The damage is done, but its effects are only beginning.
So, in the wake of the Theo Epstein debacle, the enduring problem is obvious. The general managers meetings begin tomorrow and the Red Sox have no general manager, which means they have no leadership. Epstein will fulfill his obligation to the Sox today, six days after his contract officially expired and four days after he held his last press conference at Fenway Park. Then he is expected to disappear for good from the offices at 4 Yawkey Way.
Remember this, baseball followers: The 2006 baseball season does not begin in April. It began roughly a week ago, when the Chicago White Sox completed a four-game sweep of the Houston Astros to official conclude the 2005 campaign. Preparations for next year began the following day, Oct. 27, when the clock began ticking on baseball’s 15-day free agency filing period. And so come this Friday, teams can begin discussing financial terms with free agents, effectively kicking off the bidding season.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox are trying to figure out who will be running their baseball operation.
Does everyone understand the impact of this? By not addressing Epstein’s contract months ago - and the Sox still have not offered even a remotely logical explanation for that colossal blunder - their 2006 season is now in jeopardy. Yes, the Sox are sending a four-man contingent to the GM meetings in Indian Wells, Calif., this week, but none of those men know to whom they will eventually be reporting. Meanwhile the Sox have an array of free agents - from Johnny Damon to Bill Mueller - and their pitching staff needs serious help.