a700hitter

You are in denial. You loved Theo because he was going to build a strong organization from the bottom up. He was going to put in place a scouting and development system that would churn out stars and it would be the envy of baseball. For a time that was true. They churned out top talent that became stars, but after Ellsbury and Buchholz there has been nothing. I am curious what personnel changes there have been in the scouting and player development organization, because they obviously lost a key component of that successful organization. Not only isn't our scouting and player development not the envy of baseball, it is only the third best organization in our own division. The Yankees and Rays are kicking our ass in that aspect. We hate the Yankees for all their money and buying Championships, but their minor league system and their scouting is burying ours. In the last few years the FO has given us a bloated payroll of overpaid under producing players and a farm system without any top talent. That's a bad job. Theo got credit for this team when things were going well, so he has to take the hits as well. He needs to rebuild his scouting and player development team. That might be the most important development of the offseason, but it will be hard to evaluate for the fans. Attitude was not the issue. It's so ridiculous to think that guys who were winners and clutch players like Youk and Ortiz have become clubhouse cancers that caused this debacle. It's absurd and a bigger copout than blaming injuries. They weren't good enough. That's the reason. We all need to stop whining and hope that the organization is making the changes off the field that are necessary to get back to where they were.

No, but the gullible posters read them and you are effective at misleading them, and then I have to argue with them. That is why they have to be warned that you are totally full of s***.

Our great player development and scouting departments are not churning out pitchers like the Rays. In fact, the Rays acquired Garza by a trade, and he was very useful for them. He helped make the Rays a winning organization. The Sox FO gave us Lackey and Dice k. Yuk!! The best offseason move the Sox could make would be to raid the Rays FO and get their GM.

What's different this time is that he is not directing the hate at the guy who just got kicked out the door. This time he is showing some balls and directing it at the people who remained behind- the ass-covering FO and owner.

I did question his toughness, but I never questioned his talent... ever. And he has surpassed even my high opinion of his talent. Edit: i didn't want him run out of town, if for no other reason than his value was at a low after 2010.

Wearing down at age 26 is not understandable.

I've never read where any teammates have had a problem with Ortiz. He always seems to be genuinely supportive of his team mates. He stepped up for Salty when he put his foot in his mouth about Latin players. When teams lose, they fracture internally, because desperation sets in. I think it is ridiculous to lay off this collapse on poor clubhouse chemistry. Let me state this clearly. The problem with the 2011 Red Sox was that they didn't have the horses. It was a poorly constructed team that collapsed after a few key injuries. I became very concerned during interleague play when I saw how the offense crumbled from taking Ortiz bat out of the lineup. Ortiz is getting older. I think he can be very productive for another year, and because he is just a DH, his value is artificially low. If they let him walk, they need to bring in a premium bat to replace him, and that will not be cheap. I have to laugh how people are so willing to throw Ortiz under the bus. In 2008 and 2009 he slumped at the beginning of the season and people were writing his obit and recommending that he be DFA'd. The team collapses in 2011 and all of a sudden he is a clubhouse cancer? I'm not convinced. You just don't want the finger of blame pointed where it belongs-- the Front Office. Bad attitudes and beer drinking didn't cause this collapse. If the FO thinks it will repair this team by replacing the manager and weeding out a few negative personalities, they are kidding themselves. If they want to get rid of Ortiz, because they are going to bring in a premium bat, fine. If they want to trade Youk because he is declining physically, fine, but they will need to bring in a premium bat to replace him. I'm not onboard with getting rid of either of these guys because of their attitudes. They are both intensely competitive on the field. Youk leaves everything on the field., and Ortiz has worked extremely hard to recapture his offensive production, especially against lefties. Attitude did not cause the team to collapse, not even lackey's *******ness. You are barking up the wrong tree.

It's also the fault of the FO that they didn't build a team with enough depth or character to go down the stretch.

I don't think his attitude is a problem. We'd be better off if more players were as intense as Youkilis. I am concerned that he may not be able to stay on the field and be productive. His trade value can't be too high right now.

I agree with everything above except for the fact that Salty is still a disaster. He can't catch or throw and he strikes out way too much.

Betre is the opposite of Drew in that he fights to stay on the field even when injured while JD would take himself out of a game after hitting a HR when we had no OFers left on the bench.

The problem with Youk is his body is wearing down quickly. He's a force in the lineup when health as borne out by his OPS. However, I think he will have trouble staying on the field. The FO should have traded Youk and kept Beltre. I have always liked Youkilis borderline psycho intensity. I think it helps to keep the other players on edge. There wasn't enough edge going down the stretch.

http://www.boston.com/sports/columnists/wilbur/2011/09/splat.html My sentiments exactly.

Good for Tito that he threw the owners under the bus. Tito was left with a skeleton crew of prima donas and malcontents to go down the stretch and they let him twist in the wind and made him the scapegoat. The rest of them mouthed stuff about being accountable, but they aren't be held accountable. Like Shaughnessy said the whole day was ridiculous just like the end of the season.

LOL!!! I had originally penciled in Reyes, but then I thought that the last thing this team needs is another often injured selfish star player. Fixed.

Crawford was a mess on all fronts. AGon had a good year stats-wise, but its hard to think of a big clutch hit from him and September. Neither guy seems to have any capacity for leadership. Getting these guys while letting Beltre and VMart walk is looking like a mistake.

Men singing Sweet Caroline to each other is not fun. It is sickeningly douchy.

Where would Soriano play? He's a horrendous fielder. Why trade Ellsbury who is one of only three young stars on the team and he just had a breakout season. This team should be built around him and Pedroia. I wouldn't be so quick to let Ortiz walk unless you are going to bring in an elite bat. When Ortiz was out of the lineup, the team went into an offensive tailspin. Broxton? He has been horribly inconsistent and injured the last couple of seasons. That wouldn't be interesting. It would be frightening. The core of the team is not solid. Other than AGon and Pedroia, they have nothing to build around if you trade Ellsbury. The pitching is woefully thin at starter and in the pen. If the pitching is not addressed, the same thing will happen next season. Buchholz returning to the rotation will not be enough. Iggy will never be ready until he proves that he can hit. BTW: Looking at your sig, tell me who you think will be coming out of the minors to make an impact in 2012? I'm not talking about a backup infielder or a middle bullpen piece, or a backup catcher. Who is the next Pedroia, Ellsbury, Youkilis, Lester, Buchholz or Papelbon?

Wake up. The 2011 Red Sox were a train wreck. I've been a fan for 45 years, and I have never witnessed anything this bad. It was an organizational failure from top to bottom. There's a lot for fans to be frustrated and vent about. The fans pay the freight and the entire organization did a lousy job. They deserve the criticism.

Vin Scully, doing Dodger games for 62 seasons. That's incredible. He is a one man show, doing play by play and color analysis every game. If you haven't heard him do a game, you need to hear him. He's the best . Remy is the Best Color Analyst bar none.

Drew was a complete dog this year. It's laughable that he didn't have an injury until he lost his starting job after 3 1/2 months of complete futility. He certainly didn't try very hard to get back on the field or win his job back. He turned out to be be everything that I had heard about him from Cardinal fans-- detached, disinterested and fragile. So many people on this forum had defended him, but what a disappointing end.