Muggah

I'll help. Send me a PM.

What's gonna piss me off will be the insipid manner in which they'll conduct the thing when the do get around to it. The most fitting thing the press could do at this point is not show up at their presser. Let them air their smugness out to empty rows of chairs.

Well if Cherington is sincere about looking to find low risk/high reward SP then I expect we'll see some reclamation projects--a la Blunder. That said, names like Kazmir, Brandon Webb and even Chien-Ming Wang will be bandied around.

Breaking news from WHDH here in Boston. Sox pitchers drank beer in dugout during games BOSTON -- 7News Sources said: Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and John Lackey drank beer in the Red Sox dugout during games, according to two Red Sox employees who witnessed the drinking on multiple occasions at Fenway Park. On nights when they were not pitching, Beckett, Lester and Lackey would exit the dugout as early as the 6th inning, walk back to the clubhouse, and fill cups with Bud Light beer. They would then return to the dugout with cups of beer and drink while watching the game. It didn’t make a difference whether the Red Sox were winning or losing at the time and the practice became more frequent later in the 2011 season. One Red Sox employee said Beckett, Lester and Lackey appeared “bored on nights they weren’t pitching and this is how they entertained themselves.” Another Red Sox employee described the routine like this: “Beckett would come down the stairs from the dugout, walking through the corridor to the clubhouse and say ‘it’s about that time’. Becket was the instigator but Lester and Lackey were right behind him. It was blatant and hard not to notice what was going on with all three guys leaving at once.” Both Red Sox employees said it was exclusively those three pitchers, (Beckett, Lester and Lackey) who were drinking in the dugout during games. (Copyright © 2011 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) Read more: http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/sports/12005666762091/sox-pitchers-drank-beer-in-dugout-during-games/#ixzz1bAfsIwjE

Hate to say it but it sounds like it might not happen at all.

Ya, that certainly doesn't help. But who knows, seeing as he's here for the next six years I guess the optimistic thing to do would be to hope that the toxic climate of the clubhouse had something to do with his s***** year, and that the 'sanitizing' that's anticipated may help things. Let's hope so. But boy, was that a s***** year he's coming off. He's really only got one way to go.

Let's face it, Youkilis has been a first class ******* from day one, but he's been tolerated because he's been a) productive, and well, our *******. But he's no longer able to produce the way he once did (hell he can't even stay on the field anymore) and to date, nobody's denying all these reports that he was certainly one of the problems in the clubhouse this year. I have no doubt they're gonna look long and hard at trying to move him. But with his physical problems, rapidly deteriorating skills, big mouth, AND, the fact that he's coming off surgery, they may have a very hard time finding someone to give them any kind of value for him---in which case, we're stuck with him. Even still, if that turns out to be the case, bet your bottom dollar that he'll be back having been told, unequivocally, to keep his dumb-assed, festering gob shut.

I think they're gonna look long and hard at moving Youkilis, as well as what life without Big Diva can be like. Aviles, IMO, isn't acceptable as a full time 3B, so there's a move to be made there. But the time is right to move on from all three sacred cows. The fans are behind parting with all three, and it's an easy first move for whoever the new GM is if they want to send the message that they're serious about sanitizing the clubhouse. I just think they've got to make at least a couple initial moves to let the fanbase know they mean business. And it'll a) speak volumes, and buy them the time they're gonna need to explore options involving the cancers under contract, if they simply unceremoniously cut ties with Wakefield, Putritek, and Big Diva.

With all that's gone on it gives Cherington or whoever the new GM a free pass to finally part ways with all three remaining sacred cows: Wakefield, Varitek, and Big Diva. Wakefield and Varitek should have been shown the door three years ago, but Diva has at least carried his weight. That said, he was part of the problem this year, and it's time to say good-bye. I can see them offering him a one year deal for maybe 7-8M, and telling him to take it or leave it--which he most assuredly will do. Wish him luck and send him on his way. It's time.

IMO, the whole situation with Beckett is a ticking timebomb. He's always fancied himself a straight shooter when it comes to the media, as well as a maverick, cowboy, tough talking Texan...whatever when it comes to answering questions about anything. That said, if he's still here I'm sure that every possible step will be taken by new management (whoever it is) to smooth things over and present him as 'repentant,' understanding and on-board with new policy, etc., but that's only going to go so far. Eventually Beckett's still going to have to confront the hostile media and fanbase that will be waylaying and salivating in FLA come ST. IMO, that's a powder keg with the fuse already lit. The Sox will be debuting their new facility in FLA, as well as kicking off their centennial at Fenway. I can't imagine them allowing their sure-to-be over-the-top marketing blitz for the 2012 season being ruined before it even gets started by the mud-slinging circus that's sure to occur if Beckett, and for that matter Lackey, are still on the roster. Their presence is almost certain to create a toxic climate to start the season. For those reasons, I think they'll make every effort to move both. Now, whether or not they can be successful in doing so is another matter entirely.

Sorry, but that's head in the sand rationale, IMO. What we heard from this ******* in front of the national media two hours before the team's biggest game of the season two weeks ago is the same stuff he's been dropping behind the scenes for years now. What we saw that day is the REAL guy, not the fictional 'selfless' media invented saint. He's an *******, and a self-centered ******* at that. It's about time people found out what this guy's really been about all along.

Ya, I'm leary about Cherington, too. Everyone currently involved in this clusterf*** has stink on them, IMO, and Cherington should be crossed off the list for the same reasons being given about DeMarlo Hale. If Prune Face does install Cherington, then it just tells us that he's either too insecure, or doesn't have the balls to fix this thing the right way. And that's when he should sell. I've been saying for a while now that we'd be better off with new ownership, and that might turn out to be the case.

Ya, I tend to agree. There's a lot to do. And it's too early to tell. Let's wait and see who is brought in as GM and manager, and what their first moves are. Actions, in this particular case, are going to speak a lot louder than any words will. If the new sheriff comes and and we immediately see asswipes like Wakefield and Varitek told to take a hike like they should have been told to three years ago, then fine--you've got my attention. And then we'll go from there and deal with the likes of Big Diva and Bigmouth Youkilis and Lackey and so on. If nothing happens and we just get more empty rhetoric---which they're good at, btw, and which they know flies with the pink hat and pollyanna factions, then we'll know where we stand, too.