It's easier to deal with a $100m guy not pouting when he's on the DL for the year.
He sat in the clubhouse at the start of the season and clapped and high fives (even the guy who took his job). Took all the responsibility on himself. Thats not what usually happens.
Obviously it’s not the type of news you want to hear for yourself. I took it as a demotion and I needed a couple of days to take a breather from just talking about it, sort of get it out of my head and try to figure out a routine that will work for me. it is what it is.
“I’m here to pitch. Regardless of if it’s starting or relieving, I still have to do what I can do to help the team out in any way I can.”
That's "a bit of a stink"? Sounds like exactly what I'd want my player to say.
You can give him a varying amount of credit for Betts and Bogaerts but you might also think about EdRod and Vazquez.
ERod is hurt. Vazquez...was he supposed to be something more than a no hit defensive catcher?
He's a "pitching guru" because he used to be a pitching coach (and a pitcher). Theoretically that should be his strong point. Maybe he forgot everything he used to know about pitching.
Maybe he's the manager and not the pitching coach now.
I believe there are times when you do make changes for the sake of change, and we might be nearing such a time. Outside of the ERod disconsolation moment last night, there hasn't seemed to be any sign of complacency from the players. But that Pedroia voiced frustration on the mound last night, and even Papi was frustrated "Who cares if my heel gets better if we're still getting our asses kicked?" then there comes a point where a shake-up might signal a reboot of approch, if nothing else.
They still lead the Wild Card race, even after this horrid stretch. The indicators are trending in the wrong direction, and the injuries and poor performance have hit them in their most vulnerable areas. Is this all on Farrell? Of course not. Individual player performance is not on the manager, despite what we constantly hear from our fellow posters. But the manager is responsible for the entirety of the situation, if not the individual aspects. Farrell's job is in jeopardy, and it should be. But there are reasons it should be, and it's not the complaints over individual decisions, performances or game outcomes.
The WC race is such a jumble that waiting until the ASG to re-evaluate seems prudent ... unless the current tailspin doesn't course-correct. Make a change then, if need be, and gear up for adding pieces until the trade deadline.
Good post. My biggest gripe with making a change for change's sake is tossing aside a manager that has won a WSC in 3+ years here and had this team playing excellent baseball for the first 2/3 of the games. They were baserunning well, playing defense well, hitting well...pitching like shit. Hmmmmm.
Then you simply aren't paying attention. I'll preface this by saying that I'm a Farrell fan, I think he's generally a smart guy, and I think he's done a very good job at managing the off the field stuff.
This team is coming off of two last place finishes and, after a very strong start that was mostly fueled by pretty much every hitter being hot at once, is on its way to another disappointing season. Plenty of people have pointed out his questionable in-game decisions. The bullpen usage at times is head scratching. The use of the bench at times has been confusing. The failure of Owens and Rodriguez to progress has been frustrating.
Disappointing season? They lead the WC after playing a shittastic month. Theo Epstein's MO was to shoot for that "disappointment" yearly. Rodriguez is hurt. Owens can't throw strikes (and has barely been in Boston for that matter). How are those the manager's fault exactly?
If you can honestly say that the team's record over the last 2.5 years accurately reflects their talent level, then I can understand why you'd be against firing Farrell. Personally I think they've under-performed significantly. If they haven't, then Ben and DD are really bad personnel guys who put together really shitty but expensive rosters
It isn't? What were you expecting from team that were a) decimated by injuries and b) led by a "he's the ace" staff? It's funny that you left out his first season here as manager. Wonder why?
FTR I never said I was against firing Farrell. I'm for firing anyone if it makes the team better. The most compelling argument I've heard for doing so is to "shake things up" or "light a fire". You can't fire a manager every time the team slumps.
We can all argue back and forth about how much blame belongs on the players, the FO and the coaches. They all deserve a share.
Sure they all do, but mostly the players.
The most surprising thing about this ongoing debate is that so many people don't seem to think that two last place finishes and a season that's quickly going down the toilet have anything to do with the competence of the manager.
As always you trot this strawman out. No one has ever said this, ever.
I always thought that results mattered- not in a vacuum, because things will happen that are beyond his control. But big picture, this team has for the most part looked like crap for 2.5 years now, but apparently we're not allowed to hold Farrell accountable for that. I wish my superiors used the same criteria to evaluate my job performance.
2.5 years, huh? Interesting cutoff.[/quote][/QUOTE]