Manager Bobby Valentine will not return to the Red Sox next season, the team announced (on Twitter). GM Ben Cherington will lead the search for his replacement.
“This year’s won-loss record reflects a season of agony,” said Red Sox President/CEO Larry Lucchino in a release. “It begs for changes, some of which have already transpired. More will come. We are determined to fix that which is broken and return the Red Sox to the level of success we have experienced over the past decade."
Valentine led the Sox to a 69-93 record and a last place finish in his only season at the helm. His dismissal is not much of a surprise, especially in light of some of Cherington's recent comments. Valentine was under contract for next season at $2.5MM, which the team is still obligated to pay him.
Well, I didn’t see this coming…
And there was much rejoicing.
I hope Larry and Co. actually allow Ben to choose his replacement.
I’ve been waiting for this story for over 10 months.
So does that mean they fired him?
No more like in Office Space, and they just went ahead and fixed the glitch. Bobby just won’t be receiving any pay checks anymore…
“If you could just go ahead and not manage our team anymore, that would be great”
Thanks, I just thought of the fax machine scene… feel free to figure out the visualization.
Why have you done this to me
Whaaaat,
i feel faint
Bobby V may never manage again. MLB players will see to that!
Via twitter?!?! Talk about “disloyal.” Fitting, perhaps. But you’d think they’d at least give him more than 140 characters…
Now we just need to wait and see what Bobby’s response will be, maybe he will blame Joe Maddon?
Nah.. Whoever ends up with BJ Upton on a multi year deal, only to find out they didn’t get his ‘keeper” when he flies off his rocker will do that..
They announced to the public via Twitter. You act as if they didn’t meet with him in person.
They also finally released a press release. Obviously they met with him in person, but we’re talking about professionals here. I think the announcement to the public should not have been by twitter. It’s not very professional in my opinion. And I’m a Sox fan and not much of a Bobby V fan. I think it would have been more appropriate to just do the press release and perhaps tweet the release so the fans could at least see more than just Bobby V won’t be back and Cherington (who everyone knows wouldn’t have hired him in the first place) is going to find his replacement.
Twitter is a Legitimate News Medium now.
No, no it’s not but that doesn’t really matter.
Welcome to the world of social media. #itsathing #forreal #news
Some of us old fogies disagree with ya karkat :-)
To each his own, but my secret life off of this website is all about the tweets :p
It can serve as a source of intelligence but just because someone posts it doesn’t make it news. If anything, the amount of disinformation or sheer nonsense has increased dramatically with social media.
It’s a drastically efficient and dynamic medium for news sources to get news out quickly and efficiently, though. I’m not saying it itself is a news SOURCE (although it can be, and has been in emergency situations), but it’s a wonderful delivery method.
He (Valentine) announced in his post game news conference that a meeting was going to occur between himself and ownership in boston today..
I fully understand some (many) not knowing that there would be a face to face meeting, but please.. Everyone hammering them for not having one without the facts is yet again comical and normal here of ‘fans” not having a clue, yet acting like they know what is going on…
Normally I’d agree, but the manner of termination was probably more effort than the manner of managing he did this season.
He’s worth less than 140.
Dollars.
It’s gonna be funny when the Red Sox are still terrible next year and the fans realize that it wasn’t 110% Bobby’s fault.
It definitely was not 110% his fault, but he still deserves plenty of the blame for both his on-field management (outside of his bullpen management, overall) and off-field media/personnel issues.
Hmm.. I dunno. He was right about Bard having no business in the rotation. He was right about Middlebrooks being a better option than Youkilis. He wasn’t the one who traded Josh Reddick for Andrew Bailey. He wasn’t the one who traded away Scutaro and Lowrie.
He can’t get in the box and hit more homers for Adrian Gonzalez. It wasn’t his fault Clay Bucholz was absolutely horrific to start the year.
I guess you can blame him for Dustin Pedroia getting butt hurt, but I don’t take Pedey too seriously at all after the stunts he pulled this season.
He didnt earn the respect of the players he’s supposed to be managing and made a bad situation worse by not being able to keep his mouth shut. (Calling out Youkilis, “Nice Inning Kid,” etc).
For the Red Sox to improve, Bobby Valentine can’t be at the helm.
Wait, now managers aren’t allow to call out underachieving players? When did this become a thing?
I didn’t say they can’t call them out I said keep it behind closed doors. Attacking your players in the media is the easiest way to lose the respect of your clubhouse.
Middlebrooks will sure look good when his horrid K/BB rate and .335 BABIP catches up to him.
If you pick and choose your stats you can make Barry Bonds in his 40’s look league average… but looking at the entire picture i think it is safe to say that:
He was not 100% ready for the big leagues (maybe 75 to 85% ready) but was forced into action as the team was in the thick of things at the time and helped keep the team “in the race” while he was there… He was hurt by a hit by pitch and at that time played approx 45% of a full MLB season.
So lets play a little game of cat and mouse and say that he was on pace (based on a full season) to:
-hit more than 30 HR
-have more than 120RBI
-4.5 WAR
-.835 ops
-the kid slugged .510 as a rookie (yes mike trout was better, but mike trout is probably the best rookie in baseball history) but that’s 30 points or so better than bryce harper and 60 points higher than jason heywards rookie season and a touch higher than Buster Posey’s rookie year.
-had many clutch hits.
take the pitch that broke his wrist out of the eqaution, (and Mel Ott, errr Mike Trout) and he’s the rookie of the year in the AL and probably a top 10 mvp candidate.
I’m willing to be wrong, but we’ll see who’s right. I see Kevin Kouzmanoff 2.0.
Well, let’s say you’re right. Let’s say he’s Kevin Kouzmanoff 2.0.
Kouzmanoff’s 4 years as an every day player netted him a line of .259/.303/.426/.728 with a OPS+ of 98 and an average of 19 HR while being an exceptional defensive 3B.
In 2012 Youkilis put up a .235/.336/.409/.745, 19 HR and an OPS+ of 99 while being a not particularly good defensive 3B.
Never said that Youkilis was better, but that Middlebrooks is probably not the future superstar 3B that Red Sox fans (and the media) think he is.
Exactly where in the media has middlebrooks been labeled as a future “superstar”? Not familiar with any media that has labeled him as such, even the biased NE Media.
As for Youk being mentioned in another above post?? Youk NEVER was more than an average 1b, even in his 20’s and at the age of **33** with various injuries, he certainly isn’t.. He IS still a GG caliber 1b and even held the MLB all time record for consecutive games without an error record for awhile.
That’s a lot of ‘Ifs’. Seeing as we’ll never know what a whole rookie season of a healthy Middlebrooks would be, IF Mike Trout is out of the picture, you’ll probably be looking into the Oakland A’s for the ROY. Cespedes and Parker both turned in very very good rookie years, with much less protection around them.
they should not have expected off the field media and odd things when they hired bobby v ? why the hell would they think anything different would happen
thankyou
They aren’t too terrible….
If Bobby quit, he would lose his $2.5M for 2013. They had to have mutually agreed that he be terminated. Too bad, as Bobby never really got a chance to do his job the way he could have…. Oh well, this isn’t the last head to roll, we hope… There is much blame to go around…for this dismal performance…day old Fenway beer at champagne prices…..ugh!
No, they fired him
Didn’t get a chance? How about a $180 Million Dollar payroll… A team loaded with stars that ended up getting hurt or sucking. So…
$180M down the tubes, as they say….69-93……and it may get worse in 2013…with BC at the helm.
he [personally] didn’t actually throttle them onto the DL did he? and if they suck then he does WHAT….nicely suggest [in private] that they try a little harder?
Feel better that its finally confirmed.
party at Dave Magadan’s !!
Twitter? really? either way I’m glad he is gone. Go manage a New York team or something
Really is funny how everyone including Bobby tries to cover it up before this even though it’s probably the worst kept secret in baseball.
Barry True.
yAHOOOOOOO !!! God has answered my prayers !
I wish we could do musical chairs with Tito, but he has shown that he does not want to return.
musical chairs? not the image Tito needs ya think?…what music exactly??
“His dismal is not much of a surprise”
Does anyone at the Globe do any proof reading. Should read dismissal not dismal !!
Freudian slip.
Very appropriate one, however. His (being) dismal didn’t come as much of a surprise to me!
This is MLBTR, not the Boston Globe?
I think they got it exactly right.
nobody can manag this bunch of whiny slackers.next years they’ll be drinking beer in the on deck circle and running a KFC in the dugout.
Shocked!!! Never saw this coming. I would like to see Dave Martinez given a strong look but only if he grows his Osama Bin Laden beard back. Another name I would be happy to see Ben consider is Bob Brenly.
Woohoo!!!!
The fish rots from the head down and Valentine is not the head. He is just this years scape goat for top management and ownership’s errors and short comings.
the…fish…?
Announced by Twitter….what a slap in the face….lol
You think they didn’t meet with him before they announced it? Come on Shane-o Mac
I know….my point being whatever happened to a press conference?
Did they have one for Tito? I don’t even remember if they did. Is it normal to hold a press conference for firing a manager?
technology.
Francona goes to Cleveland, Bobby V. goes back behind the mike at ESPN.. He stays for two years…goes back to Japan to manage…Tito gets fired in two years…goes back to the mike at ESPN….. Oh when will this game of musical chairs end?
i thought valentine was staying and cherington was out? what happened there
The brass didn’t listen to me. But that doesn’t change my mind at all. Bobby V. got a bum deal (I will concede of course that $5M is nothing to sneeze at for 8 months work). Cherington is way in over his head as a GM, IMHO. He has neither the baseball experience as a player nor the intellectual genius needed to serve as the Red Sox front line decision maker on team and player related matters. He is more responsible for the deterioration of the team’s chemistry than anyone with his poor selection of talent and his bureaucratic gamesmanship. He should be out the door but, perhaps, Lucchino, decided to keep the controversy as far down the food chain as he could. If Ben were to go, then he would be the next in line to be held accountable for the team’s abysmal performance. PYA is the name of the game everywhere.
I don’t expect the media controversy to go away, nor do I expect the team’s fortunes to improve much in 2013. Everyone loves the duo of Lester and Buchholz and believes they will lead Red Sox Nation to the promised land but the won’t. Pedey is an untouchable, even though he hit .250 for most of the season. They have already paid $8M to a shortstop who will not hit his weight next season. The team has big, big holes in LF and 1st and a closer who cannot, it seems, go a month without injuring himself. Etc., etc., etc…. In short, if you think 2012 was bad, wait until next year.
As a Yankee fan, I missed the rivalry over the last 2 years. Going to
Fenway twice a year to catch a 3 game series just didn’t hold the same
level of competitiveness and excitement it once did over the last 10-12
years. Even we miss Tito…a class act who was always humble in winning
and losing. I still think the beer & chicken thing was blown out of
proportion and then to make the claims of Tito being addicted to
something was a low brow move…whether true or not, he deserved way
better on his way out the door. The guy did deliver 2 WS Championships
for God’s sake! It’s almost like a bad Karma thing for management & the press dissing him.
Bobby
V is not a very likable guy…and its not that he’s an AH, he’s just
got this way about him that makes him appear condescending. He didn’t
make it this far in his career being a total jerk without any baseball
knowledge…the guy truly is a student of the game. When he criticized
Youk, he was just trying to light a fire under him to jump start the
team and the clubhouse and press crucified him for it and it was a slow
spiral down from there.
I hope you guys get the magic back soon
so we can pick up where we left off 2 years ago with this rivalry! There
were some bad apples in that clubhouse…I hope they eradicate them and
get back to baseball.
As a Yankees fan myself. You embarrass me.
Your close minded comment embarrasses all of us Yankee fans in that it shows you’re obviously you’re not a fan of the game. The Yankees are at their best when they have a mirror image club to measure up to. The Red Sox were replaced by the Orioles this year.
Stop hating and start paying attention Chiico!
you look good in red tho chico..so look at the upside..
nice going players. A year from now you’ll have your hat trick for getting managers fired.
Dave Martinez, please.
Naw….. the more I think about it, the Red sox have to hire one of their own. How about Nomar with Arnie as his bench coach?
“That’s a shame.”
– The AL East
Terrible fit from the start, but not 100% his fault. It was best for both sides.
Now, for God sake’s let Ben pick the coach… Go away Mr. Lucchino
They made the easy decision. Now comes the hard part. Getting a good manager and improving the team to have them contend ASAP. should be a fun offseason to follow the red sox. Every free agent, every trade target will be linked to them.
Bard for Farrell. I think the Blue Jays would be willing to break their rule to not only help Farrell feel more comfortable, but acquire what could be a very serviceable 8th inning guy who needs a change of scenery.
If today isn’t the best day of Bobby’s life, it has to be in the top 10. What a nightmare job to have.
This lies squarely on Bobby V despite so many saying it is not all his fault. No MLB (or minor league) manager can expect success when he wants the attention on him and not the team. From publicly running down players to the end (running down his own coaching staff publicly) he could never once take blame. He had to give it to others. The man cannot seriously look in a mirror and think this is not on him. This coming from an Angels fan who admittedly does not see many Sox games. But seeing all from here and other sites, reading what fans have said all season it just seems obvious Bobby V. is all about him and not his team.
I agree 100%. He’s a little cry baby who shouldn’t have ever left his ESPN gig (btw who the hell confirms what they are getting paid by the network)
oh pshaw…one word…SCAPEGOATTT
What pisses me off is Ron Washington had (a confirmed not just rumored) addiction, and just bec he was in the same clubhouse as a Player who had, he gets off and everyone forgives him. Tito, had a Rumored addiction, and it was (a small) part of him getting run out of town. A manager I remind you, that guided the Red Sox to not one, but Two World Series wins.
red sox upper management has been on a rampage…but who are they fooling?? getting rid of Tito and Bobby …somebody’s got a power trip complex…or is that redundant?
it;s not all the managers fault, those guys should be ashammed of thier selves ,they make more money then god, especially this year ,the 100th year, just because they did not like,the manager , they should get all new young ones .who play for the love of the game and not the damm money, i have been a loyal sox fan since i was a baby, long time, it;s a shame all the old timers .the trully great guys like yaz ,pudge, dwight.pesky and all had to wittnes this ,grow up, start playing for the love of the game!
Jacoby Ellsbury, John Lester, and Big Papi Ortiz would be excellent option for Seattle Mariners by acquiring them for Chone Figgins who would be sent to New York Mets for Jason Bay, either pitcher James Paxton or Danny Farqhar who was acquired in a trade from the Yankees for Ichiro, Outfielder Casper Wells or Travon Robinson, and catcher Miguel Olivo if he is not a free agent.
I think that The Boston Red Soxs didn’t give Bobby V a chance to succeed. I think that Boston Owners deserve many losing seasons for firing a great man.
make Ryan Lavarnaway their first string catcher??? and trade salty…??? hmmm…AND LavarnAWAY??..hmmm
Bobby Valentine is a horrible manager and it was a mistake to hire him. I’m glad he’s gone, unfortunately he’s left the destruction of a team in his wake.