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These days, the euphoria of Game 4 and the celebration on the field in St. Louis make it seem like seven months ago rather than seven weeks.

As Christmas approaches, the Red Sox have lost -- or are about to lose -- 40 percent of their starting rotation, the same one which so thoroughly dominated the Cardinals to bring Boston its first world championship in 86 years.

Their youngest starter is 27, and their best starter, Curt Schilling, recently revealed that his surgically-repaired ankle is recovering slower than expected and could force him to miss the first month of 2005.

David Wells will join a Red Sox rotation that could have a few more new faces in '05.

A report Wednesday from the Boston Globe has the Red Sox landing four-time all-star shortstop Edgar Renteria, who was just on the losing end of the World Series in St. Louis, but the Sox still lack a No. 1 catcher and they have one too many first basemen for their liking -- and their budget.

Of course, there are still two full months before pitchers and catchers report, plenty of time for GM Theo Epstein to fill in the gaps. True to his nature, Epstein has been bold and creative in attempting to put together a team to defend the title.

With some reluctance, he guaranteed a third season for Pedro Martinez, only to have the ace spurn the offer for an extra season from the Mets. For the second offseason in a row, Epstein tried -- and failed -- to move the contract of Manny Ramirez.

The Sox aggressively bid on Carl Pavano and Brad Radke, only to lose out on each. They surprised a lot of people with their pursuit of Renteria. They've been unafraid to make moves, both because the market demanded it -- they had 16 players file for free agency -- and because, as Gordon Gekko might have said if he had worked on Yawkey Way instead of Wall Street: Change is good.

Epstein can operate with diplomatic immunity this winter. Never in recent history has a Red Sox executive had such cachet. The vast majority of his moves have met with great success, and when he made the career-defining gamble to deal off Nomar Garciaparra, it only brought New England its first championship since the Wilson adminstration.

For now, the unofficial motto of Red Sox Nation is: In Theo We Trust.

That said, he's got a full plate before heading to Fort Myers in mid-February. A look at the Sox's to-do list.

Starting pitching
The Martinez negotiation dragged on longer than the Red Sox would have liked, but it didn't cost them any other targets. They very nearly had an agreement with Radke before he decided to stay put, and put a full-court press on Pavano, who in the end couldn't resist Joe Torre's charm or his parents' affection for the Yankees.

	Burnett

	Clement

There's little left on the free-agent market, though they like Matt Clement and Odalis Perez -- to a degree.

A.J. Burnett intrigues them greatly, and Schilling would no doubt serve as the perfect mentor there. Tim Hudson, who would be the perfect fit, is unavailable to them.

It's likely the Sox will sign Clement as a replacement for Derek Lowe, and view their Big Four thusly: Schilling, newcomer David Wells, Clement and Wakefield, with a number of others -- including Bronson Arroyo and John Halama competing for the No. 5 spot.

Then, the Sox will closely monitor potentially available starters during the season -- a group led by Ben Sheets -- and go from there.

Catching
The Sox still believe they can re-sign Jason Varitek, though thanks to agent Scott Boras, that may take some time. Beyond the Dodgers, there aren't a lot of suitors for Varitek, and having extended themselves to four years at $36 million, the Red Sox aren't about to begin bidding against themselves.

Boras is still talking the talk about a no-trade -- which the Red Sox won't give, since it will force them to give the same clause to at least three other current players. A likely compromise is some sort of signing bonus or a slightly bigger AAV.

Shortstop
It was widely assumed the Sox were in the market for a seat-warmer for the position, someone to occupy short until phenom Hanley Ramirez arrives sometime in 2006.

But almost out of nowhere, the Sox emerged as one of the prime bidders for Renteria and they beat out the Cardinals for the two-time Gold Glove winner's services.

	Renteria

Even if they hadn't landed Renteria, they weren't going to extend a four-year deal to Orlando Cabrera, who finished the 2004 season as their shortstop following the Great Infield Makeover.

Since the Sox landed Renteria, Ramirez could develop into one of the most sought-after prospects in the game and a prime bargaining chip in their search for a front-line starter.

Sean McAdam of the Providence (R.I.) Journal covers baseball for ESPN.com.