John Henry And Tom Werner Skipped Larry Lucchino's Funeral. Do The Red Sox Mean Anything To Them Anymore?
If you’ve ever interacted with a Boston sports fan, you know that they’re devoted to their teams to an extreme - and sometimes questionable - extent. I would know, I’m one of them.
But of all the teams the city offers us, no one has our support more than the Red Sox.
For New Englanders like myself, our idea of a perfect meal is a bag of peanuts (salted, of course), a Fenway Frank, and semi-cold beer that was handed to us by a college student working his summer job. Hanging framed David Ortiz jerseys or pictures of Dave Roberts’ stolen base in Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS in our living rooms counts as "interior design."
Werner (receiving trophy) and Henry (behind trophy) guided the Red Sox to a 2018 World Series title. Sicne then, it's been a bumpy ride. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
Journalist Mike Barnicle once wrote in The Boston Globe that for people in New England, "Baseball isn’t a life-and-death matter, but the Red Sox are." Frankly, I couldn’t agree more.
But for the people that run the Red Sox - principal owner John Henry and chairman Tom Werner specifically - the team seems to hold little, if any, significance. They seem too concerned about other matters (like buying ownership stakes in other sports teams) to care about making Boston's most believed franchise successful, or honoring those who helped them achieve success.
Henry And Werner Did Not Attend Larry Luccino's Funeral
Earlier this week, former team president Larry Lucchino, who was with Boston from 2002-2015, died at the age of 78. Under his guidance, the Red Sox ended their 86-year World Series drought in 2004, and won two more titles in 2007 and 2013.
Luccino was a partner in the organization with Henry and Werner for those 13 years, so you would think that these two men would pay their respects to this man that helped make their franchise an MLB powerhouse.
But they didn’t.
Lucchino (right) talks with Werner (middle) and Henry (left) at Fenway Park in 2015. The two men didn't attend Lucchino's funeral. (Photo by Michael Ivins/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
Sean McAdam from "Mass Live" reported that neither man was at the funeral held Thursday. Henry supposedly felt sick, while Werner was in London.
However, both were in Boston for the Red Sox’s home opener just two days before. Yet they couldn’t make time for the funeral of a business partner that helped bring them so much success.
At best, it’s tasteless. At worst, it’s intentional. If you can’t pay your respects to the guy who ran the team you claim is the foundation of your ownership group, then the Red Sox are not a priority of yours anymore.
The Red Sox Have Let Go Of Most Of Their Best Players Over The Past Four Years
On top of that, there’s been a slew of personnel decisions over the past few years that haven’t made any sense and have doomed the Red Sox to inconsistency. The team let the likes of Mookie Betts, Kyle Schwarber, Nate Eovaldi, Xander Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez, and a slew of others for middling returns. Meanwhile, all of those guys have been major contributors on the MLB’s best teams, while Boston’s big league roster has countless issues.
But hey, at least our farm system is stacked!
Sure, these moves (carried out by former general Chaim Bloom) had to be made to restock on our talent pipeline and get under the luxury tax.
The Red Sox let Mookie Betts go in 2020. Since then, they've aloes let go of lots of key players. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
But in the process, they’ve seemingly given up on retaining top-tier talent and pursuing wins at the level that matters (as evidenced by three last place division finishes in the past four years). That has enraged fans like myself who desperately want our owners to at least try to assemble a competent team.
We thought that approach would change this offseason, with Werner saying that they would go "full throttle" to get new talent. How did they do that?
Signing injury-riddled Lucas Giolito and Tyler O’Neil, while letting our pitching staff and defense remain in shambles. Oh, they also missed out on landing Yoshinobu Yamamoto or Jordan Montgomery.
So much for going "full throttle."
Werner And Henry Need TO Get Back To Prioritizing Baseball
"A lot has been made out of two words," Werner said. "For me full throttle is the I approach every year expecting for us to be competitive and using all the levers at (chief baseball operator Craig Breslow’s) disposal, and that could be acquiring talent through trades, free agency, building a core, having a stronger pitching staff, having a stronger coaching staff."
Werner (left), and Henry (right) say they're invested in the Red Sox. But that's not how it looks. (Staff Photo By Christopher Evans/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)
Well Werner, you have none of that. Instead, you have a fanbase and team that is questioning your dedication to the Red Sox.
At this point, Boston’s most beloved team seems destined to suffer some more hard times in the future. But all of it is a product of a lack of focus from the top and failure to prioritize making the Red Sox a competitive team.
We the fans - who give these men our business - would greatly appreciate that. After all, the Red Sox are a life and death matter to us. It should be for the owners as well.