Boston Red Sox: Why New Front Office Has Been a Complete Failure Thus Far

After their disappointing 2011 campaign, the Boston Red Sox front office’s job was to help their team rebound. 

After rumors of the turbulent 2011 clubhouse incidents (via the Boston Globe) and despite a 90-72 record, the Red Sox revamped their front office with a new general manager, Ben Cherington, and new manager, Bobby Valentine.  On the surface, it seemed like a solution, but they needed to do more.

The Sox play in the AL East, the toughest division in baseball, which is no longer the three-headed monster of yesteryear.  It’s fair game now.  The Rays, Yankees, Orioles and Blue Jays all lead the Red Sox with winning records.  What went wrong for Boston?

Though last year, four of their starters hit .300 and up, including Adrian Gonzalez, Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz and Jacoby Ellsbury. They also had disappointing performances from outfielders Carl Crawford and J.D. Drew.

Their pitching was decent but not up to par.  Despite seven starters, three of them (John Lackey, Tim Wakefield and Andrew Miller) had ERAs over five. 

Their bullpen was shaken up with Jonathon Papelbon leaving for Philadelphia. 

New closer Andrew Bailey has yet to make his debut with a thumb injury.  Alfredo Aceves, the current closer, is 0-3 with 14 saves and an ERA of 4.85.  No one else can close on that roster. 

The Red Sox are currently fighting the injury bug with four marquee players other than Bailey on the 60-day DL, totaling five out of commission. 

Crawford has a sprained ligament in his throwing elbow.  Jacoby Ellsbury, a runner-up for the AL MVP, is also on the 60-day DL with a partial dislocation of his right shoulder. 

Injuries are not a convincing excuse for the front office.  These injuries exposed their lack of depth on their roster, which is where the biggest failure lies in the efforts of Cherington and the front office: They did not get key players to support the starters. 

The injuries of Ellsbury and Crawford exposed the lack of depth in their outfield.  Ryan Sweeney and Daniel Nava are filling in for them, respectively.

Their infield has Kevin Youkilis back at first, moving Adrian Gonzalez to right field.  Call-up Will Middlebrooks is taking over at third, and he's doing fine (.310 BA, 22 RBI).   

However, the front office added too many reliable corner infielders and not outfielders.  Why call up Middlebrooks to play third when Youkilis is there? 

Management also cannot alternate Gonzalez with Ortiz at DH.  Both of these players have the same power as lefty hitters, with Gonzalez being the younger of the two.

The depth in the playing field may be fine, but the pitching depth is the Red Sox’s biggest problem. 

Their seven starters are down to four, with Daisuke Matsuzaka returning last Saturday.  Maybe he could help lower their collective ERA of 4.48, 28th in the majors.

The front office failed to provide support for their team. They didn’t publicly declare they were rebuilding.  But they have done nothing to place the necessary bullpen pieces to strengthen the rotation and thus secure victories. 

The front office has not stepped up to the plate to make the right moves they need to make to bring this team back as strong competitors.  Currently in last place at 29-31, management  has created a hole that could be impossible to dig out of in the AL East.  

Because of their lackadaisical actions, the Red Sox’s current struggles surely are a poor reflection on their management.

*Stats are from Baseball-Reference.com