Littlefield and Ricciardi are New Englanders. I forget if anyone else is, but I recall Joe and Jerry bringing that up, oh, 1,000 times.

the duquettes are from new england, too, right?

the duquettes are from new england, too, right?

Dan's from Daulton, MA (or somewhere around Pittsfield). No idea about Jim. Harry Dalton was from New England, If I read Nine Innings correctly. Is he contemporary enough to count?

Dan's from Daulton, MA (or somewhere around Pittsfield).

He runs -- or at least has put his name on -- a sports academy in Hinsdale, MA.

FWIW, Baird has a reputation as good at finding scrap-heap players that can be useful for a bit (see Brown, Emil). I think it's likely that the PawSox can look forward to some good seasons by unheralded late-20s slugging first basemen and corner outfielders who are waiting around for someone to tweak a hammy.

Harry Dalton, an Amherst College graduate, hired Dan Duquette, another Amherst College graduate, who hired Ben Cherington, still another Amherst College graduate.

someone to tweak a hammy

Or tear a meniscus.

maybe the selection bias is inversed. people who grow up in NE want to work for the Sox. Failed GMs getting a job as freelance scout with a team is not that unusual.

#6, what!??? I graduated from Amherst College, I love the Red Sox, I am unemployed. Give me a job!

I too graduated from Amherst and contacted Cherington in the summer of 2000 when I knew I was leaving a job. He encouraged me to apply for a low-level position (and I would have if I wanted to wait until November -- the hiring time for baseball is after the season, for fairly understandable reasons).

If you're seriously interested in applying for a job, I suggest you go to the Amherst alumni website, look up Ben's email address, and drop him a line before applying. He and I went to college at the same time (although we didn't really know each other), so that was at least one "in" I had with him. It probably can't hurt for you to write him, though you'd actually send any application to someone else, of course.

...and if youre a UMASS-Amherst grad, call the Brockton Rox for a job. They always need people to pick up the peanut casings after the game.

/juss playin

Baird took a lot of grief over his time with the Royals, and it's clear the organization is in a bad way, but it was also clear that he was a GM with definite strenghts, and that he was in one of the worst ownership situations around. I think this is a good pickup in that I think Baird can play a good "platoon role" in the front office. I like him as an advisor, but I'm glad someone else has the final say.

Is the Sox FO biased in favor of New Englanders? Certainly seems that way.

Hometown discount?