Kuzul

The Boston Red Sox would benefit from not making the playoffs.

That’s right. They need to crash and burn. They need to finish the 2011 season with a historic collapse. The Red Sox have already failed drastically by watching as their season hopes dwindle away to the gritty Tampa Bay Rays.

Led by manager Joe Maddon, the Rays have dug their way back from the grave and hope to propel themselves into the postseason. The Red Sox had a nine game lead in the wild card over the Rays on September 3. As of Wednesday, their lead has shrunk to merely two games.

Tuesday night’s debacle against the Baltimore Orioles in which Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon blew the save, ultimately losing 7-5, was one of the more painful losses they have suffered this season and it couldn’t have come at a worse time.

It’s tough to pin their losing ways on any one area. The talent is clearly there. Aside from Clay Buchholz and Kevin Youkilis, they have been relatively healthy. So what’s the true issue?

They’re soft. Rather than grinding through the pain, they take advantage of manager Terry Francona’s lenient attitude with his players to take a day or two off. The scratching of Carl Crawford from the lineup with a stiff neck on Monday is the latest example of this.

That bellowing laughter you just heard came from the Bruins locker room.

With some exceptions aside, this team simply isn’t tough enough. Ranging from sore backs because of airplane seats, to a slightly twisted ankle, to a stiff next, these injuries are beyond unacceptable.

Regardless if the Red Sox make the playoffs, a change may need to be made to this organization. Should Francona be made responsible for this collapse? Any manager, no matter his successful past, should never let his team win only five games in September with the playoffs around the corner. It’s simply inexcusable.

Let’s make this clear: Francona wouldn’t stand a chance in this town had we still been in a championship drought since 1918. This collapse would be one of the biggest stories in Red Sox history if that had been the case. You thought Grady Little had it bad?

That being said, Francona isn’t the biggest problem.  When it’s all said and done, the players must be held responsible. Instead, they are making excuses for themselves. They have no character, heart, and for lack of a better term, “balls”.

The one positive to pull from Tuesday night’s disaster was that Papelbon owned up to his mistake. It’s refreshing to see someone on this actually caring about their performance.

“I’ve got to go out there and execute. I didn’t do that,” said Papelbon. “I let my team down. I’ll shoulder that and take full responsibility, and I’ll be ready to go tomorrow. It’s plain and simple.”

Without a doubt, championship teams must have a vast amount of talent to win it all. But every single championship team must also have heart.  Many members of this ball club, like John Lackey and Carl Crawford, play baseball to make a living.

Players like Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis live to play the game. 

Until those changes occur, this team cannot win. Losing in historic fashion is truly the only way these baseball players can wake up and form into a team and compete in 2012.

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With the football season concluding and baseball’s spring training merely a week away, it’s safe to say the offseason is winding down.

After one of the more active offseasons in recent history, let’s take a look at who prevailed at improving their team.

Baltimore Orioles

Without a doubt, the Orioles improved significantly this season. They ranked near the bottom of the league in almost every offensive category in 2010—hence their offseason approach.

The Orioles added power to their lineup in 3B Mark Reynolds, 1B Derrek Lee and DH Vladimir Guerrero. However, with that come more strikeouts. In the 2010 season alone, Reynolds whiffed 211 times, while Lee countered with 134.

Still, adding three 30-plus home run bats to their lineup can only help. With Brian Roberts returning for a full season and the young bats of OF Adam Jones and C Matt Wieters hopefully improving, the Orioles lineup could strike fear into AL East pitchers.

Additionally, they signed SP Justin Duchscherer to upgrade their starting rotation and closer Kevin Gregg to mend the back of their bullpen.

The wild card here is the signing of Duchscherer. The last time he served as a starter was in 2008 with the Oakland A’s, where he posted a 10-8 record with a 2.54 ERA. Even though it’s unlikely he will duplicate that given his recent injuries and the division he’s pitching in, Duchscherer could still be an effective starter.

Although they are not equipped for the playoffs, don’t be surprised to see the Orioles above .500 this year. They will be one of the more interesting teams to watch this season.

Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox are the clear-cut winners of this offseason. Adding 1B Adrian Gonzalez alone may have them considered among the top teams in the American League. But the additional signing of OF Carl Crawford may have made them favorites in baseball.

Sure, they took a page out of the Yankees’ offseason bible to spend, spend and spend some more. But given the plummeting television ratings and disinterest in the team, the front office had to take action—and action they took.

Let’s not forget the improvement the Red Sox made to their bullpen in adding RP Dan Wheeler and former White Sox closer Bobby Jenks. If Jenks, Jonathan Papelbon and Daniel Bard can collaborate, the Red Sox may have the best bullpen in baseball when it’s all said and done.

Chicago Cubs

In an underrated move, the Cubs’ acquisition of Rays SP Matt Garza makes their starting rotation one of the best in the National League. They don’t quite have a solid ace, but one thing the Cubs rotation does have is balance.

The addition of 1B Carlos Pena should give the Cubbies lineup a much-needed boost of power. Plus, RP Kerry Wood returning to Chicago helps their bullpen, although they still may need help down the line.

Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers instantly struck gold when they acquired SP Zack Greinke. Coming off of a dismal 2010 (10-14, 4.14 ERA), Greinke clearly needed a change of scenery from the Royals and the American League itself. He is capable of amazing numbers, as evidenced by his Cy Young-winning 2009 season (16-8, 2.16 ERA).

The Greinke trade seems to overshadow the acquisition of former Blue Jays SP Shaun Marcum. If you think a 3.64 ERA is impressive in the AL East, imagine what he can do in the National League.

With one year remaining on slugger Prince Fielder’s contract, look for the Brewers to push all of their chips in and go for it all this year. They could be the “Cinderella story” of the 2011 season.

Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies didn’t make a lot of moves, but quite frankly, they didn’t need to. 

In one of the biggest surprises of the offseason, SP Cliff Lee agreed to return to Philadelphia for a five-year, $120 million deal. Speculation pointed toward Lee re-signing with the Rangers or signing a $150 million deal with the Yankees.

The Phillies’ current starting rotation speaks volumes:

Roy Halladay (21-10, 2.44 ERA, 219 SO)

Lee (12-9, 3.19 ERA, 185 SO)

Cole Hamels (12-11, 3.06 ERA, 211 SO)

Roy Oswalt (13-13, 2.76 ERA, 193 SO)

Joe Blanton (9-6, 4.82 ERA, 134 SO)

With the likes of 2B Chase Utley, SS Jimmy Rollins, 3B Placido Polanco and OF Shane Victorino returning at full health to go along with their lights-out rotation, the Phillies are flat-out scary.

Check back next week to find out the losers of the 2011 MLB offseason. Be sure to leave comments below; they may be addressed in the next article.

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