Epstein’s Fatal Flaw

Wednesday, October 05, 2011

Scott Cordischi, GoLocalProv Sports Editor

The Chicago Cubs have officially asked for permission to speak with Red Sox GM Theo Epstein. Whether or not they offer him a job to be their general manager is not certain, but there is clearly interest on their behalf.

It is understandable why a franchise like the Cubs would have interest in Epstein. After all, he did come to Boston in 2003 and help a similarly cursed franchise win a World Championship – two, in fact.

If he were to accept the challenge of attempting to do the very same thing in Chicago, I would have one small piece of advice for him. When it comes to your players, don’t always assume that the grass is always greener on the other side.

Not living by this credo in Boston has proven to be one of Epstein’s biggest downfalls.

Former Sox pitcher Curt Schilling said of Theo that he is a very good evaluator of amateur talent but not so much when it comes to major league talent. While that is true, an even bigger flaw in his ability to assemble a team is the way he undervalues some of his own star players.

Start with the fact that playing in Boston can be a very difficult thing to do. While the support for the Red Sox is terrific, it can often times be overwhelming for some players. Both the fan and the media scrutiny are intense unlike in most other baseball cities. This can be fantastic when things are going well, but it can also be a major problem when they are not.

This is why Epstein should have valued some of his players more highly than he did.

Red Sox fans didn’t have to look beyond the recently concluded ALDS between the Texas Rangers and the Tampa Bay Rays to see examples of Epstein’s oversight.

Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre hit 3 homeruns in the series clincher for Texas Tuesday. As you may recall, he had a superb 2010 season with the Red Sox batting .321 with a league-leading 49 doubles, 28 homeruns and 102 RBI. Epstein let him walk. The Sox GM was more enamored with trading for Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and thereby shifting Kevin Youkilis to third making Beltre expendable.

In game 1 of that very same ALDS, the Rays Johnny Damon hit a big homerun to give his team an early lead that they would never relinquish. Following the 2005 season, Epstein figured that Damon’s better years were behind him and let him walk as a free agent. After 4 good seasons including a World Championship in 2009 with the Yankees, Epstein essentially admitted his mistake by trying to trade for Damon with Detroit in 2010. Damon decided to block the deal.

Beltre and Damon are just two examples of players who performed at a very high level in Boston that Theo felt were expendable.

Two more examples of this are Derrick Lowe and Victor Martinez. In 2004, Lowe was one of the key pitchers in Boston’s miraculous comeback against the Yankees in the ALCS. In his last 3 years with the Red Sox, he won 21, 17 and 14 games. In his 7 years in the National League since leaving Boston, he has had double-digit wins in 6 of those seasons including an NL-best 16 wins in 2006 for the Dodgers.

Victor Martinez was a midseason acquisition from Cleveland in 2009 and had a very good season and a half in Boston. Despite the team’s desperate need for production behind the plate, Theo let him walk following the 2010 season. This year he hit .330 in Detroit with 103 RBI. He was one of the key players in the Tigers run to the postseason.

Meanwhile, Epstein and the Sox have showered free agent busts JD Drew, Carl Crawford and John Lackey with more than twice the amount of money it would have taken to keep all four of the aforementioned players in Boston. And for what? Poor production and nothing but headaches.

When you’re the general manager in Boston, one of the factors you need to take into consideration before bringing a player in is whether or not you feel he will be able to handle the pressure that comes along with playing in a Red Sox uniform. Unfortunately, this is something that is very difficult to quantify.

However, what Theo did have the benefit of was the knowledge of players who DID perform at a high level here. Which begs the question: why would you try to replace them?

Remember Theo, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.