Kenny Williams does, and should, have a say into who makes the club. He's tha general manager of the entire organization and if he feels Reed should get a year of AAA under his belt, then he has every right to send him down. You also have to look at the long term effects of a situation like this. For example, after a year of AAA Reed will be one year closer to his prime. If he doesn't come up till 2005, then he won't be elible to become a free agent until after the 2010 season. This is a strategy the Sox need to start using. Leave guys in the minors until they are ready and don't waste a year of big league service time by bringing them up too soon. With this as an organizational prractice, it would help keep payroll at levels that would give them more flexibility down the road.
On another note, the way Rowand is hitting right now, Reed will really have to step it up to outplay him.