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Tom Caron: With camp about to begin, here are four 'X Factors'

By TOM CARON

BOSTON — On Sunday, Red Sox pitchers and catchers will officially report for duty in Ft. Myers, Fla.

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Clay Buchholz looked like he was on his way to becoming an ace after winning 17 games in 2010. Now he needs to bounce back from an injury-wracked 2011 that saw him win just six games.

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It will be the start of Camp Valentine, the first steps forward for a group of players trying to put an epic collapse behind them.

There are plenty of storylines to keep an eye on in these early days of Florida sun.

How Josh Beckett handles the inquisition of fans and media, how Bobby Valentine creates a culture of accountability in the clubhouse, and how the new relievers handle the pressure of late-inning appearances in the AL East are just a few developments to watch.

That said, there are four players who could be the keys to how the Sox fare in 2012. They are Boston's "X Factors," the players who will need to succeed if the team is to succeed this summer.

1. CLAY BUCHHOLZ: Two seasons ago, he went 17-7 and had a shockingly low 2.33 ERA. He had joined Beckett and Jon Lester as the team's "Big Three," a cornerstone in a rotation that took pressure of both John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Last year, Buchholz won just six games as he battled injuries and didn't start again after June 16. The Red Sox paid dearly for their reliance on Lackey, and Matsuzaka ultimately had season-ending elbow surgery, and the team was looking for help from Eric Bedard and Tim Wakefield down the stretch.

Buchholz is healthy, but he's still only 27 years old. Is he ready to blossom into a No. 1 or No. 2 pitcher? Is it fair to expect him to pitch like he did in 2010?

If yes, this rotation is still good enough to compete for a playoff berth this year. If not, the Sox will have a very hard time keeping up with the Yankees and Rays this summer.

2. DANIEL BARD: For the past three seasons he was one of Boston's most important pitchers, the eighth-inning setup man who provided the bridge to an All-Star closer.

Now Bard's a starter, getting ready to join a rotation for the first time since 2007. That year, he was pitching in the low minors, going 3-7 and posting a 7.08 combined ERA with two different Class A teams. He is older, he's more mature, and he thinks he'll be able to use more of his arsenal over more innings.

He'd better use them wisely. Unless Roy Oswalt has an 11th-hour change of heart, the Red Sox will be relying on Bard for quality starts and 150 or more innings. He might be able to handle the new workload.

Or he might not. He doesn't need to be a 20-game winner to be a success this year, but he'll need to stay healthy and give the Sox six or more innings on a fairly regular basis.

3. KEVIN YOUKILIS: Youkilis spent the offseason on the West Coast improving his strength and conditioning. He's the most potent right-handed bat in the lefty-heavy Sox lineup and needs to prove he can stay on the field. He hasn't appeared in 145 games for the Sox in a season since 2008, and has missed 128 games over the last three years.

At this time last year, everyone agreed Adrian Gonzalez was a great addition to Boston's lineup. The only issue with the new first baseman was that he forced Youkilis to third. Youk has always claimed it was his natural position, but there is more wear and tear over the long haul at the hot corner. Youkilis needs to handle that and once again become a feared cleanup hitter, the guy who hit better than .300 in five of the six seasons leading up to last year's injury-plagued .258 summer.

4. CARL CRAWFORD: This one's obvious. It might've been the pressure of a big contract in a big market, or it might've been the injured wrist. Whatever the case, Crawford was one of the team's biggest disappointments in 2011. Crawford might not be ready to start the season after undergoing surgery on the wrist, but once he does he'll need to return to the form he showed while appearing in four All-Star games with Tampa Bay.

The Red Sox didn't add much to their offense or their starting rotation this offseason. The rest of the division made significant changes since last fall. Other teams around the league got stronger.

If Buchholz, Bard, Youkilis and Crawford stay healthy and bounce back this season, this team will compete with the best of them.

If not, it could be a long summer in Boston.

Tom Caron is the studio host for Red Sox broadcasts on the New England Sports Network. His column appears in the Press Herald on Tuesdays.