Jason Varitek has offered the same unwavering message since he reached the big leagues with the Red Sox in 1997. By his own account, offensive numbers have always been secondary to his work with the pitching staff.

Yet in 2008, the Sox captain’s observation seemed hollow at times. Mired in the worst rut of his baseball life, a player who distinguished himself as one of the best all-around catchers of the past decade faced giant questions about his future as a productive regular.

With Varitek set to wade into free-agent waters this winter, the 36-year-old’s every slump and rebound has taken place against a backdrop of enormous scrutiny. The fact that his season has been so difficult to gauge has made it even harder to assess his future value.

Early in the season, Varitek was making a compelling case for his sustained ability to perform. Through May 21 he was hitting .295 with a .372 OBP and .519 slugging percentage, exceptional productivity for a player at his position.

But what followed over the better part of three months raised all kinds of questions about whether the ceaseless pounding of catching had caught up with him once and for all. From May 22 through August 15, Varitek had the second worst average (.158), fifth lowest OBP (.259) and second lowest slugging mark (.219) among major leaguers with at least 150 plate appearances.

If it was possible, Varitek’s at-bats looked worse than those numbers. He was striking out with alarming frequency (63 times in 196 at-bats) and became an obvious lineup liability. The Sox needed him to be more.

“You don’t just want a guy there who can catch and not bring anything offensively to the table,” said Sox third baseman Mike Lowell. “He’s an important piece for us.”

Varitek seemed mindful of that fact. More than ever before, he expressed visible frustration when making U-turns to the dugout in key situations. The Sox coaching staff observed that the slump was preying on him. 

Hitting coach Dave Magadan felt it necessary to have a conversation with the player during a mid-August visit to Baltimore. He encouraged Varitek to approach each at-bat as a blank slate, to lock his attention on every pitch rather than on previous missed opportunities.

“(Since then), he’s been great as far as that’s been concerned,” said Magadan. “It seems like every at-bat, he’s in good hitter’s counts, he’s not chasing pitches out of the zone and he’s giving himself a chance.”

The numbers reflect the notion. In 15 games since August 16, he is hitting .333 with four homers, a .419 OBP and .593 slugging mark. In so doing, he has changed the complexion of his team’s offense.

“He’s been giving us an added lift offensively,” said Sox manager Terry Francona. “I know at the end of the year his numbers aren’t going to reflect a typical Jason Varitek year. But if he hits in the last six weeks like he’s capable, we are a different lineup.”

What does it all mean, both for the rest of this season and the future?

It seems safe to suggest that Varitek’s peak productivity of 2003-05, when he hit .283 with a .369 OBP while averaging 22 homers and 76 RBIs, is a thing of the past. But his days as a productive catcher are not necessarily behind him.

His recent offensive resurgence—at a late stage of the season when he has typically struggled in the past—offers a reminder that he can still impact the game, albeit with less frequency than he did in the past.

“He’s not the hitter he was a couple of years ago. He doesn’t have the bat speed that he had a few years ago,” said one American League coach. “But he’s still someone you have to concern yourself with.”

Of course, if Varitek is not the player when he was a free agent four years ago, it is also hard to envision the Sox making him the same four-year, $40 million deal that he received after the 2004 season. With the signs of the catcher’s diminished productivity, the team has every reason to protect itself from risk, certainly by offering fewer years, and perhaps with a reduced annual value.

What that means for Varitek’s future in Boston is an open question. The catcher, who has seen the Sox flourish on his watch, understands the uncertain nature of his profession. He has seen longtime fixtures leave—whether Mo Vaughn, Pedro Martinez or Trot Nixon—and recognizes that nothing is guaranteed beyond this year.

As such, he chooses not to reflect on his struggles at the plate earlier this year, or his recent improvement in fortunes. (“If it was someone else, I’d talk about it,” he said.) Instead, he tries to savor what is left of his career in Boston, whether that is the rest of 2008 or something more.

“We play other places where it’s like crickets. You hear crickets (in the stands),” said Varitek. “I’m just very fortunate, I think, to have what I have (in Boston).

“My viewpoint is I don’t have much time here to enjoy that. I only know what I have here for this year. And I’m not going to take that for granted,” he continued. “I’m even more conscious of (appreciating) it now. I know that, as far as the livelihood of myself, I don’t know what’s going to happen (after 2008).”

How he performs over the rest of 2008 will no doubt play a role in helping to resolve that matter.

Alex Speier is a Senior Writer for WEEI.com.