Sean McAdam has a very interesting piece about the Red Sox working to keep their starting pitchers rested and refreshed so they're better able to withstand the demands of October. He wrote it on the same day Paul Kenyon was reporting (and demonstrating) from Pawtucket how the organization has, in the words of director of amateur scouting Jason McLeod, "implemented a system, and everybody's bought into it at every level." The underlying theme -- of both stories -- is that the Red Sox' focus goes beyond winning individual games, and toward building a structure that gives the major-league team the greatest chance for sustained, and sustainable, success. And, as it happens, we simultaneously have Filip Bondy of the New York Daily News writing about the other end of this spectrum: Yankee manager Joe Girardi overusing his aging core players in an attempt to avoid falling too far behind in the postseason races ...Kevin Youkilis spoke at length about his post-AB behaviour:
I've had a couple teammates tell me don't think about it. You do what you do. There's other people told me, you need to tone this down. ... That's something I've been battling, and it probably will be a battle. ... I think the hardest thing is it doesn't change overnight.Manny Ramirez is questionable for left field tomorrow night in Cincinnati. ... Daisuke Matsuzaka will make a rehab start for Pawtucket on Monday. ... Jacoby Ellsbury's 29 stolen bases are the most by an under-25 Red Sox player since Buddy Myer, 24, stole 30 in 1928.
Corporate Welfare At Its Best: In New York, the Yankees have demanded an additional $350 million to finish their new ball park. ... Memo to Steinbrenners: Use your own money.
Speaking of Yankee Stadium, I have this quote laying around:
ReplyDeleteTim Marchman, New York Sun: "Yankee Stadium is on the merits one of the worst places in the country to watch a ballgame, and there's really little that's more hilarious in baseball than the pretense that this giant concrete bowl is some magnificent cathedral and monument to the glories of the game. It just drips with pompousness and fake old-timiness, and I won't miss it at all."
I think this organizational approach is one of the biggest reasons it's good to be a Sox fan right now. The Sox could have a lot of frustrations in terms of injuries, tough losses, and underperforming free agents -- they could have even more than they're having. They could even miss the playoffs for a year or two. But you have the feeling that they just can't and won't go into a multi-year funk. There's just too much talent being managed too well.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's a kind of "irrational exuberance" because we've had a lot of success since 2003, but I believe in it. My only dread is that the Yankee-style sense of entitlement becomes too prevalent among our fan base.
I believe in it, too. These guys are very smart.
ReplyDeleteMy only dread is that the Yankee-style sense of entitlement becomes too prevalent among our fan base.
There have always been plenty of idiot and asshole Red Sox fans. How those morons view the team's fortunes and how they act has never mattered to me before. And it will not matter to me in the future.
So Steinbrenner is a socialist. Get outta our camp, George, we don't need you.
ReplyDeleteGood quote from Yook. He's right - change is hard, and it doesn't happen overnight, but when you're in the spotlight everyone expects it to. I hope he gets some support and positive feedback for his efforts.