Tom Hanks in "A League of Their Own"
What is with all the whiners on the Red Sox all of a sudden?
First, outfielder Jay Payton says that he wants to be traded because he isn't getting any playing time. Jay, what do you think you were going to do being in Boston with Manny Ramirez, Johnny Damon and Trot Nixon as the regular starters? Payton is lucky he's playing as often as he is, because Terry Francona doesn't have to sit Nixon against left-handed pitchers. That should change soon, too, because Nixon is hitting .320 off lefties this season, while Payton is hitting .259 overall on the season.
Where's Payton going to go? Colorado has expressed interest in getting the outfielder back, but according to the Providence Journal, they aren't getting anywhere with trying to trade Payton. Atlanta has shown interest, but I don't think they'd want to part with much. The Red Sox like slumping outfielder Dustan Mohr (.189/.243/.411), but I doubt he would even be with the big club if we traded for him. I'd rather see Chip Ambres, who's hitting .328 at Pawtucket, get some time as backup outfielder until Adam Stern is ready (Check out Sox on Deck for a more in-depth look at this situation).
To go along with this Payton debacle, Keith Foulke says that it is "very possible that this might be my last year [in Boston]." He's starting to sound like a whiner, too. I absolutely hate it when baseball players complain about how they want to be traded, or released or anything that involves leaving the team, mid-season. You can say it during the off-season, but don't ruin the team's mojo (I've been saying that a lot lately) by running your mouth.
Foulke may or may not be back, but I believe he will be. Want to hear some good news? Foulke has a 0.90 ERA since he left Boston and went to the training facility for a barbeque, or arm trouble, or whatever the hell it was. It looks promising for Foulke at this point, but we need to get him in more games, even if we are losing or have a big lead.
So will Payton be traded? And will Foulke be back next season?