Bobby Valentine Claims Red Sox Have Weakest Roster in Team History

Just when it seemed like things could not get worse for the Boston Red Sox and their fans, manager Bobby Valentine decided to make things worse. 

According to ESPN's Ian Harrison, Valentine had an interesting response when asked where he would like to see improvements this offseason:

"

Are you kidding? This is the weakest roster we've ever had in September in the history of baseball. It could use help everywhere.

"

This is not the sentiment that analysts shared earlier in the year. However, the team has traded Kevin Youkilis, Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett and Carl Crawford since falling out of the postseason race. Add in injuries to David Ortiz and Ryan Sweeney, and the roster looks nothing like it did in April.

In Thursday's loss to the New York Yankees, the Red Sox had only two players with enough at-bats to qualify for the batting title—Cody Ross and Mike Aviles. 

Still, the team has underperformed on the field. The 64-80 record at the bottom of the standings is only the beginning. The starters' ERA of 5.10 is the fourth-worst in the majors. Boston is No. 6 in runs scored, but the man leading the team in RBI, Adrian Gonzalez, has been gone for three weeks.

Things continue to spiral downward for Valentine this season. Following an August text message from a player to ownership, John Henry and Larry Lucchino held a meeting with the bulk of the players to discuss the future of their manager, according to Yahoo!. 

Then in early September, Boston.com reported that Valentine told WEEI radio host Glenn Ordway that he would punch him in the mouth for asking if his team had "checked out."

It seems that the pressure of the job has gotten to the manager in his first year with the Red Sox. It is unknown if he will be able to return to the club next season, but comments like this are not helping his cause. At least in his mind, he can blame the losing season on a lack of talent.

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