Red Sox President & CEO Sam Kennedy admitted that the team is "not 'all-in' trying to win the World Series this year," according to Dan Shaughnessy of the BOSTON GLOBE. Kennedy: "It would be inaccurate to say we are going for it with an all-in approach that perhaps we did prior to the 2018 title. ... We cherish that title, and all of them, but the way we built that team came at a price, which included importantly a depleted farm system and some depleted draft picks along the way. So we are building back up, and as we do this hopefully the right way, we’ll have a chance to be competitive in the American League East in 2021, but also for the longer term." Shaughnessy, a frequent critic of the Red Sox' operations in recent years, had a back-and-forth with Kennedy on a variety of issues.
Shaughnessy: Do the Sox take their fans for granted, hoping the goodwill of four championships in this century allows them to coast?
Kennedy: That’s patently false. Our ownership group wants a fifth, sixth, and seventh championship.
Shaughnessy: Are the Sox operating like a middle-market team?
Kennedy: No, I would not agree with that. My guess is we’ll have a payroll somewhere in the top echelon of baseball.
Shaughnessy: Some of us (me) believe that the 2021 Sox are operating in the spirit of Tampa Bay.
Kennedy: That’s your obsession because it’s cute and easy and Chaim Bloom worked for the Tampa Bay Rays. I don’t agree with it.
Shaughnessy: It feels to me like the Red Sox have become a diminished priority in the Fenway Sports Group empire. Liverpool is king and FSG is eyeing new acquisitions while the Red Sox trudge toward irrelevance.
Kennedy: There’s nothing further from the truth. The Red Sox are at the center of everything we do. I think that is an insult to the people that work here each and every day with the mission of building a championship team and offering a great experience at Fenway (BOSTON GLOBE, 1/21).
