The Reality Check Year

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For all our gnashing about our failed season this year, this three-game set we’re about to open against the Royals make me realize just exactly how lucky we are. We have all become so bred to winning that when we lose, the sky is falling.
Well, the sky has fallen a long time ago in Kansas City.
Their last winning season was in 2003, when they went a shocking 83-79 under Tony Pena. The next two seasons have seen them lose over 100 games, and they’re trying to avoid that 100-loss barrier this year. The year previous to 2003 that they were above .500? In the strike-shortened 1994 season under Hal McRae, when they went 64-51. Since 2004, they’ve gone 591-1100 (including their 52-89 mark so far this year).
Isn’t that completely horrible?
How about the Pirates? Their winning season last known was 1992, when the won the last of three straight divisions, going 96-66 under Jim Leyland. Since then? 959-1219 (including their 57-84 mark this year).
Neither team has sniffed the playoffs.
How about a recent success, the Florida Marlins? World Series Champions in 1997 and 2003. They’ve finished over .500 in four of their 13 seasons, and are on pace to finish over .500 with a payroll less than the annual salary of Manny Ramirez (way… more) and the youngest team in the majors. Their total record is 1033-1146… and they threw a no-hitter with 12,561 (count ’em, 12,561) fans in attendance! A two-time World Series winner with the youngest team and youngest payroll being the talk of baseball, and … 12,561 fans show up.
The last time the Boston Red Sox were under .500 was in the year of 1997 under Jimy Williams, when they went 78-84. Prior to that was Butch Hobson’s 1994, when they went 54-61. From 1995 (the division winning year) on (including 1997), the Red Sox:
– are 1058-845
– have won the division once and wild card five times in an 11 year span
– won the World Series, without question one of the best in baseball history for the ALCS battle and trek the Red Sox had to take for 86 years
– are on pace to easily finish above .500, again
While I definitely prefer winning to anything but winning, and the playoffs to not making the playoffs, how many teams would kill to have the resume the Red Sox have had the past 11 years?
I would love the story this year to be how we stormed back from nowhere and edged the Twins for the wild card (or even swept the four-game series at Yankee Stadium and mounted an amazing division title run) … but it’s not realistic, so right now what I’m doing is just hoping we win every single game, but also enjoying the experience people are getting. Kyle Snyder getting lit up is aggravating, but we’ve seen the brilliance there, and this is all about getting there. Dustin Pedroia flailing and grounding out weakly is counter-balanced by his approach at the plate and willingness to foul off balls and tagging out a runner who has stepped off second base thinking he was out, when he was safe.
Craig Hansen starting to imitate the ‘Derek Lowe Face’ is beyond terrifying, but the positive pronouncements of the staff plus their creed that Hansen will get a lot of work down the stretch to get him into a groove makes me happy for his future, as does Kevin Youkilis with that batting eye of his and the news that Francona plans to lead him off in 2007 while Crisp, absent his finger and recent shoulder woes, goes on to bounce back with a strong 2007, hitting 20 HRs and stealing 30 bases, for he can run amok batting 7th.
There are a lot of things that I’m watching in September – and enjoying, and it’s all with the knowledge that we’re pretty much done in the playoff chase. I’m able to enjoy it because we’ve been winning, winning, winning for eleven years with a World Series, and we are not in complete and utter dire straits as the other teams were. We’ll finish above .500 again next year. And the year after that. We’re set up financially, we’re set up with the veterans, we’re set up with the minor leaguers. We’re set up even with the astoundingly bad decisions made by the Front Office this year.
The other teams can’t say that, so I won’t gnash my teeth over this season. Instead, it serves as a nice reality check and allows us to find some other way to excite ourselves about the Red Sox this September. And if you’re not excited? Well, you should be. This team has gone through a learning process this year, and they will be stronger for it next year. They will know what and who works, and what and who doesn’t. They will know what they need, and what they don’t need. They will know a lot of things, and you can bet this offseason, Theo is going to attempt to phase in the younger players while atoning for the mistakes of 2006.
It’s not so surprising this happened. We won it all in 2004, the pinnacle, then I think we made change a bit just for the sake of change, and we still competed and were among the best in 2005, but it was clear that something was missing. We kept making change, both to change the future and outlook of the club, and it stumbled badly in 2006. 2004 was the championship year, 2005 was the afterglow (and the White Sox are actually following textbook in our steps) and 2006 has been the transition/reality check year. I don’t expect next year to be the best and most vaunted team in the major leagues, but how can it be worse than 2006? It simply cannot, so watch this September to see the players now who will be getting standing ovations in the cool October nights of 2007.