Boston Red Sox: Tracking the obsession with firing John Farrell
Manager John Farrell of the first-place Boston Red Sox once again finds himself at the top of the ire of fans of the team.
Playing out in the ether of a chatty social media world is a saga familiar to many fans of the Boston Red Sox.
The people versus John Farrell.
A quick glance at the defense presents the following numbers: One World Series title, two American League East titles, and an award for Manager of the Year. (Withheld from evidence is two losing seasons, both of the last place variety.)
The people’s argument: Bad in-game management and a sometimes contentious relationship with players, among a litany of charges.
The charges–while truthful in many ways–can sometimes be dialed back and examined a bit closer. For example: where is the line drawn between blaming a manager and blaming a player’s performance?
To wit, we travel all the way back to Wednesday’s game against the Kansas City Royals. The Red Sox held a late lead, with Farrell turning to Heath Hembree and Robby Scott after a nice outing from Drew Pomeranz.
Hembree falters, followed by Scott–who has been having a solid season–giving up a grand slam. And the blame is assigned to Farrell for not turning to Craig Kimbrel for another inning plus outing.
I would rather the team lose a game in June than one in October because the Boston closer was overworked early in the season.
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Pitching changes have been at the core of many of the gripes against Farrell. Taking pitchers out too soon or too early seem to top this list. Is he perfect? No. At some point, though, does the blame get assigned to the players who are not playing up to par?
Getting the best out of players
Where exactly does the problem lie?
Players appear to be dedicated to playing for Farrell. No major blow-ups have occurred and players appear engaged on a nightly basis.
Sounds a lot like the Grady Little years in Boston.
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Little notoriously led the team to the cusp of greatness, falling short in the 2003 AL Championship.
Terry Francona comes in–with essentially the same team–and the rest is history.
Sometimes, something new is needed to get the water to spill over the top of the bucket. Getting the best out of players and finding the right nights to give players off is something a great manager is adept at.
All indications point to Farrell being respected by his team. They have fun (win, dance, repeat) and have generally been successful through what is currently Farrell’s fifth season.
In summary
Baseball is as much a sport of preparation as it is in-game decisions. When things are going good, the general idea is to give most credit to the players. When the bad comes in, the manager is there to take the brunt of it.
The line is drawn when a good manager accepts the blame for the bad and credits the players for the good.
In the wide scope of things, there is a case for both sides. And if fans were to be judge, jury, and executioner, Farrell would already be gone.
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It’s looking like a World Series or bust type of season for Farrell. Barring an epic meltdown over the next two months, he should get that chance.
And if he doesn’t get there, he could end up being the manager that led the Red Sox to the cusp of greatness. All while someone else possibly swoops in and leads their new dynasty.