Buzzing in - World Champion Red Sox taking back seat this spring
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| Mike Napoli still has his hands on the World Series Trophy. (Photo courtesy of MLB Photos) |
Contributing Writer
I admit it. After seeing the Red Sox win the 2013 World Series, I have felt a little more lax this offseason - almost a sense of complacency and not urgency. Spring Training has nearly come and gone, with Opening Day in sight.
Now, my feelings as a fan have no bearing on the product on the field. I don't need to be "ready" when Monday in Baltimore comes. I'll be just as happy as ever that baseball is back, don't get me wrong. But, unlike last year when the Sox came off that disappointing 2012 season, I won't be eager to see them make that bounce back effort.
Instead, I'll be watching contently knowing we've got the trophy in our grasps until someone else claims it.
But for a team coming off a World Series championship season and one of the greatest turnaround jobs in the history of sports, there sure as heck hasn't been much buzz around Red Sox camp. Outside of the normal local beat writers, the national media seems to be focusing their attention elsewhere. Namely, Derek Jeter and the New York Yankees, Adam Wainwright and the St. Louis Cardinals, David Price and his (likely) final season with the Tampa Bay Rays, and other teams with numerous storylines.
It's weird. I sometimes wish the media would lay off the Sox. Typically, they are either building them up too big for their own good or breaking down every single little comment to the point that I just stop watching the four-letter network.
This year, I'm sitting here thinking, "Uhhh, we're the champions, remember? Quit talking about Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. Stop your yappin' about Robinson Cano and the Mariners. We've got the belt. How about a story on our rising stars, our manager who has arguably completed the hardest task in baseball, our franchise that has won three titles in 10 seasons."
Then I think to myself, "Nah, I'm OK with us not being the new 'Yankees.'" And that's the best feeling ever.
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