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Theoretically Speaking: "Suck it Up Manny" GC: How do you deal with a guy who doesn't seem to have his heart in it to quite the extent that you do? Theo: Well Chach should have told you that I'm not gonna talk about the Manny situation because there's still "no comment" for now but I can answer that question, everyone's different, you have 25 guys on a baseball club, you have some guys you can't get out of the lineup, some guys you can't get into the lineup. Some guys are there first thing in the morning, actually Manny is always the first one to the ballpark believe it or not, and works usually as hard as anyone on the ballclub, does his extra hitting and everything else but everyone's different. It's not an ideal world, you're not going to have 25 guys who are all the same, but that's our goal, you can only bring in so many guys each year, but the goal is to have 25 guys who are all towing the same line and want to win more than anything in the world, and that's all they care about. JD: How do you think this weekend's episode with the Yankees and then yesterday refusing to enter the game and even pinch hit sits with the rest of the guys in the clubhouse? Theo: I just know we have a lot of guys who want to win. And that's what they care about and they want their teammates to want to win too and I think they're going to work through it to get on the same page. GC: Was yesterday's win a rallying point? Anyone can win a game for us, Lou Merloni, Mirabelli, Johnny Damon, Trot Nixon... is that a game you can build on, does that game carry over? Theo: I think so, I don't think the symbolism is lost on anyone and it was a great team win and that's what we are is a team. The game was really a microcosm of the whole season. We didn't make things easy on ourselves, we had problems in the bullpen, we put ourselves behind the 8-ball, and then our offense bailed us out again. I hope the ending of the game is just a foreshadow of what's going to happen at the end of the season too. GC: Did you know Manny was unavailable when you were sitting up here in Boston watching it? Or were you expecting say when Merloni hit to see Manny? Theo: No I... Jim Rowe had approached Manny in the middle of the game to see if he was good to go, but he was still too sick, he wasn't ready to pinch hit, so I knew. JD: You might be interested to learn that in addition to the outrage of Manny not getting involved in the Yankee series, the socializing with Enrique Wilson, and missing the doctor's appointment and refusing to go into the game yesterday, the second part of the conversation for most people seems to be how the Red Sox front office and ownership handles this Manny situation from a disciplinary standpoint will say a lot about this team going forward and a referendum on dealing with players, do you think that's overstating the case? Theo: It is a bit because there are so many extenuating circumstances, let's not forget that the most important thing on everyone's mind right now, with one month to go in the season, has to be winning. And we need to win. JD: And if you have a player whose number one priority is not that, is not shared with the other 24 guys, it seems to me... Theo: You make it... you make his first priority winning. GC: How do you do that? Theo: Uhh no comment.. GC: Is missing the doctor's appointment the most egregious thing, the one thing sits the worst with you? Theo: Well, Doctor Morgan saw Manny yesterday, he went over to his house... GC: a Doctor who still makes housecalls... Yep. JD: Is there an ownership/management meeting to discuss today Theo? Theo: We talk about this stuff all the time, it's not going to be hashed out in the public. GC: What did you think during that rally yesterday, the Merloni at bat, followed by Trot, were you jumping out of your seat? How did you react? Theo: Yeah, I came out of my seat, we had great at bat after great at bat, Damian Jackson's at bat... Mirabelli's at bat was great drawing a walk, Damian Jackson's... that was an incredible piece of hitting from him going the other way, Merloni really battled, and it was an amazing inning. I hope it's a reflection of our team and our season. GC: At what point will you find out if Manny's ready tonight to face Bartolo Colon? Theo: I think he will be, that's my gut feel. GC: Do you just wait for him to show up at the park? Does Grady go see him? How do you assess his... Theo: He'll be at the park early, he really is the first one at the park, and I just have a gut feel he'll be available tonight. GC: So you don't think he'll be suspended Theo, that won't happen? Theo: I doubt it. They'll probably be some disciplinary action, I doubt he'll be suspended. GC: What other things are there, just fines? Theo: Yeah, there's things you can do but again we're not... I don't think it's the right thing to do discuss it in public. If there's an announcement, it will come out. JD: We're not putting words in your mouth but I think it's pretty clear when you talked about Johnny Damon yesterday "we really appreciate the way Johnny Damon sucked it up and got in the lineup, that's the kind of effort we need from everybody on this club in September as we try to make the playoffs." Theo: Absolutely. I stand by that. That's exactly what we need if we're going to get where we're gonna go and I think Johnny Damon sucking it up and getting in the lineup provided a lot of motivation for the team yesterday in a game where we showed a lot of intestinal fortitude as a team and it's a gray area. People are hurt, people are sick this time of year. People aren't faking things, they are sick. And they are hurt. But, it's time to dig deep and get your way in the lineup. I have not been listening and from what you say people are outraged. Sometimes there is reason for outrage and sometimes there's gray areas too. Let's just hope that soon all 25 guys find a way to suck it up, put the team first, get in the lineup, and win this thing. That's what we're trying to get to. We're not trying to come down on people, we're not trying to turn people into something they're not, we just need the team to come first right now, and we're all in this thing together and we're trying to win. GC: Why did Manny go to Philadelphia if it was a one game series and he's not available, why not just go ahead on to Chicago? Theo: He came to Philly because he and we weren't sure if he was going to be available or not. If he was feeling better he would have been in there, he was too weak to play. GC: Have you ever called in sick Theo? Theo: Uhh no. I mean I've gone home from work but I've never called in sick. - Red Sox GM Theo Epstein, with Dennis and Callahan, WEEI, 9.2.03 Disco Divas
A healthier, heavier Pedro Martinez (center, in stripes) and a fully-recovered Manny Ramirez (behind Pedro in white shirt) celebrate the Red Sox comeback win over Philadelphia at Chicago's Navy Pier Monday night. 9.4.03: Gammons: "Pedro and Manny aren't dancing in the same conga line as the rest of the team... they had to sit Manny down and say 'you're messing with our (playoff) money now.'" It's Getting Heart in Here
I was like, good gracious
I said, it's gettin' heart in herre - Rap Artist Little Petey The Trot Nixon Show: Without Me
Didn't swing for the Monster, then nobody wants to bash
Manny no more Sox Make Trouble for Opponents, Not Police "I think controversy, and even some negative stuff, can be provocative and keep fans interested and so we feel fortunate and not victimized." On the Boston Media: "There is a certain kind of fatalism, or expectation of problem that the media here does have, the fans here have, in fact management here has probably had over the years because of the history and the record here. It's no secret that there's a more aggressive, more extensive media core here than in most cities... (GC: How negative was the Boston media after you took two games from the Yankees?) It was enormously positive. (GC: So wouldn't it be really intense, and really emotional, and passionate and not necessarily negative? If negative things are happening then naturally the media will reflect that sentiment. You don't get a more positive media in San Diego or anywhere that you had in Boston yesterday (after Mueller grand slams). I think that's right, but remember Jones has been here for what a week? And what he's hearing is stories from other guys, the conventional wisdom, the way it used to be, I mean this goes back to Ted Williams and the adversarial nature that has been allowed to exist between the players and the organization and the media. We've tried to change that. I hope we have made some inroads on that effort but I certainly don't blame Jones for coming with that point of view. There is a difference in baseball in the northeast. It is more intensely covered than it is in other parts of the country. I think that's a good thing by and large, I think controversy, and even some negative stuff, can be provocative and keep fans interested and so we feel fortunate and not victimized." LL with D&C on WEEI 7.31.03
Theoretically Speaking
Theo on AM 1510 The Zone with The
Diehards (Ryen Rusillo, Anthony Pepe, Mike Wynn) 8.1.03: The Kid's Alright: Birthday Boy 7.24.03 In a few words, the game this afternoon was painful. Very painful. And I’d rather not dwell on what I saw broadcast on NESN a few hours ago. Last night, on the other hand, was a different story. This Birthday Boy had a nice night at Fenway Park. Well, actually, my special day is tomorrow, but Friday night Yankee tickets with Pedro on the hill aren’t exactly easy to come by. So it was a Wednesday night affair with the intimidating Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The real B-day boy, one Nomar Garciaparra, put up an 0-fer, as he turned 30. Never fear though, Trot Nixon came through, blasting home 5 RBIs on two home runs, including a grand slam. And though I’ve seen my share of grannies on TV, to be honest this might have been the first I’ve been witness to in person. Continued The Kid's Alright: Don't Trade Freddy RUTHLESS!
Boycott W.B. Mason until "The
Truth About Ruth" ad (We'll go after Smug Sam Adams and the endless "Me four!" next)
Planet of the Sheapes
The Inane Mutiny: Paranoid Pedro "They were all racists. I tried to run my contract negotiations properly by the book, but they fought me at every turn. If the bullpen wanted to walk around with their shirttails hanging out, that's all right, let them! Hold the (expletive) line - defective replacements, no more, no less! But they encouraged the writers to go around, scoffing at me and spreading wild rumors about talking in circles and then 'Old Yellowstarter.' I was to blame for Grady Little's incompetence and poor game management. Roger Clemens was the perfect pitcher, but not Captain Pete. Ah, but the Sammy shows on ESPN! That's, that's where I had them. They laughed at me and made jokes, but I proved beyond the shadow of a doubt, and with, with geometric logic, that, that a duplicate key to the Cy Young ballotbox did exist. And I would have produced that key if I hadn't pulled my lat muscle and remained out of action. I, I know now they were only trying to protect some fellow guitar playing Whitey. (He pauses - looks at all the questioning faces that stare back at him, and realizes that he has been ranting and raving.) Naturally, I can only cover these things from memory..." The clubhouse scene ends without a judge's verdict - it isn't necessary. It's Not Too Late to Support The Dominican Republic Baseball Equipment Drive. Boston area people of all color, white included, are collecting baseball equipment to bring to the children of the Dominican Republic. (I guess Sammy and Pedro don't make enough to cover the cost for the local kids.) 6.8.03 Gammons on Pedro -- The Baseball Show, WEEI: : He (Pedro) lied (about Gammons campaigning for Zito). It's ridiculous, just like he said that racism cost him the 1999 MVP to Pudge Rodriguez. He's just obsessed with getting his own way. "All four of the new-era GMs are young enough to have read James in college, or to hang out with those who did. But Beane's breakthrough in Oakland is likely most important. "And when you succeed with the kind of budgets that Beane or the Padres had, teams are going to want that," says Sheehan. Already, Oakland assistant GM Paul DePodesta and San Diego's Theo Epstein are rumored to be the next in line." - 3.26.02 Pedro MarTEAMez Bronx Bound, or Just Shutting it Down? Holley Cow! "Looking back on it now, the 40-17 start was the worst thing that could have happened to a lot of people." Warning: Stathead Zone
Without Me [sarcasm]Sox solve Nation's longstanding envelope and ticket typeface problem... once 600 Club dishes are done from last night's game, they'll move on to addressing that little World Series drought issue.[/sarcasm]
Larry
Lucchino on Deadline Dealing
Yankees World Series Dream Weaver, Mondesi
Money,
Like Father, Hate Son "He's living a little bit through me right now" - JHW
Kid's Kid on DL with Broken Rib. Out 5-6 Weeks. End of Story? SOX TO TAKE OLD IRONSIDES BACK INTO BATTLE Terror of The Green Monster Save Us from Fenway! Payroll Slashed! Players Shuttled! .500 Teams! "They Will Keep the Park Open and Renovate" Grady on Pedro: "We would be crazy to say we don't have concerns for this kid. It could take the rest of the season before he's totally back to normal... but I'm convinced that he will be totally back to normal." - June 13, 2002
John Henry Chimes in on Expensive Mid-Season Acquisitions, Staying at Fenway, Stripped Farm, and Draft Pick Strategy. WEEI interview
"If they won the World Series (in Boston), it would probably stop time."
Give your feedback to Janet &Co., will they listen? Read the article. Soft in the Middle Now "A man walks down the street, He says, Why am I soft in the middle now? Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard! A man walks down the street, He says, Why am I short of attention? Got a short little span of attention, And whoa, my nights are so long! There were incidents and accidents, There were hints and allegations ..... Who'll be my role-model? Now that my role-model is .... Gone ...... gone Dogs in the moonlight. Far away, my well-lit door. Mr. Beerbelly, Beerbelly, Get these mutts away from me! You know, I don't find this stuff amusing anymore ..." -You Can Call Me Al - Paul Simon "Something is not right there, what it is we're not on top of it yet" - Mike Port, Red Sox General ManagerRickey: "Help the Low Dogs" "We've got some good ballplayers," he said. "But the biggest thing is playing together. It goes back to respect. If I'm the top dog, but you're the low dog and I'm pulling for you and I'm patting you on the back, doing everything I can to get you up there with the top dog, then we're going to be better off. The top dogs don't mean as much if the low dogs are down there struggling. It's those type of things that make you a better ballclub." 6.10: Denver Post column Thursday May 16, 2002 No Props from NY Post
"The Yankees are so far under the radar screen that the
Kevin Kernan, NY Post (his picture tells you everything you need to know about this clown) Tuesday, April 16, 2002 Curse of the Boombino? Wells Runs Dry Mouth Off David Wells shows his disdain for the Boston Red Sox on WFAN's Mac & Sid Show this morning in his weekly interview with Sid Rosenberg: Rosenberg: "...the Red Sox probably are not going to battle you for that division but, after leaving Fenway, after these last four games, would you say that you and the rest of the club is impressed with this Red Sox team? That this is a team that may contend somewhere down the stretch?" Wells: "Not really, (laughing) hee-hee-hee (co-host Jody McDonald also giggling like a school girl 'hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee') ...not really... to be honest with you... I'm just sayin'... they've only got a couple of guys in that rotation that people would go 'hey, we gotta' bear down'... it's just the 'Yankee Mystique', this team finds a way of winning... the three games (in Boston) we shoulda' won, no question we shoulda' won three of those games... I don't see ourselves chasing that team, there's other teams that we may be chasing, but not that one." Audio Clip available at www.wfan.com. Click on Mac & Sid link, then click on April 16th - David Wells joins Mac & Sid for his weekly spot. (Boston bashing starts about 05:15 into the interview).Boombag goes to the Wells one more time in the NY Post
"The Red Sox have more Dirt Dogs on this team than they had in 2001" Gammons' Major League leaders in terms of work habit, energy, respect, and responsibility include: Garciaparra, Damon, Nixon, Sanchez, and Varitek. 4.22.02 ESPN Baseball Tonight - Peter Gammons
New Sox Manager is Grady Little not Grady Wilson(he passed). |
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I'm
dreamin', keep believin'
Well if you want
RBI, this is what I'll give ya
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The “Curt’s Pitch for ALS” program is a joint effort by Curt and Shonda Schilling, and The ALS Association Mass Chapter to strike out Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Curt and Shonda will be contributing $25,000 to The ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter, and they are asking fans to contribute as well. All proceeds will benefit research and patient services for those in Massachusetts affected by the disease. Program participants will receive different incentive prizes based on the dollar amount per strikeout that they pledge. Please click here to learn more about the program. The Curt and Shonda Schilling Melanoma Foundation of America welcomes Red Sox Nation to join in their fight to save future generations from melanoma, a potentially preventable skin cancer. Get a Danny O Fenway Litho, as Seen in the Cooperstown Catalog
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