There were just a few days of the 2010 season left when Mike Cameron sat in front of his locker at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, addressing his future.

Cameron explained a lot. He said that any decision to retire following the 2011 season would depend solely on how his second season with the Red Sox transpired. The 37-year-old then talked about how after suffering a severe eye injury in 2005 "all of these games have been a bonus." The outfielder also insisted that surgery on his sports hernia would result in a new-and-improved player heading into '11.

"I'm still going to be able to play, that's for sure," Cameron relayed.

Then came the talk of the "what ifs." More specifically, the scenario of bringing in a high-priced, free agent outfielder was presented. Cameron's tone changed, and so did the level of his resolve.

"I'm in a good spot, man. I'm in a good spot," he said. "Regardless. I'm going to be good next year. That's not a concern of mine. They're paying me to play well here and try and be productive. I don't know what I hit against lefties, but I know I hit pretty damn good. I don't know how it's going to turn out, but I know it's going to be for the best."

The way it's shaping up, the Red Sox are going to need Cameron's best. This was a reality brought even further to the surface the minute Victor Martinez packed his things and headed off to Detroit.

Cameron's playing time could, indeed, be cut with the acquisition of a Jayson Werth or Carl Crawford, the emergence of a Ryan Kalish and the continued presence of a Jacoby Ellsbury. But with the departure of Martinez, and the uneasiness of David Ortiz and J.D. Drew hitting against left-handers, the veteran outfielder's importance might be greater than anybody could have ever imagined.

Just moments after uttering the words, "I don't know what I hit against lefties …" Cameron took a few minutes to look up the actual numbers. He was on to something: In 48 plate appearances, he hit .357 vs. southpaws. The way the Red Sox' roster is shaping up, this small sample size might be one of the more important numbers when seeking out optimism for the Sox.

Here are the facts:

- The Red Sox have two middle-of-the-order hitters in Ortiz and Drew who struggled mightily against lefties last season, with the DH hitting .222, and Drew coming in at .208. 

- The American League East's best pitchers are primarily left-handers, with CC Sabathia (Yankees), Ricky Romero (Blue Jays), Brian Matusz (Orioles), and David Price (Rays) all residing atop their respective rotations. It's a group that might get even deeper with the possibility of New York acquiring Cliff Lee.

- The Red Sox outfield has the potential to be very left-handed, especially if Crawford is inked by the Sox. Left-handed swinging Ryan Kalish, Drew and Ellsbury are already in the mix. The right-handed-hitting Werth would help the dynamic, although he actually hit better against righties (.300) than lefties (.287) last season. (Werth is also a combined 5-for-21 against the aforementioned AL East lefty aces.)

- A big chunk of the Red Sox' success against left-handers has left town in the form of Martinez. As WEEI.com's statistician Gary Marbry points out, because of the switch-hitting catcher and Kevin Youkilis, the Sox were just the fifth team since 1974 with multiple players with an OPS over 1.100 against lefties. It also marked the first time in that time span a team has had two players hit .400 or better against left-handers.

- The Red Sox could be losing yet another meat-of-the-order hitter who fared well against lefties in free agent third baseman Adrian Beltre (.328).

The takeaway is that with the regulars left in the Red Sox' order, and the ones being plucked out, the Sox are a team that will need all the help they can get in a decidedly lefty-slanted division. That's where Cameron comes in.

Depending on the improvement of Ortiz and/or Drew against lefties, Cameron could be finding at-bats in both positions. And with the fail-safe presence that Martinez represented against southpaws, even resurgent seasons from the DH and right fielder might have the Red Sox seeking effective bats against left-handers at every turn.

An example of what the Red Sox might be up against without the presence of Martinez in the lineup came during his 20-game absence in the middle of last season. During that stretch, the Sox hit .252 against lefties, but where the lineup's deficiencies really showed up was against some of the kind of top-notch lefty starters Terry Francona's team figures to be seeing more and more.

There was the July 4 loss to the Orioles in which Matusz allowed no runs on just two hits over seven innings. 

A few days later Price gave up just a pair of runs over 7 2/3 innings in a Tampa Bay win over the Sox.

The stretch also included C.J. Wilson's 6 2/3-inning gem in which the lefty surrendered just a single earned run. The Red Sox also struggled with Oakland lefty Gio Gonzalez through six innings.

And tucked away within those four outings was another reminder regarding Martinez' importance, coming in the form of Ortiz and Drew going a combined 2-for-24.

There is no way around it: Martinez' bat will be missed. A case could be made for the Red Sox' reluctance to pay more than $12 million a season to a player whom they figured would be a designated hitter for much of his contract, perhaps even as soon as the 2012 season. But, despite the position, it is still difficult to ignore the importance of the catcher, especially in the AL East.

Know this: Against the group of Price, Matusz, Romero, and Sabathia, Martinez has a combined batting average of .367 for his career, having gone 7-for-14 against the Tampa Bay ace, and 5-for-11 vs. Baltimore's top starter.

This, again, leads us to the importance of Cameron.

Even though it is a much smaller sample size due to the outfielder spending a good chunk of his recent years in the National League, Cameron has had good success against the collection of aces. He is 3-for-3 against Price, 0-for-1 vs. Matusz, 1-for-1 facing Romero and, most impressively, 7-for-14 when facing off with his friend Sabathia.

He doesn't figure to be part of the entire solution (potentially taking out two weapons against left-handers like Martinez and Beltre doesn't usually lead to palatable answers), but Cameron could very well be a surprisingly important part of the Sox' equation.

"I'm looking forward to going to next year, playing very well, and seeing if we can make up some of the ground against some of these really good teams," he said. 

If they do, it might be in large part due to the outfielder many thought this offseason might leave behind.