Carl Crawford Back By End Of Month?

I was shocked listening to Buster Olney on WEEI today. He is a guy I have a lot of respect for, and when he says something it's not like he is pulling it out of his ass, so when he said...

"I think Crawford is making a lot of progress," Olney said. "In fact, based on what I heard today, I think there's a good chance that he's going to be back by the end of the month. He's right on the cusp of really ramping up his throwing program, he's hitting, he's doing all the other stuff. And let's face it, at some point, if the Red Sox figure that he's throwing well enough just to even throw to a cutoff man, you go with it. Because he's playing in Fenway, there's not a lot required, you don't necessarily have to have him throwing at full speed. We've seen a lot of teams through the years will hide a guy with an arm issue out in left field. So, if they get to the point I think with Carl where they're even 75 percent of what he usually does, I think they'll probably be in a position where they can tell him, 'Hey, we'll put you in the lineup because you're hitting, you're running and you're doing all the other things that we hope you can do for us."

That's great news that he could be back soon, yet somehow it doesn't make me feel any better. If his elbow is still an issue then he shouldn't comeback. Actually I disagree with Olney (and the Red Sox if they are thinking the same). The Red Sox should wait till he is 100%. He is here for a long time, and we have had to deal with all these nagging injuries. We don't need Crawford from last year back, we need Crawford from Tampa back. The best shot at getting that Crawford back is getting him back 100%.

David Ortiz Goes On Rant

"I'm the kind of [expletive] who worries about winning games," Ortiz said. "I'm a winner. I hate losing. But what I do, I don't do for everybody to know. I do it for us to get better and the trash talking out there to stop."

"Somebody wrote, 'Why didn't he do it earlier?' Earlier? When am I going to do it, in spring training," Ortiz asked. "What did I do wrong? Seriously, what did I do wrong? … You hit 54 home runs, then hit 35, it's not good enough. How many people hit 35? Never good enough, bro. That's why I don't care."

"I don't get no respect," Ortiz said. "Not from the media. Not from the front office. What I do is never the right thing. It's always hiding, for somebody to find out (WEEI)."

At first when I read this I was pissed. David Ortiz is making $14.5 million dollars this season, that is way more than any other DH in the league and plenty of "respect" for him. Then I sat back and thought about it and I think I agree with Ortiz. Since the end of last year the media and the front office have been coming out with all these stories about what's going on in the clubhouse. Beer and chicken, arguments between managers and players, who is in the dugout when, and so on. I think that's what Ortiz is talking about here.

It come out last week that Ortiz called a player only meeting on May 11th, and the hitters basically got heated at the pitchers and told them they needed to step up. I don't there any of us would disagree with that. Since then it seems like it has worked. Beckett has been great, Lester has been great, and the Sox have been riding a very hot stretch here. So even after Ortiz has done what ever fan has been begging someone on this team to do since last September, he gets ripped in the media again, asking why he didn't do it earlier?

I love Ortiz's response. "When was I going to do it? Spring training?". He's right, that's a stupid comment. The team meeting was needed after the golf stuff with Beckett. A leader stepped up and it happened to be Ortiz. Good. Then it has to been leaked to the media (Bobby V, Front office?), and even after what should be such a uplifting story he gets ripped.

Ortiz is pissed because of all the negative stuff around the team, he is sick of the leaks, and then the last part if probably about the lack of a long term deal. I don't like to admit it, but Ortiz is right. Whoever is leaking stories every other day needs to be dealt with, because it isn't going to help anything.

Wes Welker Is Dumb

Wes Welker, who signed his $9.5 million franchise tender this week, told the Boston Herald in a phone interview Thursday that talks with the Patriots have gone downhill.

“There have been talks, but nothing that’s brightened anything at all,” Welker told Karen Guregian. “It’s actually gotten worse.”

When asked by the Herald to define "worse," Welker said that the Patriots' current offer is less than the two-year, $16 million offer he rejected from the Patriots during the 2011 regular season (WEEI).

Wes I love ya buddy, but what the fuck did you think was going to happen. Any leverage you had went out the door when you signed your franchise tender. You have nothing now, the Patriots will be fine with just keeping you on one year deals, and why wouldn't they? If they don't have to commit to a 31 year old WR, they aren't going to. Guess what happens if you produce at the same level? They are going to do it again!

Welker is dumb if he really thought by signing the tender the Patriots were actually going to offer him MORE money. It's a business, and the less guaranteed money a team has to commit the better.

Papelbon Explains Why He Left Red Sox

"No, I don't [think so]," Papelbon said of whether the Sox properly valued his durability. "I feel like I have [been one of the most durable closers in the game]. ... I feel like I've been durable just as much as anybody else out there. I know myself better than anybody. I know myself better than any trainer in Boston, [who] tried to tell me that they knew me better. That goes with experience, knowing yourself, trusting yourself and listening to what you have to listen to and not listening to things you know aren't going to make you stay durable.

"The previous trainer tried to tell me that he knew everything about me. It's just not the case. I know myself. I knew how to get through a 162-game season. A trainer doesn't know how to do that. The trainers here have been phenomenal. They understand that I'm going to be successful because I know how to be successful. I still did things my way when I was there in Boston, I just had somebody chirping in my ear the whole time. … You stay in your own lane, you'll be fine. I'll stay in my lane, I know what I need to do, I'll be fine."

"A huge light bulb went off in my head," Papelbon said of his feeling when Francona's fate was determined. "I wouldn't say that was it, but it was about 99.9 percent [sure of not returning]. Yeah, I was shocked (WEEI)."

This interview was hard to listen to because he kept talking in the 3rd person referring to himself as "Cinco". After getting through all of that there were some interesting nuggets. First, his hatred for the training staff, which I think we can all agree on. They have given trouble to Dice-K fooling around with how he prepares, they messed everything with Ellsbury and could be a big reason why he walks out the door in a couple years, Lackey pitching when he needed Tommy John, and the list goes on and on.

I think most players backed Francona and we all knew that, but if they wanted to save his job they certainly had enough opportunities.

Yet, even though I can agree with some of the stuff he says the bottom line is that the Phillies paid him a lot more than the Red Sox were willing to. Papelbon had stated for years that he wanted top dollar. If the Red Sox offered a bigger deal he would be here, that's the bottom line and no one should lose site of that. Papelbon is 10 for 10 in save chances, and he certainly could've helped the Sox this year, but I was fine with letting up walk, and to think Papelbon left for any reason but money is foolish.

Classy Move By Rondo

Rivers said that Rondo individually thanked his teammates for getting the win without him after Tuesday's game.

"I was really happy, going onto the bus, Rondo was standing outside the bus door waiting for every teammate to shake their hand and said, 'thank you,'" Rivers recalled.

Added Rivers: "It was really cool to see him do that. I mean, he waited there for each guy and just shook their hand and said, 'thank you.' You could tell he was really emotional about it. It was really nice (WEEI)."

I know it's a small thing, but I think this is really cool. Rondo can kind of be a dick. I don't mind him being a dick to other players on other teams, but the Celtics need him to be either leader. He doesn't need to be the #1 leader this year, as Pierce showed he can still do it, but it's coming and I think this is a good first step. It sounds like something Kobe would do.

What Rondo did was stupid. I don't think the biggest Rondo fan could deny that, and he is very lucky it didn't end up hurting them. I think he knows that, and I think going out and thanking them individually was his way of apologizing. It's a small step for Rondo, but it's a good first step to growing up. It took Paul Pierce a long time to grow up, hopefully this is Rondo's way of making that transition.

Cherington: No Promises To Bard

"We didn't promise him (Bard) anything at any point, and still haven't promised him anything other than he's starting Game 5," Cherington said.

Some people were surprised that Bard wasn't moved to closer when Bailey went down for 4-5 months with thumb surgery. I have said it before, I think the Red Sox are going to roll out this rotation as is. Then reevaluate when Dice-K comes back. Bard can only pitch so many innings, so there is a good chance even if he is good this year that he eventually get moved back to the pen anyways, so that he can help in September and hopefully October if needed, which is what I think Cherington was basically saying here. I just hope that since they are going to go down this road with Bard that they actually give him a shot and don't just give up if he has 2-3 bad starts.

Audio Tape Exposes Gregg Williams

"Documentary filmmaker Sean Pamphilon was following around the former Saints player Steve Gleason, who suffered from ALS. And during the final game of the season, he captured audio of Gregg Williams telling his players to injure members of the 49ers, uploaded it to YouTube and passed it along to Yahoo Sports Michael Silver. In the audio, Williams allegedly makes reference to a cash payment and repeatedly uses the word "kill" in addition to violent and intense language.

“At one point Williams says, ‘We hit [expletive] Smith right there' – then he points under his chin [and continues] – ‘remember me.' Then he rubs his thumb against his index and middle fingers – the cash sign – and says, ‘I got the first one. I got the first one. Go get it. Go lay that [expletive] out,'" Pamphilon told Silver.

Williams also made specific reference to 49ers running back Frank Gore and what we can only hope is a metaphorical decapitation.

"We've got to do everything in the world to make sure we kill Frank Gore's head," Williams said. "We want him running sideways. We ... want ... his ... head ... sideways."

Williams catchphrase on defense is "kill the head and the body will die" -- until he was busted for the bounty programs he (allegedly?) ran for multiple teams, it was viewed as a slightly crazy but effective motivational tactic (Sportsline)."

"Williams brought up the name of wide receiver Michael Crabtree, hinting about a severe knee injury, and told his players to "put a lick on" receiver Kyle Williams in an effort to “find out” if he was still suffering from the effects of a late-December concussion (WEEI)."

Sorry for the long paste job here, but kind of needed you to read the whole thing. I think this will be the last nail in the coffin for Williams, who is suspended indefinitely already. I would actually kind of be shocked if he is ever back, but I don't think he will be back for at least 2 years. There is no mention yet of Payton in this tape, but you would assume he has heard these kind of rants before. I don't see Payton getting a longer suspension or anything, but I this will all but kill his appeal of this.

Do I think the Saints were the only team doing this? No, but I think they were warned, I think that the most important thing to the NFL now is player safety, and I think the Saints did this the most blatantly. That's why they are getting hit this hard.

Lester Pissed He Isn't Considered Elite

Let me start by saying that Lester is my favorite player on the Red Sox, but this comment kind of pissed me off...

“I think people expect me every year to go out and win 20 games, and if I don’t do that, it’s a bad season. I don’t think that I get a lot of the credit of the seasons that I have put together,” Lester said. “It’s obviously a nice expectation to have, but at the same time, when people talk about the elite pitchers in the game, they throw me in as, ‘Oh, yeah, he’s one, too.’

“It’s frustrating. I don’t know why that is. It is nice to be recognized as that at sometimes, just to reassure your work and for your confidence. Yeah, the expectation of winning 20 games is great. I don’t want any less. I want to win as many games as I can every year. Hell, I want to win 33 when you get down to it. That’s a compliment, but to be mentioned every once in a while with those [elite] guys would be nice.”

Lester is a very good pitcher. He is one of three pitchers who has won 15 or more games in each of the past four seasons (CC, Halladay), but he just isn't in the same class as those two guys. First off CC has pitched AT LEAST 230 innings in each of the last 3 seasons, and Halladay has pitching 233 innings or more in each of the last 4 years. Lester has never been over 210. Both those guys have had a better ERA than Lester as well, and have won more games. Lester is very good, but when you are an "ACE" you are expected to win 20 games when you play for a premiere franchise. If you don't like that then go play for the Mariners. An ACE is supposed to eat up innings so the bullpen is saved for the rest of the staff. Lester really hasn't done that. How many times last year was he at the 100 pitching mark in the 5th-6th inning?

Don't get me wrong, I think Lester can be ELITE, but he isn't yet. Hopefully, these comments are like ShEli's last year, and he backs it up (I know, I can't believe I just wrote that either).