Offseason Changes: Time for Wakefield to Walk
As the offseason in Boston continues to drag on with a dismal cloud hovering the team, a look at some of the changes that this club needs to make also rolls on. This time it’s on the ageless veteran, Tim Wakefield.
The 44 year-old knuckleballer has been a staple in Boston for over 16 seasons. He’s been through the highs of winning two titles in Boston and the lows of losing to the Yankees in 2003 amongst other forgettable moments. You can now add the September collapse to the list of Wakefield’s forgettable lows.
With so much turmoil surrounding this team, does Wakefield have a spot on the roster in 2012?
Wakefield has seen his spot on this team bounce around from bullpen relief to spot starter to fulltime starter. Injuries all over the pitching staff have given way for the Florida native to once again get into games for the Red Sox over the past couple of years. The problem lies in that Wakefield doesn’t have his best stuff anymore.
His numbers in 2011 weren’t terribly bad, but they weren’t real good either. He went 7-8 with an ERA of 5.12 (the fifth worst of his career). While his walks were down, so too were his strikeouts (93) compared to earlier in his career. His WHIP finished at 1.36 which is on par with his career average.
Remember the last two months of the season when Wakefield was stuck on 199 wins? It was constant agony every fifth day to sit and watch him try for that elusive 200th win, only to have it drag out for 8 consecutive starts. It took Wake over 6 weeks before he finally secured the victory, spanning from July 24th to September 13th. Along the way he averaged 4-5 earned runs a game while averaging 5-6 innings of work. Quite often he’d put his team in a hole, but let’s be honest, the Red Sox didn’t have a lot of options when it came to their starting pitching. Wakefield was a starter by default.
He is a free agent this year and it’s doubtful that many teams will be interested in signing the 18 year veteran to a deal including the Red Sox. With the clubhouse in shambles where was Wakefield to stand up and take control? You don’t hear his name as one who tried to straighten things out when some of his teammates were out of line.
Then we hear that Wakefield has the audacity to speak out and state that the Red Sox fans deserve to see him come back next year to watch him try and chase down the franchise’s all-time wins record, held by Roger Clemens with 192. Wakefield is just six wins back (186) of tying Clemens for most wins in a Red Sox uniform. Who says we want to wait that long? At the rate it took to get win number 200, Wakefield may have to pitch until he’s 50. Talk about a selfish thing to say, especially when this team is being ripped apart for it’s tragic collapse.
Sorry Wake, but if you’re putting your personal achievements ahead of team, I don’t see a spot for you on the 2012 roster. Not in the bullpen and especially not in the starting rotation. These selfish and egocentric attitudes are the exact types that the club needs to get rid of.
So it appears Wakefield’s time in Boston has ran out, much like that of veteran Jason Varitek.
After what happened this year, the Red Sox need to head in a different direction. It’s time to cut ties with some of the aging veterans and bring in some new, hungry, fresh blood that won’t carry such baggage. Red Sox Nation will forever be greatful for what Wakefield did during his time in Boston. We won’t forget what he did both on and off the field.
But this is a business and things have to change. Unfortunately for Wake he is a part of that change that doesn’t have him part of the future plan. It’s time for him and his knuckleball to dance into retirement.
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