We’ve seen this once before, a completely Red Sox-crazed country, with all of New England doing backflips to pay homage to the city and team that brought it joy.
Wait, this guy is our closer!?! God help us, he’s just impossible not to love, isn’t he?
Well, strap yourself in folks, here we go again:
- The highlight of the recent Sox madness, appropriately enough, was the Rolling Rally through the city. The fans and signs were all pretty terrific, complete with the K-Men and mobile Papelbon, and Jonathan Papelbon certainly didn’t disappoint, dancing three separate times along the route, including a kilted jig at City Hall Plaza where he roped in bullpen mates Hideki Okajima and Mike Timlin. Oh, and he got to dance to his entry song, “Shipping off to Boston” live from the Dropkick Murphys. Not a bad way to go, eh?
- In terms of preposterous trends in naming, the Franklin Park Zoo clearly has set the trend. After 2004, there was a rush on the name “Boston” for everything from hamsters to children. Well, a baby giraffe born during Game 1 of the Series at Zoo New England has been named Sox. Yes, Sox. No correct spelling needed folks. Thanks to Red Sox Monster for catching this one early, but it’s a pretty terrific trend. So, if you meet some poor alcoholic named Sox 35 years from now outside of Copley at 2:30 on a Wednesday morning, you’ll know how it happened.
- Among a host of ridiculous videos posted, Eric Wilbur may have found the best one on his NESN and Globe-connected Boston Sports Blog, a Mario Bros. themed and customized clip, fully pixellated, that shows the Rockies’ run through the playoffs, right up until they get squashed by good ol’ King Kooba, who’s a fully decked out Red Sox fan. Terrific stuff.
Everyone, meet Sox. Sox, meet everyone. And yes his name really is Sox.
- Of course, we’re also in for a panoply of Sox appearances on late night shows, too. Jonathan Papelbon, likely to be the biggest hoot of the bunch, is on tonight’s “Late Show with David Letterman”. We’d be shocked if he’s not jigging at some point. Shockingly, not only is Manny Ramirez talking to the media in the playoffs, he’s going to talk to America on a late night show, getting full interview treatment on “The Tonight Show” with Jay Leno on Friday. No word on whether he realizes that appearance will require a flight to LA. An, just to round things out, the ever-affable David Ortiz will represent Big Papi style on Conan O’Brien’s “Late Night with Conan O’Brien”. The pure weirdness of Papelbon and Letterman in the same room makes for almost surefire hilarity, but we wouldn’t be surprised if Big Papi and O’Brien actually end up being funnier. The comedic potential of all these appearances, of course, is pretty much uncharted. Lots of good TV watching in the nights to come.
Naturally, we’re sure there’ll be much more attention, craziness and Sox-based debauchery in the coming days, and we’ll keep you updated on it all.
It’s over, thanks to Dr. Double Mike Lowell’s home run checkup. And Bobby Kielty’s off-the-bench pick me up. And Jason Varitek’s game-calling.
It’s over, thanks to an overwhelming performance from rookie lefty Jon Lester, the man who was on chemotherapy a year ago, yet now got through nearly six innings of shutout ball to thwart the Rockies.
It’s over thanks to unbelievable fan support, even in the Rocky Mountains.
It’s over, despite multiple attempts by the Yankees to steal thunder with a managerial and A-Rod announcement.
It’s over after a complete whitewash in Colorado, which suddenly went from unstoppable force to National League also-rans.
It’s over, thanks to Terry Francona, who is the first manager in history to win his first eight World Series games.
It’s over, thank God, with all the drama, or lack thereof in half of the World Series.
It’s over, and God bless Boston … and the Red Sox.
Don’t get us wrong, it doesn’t hurt that Curt Schilling’s dream-weaving through 6+ innings came in the World Series, and that it was enough to get Boston a very significant 2-0 advantage heading to the Rocky Mountains. That makes it even bigger.
But at the end of the line, the game would have been a big one if it happened in late June or early July, too. Hell, it would have been a great win in April. Between Schilling’s deft work around a rocky first inning - he hit leadoff man Wily Taveras and looked as if he might give up a lot more than an RBI-groundout to Todd Helton - and the bullpen fire fighters like Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon, who combined for one of the most dominant relief appearances in nearly a decade of World Series’, Thursday’s win set a strong tone for the Sox.
Whether that tone will continue is another question, with weather, parameters, and all kinds of motivational factors in the balance - think Matt Holliday wants his eighth inning on the basepaths back? - but they have something they didn’t have in the ALCS: control.
You know the scene from Field of Dreams where Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) finally brings Terence Mann (James Earl Jones) to his corn field, and and Mann turns to him and says: So, this is what heaven is like? The Sox are four wins away from feeling that euphoria. Again. For the second time in four years.
Your Game 1 starters ladies and gentlemen. Let the soul patch attest to which one thinks he’s a bad dude.
Granted, those four wins aren’t going to be easy. But is there a better way to start at them than pitching ace Josh Beckett on full rest? We can’t think of one. Sure, Rockies first baseman/sentimental “he deserves to finally be here” candidate Todd Helton hits .333 against Beckett across his career. Then again, Helton has never tried to hit him in October, and as Sox fans are rapidly learning - and Florida fans (are there really any Florida fans? We’re not sure) already know, hitting Beckett in October can be a lot harder than hitting him in June.
While most of the attention has fallen on Beckett, the absence of longtime playoff presence Tim Wakefield and Colorado’s extended layoff, there’s legitimate reason to ponder the drastic affect a Game 1 loss could have on Boston’s World Series chances. Make no mistake, like all series, Game 1 is the most important contest in terms of setting a tone for a longer stretch. Then, when you consider Beckett’s status in comparison to all of the other starters in the series, for both teams for that matter, it amplifies the game that much more.
Naturally, a loss isn’t necessarily the end of the world, so long as Curt Schilling comes out and takes care of business in Game 2. But as the ALCS showed, that’s not as certain as it was in 2004 and before, so a big game and win from Beckett would go a long ways toward securing some modicum of security heading back to the mountains, where all sorts of craziness could set in.
What does that mean? Well, for starters, it means that all Sox fans need to be hoping to see Beckett cruising along early tonight, then see Hideki Okajima and, later, Jonathan Papelbon warming in the pen. It also means that the Boston lineup has to be patient with Jeff Francis, working him for long counts and eventually making contact.
Finally, it means that, regardless of weather, the Boston defense has to be more reliable than it was in the Cleveland series, where both Julio Lugo and Kevin Youkilis - in a complete aberration from tradition - had costly errors. After all, Colorado has the best defense in baseball … ever (at least statistically).
How it’ll all turn out, who knows. But it sure feels exciting to start off with, doesn’t it?
Like the ALDS and ALCS, we jumped on board with Red Sox Monster to be part of a Red Sox World Series roundtable, joining Red Sox Monster publisher Dan Lamothe (who kept his picks separate in a private podcast) and Red Sox Stats’ Guy’sMike Colluci.
Without further ado, here’s the the full roundtable piece on the Monster, with my direct answers below as always.
1. One of the appealing things about the World Series is that teams that rarely meet get the chance to go head-to-head. Break things down for me, will you? Where do the Sox have advantages in your eyes, and conversely, where can the Rockies exploit the Sox?
The relative anonymity of players on opposing teams is always part of the novelty that makes the World Series so fascinating. Still, with the advent of interleague play, that’s been mitigated some, never more so than this year, when the Sox and Rockies actually DID play each other back in June. We all know how that turned out (Rockies took 2 of 3 … in Fenway), and that series kind of started both the Red Sox’ and Rockies’ long string of regular season mediocrity.
Still, what we saw in that series is only slightly relevant to the World Series. Consider the fact that Boston has different spots throughout the lineup (Youk was still bouncing around and Pedroia hadn’t moved to leadoff yet, let alone Ellsbury), while Troy Tulowitzki was still struggling with expectations and half the Rockies rotation was still being groomed in the minor leagues.
So, if we look at this World Series with a new slate, it seems to shake down like this: 1) The Red Sox lineup looks more formidable, particularly coming off an overall pasting of Cleveland for three straight games. 2) The Red Sox bullpen is more battle tested. Colorado got by in the NLDS and NLCS with long outings from their starters before the entrance of the wet-shirted Manny Corpas (check YouTube for that terrific splash before his entrance in Game 1 against Philly). But the Sox lineup is likely to be a lot more patient than either Philly’s or Arizona’s. 3) Josh Beckett looks like a significant upgrade over Jeff Francis in Game 1 (or over anyone else, for that matter), but after that the pitching looks almost like a push.
2. Obviously, one of the first things that will come up in any preview of this series is the way the Rockies exploded against Boston in June, taking the last two games in a three game series with a combined score of 19-3. Is there anything we should be alarmed about those losses, especially since Josh Beckett and Curt Schilling lost them? Or should they be considered isolated incidents?
As stated above, they seem more like isolated incidents. Certainly the Beckett start shouldn’t be too concerning. Schilling’s is more frustrating. With his penchant for dropping gopher balls in that loss, there’s no telling if Colorado could do the same thing again. Meanwhile, the lone Boston winner from that series - Tim Wakefield - isn’t even on the roster. Go figure, and call it a scratch.
3. Talk about the Rockies lineup a little bit, if you would. What strategy should Boston be using to deal with it? Who scares you in that lineup, other than the obvious answer (Matt Holliday’s regular season: .340, 36 HR, 137 RBI, SLG .607)?
Todd Helton is still terrifying, and if you have any doubts about it, check out his power numbers, particularly slugging to left field. Meanwhile, there’s good speed at the top of the order (see Taveras and Matsui) and Tulowitzki has been an absolute terror in the second half. That, of course, doesn’t even take Adkins into account, so there’s enough fear to go around. The leadoff tandem of Taveras and Matsui alone is enough reason to be happy Wakefield isn’t starting a game in the series (his ERA at Coors Field is another compelling one, but hey, we’ll stick with the speed).
4. Put yourself in Terry Francona’s shoes for a minute. How do you handle losing the designated hitter position during Game 3-5? Who should sit? Also, who do you think will sit?
This is perhaps the most brutal decision Francona has to make. Clearly, you can’t take Ortiz out of the lineup in the playoffs. Ever (unless you have a lead in the eighth or ninth inning, and you take him out for a defensive replacement). That leaves Youkilis and Lowell to platoon at third. Youkilis is on such a tear that it hurts to take him out of the lineup, but Lowell has better power, more RBI on the year and more experience at Coors Field. Put those two factors together, and it all seems to even out, doesn’t it? So, if we were Francona, we’d play the hot hand. If Youk is still batting .500, you’re not taking the man out of the lineup. If Lowell hits a homer and three doubles in Games 1 and 2, he’s your man. Now, here’s the real X-factor: What about Youk in right field? He played there down the stretch last year, and clearly you’d rather have Youk in the lineup than JD Drew, all recent heroics and solid hitting aside. Now, I don’t think Francona’s drastic enough to actually make that move, but it’s worth pointing out nonetheless.
That being said, it says here that Francona plays Lowell in Game 3, then checks his career numbers against Cook before deciding for Game 4. If they’re good, Mikey goes again. If they’re not, Youk comes in. And Papi stays in throughout, without question.
5. Alright, one last time: prediction time. Who ya got? It should be noted that no one has picked against the Sox in one of these roundtable discussions yet…. which means no one has been wrong yet, either.
Let it be known that it is EXTREMELY hard to pick against the Rockies the way they’ve been playing. They’re so hot it feels like they could melt right through the Colorado snow. And right now, everything manager Clint Hurdle touches seems to turn to gold. That being said, moving Aaron Cook into the starting rotation for Game 4 seems like a true twist and gamble. Why shake up the rotation now, when you’ve been rolling? Meanwhile, Terry Francona’s willingness to leave Wakefield off the roster, likely in favor of second-year rookie Jon Lester, should be applauded. It’s hard to leave a veteran and heart-and-soul guy like Wakefield off, but it’s clearly the right move with his health and track record.
Why am I prattling on this way? Because I think the series is so close that it could swing on two small decisions like that (conversely, who Francona plays at third in Games 3 and 4 could have the same affect). Game 1 is a must-win for the Sox, and - like the ALCS - I really think Game 2 is the key. If Boston wins the first two, they’re going to win this series. If they split, it could be trouble.
So what’s going to happen? Uggghhh, this one is brutal to predict. That being said, I’m going Sox. In six. Schilling closes it out. I think Beckett will win Games 1 and Game 5 in Colorado setting the stage. But like the ALCS, I wouldn’t be even slightly surprised if the Rockies walked off with this one, even though Boston clearly has a more balanced and complete team, with the regular season record as ample evidence.
I’m perfect in the playoffs so far, so here’s hoping that continues for one more round. Otherwise we’re in for some painful postmortem. Here’s hopin’.
Paps isn’t just a world class closer, he’s a world class partier, too.
The Red Sox exploded for the ALCS crown. They didn’t just win, they took a close game and blew it up to the tune of a nine-run victory. And five of those runs came from Boston’s newest favorite son, Mighty Mite Dustin Pedroia.
Manny knocked in the first run, but that was it from the big boys, Ramirez and Big Papi. The rest came from Pedroia, sudden star Kevin Youkilis. And naturally, Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon was there to close the door.
Of course all of this is to overlook the job done by Daisuke Matsuzaka. He wasn’t great, but was pretty close through the first three innings. The fourth and fifth were shaky, a run given up in each, but the Dice-Man flexed everything he had in the first three, striking batters out with high heat, darting cutters and a screwball that almost looked gyro-ish.
Now, as Sox players prepare to recover from a night when they all deserved their own Rachel Boston, they have a moment to breathe before what is almost sure to be a very chilly World Series. And guess who’s starting Game 1 Wednesday?
Yes, there is a gorgeous actress named Boston. We didn’t make it up. Check her imdb page here.
That’s right, Mr. F-bomb himself: Josh Beckett. Time to dial up the drama. Again. But let’s finish the celebrating first shall we?
For the second straight playoff round, Red Sox Monster has set up a pretty strong blogger roundtable surveying Boston’s prospects for the round ahead. We were part of the group again hosted by Red Sox Monster and MassLive’s inimitable Dan Lamothe, so we thought we’d share our answers in preview of tonight’s Sox-Indians series starter. For those interested in the full roundtable answers, which also included bloggers from Red Sox Stat Guy, Sox & Dawgs and The Joy of Sox and Texas Gal of Babes Love Baseball. Definitely a good anticipatory read. Here’s the entire piece for your perusal: Red Sox Monster Roundtable
And while we may not have hit the mark as squarely on some questions as our friends in the blogosphere, here’s our distilled question-by-question answers for your perusal. Interested to see what everyone thinks.
1) One of the big things we all have been hearing this week is that the Indians have an advantage because of Fausto Carmona and C.C. Sabathia. Last time I checked, though, the Red Sox beat Sabathia in a nail-biter once already this year and won five out of seven against the Tribe. How does Beckett-Schilling vs. Sabathia-Carmona play out for the two teams?
This, clearly, is the duel duels of the playoffs, if you will. I like Beckett over Sabathia because of both home field advantage and the performance of both pitchers in Game 1 of their respective ALDS’s. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen Beckett more in control than he was in Game 1 against the Angels, and Sabathia looked nervous throughout his team’s win. That being said, it’s possible that moving away from the Jacob’s Field crowd will help C.C. We’ll have to see.
As for Schilling-Carmona, Game 2 scares me significantly more. Carmona already has one win over the Sox, a terrific 1-0 outdueling of Beckett, and while Fenway Park was a house of horrors for him last year there’s no indication it will be in the playoffs. His slider was falling off the table in the ALDS, and outside of Beckett, he may have looked better than every other pitcher in baseball in Round One. Meanwhile, Schilling starting in Fenway again scares me a bit. He’s been more prone to home runs at home, and while Francona is likely to show a much quicker hook in the ALCS than during the regular season, there’s still the possibility of a suddenly big inning out there. So, I’m going to predict a split in Games 1 and 2, though a Schilling gem and 2-0 Sox lead wouldn’t completely shock me, just surprise me.
2) What about Games 3 and 4? How worried should Sox fans be about Matsuzaka-Wakefield/Lester? Also, should Sox fans be licking their chops when they see Jake Westbrook on the mound, or were his regular season stats against Boston (10 hits and five earned runs in six innings) a fluke?
Lost amidst all the talk about moving Schilling into the 2 slot was that it means Dice-K will start Game 3 in Cleveland. And perhaps lost in the analysis of that is just how impressive the Dice man was at Jacob’s Field earlier this year. He pitched a complete game win, out doing C.C. Sabathia, and helping the Sox win the season series. Clearly, that was a huge win in retrospect. Meanwhile, there’s no reason to doubt Westbrook’s stats against the Sox, particularly in the aftermath of another dismal performance in the ALDS, when the Yankees cleaned his clock. On paper, it looks like a very good matchup for the Sox.
Game 4, understandably, is much more troubling. Wakefield has looked absolutely cooked after his most recent back injury, and there’s concern over just how healthy he may be. If Wake isn’t comfortable, his knuckleball won’t move right and he’ll get clobbered. Meanwhile, Byrd is a wily veteran who doesn’t walk batters, gets tough outs and sent the Yankees to the golf course. I’m getting a headache just thinking about this match up, so let’s move to the next question.
3) When analysts talk about Boston’s strengths this year, the deep bullpen always comes up. Cleveland’s wasn’t bad, though, finishing with the sixth best ERA (3.75) in the Majors. How important is getting to the Indians bullpen, and where do potential advantages for the Red Sox lay?
Getting to the bullpen is actually only an advantage against Sabathia and Carmona, because that duo has been so nasty. The two Rafaels have been almost unhittable and seem to be surging in the postseason. And while the numbers aren’t kind to Joe Borowski, Sweaty Joe does keep getting results. Really, how Boston hits off the Indian relievers in Games 1 and 2 really may set a tone for the entire series. Get mowed down and the Tribe kids may get more confidence and roll from there. Knocking in a few late-inning runs early – particularly off the Rafaels - could be all but essential.
4) The Indians had six players hit between 18 and 25 home runs, but no one with more than that. They also had only one starter, Victor Martinez hit more than .300 (he hit .301). How should Boston pitch to the Cleveland lineup?
While there may not be too many stellar OPS guys, Cleveland’s lineup is much, MUCH more balanced than Boston’s. There’s not any easy outs. Martinez has been an absolute terror, Hafner seems to be peaking at just the right time and there’s youth abundant. I’m not sold on Asdrubal Cabrera, ALDS homer aside, and first baseman Ryan Garko is so streaky that the Sox may be able to handle him. Grady Sizemore wasn’t too impressive in Round One, but he scares me and I think could secretly be the key to the series. If he starts getting on to lead off games and innings – particularly against Dice-K and Wake – major problems could follow. It’s not a pretty picture. The other big problem looming? Kenny Lofton, the center fielder who just never goes away. He had his best postseason series in years against the Yanks and seems poised to cause more headaches in Fenway.
5) One Trot Nixon returns to the postseason on Friday, as well. He doesn’t play much anymore… will he have any impact on the series, and what kind?
Trot seems ticketed for one or two key pinch hitting spots, particularly in Fenway. Remember, the every day Indian in right is a rookie (Franklin Gutierrez) so a couple bad at bats in the friendly confines and Eric Wedge may flex his well-documented right to re-consider his lineup. After all, Trot does know how to lace a hot grounder down that first base line, doesn’t he?
6) Tell me something the common fan misses when discussing the series. Any surprises jump out at you when looking at the two teams and their statistics?
There’s an emerging perception that Papelbon is the big x-factor in this series because he’s more reliable than Borowski, but it strikes me that the much bigger factor is the teams’ respective middle relievers. Assuming Tito Francona goes with Okie Dokie in the 8th inning setup role again before Papelbon, that still leaves question marks in the sixth and seventh innings. Assuming Sox starters can get there, Manny Delcarmen seems to be the main go-to-guy for a sixth inning look. That leaves Mike Timlin and Eric Gagne – who gave up a meaningless run in Game 3 against the Angels – to fight out the seventh inning. Will Francona actually trust Gagne in a tight spot late, or will he take his chances with the 40 year-old jack of all trades Timlin? Will Timlin still be sharp after not pitching in a game in two weeks? Lester is clearly the long-man, but would the Sox use him if Dice-K falters? Lots of questions here, to be sure. Meanwhile, the Sox have to prove they can hit the Rafaels and Jensen Lewis. There’s absolutely no guarantee they can, and just ask the Yankees how easy it is. Put it all together and, despite all the attention being placed on Borowski, any late homers off him won’t matter unless Boston can hit the earlier guys.
Another fascinating plot line revolves around the tendency of Sox players who are former Indians to perform ridiculously well at Jacob’s Field. Just look at Coco’s number from the early season series. If Coco, Alex Cora in a pinch, Manny Ramirez, etc. come through, the series could swing on that alone.
7) So, who wins? Why?
I’m going with the Sox in 6 or 7. If you pinned me down I’d say seven, because I can’t imagine Schilling beating Carmona in a Game 6 at Jacob’s Field. Still, I think Boston will be able to pull out a couple of wins behind bashes from Ortiz and Ramirez, who finally looks dialed in for the first time this year. Additionally, I really am looking for big things from Coco Crisp, who was a monster in Cleveland earlier this year. Add strange statistical aberrations like Bobby Kielty’s success against C.C. Sabathia, and I think Boston will claw this one out. But it’ll be close, it’ll require a lot of TUMS and (not or) Pepto Bismol, and it will have Sox fans clamoring for NL opponents, which could end up biting Boston in the World Series (if Colorado wins the NLCS). Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
That’s right LA of Anaheim of Orange County of California of you get the damn idea. That’s right, Josh Beckett is out to get you. In his Texan dialect, he done hunted your ass down once now. He’s got the scent, and if he has to again, he’ll shoot Jon Lackey right between the eyes.
Ahh, screw it Josh. Go get some. Sox fans won’t judge, you deserve it.
Or many he can leave that to Big Papi and Kevin Youkilis. They certainly did a suitable job of that last night.
But the story, not shockingly, was Beckett’s dominance. At one point he mowed down 19 straight. Nineteen! It’s almost preposterous. And not only did Beckett’s dominance thoroughly frustrate the entire Angels lineup - OK, Vlad the Impaler got a hold of two different pitches that looked impossible to hit and stroked them for singles, but he is Vlad the Impaler - it also saved the Sox bullpen, which can now lineup Hideki Okajima on nearly a full week of rest, not to mention the Irish jigger himself, Jonathan Papelbon.
So, what can you give the guy who just nearly duplicated his epic postseason performance of 2003? What do you give the man who is now riding an 18-inning scoreless streak? Or, because this is The Morning After, who?
You give him the ultimate baseball blogger (seriously, how the hell did she earn that title so fast?), the woman who finally gave up her attempt to sleep through the LA Dodgers rotation (the whole lot of which combined doesn’t have Beckett’s stuff): Alyssa Milano.
Wait, he’s already been there, in 2003? Well, who the hell cares? Alyssa Milano’s still hot. Smoking hot. And Josh Beckett is still nasty. Filthy nasty.
Charmed may have been one of the worst shows of all-time. But it did give birth to this scene, so I think we’re going to call it even.
So we’re hooking it up again. Joshie deserves it after last night. And just think of the possibilities. The last time he was with Ms. Milano, Josh Beckett was sizing up his first World Series ring. Too bad it had an ugly fish on it.
Maybe this time he can get another one, one that might even be a bit prettier. If he gets help from Dice-K tomorrow and Curt Schilling Sunday, he’ll be well on his way.
We were recently part of a blog roundtable hosted by Red Sox Monster and MassLive’s inimitable Dan Lamothe, so we thought we’d share our answers in preview of tonight’s Sox-Angels lid lifter. For those interested in the full roundtable answers, which also included bloggers from Red Sox Stat Guy, Sox & Dawgs and The Joy of Sox, here’s the spot for all your answers. Definitely a good anticipatory read.
And while we may not have hit the mark as squarely on some questions as our friends in the blogosphere, here’s our distilled question-by-question answers for your perusal. Interested to see what everyone thinks.
Isn’t it amazing how there are almost no questions about Mike Lowell heading into the playoffs? That’s how ridiculously reliable Dr. Double has been. It’s uncanny.
1) OK, let’s start with some basics. Since they clinched home field advantage in the playoffs, the Red Sox had the choice on what kind of schedule they wanted to play. They opted for “B,” which could extend the series to eight days, rather than seven. Good or bad for the Sox, considering the state of affairs for the two pitching staffs?
This seems like an obvious boost for the Sox, since it allows them to use both Josh “Don’t F@%$ with me” Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka twice. Now, a week ago, that previous sentence probably would have included using Beckett and Curt Schilling twice, but Terry Francona’s already decided to stick his neck out there before the playoffs even begin, opting for two potential Dice-K starts rather than two of the man who has enough nicknames to form a band himself: Mr. Ankle and his “Pay Me” Chorus! Still, while that might seem like a shaky move, Sox fans have to remember that Matsuzaka-san’s big-game dominance in the World Baseball Classic and throughout his Japanese career were two of the biggest reasons they were willing to shell out the GDP of a Central American nation to sign him. So what the hell, let’s roll with the Dice-Man.
OF course, if the Sox were playing the Angels, the schedule would mean two shots for both C.C. Sabathia and the operatic Fausto Carmona, which would be a VERY bad thing (good luck New York! Not!). But with the Angels, it means Jon Lackey at Fenway, where he’s been ROCKED (0-2, 8.38 ERA at the Fens) and Kelvim “Don’t Call me Kelvin” Escobar. That’s a much more palatable double dip, wouldn’t you say.
Then there’s the bullpen factor. While Hideki Okajima looked great against Minnesota over the weekend, there are bound to be some lingering concerns about the health of his arm. Having an extra day of rest between the first three games on helps things from a set-up angle.
2) The Red Sox went 6-4 against the Angels this season, but that includes a three-game sweep in April, when the Angels were struggling with injuries. How afraid should Red Sox fans be of the Angels? Would they have been better off drawing Cleveland in the first round?
The answer to the second part of this question, quite frankly, is a resounding NO! The Indians are straight up terrifying, and while the Halos can cause a lot of headaches on the basepaths, they’re incredibly over reliant on three guys for their power numbers: 1) Vlad Guerrero, who may have hurt his hand in the season’s final series, 2) Gary Matthews Jr., who DEFINITELY hurt his knee in the final series, and 3) old Boston favorite Orlando Cabrera, who has been dinged up a good portion of the season. If Boston’s pitchers can keep the O-Cab and gnats like Chone Figgins off the basepaths, there shouldn’t be too much to worry about. Certainly, the pitching seems like a distinct Boston advantage (again, see above), which wouldn’t be the case against the Tribe. We’ll see if that shakes out later, but let’s note get ahead of ourselves. Or the Red Sox.
3) Josh Beckett has been reliable throughout the season. For a second, though, let’s say he loses Game 1. Does anything change for the Sox?
Nope. If Joshie gets rocked, then Joshie gets rocked. One would hope he can find a way to avoid the kind of meltdown he had against Minny at the Fens the other day, but you never know. Down 0-1, Game 2 obviously becomes a virtual must win, but isn’t that when you want Dice-K on the mound? And any questions about his ability to come through in big games should be somewhat quelled by his performance in his last three regular season starts, which ranged from admirable to downright dominant. Ask Minnesota.
4) The Angels clinched the American League West on Sept. 23, then rested their regulars a fair amount of the time thereafter. It’s an age-old question, but advantage or disadvantage?
Neither, because while it might have helped, when Mike Sciosca played his starters they kept getting hurt! It’s remarkable. While it would have seemed like a nice refreshing bounce going into the playoffs, now LA has a handful of questions about Jr. Matthews, Vlad the Impaler, etc. (see above). So much for the rest, huh?
5) Tell us something that’s not common knowledge about this matchup. Anything the common fan has not noticed, do you think?
There’s so much talk about how the Angels run right at teams, about how they’re terror on the basebaths, you fill in your own baseball cliche here, basically. But as much as the Halos could present problems, some of that is mitigated by Tim Wakefield being left off the roster, which helps both in keeping them from running on him and also keeping Varitek as the arm behind the plate. Conversely, the Sox could be in an interesting position to turn the “run-happy” table on LA of Anaheim of Orange County of California of you get the idea. If Tito stacks the bottom of the lineup with two of Coco Crisp, Julio Lugo and Jacoby Ellsbury, you can bet those guys will be galloping trying to create runs. Ellsbury in particular could have a huge impact on the series. It’ll be fascinating to see how Tito works him into lineups and, failing that, into games as a super-sub. As good as J.D. Drew has been the last couple weeks, Ellsbury has been a revelation at the plate and on the base paths. It’s almost impossible to imagine he’s not going to get serious run, whether he’s filling in for Drew or Crisp. We do know he won’t be filling in for Manny, barring an injury. In fact, let’s not even imagine that possibility. Just forget I just wrote that. I’ll go singe the hair off my left forearm as pennance, so don’t worry, we’re all good.
As for the Angels, one HUGE dark horse to watch for is Casey Kotchman. We really can’t figure out why for the life of us, but the guy just gets Boston pitching. He hit a remarkable .343 against the Sox this year, with a handful of those hits making a difference out in Anaheim. Yes Sox fans, this is your official cue to go start digging up personal dirt to scream at him at the plate tomorrow afternoon.
6) So, who will win? What separates these two teams in the end?
Pitching separates the two teams in the end, just as it always does in the playoffs. Naturally, the Sox will have to get to the Angels’ starters, because the LA pen is pretty damn solid, what with Justin Speier and Scott Shields setting up K-Rod. It mirrors the Sox pen (the GOOD version) remarkably well, all the way down to Shields having an off year (see Eric Gagne) and Speier making up for it (see Okaji-san).
Still, with Matthews and Guerrero’s gimpiness, and with Lackey’s regular season tribulations as Fenway hanging like an albatross across Game 1, it’s hard to image the Sox go to Anaheim down 0-2, and really that’s the one way the Angels would seem like prohibitive favorites to pull out the series.
That means I’m picking the Sox, in either 3 or 4. I don’t see this puppy going full like those epic Oakland and Cleveland Divisional slates of the late ’90s. With a gun to my head I’d say 4 games as a buffer for a mediocre start from either Dice-K or “Buy my house in Medfield!”, but I would not be shocked by a sweep. Here’s hoping, right?
Maybe you’ve seen it by now, maybe you haven’t. If you’re in the latter category, you need to keep reading below.
When Boston clinched the AL East with New York’s loss Friday night, there were a number of notable Sox players who went back out onto the field to celebrate with the scattered fans who remained in Fenway Park. Curt Schilling and Daisuke Matsuzaka show up in numerous photos, as do Tim Wakefield and David Ortiz, among others.
But while those players may have earned the most ink, no one could keep up with closer Jonathan Papelbon, who may have made a bigger ass out of himself than anyone since, well, George W. Bush. But don’t take our word for it, check it out yourself:
That’s right Red Sox fans, your closer of past, present and future is quite the Irish dancer. In fact, even Kevin Youkilis and Terry Francona were pretty taken with his moves, Youk in person and Tito, well, in the press, here via the Boston Globe.
“If he wasn’t, I’ll make sure Manny is aware we won today.”
But no one present last night, including Francona, missed Jonathan Papelbon’s wild Irish jig on the mound after the game.
“You mean, ‘The Riverdance’?” Francona said. “That’s one of the . . . he looked to me . . . I don’t want to call him a moron, but the only thing better than that was when he was inside dancing, wearing only a jock.
“That’s him. He’s young, carefree, a great kid. That said, when he gets on the mound, he’s all business. It’s a good mix.”
That’s right, a carefree kid with a nasty fastball, ridiculous splitter and a filthy new pitch which he calls a slutter. All puns intended, of course.
