Theo Epstein's in Chicago, but that doesn't mean he's not keeping an eye on his old team.
And he's not as down on the Red Sox as many people here.
"April was difficult," he told CSNNE.com's Sean McAdam in a one-on-one interview at Wrigley Field on Friday. "It almost seemed like a continuation of last September, and it was really hard. But they did a great job battling through. The Sox suffered a lot of critical injuries and still managed to fight their way back to .500."
And now?
"I think they're in a position in the A.L. East where once they get their guys healthy, they can make a real run at it," he said. "I think stabilizing the starting rotation's been a key for them. Having Clay Buchholz bounce back from his tough start and getting on track, and having Felix Doubront emerge, has been huge for them. And if they can have the other starters step up, they're going to be in a really good position when they get healthy."
On other issues, Epstein said the following:
On the aftermath of last September's collapse: "When that happens, it's important to be honest about it and step back and learn from it. And from what I can tell, everybody has. It was nobody's proudest moment, but what's important is what happens next."
On what he'll remember of his time in Boston: "When I look back on it, I feel lucky to have been a part of a group of people that helped change the organization for the better. Had a lot of success in scouting and player development and maybe changed the way people thought of Red Sox teams . . . I feel like we left the organization better than we found it. Obviously did some things that are historic in nature, and enjoyed ourselves. It wasn't perfect, but it was really good. We set a really high standard that, in the end, proved to be impossible to live up to all the time. Proud of the group of people that were involved in helping make all that happen."
On Cubs manager Dale Sveum, who also interviewed for the Red Sox job last offseason: "Dale's done a great job. It's been difficult circumstances. We haven't given him the '27 Yankees, exactly, to work with. Despite a lot of the losses, he's maintained a really even-keeled nature, set a really high standard for his expectations for the players. He's one of those rare managers who can pull off being really well-liked by the players, but also respected."