Good Samaritanship: Did It Cost Sox a Ring in 2008?
First baseman and legendary nice guy Sean Casey recently announced his retirement, hanging up his cleats and transitioning to a career in television, where his personality will receive much more exposure.
I’m sure you’ve heard of Casey’s exploits before, and I probably don’t need to rehash them here. But I will anyway:
- Casey volunteers at soup kitchens in Lawrence (for those of you unfamiliar with the sociology of Massachusetts, the city of Lawrence is the equivalent of “Farmington” in the FX drama The Shield).
- Casey removes cancer cells from children, and weaves them into a microfiber polymer used for manufacturing clothing for the refugees of Myanmar.
- Casey preaches the Pompituce of Love.
- Casey charters a boat in the offseason, which he uses to chase down pirates off the Somali coast. However, the guns aboard his Casey’s boat are actually called “Cannons of Understanding” which shoot not bullets, but rather food and supplies to the impoverished pirates.
- Etcetera.
Now, let me preface this by saying that I worship Sean Casey and follow His teachings, just like every other red blooded American. However, let’s face facts, the guy should not have been anywhere near the team’s flight to Tampa International Airport last October. It was a mindbogglingly terrible move to place Casey on the ALCS roster, considering a) Mike Lowell was injured and there was a dire need for a corner infielder who could actually play, b) even when Casey was able to drag his bloated corpse to the plate towards the end of the season, he was heinous (.233/.300/.247 in the second half), and c) there were two playoff eligible 1B/OF types on the AAA roster who would both have been an instant improvement over either Casey or Mark Kotsay.
The only imaginable reason for Casey being included on the roster was for his intangibles/veteran presence/niceness/leprosy healing. With Casey occupying a bench slot, there was no room for someone like Jeff Bailey and Chris Carter, and thus we were stuck with Mark Kotsay receiving the majority of the time at 1B. Mark Kotsay, a guy who had played 2% of his career at first base, a guy who wouldn’t know plate discipline if he gave birth to it, a guy whose second half offensive numbers were eerily like Casey’s (i.e. embarrassingly shitty: .226/.286/.345).
Predictably, Casey and Kotsay combined to hit .219 with zero walks over 32 plate appearances against the Rays in the ALCS. Red Sox lose in 7. No repeat. No dynasty.
We will never know how the team would have fared with Jeff Bailey or Chris Carter playing first base for the Sox. Maybe they still would have lost. Or maybe not. Let it be said that this is one rare instance where good chemistry and clubhouse karma actually hurt a team. Just something to ponder while watching the Varitek situation.
Hmmmm, I sorta doubt one of the kids would have done anything, but interesting. And laughing my ass off about Casey’s list of accomplishments.
Of course we’ll never know how they would have fared…but the thing that bothered me about Francona’s reluctance was the fact that he made this move in 2007 and it worked. He took out a struggling Coco Crisp and put in Jacoby Ellsbury, who had 1 month’s experience, and the kid flirted with a World Series MVP. In 2008, he had IL MVP Jeff Bailey at his disposal, and he didn’t use him. Just frustrating.
A fair point Jimmy. Interestingly, we’re seeing the same problem here in 2009. Jeff Bailey was set to fight for the 1B/OF bench spot this season, but the Sox went out and re-signed Kotsay.
I’m not as down on Kotsay as you might be, but I do wonder why they didn’t just give Bailey a shot. I can see either guy hitting .275, but I think Bailey would crack a few more ding-dongs…
Bottom Line: I think Kotsay’s versatility earned him the job in ’08 and again this year. He did hit crappy, but for someone with 2% playing time at 1B, he made a few great defensive plays… one’s that Bailey might not have made.
Ortiz and Ellsbury combined to hit .100 in 40 AB’s. Are you suggesting the Sox should have left them off the roster as well? Nothing like a monday morning quarterback.
Ellsbury plays a different position, so that isn’t relevant. And Ortiz’s track record is fairly different than Sean Casey’s…