NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- So, what kind of room remains in the Red Sox budget? How much of the team’s vaunted, newfound flexibility has been depleted in pursuit of Shane Victorino and Mike Napoli and Jonny Gomes and David Ross?

To answer that, one need only consider what the Red Sox still have budgetary room to do, at least in theory. Given the current commitments, the team could pursue virtually any option in baseball without scraping the luxury tax threshold, including the likes of Cliff Lee (should he become available) or Josh Hamilton (should he not sign with the Rangers).

No doubt, the Red Sox have been among the most aggressive teams to date this offseason, signing Mike Napoli and Shane Victorino for deals of three years and $39 million each, Jonny Gomes to a two-year, $10 million deal and David Ross to a two-year, $6.2 million pact.

They haven't been signing players at discount rates. They've been outbidding other teams for free agents.

Yet the team has remained true thus far to its desire for contracts that don’t tie their hands into the distant future and that preserve considerable payroll flexibility to address roster needs for the short- and long-term.

The deals -- particularly those for Victorino and Napoli -- have been expensive. But the fact that none of the deals has gone beyond three years limits their risk. The fact that none of the deals will count for as much as 10 percent of the permitted salary against the luxury tax threshold also means that the team isn't throwing any icebergs into the middle of its payroll -- all of the deals are ones that can fit well with a number of other pieces.

Whereas the Sox found themselves pinned against the ceiling of their payroll throughout the 2012 season (prior to the deal with the Dodgers), that's not the case even with the four signings to date.

The Sox have addressed the majority of their needs. The lineup has been built, with the team missing just a backup first baseman with some positional versatility (Eric Chavez would fit, though the Yankees may be more motivated to re-sign him given Alex Rodriguez’s injury).

But now, with the team still in need of a starting pitcher, it can afford to aim high in dollars so long as a contract doesn’t represent an over-commitment in terms of years.

Here's the shape of the Red Sox payroll (as measured by average annual value) for the next three years:

2013: The Sox still need a starting pitcher and a bench addition or two. With aggressive estimates for what arbitration raises will cost the Sox, the team would still have roughly $40 million to spend on its 2013 roster without hitting the luxury tax.

Guaranteed deals

John Lackey, $16.5 million
David Ortiz, $13 million
Mike Napoli, $13 million
Shane Victorino, $13 million
Clay Buchholz, $7.4 million
Dustin Pedroia, $6.80 million
Jon Lester, $6 million
Jonny Gomes, $5 million
David Ross, $3.1 million
Jose Iglesias, $2.1 million

TOTAL GUARANTEED: APPROX $86 MILLION

Arbitration eligible

Jacoby Ellsbury
Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Andrew Bailey
Alfredo Aceves
Craig Breslow
Andrew Miller
Daniel Bard
Franklin Morales

PROJECTED TOTAL: APPROXIMATELY $30 MILLION-$35 MILLION

Pre-arbitration eligible

Junichi Tazawa
Mark Melancon
Felix Doubront
Ryan Kalish
Daniel Nava
Will Middlebrooks
Clayton Mortensen
Pedro Ciriaco

PROJECTED TOTAL: APPROXIMATELY $5 MILLION

Additional expenses

Medical, 40-man roster, etc.

APPROXIMATELY $12 MILLION

ESTIMATED 2013 TOTAL COMMITMENTS: $138 MILLION (AS MEASURED FOR LUXURY TAX PURPOSES)

That still leaves more than $40 million for the Red So to spend without reaching the luxury tax threshold. If the team trades the arbitration-eligible Jacoby Ellsbury, then that freedom would grow to something more like $50 million.

That, in turn, means the Sox can still consider anyone on the market. In the unlikely event, for instance, that Anibal Sanchez might be open to a four-year deal, the Sox could outbid anyone for him. If a starter loses the game of musical chairs and is left to look for the best one-year deal at the end of the winter, the Sox can outbid anyone. Indeed, the Sox could still add a starter and, if he’s available on a one-year deal, someone like Stephen Drew without reaching the luxury tax threshold.

Moreover, the team has yet to give up any prospects or sacrifice any draft picks this offseason. All of that underscores the notion that, to date, the Sox haven’t done anything to impede any other moves they want to make.

2014: Assuming that Lester remains with the Sox for the life of his contract (which includes an option for 2014), the team's guarantees for 2014 are actually greater than they are for 2013, since his AAV will go up in his option year.

However, the Sox will also have a higher luxury tax threshold under which to attempt to limbo. Moreover, with Ellsbury and Saltalamacchia likely to be gone as free agents (if they haven't been traded earlier), the Sox expect to have less expensive alternatives in the form of Jackie Bradley Jr. and Ryan Lavarnway.

The team could also save money in its bullpen, given that Alex Wilson should be big league ready no later than the start of 2014. So, the ultimate projection remains something of a guess, but the Sox have a ton of minor leaguers who should be ready to give the Sox even more financial flexibility.

With the likes of Allen Webster, Rubby De La Rosa, Matt Barnes, Bryce Brentz, Drake Britton, Brandon Workman, Wilson, Xander Bogaerts, Bradley and Lavarnway, the team can cut considerably from this projected payroll, thus freeing it to pursue some big ticket items for a season when the luxury tax threshold will bump up to $189 million.

Indeed, based on this rough approximation, the team could have as much as $50 million with which to play to address any emergent needs while still remaining under the luxury tax threshold.

A projected lineup, barring additions through trades, would look something like: C - Lavarnway/Ross 1B - Napoli 2B - Pedroia 3B - Middlebrooks SS - Iglesias/Bogaerts LF - Kalish/Gomes/Nava/Brentz CF - Bradley RF - Victorino/Kalish/Brentz DH - Ortiz

Projected rotation: Lester, Buchholz, Doubront, Lackey, De La Rosa/Webster/Barnes/Workman

Guaranteed deals

John Lackey, $16.5 million
David Ortiz, $13 million
Mike Napoli, $13 million
Jon Lester, $13 million (option)
Shane Victorino, $13 million
Clay Buchholz, $7.4 million
Dustin Pedroia, $6.8 million
Jonny Gomes, $5 million
David Ross, $3.1 million

TOTAL GUARANTEED: APPROXIMATELY $91 MILLION

Arbitration eligible

Andrew Bailey
Alfredo Aceves
Andrew Miller
Daniel Bard
Franklin Morales
Junichi Tazawa
Felix Doubront
Mark Melancon

PROJECTED TOTAL: VERY ROUGH APPROXIMATION OF $25 MILLION-$30 MILLION

Pre-arbitration eligible

Jose Iglesias (he can have a salary reduction of no more than 20 percent)
Will Middlebrooks
Clayton Mortensen
Pedro Ciriaco
Jackie Bradley Jr.
Ryan Lavarnway
Ryan Kalish/Daniel Nava/Bryce Brentz

PROJECTED TOTAL: APPROXIMATELY $5 MILLION

Additional expenses

Medical, 40-man roster, etc.

APPROXIMATELY $12 MILLION

ESTIMATED 2013 TOTAL COMMITMENTS: $138 MILLION (WITH THE ABILITY TO PUSH THAT NUMBER DOWN THROUGH TRADES)

Clearly, the shape of the team will evolve in the intervening year, but the team should have the payroll space to accommodate whatever needs emerge. Again, even if the Sox make an expensive commitment this offseason -- let’s say for $20 million a year over multiple seasons -- there would still be an additional $30 million or so that the team could play with for its 2014 roster, and that’s without the potential added flexibility of dealing bullpen pieces like Bailey and Aceves.

2015: The Sox will have a considerable amount of guaranteed money coming off the books in 2015. Jon Lester, David Ortiz and Jonny Gomes are all eligible for free agency by then. Meanwhile, in theory, if he remains on the roster, John Lackey will be on the payroll for the major league minimum. And the Sox will hope that many of the aforementioned prospects will be in play, with others (such as Travis Shaw, perhaps) also matriculating to the big league roster.

The roster for 2015 is so speculative that it's not worth detailing who might be arbitration eligible by then. The important thing, from the Sox' perspective, is that the team has few financial commitments that would prevent it from doing anything.

A projected lineup would look something like: C - Lavarnway/Vazquez 1B - Shaw 2B - Pedroia 3B - Middlebrooks SS - Iglesias/Bogaerts LF - Kalish/Nava/Brentz CF - Bradley RF - Victorino/Kalish/Brentz DH - Napoli

Projected rotation: Buchholz, Doubront, Lackey, 2 from the group of De La Rosa/Webster/Barnes/Workman/Ranaudo/Britton

Guaranteed deals

John Lackey, $0.5 million
Mike Napoli, $13 million
Shane Victorino, $13 million
Clay Buchholz, $7.4 million
Dustin Pedroia, $11 million (option)

TOTAL GUARANTEED: APPROXIMATELY $45 MILLION

Even with the three-year deals for Napoli and Victorino, the team’s current commitments for 2015 are less than half of what they are for 2014. That underscores the idea that, while both of those free agents were expensive, they have done virtually nothing to limit what the team might be able to do in the forthcoming seasons. If the Sox see the right player available for the right contract length, even at $20 million or more a year, they can still pursue that player without erasing their ability to address other needs going forward.

One last thought: The Sox don’t have any contract guarantees to players beyond the 2015 season. Only Clay Buchholz, on whom the Sox have $13 million options for both 2016 and 2017, has a contract that extends more than three years from now.