Hit and Run with Dan Roche

Congratulations

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 04:24:48 GMT

I congratulate the defending World Series Champion Boston Red Sox on making it back to the postseason for the 5th time in the last 6 seasons.

I laugh at anyone who says they should have had a "low key" celebration. Why?

You begin your season February 15th. You open your year as defending champs in Japan. You travel all over together. You lose key players to injuries. You trade a Hall of Fame superstar. You bring in new players, young and old. You mold a team together on the field and in the clubhouse.

You are one of only 4 teams in your league to make it to the play-offs. And, you have several new players that have never had a taste of postseason.

Celebrate? Are you kidding me?

Celebreate all you wants guys. You deserve it. We'll see you next week in the postseason.

Congratulations.

Play-offs Are Looming

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 14:52:29 GMT

The Magic number for the Red Sox to make the postseason for the 5th time in the last six seasons is dwindling. It may very well happen this weekend in Toronto.

Congratulations. So, now what?

How do you feel about this year's edition of your Boston Red Sox?

Boston went 8-10 against Tampa Bay this season. 1-8 vs the LA Angels, and 4-3 vs the Chicao White Sox. The Sox were also 4-3 against the Minnesota Twins, just in case Ron Gardenhire's crew catches the White Sox.

On paper(Theo Epstein's least favorite term), the Red Sox would like to play the White Sox. However, that appears to be a lonsghot. If Boston can rally and win the AL East, they would most likely play the White Sox. However, if they win the WIld Card, it would be on to LA.

The Sox swept the Angels last year thanks to brilliant performances from Josh Beckett and Curt Schilling. Can Boston beat the Angels this year? Sure, why not. I think a rotation of Beckett, Lester, and Matsuzaka matches up well with any combination of John Lackey, Ervin Santana, Jon Garland, Joe Saunders, and Jered Weaver.

The one big difference this season, in my mind, concerning the Angels is the addition of Mark Teixeira. Put him with Vladdy and Torii Hunter and this offense is much tougher to face.

As for Tampa, well, you don't have to worry about the Rays until you get by either the Angels or the White Sox.

Meanwhile, relax and take a deep breath. Get some sleep. Just sit back and watch Theo Epstein, Terry Francona, and John Farrell rest and re-shape the roster so that all the big guns are ready to come out firing in a couple of weeks.

And, congratulations on yet another fun baseball season in New England.

No Brainer

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 20:45:54 GMT

Much like the signing of Sox Manager Terry Francona to a contract extension this past spring, getting a deal done with Sox GM Theo Epstein is a "no brainer".

Look at what Epstein has done since arriving in November of 2002. Four trips to the postseason(and heading for a fifth this year) and two World Series titles in the past 4 years.

Theo has also built up the farm system and has kept many of them.

He also had the "guts" to trade two icons, in Nomar Garciaparra and Manny Ramirez. Yet he also knew "not to pull the trigger" on a Johan Santana where he would have given up players like Lester, Ellsbury, Crisp, Lowrie, Masterson, Bowden, etc...

John Henry is no fool. He knows what he has and made a very smart business move.

Congrats to all parties inivolved in this one.

Sox Fans Beware

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 12:30:03 GMT

Beware of your team being in first place.

Oh sure, it's a great day for Red Sox fans. Following Boston's impressive 13-5 win Monday night in the opener of a big three-game series over the Rays in Tampa, your Boston Red Sox are back in first place(tie) for the first time since the All-Star break.

Good news, but.........

Don't get too excited just yet.

Why, you ask?

Well, there is two weeks left in the regular season and Boston's magic number to make the post-season is down to six. And with that said, I'm here to prepare you for the stretch run.

Take a deep breath. Don't get angry....but...1st place is not the most important thing on your manager's mind these days. Oh yes, he would love to see his team capture the AL East, home-field advantage throughout the play-offs and all that comes with it. However, he also has seen first-hand what "rest" means at this time of the year.

We saw last season when he rested Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon in the final month. He also had to "find out" what he had(or didn't have) in this case in Eric Gagne. Gagne struggled and Francona knew he was not to be trusted in post-season play.

Francona did the same in 2004. In 2005, he didn't have that luxury as the Sox had to fight to the very end to just get in to the pllay-offs.

And in 2005, his team was spent going into their series with the Chicago White Sox. It was so bad...that Matt Clement had to start the opener. And, the Sox were swept away by the White Sox.

So, you may see Terry Francona rest some of his regulars in the next 10 days or so. Jonathan Papelbon may get a week off to get him ready for the grind of the play-offs. Some starters may get "skipped" for a turn or two...or they may only go 5-6 innings.

You may say.."well, we have to have home field if we are going to win". Not true. The Sox can win the Wild Card and still win a championship. They've proven that. And, they've proven that rest is the right recipe.

So, just try to stay patient as you watch the last two weeks unfold.

Just a warning.......

Bowden and Pedroia

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 02:59:02 GMT

It was all about two guys Saturday night at Fenway Park as Boston bested Chicago 8-2.

Michael Bowden and Dustin Pedroia.

The 21-year-old Bowden made his Major League debut on the mound and the hot-shot didn't disappoint. Bowden used his fastball for two innings and then pulled out a curve and chaneg-up. He worked an "effective" five innings and got the win.

The story here? Continues to be the Sox Baseball Ops guys. Director of Amateur Scoutin Jason McLeod and his staff. Director of Player Development Mike Hazen and his staff. Theo Epstein and John Henry. They all deserve a big pat on the back for finding, signing, and developing kids like Bowden, Masterson, Lester, Papelbon, Delcarmen, Buchholz, Matsuzaka, Okajima. And don't forget all the positional players such as Ellsbury, Pedroia, Lowrie, etc....Amazing stuff.

Ah yes, Pedroia. The man that energizes this ballclub on a nightly basis. Hang around him for any amount of time and you can't help but smile. He's infectious. One of the best things I like about him? He shows at 1pm at the park for a 7pm game and he's always full of energy. Ready to "rake" as he would say, or ready to "put on a laser show". He's got a great attitude...and...as we're finding out..he can really hit. He seemingly "squares up" on every ball.

Amazing......

Beckett

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 10:08:47 GMT

I have one...and only one concern on this Friday of a holiday weekend...Josh Beckett.

It's never good to hear that your ace pitcher is headed for a "second opinion".

Now I know Beckett has a history with Dr James Andrews and that he trusts the man. That's fine. However, we basically have a month left in a season that increasingly looks like the defending World Series Champions will be forced to make the postseason as the AL Wild Card team.

At first glance, from afar, I thought that the Sox may have been simply trying to rest Beckett for the stretch run. Give him two weeks off and hope it sets him up for another awe-inspiring stretc run like he had last year.

However, as we've come to see....this is more than that.

Now I know Theo Epstein, Terry Francona, Dr Gill, and especially Josh, are trying to get a definitive diagnosis. Medical "peace of mind", if you will. That's fine.

And let's hope for the best. In the meantime, Sox fans will be holding their collective breath.

Ortiz... Click Concern

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 19:19:56 GMT

You have to be concerned that David Ortiz heard a "click" in his left wrist during his final at-bat Monday night against the Royals.

Concerned.

However, let's just see where it goes from here. It's not time to panic. I would expect bumps in the road as David recovers.

When info comes in Tuesday night from KC....then we'll discuss.

But, this is certainly a story to keep an eye on.

Boras

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 02:30:29 GMT

Nice to watch Jason Bay and the Red Sox this past weekend at Fenway, eh?

Final thing though I want to clear up on the Manny situation....

Gordon Edes reported Saturday that Scott Boras called the Sox 30 minutes after he was traded to tell the Sox that Manny wanted to stay now.

Sunday, Scott Boras denied that story.

Folks, my sources tell me that Gordon is spot on. That Boras and Manny did indeed call wanting to stay.

Remember, if Manny had his option(s) picked up, Boras wouldn't see a dime of it because it wasn't his contract. So now, after the season, Manny can sign anywhere and Scott will get his 10%.

Then to watch Manny run as hard as he did this weekend with the Dodgers, knowing that he asked out of two critical games in Boston.

I know he was a great, no Hall of Fame, player while here in Boston....but...this story makes you want to take a shower.

It's a shame. Very sad.

It Was Time

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 23:40:45 GMT

That's all I can say as the Sox trade away a future Hall of famer in Manny Ramirez.

There's no question he was'/is one of the greatest righthanded hitters of our time. In 16 seasons he has put up terrific numbers. A .312 batting average, 510 home runs, 1672 RBI, a .409 on-base percentage, and a .590 slugging percentage. Great, great numbers.

However, this story is beyond the numbers this time folks. Trust me.

There will be a fair amount of fans that will scream, "How can you get rid of one of the greatest hitters to don a Red Sox uniform?". No matter what Jason bay does it won't be enough.

But Manny had to go because of what he was becoming inside the Red Sox clubhouse. Guys had had it with his behavior. It was all about his contract. His option. He was angry with ownership. He wanted his options either picked up or a new 4 year 100-million dolar deal.

He quit on his team. That Friday night opener against the Yankees. David Ortiz, his 1 in their dynamic 1-2 punch, was returning to action for the first time since injuring his wrist on May 31st in Baltimore. And what did Manny do? Said his knee hurt and wanted to go on the "disabled list".

What? Trust me on this one. This is where those players that were on his side turned against him. How could he do this? And I know what you're thinking. We don't know how hurt he was? The players do. The team doctors do. The manager does. They know he was quitting on them. They've seen this act before.

It became too much of a soap opera. It was like Nomar in 2004. Nomar was angry at the Sox front office and he brought it into the clubhouse. A team that's trying to win doesn't need that. Especially when it got as bad as it was this year. It was different because this was the first time Manny's contract was a major issue. They shipped out Nomar and now Manny. And by the way, the one difference is that in 2004 even if Theo didn't trade Nomar they at least knew he would go out and play hard the rest of the way. They didn't know if Manny would do that. They were afraid he may quit. Nomar also didn't push down a traveling secretary who helped him out time and time again.

And for anyone who thinks I'm off on this one? Think about this. The Boston Red Sox just traded away a sure-fire, no-doubter Hall of Famer AND paid the remainder of his salary for the season! That's how bad they wanted him gone. Doesn't that say something right there?

As for Jason Bay, the Sox opted for him because he's a veteran. The 29-year-old two-time All-Star shouldn't be intimidated coming in here. If they went for an Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp from LA they might have had to worry about them a bit more.

I will end it by simply saying thank you to Manny ramirez. Thanks for 7-plus seasons of hitting, a little bit of defense, and some strange fun.

However, it was just time....time to move on.

Manny Trade Up in the Air

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 16:44:49 GMT

Checked in with some people all morning and just after noon. Nothing doing yet on the Manny trade front.

The Palm Beach Post and Baseball Prospectus stories were jumping the gun big time. The parameters for a deal...such as Manny to Florida....Jeremey Hermida to Pittsburgh...and Jason Bay to Boston may have been set, but that's it.

This deal is far from getting done for many reasons.

The prospects that will change hands has to be worked out. How much of Manny's salary will the Sox pay and what happens to his option years has to get solved. I'm sure Manny and Scott Boras will be included on all that and we don't know how they will react.

Reports out of Pittsburgh also have Tampa in the Jason Bay sweepstakes, so that could be a factor.

I do know that Manny Ramirez really upset a lot of people throughout the organization with his idiotic comments to ESPN Deportes. The players had to be rolling their eyes over that one. And what does it say that the Red Sox are willing to pick up Manny's salary for the rest of the season? They'd be paying Florida(or wherever he winds up) to take him.

This reminds me of 2004 when Nomar Garciaparra was so angry at management over his contract issues that he took it to the clubhouse with him every day. Granted, he played hard every day, but I think his teammates wanted him to let his anger go once he got into the room. He couldn't and Theo determined that it was best to move him.

I still think that might be what's happening here. My gut feeling tells me that Theo and his Baseball Ops guys could do something very creative in order to get this thing done.

However, keep this in mind, if things don't work out. As long as the team keeps winning, things would be ok in the clubhouse with Manny. Terry Francona and his key players will make sure of it. If the Sox start losing....watch out. It could get very ugly.