I wasn't going to do it.
I was going to let it slide.
I was going to stay on the sidelines and let it all just slide away after Thursday.
But then I decided that I started this blog for a reason. Not just to start a love fest for the BC hockey team but to put my thoughts down on all manner of sports subjects. Since I have been a lifelong Boston sports fan I really can not allow all this talk to spin around without putting in my opinion on the Manny Ramirez situation.
Let me start this by saying that I like Manny. I always have since the Red Sox lost out on Mike Mussina and decided to sign Manny instead in 2000. I thought the deal was a little pricey ($20 million a year) but then again I've been complaining about the salaries of professional athletes since I was old enough to start noticing them. Now that we are nearing the end of that deal I can honestly say that the Red Sox have gotten everything they could have wanted out of Manny for these past 8 years. Lots of home runs and RBIs and two World Series rings. Not to mention the amount of interesting things that he has done over the years that has made the phrase "Manny Being Manny" so prevalent throughout Beantown.
One of the things that have repeatedly popped up over the years has been this notion of Manny being unhappy in Boston and that he wants to be traded. I think this story has surfaced more times than I can count. The Red Sox have even memorably placed Manny on waivers in the month of August so he could clear waivers and they could potentially trade him late in the season. Yet somehow Manny is still here. And somehow every time this story comes up, everyone acts like it is something shocking and surprising.
It seems to me that the main reason this is getting more press then usual (and maybe not even more than usual, I just seem to be noticing it more because I'm reading more of it lately...been a little slow at work, I need to do something...), is the timing (just before the trading deadline) and the fact that it is near the end of the 8 year deal. When Manny has asked to be traded in the past the Red Sox have accommodated and tried to pull off deals. He would have been dealt several years ago if they had been able to pull off the A-Rod swap back in 2004. Manny has consistently been up and down with his emotions on this subject but now people seem to be taking a decidedly more caustic attitude toward him.
Old Man Pike said to me the other day that he was "tired of Manny". And maybe this is part of it. I would mention some particularly nasty articles from a certain Boston Globe writer but then I realized that he doesn't deserve the press. Since the "Curse of the Bambino" was lifted he needs to find something else to create the sense of doom in Boston so he latches on to anything he can and right now that is Manny Ramirez. People only seem to be tired of him when writers tell them it is time to be tired of him. If the Globe published an article saying to ignore Manny and it was just his normal stuff there would be no signs in the stands showing dissatisfaction.
The Red Sox are faced with a real dilemma here. They dealt Nomar back in 2004 partly from injury concerns and partly from a sense that he was not good for the locker room. Perhaps Manny is turning into the same distraction and warrants a severing of the relationship. Manny is getting older and his production is clearly on the decline in the past few years from his glory days of the early 2000's. The fact of the matter is that the Red Sox cannot get significant return on the current trade market to make up for the loss of Manny this year. If they were clearly in the tank I would agree that it is time to trade him but they are still knee deep in the race and if they straighten out their bullpen they have as a good a shot as any to win the World Series again this year.
Personally, I think they should keep Manny. Even picking up his next two option years. He's 36 years old and maybe only has 2 or 3 more real good years left at the major league level. He can still produce and he makes David Ortiz and other hitters better just be being in the same line up. Some say he lacks commitment and should be let go. They often point to his often lax attitude in the field and the frequency with which he fails to run hard on outs. He's not alone in this. There are other players who react the same way. Is this a good thing? Of course not. Everyone wants to see their whole team hustle and give everything they have like Trot Nixon or David Eckstein. But the reality is that just doesn't happen. Maybe Manny does it more than most and maybe he doesn't. But he is a clutch performer and has won many more games for his teams over the years by his hitting than he has lost from his fielding or baserunning.
There is one final point I would like to address and that is this theory of Manny faking injuries. The aforementioned Globe writer and others (including Old Man Pike) have suggested that Manny should be gotten rid of simply because he MAY have faked an injury and sat out the game the other night. People forget that the same theory was floated two years ago when Manny clearly decided to just take the end of 2006 off and nurse an injury for the remaining 5 weeks of the season when the Sox were clearly not going to the playoffs. Yet nothing was done and he was back last year and was an integral part of another World Series.
Does Manny Ramirez have flaws? Of course he does. Who doesn't? But is he still capable of producing important at bats at the major league level and lift his club to championship form? Absolutely. The outside distractions are part of the deal when you have Manny Ramirez on your team. It's up to the Red Sox to decide if those are big enough to justify severing their ties with Manny. They just have to be sure they get something in return because all of us who have been watching Boston sports for years knows that if they don't suddenly everyone will be saying that we should have kept Manny and that he wasn't so bad for what he gave us. And a certain Globe writer just might try to erect the "Curse of Manny". What the hell, he never has any credible original thoughts anyway, why not rehash something that made his career.
For me, I hope to see Manny in a Red Sox uniform for the next two years. If not, so be it. As long as he doesn't go to the Yankees
Monday, July 28, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The Great Trade Debate
It's that time of the baseball season when one thing is on everyone's mind - the trading deadline. As the trading deadline fast approaches teams scramble to make that deal that will seal the future of their club. For those in contention, it means that it is time to find that missing piece to complete your team and make that run for a World Series. For those out of contention, it is time to shed some payroll and some aging veterans or free agents you can't sign in return for some hot prospects you hope will create a brighter future for your team.
The names being bandied about are similar to those in the past Mark Texeira, Brian Fuentes, and half the Pittsburgh Pirates have all been rumored to be on the move. Either the Red Sox or Yankees (or both) are tied to every big name deal that could go down. Who's got the best available piece? Does he fit? And most importantly, what do they want in return?
The debate is shuffled out every year as to whether these fire sale deals are worth it. Does a team really ever find that piece and what is the cost? The infamous Jeff Bagwell deal from the 80's is often pointed to as what happens when you don't take stock of what you have on the farm before trading it for a short-term solution that may not even work.
The Red Sox have historically made deals on both sides of the fence. The Derek Lowe-Jason Varitek for Heathcliff Slocomb deal paid off big for them as both men were key to the winning of the 2004 World Series and Varitek has anchored that battery for years. Then there was the deal last year for Eric Gagne which was an absolute disaster as David Murphy has turned into an everyday outfielder for Texas and the minor leaguer they traded has shown great promise in the farm system. The Red Sox need to be wary of doing any quick fix deal this year.
There is no denying that they have a desperate need for relief pitching. Getting to Jonathan Papelbon has been a chore all season and the bullpen has lost many the winnable game. Both Okajima and Hansen have routinely been having trouble finding the plate and getting anybody out in high pressure situations. At times, Manny Delcarmen looks like the ideal set up man and then at other times he looks like a AA pitcher getting hit all over the yard. The problem is that everybody else sees this deficiency and it drives up the price to obtain any kind of help.
Brian Fuentes from Colorado has been the name most associated with a deal for the Red Sox at this time. The Yankees are in the picture as well. But knowing the attitudes in Boston and New York and knowing how desperate both teams are for relief, Colorado is reportedly asking for a front line starting pitching prospect in return (Bucholtz or Kennedy). This is a price too high to pay for a man who says he only wants to go somewhere that he will be a closer. Neither the Yanks or Sox are in need of a closer. They both need reliable late inning relief. Feuntes is good but I don't think he is good enough to warrant letting go of a front line prospect.
It all comes down to getting back what you dish out. If the Sox were to trade a guy like Bucholtz, they should get something more than a one or two year specialist pitcher who will be unsatisfied with his role in the team. They tried that before. His name was Eric Gagne and everyone in baseball saw how that turned out. They need a return that is equal to what they are giving up.
This team has worked its way to one of the best records in baseball despite many injuries throughout the line up. They may not even need to make a trade. Masterson has proved that he can pitch at the major league level. When Aardsma comes back off the disabled list, that should spell the end of line for Hansen. And they have instantly improved the depth and quality of the bullpen. Hansen fails to get anybody out. In the game last night I could have predicted the loading of the bases. Even the 3-0 pitch to Vidro was nowhere near the target set up by Varitek. He was fortunate to get the out and the fact that he got a save for that performance is a joke.
Any move they make should be something small. Getting a man like Damaso Marte would be a better fit than Fuentes. He would provide much needed left handed support out of the pen that has been lacking with Okajima's struggles this year. And he is good enough to face more than just left handed hitters. Add to that the fact that the Pirates are likely not looking at quite as a high a price tag for a non-closing reliever as the Rockies are. The Pirates also have a lot more pieces to deal with the likelihood of Jack Wilson and/or Jason Bay moving by the deadline as well.
In the end, its all about return. Everyone wants to be on the Lowe/Varitek end of the deal in July and not the Larry Anderson end of the deal. For the sake of the future if not this season, Red Sox Nation hopes they make the right choice.
The names being bandied about are similar to those in the past Mark Texeira, Brian Fuentes, and half the Pittsburgh Pirates have all been rumored to be on the move. Either the Red Sox or Yankees (or both) are tied to every big name deal that could go down. Who's got the best available piece? Does he fit? And most importantly, what do they want in return?
The debate is shuffled out every year as to whether these fire sale deals are worth it. Does a team really ever find that piece and what is the cost? The infamous Jeff Bagwell deal from the 80's is often pointed to as what happens when you don't take stock of what you have on the farm before trading it for a short-term solution that may not even work.
The Red Sox have historically made deals on both sides of the fence. The Derek Lowe-Jason Varitek for Heathcliff Slocomb deal paid off big for them as both men were key to the winning of the 2004 World Series and Varitek has anchored that battery for years. Then there was the deal last year for Eric Gagne which was an absolute disaster as David Murphy has turned into an everyday outfielder for Texas and the minor leaguer they traded has shown great promise in the farm system. The Red Sox need to be wary of doing any quick fix deal this year.
There is no denying that they have a desperate need for relief pitching. Getting to Jonathan Papelbon has been a chore all season and the bullpen has lost many the winnable game. Both Okajima and Hansen have routinely been having trouble finding the plate and getting anybody out in high pressure situations. At times, Manny Delcarmen looks like the ideal set up man and then at other times he looks like a AA pitcher getting hit all over the yard. The problem is that everybody else sees this deficiency and it drives up the price to obtain any kind of help.
Brian Fuentes from Colorado has been the name most associated with a deal for the Red Sox at this time. The Yankees are in the picture as well. But knowing the attitudes in Boston and New York and knowing how desperate both teams are for relief, Colorado is reportedly asking for a front line starting pitching prospect in return (Bucholtz or Kennedy). This is a price too high to pay for a man who says he only wants to go somewhere that he will be a closer. Neither the Yanks or Sox are in need of a closer. They both need reliable late inning relief. Feuntes is good but I don't think he is good enough to warrant letting go of a front line prospect.
It all comes down to getting back what you dish out. If the Sox were to trade a guy like Bucholtz, they should get something more than a one or two year specialist pitcher who will be unsatisfied with his role in the team. They tried that before. His name was Eric Gagne and everyone in baseball saw how that turned out. They need a return that is equal to what they are giving up.
This team has worked its way to one of the best records in baseball despite many injuries throughout the line up. They may not even need to make a trade. Masterson has proved that he can pitch at the major league level. When Aardsma comes back off the disabled list, that should spell the end of line for Hansen. And they have instantly improved the depth and quality of the bullpen. Hansen fails to get anybody out. In the game last night I could have predicted the loading of the bases. Even the 3-0 pitch to Vidro was nowhere near the target set up by Varitek. He was fortunate to get the out and the fact that he got a save for that performance is a joke.
Any move they make should be something small. Getting a man like Damaso Marte would be a better fit than Fuentes. He would provide much needed left handed support out of the pen that has been lacking with Okajima's struggles this year. And he is good enough to face more than just left handed hitters. Add to that the fact that the Pirates are likely not looking at quite as a high a price tag for a non-closing reliever as the Rockies are. The Pirates also have a lot more pieces to deal with the likelihood of Jack Wilson and/or Jason Bay moving by the deadline as well.
In the end, its all about return. Everyone wants to be on the Lowe/Varitek end of the deal in July and not the Larry Anderson end of the deal. For the sake of the future if not this season, Red Sox Nation hopes they make the right choice.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Right around the corner
So I received a present in the mail last week. My renewal for Boston College season hockey tickets. Then they released the tentative schedule (home dates with Wisconsin and a rematch with Notre Dame). Then the Bruins released their 2008-09 schedule today. Yes, it is July. Yes, it is 90 degrees outside. I am dreaming of cold rinks and pucks and goals lighting the lamp.
(oh yeah, and BC starts football practice on August 4th)
(oh yeah, and BC starts football practice on August 4th)
Monday, July 14, 2008
Latest and greatest
I was quite surprised to see that I had not made an entry in my blog for nearly two weeks. I guess that tells you what I think about the current state of things in sports. There isn't even anything to get me very fired up about. Or maybe I've just been lax in putting my thoughts on the screen. So I am remedying that today.
A few thoughts:
- I was excited to see that Billy Packer has parted ways with CBS and will no longer be calling the Final Four. I have known nothing but Billy Packer in the Final Four for as long as I have watched March Madness. To hear a new voice, and one that is not as condescending and elitist as Billy Packer will be refreshing. People watch March Madness for the excitement of watching the unexpected like Davidson making it to the Elite Eight or George Mason's run a couple years ago. Packer is decidedly against these events. He has repeatedly stated over the years that he felt that conference champs should not be guaranteed a spot if a more worthy big name team doesn't get in. He was contrary to everything that CBS itself promoted as being the best part of tourney. About time they finally cut the cord and made the separation. Here's to Clark Kellogg!
- Brett Favre. Not sure I should approach this one. I wrote a blog a while back discussing athletes that hang around for too long when Ric Flair retired from wrestling. Brett needs to take that advice. Get out and stay out. He was great. He will go to the Hall of Fame. Is he better than Aaron Rodgers as a starter in 2008? Probably. Should he come back? Definitely not. Green Bay fans that want him back are lusting for the old days. He's not that guy anymore. He should take a page from Barry Sanders and Jim Brown and accept when it is time to walk away. Go out with everyone thinking your still great not with people wondering what the hell you're doing.
- Can I just say that I am rooting for the Tampa Bay Rays. Here is a team with good young talent, great pitchers, and are exciting to watch. I hope they are able to pull themselves out of the tailspin they are after the All-Star break and make the wild card (with the Red Sox winning the AL East of course!)
- NHL free agent frenzy is over and once again salaries reached new heights of insanity. What I think will be interesting is how some of these long deals that some of the younger stars signed last year and this year (Vincent Lecavalier being the latest) will affect salaries in the future. Basically, these players are now locked into deals for years to come with no real knowledge on how the market will rise or fall over the coming years. One would think that the current economic downturn in the country has to hit professional sports at some point as people have less money to shell out to go to games, buy merchandise, and pay for $7 Dixie cup beers. In addition, thought ratings improved this year for the NHL, without some serious improvement TV revenue may not be enough to keep up with the higher payrolls. Teams like the Islanders, Penguins, and Lightning may find themselves with salaries that are dragging their teams down in future seasons. Maybe not but it something that could prove quite interesting 6 or 7 years from now.
That's all I've got for now. I will try to put some more fingers to keyboard in the coming months are football camps open and college campus' around the country starting getting ready for the fall season.
A few thoughts:
- I was excited to see that Billy Packer has parted ways with CBS and will no longer be calling the Final Four. I have known nothing but Billy Packer in the Final Four for as long as I have watched March Madness. To hear a new voice, and one that is not as condescending and elitist as Billy Packer will be refreshing. People watch March Madness for the excitement of watching the unexpected like Davidson making it to the Elite Eight or George Mason's run a couple years ago. Packer is decidedly against these events. He has repeatedly stated over the years that he felt that conference champs should not be guaranteed a spot if a more worthy big name team doesn't get in. He was contrary to everything that CBS itself promoted as being the best part of tourney. About time they finally cut the cord and made the separation. Here's to Clark Kellogg!
- Brett Favre. Not sure I should approach this one. I wrote a blog a while back discussing athletes that hang around for too long when Ric Flair retired from wrestling. Brett needs to take that advice. Get out and stay out. He was great. He will go to the Hall of Fame. Is he better than Aaron Rodgers as a starter in 2008? Probably. Should he come back? Definitely not. Green Bay fans that want him back are lusting for the old days. He's not that guy anymore. He should take a page from Barry Sanders and Jim Brown and accept when it is time to walk away. Go out with everyone thinking your still great not with people wondering what the hell you're doing.
- Can I just say that I am rooting for the Tampa Bay Rays. Here is a team with good young talent, great pitchers, and are exciting to watch. I hope they are able to pull themselves out of the tailspin they are after the All-Star break and make the wild card (with the Red Sox winning the AL East of course!)
- NHL free agent frenzy is over and once again salaries reached new heights of insanity. What I think will be interesting is how some of these long deals that some of the younger stars signed last year and this year (Vincent Lecavalier being the latest) will affect salaries in the future. Basically, these players are now locked into deals for years to come with no real knowledge on how the market will rise or fall over the coming years. One would think that the current economic downturn in the country has to hit professional sports at some point as people have less money to shell out to go to games, buy merchandise, and pay for $7 Dixie cup beers. In addition, thought ratings improved this year for the NHL, without some serious improvement TV revenue may not be enough to keep up with the higher payrolls. Teams like the Islanders, Penguins, and Lightning may find themselves with salaries that are dragging their teams down in future seasons. Maybe not but it something that could prove quite interesting 6 or 7 years from now.
That's all I've got for now. I will try to put some more fingers to keyboard in the coming months are football camps open and college campus' around the country starting getting ready for the fall season.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Ryder-ing it out
So yesterday began free agency in the NHL (as well as that league that the Celtics just won a title in but no one cares about that anymore until next year's playoffs). As I have mentioned in this blog before I have been getting somewhat excited about this free agent period as I was hoping for a big splash by the Bruins of adding the next piece to take them from a tough first-round elimination to perhaps making it to the 2nd or 3rd rounds of the playoffs. Yesterday, I was disappointed.
As I have watched the past few days it became clear that Tampa Bay has decided on the Ranger approach to the NHL. When all else fails, overpay for high profile free agents and hope that the high priced skill you put on the ice will be enough to get you a Cup. They also added a blast from the past by making Barry Melrose as coach. But what the Lightning forgot was that the way to win now if to make smart moves with a nice blend of young players you have developed and older veterans for leadership. The Rangers can tell you that spending money on just elite free agents will not win you a cup (just ask Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Jaromir Jagr, and the myriad of other who have wore the blue shirts at MSG since they last won).
That aside there was danger in the water (or on the ice as the case may be) for the Bruins the minute that Ryan Malone (who had a career year with 27 goals & 51 points while playing on a team with Sydney Crosby & Evgeni Malkin) signed his deal. It set the bar by which all other free agent skaters were going to be judged. This meant that the coveted Mr. Hossa was going to cost over $8 million a year to sign and Bruins were still going to owe Wideman over $3 million a year once his arbitration is settled. This meant bad news for my high hopes.
At about 3:45 yesterday Chiarelli released a piece on the Bruins website stating that he had gone after a "very elite player" and that upon finding out that the Bruins were not very high on his wish list, they backed down and explored other options. I knew it was Hossa. I didn't want it to be but with their cap space they could only afford one high priced free agent and scoring was more important than defense so he wasn't talking about Brian Campbell.
Later that night there was word that Chiarelli was going to have a conference call to make an announcement that most thought was going to be the signing of a player. We knew we were in the running for someone but no one seemed to have an idea of who it was. At a little after 10pm we found out...Michael Ryder.
Huh??? This is the guy who was in Guy Carbonneau's dog house at the end of the season and didn't even play most of the games down the stretch. The two-time 30 goal scorer who only managed 31 points last year? HUH??
I guess I understand the need to go for value but why does this smell of old deals like Alexei Zhamnov (one of the worst signings in Bruins history). Not that Ryder is old but something was clearly wrong last year. Maybe the scuttle is right and Claude Julien has some sort of rapport with this kid (he coached him in juniors and with Montreal) and can regain that 30 goal touch. I certainly hope so for $4 million a year.
I don't mean to be too critical. I understand in this day and age with the cap that teams have to make hard choices when trying to build their team. In blogs past I have applauded the Bruins for resigning their young talent (which they continued by resigning Nokeleinen on Monday) and I don't want to take away from that. By doing so, from the start they had less money to throw around than a team like Tampa Bay which let most of its free agents go to market and traded away one of their pricey contracts (Brad Richards) last season. Plus as Chiarelli was ready to point out that we are also returning Patrice Bergeron which is almost like a free agent signing considering how little of the season he played in last year.
I want Ryder to be the Ryder of two seasons ago when the Canadiens were so high on him and saw him as their big goal scorer of the future. I want Bergeron to be player he was two years ago before the Philly Prison Inmates (also known as the Flyers) took him out for the season. Time will tell. My hopes have been dampened a little. I was expecting the big splash and all I've seen so far is a ripple. But I'll keep watching and I will of course keep you, my loyal reader, up to date.
As I have watched the past few days it became clear that Tampa Bay has decided on the Ranger approach to the NHL. When all else fails, overpay for high profile free agents and hope that the high priced skill you put on the ice will be enough to get you a Cup. They also added a blast from the past by making Barry Melrose as coach. But what the Lightning forgot was that the way to win now if to make smart moves with a nice blend of young players you have developed and older veterans for leadership. The Rangers can tell you that spending money on just elite free agents will not win you a cup (just ask Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Jaromir Jagr, and the myriad of other who have wore the blue shirts at MSG since they last won).
That aside there was danger in the water (or on the ice as the case may be) for the Bruins the minute that Ryan Malone (who had a career year with 27 goals & 51 points while playing on a team with Sydney Crosby & Evgeni Malkin) signed his deal. It set the bar by which all other free agent skaters were going to be judged. This meant that the coveted Mr. Hossa was going to cost over $8 million a year to sign and Bruins were still going to owe Wideman over $3 million a year once his arbitration is settled. This meant bad news for my high hopes.
At about 3:45 yesterday Chiarelli released a piece on the Bruins website stating that he had gone after a "very elite player" and that upon finding out that the Bruins were not very high on his wish list, they backed down and explored other options. I knew it was Hossa. I didn't want it to be but with their cap space they could only afford one high priced free agent and scoring was more important than defense so he wasn't talking about Brian Campbell.
Later that night there was word that Chiarelli was going to have a conference call to make an announcement that most thought was going to be the signing of a player. We knew we were in the running for someone but no one seemed to have an idea of who it was. At a little after 10pm we found out...Michael Ryder.
Huh??? This is the guy who was in Guy Carbonneau's dog house at the end of the season and didn't even play most of the games down the stretch. The two-time 30 goal scorer who only managed 31 points last year? HUH??
I guess I understand the need to go for value but why does this smell of old deals like Alexei Zhamnov (one of the worst signings in Bruins history). Not that Ryder is old but something was clearly wrong last year. Maybe the scuttle is right and Claude Julien has some sort of rapport with this kid (he coached him in juniors and with Montreal) and can regain that 30 goal touch. I certainly hope so for $4 million a year.
I don't mean to be too critical. I understand in this day and age with the cap that teams have to make hard choices when trying to build their team. In blogs past I have applauded the Bruins for resigning their young talent (which they continued by resigning Nokeleinen on Monday) and I don't want to take away from that. By doing so, from the start they had less money to throw around than a team like Tampa Bay which let most of its free agents go to market and traded away one of their pricey contracts (Brad Richards) last season. Plus as Chiarelli was ready to point out that we are also returning Patrice Bergeron which is almost like a free agent signing considering how little of the season he played in last year.
I want Ryder to be the Ryder of two seasons ago when the Canadiens were so high on him and saw him as their big goal scorer of the future. I want Bergeron to be player he was two years ago before the Philly Prison Inmates (also known as the Flyers) took him out for the season. Time will tell. My hopes have been dampened a little. I was expecting the big splash and all I've seen so far is a ripple. But I'll keep watching and I will of course keep you, my loyal reader, up to date.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
