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

Let's Get It Started!

It's time for another season! Another season of hope. Another season of excitement. Another season of a championship?

That's the important questions, right? Just how good are the 2026 Red Sox going to be? The answer? Good. Very good.

The last few year, things for the Sox have started positively. But, this year's a bit different. Instead of depending on the future, or potential, the Sox are depending on the now.

Last year's team looked good...if Buehler could regain some of his past form...if Casas Could stay healthy...If Chapman found his fastball.

This year it's not so much of the "if"s. All the team has to do it do what it did last year, and they'll be more than OK. And that seems perfectly reasonable to expect.

Sure, they have some youth that they're counting on. Durbin will be tasked with filling in for and replacing Bregman. However, for as eager as Sox fans were to have Bregman return, Durbin's WAR last year was about 0.8 lower. So, again, if he just does what he did, the Sox will be fine. Similarly, the Sox are once again expecting a youngster to start for them at second. Mayer certainly has the potential to be great. But, again, the Red Sox second basemen last year didn't exactly set the world on fire. They don't need Mayer to be an all-star. Just decent. That doesn't seem like too much to ask.

The biggest wild card is likely Roman Anthony. Does he have growing pains? Or do we get last year's version, and the version from te WBC, all year. Either one is an adequate replacement and likely an improvement over last year.

And, same with the rotation. Crochet is back. But, the pitchers behind him are less hopeful, and more probable. It's hard to overstate how poorly Buehler pitched last year. And he pitched A LOT. Just replace his starts with anything from Sonny Gray and you're ahead of the game. That's before you put Ranger Suarez in the spots taken last year by Richard Fitts. That's an automatic improvement from last year to what some people consider the best rotation in baseball.

So, where do we set expectations? Playoffs would be bare minimum. They should be at least fighting for a division championship, if not the top seed in the AL.

It's going to be a fun year.

Go Red! 2014 Topps Target Red Yoenis Cespedes

February is American Heart Month. As a nod to the Go Red for Women activities going on this month to help raise awareness, I thought I'd contribute several "red" themed posts sprinkled throughout the month.

Let's talk about this card...

Yoenis Cespedes had a short unmemorable stint with the Red Sox. He was anchored with being the main return in the Jon Lester trade. Perhaps his biggest contribution was being the main chip that brought in future Cy Young award winner Rick Porcello to Boston. 

Pretty average card here. "Batter in mid swing" is a common photo topic. In this case, he's showing a bit more effort than most, at least. Otherwise, it's a rather non-descript card. Which I guess you get every once in a while.

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I'm sure you all remember forever Miss District of Columbia Jude Maboné from her interview with us. Her "heart health" community service initiative is, obviously, quite relevant this month. As such, she's supporting the Simon's Heart campaign this month (and every month). I highly recommend you join her efforts with a donation if you are able. You can find the link here.

Support her efforts, and Go Red!

I Hereby Resolve...

Typically, the end of the year is a time for people to reflect on their life, and to make any changes they see the need for. Why do it for the first of the year? No particular reason. Although, I suppose, a July 2 Resolution doesn’t have the same ring to it. A New Year’s Resolution also has the added benefit of only occurring once a year. If you make a New Month Resolution, and fail after three days…you have some obligation to make the same resolution the next month. If you make a resolution on January 1, but flop by January 2, you can wait an entire year before you have to try and make yourself a better person. That’s a handy feature. People also find it nicer to write these resolutions down. Anything written down automatically has more weight. After all, if you take the time to type it out and share it with others, it must be important. Plus, anyone why knows about your resolution will obviously shun you if you don’t stick to it. If you make a resolution in silence, it’s pretty easy to ignore it. Of course, that presumes that anyone is listening, or cares enough to hold you to it. That’s probably not the case here. But, what else am I going to write about on January 1?

The first thing I want to do in 2026 find the delicate balance between quality and quantity with my posts. I understand that I don’t always have the time available to bring my A-Game. I also understand that it’s possible I don’t have an A-Game. But, if I only posted when I felt like I had written something worthy of a Pulitzer, you may never see another post from me. At the very least, you’d forget about this blog while you waited. Nor do I want to bore everyone with post after post that says nothing. I’m sure you’re thankful for that. So, I want to keep a schedule, without having to keep a schedule. I definitely did NOT do that in 2025. I need to get back on my horse. I'd like to shoot for one to two posts a week. That seems manageable. As long as I’m not feeling pressure from myself to post something, anything, just to post.

Another thing I say every year is that I want to increase my presence on the other blogs. You all have such wonderful things to say, and I like being a part of that. I also know that I like getting comments on my posts, so I assume that others do as well. I’d like to do my part.

For selfish reasons, I’d like to try to increase my readership. It’s not just that I like seeing the number of hits per day go up. Although, I do enjoy that. It’s also because I like it when everyone plays along with the blog. More readers means more chances of readers doing just that. Not only is it easier for me if people submit things for me to post, but I actually enjoy seeing copies of other people’s scorecards or pictures they took in Section 36. The fact that they help me come up with post ideas is just a little side benefit. I don’t know what increasing my readership involves. It probably just means writing better stuff. So, I’ll try to do that. After all, just getting the name of the blog out there is useless if people come and visit, only to find mindless dribble. (Not that I’d mind it if you liked my facebook page, or followed me on Instagram. Can’t hurt.)

So, there we go. Things I want to try and do in the coming year. If you care, feel free to try and keep me honest. Mocking comments if I’m going astray are encouraged. Or, help me out by contributing to the last two resolutions. Or both. Or, ignore it all completely. Your call.

Happy New Year Everyone!

2025 In Review: Status of the Blog

So, I've already discussed some of the highlights in social media areas enjoyed by Section 36 in 2025.

But, what about just generally? How did the blog perform in 2025 at just being a blog? How did I do as a blogger? As a collector? I'm not going to pretend you actually care...but what else am I supposed to post about on New Year's Eve?

I'll just say it right now. Not good. Not good AT ALL. Like, absolutely terrible. In 2025 this will be my 22nd post, down from an equally disappointing 42 last year. At less than twice a month, that's nowhere close to where I need to be. Nowhere close to where I want to be.

One reason for the dropoff was the lack of interviews with Miss America titleholders. They were really dominating this site, so I shifted their features over to the Forevers blog, where they belong. Of course, that means even fewer posts automatically coming to this blog.

The Section 36 store also had a great year. I switched it back to TeePublic, and that seems to have helped. More people keep buying shirts, sweatshirts, tank tops, and whatever else. I'm always humbled whenever a sale goes through. Hopefully you've enjoyed all the pictures people have sent in wearing their gear. With any luck, both sales and picture submittals will increase in 2026!

2025 was also a continuation of my blogging perspective to help me find my voice or my place in this wide world. I still didn't write about the team itself as much as I would have liked. Hopefully I'll be able to find my groove in 2026.

Hope that's OK with you.