The rampant speculation that the Boston Red Sox covet current Toronto Blue Jays manager John Farrell will not cease. MLB sources indicated to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that Farrell will be the top choice to replace Bobby Valentine in 2013. Furthermore, people who know Farrell say he’d welcome the opportunity to return to Boston, according to Cafardo. However, Farrell maintains that his focus remains in Toronto.
“My focus and my commitment has been and is here, unequivocally,” he told reporters this week.
The Blue Jays apparantly asked for Clay Buchholz when the two teams discussed this potential move last season and would a guy like pitching prospect Rubby De La Rosa (acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Adrian Gonzalez deal) be available?
Cafardo further speculated in his piece and wrote:
It’s interesting that in the Dodgers deal, the Red Sox had to accept two “players to be named” in hard-throwing Rubby De La Rosa and outfielder Jerry Sands. De La Rosa had been claimed on waivers by the Jays and pulled back by the Dodgers; once a player is pulled back, he can’t be traded until the offseason.
The Jays would love to have someone like De La Rosa as compensation. But the Red Sox see him as a potential top-of-the-rotation starter and likely would not part with him as compensation.
Are the Jays close enough to contending that losing their current manager would be a non-starter or is John Farrell not considered a “can’t lose” asset yet given the mediocre success in his short tenure thus far?
If the Toronto Blue Jays could potentially add an asset to their organization in exchange for Farrell, would you bite?
Let him go to the Red Sox for compensation. Replace him with Jason Varitek. Sign Dustin Pedroia in the off-season. Bing, bang, BOOM!