It’s so strange being here in the mid-to-late August and not having the Red Sox in the playoff hunt. The last time I remember feeling this way was back in 2001 with the Joe Kerrigan crew that basically imploded, then quit amidst a whole bunch of bad feelings. This year’s team is a bunch of odd pieces that never desired, nor tried to work together cohesively as a team, and that goes from the owners down to the ball boys. You have aging has-beens with huge contracts, prima donas who head to the disabled list at the first sign of a hang-nail, and a manager who failed almost from the start. Sure, he wasn’t allowed to pick his own coaching staff, but he’s also shown himself to be oddly disconnected from his players and the day-to-day stuff managers need to involve themselves with. Worse yet, especially in this day and age, he’s shown himself to be a poor communicator with his players. I wasn’t sure from the outset that Bobby V. was the answer, but he’s displayed a horrendous inability to relate to today’s ballplayer and media in every sense of the word.

Worst of all is the fact that this team is simply inherently unlikeable. Sure, there are a few players that, at least on the surface, appear to give a rat’s a$$ about how they perform, but the so-called “leaders” of the team – the Becketts, Pedroias, Ortizes and Gonzalezes – have made a mockery of what being a Boston Red Sox is supposed to be. And to make matters worse, I don’t see a whole lot of reasons for optimism for 2013 – simply put, the Sox have been passed, and will continue to be passed, by teams heading in an upward direction faster than the Sox are. As much as this team requires an infusion of talent and leadership – manager, coaching staff, catcher, shortstop, and the outfield come to mind – more than anything else this team needs a heart transplant. Hopefully they’ll identify a core group of young players who can begin the transition to the next generation of Red Sox who will play tough and hungry, get dirty, and show that they at least care.

Exit question of the day: this headline is supposed to make a Red Sox fan feel good?