JF Fired, New Thread, Please see new link

[Kimmi]

The move doesn't surprise me one bit. Not that I in any way feel that Farrell should have been fired.

[jacksonianmarch]

John Farrell deserved to be fired. You can debate the performance all you want. I think the performance was good enough to hang on, but the clubhouse was a disaster. Your coach has to have accountability. How are you accountable when you leave your wife and are banging a NESN reporter? How is that accountable? You stay silent while Pedey effectively alienates his team in the Machado fiasco. You stay silent when David Price rips into a HOF broadcaster because he cannot take some criticism. This team had no leader and in those cases, you need your manager to lead, and Farrell isn't a leader. There were rifts all over the place. Farrell was being classified as a terrible communicator by an unnamed player in the locker room. Once a manager loses the locker room, he is useless and had to go.

[a700hitter]

DD fired JF quickly. He was not taking any chance of a cancer recurrence.

[oldtimer]

So who are on the list of replacements for Farrell?

Ron Gardenhire a very experienced and successful 60 year old.

DiMarlo Hale from the jays. A 56 year old who knows the players but doesn't soound like a mover or a shaker.

Alomar jr. an inexperienced candidate but that doesn't mean bad

Brad Asmus good baseball man with the Padres now but results were no so great. He is around 45

Jason Varitek would be inexperienced and on the younger side

Doug Martinez of the Cubs.

Alex Cora out of the Houston organization. Inexperienced but exposed to a forward thinking organization might bring some of that with him

Others?

[devildavid]

John Farrell deserved to be fired. You can debate the performance all you want. I think the performance was good enough to hang on, but the clubhouse was a disaster. Your coach has to have accountability. How are you accountable when you leave your wife and are banging a NESN reporter? How is that accountable? You stay silent while Pedey effectively alienates his team in the Machado fiasco. You stay silent when David Price rips into a HOF broadcaster because he cannot take some criticism. This team had no leader and in those cases, you need your manager to lead, and Farrell isn't a leader. There were rifts all over the place. Farrell was being classified as a terrible communicator by an unnamed player in the locker room. Once a manager loses the locker room, he is useless and had to go.

Every clubhouse has its soap operas. How did the 2004 Sox win with Orlando Cabrera coming on to all the players wives? How about Manny's antics or Pedro and Schilling not getting along? That stuff has nothing to do with playing baseball or managing a team effectively on the field. Francona was accused of the some of the same crap you are leveling at Farrell. It didn't stop him from pulling off the greatest comeback in ALCS history.

[devildavid]

So who are on the list of replacements for Farrell?

Ron Gardenhire a very experienced and successful 60 year old.

DiMarlo Hale from the jays. A 56 year old who knows the players but doesn't soound like a mover or a shaker.

Alomar jr. an inexperienced candidate but that doesn't mean bad

Brad Asmus good baseball man with the Padres now but results were no so great. He is around 45

Jason Varitek would be inexperienced and on the younger side

Doug Martinez of the Cubs.

Alex Cora out of the Houston organization. Inexperienced but exposed to a forward thinking organization might bring some of that with him

Others?

My vote goes to Cora.

[Bellhorn04]

Some tabloid-worthy extracurricular activities by Brian Cashman didn't get him fired either.

[illinoisredsox]

Every clubhouse has its soap operas. How did the 2004 Sox win with Orlando Cabrera coming on to all the players wives? How about Manny's antics or Pedro and Schilling not getting along? That stuff has nothing to do with playing baseball or managing a team effectively on the field. Francona was accused of the some of the same crap you are leveling at Farrell. It didn't stop him from pulling off the greatest comeback in ALCS history.

Just my personal opinion and I could be completely off base, but I just see too many of the same type of player on this current team from a personality point of view. Who's the goofball who keeps everyone loose? The 04 team had Millar and players could laugh at Manny's antics because he produced on the field. Damon was a bit off the wall as well. The current group just seems like a bunch of quiet guys. Nothing wrong with having that personality, but you need both types on a roster.

[sk7326]

Movers and shakers for managers are largely nonsense. Baseball manager is the closest thing sports gets to a manager at the sort of job folks like us have. Coach your coaches, manage players and other stakeholders.

Hale has a ton of excellent experience and has managed at some level. Alex Cora is far and away the highest upside candidate - but yes he has not had a big league managing hitch before (although he has both manager and general manager experience in winter league). He has familiarity with Boston, but is far enough away to approach things fresh - has ex-player and front office experience. He has done television so the media skills should be there.

[sk7326]

slightly off topic - I think it's like a 50/50 chance Girardi comes back ... 9 years is a long time in a place like Boston or New York. He sounds at times like he could really use a long long rest.

[sk7326]

Just my personal opinion and I could be completely off base, but I just see too many of the same type of player on this current team from a personality point of view. Who's the goofball who keeps everyone loose? The 04 team had Millar and players could laugh at Manny's antics because he produced on the field. Damon was a bit off the wall as well. The current group just seems like a bunch of quiet guys. Nothing wrong with having that personality, but you need both types on a roster.

I see that. But the 2007 and 2013 teams were more buttoned up and that worked fine. I think winning and losing tends to feed this stuff too. This was a tough season a lot of levels. The team faced considerable adversity (and yes, some of it self inflicted) and still managed to win 93 games and win a division. I don't mind Farrell being canned - just hope Dombrowski does not pick an inferior replacement. I think Farrell is probably a middle third manager, you know somewhere in the #10-#20 range leaguewide ... so getting rid of him for an upgrade makes sense, but there are ways to do worse.

[moonslav59]

It's no secret I wanted JF fired for over a year.

Even so, I was a little surprised it happened.

[devildavid]

Just my personal opinion and I could be completely off base, but I just see too many of the same type of player on this current team from a personality point of view. Who's the goofball who keeps everyone loose? The 04 team had Millar and players could laugh at Manny's antics because he produced on the field. Damon was a bit off the wall as well. The current group just seems like a bunch of quiet guys. Nothing wrong with having that personality, but you need both types on a roster.

There may be something to that. Maybe you can be too blandly professional. But it still didn't stop them from winning the division. Maybe the young players would have been helped by a veteran presence. Hanley was one possibility, but he seemed like one of the few who likes clowning around. Pedroia just doesn't seem to have the right personality to be that guy either.

[devildavid]

slightly off topic - I think it's like a 50/50 chance Girardi comes back ... 9 years is a long time in a place like Boston or New York. He sounds at times like he could really use a long long rest.

It might depend on how far he takes the Yankees. I sure hope it isn't to a *gulp* World Series Championship.

[sk7326]

It might depend on how far he takes the Yankees. I sure hope it isn't to a *gulp* World Series Championship.

It might or might not - I don't think he's getting canned ... but he might want to leave.