I don't know about other companies in Boston, but if mine was the barometer of productivity for the city yesterday, millions of dollars in worker unproductivity were lost yesterday as we all monitored the ongoing Manny Ramirez saga.

It was one of those days where you had an open document on your computer - maybe a PowerPoint presentation, a prospectus, an advertisement, or something else to give the impression that you were doing work. You knew you weren't fooling anybody. You were on boston.com, ESPN.com, SI.com, or some other sports site, waiting with baited breath to see where our enigmatic slugger was headed.

Fifteen years from today, you're going to remember where you were when you heard. Me? I was on a bus, heading up to see the Lowell Spinners as part of my company's summer outing. I got a text message - Manny was going to the Dodgers, Jason Bay is headed to the Sox.

Continue reading "Manny feeling blue: The end of an era"

I don't get to watch nearly as many Red Sox games as I used to, and because the boys in green across town extended their season into June, I found myself way behind the eight ball once I started watching.

However, every time I do get the time to watch a game, I always think the same thing -- this is a team to be excited about. 

In the 5-plus years it's been since Henry, Lucchino, and Theo took the reins from John Harrington and Dan Duquette, they worked toward a goal to turn the franchise around by rebuilding the farm system, bringing in guys who bought into their system, and shedding bad contracts. 

Last Thursday, this regime took the final step to make the franchise fit the mold they had in mind when they came in. Gone are the days of the mercurial superstar in Boston. Gone are the days of special treatment, phantom injuries, and extended All-Star breaks. This team has no superstars, no controversial characters, no one who will stir things up. All we have here is a bunch of solid baseball players who go out every day and do what they get paid to do. A new chapter of Red Sox history is being written as we speak.

Continue reading "Thoughts while watching the game..."