The Red Sox, whooping it up after winning the World Series Sunday night, have been built to last. Said GM Theo Epstein: “Our goal is to build an organization that can sustain success, and we think we have the foundation to achieve that now.”

>

The Providence Journal / Bob Breidenbach

DENVER — In some ways, the Red Sox’ championship that was clinched just after midnight Sunday was eerily similar to the one the Sox won in 2004, ending the franchise’s 86-year-long drought.

Both times, the Red Sox swept through the ALDS against the A.L. West champion.

Both times, the Red Sox fell behind in the ALCS and had to win a string of potential elimination games to capture the pennant.

And both times, the Red Sox summarily dispatched the National League champion with little effort.

But in the aftermath, the similarities end. These Red Sox are in far better shape than their 2004 counterparts and better positioned to return to the World Series sooner.

“It will be different,” general manager Theo Epstein said. “Our goal is to build an organization that can sustain success and we think we have the foundation to achieve that now.”

The 2004 squad, which was built on its starting pitching, lost one-half of its postseason rotation in the weeks that followed their victory parade. Derek Lowe signed a four-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Pedro Martinez accepted a long-term pact with the New York Mets.

Additionally, the team’s best pitching holdover, Curt Schilling, who had won three postseason starts, the last two on a surgically repaired ankle, required more extensive surgery that winter. He would never be fully healthy in 2005, crippling the team’s chances to repeat.

In start contrast, these Red Sox may have enough starting pitching to allow them to pass on re-signing Schilling, soon to turn 41. Looking ahead to 2008, the Red Sox can count on a rotation headed by Josh Beckett (20 regular-season wins, topped for an additional four in the postseason), Daisuke Matsuzaka, Jon Lester, Tim Wakefield and wunderkind Clay Buchholz.

The Sox might welcome Schilling back — at a more affordable base salary than the $13 million he requested last spring. But if they can’t reach an agreement, the Sox staff would be younger and less expensive.

These Red Sox also boast a more established nucleus. Three-quarters of the starting infield — shortstop Julio Lugo, second baseman Dustin Pedroia and first baseman Kevin Youkilis — remain under the team’s control.

Lugo has three years left on his deal while Pedroia has just a year of major-league service time. Youkilis will be eligible for salary arbitration, and thus, a hefty increase in pay, but won’t be eligible for free agency until after the 2010 season.

In the outfield, J.D. Drew is, for better of worse, signed for four more years. Jacoby Ellsbury, expected to take over full-time duty in center from Coco Crisp, has less than two months service time. Even Manny Ramirez has another year remaining on his landmark eight-year deal, with two more option years available if the Sox so choose.

Only Mike Lowell — free agent-eligible — and catcher Jason Varitek — entering the final year of his four-year extension, signed two months after the 2004 championship was won — represent potential positional holes.

Contrast that to 2004, when the Sox would soon turn over at all four infield positions. The double-play combination of Orlando Cabrera and Mark Bellhorn was broken up when neither returned for 2005, while corner infield fixtures Bill Mueller and Kevin Millar would spend their final seasons with the club in 2005 before moving on.

Leadoff man Johnny Damon would similarly leave after one more season, while Trot Nixon would see his playing time dwindle before exiting as a free agent after the disastrous 2006 season.

Part of the appeal of 2007 Sox was the organization’s ability to introduce younger players to the mix — Pedroia, Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Buchholz — while winning. It’s a balancing act — rebuilding while remaining competitive — that Epstein labeled “the hardest thing to do in baseball.”

The offseason will not be without its challenges. Aside from a decision on Schilling, whose four-year stay here was bookended by two titles, the Sox must make a determination on Lowell.

If Lowell gets a four-year offer in a depressed free-agent market, the Sox almost certainly won’t match it. If, however, Lowell would be willing to accept a three-year deal, chances are a deal could be worked out to retain the World Series MVP.

The announcement Sunday night that Alex Rodriguez had decided to opt-out of his deal with the New York Yankees will not affect the Sox much. The team would be hesitant to commit such a huge portion of its payroll to any one player, to say nothing of the clubhouse chemistry that could be significantly altered by A-Rod’s signing.

Red Sox owners, ever mindful of a public-relations fallout, had to hear the comical chant of “Don’t Sign A-Rod,” uttered by the few thousand fans who remained and watched the team celebrate its victory here late Sunday night.

Moreover, for a team that led its division from nearly the start, tied for the most number of regular-season wins in baseball and swept through the postseason with only one challenging series, there isn’t much need for retooling the roster.

“Our farm system is much more developed now,” said Epstein, “and we have some established young players than can be part of the nucleus for years to come.”

In a sport where change is constant and unavoidable, it’s a measure of how well-positioned the Sox are that they don’t need much of an overhaul.

After all: Why mess with success?

smcadam@projo.com