Unlikable current Sox players from a Yankee perspective?

canyoubelieveit

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Hello dear SoSH colleagues / fans of my rivals.

Hope this is appropriate as a new thread topic. I was curious who might be the most disliked players on the current Red Sox roster from the perspective of a Yankees fan.

It's typical to like the players on one's own team while demonizing players on the opponent's team. For example, it's fairly common for Sox fans to make Chapman a villain (off-the-field history), or Gardner (shape of his head, pesky at bats), or Voit (doesn't button his top buttons, seems the sort to just spend all day flexing in front of a mirror), or Odor (see Voit), etc. But I admit that many of these are petty reasons that are only justified by the tribal nonsense of being a sports fan, and I actually find most players on the Yankees to be likable enough, or at least unobjectionable.

I was having trouble thinking who might be a target of unlikability on the Red Sox. The current Sox roster doesn't seem to have a lot of abrasive personalities or sordid pasts. Who do you most like to root against on the Red Sox and why?
 
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jon abbey

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I'm probably the wrong person to ask, I rarely dislike individual players. I would rather a team of 26 axe murderers win the World Series than the Red Sox, but as far as individuals, not many I usually dislike. Actually the most recent player who comes to mind on any team who I strongly disliked was A-Rod...
 

Kenny F'ing Powers

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I'd think Verdugo is a good bet. Ballsack hair on his chin, pretty arrogant, has a bit of a checkered history. But also is a great, young ball player on the cheap that we got when auctioning off Mookie (have to trade away a stud, and get a great, cost controlled player in return? Oof).

Seems like the type of background that would piss me off.
 

Murderer's Crow

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Tilty mctiltface and Verdugo. Verdugo is the exactly player I hate on opposing teams because his team could be down 9-0 and he hits a double and slams his fists in the air like he just conquered everest. And his celebrations don't look like like he's happy he got a hit to help his team, it looks like he's trying to rub it in the other team's face. I hate Verdugo.
 

Murderer's Crow

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I also hate JDM. I remember in 2018 the whole JD MARTINEZ HAS AN IPAD AND HE SHOWS ALL HIS TEAMMATES EXACTLY HOW TO HIT THE PITCHER AND HES THE BEST HITTER IN BASEBALL AND HES MAKING DEVERS EVEN BETTER.

It's been a very long week and I've had some scotch. And I rooted for the Sox this week. It feels good to say bad things about them. Cleansing.
 

Wingack

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Hmm, no one really on the current roster I guess.

But I always hated everything about Papelbon.

Pedroia and Buchholz were always fun to make fun to dislike too.
 

bibajesus

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I'm a Red Sox fan, but I never liked Chris Sale. The childish uniform thing and then siding with Adam LaRoche soured me on him.
 

jon abbey

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I was going to say Pedroia but it is really only because he was so damn good.

Also I always loved Manny Ramirez (I mean as much as I could while rooting for him to embarrassingly fail in every AB), he was on my radar since high school in the Bronx. I am glad he never played defensive OF for my team but he is right up there with the best RHHs I have ever seen, so so smart. Him and Ortiz in a row, you started dreading it about four batters before every time around.

Papelbon was pretty hateable but again some of it was because of how great he was for a while, no one cares if an OK 7th inning guy is a dick.
 
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Wingack

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I was going to say Pedroia but it is really only because he was so damn good.

Also I always loved Manny Ramirez, I mean as much as I could, he was on my radar since high school in the Bronx. I am glad he never played defensive OF for my team but he is right up there with the best RHHs I have ever seen, so so smart. Him and Ortiz in a row, you started dreading it about four batters before every time around.

Papelbon was pretty hateable but again some of it was because of how great he was for a while, no one cares if an OK 7th inning guy is a dick.
I specifically hated the way Papelbon would purse his lips.
 

grimshaw

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As a Sox fan Papelbon was tough for me to root for as well, river dancing not withstanding. Lots of stupid facial expressions, interminable time in between pitches and jock humor.
 

ThePrideofShiner

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Sale, Brasier, Vazquez and Eovaldi to name a few current ones.

Historical would certainly be Papelbon, Pedroia, Youk, Varitek, Manny. The rivalry drove so much hatred.

Pedro also, though I don't mind him now as a commentator.

Edit: I dislike Verdugo for the same reason I dislike Chapman - domestic violence. I haven't seen him play enough to hate him otherwise.
 

terrynever

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Ted Williams could draw some hate around the league, in his day. He feuded with his own fans and mostly Boston sports writers but he could be a prick in opposing parks, too. He spit at fans, made gestures. Ted’s personal image got a lot better as he aged but this is a guy who ignored his own children so he could go hunting and fishing in exotic places during the offseason. Emotional abandonment was one of his weapons. If you wronged Ted, you were dead to him.

So if we are going to judge athletes on what they do off the field, then please include Ted. Or we could bypass the whole personal life aspect of players’ lives and just judge them for what they do on the field. Is that even possible now?
 

brs3

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I'm a Red Sox fan, but I never liked Chris Sale. The childish uniform thing and then siding with Adam LaRoche soured me on him.
Retiring (partly it seems). because the White Sox wanted to limit kids in the clubhouse?

I imagine Verdugo would be #1 for MFY fans. He has a punchable face, he's talented, and he wrangled with fans during the season.
 

bankshot1

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As a Sox fan, I'm a little surprised Fisk and Lee, both prime faces of the rivalry in the 70s, have so far not been mentioned and demonized.

While Ted was no angel, a shitty dad, and a very complicated soul, I guess his 5 year battle against Nazis and commies and a life-long commitment to helping kids with cancer and speaking out against racism in baseball carries no weight.
 

luckiestman

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The thing where the Red Sox players actively try to look ugly is strange and it has been going on for almost 20 years. Is Chris Sale auditioning for the role of Lincoln in a YouTube series? Verdugo? What a slob. What happened to Jim Rice, Dwight Evans? The CF is handsome though.

45816
 

luckiestman

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Evans's and Rice's high-stirrup socks make me feel ancient.
Those guys look classy meanwhile I turn on the playin game and the fucking Red Sox are wearing Red jerseys and most of the players look like trash and it’s on purpose. These are professional athletes, which makes it much worse because it’s a gimmick, they have to want to look like slobs.
 

dhappy42

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Those guys look classy meanwhile I turn on the playin game and the fucking Red Sox are wearing Red jerseys and most of the players look like trash and it’s on purpose. These are professional athletes, which makes it much worse because it’s a gimmick, they have to want to look like slobs.
The other thing that makes me feel like an old fogey is that I hate the huge gold chains many players now wear outside their jerseys.
 

Max Power

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Those guys look classy meanwhile I turn on the playin game and the fucking Red Sox are wearing Red jerseys and most of the players look like trash and it’s on purpose. These are professional athletes, which makes it much worse because it’s a gimmick, they have to want to look like slobs.
 

luckysox

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Really, like trash? I mean, can't guys present however they want to as long as they are in compliance with league and/or team rules? Also, most of these "guys" are actually freaking kids, or damn close to it. Many have never, ever had another job in their lives, many have been coddled since well before they were making their own decisions, and many others come from cultures that aren't white-bread 'Murica. Let them be kids! Let them be themselves! Let them have stupid-ass beards! Doesn't mean you need to also have a stupid-ass beard. Sure, you'll think some are punchable because of it, but can we just stop using "trash" as a way to describe anything or, more importantly, anybody that we don't like the look of? This shit spills over into real life and it's part of the problem with this damn country.
 

Bergs

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Those guys look classy meanwhile I turn on the playin game and the fucking Red Sox are wearing Red jerseys and most of the players look like trash and it’s on purpose. These are professional athletes, which makes it much worse because it’s a gimmick, they have to want to look like slobs.
Let us know if any of the clouds shout back at you.
 

barbed wire Bob

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Really, like trash? I mean, can't guys present however they want to as long as they are in compliance with league and/or team rules? Also, most of these "guys" are actually freaking kids, or damn close to it. Many have never, ever had another job in their lives, many have been coddled since well before they were making their own decisions, and many others come from cultures that aren't white-bread 'Murica. Let them be kids! Let them be themselves! Let them have stupid-ass beards! Doesn't mean you need to also have a stupid-ass beard. Sure, you'll think some are punchable because of it, but can we just stop using "trash" as a way to describe anything or, more importantly, anybody that we don't like the look of? This shit spills over into real life and it's part of the problem with this damn country.
My guess is that his post was a bit tongue-in-cheek, at least that’s how I read it. Could be wrong though.
 

luckiestman

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Next time be even more outrageous, like two-by-four to the side of the head, outrageous. Subtlety tends to get overlooked by most people these days.
I started this bit with my wife during the play-in game. She wasn’t that amused. I think I led off with “The god damned disrespect of these red jerseys”. When I saw this thread I thought I found my audience.
 
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singaporesoxfan

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Ted Williams could draw some hate around the league, in his day. He feuded with his own fans and mostly Boston sports writers but he could be a prick in opposing parks, too. He spit at fans, made gestures. Ted’s personal image got a lot better as he aged but this is a guy who ignored his own children so he could go hunting and fishing in exotic places during the offseason. Emotional abandonment was one of his weapons. If you wronged Ted, you were dead to him.

So if we are going to judge athletes on what they do off the field, then please include Ted. Or we could bypass the whole personal life aspect of players’ lives and just judge them for what they do on the field. Is that even possible now?
I think there's a qualitative difference between judging athletes on domestic violence (whether it's Chapman or Verdugo) and garden-variety being an asshole/egotist/bad father
 

bibajesus

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Retiring (partly it seems). because the White Sox wanted to limit kids in the clubhouse?

I imagine Verdugo would be #1 for MFY fans. He has a punchable face, he's talented, and he wrangled with fans during the season.
The kid was there 24/7, including team flights. He wandered out to the pitchers mound during BP and management had enough. The White Sox asked his father to cut down on the time his son was at the park and he threw a tantrum and retired from baseball and went on to "rescue" child prostitutes in SE Asia. Sale and Adam Eaton sided with LaRoche and went on record about how Laroche's son was a clubhouse leader. It was/ still is weird.
 

InsideTheParker

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The only player I find unlikeable is Chris Sale, but I can't mention the reason without being admonished or even banned. Y'all know what I'm talking about.
 

GB5

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historically, I would imagine Trot because he crushed Clemens, thought I am not sure the Yanks fans even liked Clemens. Papi for the pain he inflicted. He wasnt here long enough but Yanks fans would have hated OCAB, Pedro certainly for many reasons.
 

Tokyo Sox

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Just trying to put myself in a Yankees fan’s shoes — if success breeds contempt, I would imagine of the current crop it would be easiest to hate the guys who won rings. So: Bogaerts, Devers, JDM, Vazquez, Sale, Eovaldi, ERod, Barnes, Brasier, etc.

Along with his absurd cranium, it’s certainly the reason I hate Brett Gardner. So just wondering if you guys are the same.
 

EvilEmpire

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historically, I would imagine Trot because he crushed Clemens, thought I am not sure the Yanks fans even liked Clemens. Papi for the pain he inflicted. He wasnt here long enough but Yanks fans would have hated OCAB, Pedro certainly for many reasons.
I don't get hate for Pedro and Ortiz. But I also don't understand hating opposing stars just because they're great, unless they're obnoxious about it in some way. So Ortiz and Pedro are fine. ARod is obnoxious, so that one I understand. I don't think I've ever known a Yankee fan who gave a shit about Trot Nixon.

For me, the guys with character issues are easy to dislike, even the ones on my own team. Especially DV assholes. Chapman and German? I'll be happy when they're gone. No love for abuser Manny Ramirez either. Or DV adjacent Verdugo who also benefits from having an extremely punchable face. Top of the list on any team for me right now would be Bauer. Fuck all those guys.
 

Kenny F'ing Powers

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The thread is about current players, but most of these posts are about past players.

Get it together.
 

Al Zarilla

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As a Sox fan, I'm a little surprised Fisk and Lee, both prime faces of the rivalry in the 70s, have so far not been mentioned and demonized.

While Ted was no angel, a shitty dad, and a very complicated soul, I guess his 5 year battle against Nazis and commies and a life-long commitment to helping kids with cancer and speaking out against racism in baseball carries no weight.
As a Sox fan, I'm a little surprised Fisk and Lee, both prime faces of the rivalry in the 70s, have so far not been mentioned and demonized.

While Ted was no angel, a shitty dad, and a very complicated soul, I guess his 5 year battle against Nazis and commies and a life-long commitment to helping kids with cancer and speaking out against racism in baseball carries no weight.
Fisk for sure for his brawls with Munson, etc,, but Bill Lee was kind of a victim, coming away from the famous 1976 brawl with rib injuries when Nettles picked him up from behind and easily removed him from the fracas. Skinny guy Bill and maybe crazy enough for even rival fans to like?
 

luckiestman

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historically, I would imagine Trot because he crushed Clemens, thought I am not sure the Yanks fans even liked Clemens. Papi for the pain he inflicted. He wasnt here long enough but Yanks fans would have hated OCAB, Pedro certainly for many reasons.
Pedro is the most impressive pitcher I saw throw a lot of games. I cannot dislike that guy no matter what shirt he is wearing. On a similar note I don’t dislike Manny either because of how funny he was. I didn’t like Josh Becket
 

bankshot1

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Fisk for sure for his brawls with Munson, etc,, but Bill Lee was kind of a victim, coming away from the famous 1976 brawl with rib injuries when Nettles picked him up from behind and easily removed him from the fracas. Skinny guy Bill and maybe crazy enough for even rival fans to like?
Lee, IIRC was mugged from behind by Rivers and then got sucker punched and slammed to the ground by Nettles, and hurt his shoulder and maybe his pride. And Lee was never shy about voicing his disdain for the Yankees, likening them to 1930s brown shirts as well as angry hookers. In fact, he might have coined one of SoSH's more popular 3-letter acronyms for our esteemed and ancient rival.
 

jtn46

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Just trying to put myself in a Yankees fan’s shoes — if success breeds contempt, I would imagine of the current crop it would be easiest to hate the guys who won rings. So: Bogaerts, Devers, JDM, Vazquez, Sale, Eovaldi, ERod, Barnes, Brasier, etc.

Along with his absurd cranium, it’s certainly the reason I hate Brett Gardner. So just wondering if you guys are the same.
Eovaldi was a Yankee and had some good stretches for them surrounded by injuries, and injury affected performances, which is exactly how his Sox career has gone so I wouldn’t imagine there’s any contempt there.
 

ThePrideofShiner

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Eovaldi was a Yankee and had some good stretches for them surrounded by injuries, and injury affected performances, which is exactly how his Sox career has gone so I wouldn’t imagine there’s any contempt there.
He's pitched much, much better for the Sox than he did the Yankees. And he has a punchable face.
 

Tokyo Sox

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Eovaldi was a Yankee and had some good stretches for them surrounded by injuries, and injury affected performances, which is exactly how his Sox career has gone so I wouldn’t imagine there’s any contempt there.
Really I just wanted to write one long list and one Brett Gardner list. Yankees fans should hate their own assemblage of futile megastars more than they hate anyone on the Sox.