Was All That Really Necessary?

I've heard of teams firing their manager. They even sometimes fire their hitting coach. Or the assistant hitting coach. They don't fire their bench coach very often, but I'm sure they sometimes do. Third base coach? In season? Can't remember the last time I've heard of that. Hitting strategy coach? The game plan coordinator? Ok, well, this is the first team I knew had one of these. But still, reassigning that is unusual. 

But all of the above? Gone at once?

That's called shocking.

Or, is it?

I've been working under the impression that this team will figure it out. Just like last year where they started slow, and eventually found their groove. After all, this is a team that some were predicting to be the top team in the AL, fighting with Toronto for the number one seed. They were widely considered to have the top 1-2 pitching combo, if not the best rotation in the league. So, yes, each pitcher seemed to have one game where they had an off night and blew a game. And, yes, some of the hitters were struggling. But, they had histories of success. They'd figure it out.

But, it really started to add up. Especially the new guys. Especially the young guys. Especially ALL the young guys. Suddenly, you start to see some common themes.

The Red Sox have four starting outfielders and a DH in Duran, Anthony, Rafaela, Abreu, and Yoshida. That already means one of them sits every day. So, it starts to be surprising how often Monasterio finds his way into games. Or, IKF. I know he was probably signed with a regular role in mind, but things change.

Durbin was a top rookie last year. Sure, there could be an expected drop in a second year, and with a new team. And maybe Mayer could be expected to struggle in his first full season. Like Campbell did last year. And maybe Anthony's near MVP performance in the WBC was just a fluke and he should be xpected to find his way. But, all three? All at once? And Contreras taking a bit to find his groove?

At what point is it a pattern. At what point do to hear the rumors that Cora struggles with the youngsters stick in your mind? At what point does the hitting coach play a role in all the new players struggling? You start to wonder.

You start to wonder if that common theme is there stronger than you thought. You start to wonder if maybe something does actually need to be done.

But what?

That's the real surprising part. The Sox decided "all of it". It was mis-management, bad advice, poor hitting plans, poor hitting execution, and apparently the third base coach got everyone else all riled up.

Which is really my one flaw with the plan. It's like when the Patriots fired their coach and their quarterback. Which was it?

Now, it's possible they just felt Cora lost the room and needed to go. Perhaps the rest of the group was just there to make the new manager feel like he had control of his staff. Or maybe the Sox wanted to send a message to the players. "This is entirely on you now."

Whatever the reason, it's a clean slate. It's probably even the right move.

But it will make for an interesting May