One Man Gathers What Another Man Spills
The neighbors here in South Boston have an interesting way of welcoming you to the neighborhood. They help you move. That is anything you leave unattended for less than a minute they take. When I initially moved in in an effort to get the rental truck back I unloaded the truck on the sidewalk. That was a big mistake. Essentially anything I was unable to carry on my first trip was no longer on the sidewalk for my second trip.
Today, my Mother had a gas grill she no longer wanted. Because the grill was big and I was on my own, I broke the grill down into pieces. After taking the tanks, grills and cover into the back yard I came out to find the grill base had disappeared without a trace.
In an effort to introduce myself to my neighborly neighbors my plan is to put the rest of the grill back out front tomorrow. I will wait under the cover with the rotisserie and when someone goes to grab it, I'll stick 'em. I'll ask them where the rest of the grill is and then slow roast them for a few days out front. Hopefully that will act as a deterrent.
Speaking of gathering trash no one is better at it than Red Sox GM Theo Epstein. From day one I said Theo was a poor (very poor) man's Billy (Moneyball) Beane. In fact what Theo and Bill have in common is they both are breathing males that's about it.
After Papel blew another one in his first meaningful game since he pissed away the 2009 Division Series the Sox chances in 2011 are DOA. Like Bernie Madoff when he realized the jig was up Theo figured the best defense is a good offense. He made a rare media appearance a couple of days ago.
Epstein defended left fielder Carl Crawford, who is having one of the poorest seasons of his career after signing a seven-year, $142 million contract.
"Obviously if you could pinpoint an exact reason why it happens, someone would have done something to address it by now,'' Epstein said. "I'll say this, he's never stopped working his tail off. He's never stopped fighting. He's shown accountability, taking responsibility for the year he's had. That's a great sign, a great indication that he's going to bounce back from this.''
Twenty-five other GM's did pinpoint it Theo; Crawford can't hit a fastball. At the Major League level, hard work is no substitute for talent. If that were the case anyone who practiced hard could play major league baseball.
On John Lackey's bad season: "It's hard to explain. Again, if we could pinpoint the reason we would have addressed it by now. It's a number of factors. It's very difficult to explain. He's had a much better track record than this. We have to spend a lot of time trying to get him back to what he was."
As Curt Schilling pointed out last week Lackey's "number of factors" have been consistent throughout his career: essentially a .500 pitcher with marginal control, a high ERA, and an uncanny inability to pitch in Fenway. Not exactly a ringing endorsement from one of Theo's closest former players.
Theo's supporters (dwindling by the day) cite his history of developing young talent. I don't see any talent coming to bail out the SS Red Sox Titanic after it hit the iceberg September 1.
I wonder if Theo lives in Southie. Maybe we'll all get lucky and he's the one I'll end up sticking tomorrow.
KOKO
