Red Sox owner John W. Henry appears to be following the lead set by then-president Gerald Ford when it came to bailing out Gotham City during its malaise of the mid-1970s.
That moment was immortalized by the New York Daily News.
“Ford To City: Drop Dead”
By not talking and not doing, Henry has confirmed what is on everyone’s mind: the Red Sox have become the red-headed stepchild of the Fenway Sports Group portfolio.
“Henry To Sox: Drop Dead.”
Henry continues to walk away literally and metaphorically from addressing any concerns about the Major League Baseball team that operates under his company masthead.
Henry hasn’t taken live in-person questions from the press about the Red Sox since the Trump administration. He’s clearly given up on trying to make the Red Sox relevant again. Never mind great.
Henry’s appearance at the 2023 Winter Weekend/Peasant Uprising was a mini-Afghanistan. He spent this year’s Winter Weekend in the digital bunker. Or Miami. Or Saudi Arabia.
Monday at Fenway South, Henry again snubbed the press. Even the most dutiful Red Sox State Run Media apparatchiks were left hanging. Jersey Street runs two ways, loyalty to Henry does not.
When asked about being asked questions by reporters, the detached billionaire laughed, waved and walked away.
It’s time for Red Sox Nation to do the same.
That team has finished in last place in three of the past four seasons. Since winning the 2018 World Series, the Red Sox are 356-352 (.502) during the regular season. They made one playoff appearance, knocking out the Yankees and Rays before getting whipped by the Houston Trash Cans 4-2 in the 2021 ALCS.
Boston’s average finish during this current five-year span is 17.4 games out of first place.
There are more human shields around JetBlue Park than in any Middle Eastern conflict. Since going silent on the Red Sox around the time Mookie Betts was traded/salary dumped to Los Angeles, Henry has cowardly hidden behind Mrs. Henry, Tom Werner, Sam Kennedy, Chaim Bloom, Alex Cora and, now, Craig Breslow.
Post-walkaway snub, Henry and the Baroness Pizzuti-Henry were seen on her Instagram feed, yukking it up alongside Breslow and Werner during what was described as “the annual full team meeting.”
Their message to fans: “Let them eat gluten-free cake.”
The CEO of the Boston Globe reported the following from (Robert E.) Lee County in Florida.
“It is a joyful reunion, a fresh start, and inspiring alignment for the long season ahead. (Alex Cora) set the tone and energy, with a commitment of hard work and having each player’s back. I love seeing his leadership and connection to each player. Breslow remembered what he felt like sitting in those exact seats at the start of the Red Sox season when he was a player, and what resonated with him.”
The Nickelodeon Super Bowl Slime Cast offered a harsher assessment of Taylor Swift’s couture.
The Green Monster of denial and delusion is cracking. But it may not be enough.
Red Sox CEO/President Kennedy let the truth slip Monday when he said that Breslow-Bloom is subject to spending “parameters” set by ownership. Kennedy, who a few weeks ago referred to anyone who questioned the Red Sox commitment to spending and winning as a “liar,” admitted that “the focus on spending is fair and reasonable given where we finished the last couple of years.”
Things got better/worse Tuesday.
The face of the franchise, third baseman Raffy Devers, questioned its direction or lack thereof.
“Everybody knows what we need, you know what we need, and they know what we need. There’s just some things I can’t say out loud, but everybody that knows our organization and knows the game knows what we need,” Devers said via interpreter Carlos Villoria.
So the Red Sox have lost their best player and Opening Day is still five weeks away?
July is going to be a blast.
Even former players have gone rogue. Dustin Pedroia reportedly infiltrated a dinner with Cora and some team executives via FaceTime and offered his thoughts on which available free-agent pitchers the Red Sox should add to their roster.
“He was very clear about his feelings,” Kennedy told the Globe’s Peter Abraham.
This time around the sun, the Red Sox are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the 2004 World Series champions. RIP Tim Wakefield.
One score after creating the most euphoric moment in the past 100 years of Boston sports, the Red Sox have allowed their baseball precipice to crumble into dust.
The 2024 Red Sox are ranked 17th in ESPN’s most-recent MLB power ranking. Their over/under win total is 79.5 games. That’s a one-win boost from last season. If you want to burn your digital dollars, the Red Sox are +5000 to win the World Series, +2200 to win the American League, +1300 to win the AL East, and +260 to make the playoffs.
The only drama concerning this club is whether or not Curt Schilling will be invited back to celebrate with his former teammates.
He’s likely to cause a furor in either case.
The 2004 Red Sox World Series victory elicited unbridled joy in New England not felt since the end of World War II. Bells rang from Waterville to Waterbury. Cemeteries were festooned with Red Sox swag.
Twenty years hence, the Red Sox are in grave danger of irrelevance.
Ownership went “full throttle” this offseason – when it came to staking a claim in the PGA Tour and partnering with Netflix to make a documentary/slasher film about this upcoming season.
FSG’s baseball team is as much an irritant as anything else. Think of the Red Sox as that shaky, identity-stealing ATM in the corner of a restaurant, spitting out $20s and $50s as needed to cover the cost of the celebration raging elsewhere.
Of course, I may be wrong in all of this.
DMs are open and my email is below if John Henry wants to prove otherwise.
Bill Speros (@realOBF and @BillSperos) can be reached at bsperos1@gmail.com
