FORT MYERS, FL -- Red Sox principal owner John Henry will arrive in Fort Myers Monday and will, with chairman Tom Werner and team president/CEO Sam Kennedy, address the team prior to its first full-squad workout, as is customary.
Henry does not plan to address the media during his visit, according to a team spokesperson. Henry has largely avoided taking questions from reporters in recent seasons. He was on stage at the team's Winter Weekend in Springfield last month and took a few questions, but that was his first time in a media setting since February of 2020, immediately after the trade of Mookie Betts.
However, BostonSportsJournal.com was invited to submit questions to Henry via email. Below is the entire transcript of the exchange.
BSJ: It would seem that with the decision to trade Mookie Betts and this past offseason's inability to retain Xander Bogaerts, the Red Sox have drawn something of a line in the sand when it comes to signing (or re-signing) big name free agents, especially those in search of long-term deals (10-12 years). Is that accurate?
John Henry: No.
BSJ: Do the Red Sox now, as a matter of policy, abstain from bidding on players seeking terms that will take them into their late 30s and early 40s, the way you once expressed reluctance to sign pitchers were 30 or older?
JH: No.
BSJ: Do you worry that (such a practice) could translate into an era where fans would be wise not to grow attached to homegrown star players (understanding that you did, of course, extend Rafael Devers)?
JH: Of course, as you say, we did extend RD and will continue to extend others where we can.
BSJ: How important is that attachment and connection in your mind, especially when you consider how the team once had those long-term affiliations with stars such as David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia, Jason Varitek and others?
JH: Did you forget about (just to name a few) Jacoby Ellsbury, Johnny Damon, Pedro Martinez and many others? Free agency has always given players options and no club can extend everyone -- often including important players. There have been others we greatly wanted to extend, but couldn't and were traded -- players such as Jon Lester and Nomar Garciaparra. This is a normal course in MLB and free agency. Clubs, fans, media can all wish players had fewer options and that clubs had unlimited budgets, but players -- including those you most want to extend -- are often going end up going to free agency. Clubs need depth. Every MLB club faces these issues and it isn't something we enjoy. I hated losing Xander (Bogaerts) as much as anyone on the planet, but players going to free agency isn't a new phenomenon. We are faced with difficult choices each offseason.
BSJ: At Winter Weekend, you expressed dismay at the rising salary scale in the industry. Had you hoped that the recent CBA would stem that growth. Sam Kennedy has frequently said that you were quite involved in the labor talks. In lights of that, were there things that you had hoped to include in the agreement that were not? And in general, what are your thoughts on the industry and where it stands economically, especially through the lens of a big market team like the Red Sox.
JH: I believe the vast majority of players, agents and clubs dislike baseball's economic system. During the last CBA, clubs presented ideas for change -- ideas clubs thought could address a lot of player issues, but they were rejected. Similarly, the union presented ideas that the clubs rejected. Virtually all of the ideas for change were to address player issues but the system itself has become so convoluted over so many CBAs -- each one being an outgrowth of previous ones -- that is difficult now to agree on much of anything. Somehow the two sides found a way forward as difficult as that was but we continue to have a system -- again -- players and clubs are unhappy with. The system needs change. Competitive balance continues to be a huge issue for clubs. Players can better identify their issues better than I, but their issues are just as compelling. We have enough time to address fundamental issues prior to the next negotiation. We need ideas, but more than anything, we need to continue talking about the issues and work to address them in a collegial manner. I know our commissioner is committed to this.
With regard to the Red Sox, we continue to work within the system whether it is on rule changes, disparity, economic incentives or competitive balance. This work is all about the game on the field and how all of these moving parts work together going forward. All of us who care about the game consistently discuss these issues. Right now, fundamental changes in media are at the forefront and we are fortunate to have a commissioner who has a very, very strong understanding of these issues and is always engaged in contingency planning and strategic solutions. Tom and I do what we can do assist.
BSJ: Attendance was down last year, as were TV ratings. On local talk radio, the Red Sox are barely mentioned. To what degree are you concerned about the team's slippage in the Boston/New England market.? And for that matter, what do you think has caused that?
JH: We play in the toughest division in baseball and despite spending a lot of money annually we haven't gotten the results we were looking for with the exception of 2021. Moving past COVID our rebuild hasn't been what we hoped for. Our fans are sensitive to that. They have expectations that probably match ours. No one was happy with a mediocre result last In our division, if you play .500 ball you are going to finish last.
There's been a false narrative that we somehow stopped spending -- completely unsupported by the facts -- that we no longer sign free agents, that we are uninterested in or incapable of winning despite our track record. I saw an article last week about Bill Belichick that posited that he was no longer up to the task. That was ridiculous. It reminded me of the recent narrative surrounding us. I don't think anyone realizes there are 30 teams in these sports every year that are all doing everything they can to win. In a particular year, some clubs are criticized because they aren't "going for it'' when they are going every single thing they can short of destroying their futures to win. You always have to keep an eye on the future. And every team (maybe not the Mets) has a budget. It's so easy to fall as we did in 2022 to mediocrity. We needed to make changes but we haven't lost our way. Historically, when these critics think you're doing something right, we did temporarily lose our way. You have to be willing to go against the grain and we always have.
BSJ: What are your thoughts on the job Chaim Bloom has done since being hired? Has he fulfilled your expectations?
JH: Baseball operations is more than one person. This is true in every organization. We put blame and credit on one personality but it takes a strong organization to be successful on the field. So a better question is: how is the organization doing? As I said, we haven't gotten the kind of results you would have expected for the amount of resources deployed over the last four years with the exception of 2021. We've been building depth, but we saw little depth last year in the major leagues. You should see some depth this year and improvement. We have had setbacks with injuries already this season, but we expect to be competitive. We are at a different stage than the Yankees are, than Toronto this season. But we are in much better shape than we were after 2021. It will be interesting.
BSJ: Given some of the activity surrounding Fenway Sports Group (FSG) and its various holdings (purchase of the Pittsburgh Penguins, rumored interest in buying an NBA team, potential for sale of Liverpool or at least taking on additional investors), can you state with confidence that there are no plans to sell the Red Sox in the near future?
JH: Yes. I know there has been a lot of conversation and quotes about LFC (Liverpool Football Club), but I keep to the facts: we merely formalized an ongoing process. Will we be in England forever? No. Are we selling LFC? No. Are talking with investors about LFC? Yes. Will something happen there? I believe so, but it won't be a sale. Have we sold anything in the past 20+ years?
