Jose Iglesias hasn't been on the team for 3 years. Xander has turned into an above average fielder. Jose doesn't come close to Cander's hit tools. Also, I don't remember anyone ever calling him Iggy Pop.
If they kept Manny, he wouldn't have hit .400 down the stretch the way he did for LA. He just didn't want to be here and was fine with sulking. Thinking otherwise is revisionist history. Plus, they filled his spot with Jason Bay who played better than Manny had for the Sox that year.
These are definitely the top 2. It's beyond the scope of this post, but they should have also retained Roger and Boggs for the remainder of their careers.
1. The bold sentence is the exact opposite of what UN has been saying. We are criticizing the strategy, not the results (i.e. why start Young against RHP if Holt is available).
2. The record is more indicative of beating up on the Yankees and Braves, 2 of the worst teams in the league.
3. When we give Chili Davis credit for preparing Vazquez, Farrell gets all the indirect credit he can have. The leaders of well run organizations/departments typically will take the blame for corrective matters but will applaud their staff for any successes.
I can disagree. I don't believe he can "deal" anymore. His velocity is down and the contact rate is up. He's also never been a 7th inning guy and there is a transition there (uncertainty of when he'll pitch, come in with runners on, etc.).