Ben Cherington has been with Boston since 1999. Obviously ownership would not have named him GM unless they thought highly of him. Cherington was involved with the two championships 2004 & 2007. Unloading the rich contracts of Crawford, Beckett with an under-performing AGON has put Boston in an enviable position freeing up lots of money to work with and blessed with a fairly good farm system. If he manages to sign Jose Daniel Abreu to a long term contract the Sox will be looking good for many years to come.