Grady Little vs Byung-Hyun Kim

Patrick Sullivan of Baseball Analysts thinks Grady Little may be to blame for the flameout of Byung-Hyun Kim. Sullivan reminds us how effective Kim was for the Red Sox in 2003.

After being acquired for Shea Hillenbrand on May 29, Kim recorded 69 strikeouts and only 18 walks in 79.3 innnings - good for a 3.18 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP.

Not only that, but Kim was cruising heading into the playoffs, having been absolutely dominant down the stretch.

From September 1 onward, Kim held opposing batters to a .136/.208/.182. line.

That work was all but forgotten by the hometown fans when the Sox returned to Fenway down 0-2 to the A's in the ALDS. Hence his reception from the fans and the shot before the jump.
But was Kim really to blame for the Sox being in that 0-2 hole? As Sullivan explains it:

So what happened in Game One? Staked to a one-run lead heading into the bottom of the ninth, Little hands Kim the ball to nail the win down. He promptly induces a Ramon Hernandez fly-out before walking Billy McMillon and hitting Chris Singleton. With men on first and second, he then strikes out Mark Ellis. With two outs, two men on and his best relief pitcher on the hill, what does Grady do? He pulls Kim in favor of Alan Embree with lefties Erubiel Durazo and Eric Chavez set to hit.

Here's what Little might have considered; Embree that season yielded a .696 OPS against lefties, compared to Kim’s .664. Further, Kim had been Boston's Closer and had just struck out Ellis! With one out remaining and a one-run lead in the ninth, Grady opts for Embree, who promptly gives up a single to Durazo which plates the game tying run. Because the run is charged to Kim, he gets the Blown Save. Oakland wins in the twelfth.

Following the Game 3 incident with the fans, Grady benches Kim for the remainder of the playoffs. Kim was 24 at the time but has never been as good as he was in 2003 for the Sox.