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Random Red Sox of the Day: Jody Reed

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Drafted by the Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox selected Jody Reed out of Florida State University in the eighth round of the 1984 draft. Reed had already been through several draft phases, but never signed. He began play immediately in A-Ball at Winter Haven. After spending all of the 1985 season at Winter Haven as well, Reed started to climb the ladder.

In 1986 he played at both AA New Britain and AAA Pawtucket. Even though he had struggled at New Britain, Reed showed his promise in Pawtucket. In 1987 he played the full season at Pawtucket before a September call-up to the big leagues. Reed had batted .296 with seven home runs in AAA, earning his way up.

In 30 Major League at-bats that September he batted .300. He got his first start in a doubleheader on September 18th and collected three hits. Batting leadoff in the game, his first hit came off lefthander Jeff Ballard of the Orioles in the fifth inning.

BOSTON, MA – CIRCA 1988: Jody Reed #3 of the Boston Red Sox looks on prior to the start of a Major League Baseball game circa 1988 at Fenway Park. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Morgan’s Magic

Jody Reed struggled to begin the 1988 season, and manager John McNamara threatened to send him down to the minors. When McNamara was fired, with the Red Sox struggling to a 43-42 record, Reed was batting .237 as a part-time player.

Instead of sending him to the minors, new manager Joe Morgan did the opposite; making him his full-time starting shortstop, replacing Spike Owen. One of the big changes Morgan made was benching his older players who were scuffling and going with the younger guys. At short, Jody Reed may have been the biggest part of that.

The Red Sox went on an epic run, dubbed “Morgan’s Magic.” The Red Sox won 12 straight to begin Morgan’s reign, and 19 of 20. They also went on to win a record 24 consecutive home games at Fenway Park. For his part, Reed batted .477 during the 12 game win streak, and .432 during those first 20 games. Getting to play every day and having the confidence of his new manager did wonders for Jody Reed.

Reed finished the season with a .293 batting average and finished third in the Rookie of the Year vote. The Red Sox won the American League East following their huge run under Joe Morgan.

Jody Reed of the Red Sox bats against the Yankees during a game circa 1991 at Fenway Park. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

A Doubles Machine

Reed continued to start for the Red Sox over the remainder of his tenure with the team. In 1989 he split evenly between second base and shortstop, as the Red Sox lost their second baseman Marty Barrett to injury during the season and acquired shortstop Luis Rivera from the Expos.

Reed did his part, batting .288 with 42 doubles. Those doubles placed him third in the American League, as Reed started proving himself as a doubles machine in Fenway Park.

Reed mostly started at second base in 1990, but played his old shortstop position some as well. The position switching didn’t affect his ability to hit doubles, as Reed led the entire Major Leagues with 45 doubles. He batted .289 and hit a career high five home runs. Yes, he didn’t have much for home run power, but all those doubles worked just fine.

1991 saw more success from Reed, as he stayed at second base all season. He matched his five home runs from the previous season, and his 42 doubles from 1989, while batting .283. To this point in his career, Reed had batted .288 and had averaged 43 doubles over the previous three seasons.

The magic went away in 1992 though. The Red Sox mistakenly fired Joe Morgan in the offseason, bringing in Butch Hobson. The whole team’s play declined in 1992, and Reed was not immune. He batted a career low .247, and only hit 27 doubles in his final season with the Red Sox.

Jody Reed #3 of the Boston Red Sox bats against the Toronto Blue Jays bats during a game circa 1990 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Moving On

Reed bounced around over the rest of his Major League career. He played in Los Angeles with the Dodgers in 1993, batting .276 while playing excellent defense at second base, something that would become his thing. He only made five errors, posting a .993 fielding percentage. This fielding percentage was tops in the National League at the position.

He took some flak for turning down a big contract offer from the Dodgers, and then signing for much less elsewhere in the offseason. However, it seems like he wasn’t very happy in Los Angeles, and having to team with shortstop Jose Offerman, who was a disaster at the position. Good for him for prioritizing happiness over money!

Reed played with the Brewers in 1994. He led the league with a .995 fielding percentage at second base while turning the most double plays and making the most assists at second base. Seems like he had a strong case for the Gold Glove Award. In addition, Reed batted a solid .271 for the Brewers.

Reed spent the next two years playing in the lovely weather of San Diego. In 1995 he only made four errors, compiling a .994 fielding percentage. Although he made his most errors since 1992 in ’96, he still had a nice .987 fielding percentage. Reed batted .250 in his two seasons with the Padres.

He closed out his career in 1997 by playing in 52 games with the Detroit Tigers. Reed’s play had clearly declined, as he batted under .200. Still, he had carved out a nice career for himself. He led the league in several fielding categories at second base in the second half of his career, after finishing among the league leaders in doubles during the first half of it.

The Patriots are Super Bowl Champs…Again

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The New England Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in Super Bowl 53, winning their sixth Championship.

One year ago today, New England lost to Philadelphia in a game that most expected Super Bowl 53 to mirror. A game where the phrase, “Defense wins Championships” is crumpled up and thrown out of a window. A game that has more trick plays than punts, and offensive coaches have a field day. A lot can remembered about Super Bowl 52’s incredible offensive heavyweight bout. However, the one lasting memory for most New England fans is the defense choking when it mattered most.

If there were any predictions for the game last night, they most likely were centered around an offensive outburst. Most people were assuming this would be another bloodbath, similar to the Chiefs-Rams Week 11 matchup that ended 54-51. Maybe not to the extent of 105 combined points, but it is Tom Brady and Sean McVay so it was a possibility. What we got instead was pound for pound football that exemplified this Patriots team resolve in more ways than one.

One could argue Tom Brady would have already had six rings coming into the 2018 season. Brady did after all throw for 505 yards and three touchdowns in Super Bowl 52. But that still wasn’t enough to overcome Matt Patricia’s sorry excuse for a defense. The Malcolm Butler argument can be made all day long but nothing was slowing down Nick Foles that night. This year however, it was the defense who helped Brady capture his record sixth ‘chip.

From Stephon Gilmore to Dont’a Hightower to Jason McCourty, every defensive player on the field made a play. Whether it was Gilmore’s last minute interception or Jason McCourty’s touchdown saving pass breakup, it was the defense who won the game this time around. There has never been a Super Bowl performance quite like the one we saw last night, and Tom Brady and the offense are beyond grateful. Brian Flores forever left his mark on New England lore, helping architect the best defensive performance in Super Bowl history. He will be sorely missed when he heads south to Miami.

Even though getting yards wasn’t an issue offensively, getting past the Rams 40 yard line was. It seemed like every drive ended with a long field goal attempt or a punt at the L.A. 45. This field position certainly helped the defense, but scoring points would have been far more helpful.

If there was one diamond in the rough for the offense last night, it was Julian Edelman. JE11 turned in perhaps his best game in a Patriot uniform, totaling 141 yards on ten receptions. The Rams Pro Bowl caliber cornerbacks could do nothing to stay in coverage, and no matter what Nickell Robey-Coleman says, they could not stop him. This immaculate performance led the way for the offense, and landed Jules his first Super Bowl MVP.

Julian Edelman shined when it mattered most, taking home the MVP award for Super Bowl 53.

Rob Gronkowski, in what could be his final game, looked like vintage Gronk, going for 87 yards and setting up the game’s only touchdown. Other than those two, the only other Patriot to have a solid offensive night was Sony Michel, who once again scored and had over 90 yards rushing. This was his third straight postseason game with a score and at least 90 yards on the ground, and he could have a monster next year as long as the offensive line stays intact.

Sony Michel scored the only touchdown of the game, capping off his incredible 2018 postseason.

In the end, this game was what no one expected and few wanted. Most people in New England would tell you they wanted a blowout and at least 40 points. Most of America would tell you they wanted the same thing, but in the Rams favor. However, if you look past the boring incomplete passes and negative rushing attempts, you’ll find that this game is what the Patriots are all about. They’re not a one dimensional team like Kansas City, where if the offense doesn’t score then they have no chance of winning.

The New England Patriots always preach that it takes all three phases, offense, defense, special teams, to win football games. That’s what Super Bowl 53 was, an all around effort with each group coming up clutch when they needed to. Without each player doing their job and stepping up to the plate when it mattered most, we would be sitting here thinking about what could have been. Instead? We wake up six time Super Bowl Champions and get ready for our second parade in 100 days.

The Genius of Sean McVay and his Upcoming Chess Match with Bill

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Watching Sean McVay call plays on offense is like watching someone paint. True art, beautiful design, Sean McVay is a true innovator. All someone needs to be a head coach these days is have a cup of coffee with him. Let’s take a look into what McVay does best and how Flores and Belichick can stop him.

McVay and his misdirections

To start, McVay makes a living off of misdirections and different offensive line shifts. This freezes the second and third levels of the defense. Against the Saints, he called play actions and pulled his guards to one side of the field, then had Goff throw to the opposite side. This froze the linebackers and forced them to go up and play the run, while his receivers quickly got open. This will be hard for the Patriots to defend against as they will be looking to stop the rushing attack early. Expect these tricky play action passes early in the game to try and create uncertainty for that Patriots defense.

Stop the run

One key for the Patriots will be stopping the Rams in 11 personnel (one runningback and one tight end). The Rams run out of that personnel at the highest rate in the NFL, and will look to find success out of that formation early. The goal is to unleash their play action pass, which is their forte, and a weakness of the Patriots. The Eagles early establishment of their run game last year was extremely detrimental to the Patriots defense, and ended up deciding the game. That defense could not stop a nosebleed. Hopefully history does not repeat itself. Expect the Patriots to take the ball to start the game if they can. They want to dictate the game and make the Rams play catch up with them. Both teams will want to start fast, put points on the board, and expose the other team’s defense early.

Belichick’s starting alignment  

Belichick will likely start the defense by lining up one defensive tackle in the A-gap and then another in the B-gap. Look for the defensive starters to look something like Flowers, Butler, Guy, and then the surprising Adrian Clayborn. Belichick will likely line up both ends in a seven or nine technique off the very edge of the tackles to establish the edge. This will force Gurley and Anderson inside. This will also keep Goff in the pocket and give him struggles, as he has struggled identifying edge pressure before.

Fighting against the misdirections and nifty play action McVay calls will not be easy. Although the Bears and Lions had success with the strategy of straight up ignoring it earlier this season.

Will McVay be enough?

The key will be stopping the run early to prevent Los Angeles from really digging into their playbook in that first half. Winning the first half will be key for the Patriots to win as getting into a shootout with this Rams team is not something anyone wants to do. The good news is the gameplan has been similar for the Patriots in both playoff games. If the Patriots can stick to the gameplan on defense and start hot, McVay and his genius mind will not be enough to finish on top.

Should Steven Wright Be on World Series Roster?

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Knuckleballer Steven Wright has said he believes he is healthy enough to pitch in the World Series. Wright was initially on the ALDS roster but was removed after complaining about renewed soreness in his knee. This left Wright ineligible for the ALCS roster as he was replaced for both series by Heath Hembree. Assuming Wright’s simulated game Sunday went well, what should the Red Sox do for the World Series?

The Pros

Steven Wright has been a very effective pitcher for the Red Sox, both as a starter and as a reliever. Wright was an all-star back in 2016 but has missed much of the past two seasons. Wright has a troublesome knee which keeps barking and sending him back to the disabled list. After a DL stint earlier in the season, the Sox moved Wright to the bullpen where he enjoyed great success.

In 16 games as a relief pitcher this year Steven Wright was 2-0 with a 1.52 ERA and one save. Some of that work came early in the year however, before he began starting in June. When Steven Wright returned to the Red Sox in September he allowed just one run over 13.2 innings pitched. Wright was even used in high-leverage spots, picking up a win, three holds and a save over the final month.

Bringing a knuckleballer in out of the pen following a conventional pitcher can be highly effective. After seeing a healthy dose of fastballs and curves, seeing a slow knuckleball all of a sudden can really mess with a hitters timing. Then, once Wright was removed from the game again for a new reliever, one likely throwing in the upper-90’s, imagine how that would mess with the batters. There’s a reason he has had success.

The other pro Steven Wright would offer out of the pen is giving the Red Sox another relief pitcher who could eat innings if needed. If the starting pitcher were knocked out of the game Wright could pitch for several innings. If the game went extra innings, Wright could essentially pitch for as long as the team needed him to.

The Cons

The first con would have to be the health of Wright’s knee. As stated before, Wright was put on the ALDS roster only to be removed after the first game due to the discomfort in his knee. What if Wright’s knee acted up again?

This really should not be a reason to keep Wright off the World Series roster. The team has other pitchers traveling with them; if Wright’s knee acted up again they could just replace him on the roster like they did in the ALDS.

The only other con I can see would be timing. Just like Wright’s knuckleball can mess with a hitters timing after seeing a healthy dose of fastballs, maybe it could do the same to the catcher trying to catch his knuckleball. But again, Wright has put up some impressive numbers out of the pen already down the stretch this season and can be a real weapon to have out of the bullpen.

The Verdict

I am definitely a proponent of adding Steve Wright to the roster for the World Series. His ability to pitch multiple innings if need be as well as his knuckleball messing with opponents’ timing is too much of a weapon to pass up. The team should replace Brandon Workman on the roster with Wright.

Although Workman was effective this year at 6-1 with a 3.27 ERA, he has not been the same pitcher of late. Workman allowed five runs over his final 2.2 innings this season. Small sample size, yes, but it has continued into the postseason. Workman has an ERA of 45.00 since the playoffs began. He has pitched three times, getting just one out in all three outings. He put on three baserunners in his first outing and allowed a run. His next outing he managed to get the one out without allowing a run, but did put two men on base. His outing in the ALCS was the worst yet, giving up four runs on three hits, two walks and two home runs. Workman can not be trusted in any meaningful role at the moment.

Workman has an ERA of 45.00 this postseason.

Other Roster Moves

The other roster move I would consider would be to add Bobby Poyner to the team. Poyner would give the Red Sox another lefty out of the pen, as currently all they have out there is usual starter Eduardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez isn’t exactly someone who would come in to face a lefty in a tight spot. With the Dodgers having Cody Bellinger and Joc Pederson, not to mention the fact Yasiel Puig struggles mightily versus lefties, and it might be a good idea to have someone throwing from the left side out there.

Poyner proved his worth when on the team this season, pitching to a 3.22 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and over a strike out per inning. Lefties batted a measly .143 against the rookie left-hander with only one walk and one extra-base hit. He could come in handy against the Dodgers.

Heath Hembree would be the other pitcher to go if the Sox were to add both Wright and Poyner. Hembree has pitched 3.2 shutout innings in the postseason, albeit in lower leverage spots. He also walked four guys over those innings, so he hasn’t been entirely sharp. This comes on the heels of a 4.20 ERA and 1.33 WHIP during the regular season. The only other option would be Eduardo Rodriguez, who has an ERA over 9.00 this postseason. Rodriguez has more value in his ability to pitch several innings if need be though, so I would keep him on the roster.

Featured picture from Bosoxinjection.com