What Can We Do?

Have you ever watched a friend or family member make a big mistake (or a bunch of smaller ones), and you can’t do anything to help? It doesn’t matter how much talking, strategizing, listening, encouragement, or ice cream (I am a woman after all, ice cream solves a lot surprisingly) we give to that person, nothing seems to work. That person is the one who has to make the decisions about his/her life.

Well, that’s about how it feels with the Red Sox these days. It doesn’t matter what we, the fans, do. It’s ultimately up to the Red Sox players to win games. We can’t play the games for them.

Sure, it’s easy to yell at the television/computer screen every time we see one of the players, or a combination of players, make a mistake. It doesn’t matter how many times you say “Please get a hit. Please strike out this player. Please get a double play,” it doesn’t work.

I’m hoping the Red Sox players get something going. It’s kind of sad that individual players (most notably Adrian Gonzalez and Darnell McDonald lately) seem to be taking the blame. Yes, those two players need to own up to some of the blame (A-Gon striking out to end a game, McDonald going 1-4 yesterday then giving up a 3-run blast to end the game- the latter should not be his fault though), but two players do not make a team.

Collectively, as a team, the Red Sox are starting to look like an old group of players stuck in the glory days. The seem to have a mentality that the fans will keep coming because they have been good in the past. While this might be true for some, it’s really sad that there are front-running fans, and they seem to be flocking away from the Sox.

Now, I don’t encourage fans being front-runners, but the sad truth is these are the fans that really spend the money. They’re the fans that keep buying shirts, hats, and other memorabilia. Ultimately, they’re the ones who keep buying so the Red Sox can afford those hefty salaries.

Other fans, like me, have bought their apparel and such. Yes, we still buy the occasional item, but it’s not a big rush. We wear our old hats and shirts proudly because we have watched this organization for so long.

But, getting back to the topic, the Red Sox players need to start playing more. If they don’t, management is going to kick in to get something going themselves, whether that be through releases, trades, or sending players back to the minors. A shake-up might happen, like in 2004 when Nomar was traded. No one ever thought they would’ve seen Nomar traded, but it happened.

There’s really nothing we, the fans, can do besides sit back and watch the Red Sox. As much as we feel like a part of the game, we’re not the ones playing it. They are. They are the ones that decide their fate.

Hitting Rock Bottom Again?

I was at the grocery store semi-early this morning, around nine o'clock.  I was wearing my Nike, Red Sox dri-fit shorts and a Majestic Red Sox shirt (both had very minimal logos and representation on them).  I wasn't thinking too much about my appearance because Sundays are truly my day of rest... meaning, I usually throw on shorts and a t-shirt and piddle-paddle around the house all day.

Anyway, I was in the produce section when a guy approached me.  He looked at me and simply said "The Red Sox are killing me this year."  He was with another guy who was wearing a Patriots jersey (I'm 99% sure there are less Pats fans in Iowa than Red Sox fans).  I shook my head sadly at these two guys and agreed.  We said a few choice things about the Red Sox and the game yesterday (notably losing Cook to the DL) and went on our ways. 

When the Red Sox lost to the Yankees two weeks ago, 15-9, blowing a 9-run lead, Bobby Valentine said the team had hit rock bottom.  They then went on to win 6 games in a row on the road.  However, the troubles seem to be haunting the Red Sox again.  In the 6-game homestand, they lost 5 to the A's and O's.  In fact, they have now lost 5 in a row... and this was supposed to be the easy part of the schedule.

As my brother put it today, the Red Sox need to be shaken up.  Something needs to happen to get the team cracking.  Of course, his proposal wouldn't fly.  He suggested that the Red Sox get beer after the games when they win.  If they win three in a row, they get fried chicken. 

Something needs to happen though.  It's gotten to the point where it's almost painful to watch the games anymore.  Today's game started out painful (Buchholz... again), had some great moments (Middlebrooks game-tying grand slam, some great defensive plays by Pedroia in extras), but it never looked like the team was having fun or enjoying themselves.  They seem to get exciting about good things happening, but they need more.

I don't know if they're still in the adjustment periods with Valentine (who is on my list, let me tell you- he should've kept Miller and Aceves in longer today), they're carrying over from last year's problems, if there's a problem in the clubhouse, or what.  Something needs to happen.  I know I keep repeating that, but the Red Sox need to get going.  We're more than a month into the season.  They need to get going and play like the team everyone knows they can play.

I understand that there's many of the starters on the DL (Crawford, Ellsbury, Youkilis, Bailey), but the Red Sox had a much worse time in 2010 with injuries (Ellsbury, Pedroia, Youkilis, Varitek, Drew).  The 2010 team still played much better than the 2012 team.  They had a sort of intensity and excitement to them.  Even though they came in 3rd in the division, they still made it competitive and won 89 games.  They were second only to the Yankees in runs scored, RBIs, and home runs.

Again, something needs to happen.