Why The Red Sox GM Job Is No Longer Highly Coveted

The opportunity to oversee the Boston Red Sox baseball operations is a job everyone has dreams of doing. On paper, the job itself is still very attractive. It’s a big market team, a legendary franchise, a very passionate fan base, strong farm system, and the city of Boston is one of the most exciting places to win a championship. However, since Chaim Bloom was fired, overseeing Boston’s baseball operation is no longer a dream job. There are many reasons why people are very hesitant to even interview. All of this goes back to owner John Henry and Fenway Sports Group. There are many reasons why the job is not very attractive to many top candidates.

Being Unable To Hire Their Own Manager

In my opinion, an incoming general manager should be allowed to pick their own field manager. The New York Mets allowed David Stearns to fire manager Buck Showalter despite the team giving him a vote of confidence. However, in Boston, the incoming baseball operations head will be forced to work with incumbent manager Alex Cora at least for next season. Arranged marriages very rarely ever work in baseball.

Alex Cora Might Actually Have More Power

On top of that, Cora is a part of the Red Sox search committee for the new baseball operations executive. He’ll essentially be allowed to pick his boss. Typically, it’s the manager who’s supposed to report to whoever oversees the baseball operation. In this case, the team has given the message that the manager will have more power than whoever is running the operation. No top candidate would ever want to be in that situation.   

Cora was originally hired by former president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. While Cora led the Sox to their most recent championship in 2018, he’s mostly had an up-and-down tenure. After missing the postseason in 2019, Cora was suspended for the 2020 season due to his role in the Astros sign-stealing scandal. Since being re-hired, Cora’s Sox have only made the postseason one other time and have finished in last place two years in a row. While mistakes by Chaim Bloom didn’t help, Cora’s job is ultimately to win with players given to him. Cora hasn’t done that in the past two seasons.

John Henry’s Habit Of Firing Baseball Operations Heads Every Five Years

In recent years, the Red Sox have had a disturbingly high turnover rate in their front office. No person in recent years who oversaw the Red Sox baseball operation has lasted longer than five years. Heck, Dave Dombrowski and Ben Cherington both won championships and were still axed after that period. Dombrowski had also just won a championship the year prior to receiving his pink slip. This is the equivalent of just getting a job and knowing the end of your time at the organization is coming soon.

Boston Isn’t Spending Like They Used To

John Henry and Fenway Sports Group are focused on other things and the Red Sox seem to be an afterthought. They aren’t spending large amounts of money on the team anymore. Henry’s ownership group seems to be interested in spending it on other things. The incoming baseball operations head shouldn’t expect to be able to compete for the Shohei Ohtanis or Josh Haders in free agency. They will instead roll the dice at the farm system casino or sign less expensive free agents. While the Sox have one of the top farm systems in baseball, there is no guarantee that those players are going to turn into Boston’s next stars.

The Negatives Outweigh The Positives Now

Overseeing the Red Sox baseball operations was once seen as the job to have in baseball. However, given the turnover rate and stipulations put in place by John Henry, the job isn’t that attractive anymore. Despite having a top farm system and everything that is attractive about working for this franchise, the negative things that have become associated with the job are becoming too much. Given the life of a Sox GM seemingly expires after five years, the targeted candidates would rather have job security rather than pursue what was once a dream job.

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