March 21st, 2007 → 11:17 am @ Seth Mnookin // No Comments
I hate to be the guy who I-told-you-so’s people to death, but with the official announcement that Mike Timlin is going to start the season on the DL, well…I told you so. I didn’t like the Timlin re-signing when it happened; I thought Timlin amply demonstrated his fall-off-the-cliffness during the waning months of last season. True, his salary is relatively insignificant (although I’d love to pull in that kind of insignificant salary), especially when it’s compared to what other relievers are getting. But during those times when he’s not on the DL, he’ll be taking up a much-needed roster spot.
Yes, I know, Timlin is one of the 25, and he’ll forever be sainted for that (it’s possible Timlin takes this notion of sainthood literally, as this Boston Globe piece from 2005 illustrates). And yes, his years of service have been enormously valuable. But my memories of Timlin’s ’06 season are dominated by the massive sucking he did during the Yankees-inflicted Boston Massacre and the moronic manner in which he somehow justified blaming the offense for the team’s collapse. And I do not want to live through that again.
(Note: as I said back in October, if Timlin comes back and has a season more in line with ‘03 and ‘04 and less in line with the second half of ‘06, I reserve the right to make like one of those paid sportswriters and act like he’s been my favorite player all along and that re-signing him was one of the front office’s most brilliant moves.)
Post Categories: Baseball & Boston & Literature & Media & Music & the Red Sox
sharrock
17 years ago
Yup, he is on the downside, how steep a hill we shall see. When the Sox kept him (for a low price, he was his own agent remember) they bought some stability as they were about to launch into a near total overhaul of the bullpen. He is an arm, he knows his role, hopefully he can give the Sox 60-80 quality innings this year while the young arms move closer to big league effectiveness.
MY BASEBALL BIAS - AN AL EAST BIAS WEBLOG » Checkin’ the Blogs
17 years ago
[…] Seth Mnookin reminds us all that he told us Mike Timlin would start the season on the DL (Feeding the Monster) […]
rln2433
17 years ago
Seth:
Timlin is not as bad as you make him out to be although why the Sox’s chances rest on his 40 something shoulders is beyond me. He takes the ball on back to back to back nights, he doesn’t mentally implode and he throws ground balls for the most part. The WBC was a bad idea and he paid for being a part of it.
Papelbon at the back of that pen was the plan. In the offseason there was little to be had in terms of closer help so here they are waiting for someone to step up or a rookie to emerge.
carnett
17 years ago
The Timlin signing wasn’t all that bad, till you realize the brass have Timlin at the same compacity as in years past. Did all the front office heads have their collective heads up their ass last year? Theo’s crap shoot for a bullpen will kill us once again. Best rotation in baseball + upgraded offence + shitty, old, not rated so can’t be overated bullpen= 3rd place folks!
gnostic_fellow
17 years ago
Considering the awful signings and lack of better judgement Theo has shown in the past few years “strengthening” the bullpen (read: Seanez, Fox [though he was successful in Florida later that year], Mendoza, Halama, et al), Timlin is probably the shiniest coin he picked up off the street. BUT… all good things must come to an end, right? Though he’s a relative bargain in today’s free-agent relief class, he’s 40 years-old and already showing signs that he should have held his retirement party sometime in October last year. Look, he may come back sharp for a while. Hell, given his extra rest with this DL trip, he may even be sharper than anyone would have expected. But the fact of the matter is that when he’s healthy, he’s going to be a central cog in this bullpen. And that thought has to be unsettling to any Red Sox fan. If I were to bank on any 40 year-old coming off six straight seasons of appearing in at least 67 games to have a solid year, well, I’d bet on Mike Timlin. But then again, I’m not a betting man. And this is one of the reasons why. As they say, though, time (and in this case, a lot of it) will tell.