The smart, impressive part or the baffling decisions? On the first one, I think the big difference he made last year was coming in, telling the players there would be no politics or bullshit and to just go play ball. He was a forthright, decent, almost fatherly figure type of leader that all the troops got behind.They happily responded, but of course some of it was, compared with Bobby V, just about anybody would have been an improvement. As for smart, In post game interviews, he sounds OK, but his points are always pretty obvious. "Lester had all his pitches working, both sides of the plate and could use any in any count." He sounds like most other managers.
As for Farrell vs. Tito, I remember a lot of "Francoma" usage in 2004, until the Sox turned it around in late July. I think, today, Tito is
For in game decision making, what manager is better, or worse? OK, gun to head, or if I had big money on games, I'd absolutely rather Bochy, Melvin, Maddon, and yes, Tito making late game moves for my team. Maybe (yuk) Showalter and Girardi also. One difference with all those guys is they have significantly more experience than Farrell. I really don't see a lot of any other managers. Well, Mattingly just doesn't appear to be that bright and I wouldn't trust him.
One thing, I wish Farrell made a point of guys working on bunting more in spring training. I'm not a big fan of it, but if you're going to use it, major leaguers have be able to do it. The Red Sox as a team are pathetic at it.