As World Series stars shine, Red Sox must remember what made them great originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Superstars don’t just win World Series titles. They make October unforgettable.
The Red Sox used to know this better than anyone. The four World Series they have won in the last 20 years is due in part to the brilliant management of Theo Epstein, Ben Cherington and Dave Dombrowski, who had a knack for finding the right pieces to take the team to the top.
But let’s not pretend that those teams were built on the margins. How we spent this month remembering the idiots of 2004 Who improved their path to immortality, it’s amazing how much pure star power fueled that list.
Johnny Damon and his hair down. Curt Schilling and his bloody sock. Pedro Martínez and his proud challenge. Manny Ramírez and his wise style at the plate. And of course, the incomparable David Ortiz, who became an eternal icon.
When they won it all again three years later, there were new leaders like Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell and Dustin Pedroia. The 2013 club introduced us to Xander Bogaerts and made Jon Lester a hero. Five years later, Mookie Betts took his turn to lift the trophy.
As the Yankees and Dodgers return to New York for Game 3 of a World Series that will end one of the most entertaining postseasons in years, it’s worth noting exactly why ratings haven’t been this high since 2017.
It’s not just about the presence of our two largest media markets. It’s about the stars.
When former MVP Freddie Freeman won Game 1 with an elimination grand slam – which came after former MVP Shohei Ohtani helped tie the game, which came after former MVP Giancarlo Stanton gave the Yankees the lead with a mammoth home run – the moment credibly evoked the legendary exit by Kirk Gibson 37 years earlier.
Nothing against the Rangers or Diamondbacks, but you probably don’t remember that Game 1 last year ended with an extra-inning outing by Texas slugger Adolis Garcia as well. You don’t need to evoke Vin Scully and Jack Buck for that.
As the Red Sox embark The low season, they insist, will be differentIt’s not worth knowing how far behind they’ve fallen in the race for real talent. The Yankees have Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Stanton and defending Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole. The Dodgers counter with Ohtani, who might be the most famous athlete in the world, as well as Freeman and his old friend Mookie Betts.
The stars give fans a reason to watch even if their team isn’t playing. They connect one season to another in ways that the constant rotation of Tampa’s model simply cannot.
The late Red Sox CEO Larry Lucchino knew it. This led to some battles with Epstein over the concept of “feeding the monster,” but the Red Sox were always relevant under his direction, and over the last five years, they’ve simply lost their way.
Too often, the message from owners is that winning will cure everything. Leaving aside for a moment that outside of the atypical 2021 season, winning has been difficult to come by, that approach ignores the way superstars strengthen the bond with a team’s fans.
Tampa may just be a terrible baseball market, but it’s also true that the Rays routinely rank near last in attendance despite having 90-win teams almost a year. Fans can never get attached to anyone, because the pieces are constantly changing.
With their considerable resources, the Red Sox should be ashamed of the way they have built their roster over the last five years, costing themselves not only wins, but looks as well. Building from within to the exclusion of hiring marketable talent is a path to irrelevance, especially in Boston.
As Freeman raised his bat high Friday night, a superstar providing an unforgettable moment, let’s hope John Henry and company were paying attention.