After an abysmal start, he is 4/10 with 3rbi and 6 runs scored in his last 3 games.

Maybe he should look at Pujols for an example of a slow start- his is WORSE..."Albert just doesn't seem to have a commitment this year......" Bah- rubbish from a guy that likes to heasr his own voice likes he's the star of the team..

He is out due to sore groin

20+ years around baseball, and all of Spring Training to view all players in the Red Sox organization why is he picking on Youk then?

I am just saying he must see something in him ? That could be possible, and Youk wasn't really smacking the cover off the ball.

Maybe it's just motivation to get Youk going.

Bobby V is a loudmouth and has to be the star of the Show so to speak as well

"Bobby V is a loudmouth and has to be the star of the Show so to speak as well"

Bingo

He is already showing signs of snapping out of his early struggles, this way Blohard get's to look like the guy that got him on track!

What a loser this guy is.

Pujols , is adjusting to life in the American League . Pitchers he doesn't see everyday, so he is at a disadvantage right now.

Pujols will get it together . He will put up great numbers.

Valentine is a j@ckass.

His in game managing skills might be all right. But he'll never be remembered as a guy who knew when to shut up. It's all about Bobby - all the time.

I know he is out due to a sore groin. Thanks.

But is that truly the reason or is Bobby V trying to make a statement?????

He kinda did that... only to a reporter.

"I really don't know what Bobby is trying to do," Pedroia said Monday. "That's not the way we go about our stuff around here. He'll figure that out. The whole team is behind Youk. We have each other's backs here."

<http://espn.go.com/boston/mlb/story/_/id/7818312/boston-red-sox-bobby-valentine-apologizes-kevin-youkilis-questioning-commitment?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Completely the wrong way to go about that, Bobby. Not the time for it at all. Even though the team is doing well now, I really think Bobby is simply a place holder until Bob Farrel's contract in Tortonto is up after this year.

I have no doubt about that, I was just using him as an example of a great player that is also struggling.

No one is claiming Youk has been playing well. But struggling at the plate is a lot different than not caring about how he does. Someone who defended Lackey and his putrid performance all of last season should understand something like that.

FYI - John Farrell - not Bob

Okay, now I'm an idiot. I can't believe I screwed that up. Mixed Valentine with Farrell's. :head meet desk:

LOL - Bobby gets everybody all messed up!

Pitchers he doesn't see everyday. The first series was against the Royals who the Cardinals played every year in interleague. In the 2nd series, he faced Pavano who spent time in the NL and then in the Yankee series he face Kuroda who was also in the NL.

Oh boy, Oh boy, Oh boy!!!

Just what we were hoping for/knew was gonna happen.

AKA " Please don't pay any attention to the id.iot that the FO hired, he has no clue what he's talking about and likes to hear himself jabber on like he's some kind of genius that invented baseball....he'll figure it out, or we'll hang him up by his shorts in a locker"

This is Bobby being Bobby and precisely why he was brought in here and this is SO refreshing to see and hear. Youk is hitting .200 and Bobby V is lighting a fire under him. Bobby V is a straight shooter. This is not Terry Francona that will make every excuse in the book and be a foil for his unproducing players. If you play well, BV will let you and everybody know it. If you are not producing, he's not going to make excuses for these multi millionaires. He tells it like it is. If the unproducing multi millionaire ball player doesn't like the Coaches failure to cover for his unproductive play, then the player should just shut up , go out and play better baseball. This team became so dysfunctional last year that the players played Terry for a sap and at the end the team needed Dr. Phil and 32 Couches for these overepaid and underproducing players to point fingers everywhere but to themseloves for their inability to make the playoffs despite being considerd by most analysts to have enough talent to win it all.

Youkils was supposedly one of the guys last year that was a problem where players simply did not like him. He walked right over Terry Francona. Bobby V came in and set the tone right away and went like a laser beam to one of the head cases on this team from last year to put him in his place.

I'm already liking the Booby V. approach. Terry lost his team as he let the players walk over him. Bobby Vhas been around the block one or twice. He's not going to be a foil and a fool for ANY player. Gawd, I 'm really liking this new and refeshing approach of frankness and honesty with Bobby V, and not the babying of these multi millionaires we got under Terry... a nice guy... but a guy that lost his team because he was WAY too easy on them when they played poorly.

I really don't like this sort of "insult your players in the press" managment style. Imagine if Valentine has been the manager back in 2009, when Papi had that horrendous April? There is no way Valentine would have stuck with him the way Francona did. Judging from these comments about Youkilis, Valentine would have run Ortiz out of town. Which means he would have had that tremendous last 3/4 of a season for someone else, and would have hit his 30 HRs and 100 RBIs for the last three years for someone else.

I don't think you ever say these things in public unless you've already tried it in private and you think the player didn't respond. And less than 10 games is to short a time to say it hasn't worked, especially given that he's 6 for his last 18 as it is.