We Need To Give Credit Where Credit Is Due To John Farrell

What an interesting regular season that was for our Red Sox, to say the least. It flew by, but everything that could have possibly happened on and off the field happened. We experienced life without David Ortiz for the first time in ages, leading to the team being dead last in the American League in homers. We also experienced life for the first time with Chris Sale, which was an experience in and of itself, to put it lightly. The Rafael Devers era began much sooner than planned, and that, too, has been simply amazing to watch. Pablo Sandoval finally got the boot. Boston played a disgusting amount of extra-inning games, but also won a disgusting amount of extra-inning games. The list goes on.

Off the field, though, it’s another story. David Price lashed out at Dennis Eckersley and half of the team resoundingly applauded in response. We learned just how soft this particular Red Sox team really is, as well, throughout that memorable time period. Dustin Pedroia was and still is being questioned as a leader, when he said, “it’s not me, it’s them” to the Baltimore Orioles when they questioned him first, rightfully so, when Matt Barnes threw at Manny Machado’s noggin. John Farrell almost got fired, again. This list goes on, too.

What I’m trying to say is, is that it’s time we give Manager John at least some credit here. Many may argue that a manager in baseball doesn’t play that big of a role in the team and its success which, to an extent, is valid. Albeit, it doesn’t hurt to have a manager that at least knows what he’s doing. Farrell at least has a clue, despite what many may think. He has his fair share of blunders, of course. His better moments always happen to be swept under the rug, which I find ironic. But I get it. Managers and coaches have always been and will always be second-guessed by everybody in New England, and from what I can tell, Farrell has adapted to that pretty damn well.

To me, it feels like he just doesn’t care anymore. I absolutely love that. To be successful in this city, you simply cannot let words get to you. You can’t let the outside get to you, whether it’s fans or the media. All you can do is do what you feel is best and just roll with it. For example, when it comes to the whole Price fiasco, he did the right thing at the end of the day as a manager. I still don’t agree with him refraining from making some sort of a public apology in regards to Eckersley and the entire situation, but he did the right thing. Farrell knew the story would blow over eventually, and it sure as hell did. He knows the kind of power and status that Price has in the clubhouse and he let him take the reigns like a big boy. Farrell took much of the blow and stuck to his gut, which I don’t think many people could and/or would have handled.

In general, Farrell always receives and takes the blame when it comes to this team. Sometimes, it was his fault. Most of the time, though, there wasn’t much he could have done differently. If the bullpen implodes, it’s Farrell’s fault, not the pitcher’s fault. If the team loses in extras, it isn’t the players’ fault, it’s Farrell’s fault. If something like the Price/Eckersley situation goes down, it isn’t the perpetrator’s fault, it’s Farrell’s fault. You know the drill by now.

Whether you like him or not, it’s pretty obvious that he’s done something right in this five years here. He’s the only Red Sox manager in history to lead a team to consecutive first-place finishes and is the only Boston skipper to have three AL East titles under his belt. Boston hadn’t won back-to-back division titles since 1915-16 (!!). He’s gotten the most out of an average baseball team this season. For example, that bullpen. It had its moments, undoubtedly, but if anything or anyone on this Red Sox team is a juggernaut, it’s that ‘pen. Kimbrel is a king. Carson Smith is back and he’s back on his bullshit. Austin Maddox is actually good (please, John, put him on the playoff roster and I’ll love you forever). Joe Kelly is the man. I could go on. That bullpen overachieved like nobody’s business and to some degree, you have to credit Farrell for utilizing its pieces the way he has.

He’s gotten the most out of a David Ortiz-less lineup and won the way they have despite having no home run hitters in that lineup. Farrell has worked around a failing Hanley Ramirez and helped get Xander Bogaerts back on track by testing out new lineup options throughout the season. Mookie Betts had a down season, but Farrell stuck with his guy in the third or fourth spot, allowing him to lead the team in ding dongs and RBI. The moral of the story is, he made a Red Sox team flow as smoothly as he possibly could minus David Ortiz, both on and off the field. I’m not calling Farrell a genius by any means, but I give him two thumbs up for the way he handled the lineup with the cards he was dealt.

When you look at the big picture, Farrell did his job this season as well as saved his job this season. Early on, there were rumblings surrounding him and his job security and he saved his own ass, at the end of the day, which I applaud. I can tell that he’s grown as the hate has flowed through him. Anyone that can take constant hate and scrutinization and turn it into something positive is a fine person, in my eyes. I may go as far as to say that he grew on me this season. His embarrassing mistakes were significantly down this year when comparing past years. He handled the off-field issues professionally and kept his cool throughout all of it. He was given a “meh” ballclub to start the season and turned them into something great, compared to many other teams, at least. They’re nothing like the Houston Astros or the Cleveland Indians, both in a good and bad way. They’re good in their own unique way, and I think that’s pretty damn cool. Shoutout to Johnny Boy for being a real one this past 2017. How about eleven more wins, now, eh?