Therapy is...

Another summer, another season of baseball ends. What went wrong this year? August was horrible. I still miss that awesome 2004 team that worked out so well. I don't doubt Theo Epstein and his scouting team. Heck, one of the guys (Galen Carr) went to my high school (Class of '94) and lived on my floor as a teacher one year. They know a lot more about the players, and certainly know a lot more about baseball than I do. However, I must question at least a couple of their moves they made this year.

• David Wells - Why bring this guy in? Schilling, Beckett, Clement, Wakefield, Arroyo. Where would Wells fit in? Sure, the decision looks horrible now since he missed nearly the whole season, but I questioned this move the day it was made. He is a big time pitcher who I felt didn't fit in our lineup.
• Bronson Arroyo - Another move that looks horrible in hindsight, but that's not the point. This guy was a Red Sock. He loved being on the team, and trusted the team by not asking for a no-trade clause. We repay him by trading his ass before the season started. Wily Mo Pena is a decent young bat, but its hard to replace a solid SP.
• Josh Beckett/Hanley Ramirez/Coco Crisp/Andy Marte/Cla Meredith/Josh Bard/Jon Lester/Craig Hansen/Manny Delcarmann/Kason Gabbard/Jonathan Papelbon - This is more of a curiosity rather than a criticism. Getting Beckett seemed necessary at the time. Though Hanley "The Other Ramirez" Ramirez nearly led the league with 26 errors, he had a phenomenal rookie season. Crisp was horrible as our new lead-off hitter. Andy Marte was not spectacular as a rookie. Pitching showed some ups and downs. Lester was decent, Papelbon was insanely awesome. What I'm wondering, is whether we're sticking to our prospects as Theo said, or giving them away for veterans. Which is it? Also, what made us give away Ramirez when we needed a speedy shortstop? What made us trade Marte for Crisp? Cla Meredith? Josh Bard? I'm not asking for trades or big moves. Just want some reassurance for the guys already in our lineup. Especially those who did poorly last season.

One thing we did was accomplish the goal of bolstering defense, at the expense of offense.

Therapy is...

Coming home after a long day (or night), and falling asleep to Game 4 of the 2004 World Series (choose games 4-7 ALCS if you're in a Yankee hating mood).