2011 Baseball Season/Off-Season Discussion

[faldor]

I like Bobby V, always have and i think he'd be a good choice for the Sox.

Yeah, he's a very knowledgeable baseball guy, that's for sure.  And he's more of a "no nonsense" kind of guy.  At least, far moreso than Francona, and that's what the Sox need at this point.  I don't know if he's a "long term" answer, but I think he'd be fine for the short term.  With that being said, I don't think anyone is cut out to be the long term answer in Boston.  Francona was about as close as it gets and he lasted 7 years, if you want to call that long term.  And that's WITH winning 2 World Series.  You think that'd get you a little more than 7 years.

Yes, that's definitely what they need right now a take no shit guy. Francona likely would've lasted longer had he not lost complete control of the clubhouse.

Yeah, that's one of the knocks on Valentine.  People say he completely lost control of the Mets clubhouse in 2002, 2 years after taking the team to the World Series.  I just think there's a shelf life for MLB managers, especially in big markets.  Hell, even Joe Torre lost control a bit towards the end of his reign with the Yankees.  No one can last forever in such a high pressure position.  But Valentine might be able to make his mark for a 4-5 year period.

[Falcon]

Here's the thing for me about Valentine, there's gotta be a reason nobody in MLB has wanted anything to do with him for 10 years - why would Boston?

[faldor]

Here's the thing for me about Valentine, there's gotta be a reason nobody in MLB has wanted anything to do with him for 10 years - why would Boston?

Well, the pool of applicants isn't all that appealing.  Terry Lovullo?  Gene Lamont?  Dale Sveum?  Sandy Alomar Jr.?  Pete Mackanin?  Names don't exactly knock your socks off.  I think Mike Maddux or John Ferrell would've been great choices but Maddux wanted to stay put and the Jays weren't going to let Ferrell go.  I would've like to have seen Tony Pena get a shot.  Not sure what happened there, if the Yankees blocked the Sox from talking to him or not.

[tim_m]

I'm sure the Yankees blocked the Sox from Pena and wouldn't allow him to talk to them. The Yankees love Pena a great former catcher and a very good coach. Since we have two very young good catching prospects for him to help teach losing him would not be good.

[faldor]

I'm sure the Yankees blocked the Sox from Pena and wouldn't allow him to talk to them. The Yankees love Pena a great former catcher and a very good coach. Since we have two very young good catching prospects for him to help teach losing him would not be good.

Yeah, that's what I would suspect.  Otherwise I don't see why he wouldn't have been on the Sox radar.  He has managerial experience, experience playing in and dealing with the Boston media.  I think he would've been a great fit.  And former catchers tend to make the best managers.

[tim_m]

I'm sure the Yankees blocked the Sox from Pena and wouldn't allow him to talk to them. The Yankees love Pena a great former catcher and a very good coach. Since we have two very young good catching prospects for him to help teach losing him would not be good.

Yeah, that's what I would suspect.  Otherwise I don't see why he wouldn't have been on the Sox radar.  He has managerial experience, experience playing in and dealing with the Boston media.  I think he would've been a great fit.  And former catchers tend to make the best managers.

Yeah, no reason he wouldn't have been on their list if he was given permission to talk to Boston. I hope he gets an opportunity to manage again. He deserves it. Although, i would hope its not in Boston. 

[Falcon]

Here's the thing for me about Valentine, there's gotta be a reason nobody in MLB has wanted anything to do with him for 10 years - why would Boston?

Well, the pool of applicants isn't all that appealing.  Terry Lovullo?  Gene Lamont?  Dale Sveum?  Sandy Alomar Jr.?  Pete Mackanin? 

Yep, not exactly a deep candidate pool for sure - ouch.

[Falcon]

More on Valentine from Murray Chass here, both guys creep me out so take it for what it's worth...

http://www.murraychass.com/?p=4056

[faldor]

More on Valentine from Murray Chass here, both guys creep me out so take it for what it's worth...

http://www.murraychass.com/?p=4056

I don't buy the, teams try harder to beat Bobby V. because they hate him so much.  That just sounds ridiculous.  If that's the case, why not hire the most well liked guy in the business so teams will roll over and let the Sox win.  Crazy talk.

Also, guys can change.  I don't remember Bill Belichick being too fondly thought of, as a head coach after his failed attempt in Cleveland.  People said he was too surly, he didn't get along with his players, he drove Vinny Testeverde out of town.  Yet, years later he became one of the best coaches in NFL history.  I'm not saying Bobby V. will follow on that same path.  Just, what someone did 10+ years ago doesn't define who they will be tomorrow and years to come.

With that being said, I do think if the Sox really loved Valentine, they would've hired him by now.  Not to say they won't eventually.  But I think it's safe to say they're not overly enamored with any of the applicants, at least not across the board.  Bobby V. is Lucchino's guy.  Cherington wanted Sveum.  So far they don't see eye to eye, which sounds a lot like the Theo/Lucchino relationship.  So here we go again.

[Falcon]

So here we go again.

It's never boring in Boston is it faldor?

[faldor]

So here we go again.

It's never boring in Boston is it faldor?

They do keep things entertaining.  One thing this long managerial search has done, is it has taken the focus off of their horrendous September collapse and all the shenanigans that went along with it.  It's almost forgotten now, and the attention has swayed to "when the hell are they going to hire a manager and who the hell is it going to be?  Bobby Valentine?  Really?"  Maybe a genius move on the owners part it the end, as the fanbase was really starting to turn, now it's more about ON the field stuff.

[tim_m]

ESPN reporting the Sox managerial job is down to Valentine and Lamont and will make a decision by next Monday when the winter meetings start in Dallas.

[COMAMOTIVE]

Boston was definitely going to go a different route after last year's debacle. They have to spark things up, and get the fans excited again and imo Bobby V is the perfect guy for them. He won't take sh*t either, been around the block too long. From an X and O's standpoint, he's as good as they get too. Problem has always seemingly been that from a "manager who annoys the sh*t out of his players" standpoint, he's as good as they get too.... should be a wild year if they make this move

[tim_m]

It appears Bobby V it is for the Sox new manager.

[Falcon]

It appears Bobby V it is for the Sox new manager.

Yes it does.

With visions of Bobby V dancing in his head, John Heyman just pulled up his pants, threw away the sticky tissue and lit a cigarette.

[tim_m]

It appears Bobby V it is for the Sox new manager.

Yes it does.

With visions of Bobby V dancing in his head, John Heyman just pulled up his pants, threw away the sticky tissue and lit a cigarette.

LOL! Good one. That was funny.

[LongGoneDay]

It appears Bobby V it is for the Sox new manager.

It's cool by me.
Should be interesting. From a baseball standpoint, I don't believe there is anyone in the game more knowledgeable than him.
I don't see him being out managed.
Just curious to see how his personality meshes with some of the divas on this roster.
Whereas Francona was here solely(and mostly successfully) to massage egos, Valentine is a whole different direction.

Hopefully they can get the ball rolling on some of the countless other issues of the offseason.

[GeorgeSteele]

I loved Bobby V with the Mets, smartest manager they ever had.  Problem with him is, he's fucking crazy.  Seriously, he may be a borderline paranoid schizophrenic and always ends up having his players turn on him.  It won't be boring though, that's for sure. 

[tim_m]

Some of the players aren't happy about the hire. I guess the poor babies are upset they won't be able to goof off drinking beer and playing cards in the clubhouse anymore. Wah wah cry me a river.

[tim_m]

Bernie Williams is on the HOF ballot for the first time this year. Anyone think he has a legit shot at getting it at some point? I think he's got a chance. His regular season numbers are very good but not great. I think his postseason stats and his 4 championships will help him. I don't know if it'll be enough though.