Golfgate: Another Beckett Headache

[noreaster]

i know a guy who is a bookie, will sell anything that "falls off a truck", drinks 3 six packs a day and drives constantly from one bar to another, sells a very great amount of fireworks, and has done all this for 50 years. he has been doing it for so long that he does not see anything wrong with it. beckett has the same mindset with his actions and like the guy i know, not many people agree that it is ok. those that defend him look at things in the same light.

[jung]

You know I am really beginning to wonder if this whole ML baseball thing as it relates to players, the collective bargaining agreement, expectations that the team has and things that the players now expect and seem to take for granted has truly gotten out of control.

 

Beckett did not just pitch poorly tonight. He had nothing. He had no velo on his FB. None of his off speed stuff was worth s***. He was tossing batting practice out there, much like he was against Detroit a few weeks ago. Yet, he is (according to him) OK. He has no physical ailments. He talked about needing to get his pitching hand over the top of the ball. What the f*** is that? What, he suddenly now has lapses in concentration so deep that he can't remember how to grip the ball. While he very easily steps to the microphone and admits that he pitched like s***, who cares that he admits to pitching like s***. We have eyes Josh. We can figure that much out for ourselves.

 

I said before tonight's start that Beckett has been the Sox most consistent and best starter and that if he had another good outing tonight that he would distance himself even further from Lester and Buch. I also said that if he had a poor outing, he would fall right back into the clutches of Lester and Buch and that you really then could throw a blanket over all of them and not be able to tell the difference one to the next.

 

The way Beckett pitched tonight is totally unacceptable. You can see Lester struggling when he struggles and while it is not pretty, you can see how he could work to a higher standard. When you see Buch pitch, you can tell that he is not the pitcher he was and while it is more difficult to see how he will work his way to a higher performance standard you can at least see what is going on.

 

Beckett has these starts where he completely falls apart and cannot pitch at all. Then he gets off the mound and is just sort of glib about the whole. thing "Ya' I sucked." There seems no acknowledgement that he was a complete train wreck.

 

Beckett has completely melted down now twice in his five starts. He has fallen completely apart in almost half of his starts. Does anybody have any confidence that he won't completely fall apart again and if you do have confidence that he won't, why???....based on what???? He has missed one turn in the rotation so he has had one complete no show. I can't any longer find any rope to give Josh.

 

While before tonight it looked to me like Buch was the guy that needed to be sent down so he could work out his problems somewhere else besides Fenway, I cannot rationalize giving Josh Beckett more starts unless we now truly give up on the season and begin to make preparations for 2013. That may be fine at this point. There appears to me to be just to much momentum going the wrong way this season. I am getting to the point where I do not want to see the Sox make decisions designed to recover this season if it means that they will not be as prepared as then can be for 2013.

 

I do know that Beckett is done in Boston. He is now the classic needs a change of scenery guy. He is as done as a pitcher as Tito was as a manager here. If there is to be anything left to his career it will be somewhere else.

 

So now we have at least two guys if not three that we have to give playing time to as a means of rehabilitating their stature so that we might could get something for them at the trade deadline. We will be sellers this season. To much has gone wrong for there to be any reasonable suggestion that this can be fixed in a few months of a season.

[Whatsinaname]

Dumb by an experienced player. He ought to have known the crowd were pissed and not been so defensive. Admit it was a farmed up decision and move on. This team is imploding.

[mvp 78]

Beckett is a douche and Theo NEVER would have done the deal to get him if he was still there in 2006.

 

But Theo did sign him to the extension...

[Palodios]

 

 

Beckett is done in Boston. He's a f***ing piece of s*** that needs to go. I don't give a crap about anything he's done in the past, or what his talent level could be. This is inexcusable. If I was John Henry, I'd have his ass traded to some team in a third world country where it is always cold, and fans will throw rocks at you for stuff like this.

 

You know what the worst part is? 9.09 ERA Buchholz is teeing off right next to him. That's the worst part, he's bringing the whole team down with him. Its time to move on, some other team is going to want him. I'd eat the money just for the pleasure of trading him to the friggen Pirates.

 

When Manny did stuff like this, the organization was trying so hard to trade him out. But you know what? Atleast Manny still hit like a hall of famer. Beckett is Texas white trash, mediocre garbage.

 

 

 

This.

[Bellhorn04]

Beckett has become an incredible headache, that's for sure. Trying to think about it logically, they can't just release him or trade him for nothing. Seems like the best scenario is he gets back to pitching decently and they trade him at the deadline.

 

Best scenarios just ain't happening for this team lately though.

[Klare]

Maybe they gonna tell us that he was playing golf to practice and tryng to get back in shape to throw his best stuff against the TRIBES. We learn that it did not work. But it's

really unacceptable.The situation right now is a serious thing and we need wins!!

[wyo-sox]

If management has the stones to let him take the mound in Fenway again I hope everyone in the stands throws either a piece of chicken or a golf tee on the field.

[Dojji]

If management has the stones to let him take the mound in Fenway again I hope everyone in the stands throws either a piece of chicken or a golf tee on the field.

 

Stop it.

 

This is just an idiotic level of overreaction to a golf game and a bad outing.

 

There are 10 or more players on this team performing as bad or worse than Beckett, 3-4 of them as essential to carrying the team as Beckett is. Stop focusing on him as the sole problem. I'm far more disappointed by Lester's tepid leadership and Buchholz' complete inability to pitch a baseball.

 

Sure, he picked a bad time to be Josh Beckett, but this vapid obsession with his every word move and gesture gets us nowhere as a team or as fans. We have bigger fish to fry than Josh Beckett. And when we had stable leadership on this team Beckett wasn't even a problem, so there's that to consider from a dig-down-to-the-real-root-of-the-problem perspective.

[wyo-sox]

Idiotic..... its a reaction to his nearly 6.0 era. And I am equally as concerned with Lester and Buchs. Beckett is paid well to be a professional. He is a grown man. I can't stand the excuse that management, or a coach he does not like effects how he pitches.

 

And to be clear I was being sarcastic about throwing things on the field. But to think its idiotic to be pissed at any of our ''top three'' is odd.

[Dojji]

The root cause of this problem is not Beckett. The failures are too systemic to single Beckett out as the problem.

 

But to think its idiotic to be pissed at any of our ''top three'' is odd

 

Be as pissed as you like. But don't make death threats even in joke, and don't, whatever you do, do NOT give in to groupthink. Hate him but hate him for your own reasons, not Felger's.

[wyo-sox]

You are right, I do not think he is THE problem. This thread was about Beckett though, and he is a problem. If this thread was about the overall problems with the team I would not single him out. Truth be told I think our problems with pitching are first of all Buchs, then Lester and thirdly Beckett.

[a700hitter]

Doji is right. We are over reacting to Beckett. He's an infuriating jackass, but he is not going anywhere. He is just emblematic of the spoiled entitled prima donas that dominate the sporting world. They pretty much all think the way he does. The environment and culture breeds this sense of entitlement. The system that produces professional athletes makes them this way. Beckett is mote arrogant and dense than most, so he will not back off his beliefs even when cornered and completely wrong. Make no mistake about it, they are all like him. He just refuses to put on the public face-- which is nothing more than a trained skill. I can respect that about the jerk. He's not a phony. There's no phony in that man. For better or worse, we are stuck with him. Hopefully, he will pitch to his potential and soon. That's the best we can hope for.

[wyo-sox]

I agree, I do not think Josh is THE problem....but he is a problem. But this thread was specifically about Josh - was it not? If it was about pitching in general I'd say the biggest problem is Buchs. If it was about the team in general I'd say the biggest problem is bad long term contracts followed by bad pitching from our top three.

[sword]

I agree, Beckett has to go.. he is bringing down the house..

 

John Henry!!!Pay whatever Roy Oswalt wants!!!!

Go get more pitching on top of Roy.. we have sucked in pitching for the last 3 years

 

Sword

[wyo-sox]

Be as pissed as you like. But don't make death threats even in joke, and don't, whatever you do, do NOT give in to groupthink. Hate him but hate him for your own reasons, not Felger's.

 

Wo! I missed this.... death threats? What are you talking about? What did I say that sounded like a death threat? Did I miss something?

[SoxSport]

Actually, the problem with Beckett may be symptomatic of a general problem the Red Sox management has with the starting pitching--they baby them. It's a spoiled bunch.

 

When you have problems on a team, it always goes to the top.

[FredLynn]

This piece by Eric Wilbur embodies everything I think about Beckett and the Red Sox right now:

 

Forget about the golf for a moment.

 

Forget about the fact that Red Sox "ace" Josh Beckett got lit up to the tune of seven runs over a measly 2 1/3 innings by the Cleveland Guardians last night at Fenway Park. Forget about the fried chicken and beer, Beckett's reported refusal to participate in workout drills, and his public relations firm members who sit high atop home plate at Fenway Park.

 

Those are all reasons Josh Beckett needs to go. But during last night's postgame press conference, Beckett gave everybody -- fans, the front office, media members -- a reason to run him out of town with a ferocious vigor not seen in this town in years.

 

Beckett's smug defiance encapsulates everything we need to know about the 2012 Boston Red Sox, an over-privileged, under-achieving group of players who have become enemies to nearly every baseball-loving fan in Boston.

 

And Beckett is the contemptible bandleader.

 

Two days ago, it was reported by 98.5 The Sports Hub that Beckett, skipped in the rotation last weekend for what the team deemed a sore lat muscle, was spotted hitting the links at a local country club with compatriot in crime Clay Buchholz last Thursday. The assumption was that, if Beckett was indeed hurt, why was he out playing 18? It's a legitimate question that fans deserve the right an answer to, no matter how the story was greeted with such banality by certain members of the local and national media.

 

Last night, after Beckett's shortest outing of the year, an embarrassing performance on a night meant to pay tribute to Carl Beane, everybody got their answers, delivered with discombobulated venom.

 

On the golf: "I spend my off days the way I want to spend them."

 

On his precious off days: "My off day is my off day."

 

On the booing: "I pitched like [expletive]. That's what happens. Smart fans."

 

More on the off days from the father of the year: "We get 18 off days a year. I think we deserve a little bit of time to ourselves."

 

Family must have been out of town, I guess.

 

Spare me the notion that the Red Sox can't get rid of a guy who gave them almost 200 innings of work last season. The franchise is a disgrace, and Beckett is reason No. 1 why they have been an international laughingstock (Hello, Anfield) for the past nine months. This team is going nowhere; poorly constructed, poorly managed, and poorly marketed. The Red Sox need Josh Beckett why again?

 

It's not that Beckett doesn't get it, he just doesn't care, and that is the most damning characteristic an athlete, someone who gets paid millions of dollars to achieve his greatest heights possible in order to help his team, can possess. But it isn't just his public perception that Beckett clearly doesn't care about. Last September proved he doesn't care about his team, causing his manager, trainers, and countless others to lose their jobs.

 

And he's still here. Why?

 

Ben Cherington now has the unenviable task of trying to find some team willing to take this infectious load off his hands. The Red Sox will have to eat a significant portion of Beckett's contract, but what else is new? Add it to the list.

 

If Beckett is here next month, it's a clear sign that the Red Sox don't care what you think either. Really, in many cases they don't, but they have now hit a critical crossroad. An ever-growing contingent of fans is beginning to realize the flapdoodle they're being fed, sold, and lied to about day after day. Did you see last night's "distribution" crowd? It was of course, another sellout, a lie that keeps perpetrating and makes you wonder what other kinds of deception they have under wraps.

 

So, the advice to John Henry and Co. is to make an attempt at winning back a fan base that has lost faith in anything happening at the corners of Brookline Ave. and Yawkey Way. Begin the cleansing you hardly completed last fall and you may soon rectify faith in the coming years, if indeed you even still own the team.

 

I have never witnessed a more hated team in Boston than the 2012 Boston Red Sox, and there is one, snarling way to, hopefully, begin a process that will give us something to cherish once again.

 

See ya, Josh.

[SoxSport]

Trading Beckett doesn't make any sense. They don't have anybody to replace Buchholz--much less Beckett.

 

What they need is a new owner to crack the whip. A Steinbrenner to kick some ass. Henry is a wimp.

[FredLynn]

Trading Beckett doesn't make any sense. They don't have anybody to replace Buchholz--much less Beckett.

 

What they need is a new owner to crack the whip. A Steinbrenner to kick some ass. Henry is a wimp.

 

I would replace him with Miller. Its no longer about this year. This year is gone. We get what we can for the Texas Tough Guy and next year go out and get someone who can pitch and who isn't a cancer in the clubhouse.

[Dojji]

I agree with Soxsport. Beckett was never this out of line when the ownership was strong and people knew who the front office leaders were. These problems start at the top and are only manifesting in the field. Ownership needs to get a handle on things here. Now.

[Dojji]

I would replace him with Miller. Its no longer about this year. This year is gone. We get what we can for the Texas Tough Guy and next year go out and get someone who can pitch and who isn't a cancer in the clubhouse.

 

And if Beckett dominates for a contender while Miller does his usual, that move will be heralded as another epic Red Sox blunder. You know it, I know it.

[FredLynn]

I agree with Soxsport. Beckett was never this out of line when the ownership was strong and people knew who the front office leaders were. These problems start at the top and are only manifesting in the field. Ownership needs to get a handle on things here. Now.

 

Beckett is a stubborn, self-centered egomaniac who will NEVER fall into line. NEVER. With that kind of employee its just best to cut ties. And what year is better to do it than during a year where we are going nowhere.

[Bellhorn04]

And if Beckett dominates for a contender while Miller does his usual' date=' that move will be heralded as another epic Red Sox blunder. You know it, I know it.[/quote']

 

You're right about that.

[wyo-sox]

You do not think they could find anyone to replace Buchholz 9.09 era? Or Becketts era of something like 5 since last Sept? Its not like its trending the right direction. Josh's last two starts have an era of 10.0. This is not just a bad start or two.

[FredLynn]

And if Beckett dominates for a contender while Miller does his usual' date=' that move will be heralded as another epic Red Sox blunder. You know it, I know it.[/quote']

 

Here is what I know: its time to get rid of him and not look back. Next year we replace him with someone from the long list of very good FA SPs, someone with a good attitude.

[FredLynn]

You're right about that.

 

Nope. You make the move and don't look back. Its the right thing to do (IMO, of course).

[Laser Show]

Trading Beckett doesn't make any sense. They don't have anybody to replace Buchholz--much less Beckett.

 

What they need is a new owner to crack the whip. A Steinbrenner to kick some ass. Henry is a wimp.

 

John Maine would've pitched to a sub-9.09 ERA. Buchholz is historically horrible right now, and Beckett isn't far behind him. There are 100 FA pitchers out there who would outperform both of them.

[Dojji]

Beckett is a stubborn' date=' self-centered egomaniac who will NEVER fall into line. NEVER. [/quote']

 

He was squarely in line between 07 and September of 2011. What happened to change that? Possibly the ownership bailing out on its responsibility to captain the ship, possibly Francona's failure of health, possibly Beckett's own pride. Most likely a mix of the three along with the playoff and medical futility providing some pretty big evidence that the FO no longer knew how to tie its shoes, much less get a team to the playoffs. I'd start ignoring these idiots too.

 

I find it more productive to sort out the actual problem and solve that though, rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

[FredLynn]

He was squarely in line between 07 and September of 2011. What happened to change that? Possibly the ownership bailing out on its responsibility to captain the ship, possibly Francona's failure of health, possibly Beckett's own pride. Most likely a mix of the three along with the playoff and medical futility providing some pretty big evidence that the FO no longer knew how to tie its shoes, much less get a team to the playoffs. I'd start ignoring these idiots too.

 

I find it more productive to sort out the actual problem and solve that though, rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

 

You can take comfort in the fact that its unlikely that Beckett (or Youkilis or Saltalamacchia for that matter) will get dumped. On the other hand, you and the rest of us are going to have to suffer with the consequences of not getting rid of them for many years.