Written by R.J. Anderson at CBS Sports.com
The Boston Red Sox fired manager John Farrell on Wednesday morning, days after they were eliminated from the American League Division Series by the Houston Astros.
Predictably, most onlookers assumed Farrell’s dismissal had to do with results. Despite winning 93 games in each of the past two seasons, the Red Sox have amassed a 1-6 postseason record. Add in how Farrell made some questionable decisions in this most recent series — like starting Doug Fister instead of David Price — and boom, there’s the recipe for a pink slip.
But that doesn’t seem to be the only issue at hand. Take a look at what Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said about the move:
Dombrowski said Farrell was fired for reasons he won’t disclose and that no level of team success would have prevented that.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) October 11, 2017
That seems to hint at some kind of discord — between the manager and his players, and/or between the manager and his bosses. Either way, it’s not a great endorsement of Farrell, who spent five full seasons as the Red Sox skipper and finishes his time there having won 53 percent of the games he oversaw.
We’ll see if Farrell lands another managerial job in the coming weeks, or if he’ll have to take a step back and return to his pitching coach roots.
As for the Red Sox, expect former Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus to be the hot name given his connection to Dombrowski.
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