... At Least Until Manning Comes to Town on Monday

Done Deal

Epstein, Red Sox Agree on a Three-Year Contract

Birds of a Feather

They Want to Be Left Alone

"Ramirez, during an August visit to play the Angels, confided in a veteran teammate how much he liked Anaheim. Ramirez remarked that no one bothered him during a visit to a local mall. The teammate explained the lack of fan pestering by telling Ramirez that if he played in Southern California he might be making $20 million a year, but his next-door neighbor would be making $25 million." -- 10.31.05, Boston Globe

...But Of Course Manny Likes Boston, Too

"Ramirez says he'd rather be in Boston than anywhere else.

"'Boston is the best city ever,' he says. 'The fans are great. They love me. Oh my God. You go out to eat, they don't let you pay for nothing. You win it there and people will go nuts. I'm going to party for a month.'" -- 8.24.04, Boston Globe

"To: Manny, Boomer and anyone else who wants out. You want to get out of the spotlight and not deal with fans? Two words: Kansas City. You want to have no one recognize you and no one care? Two words: Kansas City. You want to play where even the media doesn't pay attention to you? Two words: Kansas City." -- 10.31, emailer Saundra Ketner

The Back Stabbers

(They smile in your face)
All the time they want to take your place
The back stabbers (back stabbers)
(They smile in your face)
All the time they want to take your place

The back stabbers (back stabbers)
All you fellows who have someone
And you really care, yeah, yeah
Then it's all of you fellows
Who better beware, yeah yeah

Somebody's out to get your lady
A few of your buddies they sure look shady
Blades are long, clenched tight in their fist
Aimin' straight at your back
And I don't think they'll miss

----The Back Stabbers, by the O'Jays

In his tenure as Red Sox GM, Theo Epstein made mistakes. However, he helped bring the Red Sox to three postseason appearances and a World Series Championship. He worked well with fellow general managers and he was respected by players.

We read ridiculous statements that Theo Epstein didn't play college baseball and somehow that disqualifies him as being a true 'baseball man'. The fingerprints of the Black Hand of CEO Larry Lucchino are all over the departure of Theo Epstein.

Lucchino has made it his place to be the Front Man for the organization, promulgating a literal orgy of self-promotion. Why? Does Red Sox Nation worship at the altar of Lucchino, a High Priest of baseball achievement? Do we so easily confuse activity with achievement?

Yes, the Red Sox will go on. The Red Sox will hire a new GM with pomp and circumstance and dollars. Players will go, and free agents will come. Fastballs and curves will crackle across the plate at Fenway, and the evanescent complaints of overwrought fans will quickly fade when new blood arrives.

But the ugly side of self-indulgence interferes with the responsible operation of the regional franchise. Was Lucchino Dan Shaughnessy's source? We believe it is so. Trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. The best management celebrates success and spreads the credit among those who work for them. The Red Sox have demonstrated that will not be their modus operandi, and ultimately, we fans will pay for it.

-- Ron Sen, Boston Dirt Dogs contributor and founder of Red Sox Reality Check

And Away They Go

A Nation Out of Bounds

Boston Attention Causes Tension

"You can have no life here... you can't go out with family and friends without being subject to the town wanting a part of you... that takes a toll on you." -- David Wells

Manny Likes Anaheim; No One Bothered Him at the Mall

"Manny has issues with Boston and privacy... I think the privacy issue is the ability to kind of leave your apartment and go to the park with your kid. Leave your apartment and go out to dinner with your wife without sort of being surrounded by well-wishers and autograph seekers, things like that." -- 7.28, Larry Lucchino on WEEI

"I think Manny is just looking for change more than anything, and I think that this coming up every… and that’s not to belittle his emotions and feelings, I talked to Manny about this a couple of times towards the end of the season and expressed my desire that I didn’t want him to go if he could find a way to make it here. I think one of the things that tends to really catch guys off-guard is the attention you get off the field." -- 10.29, Curt Schilling on WEEI

"There also is a quality of life issue to consider. Epstein, who grew up in Brookline, can rightfully complain of privacy issues as great, if not greater, than Ramirez, though he has never done so. His youth, and hometown ties, have led many fans to approach him with an often brazen disregard for his personal space. There are times when Epstein, even when just running out for a sandwich, has to pretend he's on his cellphone to escape people who want a piece of him. The fact he is rated one of Boston's most desired bachelors only intensifies the attention.

"A small price to pay for running the Sox? That's easy for someone on the outside to say.

"'This town is hard to play in,' David Wells said Friday night. 'You can have no life here. You leave the stadium, you can't go out with family and friends without being subject to the town wanting a part of you. We understand it, but I don't think [the fans] do. That takes a toll on you.'" -- 10.9, Gordon Edes, Boston Globe

"People don't understand there's times when we want to be private. There's a lot of times people come up and they get in your business. ... It's one of the reasons that for next year I am relocating. I'm moving out of the city so I can be with myself a little more." -- 9.17, Keith Foulke, San Francisco Chronicle

More Adventures of Theo and Larry

"What is alarming -- for the future of the Sox franchise -- is Theo's sudden need to distance himself from those who helped him rise to his position of power. ...Theo 'bristles at the notion of Steinberg and Lucchino taking credit for his success.'

"...Granted, Epstein is a student of the game, but it's a mistake to say he knows more about baseball than Lucchino or anyone else in the Red Sox baseball operation...

"Lucchino-bashers, and they are a legion, maintain that he repeatedly has undermined Theo and on occasion killed deals made by Epstein and the minions. There was one, for sure. When Theo's assistant Josh Byrnes (hired by Arizona as GM Friday) made a deal with Colorado, Epstein thought he had a better deal with another club and requested that Lucchino fall on the sword and invoke the ownership approval clause to kill the Rockies deal. Accustomed to people hating him, Lucchino took the fall, killing the deal and saving Epstein.

"...Epstein's minions probably have done more talking about Theo's situation than anyone in Sox management. When postseason baseball visited Chicago, at least one nationally known Lucchino-hating Epstein source was trashing the Sox CEO to anyone who'd listen.

"It would be a mistake for Epstein to think he can separate Lucchino from John Henry. Henry is a quiet man, but he is not a dolt. He believes in and trusts Lucchino. He admires his young GM, but it would be a mistake for Epstein to force Henry to choose." -- 10.30, Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe

Gammons on the Rockies Deal

HE HATE US
Manny Wants Out

Red Sox $20 Million Hitting Savant
Threatens Not to Report in Spring

"Gene Mato, one of Manny Ramirez's representatives, communicated to Red Sox owner John W. Henry yesterday that Ramirez wants to be traded, and will not report to spring training if his wish to be dealt is not met, according to a team source." -- 10.29, Chris Snow, Boston Globe

Gammons: Manny Trade Would Mean a Step Back for Sox in '06

"... Meanwhile, Epstein's extension with the Red Sox could be announced Monday, after hashing out the relationship between baseball operations and the business/spin floors of the Red Sox offices. The biggest question is whether or not Epstein wants to remain in a situation where revenues and publicity rule, or whether he wants to do social work like his brother, Paul, and find a situation where he can do what he loves -- developing a team with talented young players.

"Larry Lucchino has been fingered as the heavy, which is unfair; with all they expend on expanding revenues and spinning the Red Sox Nation schtick, they are addicted to the immediacy of the talk-show callers, afraid of taking a necessary step back from selling Fenway tours and pieces of sod at $150 apiece to build a better team for a longer view than 2006 (of course, if Manny Ramirez sticks to his trade demands, the Red Sox will have no choice but to step back)." -- 10.29, Peter Gammons, ESPN.com Insider (subscription only)

Looking Back: Anaheim Tops Ramirez's Trade List

Olney: Mets Still May Be Only Option for Manny

"There is at least one team that has the financial power to make a deal for Ramirez and is motivated to get Ramirez, and that is the Mets. Peter wrote in his story that Ramirez doesn't want to go to the Mets, but in the end, Ramirez's choice might be this: Boston or New York.

"If no deal is made and the matter comes down to a spring training confrontation, as Ramirez's representatives suggest, you can bet that Red Sox president Larry Lucchino won't be afraid to dig in for a protracted fight.

"The silly thing is Ramirez doesn't realize how good he has it in Boston, with great teammates, a tolerant manager and GM, and a fan base that forgives his foibles, as long as he keeps generating those 140 RBI every year.

"If Ramirez does depart, you can bet this: David Ortiz's walk total will increase dramatically next year, with opposing managers and pitchers exercising the option of working around Ortiz repeatedly." -- 10.29, Buster Olney, ESPN.com Insider (subscription only)

Schilling Breaks Silence on Manny

10.29: Curt Schilling called in to WEEI’s Mustard and Johnson program today and offered his opinion on Manny Ramirez’s trade request.

"It’s November now right… or it’s October… once a month. It happens (Manny’s trade request). It’s gonna happen. It’ll be out there and we’ll move on. So we get to rehash the same questions and answers that you’ve rehashed every year, every four months for the last three years. And it’s going to be the same answers and the same questions you had before. It’s gonna depend on the situation and I’m sure Theo will address it and whatever happens will be in the best interest of the Boston Red Sox when all things are said and done.

"The bottom line is there is no indispensable player on any team, in any sport and Manny is certainly, he’s probably the best right-handed hitter that I’ve ever put a uniform on with but no one player is going to get us that World Series that we’re going after next year and we have a good chance to win again if we’re healthy. He certainly makes you a better club, you’re gonna score more runs, but the fact of the matter is, there is no one guy and I trust in the fact that if Manny leaves Boston, which I hope doesn’t happen, but if he does leave Boston, that whatever players they bring in to either fill his role or use his salary for, we will be a better team come opening day next year. I feel confident enough in Theo that that’s exactly what will happen. ...

Q: Does anybody ever talk to Manny and say "Manny it just doesn’t look good when you’re half trotting and going down to first base?" Does anybody ever pull him aside and ask him that?

"You know what, those conversations are few and far between because I don’t think anybody… Manny knows, Manny knows what people think and feel about the things he says and does and he’s not as simple as people like to make him out to be. He’s a lot smarter than that. And I think sometimes he might do things to get actions and reactions like every other player at certain points but you know what, the bottom line was at the end of the season it's 48 and 130, 140 RBIs and that’s what you have to live with. I’d love every teammate that I ever played with to run to first base as fast as he possibly can, it just doesn’t work out that way unfortunately, and I’m not sure why."

Your Turn: Should Sox Grant Ramirez's Trade Request?

In January '04, Mato Said Manny Was Happy Here

Ball and Chain

Konerko Gives Reinsdorf Last-Out Ball

"Getting this ball from Paul Konerko is the most emotional moment of my life." -- 10.28, White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf

Mientkiewicz Getting Sox Series Ball Back in January

"First of all he (Foulke) wasn’t going to throw it to me, I’m yelling at him, ‘throw me the ball!’ I want to be on Sports Illustrated too. He threw me the ball and I held on to it. I held onto the one when we won against the Yankees too. Derek had pitched such a good game, he’s gotta have that ball. I gave it to him after all that he had been through, and I was going to give him this one, and I thought, “this is crazy, I’m a baseball buff, it’s something I want to hang on to.” -- 1.7.05, Former Red Sox reserve Doug Mientkiewicz

"I'd have definitely liked to have it (World Series ball) back. When we got back to Boston, I asked him about it and I didn't get it. So that's the end of that. I didn't really think about it at the time. After he caught it, it was like there are other things going through my mind... I didn't get the ball and that's it." -- 2.16.05, Red Sox relief pitcher Keith Foulke

A Look Back on Ballgate

Report: Timlin Returning to Sox
Free Agent Primer

Josh Byrnes is New D-Backs GM

GM ANNOUNCEMENT EXPECTED ON MONDAY

Big Dealing

Epstein, Sox are Closing in on New Deal
Schilling Breaks Silence on Theo Situation

The Theo File: Year 3

We'll Always Have St. Louis

One More Time...

DONE D-LOWE

The Right Sox Won It All, One Year Ago Tonight
Happy Mannyversary

"I don't believe in curses, I think you make your own destination."
-- 10.27.04, 2004 World Series MVP Manny Ramirez

2004 World Series: It's Been a While
Sox, Cries, and Audiotape

"This is for anyone who ever played for the Red Sox, anyone who ever rooted for the Red Sox, anyone who has ever been to Fenway Park. This is bigger than the 25 players in this clubhouse. This is for all of Red Sox Nation past and present. I hope they're enjoying it as much as we are." -- 10.27.04, Theo Epstein, current (and future) GM of the Boston Red Sox

Three Kinds of People

"Would I rather have the truth or a lie that gives hope? I’d rather have the truth." -- Louis Theroux

Submitted October 28, 2004: Once upon a time (all fairy tales begin this way) a baseball team and its fans, intimate to despair and shattered seasons, could only dream of becoming champions. Today, they and we awake to that dream fulfilled.

We feel like Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha, our emotional investment multiplied beyond our wildest imagination, the archvillain Yankees only spectators to the World Series. As for the Cardinals, you can stick a fork in them, because they’re done. Sox fans hesitate to count our chickens before they’re hatched, because so often we’ve ended up only with the stock trader’s breakfast, egg on the face.

No more will we endure pictures of the Babe or ‘1918’. Aaron Boone, Bucky Dent, or Bill Buckner? Gibson fanning Joe Foy? Fuggedaboutit. If Derek Jeter’s going to Disney World, he’s going to have to buy a ticket, but the Schilling’s, Ramirez’s, and Ortiz’s have their turn to parade. Surely Sox fans won’t retaliate with signs for the New Yorkers ‘2004’ and NESN won’t endlessly replay David Ortiz’s walkoff homerun, A-Rod’s Karate Kid moment, or Kevin Brown’s meltdown.

Just as we enjoyed the Bruins championships of the 1970s and the Celtics’ historic reign during the Russell and Bird administrations, our children received the blessings of two Super Bowls and the World Series victory. Maybe they haven’t suffered as much during the wait; that’s what everyone wants, a better life for their children.

Somehow, this time, at least during the World Series, Red Sox Nation felt not only had its time come, but that we deserved it. Twenty-five guys, twenty-five cabs were replaced by ‘the idiots’. Maybe they are ‘the idiots’ but they’re our idiots. At least for a short time, we’ll remember the 2004 Boys of Summer for their exploits on the team, not for labor disputes, contract squabbles, or playing time pouts.

What lasting memories can we hope to cherish into old age? Redemption becomes the most obvious. The devastating ALCS 19-8 Game 3 loss at Fenway nearly eviscerated Sox loyalists. Teddy Bear David Ortiz became the stuff of legends, with three game winning hits and a key homer in ALCS Game 7. He could only be described as ‘menacing’ at the plate. Dave Roberts’ steal of second in Game 4 of the ALCS and scamper home on a single to center showed that the Sox could play small ball on the big stage. A subtle late season acquisition by Theo Epstein became the cornerstone of the Sox comeback. Derek Lowe, lambasted and nearly forgotten, achieved resurrection with clutch pitching performances during both the ALCS (Game 7) and the Series, and won the deciding contest in each. Mark Bellhorn’s futility during the early portions of the ALCS could only be matched by his production during the latter ALCS and Game 1 of the Series, clanging homers off the fair pole in New York and Boston. Manny Ramirez going from goat to hero with two errors in Game 1 to become the Series MVP. Terry Francona leaves Pedro in as an object lesson on September 24th against the Yankees and doesn’t try to stretch him out against the Cardinals, as ‘Francoma’ outmanages ‘the genius’ Tony LaRussa.

One of the richest men on the planet, John Henry, reminds us that our statistical fortunes in close games should turn around, and Theo Epstein makes the second most controversial deal in club history. Epstein rejected the lie that gives hope. He exiles Nomar Garciaparra, the team’s most recognized face, for Orlando Cabrera, almost unknown in Montreal and an alphabet soup slick-fielding first basemen. Doug Mientkiewiecz (the I before e rule embodied). Both Henry and Epstein are prescient. The eleventh plague, unearned runs, ends abruptly.

How many times have we said to our friends and family, “I’d like to see the Sox win once before I die?” Admit it, you’ve said it.

Tommy Lasorda said, ‘there are three kinds of people, those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what’s happening.” Savor the victory and enjoy the taste because our team has made it happen.

-- Ron Sen, Boston Dirt Dogs contributor and founder of Red Sox Reality Check

'Progress Made' Today

THEOGATE UPDATE: Epstein, Lucchino Had Lunch

Edes: Lack of Respect from Lucchino?

"Sources familiar with Epstein's thinking said he does not question the propriety of reporting to the CEO but chafes at times at the degree to which Lucchino involves himself in baseball decisions, and at a perceived lack of respect toward the baseball side." -- 10.27, Gordon Edes, Boston Globe

Bob Ryan: Good Fit, Bad Marriage

"We have complicated personal dynamics here. Epstein owes his professional rise to Lucchino and the San Diego Padres. They brought the young Yalie west, sent him to law school, and welcomed him into the family. They provided him with the necessary training, giving him a chance to scout and touch all the other bases that enable someone to be a modern general manager.

"They must feel exceptionally proprietary toward him. They may even feel absolutely paternal. And they may feel he simply ''owes" them, and owes them big time. He was their creation. Has he now become, in their eyes, more than merely ungrateful? Has he become, in their eyes, their very own Frankenstein's monster?" -- 10.27, Bob Ryan, Boston Globe

Herald: 'Smear Campaign Stinks'

"It was bound to happen sooner or later. Epstein is young and smart and likable, and it was only a matter of time before he recognized he could be a lot more in life than just another sheep in the great Lucchino's flock.

"Lucchino seems to fancy himself as a maker of men, a Bill Walsh of baseball who has blessed the game with select disciples. He likes to take credit for most everything his followers do – from San Diego Padres general manager Kevin Towers to Epstein – and all is well and good until the boys become men, until they want to actually have an identity.

"When that happens – and it is happening here now – Lucchino pounds his fist and puts those disrespectful little twits in their place, just to remind them that Big Daddy brought them into this world and he can certainly take them out." -- 10.27, Tony Massarotti, Boston Herald

Do the Players Hate Lucchino?

Hartford Courant: "Lucchino is despised by Red Sox players and Epstein, 31, has a good relationship with them. On his weekly interview on Boston radio station WEEI last summer, Lucchino might have breached the confidentiality the team had with players by acknowledging that struggling closer Keith Foulke went to Alabama for a consultation in May. Lucchino also confirmed a report in Sports Illustrated that Manny Ramirez requested a trade in July." -- 10.27, Dave Heuschkel, Hartford Courant

Sabean's There, He's Done That

The Star Ledger: "Overheard: If the Red Sox can't come to an agreement with Theo Epstein on a contract for Epstein to return as GM, one of the leading candidates could be San Francisco Giants GM Brian Sabean. Sabean has been a bright and successful executive in San Francisco for years, but might be tiring of constantly dealing with Barry Bonds controversy. Certainly, the Red Sox could do considerably worse for a fallback plan." -- 10.27, Dan Graziano, Star-Ledger

Sudden Impact

Boston Sports Blog: "If Theo Epstein does walk out that door, let's hope he channels Mo Vaughn on the way out with a peeved, 'It's not about the money' speech. Maybe even a Joe Morgan, 'These guys aren't as good as everyone thinks,' just to get the blood boiling a bit." -- 10.27, Eric Wilbur, Boston.com

D-Backs Interview Byrnes Again

Theocracy

Did Theo Score More in 2004?
A Look Back at the GM's Moves in 2003

Epstein's Mother: "She said off camera that it never should have gotten to this point." -- 10.26, CBS4

Clean Sweep

To Dye For

'Win Or Die Trying': Second City Comes in First
White Sox Sweep Series with 1-0 Win
Red Sox are Former Champs

NEW ERA INDEED

One Year Ago Tonight
Pedro, Sox Got World Serious About Game 3

"It's been a great ride. I hope everybody enjoyed it as much as I did. ...I hope I get another chance to come back with this team, but I understand the business part of it. I hope everybody understands that I'm not the one who wanted to leave. If they don't get me, it's probably because they didn't try hard enough. My heart is with Boston." -- 10.26.04, Former Sox Great Pedro Martinez

2004 World Series: Magic Number: 1

Bag Job?

Post Your Thoughts on Theo and Enter Frank Galasso's Give-Away Contest

Edes Chat Wrap: The Latest on Theo
Wilbur Blog: A General Mistake

Brian Cashman's Not Walking Through That Door
Cashman Returns to Yankees

THEGO SAYS NO

Epstein Rejects Upgraded Offer from Sox

"With just five days left before Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein's three-year contract expires, negotiations between team CEO Larry Lucchino and his protege remain strained, as Epstein yesterday met with Lucchino and rejected an offer of $1.2 million a year for at least three years, according to a major league executive with knowledge of the negotiations." -- 10.26, Gordon Edes, Boston Globe