Terry Francona, the erstwhile most loyal manager in the game, stuck with Ortiz in the three-hole for much of the season, defying both logic and the impassioned pleas of every baseball pundit this side of the Mississippi. However, a couple of weeks ago, even Francona had seen enough and he unceremoniously nudged Ortiz to sixth in the lineup- undoubtedly a shameful demotion for the once-proud slugger. Unfortunately, this has been akin to slapping a band-aid on a mortal wound. Papí still hasn’t hit and, I’m trying my darndest to be fair here, right now he wouldn’t be fit to bat ninth for the Padres.
Terry Francona
5 June 2009
1 April 2009
Dear Readers (all five of you):
I've been active on my other blog at www.fannation.com, under the username JFro, but I continually forget to publish those posts here. That said, the next five posts should be considered my belated MLB preseason predictions -- a preview, of sorts. There's the top five infields, outfields, bullpens, and starting rotations, and of course The Big Kahuna:
Posted by John Frascella | No comments yet
2 October 2008
ross home plate, after Torii Hunter dropped a flare into left field for a single. After that, Terry Francona’s ace in the hole shut the door on Anaheim and completely blew the Angels’ biggest bats out of the water (Lester didn’t even give up an extra-base hit).
Posted by David Trageser | No comments yet
1 October 2008
That said, let’s hope that Red Sox manager Terry Francona has his squad ready for a fired-up, refuse-to-be-denied Angels team. It’s that ‘vision’ thing that the Angels b
Posted by Skip Maloney | No comments yet
14 September 2008
n his career average, and more than 20 points higher than last year. He is one of the players Terry Francona would point to when talking about getting the little things done to win games.
Posted by Greg Cunningham | No comments yet
11 September 2008
as asking these questions in the 8th, 9th and 11th innings. There may have been a good reason Terry Francona made the moves he made, but I just don't see it.
Posted by Greg Cunningham | No comments yet
1 September 2008
Like a scene from the beloved long-running television drama, I feel like I'm looking through a one-way window at the Boston Red Sox. Indeed, I fear the word "lineup" has taken on a conotation with a decidedly more law enforcement feel at this point. "Mr Francona, take a look at these men and tell me if you recognize anyone."
Posted by Keith Testa | 1 comment
20 July 2008
stical loser). But these two losses occurred not because the starters broke down, but because Terry Francona has no one he trusts in the bullpen more than a tired starter.
Josh Beckett gave up four runs on four hits yesterday in the 7th inning. Most managers would be racing to the mound to get him out and bring in relief. But we are back to the age old question (at least of this season). who do you go to? The guy who can't get anyone out? The guy who allows inherited runners to score? Can Jonathan Papelbon pitch for three innings every night?
Posted by Greg Cunningham | No comments yet
14 July 2008
Would you take Kevin Youlikis at first over Justin Morneau? Perhaps, or perhaps not—but Terry Francona must, because The Fans Said So.
And this is just the AL. The NL is “stuck” with Lance Berkman, who’s having a heck of a year, instead of Albert Pujols, whom NL skipper Clint Hurdle had to hand-pick after fans passed on him. Pujols, for those of you who have been asleep since 2001, has been arguably the best hitter in baseball since then. And Ryan Braun’s a whiz with the bat—when he makes contact—but not such a great defender in left. Might you want to shift Nate McLouth, a reserve who normally plays in center, to right instead, since Nate’s OPS is 16 points higher even than slugger Braun?
Posted by Street Reporter | No comments yet
3 July 2008
When Terry Francona calls the bullpen these days, he may hear this recording: “Thank you for calling the Red Sox Bullpen. If you want a pitcher to walk the next batter, press 1. If you want a pitcher to give up two hits in a row, press 2. If you want a pitcher to face the next four batters without recording an out, press 3. If you want a pitcher who can pitch the 8thinning without giving up a run, please hang up and call the General Manager’s office and put in your request. For guaranteed outs, please call 1-800-Papelbon.”
Posted by Greg Cunningham | 1 comment
17 March 2008
Caught my first Boston Red Sox spring training game today on MLB.TV and truth be told, it was a yawner. Ended up 8-4, Yanks; a score that was on the board by the bottom of the fourth inning, rendering the remainder of the broadcast something of an exercise for the announcers, Michael O'Kay and John O'Flaherty (it being St. Patrick's Day, they both added "O"s to the front of their last names.). Having lived in New York for the last 15 years or so, I heard and saw a lot of these two (Flaherty, less. Kay is usually teamed with Paul O'Neill or Al Leiter). Every time the Sox and Yankees got together, I'd be listening to them instead of Joe Castglione and Jerry Remy. Kay and Flaherty are Yankee partisans, of course, but they're also professionals and Michael Kay, in particular, is a first class announcer. He used to do 'color' with John Sterling on New York radio. Sterling is more of an obvious Yankee fan than Kay, with an annoying habit of making routine plays into headline news with phony rhymes. Matsui hits a home run and we hear "A Thrilla from Godzilla." Alex Rodriguez hits a home run and we get "An A-Bomb from A-Rod." And when the Yankees win, he has this annoying habit of saying "The -ah-ah-ah-ah-ah Yankees win."
Posted by Skip Maloney | No comments yet
5 March 2008
als might have a better shot at contention.
Finally, this is long overdue, but congratulations to Terry Francona on reaching a contract extension with the Red Sox. I have always held the beli
Continue reading "Looking Forward to the Hank Steinbrenner ..."
Posted by Joe Sauer | No comments yet
20 February 2008
Like the rest of Red Sox Nation, I really like what I saw in Jacoby Ellsbury's play last season and think he's the one to roam Fenway's center stage in 2008. But was it enough to turn Coco Crisp into Coco Crust? I'm not sure about that yet. Jacoby's a speedster with pretty good defensive skills, a so so arm, and an exciting bat, but did we see enough to anoint him to your everyday center fielder?
Continue reading "Coco vs Ellsbury: The Center Fielders of Attention"
Posted by michael moschella | No comments yet
