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1. Jose Can Still Seabiscuit Posted: February 12, 2011 at 10:29 PM (#3749169)

From Pete Abe today

Meanwhile, here's an update on lefty Itsuki Shoda, the free agent signed to a minor-league deal by the Sox. I spoke to a Japanese reporter and his evaluation was that Shoda "is not very good."

2. Darren

Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:08 PM (#3749179)

It's good that he used a direct quote, because those are some descriptive words that could be misinterpreted.

On Pedroia, he and the team felt pretty good about him coming back to play last year and it looked pretty clear that he wasn't ready then. Pedroia and Francona sure do have a weird relationship for a player and a manager.

Also, I should probably take this to the Moneyball thread, but what happened to Giovanni Ribisi? He seemed destined for good things then I never heard of him being a movie for about the past decade. Is he just one of those guys whose movies I happen to miss?

Edit: Just watched the video, and dang, I look younger than Pedroia.

3. Darren

Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:13 PM (#3749180)

From the interview:

Can he remember a team making so many big moves? “Maybe the 2000 Sacramento Kings when we traded for C-Webb and got Vlade (Divac). Something like that.”

Yes, of course, that is exactly the team I always think of in such discussions.

4. tfbg9 Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:27 PM (#3749187)

2-Wasn't he in Avatar?

5. Xander Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:33 PM (#3749190)

#3 - That's a good non-cliched answer.

6. Darren

Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:44 PM (#3749199)

It is, and that's why it's so amusing.

7. GGC don't think it can get longer than a novella Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:45 PM (#3749201)

2-Wasn't he in Avatar?

No. You're not thinking of Leonardo DiCaprio, are you? I look younger than Pedroia.

8. Justin T is expanding the aperture of awareness Posted: February 12, 2011 at 11:53 PM (#3749204)

Beyond that, though, it becomes very easy to watch a few innings of a game, decide that the backup first baseman is pretty so hard it hurts to watch

You New Englanders have some weird sayings.

9. Xander Posted: February 13, 2011 at 12:10 AM (#3749211)

No. You're not thinking of Leonardo DiCaprio, are you? I look younger than Pedroia.

Yes he (Ribisi) was.

10. Joe Bivens, Minor Genius Posted: February 13, 2011 at 12:51 AM (#3749219)

Pedroia and Francona sure do have a weird relationship for a player and a manager.

I remember Francona saying how he used to kick Pedroia's ass at cribbage on team flights, so the ribbing goes both ways, and I don't think it's weird in the slightest.

11. Darren

Posted: February 13, 2011 at 01:14 AM (#3749224)

You don't find it weird that they sound like peers and have since Pedroia was a rookie? I could maybe see this sort of thing between a younger manager like Ozzie (shortly after he retired) and an older player like Konerko, but between a rookie and a veteran coach it's pretty odd.

12. Lassus Posted: February 13, 2011 at 01:16 AM (#3749225)

I couldn't tell if he was unwilling or just too clueless to actually explain how they got his leg working in these past three weeks. Alchemy? Cyberdyne Systems? Did they imprison a satyr in a pentagram of foul line chalk? WHAT, DUSTIN?

13. Petunia inquires about ponies Posted: February 13, 2011 at 02:02 AM (#3749247)

I think it's pretty clear that Pedroia isn't the most we'll say 'cerebral' guy out there. If the doctors say he can do stuff, and he feels fine, I think he's gonna do his stuff, and that's good enough for him.

His hair does look awful.

The video is awesome. Laser show. The written quote doesn't do justice to the Sacramento Kings comment in the least.

14. tfbg9 Posted: February 13, 2011 at 02:05 AM (#3749248)

9-he played the Evil, ruthless corporate comer who wanted to mine the stuff that just happened to be under the sacred tree. I think.

I heard somewhere a joke: Avatar ought to have been called Dances with Smurfs.

15. GGC don't think it can get longer than a novella Posted: February 13, 2011 at 02:37 AM (#3749252)

Crap. I was thinking of Inception. I get my blockbusters confused.

16. Chip Posted: February 13, 2011 at 03:12 AM (#3749262)

Ribisi is not a fan of Operation Clambake.

17. Matt Clement of Alexandria Posted: February 13, 2011 at 01:29 PM (#3749341)

Dances with Wolves set in Ferngully, but with more bird-rape, was the one I heard. More precise but less funny.

Also, Pete Abe has a very good article on Crawford in the Globe this morning. There isn't exactly much new information, but it's a good profile, and you get a sense of why the Red Sox wanted to invest so much money in the guy. His work ethic sounds a little terrifying.

18. Joe Bivens, Minor Genius Posted: February 13, 2011 at 01:37 PM (#3749343)

11...No, I don't think it's weird. I've never been inside a clubhouse, so I don't know what the normal social dynamics are in there.

19. Darren

Posted: February 13, 2011 at 03:35 PM (#3749364)

I haven't either, but I've heard plenty of players and managers talk about each other. They don't usually sound like that.

20. villageidiom Posted: February 13, 2011 at 03:54 PM (#3749369)

Dances with Wolves set in Ferngully, but with more bird-rape, was the one I heard. More precise but less funny.

Google search for Pocahontas with blue people yields 263,000 results.

21. Joe Bivens, Minor Genius Posted: February 13, 2011 at 04:27 PM (#3749382)

Maybe Francona is a different kind of manager. I don't remember him ever saying anything negative about his players, and maybe they just like him. Pedroia probably endeared himself to Francona along the way, and they bust each others balls, like friends would.

22. tfbg9 Posted: February 13, 2011 at 04:57 PM (#3749396)

Darren is right...their dynamic is odd.

23. Jose Can Still Seabiscuit Posted: February 13, 2011 at 05:15 PM (#3749403)

I don't think Darren was being critical, just noting the oddness of their relationship about which he is right.

24. Petunia inquires about ponies Posted: February 13, 2011 at 08:15 PM (#3749501)

Google search for Pocahontas with blue people yields 263,000 results.

Google search for Cinderella with dwarves yields 1.4 million.

Google search for Pocahontas with "blue people" yields less than 34,000.

25. Darren

Posted: February 13, 2011 at 10:26 PM (#3749548)

I wasn't being critical but it probably sounded that way because the other stuff in that paragraph was kind of critical.

Maybe Francona is a different kind of manager. I don't remember him ever saying anything negative about his players, and maybe they just like him. Pedroia probably endeared himself to Francona along the way, and they bust each others balls, like friends would.

That wouldn't make sense, though, since they were like this when Pedroia was a rookie. I also don't think it's likely that Francona is a different kind of manager (on this front, anyway), as he seems to have a pretty normal relationship with other players.

26. Double-Spin Mechanic Posted: February 15, 2011 at 09:32 PM (#3750950)

You don't find it weird that they sound like peers and have since Pedroia was a rookie? I could maybe see this sort of thing between a younger manager like Ozzie (shortly after he retired) and an older player like Konerko, but between a rookie and a veteran coach it's pretty odd.

I don't think it's strange at all. A college teammate and I used to play cards with the head coach and pitching coach on literally every bus ride. I don't think there's much potential for something like that to erode the "you're my boss" aspect of the relationship.

EDIT - And the antics of the winners were generally more colorful than "I kicked his ass".

27. Matt Clement of Alexandria Posted: February 16, 2011 at 02:04 PM (#3751480)

Little piece of ST news - Pete Abe reports that Rich Hill is now a sidearmer. Apparently it was a suggestion Farrell made last year, and Hill has now decided to go with it. Hope that works - it would be fun to see what Hill ridiculous curve will do when thrown from the side.

28. Mike Webber Posted: February 28, 2011 at 08:13 PM (#3759737)

FYI
Okajima to AAA?

Red Sox could send Okajima to Triple-A
Hideki Okajima, who allowed four runs in his spring debut Sunday night against the Twins, is a candidate to open the season in the minors.
Having come over from Japan instead of progressing through the minors, Okajima has contract options remaining and there's nothing in his deal with the Red Sox to prevent the team from using them. If he's less than stellar over the rest of the spring, it's quite possible that Boston will send him down and keep Dennys Reyes as their lefty reliever instead. Unlike with Okajima, the Red Sox would probably lose Reyes if they tried to farm him out. Feb 28, 12:13 PM
Source: WEEI

29. Nasty Nate Posted: March 01, 2011 at 05:50 PM (#3760398)

Is it Sox Therapy's 10th anniversary also?

30. Matt Clement of Alexandria Posted: March 02, 2011 at 02:40 PM (#3761252)

Is it Sox Therapy's 10th anniversary also?

I'm not sure. There was already Sox Therapy when I started lurking here during the 2001-2002 offseason. I remember the story being that the Sox Therapy newsblog was started after the original site, but I don't know quite when.

(And, Jesus Christ, that's pretty much my entire adult life. That's terrifying.)

31. Jose Can Still Seabiscuit Posted: March 02, 2011 at 02:52 PM (#3761259)

I support Okajima to Pawtucket if for no other reason than I don't want to listen to my mother when he blows a game. My mother is a knowledgeable and passionate baseball fan but she has always hated him, even in '07 she didn't trust him. The phone calls everytime he blows one are painful.

Am I right that none of the lefties has options but that Okajima (due to performance) and Miller (conract) are likely to be able to clear waivers?

32. The Yankee Clapper Posted: March 02, 2011 at 04:31 PM (#3761299)

Is it Sox Therapy's 10th anniversary also?

Not quite, since Sox Therapy wasn't there at the start. It was added in an effort to keep the Primer newsblog from becoming overly Red Sox-centric given the founders interest in that subject matter. Don't recall when that change was made, but I believe it was during the season, which if #30 is correct also places it in 2001. My memory is more than a little fuzzy. If you had asked me a couple of days ago when BTF/Primer started, I would have guessed no later than 1999.

33. Home Run Teal & Black Black Black Gone! Posted: March 02, 2011 at 04:41 PM (#3761310)

decide that the backup first baseman is pretty so hard it hurts to watch

Those damn, beautiful baseball men.

34. Darren

Posted: March 04, 2011 at 02:25 AM (#3763062)

Here's some news: Dwight Evans has a part in the new movie "Hall Pass." Tell me that title doesn't have some double meaning.

35. tfbg9 Posted: March 04, 2011 at 06:02 PM (#3763448)

Does Wake make the team? What does Phil Coorey think?
Dewey is my all time favorite ballplayer.

36. karlmagnus Posted: March 05, 2011 at 07:00 PM (#3764227)

This must be easily the tenth anniversary of tfbg9's "Wake is done" snark. I'm pulling for him to be traded to the Rays, where he, Manny and Damon, three great players dissed by the Sox, can lead TB to the pennant.

37. Matt Clement of Alexandria Posted: March 05, 2011 at 07:05 PM (#3764231)

Wake has been dissed by the Sox?

38. tfbg9 Posted: March 05, 2011 at 07:13 PM (#3764236)

Damon was dissed by the Sox?

39. tfbg9 Posted: March 05, 2011 at 08:28 PM (#3764279)

As Wake works out of trouble in the 5th, raising his trade value.
Manny was dissed by the Sox?

40. Dan Posted: March 05, 2011 at 08:40 PM (#3764282)

Manny was dissed by the Sox?

How dare they give in to his demands to be traded!

41. Darren

Posted: March 06, 2011 at 05:25 PM (#3764622)

Tim Kurkjian on Sportscenter: "In my 31 years of covering baseball, I have never seen a relationship between a star player and a star manager like Terry Francona and Dustin Pedroia."

42. Pingu Posted: March 06, 2011 at 05:40 PM (#3764630)

Doesnt every sentence out of Tim Kurkjian's mouth begin with something like that?

This is the only time since 1952 I have witnessed a rain delay during a Tuesday day game where the grounds crew took under 3:14 while only using less than 7 crew members. This is INCREDIBLE. Back to you Karl.

43. Darren

Posted: March 06, 2011 at 05:55 PM (#3764639)

That's Jason Stark.

In this case, Kurkjian--even if he's exaggerating--is confirming my earlier contention that the relationship between Pedroia and Francona is very unusual.

44. Pingu Posted: March 07, 2011 at 02:50 PM (#3765228)

Oh its definitely unusual. Both Tito and Pedroia are pretty unique characters, together even more so.

45. Jose Can Still Seabiscuit Posted: March 07, 2011 at 05:12 PM (#3765310)

Down in Ft. Myers and wanted to pass along that Ryan Westmoreland is taking BP. To my untrained eye he looks healthy, not especially thin or anything and does not appear to be wearing any kind of special helmet.

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