Sveum Waving, keep my whole body shaking
You got me so confused it's a Sveum
Sometimes I think I'm going insane
Still I want you to stay
(Wavin' your arms that's what I want to see)
What I want to see (Want to see)
(Wavin' your arms that's my high)
High
Sveum
Ooh my mother says you ain't got a brain
And what you do at third is a Sveum
Ooh wouldn't wanna live without pain
Mamma just don't understand
(Wavin' your arms that's what I want to see)
What I want to see
(Want to see)
(Wavin' your arms that's my high)
High
I can't get enough
(Ooh) Ooh baby enough of that magic touch
Thrown out from the start, tearing the rules apart
So why should Dale be...
Ashamed?
Only runs can beat the pain
And if we lose this game it's a Sveum
Ooh I wouldn't want to live without pain
Send 'em in forever
(If we lose this game it's a Sveum)
Oh no
(If we lose this game it's a Sveum)
(Never gonna find home again no) no (no) no (no) no
I can't get enough
Ooh baby enough of that magic touch
Thrown out from the start, tearing the rules apart
Ooh it's a ooh
(Sveum)
Send 'em in forever
(Sveum)
Only wins can beat the pain
No no no
(Sveum)
Mamma says you ain't got a brain
Mamma just don't understand
(Sveum)
What you do to me is a Sveum!
'Herman Cain' Surges to Lead in Red Sox Managerial Race with 999 Plan If 9 Guys Play 9 Innings, They Can Each Have 9 Beers Simple
GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain is suddenly the newest long-shot name on the list of 2012 Red Sox managerial contenders. The Republican frontrunner has turned his attention to the Red Sox with his 999 plan for 9 players to go a full 9 innings, which will be followed by a reward of up to 9 beers each (provided they score at least 9 runs).
Cain has been lauded as a "great communicator" whose straightforward leadership style sets him apart from the establishment managerial candidates whose names are being floated around in the Boston media.
It's also a little known fact that Larry Lucchino directed Cain's unsuccessful run for U.S. Senate in 2004. And both John Henry and Tom Werner point to Cain's success in the business world as proof he can lead the Red Sox in the dugout.
Red Sox GM Ben Cherington believes Cain understands how to successfully implement his ideas in a multifactorial and dysfunctional clubhouse. In the past 40 years, Cain has worked his way up several big corporations: Coca-Cola (he knows cold beverages), Pillsbury (he knows pudgy doughboys like Beckett), and most recently as the CEO and President of Godfather's Pizza (knows fast food cravings).
"Herman understands better than any other candidate, based on many years of success in the business world, that players and fans in general respond better to positive messaging than negative messaging," Cherington told Fox News, right before Cain's official managerial announcement and 999 plan presentation.
Cherington thinks "his leadership style is very straightforward. He defines the problem at hand. He identifies the correct solutions, and then he finds the right people to put in the right positions to implement those solutions."
Tommy for John That's One Way to Get Rid Of a Problem Child File Under: Cherington Works Fast... And Where's Liverpool John? So Are the Cubs Aware of This $82.5M Big Market Mistake Called Lackey? Theo's First Move Is to Bring Steve Bartman Back to the Scene of the Crime
"I had a great 10 years with the Red Sox. We had a lot of fun, a lot of success. We won two World Series. We got to see the baseball operations department grow. We got to see the business side grow. We got to see the ballpark improve. We got to see how the city responded. I got to make friends that will last a lifetime. I got to share it all with my family. I would never trade that experience for everything (sic), but I do believe, Bill Walsh of the 49'ers said it best. After about 10 years in sports, there comes a time when you have to consider change for the benefit, not only of the individual involved, but also for the benefit of the organization. I wouldn't trade my time with the Red Sox, but I do think it was time to move on. They're in great hands and they have a terrific future laid out in front of them. I was ready for the next big challenge and this is certainly the ultimate challenge. I'm ready to embrace it and move forward." -- Theo Epstein, Emperor of time, space, and dimension in Chicago
25 Years Ago Today, Clemens, McNamara, Schiraldi, Gedman, and Stanley Blew Game 6. Buckner Just Made It Official.
Battered Sox Put Chickenandbeergate Behind Them 2012 Plans Starting to Take Shape
It's Back to Business at Fenway Where Sox Docs Listened to Liverpool Food Scientists Present the New Nutrition Plan
The crack Red Sox medical team participated in a conference call with John Henry's Liverpool Food Scientists today in an effort to get the Red Sox nutrition program on track for 2012. Going forward, Liverpool will now be in charge of all clubhouse food orders.
The new Beckett-focused program will feature Popeyes� Naked Chicken Tenders, as well as the addition of two new lower calorie side items � green beans and apple sauce.
The Liverpool Leaux program delivers the quality and flavor Red Sox starters expect, while significantly reducing fat, calorie, and sodium content, in comparison with other menu items.
�We know how much our starters love Popeyes' authentic, Louisiana recipe-inspired menu,� said Tom Werner, president of Liverpool Football Club. �As part of living a healthier lifestyle, we wanted to provide options for our players that allow them the opportunity to eat at Popeyes even more often by offering flavorful, better-for-you alternatives.�
How the plan will work: When the Red Sox clubhouse butlers take Josh Beckett's nightly Popeyes order for the 24-piece mixed chicken meal, dozen biscuits, and Mississippi Mud Cake, a.k.a. 6,700 calories, the call to Popeyes will be rerouted to Liverpool where the Food Scientists will take the Beckett's order and change it to one of the Liverpool Leaux items below:
"I cannot let this allegation go without response; enough is enough. I admit that I made mistakes along the way this season, but this has gone too far. To say that we drank in the dugout during the game is not true." -- Josh Beckett, comes out of hiding to issue statement in combo denial
"There are things that went on this season that shouldn�t have happened, but this latest rumor is not true, and I felt that it was important to try to stop this from going any further." -- John Lackey, surprisingly didn't blame execution and location
"Absolutely not." -- Jason Varitek when asked if there was any drinking in the dugout on WAAF this morning
The Bud Lights May Be Cold, But the Respect for Tito Is Lukewarm at Best
"Did this team respect Terry Francona? I would say yes. Everybody has their own respect for their own manager, yes... He is your boss. And what I believe in is your going to have coaches you don't like. You're going to have management you don't like. You have players you don't like but I'm still going to play with the utter respect. This is my elder. This is the way I was brought up, the way I was raised. No matter what, I'm going to respect them and treat them with that same respect and whether guys are going to go in a foxhole with somebody, at this point it doesn't matter because you have to function. He's still our boss and t doesn't matter what happens that he makes the lineup, we go out and play. He makes the lineup, we go out and play. With him, whether guys would go in a foxhole or have that much respect, you have to. You don't get to that many wins and those things going on." -- Jason Varitek on WAAF this morning
More Tidbits from 'Tek...
The Captain to WAAF today: Shame on unnamed sources... Clubhouse guys are our lives... We've had problems for 15 years, they've always stayed in house... David Ortiz called a players' meeting in mid-September... Carl Crawford cares too much... It's wrong to drink in the clubhouse, but it wasn't out of control... Lackey takes on a role larger than his numbers on the mound and he took the ball when he didn't have to, wasn't 100 percent... Josh was our only stability... Jon's his own man... Saw players play video games, pregame... his dog ate the gift headphones, he didn't make it to the yacht party... Didn't go out to dinner to celebrate Tito's demise... Beckett's not fat, not out of shape, drinking in the clubhouse did not affect his season... Need a new manager with a strong personality... Wants to come back, has bled the uniform, can't picture playing anywhere else...
Move Over Jeter, Captain Intangibles Is Here
�I didn�t fit their [Red Sox] mold as a player, and this is eight, nine years ago now. I didn�t fit their mold physically as a player and that changed through time because what I do, intangibles, and different things but statistically as a player, I didn�t fit that.� -- Jason Varitek, more gems from WAAF interview
The Nation's Biggest Disappointment: Their Beer of Choice Was Bud Light What's Next to Learn? Josh 'Nice Guy' Beckett Was Drinking Lone Star From a Hidden CamelBak Straw While On the Mound? No Worries, John Henry Swears There Was a 'Dugout Rally' Two Beer Limit Waiting for Mike Giardi Source To Tell Us Sox Were Brewing Beer in the Dugout Um, Jon Lester Would Like a Do-Over on the One Rally Beer Line Edes: Lester Calls Report of Dugout Drinking 'Completely False' New on NESN Next Season: The Amica Bud Light Cup Zone Those Must Have Been Sleeping Pills Tito Was Popping
�Beckett would come down the stairs from the dugout, walking through the corridor to the clubhouse and say, �It�s about that time�. Beckett was the instigator, but Lester and Lackey were right behind him... It was blatant and hard not to notice what was going on with all three guys leaving at once.� -- Channel 7 quoted one of the Red Sox employees as saying
"That�s a personal feel because it still always comes down to us performing. He [Francona] can�t hit for us. He can�t make a pitch in the ninth inning for us. The only thing he can control is putting us in situations that allow you to be successful. That's Tito's personal opinion [not everyone was on the same page] and based on what was going on with him personally and maybe how he related to the team. The perception for him maybe could be that he couldn�t reach the team. But I didn't see him change."-- Varitek takes a not-so-thinly-veiled-shot at Tito
"There's a perception out there that we were up there getting hammered and that wasn't the case. Was it a bad habit? Yes. I should have been on the bench more than I was. But we just played bad baseball as a team in September. We stunk. To be honest, we were doing the same things all season when we had the best record in baseball." -- Jon Lester told The Globe via telephone from his home in Georgia
Maybe Crawford won't hear about this in Houston: "Anyone involved in the process, anybody involved in upper management with the Red Sox, will tell you that I personally opposed that. They all know that... Why? Because we had plenty of left-handed hitting. I don�t have to go into why. I�ll just tell you at the time that I opposed the deal.� -- John 'Don't Blame Me! I voted for McGovern' Henry
�There seems to be this idea on some of the radio shows that we smeared Tito [Francona],� Henry said following his 70 minute Q&A session. �I thought they [radio show hosts Mike Felger and Tony Massarotti] were hitting below the belt. I just decided to go and talk with them.�
Henry was asked to share his thoughts on the team�s September collapse being tied to reports of ongoing clubhouse issues.
�I saw the games and I didn�t see anybody who wasn�t busting their ass trying to win baseball games,� Henry said. �We�re looking into these things and at the proper time we�ll have comments.�
Henry said he got a good report on the clubhouse from general manager Theo Epstein on Sept. 13.
�We received an email that things were good in the clubhouse,� Henry said. �I think this all sort of broke after that time. There were some issues going on before that, doubleheader and so forth. It was later on after the season ended that we heard about these other things.�
Henry addressed questions about multiple reports that Epstein is leaving the Red Sox to join the Chicago Cubs organization.
�He�s spoken with the Cubs,� Henry confirmed. �I�m not sure that we�ve actually given permission to hire him, we allowed for there to be a conversation�
�At some point, Theo decided that 10 years was a long time to be general manager of the Red Sox. I don�t think people realize what these two people, Tito and Theo, gave over the last eight and nine years respectively. They brought two World Series to Boston and it�s 162 games, 365 days a year. It�s tremendous pressure so we knew at some point that he [Epstein] was not going to be general manager of the Boston Red Sox and we knew that was probably going to be, almost certainly going to be by the end of next year so, this wasn�t a surprise.�
Henry, who during the radio interview said he was initially against the Carl Crawford free-agent signing, was asked about the revelation.
�Yeah, but not to the point where we didn�t do the deal,� Henry said of the $142 million dollar transaction. �If there are enough of us usually someone is against every deal and it just happened to be I was the one at that time. I only said that because they�re in there on the radio trying to say that we spent $300 million for P.R. purposes which is ludicrous misinformation.�
"We didn�t hit when we needed to hit. We didn�t play defense when we needed to play defense and we didn�t get the outs we needed to down the stretch, so yeah, we really didn�t play good baseball and we lost in the playoffs because of it.� -- Adrian Gonzalez do-over... wait, what?!? Wasn't it all God's plan for you to lose?!?
He'll Fit Right In
(Globe File Photo / Stan Grossfeld)
Manny's Looking to Get Back into Red Sox Playing Shape
Just Kidding, The Red Sox Have No Leaders And Yes, Dustin 'No C for You' Pedroia Is Part of the Problem
Big Schill Rips the Sons of Colonel Sanders: "They clearly don�t [have any leaders]. None of this goes long enough to become news if there�s a leader in the clubhouse or more than one. There are different kinds of leaders. This team needs a statistical agnostic leader. They need a guy who it doesn�t matter if he plays or not. Or it doesn�t matter what he�s hitting or not. He will talk to anybody on the team about them doing something wrong.
"I�ve said it a couple times. That was Doug Mirabelli. That was Mike Lowell. That was what those guys did. That was Gabe Kapler. None of those guys were leading the team in home runs or RBIs or batting average. The guys in those clubhouses had an immense amount of respect for them. Orlando Cabrera marching back to Manny [Ramirez]�s locker and demanding that Manny put himself back in the line-up. Guys like that. This team doesn�t have them.
"This team has a couple of guys like a [Dustin] Pedroia who is going to play his [expletive] off and expect everyone to do the same. I don�t see him as a kid who stands up in front of the locker room and says, �This has got to change.� I�m not seeing that yet...
"Jason [Varitek] was one of those guys who would ask me to have a meeting. Here�s what, we need to do this. He was not comfortable for the most part standing up and talking every night. And it�s not a bad thing. He just figured, I�d play hard and everybody would follow suit. And if not, I�d have to talk with the person that didn�t.
"David�s not that guy. David is a guy in the clubhouse with some leaders that can help. David, he�s a designated hitter. God bless him. I love him to death. But David is an emotional guy. He tends to swing way high or way low based on how he�s swinging the bat. And guys want to be led by guys who it doesn�t matter what you�re hitting."
Pedroia's weak effort to sell leadership and spin into a non-story: "The leadership was there. We had guys that cared. We didn't play well in the end. That's it. We didn't play well. That's the bottom line. It's not [ex-manager Terry Francona]�s fault. It's not anybody's fault. We didn't play well. It's our whole team's fault. We didn't play well and we didn't perform well and we didn't win games when we needed to. That's why we didn't make the playoffs and that's why our season ended....
"We have a lot of leaders on our team. That's the thing, when I read, that kind of gets to me. Tek's the type that leads by example but when you get out of line he's going to say a couple of things to you and there's no questions asked and there's no barking back, you do it. That's how Tek runs his ship and it's very effective. He's pretty scary. You guys all see him.
"I get to the field at 1 and I go to work. That's what I do. I'm hitting all the time. I'm taking groundballs. I don't ever have a chance to sit down and think about what I'm doing. It's always, whatever I have to do today to help us win, that's what I have to do. � The way I lead I think is more by example but I'm always talking to the guys in situations and stuff like that. Obviously I'm approachable. I'm always talking. I think guys probably want me to shut up but there's a lot of different types of leaders on our team that do it a certain way."
Mike Giardi sheds some light on the cribbage kid: "Pedroia became more and more like an island unto himself, isolated by veterans who believed that, because of his relationship with former manager Terry Francona, he couldn't be trusted. It was often joked that Francona was Pedroia's father, but that joking apparently led to the point where Pedroia found his influence on the clubhouse minimized."
Aaron Hernandez Wants In On The Red Sox Chicken Club
"Round and around and around we go, they take shots at Francona, he's the latest scapegoat... Round and around and around we go, John Henry, Theo, and Lucchino only care about dough." -- 'Take Back Fenway' by Tim Nadeau of Del Rosa
"Too much drama. I've been thinking about a lot of things and I don't even know if I want to be part of this drama for next year... Who doesn't want to be involved in a good organization [The New York Yankees] that everything goes down the right way." -- David Ortiz soon to get the Johnny Damon treatment when he returns to Fenway in pinstripes
Yeah, David Just Hates Soap Operas
He Just Couldn't See the Room Full of Media
The Drama King Just Loves to Sing
It Was Great to Hear All the Pop Chips Ads While Rome Burned This Just In: Ortiz Was Never a Leader in the Clubhouse
The Despicable Me's Are a Hot Mess Again Which Means Baseball Is Back on the Radar in Boston
The Great Bob Hohler Takes the Bums to the Woodshed While New England Battled Irene, The Bums Complained About Having to Play Two Henry Had to Give the Millionaire Beer Guzzling Fried Chicken Fatties Headphones Sounds Like Tito Stole a Page from Grady Little's Book on the Homefront Pink Hat Fan Boys Crying in Their Red Sox Pajamas All Over the Nation If Jacoby Ellsbury Spoke, He'd Say 'Go Ask the $142 Million Outfielder' Pedroia and Youkilis Were Too Busy Making Ads to Do Anything About It Yuk: Inside Track Reports Youk Mugging It Up with Tom Brady's Sister Fans Long for Guys Like Manny Ramirez and Daisuke Matsuzaka Can We Pretend to Be Breaking Theo-to-Cubs News, Too? Ownership Puts the Crawford Stink Back on Theo Spring Training Can't Come Soon Enough Can We Have the Bridge Year Back? Photos: Fat Cats Get Heavy Theo's Deals
"It�s hard for a guy making $80,000 to tell a $15 million pitcher he needs to get off his butt and do some work." -- One source to the Globe's Bob Hohler
Steve Buckley, Boston Herald: "Two baseball sources have confirmed that Theo Epstein is on the cusp of leaving his job as general manager of the Red Sox [team stats] to accept a position with the Chicago Cubs that is believed to include powers greater than he has in Boston, with an announcement expected to be made 'within the next 24 to 48 hours.'"
"I think there's a certain shelf life in these jobs. You can only be the general manager if you're sane. You can only be the manager for a certain amount of time. Tremendous pressure cooker here. 162 games, it's a long season and the pressure here is 365 days so Theo is not going to be the general manager forever. Just as if Tito had come back for the last two years, would he have gone past 10 years? I can't imagine that he would have. So I think that Theo... he's the guy now, he's been the guy, we've had tremendous success. We fell apart at the end of the season... we're upset about it." -- John Henry breaks radio silence
Henry's Got LFC Scientists Teaching the Sox Docs a Thing to Two About Food Beckett Rumored to Be Switching From Quarterpounders to Fish & Chips #liverpoolscience
But they had a day off the next day and were smack in the middle of a nine-game winning streak, so cut them some slack.
"Clay Buchholz, Jon Lester, and a bunch of other guys I hang out with... Your Boston Red Sox right here... I love this city can I move here after?... I just want to move here and hang out with these guys, that's it. We'll all be old and retired by then, that's all right. We'll just go to the Cask & Flagon and drink a lot of beer with you guys before they go, how 'bout that?" -- Country singer Jason Aldean
"That's one of the main reasons I came to this team, to hopefully put a ring on my finger." -- Adrian Beltre leads Texas into the ALCS today
Why Can't We Re-Sign Players That Play Like That Lobie? Listening to Orsillo Call Them, Almost Sounds Like Sox in the Postseason God Must Like the Rangers' Adrian Better than the Red Sox' Adrian Thanks for the Memory: Bill Buckner Ball to Go Up for Auction Problems = Solved: Matsuzaka-san Played Catch on Monday Wilbur: Where's John Henry? Waiting to Hear from Liverpool John for:
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From the Hub to the Cubs?
(Fox Business Network video)
Cubs Owner Talks Theo
Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts spoke with Fox Business Network�s Neil Cavuto about the past season�s performance and rumors that Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein will join the team next season. When asked about the rumors, Ricketts said, �I don�t know; there�s a lot of good candidates out there. We�re going to talk to a handful of them and I�m sure we�ll come up with the right fit for the team.� He also said, �It was a disappointing season for everyone, but, we�re going to get some new leadership."
(BDD / Tito was out and about in Boston Thurs., Fri., and Sat. night)
Fran-goner
I don't feel bad for Terry Francona. I feel relieved for him. Francona helped to deliver a pair of championships to Boston fans, and he treated athletes like men, like professionals, and got stabbed in the back by them. I'm happy that he can leave the asylum on the 'task oriented' (hard guys) and 'player-oriented' roller coaster.
This town has always been about accountability, of management. Players, "our boys," seldom get the scrutiny they might. In psychology they call it "ownership bias." They get love, respect, admiration, and (coloring our provincial view) lots of money. I don't have a problem with athletes saying they play for the money or choose where they sign for the money. That could be as honest as the day is long. But how many have become so 'big' that it's become about them, and not about the team, the organization, or the game?
What exactly did Francona "own?" Did he own bad attitudes, selfishness, underachievement, injuries, and distractions? What he owned was the accountability that players seem to avoid.
I have no problem with the Red Sox giving Francona the deep six. Management has the right to fire any employee contractually. But the problem never lays at the feet of the players, the ones that collectively lacked the intensity, the guts, the will, and the heart to play hard, play smart, and play together.
All too often, the Sox have tried to get by on talent alone, instead of making good fundamental baseball decisions. The players own the successes they've earned, but they own a large part of the epic collapse and underachievement of the 2011 Red Sox. They didn't let the city or the fans down. They sold professionalism and themselves short. -- Ron Sen, Boston Dirt Dogs contributor and founder of Red Sox Reality Check
"When things go bad, your true colors show and I was bothered by what was showing." -- Terry Francona on the gutless wonders
"An indifference by some players to conditioning. 'Gluttony,' one Sox executive called it, although he stopped after just one deadly sin... No clubhouse leadership. 'They don't need a leader,' one prominent Sox player said Friday. 'They need a babysitter.'" -- Gordon Edes, ESPNBoston.com
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, also known as Lou Gehrig�s Disease.
