To the surprise of virtually no one, Grady Little was fired as manager of the Boston Red Sox today. The Sox brain trust claimed that he wasn't fired over the ALCS Game 7 non-move, but it doesn't ring terribly true. If the Sox win game 7, or even if he brings in the bullpen and the Sox end up losing, Grady is probably negotiating his contract extension today instead of looking for a job.

It'll be interesting to see who the next manager is. Bud Black, former Sox player Glenn Hoffman, Terry Francona and Jim Fergosi are among the rumored candidates. It'll be interesting to see if the new manager can replicate Grady's 95 wins next year.

I've always found the first day of work after daylight savings time starts to be tough to take. With today's overcast conditions added in, it was pretty much completely dark when I left the office at about 5:30 today. It reminds me that we're in for another long, cold New England winter. I'm hoping for less snow than last year, but the fact that we had some flurries earlier this month doesn't leave me feeling very optimistic.