1 Happy St

I am going to give you a quick Q and A between the CEO of a Major League Baseball team and the host of a local radio show. I'm gonna modify one of the details from his answer and I want to see if you can guess which team he's the CEO for.
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Q. What are the implications of the new ballparks in New York?

A. Gigantic revenue increases for the New York Yankees, who are particularly the ones that impact us. We’ve got to continue to find new revenue sources in order to keep up. We refer to [our ballpark] as the ‘Little Engine That Could.’ Well, the Yankees are building a gigantic bullet train. We’ve got to remember that we are in a competitive division and part of a special rivalry. We’ve got to generate the revenues we need to keep pace, as best we can, with a Goliath.
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Okay, give up? Which team's CEO could possibly be complaining about the Yankees and their never-ending stream of revenue?

Why, it's Red Sox CEO Larry Lucchino. The CEO of those pesky DEFENDING CHAMPIONS. The CEO of the team that has sold out Fenway Park every game since May of 2003. The team that 2 years ago paid over $50 million JUST TO BID ON A PLAYER. The team with a $133 million annual payroll. The team that charges $325 PER SEAT for their best ticket.

Yeah, sometimes it's tough to be the little guy.

Joe Crede: .261, 15 HR, 47 BI, 17 errors
Jason Varitek: .218, 7 HR, 27 RBI

These two guys were the two obvious head-scratchers when the American League All-Star team was announced yesterday. While both guys have certainly been worthy in previous seasons, each of them is having an off year this year.

Joe Crede started the season strong offensively, but has seen his defense decline rapidly, already committing a career high 17 errors at third base.

Jason Varitek, hitting a meager .218, should be nowhere near Yankee Stadium next Tuesday. Both Varitek and Crede were voted onto the team by the players.

Besides wasting two roster spots that should be used for more worthy players, what else do these players have in common?

• Both of them are free agents after this season.
• Both of them are clients of super-agent Scott Boras.

Is Scott Boras gaming the system by having his clients cast All-Star votes for Crede and Varitek to help them secure more lucrative deals in the upcoming off-season?

(h/t Daryl)