Manny Was Framed

So, four years ago, Manny Ramirez was caught on camera in a scuffle in the dugout during a game. What a horrible teammate he was! Get him out of town! Now! Yesterday, the Sox shipped out the other member of the scuffle, Kevin Youkilis, because he was a grumpy, bad teammate. Hmm.

When do the reports come out that Youkilis threatened to have his injuries “flare up” and miss time unless he was made the starter over Middlebrooks? That seems to be the company line whenever a popular player is traded for odd reasons.

I was never much of a Youkilis fan, myself. I didn’t hate him. I was glad he was on the team. He just never really did anything for me. I’ve mentioned before that it was the case with most of the current team. I have trouble naming a favorite player, but it definitely wasn’t Youkilis. That being said, I don’t think he should have been traded. They should have traded Will Middlebrooks.

I think Youkilis can still be a decent third baseman. The White Sox certainly seem to think so. I have no doubt that he could have finished the year without killing the team. I don’t have a problem with his attitude either. If the team can’t play baseball because one person is grumpy, it’s the team that has the problem. Besides, if you trade Middlebrooks, Youkilis gets less grumpy.

But why trade Middlebrooks instead of Youk? Look what you got in return. A no-name pitcher, and a utility guy. Oh, and you had to pay a ton of cash. If the best you can do is addition by subtraction, that’s not good enough. I hate seeing trades go through where fans of the other team are dancing in the streets. But, on the other hand, what could you have gotten for Middlebrooks? A lot more than that. The Yankees got Michael Pineda for an unproven DH with potential. What could the Sox get for an unproven third baseman with potential? You’d be selling Middlebrooks very high. You’d be able to actually improve the team. Why not go that route?

But, the Sox chose Youkilis to go. What does that do from here? Not much. The Sox were playing Middlebrooks anyway. It makes what they’ve been doing permanent way from here on out. It keeps Gonzalez where he belongs. It keeps Ortiz in the line-up. It lets the Sox ride the hot bat of Middlebrooks.

Let’s hope his joy ride continues.