Sam Kennedy said it best himself.
“Talk is cheap right now.”
“It’s time to get back where we belong,” Kennedy said during the Red Sox’s exit interview-style press conference this week. “Words are hollow, but that’s what we’re going to work on this offseason.”
If anything, at least the CEO of Fenway Sports Group — oh, right, and of those afterthought Red Sox, too — is recognizing how fans and casual observers have viewed the situation for years now.
Ownership has been full of it, and fans have had enough of their all-talk, minimal-effort act.
Those twenty-six words from Kennedy are the only ones I care to include in this column. Why? There were plenty of others words, insights and promises offered at the end-of-year press conference, but in reality, they mean absolutely nothing without any action.
From “Full throttle” to “it’s time to get back where we belong,” it’s all a bunch of word vomit. If anything, I’ll give them half of a half of a percentage point’s worth of credit for not trying to spin their 2024 season as some kind of mutated “success”…
I do have one other observation from that meaningless press conference, though…
Where exactly do these Red Sox belong, one might wonder? You and I would say it’s an obvious answer: competing for World Series titles. Heck, the words are even printed on the Red Sox’s own dugout steps: “We play for championships.”
What I heard from Kennedy was something short of that. He said the goal is to play October baseball. In his mind, is simply making it to the postseason good enough? Early on, he made mention that he thought this year’s team was good enough to do that.
Are we building teams for postseasons… or parades? The former shouldn’t be good enough when we’ve experienced so much of the latter over the past two decades. If the goalposts have indeed shifted (something Kennedy denied), and one-and-done playoff appearances are now considered successful seasons, then it might be time to officially close the book on the Red Sox’s era of competing for championships…
Watching what’s working
I’m sure there are many Red Sox fans who, now that the season is over, have turned the page from baseball and are now focusing on the Patriots, the Celtics, the Bruins, etc.
But for those who are hardcore baseball fans, the fun is just beginning.
The opening days of MLB’s postseason were full of the sport’s trademarked October drama.
Pete Alonso's home run, as called by @Mets radio broadcaster Howie Rose 🐻❄️ pic.twitter.com/6JnB1GW2ma
— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2024
Now is the best time to be paying attention to baseball, and for more reasons than one. Not only do we get to see the best of the best performing at the highest level, but we also get a glimpse into what it takes to be playing on this stage.
Two trends I’ve noticed thus far? They won’t shock anyone: clutch pitching, and clutch hitting.
On the first day of postseason action this past Tuesday, we saw three dominant performances from high-level arms: Detroit’s Tarik Skubal, Kansas City’s Cole Ragans and San Diego’s Michael King. The trio combined for 19 scoreless innings with 26 strikeouts.
That is some elite stuff…
Bobby Witt. Jr. delivered a clutch RBI single in his postseason debut to lead Kansas City to the first of its two wins in a sweep of the Orioles (he also had the go-ahead infield single in Game 2). Fernando Tatis hit a tone-setting two-run homer in the Padres’ 4-0 win in Game 1 of their two-game sweep of the Braves.
And, of course, we had the shot of the postseason, Pete Alonso’s go-ahead, three-run blast in the ninth to help the Mets rally from down 4-0 in the ninth inning of an elimination game to flip the script on the Brewers.
Postseason baseball is simply the best, isn't it?
Let’s hope that Craig Breslow & Co. are paying close attention to it. Because when the lights are shining brightest, it’s the game’s premier talent that’s been coming through in the clutch…
Tito’s back
When Terry Francona walked away from the Cleveland Guardians at the end of last season, we all assumed that would be it for the man who should go down as the greatest manager in Red Sox history.
It turns out, we were all wrong.
The 65-year-old Francona is making a shocking return to baseball after being hired as the new manager of the Cincinnati Reds, meaning he will be back in the dugout for an incredible 24th season as a big league manager.
Tito is back!
— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2024
Terry Francona has signed a 3-year contract with the @Reds through the 2027 season, with a club option for 2028. pic.twitter.com/xMZKTKNkYv
First of all, I — along with the entirety of Red Sox Nation — are thrilled that the health issues that led to Francona’s decision to walk away from the game at the end of 2023 are apparently under control enough for him to return.
Simply put, the game of baseball is better with Tito in it.
Now, Francona is in for arguably his toughest challenge yet: taking a Reds franchise that has made one playoff appearance in the last 11 years and hasn’t won a World Series since 1990 to the next level.
He’ll certainly have some elite young talent to work with, namely Hunter Greene and Elly De La Cruz. It will be a tall order, nonetheless, especially for an older manager who is on the back nine of his career.
But that didn’t stop 68-year-old Bruce Bochy from doing it successfully.
Once thought retired for good, the longtime San Francisco Giants and Padres manager was hired in 2023 to lead a Texas Rangers squad that had never gotten over the hump. And guess what? Bochy got them over the hump…
Perhaps we are witnessing a renaissance of baseball’s old-school skippers?
Pedro’s back, too
Tito isn’t the only former Red Sox icon who’s coming back.
Pedro Martinez is coming back to Boston… for a charity event, anyway. The legendary Sox pitcher and his foundation are hosting the eighth annual Gala on Friday, Nov. 8 at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel.
In addition to being “a remarkable evening to raise funds for children and families in the Boston area and the Dominican Republic,” the event will serve as a 20-year celebration of the greatest achievement in Red Sox history: the 2004 World Series title.
Martinez will be joined at the event by former teammates David Ortiz and current Red Sox coach Jason Varitek, as well as Patriots stars Ty Law, Jermaine Wiggins and Matt Light among “many others are expected to be in attendance.”
According to an event press release, “many members of the (2004 World Series) team will be in attendance.”
“Our team helped bring the city together like no other and I know each of us is grateful for the experience and the City of Boston’s everlasting support for us,” Pedro said in a statement. “It will be a special night filled with lifelong memories, iconic teammates, and crucial, life-changing support for children and families in the Boston area and beyond.”
Fans can get in on the action as well, as tickets are available at PedroMartinezFoundation.com/Gala.
Sounds like a pretty good way to forget about the last, oh, let’s say 486 games (or three playoff-less seasons) of baseball in Boston to me…
Gethin Coolbaugh is a columnist for Boston Sports Journal. Follow him @GethinCoolbaugh on X/Twitter.