Wrapping Up the Season (and Playoffs)
by 0157H7 on Oct 20, 2008 11:55 PM EDT
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PrintIt's amazing. Barely a day after the Sox lost in the ALCS, we have dived into the offseason speculation. Part of the reason is that both the trade and free agent markets are much more interesting than in 2008. Another reason is that the 08 Red Sox have more evident flaws than the 07 squad. There are two things I want to discuss before sending off this fair season.
First, check out the pre-season predictions some of us made over here. As usual with such things, they mostly turned out wrong. For example, this wacko thought the Red Sox would miss October, and the Yankees would win the division. What a maroon. Although he did note the Rays were good, and might surpass the Sox.
I also wanted to briefly address our performance in the ALCS. The Rays were unquestionably the better team. With Ortiz injured, Lowell out, and with bench players (hello Mark Kotsay, Alex Cora) filling the starting lineup, our team was lucky to get to game 7. There's no shame in losing to a team that's clearly better than you are. Just ask the Angels. But one thing stands out to me.
ALCS Game 2. Josh Beckett has been rocked for five runs, and yet the offense has given him a 6-5 lead going into the bottom of the fifth. Terry Francona does which of the following things?
A. Rolls barrels of gasoline into the bullpen so they can "warm up."
B. Calls over the umpire and concedes the game, then calls his bookie.
C. Leaves in a struggling Josh Beckett who has been absolutely shelled.
D. Makes a sound and reasonable managerial decision.
Alright. No. 2 Pencils down. The answer is C. Despite Beckett's evident inconsistency, his diminished velocity, and his proclivity for leaving pitches up in the zone, Tito allowed him to remain in the game. And not just until he allowed them to tie. Oh no. He had to give him the opportunity to give the Rays the lead. Going to the bullpen earlier might not have changed the outcome, but Francona had to take that chance.
Thankfully, the 2008 playoffs were not without some success for our team. We got to knock off one of the most overrated teams in the history of baseball. I think I can still hear the cries of lamentation all the way from the West Coast.
And now, presenting the Offseason PRIMER...
...
For Spelling!!
1. Mark T-E-I-X-E-I-R-A ("E's before I's"!). Hint: Just call him Tex. Everyone will know who you're talking about.
2. Jason V-A-R-I-T-E-K. (If you can't properly spell this guy's name, you're a bad fan. Although, hopefully it'll be some other fan's problem by March of next year.)
That is all. My 5-Month Plan for 2009 Dominance will be coming shortly.
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I had two-thirds right
I predicted 1 – Toronto; 2 – Boston; 3 – New York. I am somewhat proud I correctly predicted the Yanks third, which also won me $25 from the guy down the street, but I have to admit, I never figured the Rays in the equation. That same Yankee fan down the street says the Rays are a fluke and will finish fourth next year. I doubt that.
I agree with your comments about the second game of his last series. To me, that was the killer. To score all those runs and not win – and by doing so, not go up 2-0 in the series – cost us.
One of Terry Francona’s downfalls is he goes too long with his vets. He’s not alone; most managers do the same. For a prime example, I saw the same thing in St. Louis when Tony LaRussa kept going with Isringhausen as his closer, despite blown save-after blown save and an injured, washed-up player.
When you are a “family” and just about live with these guys for eight months, and a player has done well for years for you, it is very difficult, obviously, to bench that veteran, even if the team will benefit!! I suspect Tito will go too long with Ortiz and Lowell in the coming years and I really hope that’s not the case this winter with Varitek.
They all say pro sports is a “business,” and it is…….but too often coaches & GMs are not objective about when a player has lost productivity to the point he’s hurting the team and should be replaced, either in a game or on the team.
It's Theo's job
To remove sentimental favorites from Tito’s roster if they can’t contribute.
"You know you're having a bad day when the fifth inning rolls around and they drag the warning track." - Mike Flanagan, Baltimore Orioles pitcher, 1992.
The Red Sox are the greatest team in history. Period.
I remember briefly logging in to RedSox.com back in late May as Dice-K took the mound in his native Japan for the season opener against the A’s. Before he’d even thrown out the first pitch, I knew what I wanted out of this team in 2008—a trip to the Post Season, no more, no less, and my prediction, as voted in a poll on the website, mirrored my expectations. And guess what? Even though they’re packing their bags and getting ready to head home to Boston and a cold winter without the warmth of a World Series trophy, they have succeeded yet again surpassing my expectations and providing those of us who are truly faithful fans with an exciting and immensely enjoyable post season run. The only means by which bitterness could have crept into my love for the Red Sox with their “early” exit this year is if it had been at the hands of the fucking Yanks. Instead, we lost a seven game ALCS by the skin of our teeth to an exceedingly talented and determined young team that has made the miraculous climb from division cellar dwellers American League victors. In this post season, the baseball was outstanding, the passion from fans of all teams unparalleled and the Red Sox, well, they were just terrific and worthy of being the greatest team of all time.
Forever Red Sox, screw all those pink-hatted babes, 'got no family, 'got no friends, 'got no life--RED SOX I LIVE FOR THIS.
+1
I agree with every word you just said. I don’t see how any Sox fan can be upset with this season. Our team showed a lot of heart, despite injuries, distractions (cough RAMIREZ), etc. We owned the Angels (best record in baseball) in the ALDS as we always did, and played a very dramatic and exciting series against a great Rays team. 2008=great. Spring training can’t come soon enough.
On ALCS Game 2...
0157H1, though your article was well written and a provided an interesting read, as always, I strongly disagree with one of the points you made. Terry Francona is no Grady Little, and you know damn well know that.
Granted, Francona’s apparent misjudgment in Game 2 might have cost us the series in the long run—but don’t any of you Red Sox fans suffering post-season depression forget that he also guided this team from down seven runs in an elimination game to force a seven game series. Not just this year. He has done so three, I repeat THREE, times in the past five years, a feat no manager in the history of baseball has succeeded in doing.
Forever Red Sox, screw all those pink-hatted babes, 'got no family, 'got no friends, 'got no life--RED SOX I LIVE FOR THIS.
Of course Terry is no Grady Little.
His management in the 07 playoffs was great, which makes what happened in Game 2 all the more irritating. Granted, the 08 squad was worse, with a weaker bench and bullpen, so it’s harder to make good decisions if the replacements (PH, relievers) fail anyway.
Tito managed ALCS game 5 better – going to Papelbon with his back to the wall. I would’ve liked to have seen that sort of urgency in game 2. The Rays were a really good team, and with a hurt Red Sox, we needed to aggressively go to the pen when the starter is failing.
"It's just a tiny little nick, but it hurts when I get champagne in there."
- Jason Bay, on getting spiked scoring the winning run in ALDS Game Four.
Grammatical Correction
My opening sentence should read: “…and provided an interesting read, as always (PERIOD). However, I strongly disagree…”. I didn’t mean I always strongly disagree with what your write.
Forever Red Sox, screw all those pink-hatted babes, 'got no family, 'got no friends, 'got no life--RED SOX I LIVE FOR THIS.
by RedSoxUltras on Oct 21, 2008 12:19 PM EDT up reply actions
Do I detect a desire to rid this team of Veritek, oops, I mean Varitek?
The one man on this lineup besides Tim Wakefield to stick with the Sox through thick and thin for his entire playing career to date? The one man truly deserved of the title of Team Captain who steered a myriad of pitchers through some of the tightest post season spots in recent memory?
Anybody who wants to see the back of El Capitan is a bad fan in my opinion. What kind of a fan base are we? Do we just thumb our noses at the guys who gave us two World Series Championship simply because they failed to accomplish our overly greedy desire for a repeat? I sincerely hope that is not the case, because that would mean we have become Yankee fans, indeed.
Forever Red Sox, screw all those pink-hatted babes, 'got no family, 'got no friends, 'got no life--RED SOX I LIVE FOR THIS.
Losing 'Tek will be painful
but it will happen eventually. Everyone retires in baseball. Tek has given us the best years of his life, and he will be beloved in Boston for decades. He might even come back as a manager or pitching coach after this playing career concludes. He’s spent over 11 years in the Sox organization, and I have little doubt that the owners, when Tek leaves, will treat him with the utmost respect.
Sadly, from a tactical standpoint, I don’t think the Red Sox can carry Tek for much longer. We need to start priming his replacement next year. Tek’s stats since 2005:
Year AVG OBP SLG HR
2006 .238 .325 .400 12
2007 .255 .367 .421 17
2008 .220 .313 .359 13
What can we expect in 2009, when Tek is 37? Probably a line closer to the 06 or 08 numbers than 07. Maybe worse. As a hitter, Varitek isn’t making enough contact or drawing enough walks to justify his presence in our lineup. If we dominated the division that would be fine. But the Rays are looking like a far better team for 2009. In order to compete both next year and in the future, we need to upgrade at catcher.
I’d be fine with the Sox offering Tek a role as the backup catcher / mentor to his replacement (1-year contract, $4 million). I’d expect him to want to play full-time though. We’ll see.
"It's just a tiny little nick, but it hurts when I get champagne in there."
- Jason Bay, on getting spiked scoring the winning run in ALDS Game Four.
Good Point.
If Tek retires and/or is shipped out in a respectful manner I could put up with losing him.
Who would serve as our next catcher though? A Canadian of Greek origin comes to mind, George Kotaras, but I’ve never actually seen him play. Other than him and Mirabelli, I profess to never really having been with acquainted with the Red Sox back up catchers, probably for the very reason I have so much faith in V-Tek—the Captain has been behind the plate virtually every game the Red Sox have played in recent years.
Forever Red Sox, screw all those pink-hatted babes, 'got no family, 'got no friends, 'got no life--RED SOX I LIVE FOR THIS.
by RedSoxUltras on Oct 21, 2008 12:28 PM EDT up reply actions
Heck, the Sox can be generous
I’d even be willing to give Tek 1 year/$6M for a backup role. That’s more than he’s worth as a player, but he’d also be a sort of coach to the new starting catcher.
But we need a catcher, and I don’t think there’s anyone on the free agent market or in the organization who could do it.
Signing Tek
If we sign Varitek, his contract will be something in the range of 2 years, $7million per. No joke. Money isn’t really an issue for the Sox. Obviously Tek’s bat is worth about $1 million tops, but there is no other catcher on the FA market who can just walk into boston and handle the pitching staff the way he did.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Sign him for two years, and trade for a young catcher using Crisp, and one or more prospects. They’ll split the games about 50-50 and Tek can show the kid the ropes.
A Quick Note to 0157H7
I’d just like to add that I’m not accusing you of being a bad fan in any way, nor anybody else on this site. Anything I say is meant purely within the contest of baseball and is not a personal attack, though I admit to being wary of what you must admit is an influx of pink-hatted bandwagon’ers into the Red Sox fan base. I certainly enjoy reading your posts and do not mean to belittle your obviously knowledgeable opinions about baseball, no matter how hard hitting my comments might seem.
Forever Red Sox, screw all those pink-hatted babes, 'got no family, 'got no friends, 'got no life--RED SOX I LIVE FOR THIS.
No offense taken.
I understand where you’re coming from, and didn’t interpret you remarks as a personal attack. I’ve spent enough time on Halos Heaven to recognize one of those.
"It's just a tiny little nick, but it hurts when I get champagne in there."
- Jason Bay, on getting spiked scoring the winning run in ALDS Game Four.
Halos Heaven?
They’re funny.
Mother---- him and John Wayne!
by MerryGoByeBye on Oct 21, 2008 8:55 PM EDT up reply actions
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