Kuzul

A week after ending the longest sellout streak in baseball, the Red Sox helped fill their fans’ hearts with pride after one of Boston’s darkest days. Then they continued their own shocking revival.

Nobody could have predicted the horrific events that struck the city on Marathon Monday and few could have anticipated the start that has quickly reestablished the Sox—at least for now—as a viable force in the American League. Timely hitting, near-historic starting pitching and a new attitude infused by new manager John Farrell has resulted in the AL’s best record (13-6, tied with Texas) out of the gate.

Even more surprising than the speed with which Farrell seems to have turned around the clubhouse mojo is how quickly the Red Sox have regained the respect of fans disillusioned by the woeful 2012 season and the calamitous reign of Bobby Valentine.

It is still too early to compare this team to the feel-good squads of 1967 and 1975, but as they did in those memorable summers, the Sox are winning with a roster that has few established superstars but plenty of likable characters for whom it’s easy to cheer.

Here’s a look at the Sox in 6:

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New Red Sox manager John Farrell has his work cut out for him as he tries to pick up the pieces from last year’s horrendous showing under Bobby Valentine. He’s been tasked with patching up the leaking holes that led to the Red Sox’ worst season in nearly 50 years—and then some.

If he can take anything away from his predecessor, it’s a long list of don’ts.

When thinking about all of the things Farrell should approach differently this year than Valentine, the short answer is everything. But here are five crucial lessons to be learned for a guaranteed turnaround in 2013.

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The Boston Red Sox need a leader.

This isn’t breaking news. This isn’t going to change your day. Heck, it definitely didn’t even phase you to read that.

That doesn’t change the fact that if it doesn’t happen now, the Red Sox will be headed toward a colossal meltdown that stretches beyond missing the postseason three seasons in a row. If things don’t turn around, they could be looking at a snowballing stretch of misery that spans at least a decade or more.

Dustin Pedroia, it’s time to step up.

After being dubbed the “de facto captain” following the 2011 departure of catcher Jason Varitek, ‘C’-sporter since 2005, Pedroia failed to initiate the kind of order in the clubhouse that was necessary after the chaotic way last season ended.

Needless to say, the tall order shouldn’t fall on one man’s diminutive shoulders and Bobby Valentine was expected to be the broom to Pedroia‘s dustpan, but the second baseman never seemed to gracefully accept his faux position and ended up spending the whole season with a chip on his shoulder for some mostly unknown reason.

(Things didn’t get off to a good start when Valentine called out Kevin Youkilis early in the season, but still. Give it a rest.)

Moving forward and assuming Valentine gets canned, Pedroia, under team control through 2015, stands as the alpha dog in the clubhouse.

It’s not out of the realm of possibility that where he and former manager Terry Francona were so close, management will take some input from Pedroia during the upcoming managerial search.

After all, the next manager hired isn’t likely to be a one-and-done in the vein of Valentine. It’ll be someone who Boston hopes will be in the dugout for the next decade, along with the 29-year-old Pedroia.

The second-baseman needs to team with the next manager to reset the tone of the clubhouse and issue the precedents of how things should be, how they’d like things to be, and how things will be.

When a report came out on Tuesday that Pedroia, earlier reported to be sitting out the rest of the season due to a broken finger, would be in the lineup against the New York Yankees that night, he responded to questions like this, according to the Boston Herald:

“I get to compete two more games and then I’ve got to sit around six months until I get to do it again. Why not?”

That right there is precisely the Pedroia that the Red Sox need. 

Granted, it’s Game 161 and the Sox are nowhere within sniffing distance of either Wild Card spot, but this attitude is coming at the right time, as half of the farm system is in the clubhouse (and in that sorry, sorry lineup card). 

He later added: 

“I mean, you saw last year, the Orioles played all their guys and played hard and ended up beating us and gave Tampa a chance to get in. We’re playing to win. Nobody’s packing it in.”

With that type of leadership and gusto this late in the season, it’s a damn-near fact that heading into the offseason it’ll give the rest of the guys a reason to really examine themselves and the putridity that they contributed to this season and how to avoid it in 2013.

With Pedroia setting the right example, others will follow and eventually get the ball rolling again towards a clubhouse with its head on straight.

With so much turnover destined to come over the course of the next few months, it’s important for him to really dig his roots into the minds of all of those around him, so when the new additions come in, be it a new manager, free agents, players acquired through trade, or crops from the farm, they already know how things run around here.

They need to run by Pedroia‘s rules.

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President Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, “The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.”

Taking that a step further, Merriam Websters Dictionary defines the term “integrity” as a noun, meaning an unimpaired condition.

In an article published today by Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan, the unadorned captain of the Boston Red Sox came across as anything but an individual with integrity.

In fact, the excerpts surrounding Dustin Pedroia made him look downright childish.

There is no question that Pedroia was the member of the team that was most affected by the front office’s decision to move on from its previous manager Terry Francona.

Their friendship was no secret. 

In his 2008 book titled Red Sox Rule: Terry Francona and Boston’s Rise to Dominance, writer and local Boston radio host Michael Holley chronicled their relationship in great depth, citing how the duo would play cribbage before every game.

Francona made his affections towards Pedroia well-known.

Naturally the transition to a new manager not named Tito would be difficult for Pedroia. However, treating the new manager with little to no respect whatsoever is beyond insubordination.

It is childish and shameful.

No member of this Red Sox team should have a leg to stand on in regards to management. They’ve played awful baseball and don’t deserve any courtesies extended to them.

As a whole, they have not earned the right to complain about Bobby Valentine or any other circumstance in the clubhouse.

September 2011 has seemingly continued to thrive throughout the entire 2012 season. Yes, the chicken and beer have been removed from the clubhouse, but the immaturity and lack of accountability is still just as prevalent today as it was 11 months ago.

In Jeff Passan’s piece, he references a picture message that Pedroia took and shared with his teammates. He writes:

Pedroia, notorious among teammates for his wit and humor, is in the foreground with a giddy smile, his tongue wagging and both thumbs up. Next to him is allegedly Valentine, face down on a table, apparently asleep. A caption accompanies the picture: “Our manager contemplating his lineup at 3:30 p.m.”

This isn’t the first time Pedroia has shown a blatant disrespect for his new manager.

Back in April, whether called for or not, Pedroia went on the record to voice his displeasure with Valentine’s vocalizing his criticisms of Pedroia’s then teammate Kevin Youkilis.

It was first Tweeted by NESN’s Tom Caron:

 

Pedroia on Valentine’s Youk comments: “I don’t know what Bobby’s trying to do. But that’s not how we go about our stuffhere.” #RedSox

— Tom Caron (@TomCaron) April 16, 2012

 

Instead of all this madness surrounding Bobby Valentine, the players, led by Dustin Pedroia should concentrate on the game itself.

When asked by CSNNE’s Joe Haggarty about this whole situation, Pedroia skirted the question:

 

Asked Dustin Pedroia if he led any Sox player meeting to get Bobby V fired. He just said: “I just want to play baseball, man” #RedSoxTalk

— Joe Haggerty (@HackswithHaggs) August 14, 2012

 

Dodge, dip, dive, duck and dodge… seems about right.

For the masses who felt that Pedroia should be anointed the next captain of the Red Sox, this irresponsible conduct should serve as a pretty significant notice that he is not captain material.

Sure, he is a prolific second baseman.

That doesn’t make him a leader. Leaders have integrity. What part of anything Pedroia has done this season offers evidence of his integrity?

The prosecution rests.

Follow @THEChrisBenvie

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It doesn’t seem too long ago that I was standing among a mass of Red Sox fans in the streets of Boston at the 2007 World Series Championship parade. What I will never forget from that day, aside from Jonathan Papelbon’s horrible Irish step-dancing, is the unwavering support that was shown to former Sox third baseman Mike Lowell.

People may forget, but it was that offseason that Alex Rodriguez opted out of his contract with the Yankees, making it possible for Boston to try and pursue him. Now there is no question that A-Rod’s talent far outweighed that of Mike Lowell. But for Sox fans, it was not about that. It was about the character that Lowell had shown on a consistent basis that made him the guy that Boston fans wanted as their everyday third baseman. Chants of “Re-sign Lowell” rang down upon the famous duck boats, and it felt like the party would never end as this team was sure to contend for years to come.

The same jubilation and hope for the future I saw exhibited by Red Sox nation that day does not exist anymore. Instead, it’s been replaced by a festering pessimism that has been rapidly growing since the team’s epic collapse last September. And if you even mention the word character to a Sox fan about this roster as it is currently constituted, expect a full blown laugh-out-loud moment to ensue.

Boston’s beloved Red Sox have somehow lost their way. In a span of five years this team has not only destroyed all of the goodwill that two championships within a decade brought, it destroyed the unbelievable high of breaking an 86-year winless drought.

And no one has been able to avoid this gigantic wave of negativity.

Dustin Pedroia, who many consider to be the spark-plug of this team, turned fans off with his comments regarding manager Bobby Valentine’s handling of the massively slumping Kevin Youkilis (via WEEI). David Ortiz, who in his own right should be considered a Boston sports legend, went on a tear this week while being interviewed by reporters making it clear that he is not enjoying his time on Yawkey Way anymore (via NESN). Even the former captain and now retired Jason Varitek came under mass scrutiny for his part, or lack thereof, in the handling of last year’s dreadful September.

Tell someone in Boston that Tek’s leadership skills were not up to par after his A-Rod face shoving heroics in ’04 and they most likely would have spit in your face. And don’t even go down the road of addressing Josh Beckett. Talk about a fall from grace since 2007.

So what character we thought existed amongst these guys has either faded away or maybe just never existed in the first place. Whatever the case may be, something needs to drastically change. This team has become a three-ring circus and it seems that there is no end in sight.

Sox fans have lost that faith they were told to keep in the entire organization, from ownership on down. Maybe it’s time to clean house and start fresh with the young guns down in the minors. The Red Sox are surely not famished for young, up-and-coming talent.

My question is, can this team find its identity again? For years what we thought we knew about these guys now seems like it was merely a mirage. All I’m saying is that the nation had it right in ’07. Character counts.

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Well, you can now add Dustin Pedroia to the growing list of injured Boston Red Sox players.

On the Memorial Day matchup against the Detroit Tigers, Pedroia exited the game after making a diving catch. Pedroia was held out of tonight’s game against the Tigers with a jammed left thumb, according to the Boston Globe’s Michael Vega.

According to the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo, the Red Sox are still unsure of what to do with the sidelined second baseman.

Pedroia torn abductor muscle in thumb. Hopes to play through with splint and avoid DL. Team is still discussing DL.

— Nick Cafardo (@nickcafardo) May 30, 2012

Losing Pedroia is a huge blow to the Red Sox, as they don’t really have a true second baseman to replace him in the field or in the lineup.

Here are five potential replacements during Pedroia’s absence, whether it be short term or long term.

Note: All statistics are through May 28.

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There are always arguments over who is the best at a certain position, but not many are as controversial as second base.

First, I would like to say that I am sorry to players like Ian Kinsler, Chase Utley, Brandon Phillips, Ben Zobrist, Howie Kendrick, Rickie Weeks and Dan Uggla, but by far the best second basemen in the majors are Dustin Pedroia and Robinson Cano.

Now that we have narrowed it down to two players, which is better? The only way to do that is to compare them head-to-head. To do that, we need criteria and those criteria are simple: batting average, plate discipline, extra base hits, power, speed, defense, arm and playoff performance.

Let’s begin.

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This picture pretty much says it all. This is the attitude the Red Sox will have to have about the year 2011 and everything that came with it. 

It was a roller coaster-type year for the Sox in 2011, but unlike most coasters, the biggest drop off came at the end of the ride, as opposed to the beginning. 

Going 7-20 in September was the biggest free-falling coaster in MLB history—not to mention all the drama that followed! 

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The Boston Red Sox have the best offense in baseball and it’s not close. 

They hold the top spot in runs scored, average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. 

With the best offense in baseball, you’d expect the Red Sox to have a player in the MVP conversation, but not three.

Adrian Gonzalez, who leads baseball with a .353 average, was pegged as an MVP candidate from the moment he arrived in Boston in the offseason.

Few expected the Red Sox to have two other MVP candidates, but that is the case.

Joining Gonzalez in the MVP conversation are Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia, both unexpected after both losing the majority of the 2010 season to injury.

In the end, the three will end up taking votes away from each other, but of the three whom is the most deserving candidate?

The case can be made for all three but Ellsbury has been a step ahead of his two teammates. Ellsbury has been electric in every facet of the game this season.

He is second on the team in batting average with a .319 average, only trailing Gonzalez. He leads the team in both stolen bases with 31, and runs scored, 83, and has hit an unprecedented 18 home runs out of the leadoff spot, which is good for second on the team. 

Ellsbury has also picked up the clutch gene this season providing walk-off hits on back-to-back nights against Cleveland last week. Gonzalez has a walk-off this season as well and Pedroia has yet to get one.

The element of surprise also plays into the fact that Ellsbury tops the list of Red Sox MVP candidates. After last season, when many questioned Ellsbury’s heart and toughness, no one could have predicted what has happened thus far in 2011. 

Ellsbury carries a 5.9 WAR—wins above replacement—making him the second most irreplaceable player on the Red Sox, just behind Pedroia who has a WAR of 6.7. Gonzalez is third on the team with a WAR of 5.2.

He leads the team in WPA—win probability added—at 3.85 as well as the clutch metric at 1.44, 1.26 points ahead of Pedroia (0.18) and 1.67 points ahead of Gonzalez (-0.23).

Sabermetrics aside, Ellsbury proves he is most valuable every night by setting the table for the offense. Ellsbury on base leads to RBI for Pedroia and Gonzalez. 

In the end, the three will likely take votes away from each other, being on the same team, and the award could go to someone like Jose Bautista or Robinson Cano. 

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It’s been 93 years since the Cubs played in Fenway Park. I bet they wish it was longer. 

On the first night of the week without rain, Boston poured it on the Cubs starter Doug Davis with eight hits and seven runs in 3.2 innings. The barrage continue with relief pitcher Scott Maine immediately giving up a two-run bomb to Kevin Youkilis. Maine lasted one-third of an inning while giving up two home runs, five hits and three runs, all earned.

Lefty reliever James Russel came on and put the fire out for three innings, allowing only two hits. If only he could have finished things up for the Cubs. Righty reliever Jeff Samardzija finished things off giving up five runs, three earned with two walks.

Boston starter John Lester scuffled some, allowing 12 hits and five runs, with two walks and five K’s. Scott Atchison pitched the three perfect innings with three K’s to close things out for the Sox. Save for Mike Cameron, all the Sox starters had at least one hit, with Adrian Gonzalez leading the way with four hits and four RBI. Kevin Youkilis (8) and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (2) homered for Boston.

Saturday will be a prime time affair with Alfredo Aceves (1-0, 2.60) making the start for Boston. He will be opposed by Cubs righty Carlos Zambrano (4-2, 4.89). Tonight’s game will  feature a stab at nostalgia with both teams wearing replica uniforms from the Cubs’ last visit to Fenway, the 1918 World Series.

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