People are looking to pin the blame for the Red Sox organization being a mess. Does the blame lie with players like Josh Beckett who is viewed as over-paid, under-productive and out of shape? Is it Bobby Valentine whose managerial moves at times are questionable at best and whose personality really rubs many the wrong way? Is it first year GM Ben Cherington who hasn't made enough moves to right the ship? Is it ownership who seem too distracted by new shiny things like Liverpool soccer (LFC) to see the forest through the trees? For anyone paying attention the answer is clear - all of the above!
I get into details after the break. Be sure to read it all because I really buried the lede.
Chris Lynch's slanted view on sports, politics and entertainment. Please send thoughts or comments to chris.lynch@gmail.com
Showing posts with label DeMarlo Hale. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DeMarlo Hale. Show all posts
Thursday, August 02, 2012
Monday, April 23, 2012
Top 5 - Moves I'd Make if I Owned Red Sox
Things are bad with the Boston Red Sox - that's no secret. Here's 5 moves that I'd make to try and fix things.
1. Fire Bobby Valentine. I think it is clear to pretty much everyone that Valentine is a bad fit. I would replace him with DeMarlo Hale who is currently the 3rd base coach for the Orioles. Hale knows the organization and the players. I don't think the Orioles would stand in his way to get a managing position. I'd give Hale a 2-year deal with an option which would keep the door ajar for John Farrell.
2. I'd move Daniel Bard to closer. I've been a constant advocate for Bard in the starting rotation but the situation warrants drastic action. Make Bard the closer until Andrew Bailey returns and then re-evaluate. The evaluation may say to keep Bard as closer and make Bailey the set-up guy. Or maybe Bailey comes back as closer and then Bard moves back to rotation? Right now Bard needs to take over closer role.
3. Taking Bard out of the rotation opens up the 5th starter role which I'd give to Aaron Cook who has done everything the team has asked of him. Cook is 2-0 in 3 starts for Pawtucket with a 1.35 ERA.
4. Trade or dump Vincent Padilla. I was against this signing from the start. The guy has a 9.82 ERA and is a clubhouse bomb waiting to go off. I'm not making him a scapegoat but I do want him out of the clubhouse.
5. This would he the hardest one to accomplish - trade Kevin Youkilis and bring up Will Middlebrooks who is killing the ball in AAA (7 HR in just 66 AB). Youkilis makes $12 million this year and has a $13 million option for 2013. If the Red Sox picked up half the tab they could probably swing a deal with some team in need of a 1st or 3rd baseman.
Those are the 5 moves I'd make if I was in charge of the Red Sox. So let it be written - so let it be done.
P.S. I'd also ditch once and for all Sweet Caroline. That gimmick has run its course. A love song to an 11-year old girl? Seriously - its an embarrassment.
1. Fire Bobby Valentine. I think it is clear to pretty much everyone that Valentine is a bad fit. I would replace him with DeMarlo Hale who is currently the 3rd base coach for the Orioles. Hale knows the organization and the players. I don't think the Orioles would stand in his way to get a managing position. I'd give Hale a 2-year deal with an option which would keep the door ajar for John Farrell.
2. I'd move Daniel Bard to closer. I've been a constant advocate for Bard in the starting rotation but the situation warrants drastic action. Make Bard the closer until Andrew Bailey returns and then re-evaluate. The evaluation may say to keep Bard as closer and make Bailey the set-up guy. Or maybe Bailey comes back as closer and then Bard moves back to rotation? Right now Bard needs to take over closer role.
3. Taking Bard out of the rotation opens up the 5th starter role which I'd give to Aaron Cook who has done everything the team has asked of him. Cook is 2-0 in 3 starts for Pawtucket with a 1.35 ERA.
4. Trade or dump Vincent Padilla. I was against this signing from the start. The guy has a 9.82 ERA and is a clubhouse bomb waiting to go off. I'm not making him a scapegoat but I do want him out of the clubhouse.
5. This would he the hardest one to accomplish - trade Kevin Youkilis and bring up Will Middlebrooks who is killing the ball in AAA (7 HR in just 66 AB). Youkilis makes $12 million this year and has a $13 million option for 2013. If the Red Sox picked up half the tab they could probably swing a deal with some team in need of a 1st or 3rd baseman.
Those are the 5 moves I'd make if I was in charge of the Red Sox. So let it be written - so let it be done.
P.S. I'd also ditch once and for all Sweet Caroline. That gimmick has run its course. A love song to an 11-year old girl? Seriously - its an embarrassment.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Bobby Valentine
Let me weigh in on Bobby Valentine and his recent comments about Kevin Youkilis. I have three points I'd like to make.
1. Let me first say that I don't think Valentine knew at the time that he was saying something wrong or controversial. He was not trying some motivational ploy. It was just a poor choice of words by a guy in love with the sound of his own voice.
I have never thought Valentine to be that articulate. Sure he was a big improvement over Joe Morgan on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball but that's not really that much of an accomplishment. Valentine is much closer to Chance the Gardner than Einstein no matter what his supporters would have you believe (remember Chance the Gardner's supporters thought he was smart enough to be President).
Bobby can't help being Bobby (like Manny couldn't help being Manny). He may be chastened by this accidental brouhaha for a while but with all of his media commitments (the Michael Kay show in NYC and his own weekly show on NESN just the tip of the iceberg of his need for attention) - Bobby V will strike again and again. He will make another offhand remark or try to make a joke about a player that will fall flat. He won't be able to help himself. That will be his downfall.
2. The Red Sox management are not stupid people. They knew what they were getting in Valentine. This makes me wonder if there is a bit of Machiavellian genius at work here. Is this like the book Dune where Baron Harkonnen first sends in the Beast Rabban with the idea of replacing him with the lovely Feyd Rautha (played by Sting in the 1984 movie).
The Red Sox probably looked at their candidates to replace Terry Francona and decided that none of them would make people forget the discarded Francona. There were no John Farrell's in the bunch and the closest thing - Dale Sveum - probably made it clear that he had no intention of working for the bunch that did his friend Francona so dirty.
With that in mind the Red Sox management made a 180 degree pivot to Bobby V. Knowing full well what they were getting. Let Bobby V implode and let the fans and players see what the other options look like then bring in a guy like DeMarlo Hale.
3. In the meantime Bobby V is in a position to do a lot of damage. I'm not talking about the season because almost no Red Sox fan has any hopes this year. I'm talking about him blowing out the arms of his starters on the way out the door. Daniel Bard had 111 pitches yesterday in 2nd start ever. Last year he had dead arm in September. If Bobby V keeps using him like that he might as well schedule his appointment with Dr. James Andrew right now.
1. Let me first say that I don't think Valentine knew at the time that he was saying something wrong or controversial. He was not trying some motivational ploy. It was just a poor choice of words by a guy in love with the sound of his own voice.
I have never thought Valentine to be that articulate. Sure he was a big improvement over Joe Morgan on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball but that's not really that much of an accomplishment. Valentine is much closer to Chance the Gardner than Einstein no matter what his supporters would have you believe (remember Chance the Gardner's supporters thought he was smart enough to be President).
Bobby can't help being Bobby (like Manny couldn't help being Manny). He may be chastened by this accidental brouhaha for a while but with all of his media commitments (the Michael Kay show in NYC and his own weekly show on NESN just the tip of the iceberg of his need for attention) - Bobby V will strike again and again. He will make another offhand remark or try to make a joke about a player that will fall flat. He won't be able to help himself. That will be his downfall.
2. The Red Sox management are not stupid people. They knew what they were getting in Valentine. This makes me wonder if there is a bit of Machiavellian genius at work here. Is this like the book Dune where Baron Harkonnen first sends in the Beast Rabban with the idea of replacing him with the lovely Feyd Rautha (played by Sting in the 1984 movie).
The Red Sox probably looked at their candidates to replace Terry Francona and decided that none of them would make people forget the discarded Francona. There were no John Farrell's in the bunch and the closest thing - Dale Sveum - probably made it clear that he had no intention of working for the bunch that did his friend Francona so dirty.
With that in mind the Red Sox management made a 180 degree pivot to Bobby V. Knowing full well what they were getting. Let Bobby V implode and let the fans and players see what the other options look like then bring in a guy like DeMarlo Hale.
3. In the meantime Bobby V is in a position to do a lot of damage. I'm not talking about the season because almost no Red Sox fan has any hopes this year. I'm talking about him blowing out the arms of his starters on the way out the door. Daniel Bard had 111 pitches yesterday in 2nd start ever. Last year he had dead arm in September. If Bobby V keeps using him like that he might as well schedule his appointment with Dr. James Andrew right now.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)