Dustin Pedroia smiled as he read the text message from his wife, telling him she loved him. As he texted back a romantic reply, a weak ground ball dribbled between his legs, scoring the winning run in another Red Sox defeat.
The scenario has played out far too often, and manager John Farrell intends to put a stop to it. "We all have our personal lives," he stated. "Heck, sometimes in the eighth inning my wife texts me asking me to pick her up a hamburger at McDonald's on the way home. But I always wait until between innings before I reply with 'Ok, ILY.'"
Farrell said that while he has not completely banned in-game texting, he wants players to be reasonable. "For example, your wife's going crazy because she can't get the baby to sleep?" Farrell posed. "Ok, you gotta reply to that. But at least wait until between pitches, and use voice-controlled texting so you can see the ball."
Farrell also doesn't want the players to stop having fun. "The other night, Papi texted Jackie Bradley Jr. while he was at the plate," he said, trying to suppress laughter. "Jackie looks at the text and takes strike three. It was the final out in another loss, but it was funny as hell."
