What a comeback last night. Whew. Scary. Live blog time!
Holy cow. What a match-up today. Halladay (on short rest) vs southpaw ace Lester.
Crap. Home run Toronto. Lester is throwing rockets but his control is off. Good thing we have game-manager extraordinare behind the plate (thank goodness for Tek!)
Batter up.
Single Jacoby! Yay! Here comes MVP Dustin Pedroia! (What? I can hope, can't I?)
Steal Jacoby and Sac-bunt for Dustin, Jacoby to third and here comes big Papi. All we need is a single or sac-fly. I tell you what, Dustin does it all, home runs, sac-flies, doubles, triples, bunts...Papi's out at first but Jacoby scores, tie game.
Youuuuuuuukkkkk. After a long at-bat, Youk hits a bat-shattering single. Mikey up.
Okay, I get that Toronto really wants to win, but pitching Halladay on three days rest is really not a good move, especially in September. Mike is out at first, and we go to commercial.
Overbay is up. And Lester got him. And the Yankees are leading the Rays 6-3 in the bottom of the 2nd (wow). Say it with me everyone. "Let's go Yankees!"
Okay, count is full on Rolen and Lester walks him. He is really not finding the strike zone right now. Wacko chopper, nice stop Pedroia and a bang-bang play. He's out.
Lester is up 0-2 on McDonald. Come on Jon, just one more strike and we're good. McDonald is battling. Lester really needs to get some control down, because he's thrown WAY too many pitches for it to only be the 2nd inning. Swing and a miss, he's out. Commercial time.
Back to the game. JBay is up. Bottom of the third, Yankees up 6-3 bottom of the third. Oh! JBay hits a double. Yay for JBay! Here comes the Captain. Come on Tek! We love Tek. Whatever he can do to get JBay to third or to score, he'll do it. And you can talk about how his average is down - good eye Tek! - we need that man behind the plate as long as we can because that man is a beastly fabulous leader. Good job, Captain, sac-single to get JBay to third.
Cora is up and the infield is in. I have a feeling we're in for a pitchers duel. Both pitchers are up over 30 pitches in the 2nd. The 'pens will be getting some work tonight. Okay, I think the TBS is in love with Halladay, because they are fawning all over him. Yes, he is a great pitcher, but come on!
Oh, Cora out on strikes. Coco is up. I'd recognize that batting stance anywhere. Oh, and announcers, its impossible to take the Fenway crowd completely out of the game, you underestimate the fan-base.
Coco hits a 2-out RBI single and Ellsbury is up. He has caught fire again, and I am hoping he can make a big push for Rookie of the Year. Bunt, but they got him. Inning over.
Lester seems to be getting things under control...big hit but Coco is there...1 out. Come on Lester, get them up. Liner back, Lester misses, Pedroia scoops it up and gets the out at first. 2 down. Next up, Alex Rios. Lester gets ahead 1-2. Lets close this one out with a K, lefty. Rips one...they try for it but its in the alley. Double for Rios. Next batter. He pops up and Cora gets it. Inning over.
Dustin is up. I love him, he doesn't think any pitcher should be able to get him out, and he goes up knowing he's going to get a hit. That's the kind of batter I like. Fly out, out 1. That's okay, here comes Papi. 2-2 on Papi, and he is really not happy with himself. And he strikes out swinging. Top of the 5th and the Yanks are still beating the Rays. Remember that old adage "I root for the Red Sox and anyone playing the Yankees"? Well, things sure have changed.
Youk's up, down 0-2. Seems like Halladay has found his zone, but Youk is battling. Hit to third, out at fist.
While the Jays are up, here's a score update: Yankees lead TB 6-3, Os lead Twins 5-0. Good things for the AL East and good things for the AL Wild Card.
Nice catch by Ellsbury for the second out. Wow, what a play by Lowell and Youk! Three out.
Three-up, three down. Crap. Anyone else think the strike zone on this guy is a little off? Oh well, at least he's consistent.
Batista against JLes, Ellsbury has the catch. You gotta love the Sox outfeild right now. Coco and Ellsbury are speed demons and can move all over to catch the ball. And Jason Bay isn't exactly slow either. Line out to Mikey and its 2 out. Lester is 2-2 on Batista, got him.
Okay, back to the game with 2 outs in the fifth. Jacoby up. Come on buddy, get a rally going. At least stop the Halladay streak of retiring batters. Nope. Took a swing at a bad one and struck out.
Bring on the 6th.
I have a theory about the TBS annoucers. I think they are biased, they clearly want Toronto to win this game. Now, in a nationally broadcast game, where there are many more Red Sox fans. Grounder to Pedroia, out at first. Grounder to Mikey and out at first. Liner and foul. 0-2. They are really swinging at Lester. Swing and a miss and Lester has taken out 8 in a row.
Dustin is up to start. Lets break the Halladay streak. He's thrown 85 pitches, they have to be getting close to pulling him. Pedroia hits it to third, thrown out at first. And here comes Papi. Yankees still beating the Rays, bottom of the 6th. Papi's wrist is still kind of bothering him, but he won't rest until the Sox are done for the season, because that is how Papi plays. Full count. Fly out. Youk is up, Halladay is behind 3-0 on him. A few pitches later and its full count. Infield ground ball, out at first.
Lester is looking pretty good. Got his sixth K. Dang, Mikey couldn't make a play, but good stop anyway. I don't care if Halladay has retured 13 batters and Lester only retired 9. Scoreboard!
Walked him. Two on. Come on Lester! Masterson is warming up in the 'pen, I love watching him pitch!
DP for Cora, DP and Youk, inning over.
Mikey is up. Halladay is at 105 pitches, full count on Lowell. Base hit Mikey. Lets get a rally started! Bay-man is up, popped out. Bring on the Captain, base hit for Tek! Cora is up and takes one high, ball 1. Hits it, Tek's out at 2nd, but they can't get the double play on Cora. Coco is up to bat. Line to left, drops down for a hit and Mikey is in. Coco gets his second 2-out RBI. Jacoby is up. Pops out. Inning done, but another run to pad the lead. Yay!
Okay, I'm gonna shut it down so I can go and get ready to watch the Patriots game. This has been fun, but I'll blog later.
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Showing posts with label Wild Card. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wild Card. Show all posts
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Chasing the Rays is Fun, Especially if your the Sox
The Wild Card-leading Red Sox dropped one in the ninth at home against Tampa Bay last night, but relax Red Sox Nation. It's all good. Listen to the dugout quotes following the down-to-the-wire loss last night:
Sean Casey: "This is my 11th year in the big leagues, and this is one of the best teams I've been on, in terms of people...Talent-wise and people-wise, I don't think I've ever played on a team like this."
El Capitan (Varitek): "We need to continue what we've been doing. Playing the game right and going out and playing good baseball."
The ever-venerable Tito: "It's just a bunch of guys who seem to like to play baseball, it makes my job a lot more fun."
So while we're now 1.5 games behind the Rays instead of a half game up, we have some good games coming up, and good news is, we probably won't have to face Halladay.
Bring on the rubber-match. Go Sox!
Sean Casey: "This is my 11th year in the big leagues, and this is one of the best teams I've been on, in terms of people...Talent-wise and people-wise, I don't think I've ever played on a team like this."
El Capitan (Varitek): "We need to continue what we've been doing. Playing the game right and going out and playing good baseball."
The ever-venerable Tito: "It's just a bunch of guys who seem to like to play baseball, it makes my job a lot more fun."
So while we're now 1.5 games behind the Rays instead of a half game up, we have some good games coming up, and good news is, we probably won't have to face Halladay.
Bring on the rubber-match. Go Sox!
Monday, September 8, 2008
Red Sox Blank Rays, Close In On AL East
Red Sox 3 Rays 0. Lester pitched into the 8th, allowing 0 runs on 6 hits, striking out 9 and walking 3. Paps came in and got a 4 out save allowing 1 hit and striking out 3. With this win, the Red Sox pull into within a half game of the AL East-leading Rays and move up to 7 games in front of the idle Twins for the Wild Card.
Not really the best night for the bats, considering the Sox had 9 hits and only 3 runs, all of those coming in the bottom of the 1st. Lester pitched 7+ innings of shut-out baseball, and Jackson pitched 6 shut-out innings. Fortunately for the Sox, that early jump proved to be enough to win the game.
Tonight the Red Sox made baseball history, breaking the streak for most consecutive home sell-outs with 456, beating the Cleveland Indian's streak of 455. In honor of that, we will look at the 15 greatest moments at Fenway since May 15th, 2003 (when the sell-outs started).
Why 15? Well, 456 is reasons is way too many to cover in one blog, but 4+5+6=15, which is a much more manageable (not to mention readable!) amount.
15. April 22, 2007: Home Run Bonananza The Sox tie a major league record high 4 HR's
back to back to back to back home runs in the third to help the Sox onto their first sweep of the Yankees in Fenway since 1990. Hitting HRs were Manny, JD Drew, Lowell and
Varitek.
14. August 1 2008: A Brand New Bay Jason Bay makes his debut after the down-to-the-wire trade which sent Manny to LA and a few prospects to Pittsburgh. He has a great night,
hitting well and making a spectacular catch, even scoring the winning run on Jed Lowrie's
single in the 12th. This is not so great because of the game itself, but the fact that energy returned to the Red Sox as they played like a completely different team after ridding
themselves of Manny being Manny and his dramatic unhappiness.
13. October 25, 2007: Schill's Last Game: In the last home appearance of the Red Sox in
the 07 World Series, Schil and crew hang on to win a 2-1 pitcher's duel with the Rockies.
12. July 2, 2007 Ellsbury Scores from Second on a Wild Pitch: Three days into his major league tenure, Jacoby Ellsbury did the nearly impossible. He scored on a wild pitch from
second base. Texas reliever Willie Eyre hit catcher Gerald Laird in the leg with a pitch,
and Ellsbury was gone. He never stopped, never thought twice as third base coach waved him home.
11. October 5, 2007 Manny's First Walk-Off Home Run: Manny knocks a three-run shot out of the park to give the Boston Red Sox a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five American League
Division Series, beating the Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim) 6-3.
10. September 21, 2006 David Ortiz hits Red Sox Record Home Runs: David Ortiz
cemented himself in the Boston record books by hitting 54 home runs in a single season in
2006. It was his 51st, on this date, that put him past Jimmie Foxx’s single-season record,
and made him (officially) Boston's Home Run King.
9. April 5, 2007 Dice-K's Debut: Dike K strikes out ten in his major league debut and gives Sox fans a preview of all the Ks that are to come.
8. July 24, 2004 The Fight: A-Rod is hit
by a Bronson Arroyo pitch and
proceeds to jaw about it all the way
down the first base line. He and Varitek
have words, and bam! A-Rod gets a
face full of angry catcher's mit. A
bench-clearing brawl later, Tek, A-Rod,
Kenny Lofton, Gabe Kapler and Tito
were all ejected.
7. September 28, 2007 Red Sox vs.
Twins: A Red Sox win and a Yankee's loss gives Boston's its first division title in 12 years. Dice-K
racks up the K's and bows to the fans, while
Papelbon dances barefoot and thousands of fans
hang around for almost an hour to see the results of the Yankee's game.
6. May 13, 2007 The Mother's Day Miracle: Bottom of the 9th, the Red Sox are down 5-0 to
the Baltimore Orioles, Julio grounds out, then Coco singles on a throwing error by Ramon
Hernandez and Papi scores him. Mo Pena somehow manages a single that moves David to third. After both JD Drew and Youk manage a walk, scoring Papi, Tek comes up and
doubles, scoring both Drew and Mo. Hinske walks, and Youk is out at home (its very
close, though). Back up to bat is Lugo, who made the first out of the inning. He reaches on a throwing error and Hinske and Tek score to win the game.
5. October 20, 2007 JD Drew's clutch Grand Slam in game 6 of the ALCS: the Sox down to the Indians 3 games to 2, proved to be the straw that broke the Indians' back and
propelled the Sox to their second World Series win in four years. It was the shot that was
heard 'round Boston and will probably always be known as the 14 million dollar grand-slam, simply because with the bases loaded and no out, Fausto Carmona had struck out Manny and gotten Lowell to pop out, very few people had faith in the then-struggling outfielder.
4. September 1, 2007 Clay Buchholz's No-Hitter: In his second Major League start, rookie
pitcher Clay Buchholz tossed the 17th no-hitter in Red Sox history, striking out 9, walking three
and hitting one batter in the 10-0 defeat of the Baltimore Orioles. Why is this ranked behind
Lester's? Keep reading.
3. May 19, 2008 Jon Lester's No-Hitter: The reason behind this being ahead of Buchholz's
no-no is because not only was it the first Red Sox lefty no-no since 1956, it was also a
record for Jason Varitek, who has now caught 4 no-hitters, more than any other catching. Aided by a spectacular catch by Ellsbury and some heads-up infield plays, the Sox beat
the Royals 7-0.
2. October 18, 2004 ALCS Game 5: After going 12 innings the night before, the epic game 5
outdid it by going 14, ending when Big Papi's single brought in Damon for the win. The Sox would go on to Yankee stadium for the Bloody Sock game, and as the 26th team in playoff
history to face a 3-0 series deficit, become the first to force a Game Seven.
1. October 17 2004 ALCS Game 4: The Sox go 12 innings, with a walk-off homer in the
12th. But they never would have gotten there if Dave Roberts hadn't stolen 2nd and scored on Bill Mueller's single, tying the game 4-4 in the 9th. This sparked the Sox comeback,
down 3 games to none, to win it in seven take their first World Series in 86 years.
So there you go, 15 great moments from the sell-out period of Fenway park. Next up: A big time pitching show-down as Rays ace Kazmir takes on Sox stud Dice-K. Should be a great game, with the AL East being given to the winner. (If only for a day) So put on your best Papelbon glare and watch the game!
Not really the best night for the bats, considering the Sox had 9 hits and only 3 runs, all of those coming in the bottom of the 1st. Lester pitched 7+ innings of shut-out baseball, and Jackson pitched 6 shut-out innings. Fortunately for the Sox, that early jump proved to be enough to win the game.
Tonight the Red Sox made baseball history, breaking the streak for most consecutive home sell-outs with 456, beating the Cleveland Indian's streak of 455. In honor of that, we will look at the 15 greatest moments at Fenway since May 15th, 2003 (when the sell-outs started).
Why 15? Well, 456 is reasons is way too many to cover in one blog, but 4+5+6=15, which is a much more manageable (not to mention readable!) amount.
15. April 22, 2007: Home Run Bonananza The Sox tie a major league record high 4 HR's
back to back to back to back home runs in the third to help the Sox onto their first sweep of the Yankees in Fenway since 1990. Hitting HRs were Manny, JD Drew, Lowell and
Varitek.
14. August 1 2008: A Brand New Bay Jason Bay makes his debut after the down-to-the-wire trade which sent Manny to LA and a few prospects to Pittsburgh. He has a great night,
hitting well and making a spectacular catch, even scoring the winning run on Jed Lowrie's
single in the 12th. This is not so great because of the game itself, but the fact that energy returned to the Red Sox as they played like a completely different team after ridding
themselves of Manny being Manny and his dramatic unhappiness.
13. October 25, 2007: Schill's Last Game: In the last home appearance of the Red Sox in
the 07 World Series, Schil and crew hang on to win a 2-1 pitcher's duel with the Rockies.
12. July 2, 2007 Ellsbury Scores from Second on a Wild Pitch: Three days into his major league tenure, Jacoby Ellsbury did the nearly impossible. He scored on a wild pitch from
second base. Texas reliever Willie Eyre hit catcher Gerald Laird in the leg with a pitch,
and Ellsbury was gone. He never stopped, never thought twice as third base coach waved him home.
11. October 5, 2007 Manny's First Walk-Off Home Run: Manny knocks a three-run shot out of the park to give the Boston Red Sox a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five American League
Division Series, beating the Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim) 6-3.
10. September 21, 2006 David Ortiz hits Red Sox Record Home Runs: David Ortiz
cemented himself in the Boston record books by hitting 54 home runs in a single season in
2006. It was his 51st, on this date, that put him past Jimmie Foxx’s single-season record,
and made him (officially) Boston's Home Run King.
9. April 5, 2007 Dice-K's Debut: Dike K strikes out ten in his major league debut and gives Sox fans a preview of all the Ks that are to come.
8. July 24, 2004 The Fight: A-Rod is hit
by a Bronson Arroyo pitch and
proceeds to jaw about it all the way
down the first base line. He and Varitek
have words, and bam! A-Rod gets a
face full of angry catcher's mit. A
bench-clearing brawl later, Tek, A-Rod,
Kenny Lofton, Gabe Kapler and Tito
were all ejected.
7. September 28, 2007 Red Sox vs.
Twins: A Red Sox win and a Yankee's loss gives Boston's its first division title in 12 years. Dice-K
racks up the K's and bows to the fans, while
Papelbon dances barefoot and thousands of fans
hang around for almost an hour to see the results of the Yankee's game.
6. May 13, 2007 The Mother's Day Miracle: Bottom of the 9th, the Red Sox are down 5-0 to
the Baltimore Orioles, Julio grounds out, then Coco singles on a throwing error by Ramon
Hernandez and Papi scores him. Mo Pena somehow manages a single that moves David to third. After both JD Drew and Youk manage a walk, scoring Papi, Tek comes up and
doubles, scoring both Drew and Mo. Hinske walks, and Youk is out at home (its very
close, though). Back up to bat is Lugo, who made the first out of the inning. He reaches on a throwing error and Hinske and Tek score to win the game.
5. October 20, 2007 JD Drew's clutch Grand Slam in game 6 of the ALCS: the Sox down to the Indians 3 games to 2, proved to be the straw that broke the Indians' back and
propelled the Sox to their second World Series win in four years. It was the shot that was
heard 'round Boston and will probably always be known as the 14 million dollar grand-slam, simply because with the bases loaded and no out, Fausto Carmona had struck out Manny and gotten Lowell to pop out, very few people had faith in the then-struggling outfielder.
4. September 1, 2007 Clay Buchholz's No-Hitter: In his second Major League start, rookie
pitcher Clay Buchholz tossed the 17th no-hitter in Red Sox history, striking out 9, walking three
and hitting one batter in the 10-0 defeat of the Baltimore Orioles. Why is this ranked behind
Lester's? Keep reading.
3. May 19, 2008 Jon Lester's No-Hitter: The reason behind this being ahead of Buchholz's
no-no is because not only was it the first Red Sox lefty no-no since 1956, it was also a
record for Jason Varitek, who has now caught 4 no-hitters, more than any other catching. Aided by a spectacular catch by Ellsbury and some heads-up infield plays, the Sox beat
the Royals 7-0.
2. October 18, 2004 ALCS Game 5: After going 12 innings the night before, the epic game 5
outdid it by going 14, ending when Big Papi's single brought in Damon for the win. The Sox would go on to Yankee stadium for the Bloody Sock game, and as the 26th team in playoff
history to face a 3-0 series deficit, become the first to force a Game Seven.
1. October 17 2004 ALCS Game 4: The Sox go 12 innings, with a walk-off homer in the
12th. But they never would have gotten there if Dave Roberts hadn't stolen 2nd and scored on Bill Mueller's single, tying the game 4-4 in the 9th. This sparked the Sox comeback,
down 3 games to none, to win it in seven take their first World Series in 86 years.
So there you go, 15 great moments from the sell-out period of Fenway park. Next up: A big time pitching show-down as Rays ace Kazmir takes on Sox stud Dice-K. Should be a great game, with the AL East being given to the winner. (If only for a day) So put on your best Papelbon glare and watch the game!
Here's a video that the Red Sox showed to thank the fans for record sell-outs:
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Byrd and Boston Soar to Win, but Brady's Knee is a Big Loss
The Red Sox won. The Rays lost. The Patriots won. I should be jubilant and obnoxiously happy as a write this, but as it stands, I have almost no joy.
According to wire reports from Yahoo and another site (both citing anonymous sources "close" to the Patriots) say Tom Brady has a torn ACL and will be out for the season. However, this is not from the Patriots as of yet, and could be the same "sources" who told the Boston Herald about the Ram's walk-through being taped, which we all now know was wrong and unsubstantiated. There is no need to panic. I, for one, will not trust a report until it is coming from Bill B or Tommy or someone who I actually can see who said it. How can they know? He doesn't have an MRI until tomorrow! So unless you have MRI-vision, oh "sources" of Yahoo, then how can you possibly know? Or are you going on the expertise of the Jets players (who are in Miami currently), who watched the play on TV and said he had a torn ACL?
Too much speculation. I remain optimistic until the official word has come down.
Okay, on to baseball.
Papi ended a 19-game homer-less streak. Yay. Lots to smile about here.
According to wire reports from Yahoo and another site (both citing anonymous sources "close" to the Patriots) say Tom Brady has a torn ACL and will be out for the season. However, this is not from the Patriots as of yet, and could be the same "sources" who told the Boston Herald about the Ram's walk-through being taped, which we all now know was wrong and unsubstantiated. There is no need to panic. I, for one, will not trust a report until it is coming from Bill B or Tommy or someone who I actually can see who said it. How can they know? He doesn't have an MRI until tomorrow! So unless you have MRI-vision, oh "sources" of Yahoo, then how can you possibly know? Or are you going on the expertise of the Jets players (who are in Miami currently), who watched the play on TV and said he had a torn ACL?
Too much speculation. I remain optimistic until the official word has come down.
Okay, on to baseball.
Papi ended a 19-game homer-less streak. Yay. Lots to smile about here.
David Ortiz after hitting a 2-run homer. Image found here
Varitek's average has stayed in the high 220s for over two weeks now. That's good news for him, it meas he's probably closer to his old hitting self.
Ellsbury hit one and walked once (a totally clutch RBI hit with 2-out), Youk is back, Coco had an amazing night, and Byrd and co held the Rangers to 7 scoreless innings. The Rays, White Sox, Twins and Yankees all won, which does nothing but help the Sox in their wild card/AL east race.
PS...anyone notice that the Rays have dropped the past 3 games? They come to Fenway for a three game series, probable pitchers: Lester vs. Jackson. The Sox are hitting .308 against Jackson while the Rays are hitting just .250 against Lester. Should be an interesting game, especially with the AL East now squarely on the line and the Rays coming in having lost three, while the Sox come in having won the rubber match against Texas.
Bring on the Rays. God, if you can hear me, please, let Tommy be okay and let the Rays lose this next series.
Hey, God cares about sports too!
Ellsbury hit one and walked once (a totally clutch RBI hit with 2-out), Youk is back, Coco had an amazing night, and Byrd and co held the Rangers to 7 scoreless innings. The Rays, White Sox, Twins and Yankees all won, which does nothing but help the Sox in their wild card/AL east race.
PS...anyone notice that the Rays have dropped the past 3 games? They come to Fenway for a three game series, probable pitchers: Lester vs. Jackson. The Sox are hitting .308 against Jackson while the Rays are hitting just .250 against Lester. Should be an interesting game, especially with the AL East now squarely on the line and the Rays coming in having lost three, while the Sox come in having won the rubber match against Texas.
Bring on the Rays. God, if you can hear me, please, let Tommy be okay and let the Rays lose this next series.
Hey, God cares about sports too!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Rockin' The House That Ruth Built
One more. That's it. Tomorrow will be the last game ever played by the biggest rivalry in the history of American sports. It is also conceivably the Yankee's last chance to get a shot at October this year. They are now seven games out of the Wild Card race, and only four head-to-head games left with the Wild Card leading Red Sox.
The AL East remains the third tightest division in baseball (not counting the wild cards). The Mets and Phillies continue their tango, the Phillies losing tonight to fall .5 games behind the Mets, with Chicago getting hammered by the O's tonight, the Twins moved to 1 game behind the ChiSox, and with a Tampa Bay win the Red Sox remain 3.5 games back on the Rays. While it is true that the Dodgers are only 3 games back on the D-Backs, Arizona has lost the past 4 and LA has lost the past 6 games. That race is going to come down to who sucks less, as both teams are hovering just above or just below .500. The streaking Cubbies have a secure 5.5 game lead on the streaking Brewers, but no one is more secure in their position than the Angels. Even if the A's beat the Angel's tonight, they will still be 19.5 games back, while the second place Texans will be a mere 15 games back on the almighty Las Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Lets talk Sox-Stripes, though.
Ponson got a little rocked and knocked out early. Ramirez and Marte held down the fort, Veras and Robertson got rocked. A game that was tied until the 5th and close at 4-2 until the 8th ended up with a score of 11-3. A solid start for Byrd, a good appearance for Delcarmen, and can we discuss what a beastly amazing team player Timlin is? He's one of those guys who just quietly does his job, acting as a great veteran presence in a mostly young 'pen.
Varitek continues to bring his batting average out of the gutter. Cora was the only Sox player not to get on base, but he hit a sac-fly, so I'm okay with that. Jason Bay was phenomenal with a triple and a double. He may not be Manny, but would Manny actually be playing as much as Bay has? Would he have as many RBIs? Would our stress levels be much higher? Pointless questions, moving on. Ellsbury had two hits tonight, in his spot at the top. Maybe he's getting used to leading off. Youk, who is having a, dare I say it, MVP year, was his normal, beastly batting self. And my boy, (I have several) Dustin Pedroia hit his first grand slam to really pound the Yanks in the 8th.
I gotta say, though I was balancing this game with Project Runway (a really interesting combination, let me tell you) I realized something. While this is historic and it's a big deal ,y ever-cynical father pointed something out to me: even in a new stadium, the Yankees will always be hanging around to screw the Red Sox over in some way. The Yankees will still be the same pinstripe-wearing, stash-growing, hair-cutting, no-name-on-the-back-of-the-jersey Bombers we are bred to despise. So no sentimentality, we will always have those stories about how Schil took the mound with a bloody sock, the 2003 disaster, the 2004 miracle, and so on, those memories will always be there. And the Yanks getting a shiny new stadium to make Steinbrenner more ridiculous sums of money just makes them more and more the Evil Empire.
Last game is tomorrow night. If there ever was a must-win for a team to keep post-season hopes alive, its tomorrow night for the Yanks.
The AL East remains the third tightest division in baseball (not counting the wild cards). The Mets and Phillies continue their tango, the Phillies losing tonight to fall .5 games behind the Mets, with Chicago getting hammered by the O's tonight, the Twins moved to 1 game behind the ChiSox, and with a Tampa Bay win the Red Sox remain 3.5 games back on the Rays. While it is true that the Dodgers are only 3 games back on the D-Backs, Arizona has lost the past 4 and LA has lost the past 6 games. That race is going to come down to who sucks less, as both teams are hovering just above or just below .500. The streaking Cubbies have a secure 5.5 game lead on the streaking Brewers, but no one is more secure in their position than the Angels. Even if the A's beat the Angel's tonight, they will still be 19.5 games back, while the second place Texans will be a mere 15 games back on the almighty Las Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Lets talk Sox-Stripes, though.
Ponson got a little rocked and knocked out early. Ramirez and Marte held down the fort, Veras and Robertson got rocked. A game that was tied until the 5th and close at 4-2 until the 8th ended up with a score of 11-3. A solid start for Byrd, a good appearance for Delcarmen, and can we discuss what a beastly amazing team player Timlin is? He's one of those guys who just quietly does his job, acting as a great veteran presence in a mostly young 'pen.
Varitek continues to bring his batting average out of the gutter. Cora was the only Sox player not to get on base, but he hit a sac-fly, so I'm okay with that. Jason Bay was phenomenal with a triple and a double. He may not be Manny, but would Manny actually be playing as much as Bay has? Would he have as many RBIs? Would our stress levels be much higher? Pointless questions, moving on. Ellsbury had two hits tonight, in his spot at the top. Maybe he's getting used to leading off. Youk, who is having a, dare I say it, MVP year, was his normal, beastly batting self. And my boy, (I have several) Dustin Pedroia hit his first grand slam to really pound the Yanks in the 8th.
I gotta say, though I was balancing this game with Project Runway (a really interesting combination, let me tell you) I realized something. While this is historic and it's a big deal ,y ever-cynical father pointed something out to me: even in a new stadium, the Yankees will always be hanging around to screw the Red Sox over in some way. The Yankees will still be the same pinstripe-wearing, stash-growing, hair-cutting, no-name-on-the-back-of-the-jersey Bombers we are bred to despise. So no sentimentality, we will always have those stories about how Schil took the mound with a bloody sock, the 2003 disaster, the 2004 miracle, and so on, those memories will always be there. And the Yanks getting a shiny new stadium to make Steinbrenner more ridiculous sums of money just makes them more and more the Evil Empire.
Last game is tomorrow night. If there ever was a must-win for a team to keep post-season hopes alive, its tomorrow night for the Yanks.
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