In Defending Pablo Sandoval, Red Sox' Dave Dombrowski And John Farrell Show No Fortitude
BOSTON (CBS) -- After manager John Farrell said in January that Pablo Sandoval had dropped 20-22 pounds, many expected the "Panda" to show up to spring training looking a bit more fit than he did last year.
Yet when Sandoval arrived Sunday ... the reaction was not ideal.
Sandoval looked as large as he ever has looked, and he does not appear to have taken the team's advice to get into better shape during the offseason.
But according to team president Dave Dombrowski, that's just not true. The team is just fine with Sandoval arriving in Fort Myers looking the way he does.
"I'm not concerned. We were watching him very closely all winter," Dombrowski told The Boston Globe's Peter Abraham. "We had people with him at least once a week. The goal was for Pablo to get in better overall condition and I feel like he did improve."
Abraham reported that Dombrowski and manager John Farrell held a meeting with Sandoval prior to Monday's workout "to discuss a torrent of negative media coverage about his arrival in camp on Sunday."
The report also noted that Farrell said that Sandoval has nothing to prove to the media, only to his teammates.
Scott Zolak and Marc Bertrand reacted to this story as it broke on Monday afternoon.
"It's like they don't want to say anything bad about anybody," Bertand said. "Here's what I want to put in the waste basket: This idea that there's some short leash with Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez and, 'Oh, don't you worry! Dombrowski and Farrell, they're not gonna put up with the bullcrap anymore!' Neither one of these guys had a set of balls today. We can say that without question. No balls. None. I don't know where they are, but they don't have them. They're not intact right now, because they came out and defended the players."
Bertrand continued: "Especially Farrell. I can kind of sort of understand it for the front office to not want to bash the player, because at some point they're going to try to move him again. But for the manager, who's literally managing for his job now? No balls. None. Just no fortitude on the part of John Farrell, almost to the point where you're like, 'I hope you lose your job because you had no balls, because you weren't even willing to stand up to Pablo Sandoval.' Give me a break. That's an easy one. That's a layup."
Listen to the full segment below:
