There has been a lot of debate over the past couple of days about what the attributing factors are for the Red Sox’s worst to first turnaround this season.
Some, such as The Boston Herald‘s Gerry Callahan, believe improved team chemistry is the central reason as to why the Red Sox will clinch a playoff birth this week after winning a 69 games just one year ago.
Callahan writes in his column on Tuesday that last year’s free agent crop such as Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino and Johnny Gomes were signed for their attitudes, and not their talent.
“Cherington made the greatest trade in Red Sox history a year ago, and then last winter, took the team in a bold new direction. He decided chemistry matters, character matters. He signed a busload of over-30 free agents who would not break the bank or rock the boat. He overpaid for guys like Shane Victorino, Jonny Gomes, Ryan Dempster and David Ross, and he resisted the temptation to throw money at a TV star like Josh Hamilton. The owners wanted sexy, he gave them mangy. It was risky. In February, I predicted this team would set a club record for appearances at the Jimmy Fund Clinic — and win 78 games.”
Others, such as Craig Calcaterra of NBC Sports, believes chemistry is far from the biggest reason the Red Sox have been so successful this season.
Calcaterra was a guest on Callahan’s radio show, “Dennis and Callahan,” on Tuesday morning and sparred with Callahan over this exact topic.
After the interview, Calcaterra writes on his blog that despite Callahan’s assertions, he does not believe Gomes and others are mystical good luck charms.
“From there on it just devolved into their assertions that Jonny Gomes was a good luck charm while they rarely let me talk. At one point they said that Adrian Gonzalez is magically no longer a team cancer because he’s back in California and players from California are happier in California. I pointed out that Jonny Gomes was from California but that didn’t go over too well because, you know, facts. I didn’t get a chance to mention that Gomes’ “wins everywhere he plays” only works when you cut out the bulk of his career spent in Tampa Bay with the Devil Rays.”
It’s difficult to say how much team chemistry or character plays into a team’s success, because intangible factors are impossible to quantify. There is little doubt the 2012 Red Sox were a toxic mess, but a lot of that can be attributed to the inept buffoon of a manager they hired, and a shallow roster.
The fall of the 2011 Red Sox, in which they went 7-20 in September after being 30 games above .500 in August, remains more difficult to explain.
Terry Francona was the first to say after eight years on the job, it was time for the Red Sox to hire a “different voice.” But it was also time for the Red Sox to overhaul the roster.
The starting rotation, relying on the likes of Andrew Miller and Kyle Weiland to make starts down the stretch, posted a franchise worst 7.08 ERA in September. The team wasn’t deep, and couldn’t supplement the waning production of Gonzalez, Crawford, Kevin Youkilis and others.
The 2011 Red Sox may have had poor character all season long. They were comprised of apathetic, overpaid underachievers who spent their time complaining about playing too many Sunday night games.
But if the team had a sixth starter such as Ryan Dempster or Felix Doubront in 2011, as they do now, they would’ve made the playoffs. The reason why this year’s team has more depth than the Red Sox of two years ago is because of the financial flexibility Cherington afforded himself when he unloaded the contracts of Gonzalez, Crawford and Josh Beckett to the Dodgers last August.
Victorino isn’t just a good guy. He’s a better player than Crawford is. Victorino’s OPS is 81 points higher, has nine more home runs and is a better defensive outfielder than Crawford is at this stage in their careers.
Napoli may not be a better player than Gonzalez, but he represents far better value on a one-year, $5 million deal than Gonzalez does on a seven-year, $154 million contract. The money the Red Sox freed up at first base allowed them to extend Dustin Pedroia for $108 million over eight-years in July. They now have the ability to resign their own guys again.
Jettisoning Beckett, and his $31.5 million remaining in salary allowed the Red Sox to acquire Dempster, Gomes, Stephen Drew, Ross and other pieces. If the Red Sox still had Beckett’s contract and his 5.19 ERA on the books, they wouldn’t have been able to trade for Jake Peavy and the $14.5 million he’s owed for next season at the trade deadline this year.
Instead of spending $12 million on Bobby Jenks, the Red Sox signed Koji Uehara for $4.25 million last offseason. Uehara has only allowed one earned run since July 2, and retired 37 consecutive batters entering Tuesday night’s game (if it wasn’t for Victorino’s bad jump on Danny Valencia’s triple, the streak may have continued).
The Red Sox are on the verge of a 100-win season because they have the best lineup in baseball, healthy starting pitchers who are pitching to their abilities and a competent manager. The trade with the Dodgers last August may have ridded the Red Sox of knuckleheads. But more importantly, it ridded them of $250 million in salary.
This is a great baseball team. Attributing their success to beards, or anything of the like, is a disservice to them.
Photos via Jim Rogash/Getty Images and Michael Dwyer/AP
