It’s hard not to wonder what’s next.

Over the weekend, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington sent Marco Scutaro to Colorado for Clayton Mortenson, a 26-year old righthander who has yet to find any consistent success at the major league level.

Mortenson, a former first-round pick, has a career mark of 4-8 with a 5.12 ERA.

Scutaro was one of the few Red Sox players who played hard, and well, to the bitter end last season.

He hit .299, including .387 in a September in which he posted an OPS (on base + slugging percentage) of 1.019 while the team lost 20 of 27 games.

Mortenson will battle for a spot in the rotation, but it’s hard to imagine this deal was done to add pitching depth.

This deal is all about addition by subtraction – the Sox getting rid of Scutaro’s $6 million salary for 2012. The team has made it clear it won’t add much to a payroll that has already gone beyond the luxury tax threshold.

That should free up money for Cherington to spend in other areas. Specifically, he should be able to add a more established starting pitcher to the mix.

Reports say Roy Oswalt could be had for something in the area of one-year, $8 million. Oswalt would be a strong addition in the middle of the Sox rotation, and would be a good response after the Yankees added Michael Pineda and Hiroki Kuroda to their starting rotation last week

It would also make the bullpen better. Mortenson and Alfredo Aceves would then join Mark Melancon and Andrew Bailey as a late-inning relief options, giving Bobby Valentine another legitimate choice in tight games.

But what happens at short? Are the Sox really ready to go a full season with a platoon of Mike Aviles and Nick Punto?

There aren’t many options left on the free-agent market, unless you think Miguel Tejada is ready to rediscover the fountain of youth.

A year ago, we thought the Jose Iglesias era was ready to begin, but his progress was delayed by a 2010 injury while playing in Portland.

Last year, Iglesias hit .235 at the Triple-A level. He got his first taste of the big time when he was called up to Boston and appeared in 10 games, but everyone seems to agree he’d be better served by playing every day in the minors to start the season.

But the Sox may not have that luxury. Iglesias is an elite defensive prospect. Punto and Aviles have limited range.

As NESN’s Peter Gammons pointed out over the weekend, those range issues will be magnified on the left side of the infield with the recovering Kevin Youkilis at third.

The Sox may need to speed up the clock on Iglesias and sacrifice offense for his defensive ability. Iglesias would bat at the bottom of the order, but his glove could make the pitching staff better.

To make sense of this trade, ask yourself: are the Sox a better team with Aceves in the rotation and Scutaro at short, or with an Oswalt-type pitcher starting games and Aviles and Punto platooning?

The latter is a better blueprint for success, if only because it will be easier to find a serviceable infielder along the way than it would be to find an experienced starter with the potential of starting 25 or more games.

The Sox seemed destined to let Daniel Bard and Aceves join Andrew Miller, Vincente Padilla, and Carlos Silva in a “pitch off” for the final spot in the rotation.

The trouble is not one of them has thrown 150 innings in the majors the past three seasons.

Neither has Mortenson, but it’s hard to imagine this deal was done solely to bring him into the fold.

There needs to be another deal in the works. Oswalt would make the most sense, but Cherington might use that money instead to add outfielders Cody Ross or Ryan Spilborghs.

Either way, this deal wasn’t about Mortenson.

In the end, he may help the Sox … but having a little money to spend before spring training starts should help this team even more.

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.