Johnny Damon was never going to be on the Red Sox. That realization did not come in August of 2010, but probably some time in late 2005 when he left Boston to join forces with their hated rivals, the New York Yankees.
Much like Chris Chelios before him, Damon quickly realized how much rabid fans can impact someone’s feelings about a city. When Damon speaks highly of Detroit, it’s not some love affair with a city on its namesake river. It’s about how it is not the one with the Northeastern harbor.
Fans and the media need to look at this situation and separate the emotion from the business aspect of sports. Damon specifically highlighted during this process that he would have immediately jumped at going to New York or Tampa. His contract would not have changed in switching teams, at this point in the season it’s solely about winning. I can’t imagine that getting occasional playing time for a .500 ball club would even compare to that of a playoff team, but the waiver wire (and the Red Sox) has spoken.
Boston’s grandstanding from the media to the management has demonstrated why Damon’s final decision was the right one. Dan Shaughnessy is rightfully not the most appreciated Red Sox fan/columnist/blogger, and seemingly has to resort to slanderous statements about cities to draw some attention.
We all understand that Detroit has seen better times, but apparently Shaughnessy has only lived and seen the most posh locations in Boston. He would not understand why anybody would choose a team over the Red Sox. We’ve seen his act before and he needs to recognize that baseball is a business and Boston is not the most coveted city in the world.