A new closer for the Sox - is it in the Cards?
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| Photo Courtesy of the Herald |
Conor Frederick
Contributing Writer
Let's take a trip down memory lane for a second, back to a time I'm sure most fans would rather forget - the months after 2011. We had just managed to pull off a collapse of epic proportions and ownership announced that they would let Jonathan Papelbon become a free agent. The reasoning was the St. Louis Cardinals had just won the World Series using the "closer by committee" method, and Ben Cherington essentially said "If they can do it, why can't we do it that way". Fast forward to the present, where the Red Sox don't have a day to day closer on the roster (they do have Joel Hanrahan, but he's out for the season), but they are still sitting pretty on top of one of the toughest divisions in baseball by 5 games. I'm not going to harp on our options - to read more by our own Guru, click here. I will say that I don't think the "closer by committee" thing will work for us for the playoffs. Look at 2004 and 2007 - we had a reliable anchor in the pen in both case. That being said, we have some decisions to make and I think it needs to involve making moves at the deadline. Koji Uehara has had some great performances, but I'm sure most of Red Sox Nations have questions about him as a long-term option. I don't want to see another 2011, so making a move for a closer is a must if we want to get back to the post-season.
I'm sure some fans say that we're winning right now, so why make a move? Like I said before, I want to protect against another 2011-esque collapse. In that spirit, I think trying to make a deal for a regular closer is a must. Yes, I do realize we had a regular closer then in Pap, but a lack of a regular closer will make another collapse more likely in my mind.
Agree or disagree? Leave a comment or tweet me @ConorJF1016 with your thoughts.
Contributing Writer
Let's take a trip down memory lane for a second, back to a time I'm sure most fans would rather forget - the months after 2011. We had just managed to pull off a collapse of epic proportions and ownership announced that they would let Jonathan Papelbon become a free agent. The reasoning was the St. Louis Cardinals had just won the World Series using the "closer by committee" method, and Ben Cherington essentially said "If they can do it, why can't we do it that way". Fast forward to the present, where the Red Sox don't have a day to day closer on the roster (they do have Joel Hanrahan, but he's out for the season), but they are still sitting pretty on top of one of the toughest divisions in baseball by 5 games. I'm not going to harp on our options - to read more by our own Guru, click here. I will say that I don't think the "closer by committee" thing will work for us for the playoffs. Look at 2004 and 2007 - we had a reliable anchor in the pen in both case. That being said, we have some decisions to make and I think it needs to involve making moves at the deadline. Koji Uehara has had some great performances, but I'm sure most of Red Sox Nations have questions about him as a long-term option. I don't want to see another 2011, so making a move for a closer is a must if we want to get back to the post-season.
I'm sure some fans say that we're winning right now, so why make a move? Like I said before, I want to protect against another 2011-esque collapse. In that spirit, I think trying to make a deal for a regular closer is a must. Yes, I do realize we had a regular closer then in Pap, but a lack of a regular closer will make another collapse more likely in my mind.
Agree or disagree? Leave a comment or tweet me @ConorJF1016 with your thoughts.
