If we’re to believe what’s coming out of Boston these days, John Farrell’s fate is in his own hands.
On Sunday, Boston Globe Red Sox beat reporter Pete Abraham wrote: “In the end, it really doesn’t matter whether the Toronto Blue Jays want to let John Farrell go to the Red Sox or how much the Sox want Farrell to return to Boston.
It’s about what Farrell wants to do.”
Abraham contends that if Farrell tells the Blue Jays he wants to manage the Red Sox in 2013, Toronto will have no choice but to cut a deal.
Why?
“Being a major league manager is a job that demands all of your loyalty and focus,” writes Abraham. “No team wants a manager who would rather be doing something else.”
Farrell is under contract with Toronto for one more year. A quick glance at his baseball-reference.com page reveals the 50-year-old never cashed in on a lucrative, long term contract during his eight-year playing career.
Far from it.
So if you’re Farrell, a middle-aged man with one year of guaranteed money left on your current deal and a former employer — with whom you still maintain close ties with — is prepared to sign you to a multi-year contract that likely includes a substantial raise on your current salary, why wouldn’t you want to go?
It’s a no-brainer for Farrell, and really, who can blame him?
But unfortunately for the Boston Red Sox, any decision to let him out of his contract with the Blue Jays won’t be that simple, and Farrell won’t come cheap.
A common opinion — both in Toronto and Boston — is that Farrell’s value has decreased in the past 12 months as a result of the Blue Jays disappointing 73-89 2012 campaign and criticism has surfaced that he took too much of a laissez-faire approach with young players.
Some believe that Toronto can now expect to receive much less in return for Farrell than last fall’s reported asking price of starter Clay Buchholz.
Abraham, for one, surmises that the Red Sox could get the deal done by sending two of their Top 20 prospects to Toronto: double-A left-hander Drake Britton and single-A outfielder Keury De La Cruz.
But if anything, Toronto’s asking price for Farrell should be higher than it was a year ago for the simple reason that as much as the Red Sox wanted Farrell a year ago, they surely want him even more so now.
Thanks to the Bobby Valentine firing, the Red Sox will soon be employing their third different manager in three seasons, a revolving door team president and CEO Larry Lucchino recently told reporters he is eager to close.
“We, like most organizations, prefer some stability and continuity in key positions,” he said. "We had a lot of stability and continuity in other key positions. But we’d like to have the manager’s role filled by someone for several years.”
Take a look at the names most commonly mentioned in addition to Farrell as candidates to fill the Red Sox vacancy: Sandy Alomar Jr., Ryne Sandberg, Dave Martinez, Mike Maddux, Bo Porter, Brad Ausmus, Tim Bogar, Joe McEwing, Torey Lovullo and DeMarlo Hale.
None of them have managed in the big leagues for a full season (Alomar briefly took over as Indians manager at the end of 2012 following the firing of Manny Acta).
In Boston, Farrell would bring a steady, calm hand, both in the clubhouse and in the media. The benefits of the latter should not to be discounted in the aftermath of the Valentine era. Whether Farrell can manage a winner is yet to be determined, but what we did learn about him this past season is that his demeanor or approach will not change when times get tough, traits Valentine sorely lacked.
What’s unknown is just how high a value the Red Sox place on those qualities in their next manager, but given the state of their franchise on the field and in the minds of their fanbase, it’s easy to see why a known, popular and respected quantity such as Farrell would be their No. 1 choice.
As for the Blue Jays, a team seemingly at a crossroads and in dire need of some starting pitching, letting Farrell go exchange for a pair of middling prospects and then having to start all over again with a new — likely rookie — manager, would be a tough sell to their own fanbase, let alone their players.
Unless of course both parties felt the compensation for Farrell makes the 2013 Blue Jays a better team.
And in order for that to occur, the Jays would likely need to acquire one of Clay Buchholz, Felix Doubront or top prospect Rubby De La Rosa.
Do the Red Sox want Farrell that bad? Are the Blue Jays prepared to start over again with a new manager in 2013?
If we’re to believe Abraham and others, we should have an answer to both questions very soon.
POLL:
Where do you think John Farrell will be managing in 2013
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POLL:
What would be fair compensation for John Farrell?
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