By CHRIS RASMUSSEN
No Boston player needs a cork more than Manny.
Seriously. Enough.
Yes, you used to be charming. It used to be fun to read about the Red Sox, like Roger Angell, John Updike, Doris Kearns Goodwin, David Halberstam and others chronicled every near miss with verve and intelligence. Pesky, Galehouse, Buckner, Dent -- they were a terrific part of the game's lore, and Red Sox fans wrote about disappointment with intelligence unrivaled by other fans.
Red Sox fans used to have a terrific image: well-informed, smart fans who follow their team despite years of staggering disappointment. You were a model -- especially for those following a small-market team like the one that plays at the K.
Now?
You won a World Series in 2004, the first time since 1912 (correction: 1918. I suck.). Despite the unfortunate presence of the loathsome Johnny Damon, it was a great performance by a fun team. But marring the celebration during the historic moment was Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore filming the last scene of the worst baseball movie ever made. If there were any justice dispensed by the baseball gods, being associated with any Jimmy Fallon vehicle should have prompted another eight-decade curse.
I am tired of you.
A boatload of money should fix that.
I'm tired of the fact that everyone in Red Sox Nation thinks they are entitled to this, despite the fact that John Henry, et al, throws around money just as much as the Steinbrenners ever did. I am tired of Red Sox Nation. I am tired of sorority girls who cannot pronounce the name "Yastrzemski" wearing Old Towne Gear (fans from "way back," like three years ago). I am tired of Bill Simmons, apparently working today without an editor, chronicling every victory with 30 references to a reality show, Rocky IV, or any of the Karate Kid movies. I am tired of my bookstore devoting half its baseball section to books about Reversing the Curse (hint: it involves a great deal of money).
Yes, envy is why I dislike you now. Kansas Citians would build a statue after Jon Lester's performance the other night; in Boston, baseball's Lance Armstrong is the fifth starter.
Red Sox Nation: You are not charming anymore. A lot of you are front-runners and most of you are completely insufferable.
You are not special. You are just following another rich, large market team — just like Yankee fans.
We get it. You win.
Now shut up.
PS: The Patriots cheated. Go Pistons.
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Player development is critical. And, as we can expect, getting more expensive to do well. Top draft picks are demanding huge salaries, systems are becoming more extensive, complex, and international. It used to be that small market (low spending) teams could still develop a pool of young talent, only to lose them when they become valuable free agents. Now, the developing talent may become difficult to do as well.
Once MLB gets PED's under control, financial parity should be priority #1 before MLB snuffs some terrific smaller markets. Parity is what generates excitement.
Also, Sox fans do see themselves as different from NY. They have been the stepping stook of NY for decades, never could match their talent or their payroll and never could catch up. I can see that ouside of Boston/NY that people see the Sox more on par with NY, but in Boston it has not felt that way until recently. Until 2003, we simply KNEW they'd find a way to crush our hopes. We're still learning how to deal with shedding that feeling - at last!
Nice blog BTW!
Rational Sox Fan:
Your name is apt.
And I'll follow up your thoughtful post with one of my own that echoes your comment.
I've never been a huge fan of the "woe is me, the small market teams can't compete." Rhetorically, it excuses incompetence.
My point about Red Sox fans is that they seem to think they're different than the Yanks. To a lot of fans watching their success, they aren't.
Don't you all get it yet? Everyone loves to see the team that has been struggling take down the all mighty unbeatable team. We find that fun, exciting and refreshing. Like when the Patriots beat the Rams in the SuperBowl, and like when the Giants beat the Pats this year.
Then, if the team that finally wins becomes dominating, they switch places and become the all mighty unbeatable team that everyone wants to beat. People (outside of Texas) loved it when the Cowboys rose up, and got sick of them when they stayed up. That's what happens. Get used to it.
Meanwhile, the Sox organization has played by the rules, developed a fabulous player development system that only recruits good talent, but also does an amazing job of preparing them for the big leagues so they can step up and contribute right away. They spent money when needed on free agents, and to hang on to talent they would have other wise lost. They have let talent go that they thought was not worth the coin (Pedro, Damon, etc.).
Everyone finds it frustrating when team like the NYY have triple the amount of money to spend, but that is not their fault, it is MLB's system. Small market teams are at a disadvantage, but if tehy run a smart organization, and get creative, no reason they can't also compete.
Focus on how to get your own team over the top and complete, quit whining about it.
Way to act just the way everybody expects you to act, Kevin.
In the last 4 years, fans of the Red Sox, Pats and Celtics have become insufferable.
i lived in boston for seven years.
red sox fans are boorish, arrogant and obnoxious. even when their team was losing. intelligent and well-informed? try yahoos.
Man, did this column hit the spot. It has been building for a while, and now Simmons has clearly "jumped the shark". The fact is, the entire city of Boston has.
I'm sure folks in Bostson are nice enough. At Dice-K's debut last season at the K, the crowd was overwhelmingly Sox fans, and many seemed to be Bostonians. They seemed nice. But the condecension was too much to take. Not just about the Royals, but the expectation was clearly that us bumpkins should be very happy they brought a real team to play an exhibition in our hick town. And don't say "Youk" in my stadium when your overachieving first baseman is announced. I hate to say this, but in my experience Yankees fans are at least respectful while puffing out their chests in our stadium. Something close to class maybe. Not Sox fans. And that is my beef. We don't need you, so just go away then. Really, nothing personal, but just go away.
And then there was Simmons' running blog about the start. Sonic is one of the largest fast food chains in the country, and he mocked the commercials for it because he'd never heard of it. "Those silly flyover country hicks eat gravy on their breakfast sandwiches at some place called Sonic!" Wow, that was sooooooo funny.
I don't want to hear justifications for Manny's antics. I don't want to see Paps' idiodic dance. It was not charming, or "genuine", or... I don't care and neither does anybody outside of the city of Boston. Trust us, it's not envy. It's total sensory over-saturation. And it's enough already.
Big Tito: you are right and I am wrong.
Steve: "we always love our sox no matter what. Don't think KC can same the same about thier fans." (sic)
1966: after 20 years without a playoff appearance,
http://www.boston.com/sports/b...
You didn't always love the Red Sox. After two decades of futility before the 67' Impossible Dream season, the OPENING DAY attendance in 67' was...
... 8,234.
hahahahaaaha.....Kansas City who? YOu guys are really funny. Too bad you'll ust never have that much excitement now huh.
Hate all you want....we love it. And yes just because we won doesn't make us any different, we always love our sox no matter what. Don't think KC can same the same about thier fans.
maybe someday you won't be so bitter.
Yes Matt I do watch baseball which is why I know that FP is a bogus stat. In fact, the fact that Manny doesn't bother to run after fly balls works to his advantage because he is less likely to make an error on a ball that rolls to a stop at his feet.
The Boston Red Sox have the two highest paid World Championships teams in history (2004, 2007) and the highest paid team to ever miss the playoffs (2006).
And WTF is a "Bruin?" Is that some kinda blue state pinko word for "Bear?" Bobby Orr wore silk panties.
Bartleby, do you even watch baseball? The Red Sox were the second best defensive team in the AL last year with s .986 fielding percentage. In 2006 they were the best defensive team in the American League with a fielding percentage of .989
And they would never, EVER trade for a selfish clubhouse cancer like A-Rod.
Never a possibility.
Oh. Wait.
Sure, the Red Sox did not buy a championship ... they didn't spend $51 million just for the rights to talk to a player ... now THAT'S the equivalent of the Royals total salary if you really want to compare apples to oranges.
And the Red Sox would never do something unholy like trade away prospects from their precious farm system to get expensive star players ... oh no, they never traded away HANLEY FREAKING RAMIREZ, one the ten best players in baseball, to get Josh Beckett. No, that's something the Yankees would do, not the sainted Red Sawks.
You tell him Chris! And again, Matt's argument about the difference between Yankees and Red Sox payroll is specious because the Red Sox salary numbers never include the $51 million posting fee paid for Dice-K. If you counted the entire fee for 2007, then the Red Sox had the highest payroll in baseball ... if you pro-rate it over the life of his contract, then the Red Sox are #2 this year and much closer to the Yankees than the full Royals salary price.
The fact that the BoSux spend enough money on offense that they don't have to play defense and, in fact have an utter disdain for it, is insulting to the game.
Matt:
Royals fans have nothing to apologize for. 20 years of the most generic kind of losing -- frankly, its a freaking miracle anyone shows up.
If the Red Sox had two consecutive decades of losing, the following would happen:
a) no one -- nowhere -- would talk of Red Sox Nation,
and b) rather than the historic icon it is now (and justifiably so), Fenway Park would be half-empty and be considered outdated and dilapitated by some (because the stadium would be half-empty).
What I was trying to say was the difference between the Red Sox and Yankee payroll is more than the entire Royals payroll. I never said the Red Sox do not spend money, I said the did not buy a championship. Maybe if some of you Royal fans actually attended a game once in a while your team would have some money to spend. The Royals averaged under 20,000 fans per game last year and if you take away all of the Sox and Yankee fans that were paying to see the away team the number would be much less. The Oakland A's have found ways to win with a small budget, don't get mad at the Sox for winning, get mad at your GM for not getting it done. Money helps but so does having a great GM.
It's BECAUSE the hankees spend so much money, that others in the AL East are forced to spend that kind of money in order to compete with them.
Matt,
My point is this:
there is absolutely no difference --- none -- between what the Yankees did in the 00s and the Red Sox are doing now. The Yanks produced young players (Pettite, Jeter, Posada, Williams, Rivera) and spent like hell to supplement their young talent.
Back then, the Yanks were called an Evil Empire and a destructive force in baseball.
What the Bosox are doing now is precisely the same.
I don't really see a difference between the two except how they market each other.
True, the Red Sox are 4th, but it's basically a tie for second between the Tigers, Mets and Red Sox, all bunched in the $130s. It's not true that the Red Sox are closer to the Royals than Yankees -- they are about $75 million ahead of the Royals and $66 million behind the Yankees. To say that the Red Sox won solely on the backs of young cheap players is idiocy ... they wouldn't have even made the playoffs without Ortiz, Ramirez, Matsuzaka (who's Japanese fee is NOT COUNTED in the salary total) and Beckett. If you'd like to ship those guys to the Royals and make due with your farm system, be my guest.
As for the Yankees, there's no question that they've been foolishly spending money on aging players for half a decade now. But a lot of that money is going to come off the books in the next two years and the farm system is improving. So enjoy your wins now, Red Sox, you won't be on top for long.
FYI the Sox have the 4th highest payroll in baseball. The difference between the Yankees payroll and Boston's payroll is more than that of the Royals. If money bought great teams the Yankees would be in first place not last. The players that won the World Series for Boston were guys like Pedroia, Lester, Ellsbury, Youkilis and Papelbon. Players developed in the Sox farm system and making under the league average. If the Sox wanted to be the Yankees they would have sent their youngsters to the Twins for Santana. The very premise of your article is way off base; what has Manny even said recently? When your team gets swept tonight remember that Colon was a free agent that the Royals could have afforded in the off season and chose not to sign.
http://www.fenwaywest.com
you took the words right outta my mouth. and thank you for turning me on to another sports writer i can loathe...
Someone needed to say it. The Red Sox are a role model for every underachieving rich kid ... in other words, the George W. Bush of sports franchises.
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