MLB: The Red Sox Fellowship Revolt

"The Fellowship of the Miserable," a phrase coined by Rick Pitino to describe Boston Sports Fans that we've grown to adopt as our own. Perhaps only a group that refers to themselves as "The Fellowship of the Miserable" could seriously be calling for the head of a first place, former manager of the year.

Well, we are, and with a flaming passion that can only be explained by the last 85 years of hell Red Sox fans have collectively suffered together. Face it, in the same way we hated Pete Carroll after he brought the Patriots to two straight playoff appearances, we just don't like Jimy. But, rather then write the obligatory "Jimy Williams must be fired" column that the Fellowship wants, I decided to take a step back and look at things from a "non-fellowship" point of view. Fact is, the Red Sox are 16 - 9, in first place in the American League East and most importantly, are 4 - 3 against the hated Yankees.

Don't get me wrong; were I in charge of the Boston Red Sox, Williams would be on the next plane to Third Base Coach-Ville in Atlanta. But clearly, I'm not Dan Duquette.

This column isn't about that though; this column is what Jimy Williams can do to get back on the good graces of Red Sox fans. Let's face it; Jimy deserves another chance. He has to be considered one of the most successful Red Sox managers in history, especially considering the team he was handed. He took a bunch of nobodies to the playoffs, he led them to their first playoff victory since 1986, he led them to their first playoff series win since the same season, and after the loss of Mo Vaughn, he led a bunch of nobodies to an "umpire destroyed" series with the Yanks where they proved to the world they were "almost" on the Yankees level.

Then last season, however, the wheels came off. Jimy's bumbling managerial decisions cost the Red Sox a trip to the playoffs. The fact that the Yanks seemed ripe for the picking made last season even harder for the Fellowship to swallow. The lone saving grace for Williams was that management bungled the Carl Everett situation so badly that despite his managerial ineptitude, Boston fans felt sympathetic towards his situation. The wrath of the Fellowship was pointed towards Dan Duquette.

However, one off-season and one Manny Ramirez later, and Dan Duquette's back in the Fellowship's good graces. Add on to that his pulling in the reigns on Everett, his amazing off-season pickups of Hideo Nomo and Frank Castillo, and Duquette could run for Governor in Massachusetts. But the Fellowship, who have an extremely long and selective memory, now have no reason to pity Jimy Williams. All of a sudden, they want answers for the boneheaded moves he makes. All of a sudden they look at this huge payroll and they wonder why the Troy O'Leary's and Craig Grebeck's of the world are still in the line-up (and in O'Leary's case, batting 5th no less).

So, we ask Jimy for answers…

Fellowship: Jimy, why didn't you pinch-hit for Craig Grebeck in the bottom of the ninth the other night, in a tie game with two men on and two outs?

Jimy: Manager's decision.

Fellowship: Jimy, why not pinch hit for Lansing with two out and two men on in the bottom of the seventh, especially if you're just going to bring in a defensive replacement in the top of the eighth?

Jimy: Manager's decision.

Fellowship: Why is Troy O'Leary batting behind Manny Ramirez? Come to think of it, why is Troy O'Leary batting at all?

Jimy: Manager's decision.

Fellowship: Did Manny Alexander loan Craig Grebeck his compromising photos of you during your "farm boy" days?

Jimy: Manager's decision.

Fact of the matter is, only in Boston do the fans care why the manager of a first place team does what he does. But, remember, Pete Carroll seemed to always start off strong for the New England Patriots. Remember the 6 - 2 start in his final season in New England? During the fast start, you could see all the signs of a team coming apart, but yet when we criticized Carroll, we were reminded of their great 6 - 2 start. By the end of the season, we were criticized for not being harsh enough. Well, this season, we see signs of the same Jimy that, in the Fellowship's opinion, cost the Red Sox a chance at surpassing the Yankees last season. And yet when we criticize him, the same fans that came to Carroll's defense also come to Jimy's. Well, this time, we're not making the same mistake. We're not waiting until it's too late. Unless he changes, and quickly, we're going to attack him relentlessly until he's either fired or he resigns in shame. But he can stop this from happening, and rather easily. I'm going to give Jimy the one piece of advice that could, quite possibly, save his job and get the Fellowship back on his side.

"Tell us why!"

It's simple, really. If Lansing is kept in to bat against a guy because of his lifetime .300 average against him, then tell us. If Derek Lowe is left in the game for 3 innings because nobody else in the bullpen is available, then tell us. If Grebeck has to stay in the line-up because of his compromising pictures of you and your pet goat, then TELL US (but please, whatever you do, don't show us)!

Because Jimy, I'll tell you this. If we have to sit through any more of your "manager's decisions," there will be a long awaited and overdue Dan Duquette press conference announcing your dismissal as Red Sox manager, and the only explanation you should expect to hear is "general manager's decision."

I'm SeanMC.