John Farrell’s Red Sox ‘Dream’ ending?
In professional sports there are some markets one can play in where nobody knows your name and you can mix in with the rest of the citizens. However, there are some markets that have so much pressure. The media is constantly seeking answers about the team’s performance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
They want to know why the manager/coach made a specific decision putting that player into the game, the injury status of the superstar or the thought behind a play that cost them the game. Players and management have to remain cordial and professional with the press or they could be on a rough stretch in dealing with the media.
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There is a lot of pressure to win with teams like the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.
Whether it is the NHL, NBA, NFL or MLB there’s always a belief that managers or coaches are hired to be fired. There’s a short life expectancy of the man driving the bus before the passengers want someone new to drive.
In baseball, the final destination is a trip to the World Series. This season there appears to be a ton of heat on Boston manager John Farrell to produce results. Since the ‘Cinderella’ season of 2013, when they won the World Series, results have not been there.
Former pitcher turned manager John Farrell is facing a lot of pressure to win in Boston. After winning a combined 154 games over two years in Toronto as the manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, he left Canada for his ‘dream job’ in Massachusetts with his beloved Red Sox.
The 2012 season was a disaster for the Red Sox under former manager Bobby Valentine. Things could not have gone better for Farrell after arriving in Boston in 2013. He was the man ‘driving the bus’ and the team went on to the World Series and defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in six games. Unfortunately, things went sour again in 2014, when the team finished in the basement of the American League East with 71 wins.
Now in 2015, the Red Sox have won 28 of their first 67 games. The team is currently occupying the basement of the American League East once again. There appears to be some evidence of discord.
Camera angles are essential in Major League Baseball. They are so important in giving the fans at home a bird’s eye view of what’s going on in the dugout of their favorite team. In a recent game at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Red Sox pitcher Wade Miley showed irritation with Farrell. The irritation was noticeable with some great camera work. He was removed by Farrell in the game after a brutal start against the Baltimore Orioles. He lasted only four innings.
Professional athletes have competitive emotions. Miley’s irritation is understandable. However, choosing to show up your boss on the mound is not okay. Like him or not, Farrell’s job is to direct and mold the roster in the right image that can produce W’s for the Red Sox team and their fans. Farrell and Miley are singing the proper tune now. They are saying the right things to the media about their spat, but one would have to think that there is more to the story than either one of them is letting on.
This week, during a game in Atlanta against the Braves, John Farrell exploded after a perceived missed call by the umpire. Farrell blew a gasket in the dugout. He confronted the first base umpire Larry Vanover, but not before spitting his gum out, throwing it on the ground and walking away in anger. Farrell was ejected from the game.
One of Farrell or General Manager Ben Cherington’s jobs should be on the line. The team appears to be going backward to the type of team that the 2012 roster was under Valentine. Of course everyone probably remembers the 2012 team. They were the ‘video game playing, beer drinking and chicken wing eating’ roster. There are signs that this year’s roster could be equal to 2012’s Red Sox or even worse.
This past off season, the team went out to acquire Pablo Sandoval, Hanley Ramirez, Justin Masterson, Rick Porcello and Miley. These series of moves pushed the payroll up. After only winning 71 games in 2014, the team went out and spent but questions remain whether they spent their money wisely.
The team’s designated hitter, David Ortiz, is not having a great season. Heading into June 18, Ortiz is hitting only .229 with 9 home runs and 28 RBI and that’s simply unlike him. There have been questions as to whether he is losing his effectiveness at the plate with his menacing swing fans have grown accustomed to seeing.
Hanley Ramirez’s move to left field from shortstop has been disastrous. He has provided a pretty good bat but you need good fielding and hitting to be a successful ball player. The fielding has not been there on a regular basis from Ramriez. The same could be suggested about Pablo Sandoval at third base. Porcello and Masterson have very high ERAs. Masterson has only 2 wins to his name, and Porcello only has 4 wins in Beantown as of June 18.
Questions are constantly there for Farrell and his management team, with little answers of substance. The American League East’s five teams all have issues that need addressing if they have aspirations of making the playoffs this fall.
This Boston team does have problems and some heads need to roll, and perhaps soon, if they have any thoughts of winning the American League East and their fourth World Series since 2004.