Red Sox Players Lost Right to Grumble Over Valentine Hiring in September

Boston Red Sox players have reacted to the hiring of Bobby Valentine as manager by "grumbling to each other, through texts and phone calls," according to ESPN.com, citing a clubhouse source.

The source also told ESPN when Valentine was just a candidate for the opening that the Red Sox are "going to have a mess on their hands," if in fact the former New York Mets skipper got hired.

Time will determine whether this situation gets messy or not. My question is, how can a group of players--some of whom reportedly consumed beer and fried chicken during games--who blew a nine-game lead in the wild card standings in September complain about Valentine's hiring?

This team lost the right to make such complaints when it suffered an epic meltdown that culminated with the Tampa Bay Rays moving on to the postseason as AL wild card champions minutes after Boston was stunned by the Baltimore Orioles 4-3 at Camdem Yards on the 2011 season's final day.

Former Red Sox manager Terry Francona is considered a "players' manager," while Valentine is an in-your-face type who holds his players accountable. Hence the alleged "grumbling" within a group that could have used some accountability in September, during which Boston went 7-20.

Gone after that disastrous ending in Baltimore are Francona, general manager Theo Epstein (now president of baseball operations for the Chicago Cubs) and closer Jonathan Papelbon, who was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies--but not before serving up the walk-off single to Orioles second baseman Robert Andino that sealed the Sox's fate.

Valentine will be tasked with changing the parts of a clubhouse culture which compromised his team's chances of qualifying for the playoffs this year. He's already being met with resistance. Unfortunately for those who plan to oppose Valentine's authority, they lost their leverage once that nine-game cushion Boston enjoyed in early September didn't yield a trip to October baseball.