In the middle of the current maelstrom over Manny Ramirez’s posing, preening and sudden desire to sit down at fireside chats with the media is an interesting subplot: Is it possible that all the hubbub and distraction could actually help the Red Sox?
Keep striking poses Manny. It can’t hurt as long as you’re hitting.
We know, it seems very out of place, and the sheer possibility that a player saying it’s not a big deal if his team wins or loses actually helps his team seems ludicrous. We get it. But we’re still not willing to say that it’s all a bad thing.
In fact, we’re ready to say that it’s helping, as strange as that may seem.
Think about it this way: At the moment, Manny is the entire focus of Red Sox speculation. There’s no more talk about Kevin Youkilis’ botched foul pop catch or Tim Wakefield’s horribly unfortunate inability to spear a shot targeted for Dustin Pedroia, eventually costing the Sox outs and runs Tuesday night.
Instead of all the negative reaction to those moments and their striking lack of execution, all the attention is on ManRam, all the time. And if we’ve learned one thing over the years, it’s that no measure of attention can dissuade Manny from being Manny. Hell, Yankee legend Reggie Jackson was on the radio this morning saying that Manny called him last night asking about where to refurbish a classic car. Clearly Manny’s not dwelling on all the attention. The guy is going to hit, no matter what kind of typhoon is swirling around him.
Think about it: After talk two and three days about Josh Beckett’s back, how much hype has focused on that heading towards tonight’s game? That’s what we thought. And how much talk is about Pedroia’s snippy quotes to the media after Game 4? During the season those shots would have started a serious Fenway brushfire. Now? Small potatoes compared to Senor Talkative over at the other locker.
So let him keep talking. And maybe he’ll even get to keep talking while playing baseball for a while longer. At the moment, it can’t hurt. That’s for sure.
Tim Wakefield is on the mound, trying to save the season. Just when you thought the Sox couldn’t ask any more of a 41 year-old knuckleball pitcher, they essentially decide to put their entire season on his fragile, aching back. Nice call Tito Francona.
Still, that’s the hand that Boston has been dealt. Because big-ticket free agent pick-ups of the past, Curt Schilling and Daisuke Matsuzaka, couldn’t get the job done in Games 2 or 3, the Sox are relying on the bargain basement innings eater to win a game. In case people have forgotten, for all Wakefield’s 2004 heroics (which, once again, focused largely on eating innings), the last time he had to save a season it didn’t work out. Ask the White Sox.
As a result, while Josh Beckett stews in the dugout wishing he were on the mound and getting even more pissed off heading into his start in Game 5, the ol’ flutterball will be on display. Or so we hope. Remember, Wakefield has taken struggling to a whole new level coming down the stretch this year. After starting off at a near 20-win pace and holding it through much of the season, Wakefield’s track got sloppy in the final few times out, leading many to wonder whether he would make the postseason roster at all, let alone in time to start an ALCS game.
Now here he is starting against a lineup that’s chewed up Schilling and Matsuzaka, and he’s pitching against a guy who, regardless of results, will definitely not have a hard time finding the strike zone. While Paul Byrd’s approach could help or hurt the Sox, depending on whether they revert to the patient group that frustrated C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona or if they keep swinging away early as they did last night, it could very well be a stunning contrast to Wakefield, who has to find the zone early if he’s going to be effective at all.
Now it’s time to find the answers to all those questions, starting in the top of the first. Or so Sox fans can hope.
Seriously, let’s try not to dwell on it. In fact, after this entry we’re officially going to try and pretend Game 2 of the 2007 ALCS never actually happened. But while we’re stuck thinking about last night’s 11th inning beating, let’s do the rundown of everything we learned, shall we?
1) Eric Gagne is officially a waste of a roster spot at this point. In fact, if he could come up lame with a sore shoulder so we could slip Julian Tavarez or Kyle Snyder back on the playoff pen, that’d be great.
2) Despite a solid single batter spot in the ALDS, Javier Lopez still can’t get out lefties. And he’s a sidewinding lefty. Go figure.
3) Curt Schilling may not be his former dominant postseason self. All he was against the Indians was average, and his inability to get through even five innings - or hold a lead, for that matter - cost Boston dearly, and could eventually cost it the series. We know, we cringe to hear it, too, but it’s the truth.
4) Even with David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and Mike Lowell bashing their heads off, the Indians lineup is so balanced it can make up for it. That’s a terrifying thought.
5) All that talk about how maybe we’d be better off with Jon Lester starting Game 4 instead of Tim Wakefield? Yeah, we’re sorry we even mentioned that.
6) Now Daisuke Matsuzaka practically HAS to win on Monday. He has to. Or else Boston is all but screwed.
But we’re not talking about any of this stuff anymore, or about how we rolled over this morning and saw the Wicked Witch of the West. It hurts too much.
So do pictures of the disaster, so enjoy the text heavy post folks. We’ll be back soon in search of something uplifting. We hope.
Big Papi and Josh Beckett sent a Hollaback out to the crowd at Fenway last night.
Sure, Josh Beckett wasn’t quite perfect, giving up a wind-aided first inning homer and later allowing a second run to cross. But for every little one-pitch mistake Beckett made, a rejuvenated Red Sox lineup got to C.C. Sabathia, drilling him for seven runs before he left, then connecting for three more off the midsection of the Indians pen.
That can only help confidence for the Red Sox moving forward. Like a one-night stand with Gwen Stefani, for instance.
And as would be appropriate for such a monumental night, Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz were perfect, literally. Big Papi reached base each time he came up, hit once, walked a pair of times and knocking a couple of hits in between. And that’s before Manny fully started being Manny, connecting for a pair of run producing singles and even earning a bases-loaded walk after falling behind two strikes to none.
As the game wore on and it became clear the Sox were trying to run away with a win, it was hard not to hope they’d bottle some of the offense, or at least keep it going for another day. Boston is sure to need similar magic tonight against the overpowering sinker being used by Fausto Carmona. Perhaps his 2006 struggles at Fenway will come back to mesmerize him and make him at least partially hittable in the process.
Who knows. All that mattered last night was that Beckett was on, the entire Sox lineup was on and the Fens got a taste of blood early. Now, if the Sox can pull another Stefani-like superb performance out of their hat today, Boston can head to the shore of Lake Erie feeling pretty confident about itself, perhaps marching behind the lead of that drum major from the bananas song.
It may not be the Yankees, but the Indians enter tonight’s matchup in Fenway Park is equally anticipated, if that’s possible. The Red Sox start a best-of-seven journey that they hope ends in the World Series.
Josh Beckett hunts deer, elk and a variety of birds in the winter. In October he hunts zeros.
The weather has turned to fall just in time to greet the first pitch, which will be fired out by a guy some Sox fans wanted out of town a year ago, yet now are clamoring to try and find a way to pitch three times in an ALCS. That’s how drastic a turnaround young Josh Beckett, still only 27, has gone through in the past 12 months. From maligned No. 2 starter to ace and possible Cy Young winner, Beckett’s move from mediocre to momentous has been nothing short of a full-fledged awakening.
And now he’s pitching in the exact kind of games that drew the Sox front office to Florida’s door, begging for him after the 2003 season. His Game 1 performance in the ALDS was a complete whitewash of the Angels and set the tone for Boston’s sweep. Now, he’ll try to attack a remarkably balanced Cleveland lineup and mow through batters the way he did a week and a half ago.
Not that Boston can take any sympathy on Cleveland hitters. The Indians have quite the ace of their own, C.C. Sabathia, who might pry the Cy Young from Beckett’s very grasp. While Sabathia was dominant throughout the regular season, he has a rough first playoff start against the Yankees, and was also outdueled by Daisuke Matsuzaka in his last outing against the Sox. Does that mean he’ll have troubles at the Fens tonight? Not necessarily, though the resurgent bats of Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz beckon. Or so Sox fans hope.
And that hope, as 2004 showed, is enough to bouy spirits and, eventually, lift a team. We’re getting closer to finding out if it can happen again.
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.
It’s time to comb through the virtual anthology that was coverage of the Red Sox’ three-game ALDS sweep of the Angels and find the best of the best. Here’s what caught our eye from the five days of pure media attention.
Manny got all of that K-Rod offering, didn’t he?
BOSTON GLOBE
Ace’s stuff fit for kings — Bob Ryan is the king of Boston sports columnists, and he lives up to his billing in writing about the new king of Boston’s rotation.
Manny of the hour — Manny Ramirez’s monumental blast was a sight to behold, and Gordon Edes nailed the lead-up and explosion of the ball off the bat, as he’s wont to do.
Red Sox are soaking in their success — We could have gone with one of a number of Dan Shaughnessy stories, but why do that when you can have Jackie MacMullan? The Celtics-obsessed columnist nails the ethos of what it’s like to be the Red Sox right this moment.
BOSTON HERALD
There’s no middle ground with Escobar — Look, we know that this is supposed to be about the best Red Sox articles, but the Herald nailed a pair of features about the Angels, first with this Michael Siliverman piece about Game 2 starter Kelvim Escobar …
Halos hope to be quick study — Then with this Silverman piece about Mike Scioscia and his approach to helping his team find room to breathe.
The Big Schill looked like he was back in the ALDS.
PROVIDENCE JOURNAL
Foul ball catch a hit with Henry - Leave it to ProJo columnist Joe McDonald to bring up the biggest fan of teenager foul-ball catcher Danny Vinik — Owner John Henry.
Schilling savoring return - Sean McAdam nails a feature on Curt Schilling, right before the Big Schill returned to the Anaheim mound to dominate.
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?
Ever been in a situation where you’re really proud of one accomplishment, but know that there’s an even bigger step on the immediate horizon? Welcome to the world of fellow Red Sox fans.
Make no mistake, the team’s last couple wins have been huge accomplishments. Two nights ago the Sox needed to get a win and solid performance from Curt Schilling. They got both. Last night they needed a win to keep momentum going, not to mention take a huge step toward officially getting rid of all digits in the “magic number” column.
They’re close. That counter now reads two, with a chance to wrap up the organization’s first AL East crown in 13 years as early as tomorrow. Still, until the final score from a Sox win or Yankee loss in a clincher goes up on the big left field scoreboard, cementing it, no Sox fans are going to be breathing any easier.
Does that diminish the strong vibes from yesterday’s win? Not at all. But it does make it a little hard to enjoy completely. Remember the Real World Las Vegas? Last night’s win takes a cue from that season. It’s a little like getting drunk and hooking up with Brynn, enjoying the experience but knowing all the while that you really want to land a night with Trischelle, who’s more attractive and a much bigger slut (clearly, anyone that would have dated Steven, one of the all-time Real World douchebags, would have to be). It almost cheapens the whole Brynn experience, doesn’t it?
Sure, it absolutely does. But that doesn’t mean the night with Trichelle won’t be glorious. It just means that you have to make sure it’s happening. The Sox have four games to get rid of the number two. Whether they do it with two wins or a win and a Yankee loss or even, God forbid, two Yankee losses, that hardly matters. What does matter is that they get to the finish line of a quest which started months ago. A drive toward a division title that has been more elusive than in any other stretch of the team’s history.
Trischelle and Irulan? Both had quite the, ummm, prolific love life in Vegas.
After last night’s walk-away, they have all the weapons to do it, including Eric Gagne, who finally pitched a relatively drama-free inning of late relief. Jonathan Pepelbon’s sitting amped in the pen. Manny Ramirez is back to being himself, and Big Papi is hitting up a storm. All of that, of course, is before even factoring in Mike Lowell, who has now officially put up the greatest offensive season for a third baseman in team history.
There’s no excuses. Two games left in the column. All the weapons. Like having a handle of vodka with Trischelle in the signature suite of the Palms. Viva Las Vegas? Screw it. Viva Las Fenway. Viva Las Back Bay. Viva Las North End.
Viva Boston. Sox fans just need to hope they can make it an AL East champion city again.
Some interesting conceptual thoughts as we await the inevitable lack of offense now that we know Senor Manuel Ramirez is taking another long holiday …
Josh Beckett may need to dial up his high school heat to mow through another win tonight.
Can you imagine what you would have done if someone told you a month ago that the Yankees would be within two games of the Sox, and that the Sox would need key contributions from Eric Hinske to find a way to beat the Devil Rays? I’ll bet you would have laughed. We would have, too. Now, we want to cry. All part of being a Boston fan, right?
Still, things should be good tonight. Should be. And there have been a lot of disappointing shoulds in the past couple of weeks. With Josh Beckett on the mound looking for win No. 20, the Sox should be dialed in on getting just enough offense at the Trop to get a win. It’ll be interesting to see if the anemic, injury-riddled offense can do that minus Manny, Kevin Youkilis, Coco Crisp and hell, any power outside of Big Papi and the indefatiguable Mike Lowell.
Incidentally, there’s an equally shocking response to another offensive Sox question: What would you have said if told that the two most consistent Sox hitters over the course of the season would be Dustin Pedroia and Lowell? It’s truly amazing, isn’t it? Can Lowell’s role be overemphasized? And can Pedroia’s amazing season be played up enough? I’m not sure it can. The Mighty Mite has gone from being a short-term survivor to an almost sure-fire rookie of the year. And Lowell - worth noting that it’s a monster contract year for him, isn’t it - has been nothing short of spectacular. If he’s not the second best third baseman in the AL, well, whoever’s compiling the list is kidding him or herself.
Still, that just reframes tonight’s question, doesn’t it? Now it reads, “Can Lowell, Pedroia, Papi and maybe Jacoby Ellsbury do enough to get past a suddenly viable Tampa Bay lineup? And Scott Kazmir?”
