Thursday, May 28, 2015

The Aberration That Was The 2013 Red Sox Title

Rock Bottom: 2012
Talk about your outliers! It's becoming increasingly clear that the magical 2013 season was just that—something a wizard would pull out of his hat. If you look back over the last eight years of NOG (New Ownership Group) stewardship, you find a shockingly sub-par organization—that somehow cobbled together one ring. Starting in 2008, your Carmine Hose: lost the ALCS ('08); lost the LDS ('09); finished third in the AL East ('10); finished third again in the AL East ('11); finished fifth in AL East ('12); won it all ('13); finished fifth again in the AL East ('14) and currently sits in last place in their division ('15). That's three playoff appearances in eight years—only once making it to the World Series. Is this an acceptable record of achievement? Over their last 209 regular season games (all of the 2014 season through today), they have a .440 winning percentage. Even factoring in the 2013 championship year, over their last 533 regular season games, their wining percentage is a dismal .484. The hard truth is that—since 2007—this ownership and management have (for the most part) under-performed. And, if they hadn't won in 2013, their normally cranky fanbase would be far less accepting of this mediocre product.