Ian O’Connor for ESPN New York:
> Only the easiest available target, Valentine, shouldn’t be fired for failing to reach the postseason with a team that has been a physical wreck all year, a team that still suffers from the self-inflicted psychological wounds of 2011. In fact, it would be an injustice if Boston doesn’t give Valentine a second season, or at least the first three months of a second season, to tweak his approach and program in an attempt to stanch the internal bleeding.
> “I’ve done a lot of work; I couldn’t do any more,” Valentine said in a private moment outside his clubhouse. “I don’t think I could’ve worked any harder. I probably could’ve done some things differently, I guess, but I don’t know what they are. I’ll appraise it and I’ll look back on it.”
I see Mr. O’Connor’s argument, but I do not agree[^note]. Let Bobby Valentine be the guy who followed the World Series winning manager that no one will remember and start the search for the guy who can bring the Red Sox their next title.
[^note]: I am not alone. Even Mr. Valentine himself agrees [he is not doing a good job](http://blogs.providencejournal.com/sports/red-sox/2012/08/valentine-im-not-doing-a-good-job.html).