He was happy and excited and seemingly on the verge of tears for a good part of the production. Â Bobby Valentine smiled his way into Red Sox history last night when Ben Cherington introduced him to the world as the 45th manager of the team.
The word of the evening was “polarizing” (if you do an Internet search for “Bobby Valentine polarizing” over 120,000 results show up) but Valentine wasn’t having any of it. Â He seems confident that he will be able to win over players and fans alike. After the press conference he went on NESN to be interviewed by Tom Caron and Don Orsillo where he admitted that he had made mistakes in the past and that he had learned from them. Â A concern of many is that he might take to the press to discuss issues with the players, unlike Terry Francona who handled those issues privately. Â While this will be manna from the heavens for the writers, most fans worry about how it will affect the team. Â There are already rumors flying about that have many Red Sox players unhappy with the choice of manager so there could be some fireworks in the team’s future.
Already he has made a choice to not make waves, at least in how he chose his uniform number. Â The number he has always worn as a manager is “2” but Jacoby Ellsbury has that. Â He said he considered wearing “22” but since coach DeMarlo Hale wears that number, he decided on “25” to honor Tony Conigliaro who he roomed with and bonded with over their shared history of being beaned. Â Valentine even went so far as to contact former Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell to ask his blessing since Lowell was the last person to wear the number and he acknowledged that he’d be happy to give it up if the Red Sox intend to retire it in Conigliaro’s honor (he also lamented not having the time to contact Conigliaro’s family). Â Thus beginning his Red Sox career in the most unselfish of ways.
When asked what his plans are now, Valentine said he’ll be studying tape of all the players so he can get to know their styles and also will be scheduling meetings with the players to get to know them personally. Â He indicated that he’s ready to get to work NOW and isn’t going to be wasting any more time.
Valentine’s contract is for two years with club options for 2014 and 2015. Â He has a huge task in front of him and last night seemed thrilled with the prospect of being in charge of this team and tackling the issues that are hanging over it. Â Whether that will translate into success for the Red Sox in 2012 is anyone’s guess but Bobby Valentine seems determined to redeem his reputation and that of his new team.
(Originally published on Examiner.com)