Are The Red Sox On A 'Treadmill To Oblivion'?

The great old-time radio personality, Fred Allen, coined the term "Treadmill To Oblivion" for the title of his autobiography. Could it also be the catch-phrase for the lumbering decline of the Boston Red Sox franchise? Let's face it, did you know your starting center-fielder (Jason Repko) even existed before February 1st? The haughty days of two World Championships in four years seem a distant memory now. With the third-highest payroll in baseball, there sure seem to be a lot of Quadruple A ballplayers on this roster. But, is this the inevitable fall from grace brought on by great success—as suggested by ESPN's Howard Bryant? We think not.

A lot of the current troubles were brought on by management itself. Their seeming detachment as the 2011 squad imploded in September, the bumbling nature of the Tito firing, the overly long search for his replacement, the mixed signals to new GM Ben Cherington and the clear "new normal" of avoiding luxury tax thresholds at all costs. But this isn't fate or destiny at work—these are all controllable missteps by what used to be a savvy ownership group. They now seem addled, fixated on soccer and race cars, and oblivious to the simmering revolt among the fan base that will likely end their sellout streak this year. They can fix this malaise, but they have to become more focused on baseball.