed long ago (although Glavine returned for ‘08, but is a free agent again in ‘09) – and so, predictably, Braves fans are not having an easy go of it with the news.

Chop Nation says a heartfelt thanks to Smoltz, Braves Love breaks down the Atlanta players’ reactions and has no doubts Boston will love Smoltz. Meanwhile, Talking Chop turns from disbelief into accusations of hubris. Braves Journal says, quite simply, “This is just wrong.”

Even Tom Glavine is having a hard time with the news. \Glavine grew up a Sox fan (and raised his kids as Sox fans), and would probably do just about anything to be in Smoltzie’s shoes right now.

“As his friend I’m happy for him,” said Glavine, a native of Billerica, Mass. “As a potential member of the Braves I’ll be sad not to have him in the clubhouse with me. I understand the business side of baseball. I know it’s going to be fun for him playing in Boston. I’m envious that he’ll be playing in Boston and I never got to play in Boston.”

Smoltz, meanwhile, is already slotting into Boston life just fine, thankyouverymuch. He was at the Celtics game last night at TD Banknorth – and spoke to an AP reporter about the new gig.

“It’s going to be (as) a starter,” he said when asked how the Red Sox would use him. “They’re going to make sure that I’m ready to not only pitch, but pitch strong down the stretch and into the playoffs because that’s what I like to do.”

Of course, Smoltz got a standing ovation from the home crowd when he was introduced. Welcome to Boston, John – there’s a lot more where that came from.