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About Alex Speier

Before he joined WEEI.com, Alex covered the Boston Red Sox for several New England and national publications, including the New Hampshire Union Leader, Boston Metro, Boston Herald and Baseball America. Alex graduated from Harvard, where he served as the captain of the debate team, an experience that has been of surprisingly little use in pressboxes across the country.

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MOST RECENT COLUMNS
For the Sox, Hermida a Lottery Ticket Worth Playing
11/06/09 02:41 EST
To the Marlins, Jeremy Hermida’s 2009 disappointment rendered the outfielder an unaffordable luxury. To the Red Sox, Jeremy Hermida’s not-so-distant past meant that the outfielder represented an affordable lottery ticket with at least a chance to offer a tidy jackpot. The 11th overall pick of the 2002 draft had stardom written all over his amateur and minor league careers. He showed an advanced approach at the plate, a precocious ability to control the strike zone and the potential for significant power. Then, in 2007, he showed every indication that he could translate all of those traits to the major league level. As a 23-year-old, he won an everyday job with the Marlins by hitting .296 with a .369 OBP, .501 slugging mark, .870 OPS and 18 homers after a mid-May call-up. To put those numbers in context, one need only look at the superstar-laden list of the 11 outfielders this decade with an OBP of at least .350 and an OPS of .800 or better by the time they turned 23
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Ranking the Champions: Who Was the Best World Series Winner of the Decade?
11/05/09 05:17 EST
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Thus ends baseball’s first decade of the 21st century. It was a decade that featured several great teams, but few great World Series. The Yankees hoisted the first and final championship trophies of the period from 2000-09. For most, they established themselves as the “team of the decade” thanks to two championships, two additional pennants, and nine playoff appearances in the 10-year stretch. Both of the Yankees’ triumphs featured little more than the glimmer of drama. That was true for most of the World Series in the decade. There were some great storylines that impacted not just a year but generations, most notably the titles for the 2004 Red Sox and the 2005 championship for the White Sox. But aside from a mesmerizing Fall Classic in 2001 when the Diamondbacks beat New York and, arguably, the Marlins’ shocking upset over the Yankees in 2003, few World Series were long enough and dramatic enough to stand out as truly great. Nonetheless, that
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The Red Sox' Effect On The World Series
11/03/09 07:40 EST
For the first time since 2003, the World Series is competitive. It has been six years since the Series went at least six games. The storylines in recent years have been given little time to develop. Recent Octobers have been dominated by tradition-rich franchises claiming their first titles in ages, starting with the Red Sox in ’04 (ending an 86-year drought), and followed by the White Sox (88 years), Cardinals (24 years), Red Sox and Phillies (28 years). But the great and memorable tension of the season’s most important games was missing. The series proved too lopsided to make the details truly engrossing. Now, for the first time since Josh Beckett, then with the Marlins, took the Yankee Stadium mound on three days' rest in Game 6 of the 2003 World Series and shoved the ball down the Yankees’ throats, this year’s World Series is offering the sort of drama to engage every baseball fan, regardless of his or her allegiance. The Yankees’ decision
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Long Journey for Francona and Mills Finally Reaches Its Destination
10/28/09 07:41 EST
When they were introduced more than 30 years ago, no one ever expected that Brad Mills and Terry Francona both one day would become major league managers. The reason was simple. Around the time that the two were paired at the University of Arizona in 1978, when Mills transferred to the school from junior college, no one figured Francona to be the managerial type. He was a mischief-maker who is remembered by virtually all of his former teammates with the same word: “carefree.” Francona was the one whose company teammates would seek when they were trying to break curfew. Mills — named the manager of the Astros on Tuesday, the culmination of a coaching career that included him managing 11 years in the minors and serving on big-league coaching staffs, most recently as Red Sox bench coach since 2004 — was another story. “I think it was inevitable in my mind [that Mills became a manager],” said Jerry Kindall, who coached both Francona and Mills
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Audio & Video on Demand

  • +Red Sox
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    Peter Gammons

    Peter Gammons joins The Big Show to discuss the Yankees 27th world championship and the offseason moves for the Red Sox.

    Buster Olney, ESPN

    Buster talked about the payrolls in MLB, the money issue becoming a major issue in the game, if Mark Teixeira would have given the Sox the edge over the Yankees if they had signed him this past offseason, what the Yankees will do with Matsui and Damon, and what he would do if he was the GM of the Boston Red Sox

    Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports/MLB Network

    Ken broke down what he saw in the confrontation between Cole Hamels and Brett Myers, Pedro Martinez starting Game 6 in the Bronx, who he thinks will win the World Series and MVP, why Ryan Howard has been such a mess against New York, and Mark McGwire's return to baseball

  • +Patriots
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    Dan Koppen and Logan Mankins, Patriots OLs

    Dan and Logan discussed Joey Porter's comments about the Patriots but that they are more concerned about what happens on the field, what is the strength of the Dolphins defense, and what they did with their bye week and if it is tough coming back after a week off

    Peter King, SI/NBC Sports

    Peter talked about the mess that both the Cleveland and Oakland franchises are in, the Patriots and Dolphins matching up on Sunday in Foxboro, Joey Porter's comments about Tom Brady and the Pats, and that Mike Shanahan and Jon Gruden will coach next year if anyone offers them a head coaching position

    Adam Schefter, ESPN

    Our Guy, Adam Schefter, joins D&C to talk all things NFL

  • +Bruins
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    Mike Milbury, NHL TV Analyst

    Mike joins the guys to talk about the Bruins' rough start to the season, the injuries to Lucic and Savard, and who deserves more blame: the coaches or players

    Milan Lucic, Bruins Forward

    Milan discussed his new three-year contract extension with the Bruins, how the deal actually came about, his love for playing in Boston, the expectations for him and his team this season, and of course how his fantasy football team, the 5 Minute Majors, are doing in the Davio's Football League

    Claude Julien, Bruins Head Coach

    Claude talked about last year ending on a disappointing note but looked ahead to this year and discussed the new players adjusting to the Bruins system, players returning from injuries, and helped preview the 2009-10 Bruins team

  • +Celtics
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    Paul Pierce, Celtics Forward

    The captain of the Boston Celtics, Paul Pierce, discussed the team gelling together so quickly, how Rajon Rondo is one of the best point guards in the game, Rasheed Wallace fitting in great with the Celtics, Antoine Walker's financial woes and managing his own money, his upcoming charity bowling event, "The Truth Strikes Again", and his friendship with President Bill Clinton

    Doc Rivers, Celtics Head Coach

    Doc joins John and Gerry to recap the C's 6-0 start. Doc also talks about his teams "Sleep Doctor" and his new favorite TV show

    Danny Ainge

    Danny joins the Big Show for his weekly segment and breaks down the Celtics hot start and the new contract for Rajon Rondo.

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