McAdam On Gresh & Zo: Red Sox Fan Interest Won't Wane During Youth Movement
BOSTON (CBS) - The fear of any struggling team from the organization's perspective is dissipating fan interest as the club goes further south.
The Red Sox designated A.J. Pierzynski for assignment, are reportedly in talks to deal pitcher Jake Peavy, and recent comments by the manager and general manager indicate that preparation for 2015 has already begun.
The youth movement is in full swing in Boston, but according to CSNNE's Sean McAdam and 98.5 The Sports Hub's Gresh & Zolak show, that doesn't mean the fans will lose interest.
In fact, just the opposite. They believe the Fenway Faithful wants to see what the kids can do. Look no further than what happened on Wednesday night when the Red Sox beat the White Sox 5-4 with five rookies in the starting lineup.
"There was an energy in the ballpark that you haven't felt in a while. I mean people have been so desperate for something to root for. The number of shutouts, the number of low-scoring games, the number of times they lost one-run games -- it really had a different feel to it," said McAdam.
While Brock Holt, Mookie Betts and others have already made strong impressions, McAdam was particularly impressed last night with catcher Christian Vazquez. In his major league debut, the 23-year old reined in a throw from Mookie Betts to throw out Dayan Viciedo at second base who was trying to advance on the throw.
"David Ross has a pretty good throwing arm for a catcher . . . Christian Vazquez blows him away. There have been comparisons made -- and these are premature obviously for a guy who's played one big league game -- but there are people who say in build, and heritage, and maybe arm-strength, this guy reminds them of [Ivan] Rodriguez."
While the Red Sox will likely be out of contention in September, Gresh said playing the rookies could give fans something to watch.
"If it's a bunch of veterans and they are in September, and they are all playing, you can pack it in," said Gresh. "I think you've got a chance to at least keep people semi-engaged and you can start to follow these young kids and really get into it."
Listen below for McAdam's thoughts on the Red Sox youth movement, Christian Vazquez, and more:
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