This Ladies and Gentlemen is a good thing.

John W. Henry from today's Boston Globe...

"Initially, I thought New Englanders would just finally throw up their hands. But their level of commitment and resolve is astonishing and deserves our full attention to moving this franchise forward without a break. It shows you how little I know about the toughness of this region. And it shows me how tough I need to be in making sure that we accomplish our goals. So I'm riding their `wave,' so to speak. They've given me the energy to move forward without having to get away from it all. I thought I would have to get away from it all to recharge and start again. But they have refocused me. And I can tell you that Theo [Epstein] and Larry [Lucchino] did not take a one-day or even a half-day break this week. I don't think they needed an external force to recharge themselves. This franchise is in very good shape with these two leading it.....How amazing is it, that even the angriest/saddest/most broken-hearted fans offer thanks and remain determined to see this team prevail? It's astonishing. I'm not listening to the radio, so maybe things are different there. I just know what comes directly to me.....There isn't anything I wouldn't do for these people. You know, there isn't anything these people wouldn't do for the Red Sox. We owe them."

Wow.

Stop for a minute and imagine 43 coming out with this kind of self-reflection about his place in the world. Or better yet the CEO of any Fortune 500 company (Scott McNeally you come to mind) with this kind of introspection.

What I really mean here is leadership and its ability to be frank and honest. ("Shows you how little I know about the thoughness of this region" - hmmm you couldn't relate that to a current foreign policy now could you?..) Yeah, yeah I understand there isn't a plantiff's bar waiting to sue JH on behalf of angry Sox Nation. And you are also right that the weight of the (entire) free world doesn't rest on what happens in one game somewhere in the northeast corner of this little land. But.....leadership is leadership wherever it happens to be. I've never met JH, and I'm sure he's capable of corporate-type spin that would bring severe blush to the face of Jack Welch (yes - YOU!), but this is real angst and a promise to get busy with results.

Admitting that he has faults and passions will endear him to the Sox faithful for a long time to come. Understanding this wasn't a moment for self-indulgant spin, and was time for - "WE OWE THEM" - should endear him to baseball fans, leadership gurus, and haughty opininated bloggers everywhere.

TFD