- 1 year ago
'04 WS Champ Red Sox legend Kevin Millar joins! What does Millar think of the sox struggles? Biggest issue?
Millar: (name on the front) "more important than the name on the back"
Millar: (name on the front) "more important than the name on the back"
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00:00We had some pretty legit regular weekly guests on the old WAAF show,
00:07whether it was Bubz Edelman or Matt Light or Adam Oates or Theo Epstein.
00:16I will say that our next guest was probably the best during the season or two that he did it.
00:23Joining us now, the great Kevin Millar.
00:26Kevin Millar, good morning.
00:28Boy, the great, that was too nice.
00:31I've never been called the great.
00:33That was Manny and David.
00:34They were great.
00:35How are you doing?
00:36I was just like the guy in the corner with the bad body, shaped like a pear.
00:40How are you?
00:42I'm doing good, man.
00:44I'll tell you one thing.
00:44It's early here in Texas.
00:47We're outside of Boston here, and I'm like, yeah, yeah, yeah, 7.20 Eastern time.
00:52I forgot about that part of it.
00:54So this is 6.20 Texas time, which they call central time.
00:58I get confused.
00:58I say snake time when I'm doing the show.
01:00Well, we appreciate you getting up early to come on, and currently you've been talking about it.
01:09I've seen you here and there talking about it.
01:11This Red Sox team is a disaster.
01:17Yeah, it's tough, right?
01:19Because let's be honest.
01:20They haven't won a whole lot of games the last few years, and you kind of felt this year coming in.
01:24Garrett Crochet is way better than everybody thought, right?
01:26Big boy.
01:27Looks the part.
01:29Great guy.
01:29Obviously, a late Alex Bregman sign probably got a little confusing for Rafi Devers, you know, who knows how that's handled.
01:36You're okay to get your feelings hurt.
01:38You're okay to kind of like, what happened?
01:40And it came late.
01:42But, you know, you go through the whole process of then Tristan Kostas goes down.
01:46Now everybody's looking at Devers to go give him a glove, and then he's not exactly proactive on that.
01:51And now there's like, I guess the whole situation is that we handle a lot of stuff inside, behind the scenes, right?
01:59We dealt with Manny's stuff, right?
02:01There was a series he didn't show up for the Yankees.
02:03I mean, lock in on that for a second.
02:06He didn't come to the game.
02:08So this is way bigger than not, oh, well, you know, Rafi doesn't want to play defense or whatever the situation might be.
02:15So we've dealt with this stuff.
02:16But a lot of that's done eyeball-to-eyeball, man-to-man.
02:19I'm sorry.
02:20There's too much Tickle Bunny going around here now.
02:22Everybody wants to play Tickle Bunny, and they fear the contracts, and Ulrich walks around on pins and needles.
02:28I'm sorry.
02:29I run a ship different.
02:31It's man-to-man, eyeball-to-eyeball.
02:33We got all – who goes up to anybody and says, hey, dude, will you go play X, Y, Z?
02:39When, by the way, you're guaranteed money, and I'm not throwing all this on Rafi.
02:44Let's be honest.
02:45Without him in that lineup, who knows how many wins they would have.
02:48So the point to this whole equation is this is a team.
02:54That name on the front is a hell of a lot more important than the name on the back.
02:57Trust me.
02:58And then when everybody's going to be done, Cal Ripken retired, Mark McGuire retired, Sammy Sosa retired, 98.
03:04You would have thought if they retired, the game was over.
03:07But trust me, you will be our age.
03:09You'll be at the game.
03:10You'll be walking around.
03:11The only thing you have is that integrity to say, hey, dude, this guy was a good teammate or that was a good dude or whatever that is.
03:18And so I just think that needs to be handled internally.
03:20There needs to be dudes to step up, whatever that situation might be.
03:23I'm not on this team.
03:24I'm just talking about it from an outsider.
03:26I come around the guys.
03:27I like the guys.
03:28And you know as well as I know.
03:30I mean, Rafi Devers is one of the nicest – I want to say kids because he's still a kid.
03:35So teach them.
03:37So teach whoever whatever we need to do.
03:39We can't win run-run games.
03:40I mean, of course, of their days.
03:41They're on – is it a manager thing?
03:43Whatever it is, just shave your head.
03:46Shave your head.
03:47Pull your pants up.
03:48Don't know batting gloves.
03:49And let's go.
03:51Is that Alex Cora's fault?
03:54Has Alex Cora mismanaged that particular relationship and that whole scenario?
04:00No, I don't think Alex Cora's fault.
04:04I don't know.
04:05There's not a fault there.
04:06It's like what – as a field manager, you're only given what – you know, you only got so much – you don't have the checkbook.
04:13So he's got a lot of young guys.
04:14You go through a couple injuries.
04:16The Braves are going through it right now.
04:17You're going to blame Snicker on the Braves.
04:19You know, they lose everybody and they're sitting down here and they start off 0-7.
04:22You're like, well, what happens?
04:24But at some point, you've seen teams get hot too now.
04:26You know, the Minnesota Twins, they look like they were out and out and out.
04:31Well, then they go up and reel off whatever it was, 12 in a row.
04:34The Cardinals out of nowhere.
04:35Now it's the Brewers out of nowhere.
04:37So it's time for the Red Sox to come out of nowhere, right?
04:40It's just – I think everybody's been waiting for that.
04:42And Bregman's injury, let's be honest, that hurts.
04:45Yeah.
04:45Because that sign was wonderful for this team.
04:47He's a ball player.
04:48He's a winner.
04:49He's tough.
04:50You know, former LSU shortstop to play everywhere.
04:53No one knew where he was going to play when he came in.
04:54Comes right in, but he helps guys.
04:57He's smart.
04:58So that hurts.
04:59So now we've got to sit here and everybody's sitting here, you know,
05:01let's bring up all the young guys and Meyer and Roman Anthony.
05:05We're still talking young guys.
05:07And they're great players, you know?
05:09Kristen Campbell's going to be a great player.
05:11Gets off to a great start.
05:12Everybody thinks he's going to hit 330, right?
05:14Then he goes through his little stuff.
05:16It's the big leagues.
05:17So I don't know whose fault it is, but I know one thing.
05:20We went through it.
05:22Every team goes through it.
05:23There is a boys' club factor behind the scenes, fisheye to fisheye.
05:27And what I mean by that is eye contact to eye contact.
05:29And somebody's got to look somebody in the eye.
05:31And it's uncomfortable at times.
05:33It's okay.
05:35But sometimes we walk around on pins and needles too much.
05:39And no one wants to talk about anything that's uncomfortable.
05:41We're like the elephant in the room.
05:43And that's the way, I mean, like I told you, I wasn't a very good player.
05:46But at some point, you've got to lead.
05:48And whoever that is, somebody's got to lead.
05:51But, Kevin, you're from a different era of baseball where maybe that happened.
05:57You could handle players differently.
05:59I feel like this era of younger athletes or that play.
06:03Well, it's the same with you when you played in the NFL.
06:05It was the exact same thing.
06:06But I understand that I'm from that era and things can't get done that way.
06:11And I think, like, Kevin wants it to be done that way.
06:14I put this on Alex Cora as a guy who is the manager of these egos,
06:20has to sit down way before the season with a superstar
06:24and get him to understand, here's what we're doing with Bregman
06:27and here's the role we want you to play.
06:29Yes, it's an organization.
06:33For that situation, 1,000%.
06:35What's the number one thing in a relationship?
06:37You can be married, a girlfriend.
06:38Communication, right?
06:39It's not that hard.
06:41Why is everybody scared to communicate, whether it's the truth?
06:44I used to go in the field and Terry Franco's office.
06:46Why are you taking me out for defense in the seventh inning?
06:50Hey, I could walk out of that meeting mad and not getting what I want to hear.
06:55But man to man, they tell me, dude, because you're not as good defensively
06:57at this point in the game, blah, blah, blah.
06:59They give me the reason I walk out like a man.
07:01But you say this era, why has it changed?
07:05When did we get softer than the hummus?
07:08Was it because of devices?
07:10No, because of-
07:11Because everybody, you walk in a locker room now
07:13and everybody's trying to get many likes on Instagram
07:15and, hey, dude, go get good at baseball.
07:17You're going to be famous.
07:18Everyone wants to be famous before they're good.
07:19We know these guys before they even put up numbers.
07:23So why has it changed?
07:24Because, Kevin, I think you just said it.
07:26It's the lack of honesty.
07:27These managers, coaches, front office people,
07:31they're not honest with some players in today's game.
07:35Just like they said, hey, you weren't good enough to play the field.
07:37When I was coming up in football, it was Parcells and Belichick.
07:41They were honest.
07:42And I don't think that a lot of these front office people
07:44or even managers are honest to these athletes at times.
07:47I think Al's core is great.
07:50I'm going to tell you that right now.
07:51I've showered with Al's core.
07:52I've played with Al's core.
07:53He's a great baseball man.
07:55I think your hands get tied this day and age as a manager.
07:58I don't think, unless you walk in his shoes,
08:00no one can seriously say this on Al's core.
08:02What's on Al's core?
08:03Because Rafi Devers is the one who played first base?
08:05Is that what we're saying?
08:06Or is it because that Giolito gave up, you know,
08:08six runs yesterday in the first inning?
08:11So that's why it's easy to say that it's on Al's core.
08:15It's not on Al's core.
08:16This is a bigger deal.
08:18To me, it's a player thing.
08:22It's a player thing.
08:23No.
08:24You can't go up.
08:24Why is it up to Al's to go up to?
08:26What about you going up to him?
08:28You think Manny Ramirez,
08:29you think Terry Francona chased Manny Ramirez down to the four seasons
08:32when he didn't show up?
08:33No, dude.
08:34Trot Nixon wanted to eat his face off.
08:38You know what I'm saying?
08:39Lou Merloni was talking about,
08:42when you talk about this generation of players,
08:45he was saying yesterday that these guys are no longer sat in the minors
08:51when they make a mistake, and so they don't learn a lesson.
08:56Do you feel like the way players are brought up is differently?
09:01I feel, yes.
09:03Everything you're saying is true, but I think everybody's catered to.
09:06There's so much, and I don't know if the power has gone so far on the other side,
09:14the analytical side, that everybody walks around like robots.
09:17There's no more eye test.
09:19There's no more like, dude.
09:21Like, guys, we shaved our heads.
09:23We were down 0-2 to the, this is an 0-3, to the A's, right?
09:30We shaved our heads.
09:30Steele Epstein shaved his head.
09:32He had no choice.
09:33I had the Clippers.
09:34Woom!
09:35Dirty little.
09:36Woom!
09:37That was, that's what you did.
09:39It wasn't because we did for looks.
09:41We all looked like a bunch of sperms on the plate.
09:46Kevin, the Devers situation aside, is Alex Cora,
09:50because all we hear is that he's a great players manager.
09:53I've never been in, on a MLB team.
09:55I've never been inside of a clubhouse.
09:57How much of a message between Alex Cora and the players, like, what is that relationship like?
10:03How much does he actually control out there on the field?
10:05Is it more on the players that they're losing these games by one run, or is it on Alex Cora?
10:11Well, I think we, as players, and I always say this when I was a player, it's my job.
10:16If I played bad, that's not Terry Francona's job, right?
10:19The accountability is a huge word.
10:21Look in the mirror when you brush your teeth.
10:23Don't look down when you brush your teeth.
10:25I think there's some insecurities around.
10:28I think everybody's worried about losing their job.
10:31I think we lose the sight on this is the show.
10:34This is the big leagues.
10:35Have as much fun as you can.
10:37Bust your butt.
10:38Play like Jared O'Ran does.
10:40Respect 90 feet.
10:42So those things are players' situations.
10:45Alex is there just to check the lineup.
10:48You've got a bench coach.
10:49You've got Vasquez.
10:50You've got a pitching coach.
10:51But honest to God, like, I always joked around with Terry, keep him out of the game.
10:57We have a chance to win the game.
10:59What X's and O's does a manager really bring in the game?
11:03Baseball until the 7th, 8th, and 9th, which are bullpen, maybe bring in this guy.
11:07But once again, if he throws an 0-2 curveball and someone puts it over the monster, whose fault is that?
11:13It's the pitcher's fault for not executing an 0-2 pitch.
11:18So I just think sometimes we get heat.
11:20And I get it.
11:21If you lose the clubhouses at Mandra, that's different.
11:24I've been on teams.
11:25We lost clubhouses.
11:26That Mandra's got to go.
11:28This is bigger than Al's core, guys.
11:30I don't know what it is.
11:30I don't know who it is.
11:32And it's not all Rafi Devers either.
11:33He doesn't get all the heat.
11:34I just think it's bigger.
11:36And I don't know what.
11:36Kevin, I would love your thoughts on the ways in which this organization is now run, relying almost exclusively on the analytics.
11:46So you mentioned Crochet.
11:48A couple weeks ago, the Sox had a must-win game.
11:52Their bullpen was totally and completely taxed.
11:55And they took Crochet out after 85 pitches because Craig Breslow's equation said that he couldn't pitch more than 85 pitches that night.
12:04Where do you stand on that?
12:05And do you think that the manager should have a bigger role to have a feel in the game as opposed to relying on numbers?
12:12Yeah, yeah.
12:13I'm not a big fan of any of that stuff.
12:14So give me information.
12:16I want information.
12:18Thank you very much.
12:19And then I'm going to make my moves the way my eyes tell me.
12:23Gut feeling is part of this game.
12:25Eyeballs are everything in this game.
12:28Dudes, gamers, all of those lingos that we've heard are all part of this game.
12:35Right?
12:35Going out and having cocktails after a game and talking the game is part of this game.
12:40Unfortunately, now it's different.
12:42Right?
12:42We have go up to your hotel room and order chicken fingers and play video games.
12:47That's now the game.
12:48I don't know.
12:49I played like 20 years ago.
12:52It feels like it was five.
12:53I love the game.
12:54I'm still in the game.
12:55I work for Major League Baseball.
12:56This is the game that I only know.
13:00This analytics stuff, equations, the way they talk, doesn't even make sense to me.
13:05We're not robots.
13:07Baseball is dig in.
13:08Grab your privates.
13:09Look that guy in the eye on the mound.
13:11You're facing Roger Clemens.
13:12He's six foot five.
13:14He's got seven Cy Youngs.
13:15And I'm undrafted.
13:17What in the hell am I doing in the batter's box unless I create to my head that it's a freaking attitude?
13:23It's me versus you, pimp.
13:24And let's roll.
13:25That's all it is.
13:27It's a mindset.
13:28It's not like, oh, my God, Kevin can't run.
13:30He can't throw.
13:31He can't field.
13:31He can't hit.
13:32He's undrafted.
13:33And he signed from the St. Paul Saints.
13:35You know what?
13:35Twelve years later, there's a ring.
13:36Next question.
13:39Okay, big time.
13:40The 0-4 team, Kevin, was the definition of everything that you couldn't quantify getting you to a championship.
13:47They were actually having the cocktails before the game sometimes.
13:51I mean, why not?
13:52When in Rome.
13:53Whatever it takes, right?
13:55Like, that's how you have to start that culture in camp.
13:59And that's why you've got to sign dudes in the Boston area that are dudes.
14:04There's makeup.
14:04I'm sorry.
14:05Is that in the analytics?
14:08This guy's makeup is, I mean, yeah.
14:10But, like, there's too much.
14:11I mean, I just think there's too much.
14:13It's going to come back to the, you start seeing Bochy's back in the game.
14:16They win the World Series in 2022.
14:18He gets, you know, brings in Brett Boone, a guy that, you know, I just, I'm a baseball player.
14:23You know, I remember, you know, they actually were.
14:25I was in town when I was there.
14:26And, you know, Jock Peterson was hitting, like, 050.
14:29And Boone's like, what are you doing, dude?
14:31Are you going to, are you ready to be Jock Peterson?
14:32And he started, well, you know, I mean, you know, this, this, that, and this, that.
14:36Stop.
14:36Just go hit.
14:37I think Jock got a couple hits that day.
14:39And, you know, whatever.
14:40But it's got to come back.
14:42That needle's got to come back at some point.
14:44Or we're just sitting here, you know, managing some robots.
14:47It's like, oh, well, he can't face lefties.
14:49He can't face righties.
14:50He can't face lefties.
14:51And, okay, 85 pitches it is.
14:55Speaking of that 2004 team, you're doing an event where that team will be celebrated.
15:02It is a 2004 Boston Red Sox world champions cruise with you and the guys here in Boston, correct?
15:12Correct.
15:13City cruises, it's an experience.
15:15A buddy of mine, Mike Flasky, ran a bunch of these celebrity golf events.
15:19Now he's working with a hornblower.
15:20Came up with this idea.
15:21I'm like, I love experiences, right?
15:23It's like going to a concert.
15:24You get on stage, that's an experience.
15:25Or a little acoustic show, that's an experience.
15:27You get on the field for the batting practice, that's an experience.
15:30So this is going to be fun.
15:31And we're going to have Derek Lowe in Orlando Cabrera, Father's Day, telling stories, cozy,
15:37a couple hours around the harbor, a couple cocktails, and just, you know, have fun, man.
15:41So the experience part of it, I said, yes, I'm in.
15:43And City Cruise has done such a great job of putting this thing together, and this will be the first one.
15:48So if it stinks, I apologize to everybody.
15:50It's going to be awesome.
15:51And we're going to get a mic and have some fun.
15:54And if Derek Lowe has some cocktails, his shirt might end up off.
15:57You know, you never know.
15:59I am just fascinated, Kevin.
16:01The story that you just said about Manny.
16:02What's the craziest Manny story that maybe the audience doesn't know?
16:06Is this after dark now?
16:12Are we at four in the morning?
16:13Now, listen, Manny Ramirez, real quick, though, he was a genius in that box.
16:21There were times we landed in Seattle, and he didn't know where we were.
16:24You could say Pittsburgh, or you could say Seattle.
16:26That's okay.
16:27But I'll tell you one thing.
16:28He would watch the bullpen arms in the video room, I'm trying to say, because the starters would always be on the TV.
16:39He always knew what they had.
16:40If CeCe Sabanthi was pitching, he knew what he had.
16:42But he was so fascinating because he would watch the seventh, eighth, and ninth guys face, you know, similar right-handed hitters.
16:50And it was remarkable.
16:51But I know that's not the story you wanted to hear.
16:53You'd rather hear something like that was weird.
16:55But I'm just telling you, Manny Ramirez was one of the smartest.
16:59You don't drive in 160 runs in this game without being educated in that batter's box.
17:04A great, great, great teammate back then as far as hitting, teaching, talking, and understanding.
17:12And make David Ortiz a Hall of Famer.
17:13Think about it.
17:14David was non-tendered.
17:15I was non-tendered.
17:16Me and David followed Manny around everywhere he went.
17:19David went to a Hall of Fame, and here I am with a headset on, still talking baseball, yelling up at people.
17:24Yeah, Manny, my favorite player.
17:26Kevin, question for me.
17:27You said you work for Major League Baseball.
17:29I was very upset about the Pete Rose situation when Manfred came out and said he's going to lift the suspension after his death.
17:40You know, I was always a fan of Pete Rose and thought he should have been in the Hall of Fame, especially when he got into his 80s and he was still alive.
17:47How do you feel about that situation?
17:49Should he have been able to be in the Hall of Fame when he was alive with us?
17:56A thousand percent.
17:58This guy, everybody wanted to be Pete Rose.
18:00He has his own slide, for Christ's sakes.
18:03Your dad, my dad, everybody's grandpa.
18:05It doesn't matter.
18:06Pete Rose was a name.
18:074,200 hits over that.
18:09Most hits in baseball.
18:10I always said the Hall of Fame's a museum, man.
18:12It really is.
18:12It's a museum.
18:13You want to take your kids there.
18:14Pete Rose has to be in the Hall of Fame.
18:16What he did, got it.
18:17I get it.
18:18I mean, people do time, commit crimes, and do time, and they're out.
18:22This guy, whatever it was, and I know the commissioner was on his side, but sometimes there's a lot more to it than you and I know, what goes on, what's going on.
18:32But at the end of the day, man, I was happy that it's happened.
18:35And it's sad that he wasn't alive to see it because Pete Rose was – if you've been around Pete Rose, you knew Pete Rose, there's some – let me just be honest.
18:44He knew he was a gangster, and it was awesome to hear him talk because I remember we did a signing in Cooperstown one time.
18:50It was me and Mike Law with the Marlins who were playing that game, and his line was all the way around the building.
18:54I think we had two people.
18:56People didn't even know who the Marlins were.
18:58He's like, hey, man, Kevin, how many hits you get last year?
19:00I'm like, I don't know, 140, 50, I have no idea.
19:02He's like, yeah, you're only about 4,000 behind me.
19:06I'm like, yes.
19:08Well, listen, it's great to hear your voice, and I appreciate you taking the time.
19:13And June 15th is the cruise, and Curtis, you've got to be there.
19:17Savant to Savant.
19:18Oh, I can't wait.
19:192004.
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