Was it worth the Price ?

Dave Dombrowski had valid reasons for firing John Farrell.

At least that's my opinion.

I can’t think of another coach or executive in the 40 years I’ve been hooked on Boston sports whose legacy is more defined by yeah-buts than John Farrell, former Red Sox manager.

Know what I mean? There’s a counter to everything, no matter whether you’re praising him for a prudent decision or blasting him for a bewildering one. To discuss his five-year run as Red Sox manager, which ended with his firing Wednesday morning, is to get caught in a maelstrom of rebuttals, most of which are valid and none of which settle a thing.

Just consider these points and counterpoints:

He finished in last place twice in five years and his teams went 1-6 in the playoffs the last two years . . . yeah, but he also became the second Red Sox manager to win a World Series since 1918, and he won two straight division titles before his firing.

He’s great with young players. The core of the Red Sox’ lineup developed on his watch: Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Jr. . . . yeah, but virtually every one of them regressed significantly on his watch this season.

All of the melodrama of this season (the David Price/Dennis Eckersley confrontation, Dustin Pedroia’s don’t-blame-me response during a tense series with the Orioles, Hanley Ramirez’s inability to play first base on most days) never would have happened on Terry Francona’s watch . . . yeah, but Francona was in charge of the collision into the iceberg in September 2011 — and Jason Varitek, apparently a candidate to replace Farrell, was the captain of that ship.

He won the 2013 World Series . . . yeah, but they did it in spite of him. In the World Series, he let Brandon Workman hit for the first time since high school! Since high school! Who does that?