After-M*A*N*N*Y

One more and I'm done with this...

Steve Silva had an excellent media roundup this morning; although there have been a few more pieces put out since then (notably Charles P Pierce's) for Slate. What's striking is that all of the national columns place the Sox in the "deadline losers" category (akin to my reaction-piece yesterday), whereas the Boston-centered columns push the story line that Manny's time was clearly up.

Watching Theo's press conference, the train of thought was clear, the relationship had run it's course, we were lucky to get a player as good as Jason Bay in return, everyone in the clubhouse can breathe again, etc. And that's fine. It seemed as if Manny's bizarre behavior had reached new heights recently. There's no real way to know how disruptive his presence was on his teammates. It's clear that the Sox caved, though. Whether to Manny's demands, or the "veteran's meeting" or whatever. And they got less than market value. Not a Belichik move, for sure. If all of a sudden, the Sox hitters start producing, and the middle relief core shows up, and Matsuzaka finds the strike zone, then we'll know.

Let's make a number of things clear about the Manny Ramirez era. Everyone knew he was a petulant man-child when he got here. We've been through pouts, contract disputes, the waiver-wire thing, potential trades, questionable injuries, etc. Was it worse this year? I don't know. What I do know, is that he was enabled the entire way. By the media, the ownership, his teammates, the fans. As soon as Manny put on a happy face, and talked about ending his career in Boston, and put the offense on his back for a few months (see Ortiz's absence this year) everyone let it go. So I'm disturbed with how quickly the locals turned on him (I'm including Gammons in this indictment). I won't even give Callahan the luxury of linking to his vitriolic column.

Was everyone holding back this whole time, fearful that Manny would freak out and disappear? Talk of fines, suspensions, and more all came out today. Or is Nomar right, that the Sox brass unload both barrels when shipping someone out of town? I'm finding more of a case for the latter. The Red Sox PR machine, which clearly includes the Globe, sells their side of the story with the tact and efficiency of the Bush White House. Pedro, Schilling & Manny are all jerks to suggest they should negotiate during the season. Theo wants more control. Nomar and Manny sit games out when they want to.

Sox fans (especially those who are Pats fans) understand the cold hearted reasoning that goes into player contract decisions. As much as we want our idols to retire in Boston, there's an understanding that you don't pay for sentimentality at the expense of the future of the team. So there's no reason to portray these stars as bad guys. They get old and don't have the same value they once did. Fine. Admit that and move on. But this tearing down of players to serve a PR purpose bothers me.

It's not time to panic or give up on the season, but things need to pick up soon if the Sox are to stay in the playoff hunt. I'm hoping Colon comes back soon, either to take Bucholz's spot, or to give Beckett a 15-day breather. Bay opens in the 5 hole today, but I expect this to change. I think Ortiz might have to drop to the cleanup, but I'll be satisfied if they come up with a good way to position Ortiz-Lowell-Drew-Bay at 3-4-5-6 so it goes L-R-L-R. And if we're paying Manny to play for the Dodgers, can we send Julio Lugo and $20M along the same lines? Please.

I'll pop a pick-6 up tonight or tomorrow. Till then...