Only rody could portray this as a bad deal for the Sox. They were in 4th place with these guys and salaries, can't be much worse without them but now more able or likely to make new moves and even if it's the same dumb money/decision makers they aren't going to be wrong every time. If the Dodgers are laughing its a nervous laughter as they just pushed all of their chips into the middle of the table and at least two of their new 'cards' are jokers.
Only in the fevered minds of Red Sox fans is "can't get any worse" the same as "better".
Gonzalez is one of the best hitters in baseball. Losing him will hurt. Period. Crawford is a helluva player. Unfortunate that he was bad in 2011 then hurt for another year.
Again, the assumption here is that the same people that signed these bad contracts have now seen the light and in the future will not sign contracts like they did with DiceK, Lackey, Crawford, Gonzalez, Drew, and Beckett's extension.
Reduced payroll is only a POTENTIAL gain. And when offset by actual losses, I guess you guys have to have something to feel good about.