Terry Francona had a really rough month of September last year, which culminated in him losing his job as Red Sox manager and being subesequently turned down for the same job in St. Louis.

After the Red Sox collpase, word got out that Francona’s 30-year marriage was on the rocks. He allegedly was spending most of the season living in a hotel room.

Fast forward just a few months: Francona lands a job with ESPN, and apparently picks up a 20-something girlfriend along the way. Say what?!? Continue reading Photo: Terry Francona’s New Girlfriend Vanessa? »

With Spring Training days away, it’s time to look back on the offseason. Who won? Who lost? Keep reading to find out.  (Note: If the 2011 Red Sox taught us anything it’s that winning the offseason translates into nothing but not so bold predictions and speculations.)

Winner: New York Yankees

They knew they had a stacked lineup and a not so stacked pitching rotation. So what do they do? Sign the steady Hiroki Kuroda and trade for the promising Michael Pineda. Not bad for fourth and fifth starters. If there’s one team not concerned with the luxury tax it’s the Yankees. It typically pays off for them…literally.

Loser: Manny Ramirez

Is there anything more embarrassing than announcing a comeback only to receive lukewarm interest? Probably.  Is there anything worst than possibly playing for the Oakland A’s? No. Continue reading 2012 MLB Offseason Winners and Losers »

In the Winter of 2009, the New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, and Arizona Diamondbacks executed one of the most memorable 3-way trades in recent history. New York received big name outfielder Curtis Granderson.

It’s amazing how even the trade has appeared to be across the board after a couple of seasons. Granderson has grown into one of the elite players in the game, being one of the biggest parts of the Yankees offense in 2011 despite his struggles in 2010.

Austin Jackson hasn’t quite lived up to his potential after an off 2011 season, however he nearly batted .300 in his rookie season with Detroit. Phil Coke and Daniel Schlereth are solid relief pitchers at the Major League level, and Max Scherzer has established himself as a part of the Detroit rotation. Continue reading What If…Ellsbury for Granderson? »

It’s tough to look at anything with proper perspective, especially in the now-now-now Twitter world.

This is especially true in the case of Tim Wakefield. Looking at his raw numbers, we see this: a 45-year-old man retires after a mediocre 7-8 season with a 5.12 ERA. Good riddance. Next!

Looking a little deeper, we see a pitcher that seems to have stayed in baseball for far too long. Sure, he reached 200 wins, but it took him eight painful starts over parts of three months to get from #199 to #200. He finally was able to celebrate on Sept. 13 in an 18-6 win over the Blue Jays, but as it turned out, it was one of just seven wins for the team in September.

Two weeks later, as the team was collapsing around him, he seemed to lose some perspective himself: Continue reading Never A Dominant Ace, Tim Wakefield Always Was A Selfless Warrior »

Longtime Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield’s playing days are now over.

The 45-year-old knuckleballer retires with exactly 200 major league wins, 186 of those coming with the Red Sox (he’s six wins shy of tying Cy Young and Roger Clemens for the most wins with the Red Sox in franchise history).

He played 17 seasons in Boston, finishing 186-168 with a 4.43 ERA. Continue reading Tim Wakefield Announces Retirement After 19 Seasons »

The Red Sox have openly invited both veterans Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek to spring training, but it remains to be seen if either is willing to play again or lean towards retirement. They are two of the limited number of players remaining from the legendary 2004 championship team, and may choose retirement because of a lack of a place on the starting roster or perhaps choose to look at other teams.

According to team president and CEO Larry Lucchino, Boston is waiting on their career decisions. Continue reading Red Sox Waiting on Tim Wakefield, Jason Varitek »