The Joke's On the Red Sox Fan: The Players, The Media, The Manager, The GM, and The Owners All Let Us Down

_{The Texas Trio: Beckett, Lackey, and Lester failed the Red Sox fans huge in 2011. Disgusting.}

“While stands the Coliseum, Rome shall stand; / When falls the Coliseum, Rome shall fall; / And when Rome falls - the World.” -Lord Byron

It's been 14 days, exactly two weeks, since the 2011 Red Sox season came to a crashing halt on September 28th. In those short two weeks the fall-out has been surprising, a shock, and swift. Terry Francona is no longer the Red Sox Manager, Ron Johnson is no longer their First Base Coach, and now it looks like Theo will no longer be their GM. Two Weeks - that's all it's been. Oh how quickly the mighty have fallen.

Now the Boston Globe is running a large front page expose that goes "Inside the collapse of the Red Sox". I have to again call bullshit on their timing here, because all of this is only being reported well after the fact and not during it. Where was the Globe's all-access crack staff of reporters while this was actually happening? Does the fact that their parent company, The New York Times, owns a portion of the Sox despite partially selling some for a nice profit this past July, affect how they report in real time? Is there a conflict of interest when you're reporting on yourself? Is it even reporting? Or are they just a high priced Marketing Department? The reporter who's breaking the story now, Bob Hohler, is not even a Sports Journalist, he's an investigative reporter for the Globe, which is pathetic. Either the beats were too afraid to offend the selfish Sox players who quit on the fans, or they're to inept to do any actual journalism. The following is from the article:

"Most requested anonymity out of concern for their jobs or potential damage to their relationships in the organization."

You know what that tells me? Next time things are going sour they're still going to be too chicken shit to do their job and report on it. My faith in them is lost. Hate all you want on Dan Shaughnessy, at least the dude calls it like he sees it, and not how he's told to see it. It makes me furious that these fools with all the access and sources in the world turned their eyes blind as Rome crumbled beneath their feet - and just like the steroid era, it wasn't reported on until it was safe for them. Rats feeding on the garbage is all they are.

Still though, the article is telling - and despite the preface that surrounds it, I applaud Hohler for his work, he doesn't care about burning bridges, just the truth. Some highlights from the article are below:

• John Lackey is already dead to the Red Sox fan, both the casual and die-hard - but it looks like this mouth breathing dragon clown is also bringing down the two relegated aces on the staff as well. Josh Becket and Jon Lester are going to have a lot to answer for come Spring, and how I'm going to bring myself around to root for these two again is going to be hard, if not impossible. They are selfish brats and should be booed the first time they touch the mound.
• Francona deserved to get fired to not have his contract extensions picked up. It's his job to control the Clubhouse, and he lost it big time, and by him not trying, he set the tone that reverberated throughout September. He quit on them, so they quit on both him and us.
• Wakefield should never pitch for the Red Sox again. Despite all the good he's done over the years, especially in the community, he killed our bullpen going for #200, and helped add fuel to the selfishness that purveyed the Team. And if he, the eldest statesman on the Team is setting that example, good is sure not to follow.
• The same goes for Jason Varitek. These millionaires playing a game forgot that they aren't entitled to anything, none of us are - but they acted like spoiled brats and rested on the larels of their past, while bitching about what they get paid very well to do.
• Dustin Pedroia is who we thought he is - a dedicated ballplayer, lover of the game, and no excuse guy. He couldn't lead this Team by himself though, especially when veterans like Beckett, Wakefield, and V-Tek could undermine him. I think we should ditch the ridiculous hockey 'C' on the jersey, Tek soiled that idea, but if we don't Petey is the only one deserving of it.

I could write more, but I'm honestly too angry right now. This is the curse of the fan. No one truly gives a shit except for us. The reporters, the players, the Managers - all of them are free agents working the highest paycheck. We're rooting for the love of a game and Team, we'll have a 'B' on our hat for life, and that's why the jokes on us.

Hold tight wait till the party's over
Hold tight We're in for nasty weather
There has got to be a way
Burning down the house
-David Byrne, Talking Heads - "Burning Down the House"

Comments

[Desmond DeSilva]

We have a team of really solid guys, and I think next year we will be a lot stronger. Wakefield will be a great coach - so will Varitek. The Red Sox Organization will make a great comeback.