Is Sam Kennedy telling the truth when he says the Red Sox aren’t considering firing Craig Breslow?

On The Greg Hill Show on June 11, I believe that my favorite truth-twister, Sam Kennedy, actually treated us to more truth than lies. I’ll supply the quotes in question, then let’s render a verdict.

Quote #1

“I think it’s important here at the outset, Greg, just to acknowledge…how embarrassing and unacceptable, maddening, frustrating, whatever words you want to use, the past two and a half months have been. There’s no way to sugarcoat it.”

Advertisement

Verdict: TRUTH

Of course it’s the truth! We know this deep in our bones. He went on to describe the season to date as “awful” and “incredibly frustrating” and there’s not much else to add.

Quote #2

“But look, let’s be honest, unless things change dramatically, we may have to pivot here from what our initial planning was [regarding plans to buy at the trade deadline].”

Verdict: TRUTH

The Sox are performing far too poorly not to at least introduce this option as a possibility. It might be rephrased as “Positioning the organization for the future,” “Stating the obvious,” or even “Not throwing good money after bad.”

Personal note to the front office: unlike past years, choose one lane and stay in it. No more simultaneous Buying and Selling so we can call it a wash. Go all in.

Advertisement

Quote #3

“[Craig Breslow] is working as hard as anybody in terms of getting things back on track.”

Verdict: TRUTH

No one ever accused Breslow of not being a hard worker. I have no doubt that he’s working overtime to prove that his method of team building works, that his approach deserved to win out over Cora’s—and to save his job.

Quote #4

“Look, I fully understand and appreciate questions regarding Craig Breslow and his job security and all that, but the issue of a change there, just to be clear, that’s not even on the table.”

Verdict: LIE

Maybe Sam Kennedy had his fingers crossed behind his back where no one could see them as he said this. Maybe in his head, he silently added “today” or “not this week, anyway” at the end of the sentence.

There’s a lot of chatter lately about Breslow’s job security, which is why Kennedy has been forced to make statements like these. Most of what I’m seeing and hearing says that FSG won’t fire Craig Breslow because the organization doesn’t want to be seen as “unstable” after so recently firing Alex Cora and six coaches. The argument goes like this: they hoped that firing the coaches might work, but it didn’t, so they want to give Breslow time to do things on his terms. Not honoring this gentleman’s agreement would make them look like an even bigger dumpster fire, the story goes.

Advertisement

I don’t think Breslow is safe, and I don’t think Kennedy thinks he’s safe. That’s not how FSG operates in a crisis. The organization likes to lean into data, process, and finances, rather than individual loyalty.

I’m not going to look in John Henry’s wallet and discuss finances today, but as far as the rest, that’s not what I see when I look at FSG through the years. The organization has ruthlessly made changes at or near the top, no matter the optics.

• Firing Brendan Rodgers as manager of Liverpool F.C. in October 2015, a little over year after Liverpool finished in second and Rodgers received a four-year contract.

• Firing Dave Dombrowski in September 2019, less than a year after Dombrowski created the team that brought home a World Series trophy and landed in the record books.

• Firing Chaim Bloom in 2023, though it wasn’t exactly shocking after consecutive last-place finishes.

• Firing Alex Cora and six of his coaching staff in April 2026. No need to rehash that again right now, but in terms of optics it was spectacularly messy. The season was still young, the terminations happened after a blowout victory, and Red Sox legend Jason Varitek was part of the purge.

That doesn’t look like an ownership that’s particularly mindful of stability or optics.

Speaking of optics, John Henry has earned a reputation as not caring about the fans. Despite not engaging much with the media, or having a steady presence around the team, as some owners do, I tend to disagree. I think he does care what fans think, desperately, even if it’s not in ways that we can always appreciate. Just for fun, my pop psychologizing is torn between turning the lens on Henry (even though he’s been at the pinnacle of success for years, he still brings that try-hard energy in ways that can be kind of cringey) and turning it on ourselves (the cold father figure can be super distant and has a hard time showing affection, but he often comes through in the end when he realizes what a shit he’s been). It’s clear he’s aware of what fans think, and I do think that will influence some of the decision making when it comes to Breslow’s eventual exit.

Advertisement

Remember that widely shared Instagram story from February 2025, of good ol’ John Henry smoking a congratulatory cigar all by himself?