Carrabis: Red Sox in transition phase, but that doesn’t mean they can’t win

Red Sox fans are upset with John Henry and the rest of ownership. Most notably, fans angrily booed Sox brass during a town hall meeting at ‘Winter Weekend’ in Springfield. Jared Carrabis, content creator at Draft Kings, emceed the event and witnessed the irritated crowd first hand.

On Tuesday’s Toucher & Rich program, Carrabis discussed his thoughts on Sox ownership and the future direction of the ball club.

Parts of conversation are abbreviated for clarity.

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  BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JANUARY 15: From left, Red Sox Owner John Henry, Chairman Tom Werner, CEO Sam Kennedy, and Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom attend a press conference addressing the departure of Alex Cora as manager of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on January 15, 2020 in Boston, Massachusetts. A MLB investigation concluded that Cora was involved in the Houston Astros sign stealing operation in 2017 while he was the bench coach. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

• Jon Wallach: The way fans reacted in Springfield was something you were there for and was a visceral reaction. That is really unparalleled. These people paid a lot of money and got in their cars over an hour and a half to Springfield to boo the owner. I mean, Red Sox fans are fed up with this.  

  Jared Carrabis: They were not happy. I don’t want to say it was uncomfortable, but sitting up there and feeling their anger, I was like, okay, good. But, I didn’t like that people were heckling while Chaim [Bloom] was trying to speak. Chaim said it himself, he’s like, ‘I’m from Philly. I get it.’ 

  I don’t think that they were surprised that they got booed. I don’t think they were hurt by it, either. I was feeling the energy from the fans. I don’t want to become an organization or a fan base where essentially, you’re the Yankees. They still talk about 27 rings, but you have had one ring in the last 20 years. I don’t want to be that fan base.  

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  Aug 12, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) rounds third base to score against the Boston Red Sox in the first inning at Fenway Park. Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

• Ryan Johnston: Why is it, Jared, that ownership isn’t honest about anything with their fan base? I think we understand that there are going to be ebb and flows for any organization. You’re not going to be a World Series team every year.

  But, on the years where they decide to take a bit of a step back and revamp the roster, they’re not willing to say that publicly. They always pretend like they’re putting in the maximum effort every year, and it’s clear to everybody that they’re not.  

  Jared Carrabis: I think they were open and honest going into 2020. When you trade Mookie Betts, it’s for luxury tax purposes and not getting back a monster return—you’re more or less telling your fan base that you’re taking a step back. You don’t just trade your franchise player, arguably the most talented player in your franchise’s history, without getting better. You got significantly worse. That team in 2020 was dreadful. 

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  BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – AUGUST 29: Boston Red Sox Manager Ron Roenicke looks on during the third inning of the game against the Washington Nationals at Fenway Park on August 29, 2020 in Boston, Massachusetts. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The day honoring Jackie Robinson, traditionally held on April 15, was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

• Jared Carrabis: Where they’ve stepped into some dishonesty would be this team, right? They’re not acknowledging that they’re not going for [a title] this year.

  Jose Iglesias and Elvis Andrus were out there. Andrus did sign with the White Sox, but you could have signed him for $3 million. They could have signed a guy like Elvis Andrus and stayed under the luxury tax, which is clearly what they’re trying to do. They’re not going over the luxury tax this year.  

  They’re not using the term ‘bridge year,’ but this is more or less a bridge year. And teams can win in a bridge year. I think there’s a big difference between bridge year and punt season—2020 was a punt season. In 2020, they were like, let’s see how high of a draft pick we can get. That’s not what 2023 will be, but it is a bridge year.   

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  CLEVELAND, OHIO – AUGUST 20: Shortstop Jose Iglesias #4 of the Los Angeles Angels throws to first for an out on Amed Rosario #1 of the Cleveland Indians during the fourth inning at Progressive Field on August 20, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

• Jared Carrabis: When you start talking about moving on from Xander Bogaerts, you wonder how many years until Marcelo Mayer is here. We’re talking two to three years before he maybe even gets here. How many years before Mayer becomes the player that we expect him to become? That’s probably another two years after he gets here.

  So, we’re in a transition phase, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t win in those transitional phases. 

• Full Segment

• Ryan Beaton is a producer for 985thesportshub.com. You can follow Ryan at @ry_beaton on Twitter.

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