Red Sox Former GM Ben Cherington Going Back To School

It’s true. Former Boston Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington has given up the walls of the team’s head office to the four walls of the classroom. Just don’t expect him to be taking more notes than he gives.

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Cherington has taken a job at Columbia University, teaching students. Ricky Doyle of NESN reported that “Columbia’s sports management program announced Monday that Cherington will be the ‘Executive-in-Residence’ and will teach a class this spring on the topic of leadership in sports. The class is part of the Master of Science in Sports Management degree program at the renowned university.”

Doyle also quoted Cherington saying, “Two of my favorite parts of working in baseball have been to collaborate with outstanding people looking to make a difference and to help others grow. I hope sharing my experience can help play a small role in Columbia’s mission to prepare its students for a meaningful and impactful career in the sports industry.”

Cherington left his position as Boston’s general manager when Dave Dombrowski was named the new president of baseball operations. The writing was on the wall for all to see that major changes were going to be made from the plan that Cherington himself had put into place, making it difficult for anyone to see the move as anything other than a declaration that Cherington’s ideas were no longer approved.

Cherington’s willful exit was likely a way for him to leave with dignity, instead of Dombrowski eventually firing him at the end of the season.

While it should be noted that Cherington’s time as the boss of Boston wasn’t all bad, especially since the team won a World Series under his watch in 2013, the team has suffered three losing seasons before and after that victory. The Red Sox were embarrassing in their celebration of Fenway Park’s 100th anniversary. They floundered in 2014. And, with big-name signings like Hanley Ramirez, Pablo Sandoval, and Rick Porcello under his belt, Cherington’s hopes of turning the franchise around were dashed, partly because of those same signings.

Some of Red Sox Nation would argue that those three men should take on the brunt of that burden for being, yet again, last place in the American League East division.

Be that as it may, Cherington has a new career to look forward to next year. It’s still sports-related, and it will show off his experience in one of the biggest sports leagues in the world. What the Columbia students will think of that experience, only time will tell.

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