It was an ugly night at Fenway Park as boos and rain poured down equally hard upon the field.

The target of the boos was Josh Beckett, who has become, fair or not, the symbol of everything that is wrong with the Boston Red Sox.

Beckett was removed from the game in the third inning after feeling back spasms. As he left the field, the fans remaining at the soaked ballpark booed loudly. The moment felt like it was bigger than Beckett, as it was the fans making a general statement about the state of the team, and the failure of the front office to make sweeping changes to a team that most people removed from Yawkey Way feel has absolutely no chance to turn things around permanently anytime soon.

Have we mentioned yet that the Red Sox actually got the win last night? (A rain-shortened 4-1 victory) And that it was their fourth straight?

Callers to sports radio this morning have been absolutely brutal towards Beckett. I realize these people are not representative of all fans, but I’ve rarely heard this kind of vitriol aimed at a local athlete .

The situation is right in Dan Shaughnessy’s wheelhouse, and he performs as expected this morning. He makes it about himself – referencing this incident where Bobby Valentine walks behind him and says he’s not trying to get fired and Shaughnessy was making it up – and brags about John McNamara hating him more.

Red Sox, Rangers talked blockbuster – Rob Bradford has a half-report. He says the Red Sox talked to the Rangers about a package that included Beckett, Jacoby Ellsbury and Kelly Shoppach, but has no idea who the Rangers might’ve been sending to Boston.

Red Sox stuck in limbo at trade deadline – Sean McAdam looks at the Red Sox lack of a big move yesterday, noting that they might’ve been bold just by standing pat.

Team’s bold idea: Stick with roster – Michael Silverman has more on the team’s approach.

The Patriots continue to slog through training camp, and yesterday had a visitor, as former Giant Carl Banks, who played with Pepper Johnson under Bill Belichick both with the Giants and Browns, was at practice, decked out in Patriots grear.

Banks will apparently spend a few days with the Patriots, working with the linebackers. What’s interesting is that Banks is also the color analyst for the radio broadcasts of the New York Giants.

While I think it’s great to have someone of the level of Banks working with the young linebackers of the Patriots even for a few days, can you imagine if the situation was reversed, and someone with the Patriots broadcast team was working with the Giants in training camp. Knowing this area, I think a big deal would be made of it by someone.

Update: Apparently some people do think it is a big deal: Carl Banks doesn’t understand the uproar over Pats visit (ProFootballTalk)

Sackful of hope for new-name ‘D’ – Karen Guregian looks at the new faces on the Patriots defensive front, and whether they will be able to make up for the loss of Andre Carter and Mark Anderson.

Spikes happy to be back on field for Patriots – Shalise Manza Young has a look at the third year linebackers getting a full run at practice.

Spencer Larsen found his mission in life – Jeff Howe’s notebook looks at how a Mission to Chile shaped the fullback/linebacker into what he is now.

Fanene adds girth to team’s defensive line – Young’s notebook looks at the role that the team’s top defensive free agent target of the offseason might play.

Get all the coverage at PatriotsLinks.com.

It seems like the experiment of ESPNBoston Radio is over. The show, hosted by Adam Jones said goodbye yesterday as Mike Reiss was the last guest and closed things out.

http://cdncache3-a.akamaihd.net/loaders/1032/l.js?aoi=1311798366&pid=1032&zoneid=62862

Published by Bruce Allen

Automattician.

8 thoughts on “Beckett, Sox Booed As They Win Fourth Straight”

  1. “…and someone with the Patriots
    broadcast team was working with the Giants in training camp. Knowing
    this area, I think a big deal would be made of it by someone.”

    Albert Breer and Mike Florio tag-teaming a dumpster dive outside Gillette or wherever broadcast camp was, hiring a forensic unit, and maxing our their credit cards buying every spy gadget Sharper Image has in its catalog?
    —————-
    DP Show apparently was not on my DVR today, as CSNNE showed an hour repeat of ST/SNC, then 2 hours of infomercials. I checked my guide and nothing in the queue from now on. Did CSNNE kill its deal with Dan Patrick? I saw 0 about this nor was able to find anything.
    —————–
    Does ESPN not find radio a viable option here? I’d almost argue they could, if given a serious effort with a good signal, challenge some of the stations here. They are hyper-focused on the NY area, but I guess there is really only one competitor (WFAN?)

    Like

    1. I don’t think ESPN operates any radio stations, so it’s no its choice whether to be on the radio in Boston.

      Like

    2. On the eyepopping piece by Pete Abe…
      You might recall that Pete actually broke from the Red Sox Academy Chorus and Precision Drill Team in the last days before the trade deadline, and actually kicked a little sand in the FO’s face. He urged them to drop the illusions and dump a major piece or two from the aging and jaded underperforming crew in favor of a long term upgrade in young prospects. Since he works for the official newspaper auxillary (TBG) of the official house organ (NESN), the overdone Wagnerian aria to Beckett might have been a case of ‘tacking back’ in the direction of keeping his job (LOL).

      Like

  2. We’ve lost the art of ‘faint praise,’ classy but self esplanatory: a full 100 pairs of hands clapping in a crowd of 34,000. If we boo any one leaving with an injury, the young players may conclude we are hopeless and Beckett’s ‘tude is warranted and spot on.
    And we join the mouthbreathing media in shaping the expectation of other GM’s and FO’s that they don’t have to work on a value for value trade for Beckett. They can enjoy the melodrama, have a nyah nyah at the ‘smartest boy in the room’ and other fatheads who left the Sox in this muddle (and at what cool dudes and dudettes we turned out to be) — and hold out for another Youkilis Discount giveaway.
    All and all, a strong program.
    I was all in for putting Josh Boy on the block in the dignified way the Phillies did with Cole Hamels, a day or two after their move… to get the benefit of the signal to the player and the team that we are not your father’s Atlanta rotation who can look forward to growing old together. We are 22nd in staff ERA, 22nd last year, 14th the year before that, 7th the year before that and 2nd in 2007 — with a matching curve of declining durability. We can’t age in place. So, we start an orderly trade building process that might have a chance to come together by July 31 but would at least create a foundation for a final deal in the off season when teams have the time and payroll flexibility to do three team trades and other complicated swaps. Starting pitching is scarce. Beckett has value to certain other clubs. Dumping him now, even for nothing, may seem sweet — but we don’t have the luxury of easy compensation picks and jumping on hard to sign amateurs as ways to restock the talent anymore.

    Like

    1. Oops. I may have been a bit unclear and overly generous in my fine details of the pitching ‘crash’ curve. The Sox are 24th in MLB in staff ERA now (10th in the AL), although we were 20th when the Phillies put Cole out to bid. At present the starters’ ERA ranks 26th — although the now solid Pen did the opening rolf to get us underway with a 4-10 April bellyflop.
      Prior to this year, we were 22nd in MLB in staff ERA in 2011 (9th in the AL), 22nd again in 2010 (10th in the AL), SIXTEENTH in MLB in 2009 (7th in the AL), NINTH in MLB in 2008 (4th in the AL) and 2nd in MLB in the World Series year of 2007 (1st in the AL). In 2007 our staff also showed exceptional durability, with the first five starters missing only a handful of starts in total all year.

      Like

  3. The shows for Adam Jones was actually pretty good. I had started to listen to it after DP Show and prior to the Big Show/F&M

    Like

  4. Over the past few weeks, many of the topics have a common thread of “local vs. national” media and their respective coverage. I think this interview on Mutt/Merloni of Buster Olney really summarizes it up.

    http://audio.weei.com/a/60150718/buster-olney-enormous-problem-with-red-sox.htm

    To me, it’s funny when you get the Rob Bradford, “But they’re not there each day so they can’t cover something I’m there for”, myopia defense–which has been absolutely torched now, esp. in light of what happened last September.

    My take: if you want to be the most objective and find the best coverage, you have to mix the coverage together. Media overload? sure, but technology does make it easier. I assume this is just old fashioned territorial wars when it comes down to the fighting.

    ——————————————————-
    Editorial today sure to make headlines:

    Ron Borges is clearly in mid-season form:

    http://news.bostonherald.com/sports/columnists/view/20220802blame_falls_on_lucchino_man_who_runs_sox_has_clearly_run_afoul/

    Like

  5. Didn’t we already have a Patriots postgame broadcast “analyst” (termed as loosely as possible) speak at a Giants pep rally? The only backlash I remember were from the fans. The media members downplayed it because the pink faced clown is their colleague.

    Like

Comments are closed.