In a SHOCKING turn of events, the Red Sox have RELEASED Doug Mirabelli. He was put on waivers and shown the door like any other run of the mill, overweight, .190 hitting, police escort taking, back-up catching loser...But he wasn't some loser. He was the Belli. He was Wake's battery mate. He was one of us.
A fat slob who welcomed legends of eggplant parm. A gritty backstop who could catch a knuckleball that made lesser men retire in fright. This was a man who could catch a phone book, rip it in half and then smack it high, far, and deep into the night sky (only to watch it be caught shy of the warning track).
And do not go accusing me of unwavering fandom. I know this Goliath of a man was not without his faults. He was "Molina-esque" in land speed. His lumbering around the basepaths caused much hilarity for local fans and fear for local seismologists. Also, sadly, his hitting had started to decline. In fact, it went from" awful" to "below Mendoza-line measurements" with little hope of return. Even his streaky power has dropped off... but the ravages of time will claim us all won't they?
So now we must turn our eyes to Kevin Cash? Is this anything but a lateral move? Cash isn't much faster or younger or even much of a hitter... and his talents as a knuckleball fetcher does remain to be seen. So if all he brings to the table is "change"...is the value worth the loss?
Only time (and Wakefield's ERA) will tell.
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