In one news story that has been simmering all day that has just been confirmed, Terry Francona is officially OUT as Red Sox manager. Meanwhile on the other coast, in a move that was speculated about but not really rumored at all, Tony Reagins is out as Angels GM.
Let’s start with Francona. Most of the focus will be on his collapse this season, but Francona had an excellent tenure as the manager of the BoSox, winning at least 86 games in each of his seasons as manager, and only getting under 95 three times. Francona’s crowning achievements as Red Sox skipper will be ending the curse of the Bambino with a World Championship in 2004, his first season with Boston. Francona also brought the Sox to the promised land in 2007. Francona’s Boston team made the playoffs in five of his eight seasons, but only won one AL East title. As manager of the Red Sox, he finished 192 games above .500 for a .574 winning percentage. He’s second all-time in wins for the Red Sox, behind Joe Cronin, with 744.
I don’t think the 2011 collapse was necessarily Francona’s fault. Theo Epstein gave him a crappy slate of starting pitchers this year, with only Josh Beckett and Jon Lester starting at least 30 games. John Lackey’s tenure with Boston has been terrible, and injuries beset Daisuke Matsuzaka and Clay Buchholz. With all of the injuries, Francona was forced to give 25 starts to Andrew Miller, Erik Bedard and Kyle Wieland, not exactly a murderer’s row for a big market team like Boston. Injuries also plagued Boston’s offense, with Kevin Youkilis and JD Drew both missing significant time. Free agent signing Carl Crawford also struggled in his first year in a large market, which is hardly the fault of Francona.
I think Boston made a panic move here. SOMEONE had to pay for the collapse, and Francona was easiest to pin as the fall guy, due to his standing as manager. I have no idea who the Red Sox will grab to replace Francona. Francona himself was an odd choice after Grady Little was fired after the 2003 season, with only four years of managerial experience to his credit when he was hired. Francona should have no problems finding a job, with one job in Chicago open and the other possibly opening up (if he wants to stay in a big market). You won’t see his name on the unemployment line for long, and he’ll be the most coveted name on the market this offseason.
Now, for the other move just announced. Angels GM Tony Reagins has resigned after four tumultous years in the position. The most damning move of Reagins tenure is the acquisition of Vernon Wells and his massive contract, in exchange for Mike Napoli, who never got solid playing time in LA. After the trade, Napoli went on to have a 30 homer year this year for the Rangers, while Wells affirmed his standings as one of the worst players in baseball. The Angels won the AL West in four of the six years prior to Reagins’ tenure as GM, and after winning division championships in his first two seasons, they fell off to a sub-90 win mark in the last two years.
Reagins had no qualms about throwing around money or swinging deals to make things happen, but they didn’t often work out well. He gave Torii Hunter more money than anyone else dreamed of offering, and while Torii Hunter is a damn good player, he’s not an $18 million a year player. He gave up peanuts for Mark Teixeira, and the pick they received as compensation for him resulted in Mike Trout getting drafted. But then, you have a disaster like the Scott Kazmir trade. He also gave up a mint worth of young talent for Dan Haren. Haren has been excellent with the Angels, but the rest of the team hasn’t.
Aside from the Wells and Kazmir trades, perhaps the most damning move of Reagins’ tenure in Los Angeles was the firing of scouting director Eddie Bane. When Bane was fired after the 2010 season, the reasoning was that Reagins wasn’t happy with the Angels’ last three drafts (2008-2010, if my math is correct). Those drafts resulted in names like Trout, Tyler Skaggs, Garrett Richards and Tyler Chatwood coming to the Angels organization. Those are some damn good players, especially for a team who generally spends in the mid-range of all teams on the draft. Now, Reagins is out along with Bane, and the future for the Angels is muddled even further.
Reagins has not left the Angels in great shape. The team already has $102 committed to salaries next year, to only nine players. Nearly a quarter of that salary belongs to Wells, who will be eating payroll in LA until 2014. However, the team doesn’t have many free agents (only four, if my math is correct) and only seven players are eligible for arbitration. While the salaries currently set in stone are brutal, the core of the team won’t start getting expensive for another couple of years. It’ll be interesting to see who the Angels tap as the replacement, and if they can do anything about Wells’ albatross of a contract.
