Last (Regular Season) Game at Yankee Stadium

The Red Sox blew a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2 to the Yankees on a walk off single by Jason Giambi yesterday. Giambi hit a 2 out homer against Hideki Okajima to tie the game in the seventh. You can read all about that I'm sure all over.

Sometimes it's the little plays that make a difference though. Lester had 2 outs in the 7th with two strikes on the Yankees first baseman Cody Ransom. Ransom foul tipped the next pitch right into Varitek's glove. If he had just sweezed it, Lester's out of the jam and the Sox are up 2-0. But Jason dropped it, and Ransom hit the next pitch for a double, causing Francona to go to the bullpen. He succeed at the inherited runner and went to Okajima, who immediately let up the aforementioned 2 run homer to Giambi.

That botched foul tip, though I doubt it got any press coverage, was the difference in the game.

Oh well. Good Riddance Yankee Stadium. Are they blowing it up or keeping it as a monument? If they're blowing it up, how do I apply to be the guy that gets to push the button?

Obnoxious.

I went to the Phillies/Cubs game last night here in Chicago. Really good game. The Cubs ended up winning on a Ramirez grand slam in the later innings which was unfortunate... but the game was still a lot of fun.

On the way out, however... I started getting really annoyed.

Cub fans were yelling things like, "Phillies suck," "Utley sucks," and "Joe Carter."

First of all. Clearly, the Phillies don't suck. Three teams in the NL [including the Cubs and the Mets who just took over first in the East] have a better record than the Phils. Three. That's it. You don't suck and have that kind of record.

Secondly. Chase went 3 for 5 last night and also reached on an error... getting him on base 4 times. He also scored a run and drove in a run. You don't suck and have a day at the park like that.

Thirdly. Joe Carter? Really? That's just mean.

I don't like obnoxious fans. I'm of the opinion that people should be good sports. Win graciously. Lose graciously. [Granted... I'll say that Dallas sucks until the day I die. But that's b/c of a lifetime of loathing for the Cowboys.] Cubs fans don't hate the Phillies. We're not rivals. Philly fans don't care about the Cubs.

Some people... those drunk, in particular... just have nothing of consequence or intelligence to say, but figure they should open their mouths anyway. I wish they wouldn't.

Yankee Stadium

The Red Sox play at Yankee Stadium for the final time ever today at 1pm.  Here I'm making the not so bold prediction that one of the two teams doesn't make the playoffs this year.  By the way, although the Rays could still lose 32 straight and finish below .500, I'm conceding defeat.  Tampa Bay will win more games then they lose.  But they're still a bunch of thugs and hooligans.

I always hated Yankee Stadium.  I've never actually been there, but I have many bad memories watching games on TV.  I learned life wasn't fair in '93 or '94.  Both the Sox and the Yankees were way out of contention, but to a boy of 7 or 8, that's irrelevant.  The Red Sox had a lead in the ninth and with two outs, a Yankee popped up to end the game.  But a Yankee fan ran out onto the field before the pitch, so the third base umpire ruled that the play was dead.  If memory serves correct, the kid was 13 or so.  Given a fourth out for free, the Yankees rallied and won that game.  I didn't even know about the rivialry then (the Yankees actually had sucked up until that point in my life, so no one cared...) but I was upset.  I remember listening to a Roger Clemens interview later and he said it was unfortunate it wasn't like football and you couldn't penalize the home team 5 yards or something.  

1996 continued my lessons of life isn't fair, but this time on a bigger stage.  I had matured enough in my fanhood to realize the Yankees are evil, so I rooted against them with all my heart as they played the Orioles in the ALCS.  In game one, Jeter flew out to right field, only this time another kid, probably also 13, reached out and pulled the ball over the wall.  An ump was standing right there and missed it somehow.  Jerk.  The Yankees won the game and the series.  

That brings me to bad memory number 3.  Unlike the previous generations which delt with 22 Yankee Championships, I had escaped them the first 11 years of my life.  In fact, before the 96 season, the Red Sox had the sole pennant and the only division titles (4 out of 11!) in my lifetime in the storied rivalry.  I remember 10 years to the day after the Calvin Schiraldi/Rich Gedman collapse (often blamed on Bill Buckner, who certainly didn't help...) the Yankees had a 3-2 lead in the World Series.  I saw lots of simularities between '86 and '96.  For example, game six was in New York.  The American League team was up 3-2 in the series.  The games were on the same day of the calandar year.  It seemed obvious to me that history was repeating and the National League team would come back and win in heartbreaking fashion.  I shared this with my cousin Danny, who pointed out my observations implied that something bad for the Red Sox and good for New York was bound to happen again.  Unfortunately, he was right.  I believe the last out was a Brave popping out in foul territory just behind third base to Wade Boggs, a gutless trader if there ever was one.  

The 1999 ALCS was no better.  The Yankees and Red Sox met up for the first time in official post season history.  Long story short, the umpires screwed the Red Sox out of game 1.  In the tenth, Jose Offerman was on first and a grounder was hit to Jeter, who threw to Knoblach.  Knoblach didn't catch it, but the ump called Offerman out anyway.  Bernie Williams homered in the Bottom of the inning.  A similar call happened later, which according to espn.com is the single worst call of all time.  Search Chuck Knoblach phantom tag if you're interested.  That happened at Fenway, so I won't bother.  There were other horrible calls in that series, all of which went New York's way as the MLB handed them the pennant, but I won't get into it right now.

Skip ahead to 2003, game 7.  Red Sox up 4-0 with Pedro on the mound, the Rocket sent to an early shower.  I stood in my dorm room and applauded respectfully as he exited.  "That's the last time the greatest pitcher of all time will ever pitch."  I don't want to talk much about what happened next.  It's all a blur.  New York scored 2 to make it 4-2 in the seventh.  Then David Ortiz hit what I still feel to this day is the most clutch homer ever, silencing the crowd making it 5-2 in the 8th.  Pedro's back and the lead's gone.  The game's tied in the 8th.  I remember vaguly Todd Walker coming up to hit with a runner on second in the ninth or tenth or something and declaring "I swear to God, if he gets a hit here, I'll name my first born son Todd Walker McColgan."  He didn't, though I would have.  He had a great post season.  Aaron Boone hit a homer in the 11th.  It was so predictable.  There were so many fair weather Yankee fans around, and I mocked them earlier saying I bet they couldn't even name the third baseman.  They couldn't.  And he's the one that came back to haunt me.  

I remember screams of the one Yankee fan on my floor.  His window looked directly into mine.  He screamed "MAYBE NEXT YEAR" over and over again for an hour, right into my window.  I just shut the TV off and the lights and laid on my bed listening to him.  People kept checking on me.  On drunk girl said they were all worried I was gonna kill myself.  My mom kept calling too.  I think she was thinking the same.  

On top of all this, there were countlessly many games where the Red Sox just got destroyed there.  I really don't like that place very much.  Yeah, 2004 was sweet, especially game 6.  It was unbelievable that two calls, Mark Bellhorn's homer and A-Rod tackling Arroyo, were overturned and went the Red Sox way.  They don't make up for the past though, as those should have gone against the Yankees anyway, just like Jeter flying out and Knoblach dropping the ball and the phantom tag.  I guess 2004 taught me sometimes justice does prevail.

I'm personally glad to see it go.  The Red Sox won Wednesday, 11-3.  NESN kept showing little kids in Yankee hats and shirts who looked miserable.  As bad as it sounds, I enjoy their misery.  The Yankees and their fans ruined so many of my summer nights in years passed.  It's good to see the tide has turned.  Here's hoping the new stadium continues not only the championship draught but also the recent Red Sox success there.

Boo-Birds

This article in today's News Journal [out of Wilmington, DE] cracked me up and was too good to not share. Author Kevin Noonan is kind of the resident DE sports guru who's very familiar with how Philly Phans think and act. He should be... cuz he is one. So without further ado...

This is a city that is as well known for its boo-birds as it is for the Liberty Bell. It's a dubious distinction of which many sports fans around here are proud.

But even though it seems as if we boo everybody, not all booing is equal. We tailor it to each individual situation, and sometimes to each individual.

There's the boo of frustration, which happens when Pat Burrell strikes out with the bases loaded.

There's the boo of anger, which Jimmy Rollins has been hearing the last few days.

There's the boo of bitterness, which is directed at players like former Phils Billy Wagner and Scott Rolen.

And then there's the boo of respect, the kind Manny Ramirez heard on Friday night during the Phillies' 8-1 victory over his Los Angeles Dodgers.

Larry Bird used to hear it, and so did Magic Johnson and Lawrence Taylor and Emmitt Smith and Mario Lemieux. They were athletes the Philly fans hated, but also admired. They were athletes the Philly fans booed with all their leather-lunged might, but those same fans would have been thrilled to cheer for them if they had worn the home uniform.

Ramirez fits into that category. Some people might not like his king-sized ego. Some might not like his choice of hair style. But everybody loves the way he swings a bat and brings energy to a lineup.

Back to me. I LOVE the fact that there are indeed different types of boos. Seriously. And for some reason... we really DO take pride in it. Such a funny thing.

A fellow reader added this comment: "Nice try, Noonan...but you're flat wrong. David Wright gets the boo of respect. Manny Rameriz gets booed because he's a <>."

I actually agree with the reader more than Noonan in this case. My respect for Manny is waning, as I've previously discussed.

I'd give the boo of bitterness to Wagner and Rolen as noted, as well as J.D. Drew.

The boo of admiration would go to a lot of players... but specifically I'd have to think of guys like Wright, Holliday, Beltran, Glavine, Maddux, Smoltz, both Chipper and Andruw, and prolly some other guys, too. But the boo of admiration is reserved mainly for guys who're on rival teams like the Mets or Braves. Gotta include Holliday in there, too, b/c of the NL run last year.

Anyway... love the article. Love the News Journal. Love Noonan. Love booing. Love the Phils.

Playoffs?

In the beginning of the year, I probably picked the Red Sox to win the World Series. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've predicted that every year since I learned the World Series existed in '91. However, now it's not even certain they'll be in the playoffs this year. They're 4.5 games behind the Artists Formally Known as the Devil Rays* and are clinging to a slim half game wild card lead.

The problems with the team are so numerous it's tough to tell where to begin. First, I guess we'll start with the trading deadline, and more specifically, the Manny deal. Apparently, everyone was sick of him and my friend Jose is convinced he was throwing at bats and purposely making errors in his last days in Boston. According to rumors, a group of veterans including Varitek and Lowell went to Theo to tell him Manny had to go. I don't care how much of this is true, you don't trade away Manny Rameriz. You find a way to make him happy, and then he produces. That's the bottom line. Since he left Boston, he has 6 homers, 21 RBI, a .500 OBP and he's hitting a mere .413.

Former Yankee and Red Sox manager Joe McCarthy had a tie policy. Everyone had to wear ties unless they were in their uniform. Ted Williams didn't wear ties, and the media started asking McCarthy what he was gonna do about it. McCarthy said he wasn't gonna do anything about it cause "If you can't get along with a .400 hitter, you have no business being in the game." Whatever it took to make Manny happy, the team should have done it. He is the greatest Red Sox outfielder of my life time, and the fact they gave up two prospects, admittedly not great prospects, but two prospects none the less, plus they're paying all of Manny's salary and all they got was Jason Bay is silly. I'm not blaming Jason Bay for this. I really don't have a strong opinion on him one way or the other yet. He seems to be a right handed J.D. Drew. The good one from this year, not the bad one from last year.

Problem number 2 is the bullpen. In tonight's game, I watched Aardsma, Lopez, and Timlin all suck. One guy comes out after the other and the only question I have is how many runs will they give up? It's a given that every inherited runner will score, regardless of who comes through the bullpen door (even if it's Papelbon...). For Aardsma, Lopez, Timlin, and DelCarmen, at least 1 run and usually 2 are guarented. It got to the point tonight where the Red Sox warmed up middle infielder Alex Cora and considered bringing him in. I was rooting for him to come in and pitch a 1-2-3 inning. If he had, it would easily propel him to the top half of the bullpen depth chart.

The third problem is the rotation. Lester has been great, Diasuke has been good. Wakefield has been Wakefield. He's a .500 pitcher, which isn't bad for a number 5. Everyone else has been disapointing, none worse then Josh Beckett. I honestly thought Beckett was the reincarnation of Derek Lowe in 2006. He pitched well when things were going well, then he blew up and pitched like crap if one thing went wrong. I didn't trust him in 2007 even though he had a Cy Young calaber year until the playoffs. Then he pitched his rear end off in October and put forth the best performance in post season history leading me to declare him the best pitcher to ever wear a Red Sox uniform. This year he's 11-9 with a 4.34 ERA. That mediocrity is something I expect from Tim Wakefield, not the ace. Add on top of that Beckett now has numbness in his hand and might miss his next start, and this isn't what I expected from the heir to Pedro Martinez.

Buchholz was in my mind gonna be what Lester currently is. Well, maybe not that good, at least not yet. But he hasn't won a game since May! He's 2-9 with an ERA in the 6's, plus he got hammered tonight after the offense spotted him a 4 run lead against an Oriole team he no hit a year ago. He was optioned to AA Portland after tonight's shalacking. Interesting tidbit from the official press release, the Sox are 3-12 when Buchholz starts, 70-42 when anyone else does. I have no idea whose gonna replace him. Maybe they'll activate Wakefield from the DL.

I was originally gonna blame Epstein for problems 2 and 3, but I decided not to at the last minute. It's hard to considering the injuries (Schilling, Colon, Wakefield) and people underpreforming (Buchholz and Okajima) he's had to deal with. I was also gonna blame Schilling for being injured,but I decided not to. He's done way to much for the Boston Red Sox and I don't blame anyone for signing a deal that gives them millions to play a game...even if they're too hurt to play.

*-note as of tonight, the Artists Formally Known as the Devil Rays have 77 wins. That means my earlier prediction still has a mathematical chance of being true.

The Jimmy Fund

So, the Red Sox official charity is the Jimmy Fund. It's part of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, but the focus is on kids. For the past seven years, the Red Sox along with radio station AM 850 WEEI and cable station NESN have taken a day to fund raise for it. This year, it's two days. Maybe it always has been. I can't remember. The goal is 4 million. They're at 3.7 million right now.

I was listening to WEEI all day today, and they had all sorts of little kids who were dying or recovering or survivors. It was heartbreaking. If you heard them you'd donate. If you think you could spare anything, even a few bucks, I urge you too. Call 877-738-1234 or else click here. The fundraiser ends tonight, but it's never too late to give. Here's the Jimmy Fund's home page for future reference.

UPDATE: This is a huge event every year with a great many contributors from all over. Everyone gives, including many affiliated with the Yankees. George Steinbrenner's always very generous, as is Yankee fan Donald Trump who threw out the first pitch last year wearing a Jimmy Fund Jersey cause he hates the Red Sox and won't wear there's. Here's a picture of Bill Cosby throwing out last night's first pitch in a shirt near and dear to all our hearts.

Texas vs Boston

When I tuned in last night the score was Boston 10, Texas 2. The Sox added 2 more in the 3rd to make it 12-2. My only thoughts at the time were about whether or not Zink could go 7 innings and let the bullpen rest. Three hours later, Texas had the lead. In all my life, I never remember the Red Sox blowing a 10 run lead. According to Sports Illustrated's web page, the Red Sox were beating the Blue Jays 10-0 after 6 when I was 4 years old in 1989 and lost the game 13-11. I guess that's the only other time a Red Sox team has blown that big a lead.

There were a lot of crazy plays that went Texas way. Coco Crisp had a fly ball land inside his glove and then fall out. Crisp argued it was on the tranfer, but the umpire ruled it wasn't a catch. The official score keeper ruled it a double, not an error. That, along with 8 Ranger runs, pretty much sums up the fifth. Oh yeah...and it took Lopez and Aardsma to get out of the it in a game I was hoping the starter would go at least 7.

In the bottom of the fifth, Ortiz appeared to hit a homer, but an umpire ruled a fan reached out and interfeared with the ball. They decided it would have hit the top of the centerfield wall and gave Ortiz a double. Myself and all of Baltimore is currently wondering where this umpiring crew was during the 1996 ALCS. Aside from fantasy numbers, it didn't matter much, as Youkilis homered the very next at bat.

In the sixth with one out and a runner on third, a ground ball was hit that deflected off Youkilis. Pedroia picked it up and had plenty of time to toss to first to get the sure out, and even looked that way. Instead, he decided to throw home. Kevin Cash made a great play just to catch the horrible throw. The first thing you learn in little league is to take the sure out. Pedroia must have been sick that day. Than man who reached on the Youk error/Pedroia fielder's choice eventually scored on a sacrifice fly. Had Pedrioa just gone to first and gotten the sure out, the inning's over on that fly ball. Stupidity.

In the seventh, Okajima came on with a runner on first and 1 out. It was ugly how he did it, but after loading the bases he got out of the inning without allowing any runs. I mention this only cause it's the first time I've seen Okajima not allow an inherited runner to score this year. Hopefully he's gotten better at that in my time away. It's impossible for him to be any worse.

Anyway, in a game the Red Sox lead 10-0 and 12-2, they came up to bat trailing 16-15 in the eight. Thankfully, they scored 4 runs capped by a three run Youkilis homer to take a 19-16 lead into the 9th. The Rangers got 1 off Papelbon, but the Red Sox escaped with a 19-17 win.

Also, Tampa Bay lost and New York beat Minnesota. Sickening as it sounds, it's actually good the Yankees won. It helps cause Minnesota's in second behind Boston for the wildcard.

Lastly, at the risk of comprimising what little respect and integrity I have left, I'm keeping the faith that Tampa Bay will never finish above .500. Right now they have 71 wins with 44 games to play. In order to finish above .500, the Rays need only to go 11-33. 10-34 or worse may seem impossible. However, I've been watching them for 10 years play their role as the most worthless team in professional sports history. I'm confident if any team can pull it off, they can.

Byrd a Red Sox

I'm back in Boston. I don't really know what's going on. I feel like such a fair weather fan. I saw part of the game Sunday, a 6-5 loss to the White Sox. I was technically still in Anchorage, but I was at a sports bar called Boston's. Close enough.

Apparently Buchholtz hasn't been everything I hoped for since I left. That's been the talk the last two days. I logged on to RedSox.com and saw the Sox traded a player to be named later and cash to Cleveland for Paul Byrd, who if I recall correctly, pitched better than Carmona and Sabathia in the ALCS last year. He's apparently gonna take Buchholtz spot in the rotation.

Wakefield's on the DL. The Sox have another knuckleballer starting tonight, Charlie Zinc. He's been really good with Pawtucket, 13-4 with a 2.89 ERA, 2 complete games and a shutout. It's his first start in the Majors. I remember Wakefield coming out of nowhere in 95 and leading the Sox to the division title that year. If Zinc can be half as effective for half as long during his Red Sox career, I'll be thrilled. He's pretty old for making his debut, about to turn 29 latter this month.

Obnoxious

Top of the 9th in LA... Dodgers lead Philly 8-4. Everyone's ready to go except... left field is...vacant?

Where the heck is Manny??

After an awkward period of time [while people searched for him], he runs out from the dugout... grinning and looking ridiculous with his baggy pants and shirt not buttoned up.

From the announcers: "Well, we did a little special on "Manny being Manny,"... and we've got more. He's unbuttoned, he's late... who knows, huh? Who knows."

Absolutely obnoxious. His egocentrism and lack of seriousness about the game are not only annoying... but they also make the game seem like a joke.

You've got guys playing their hearts out... hustling down the line, chasing down balls in the outfield. It's like those guys realize that people are paying good money to watch them work hard. They realize that it's a privilege to be on the field in the first place and don't take it for granted.

And then there's Manny.

I've said it before... but one of these days [or years] Manny's offensive contribution will be outweighed by his mediocre defense and his lack of heart. On his way to becoming a player of little consequence, he'll go back to the AL and end up as a DH for awhile, I'm sure. [Which may happen sooner than later as he's hoping to go to the Yanks during the offseason. Apparently he wants to get back at the Red Sox or something. Good grief.]

He's a great hitter... one of the best of this generation. He'll make it to the Hall as his bat deserves to be there. But I wish the powers that be wouldn't tolerate so much stupidity and laziness from him. There's a higher standard for baseball players... and that he gets away with so much is an embarrassment.

Baseball is too good for Manny.

It's easy cheering for the Red Sox

As a Jason Bay / new Red Sox fan, I am discovering just how easy and fun it is to like this team.

Mainly, there is this: The team is good. This therefore motivates me to actually seek the results of every game, and even more amazing, to find out how the Rays and Yankees are doing as well!

I like it.

Another thing is that their fans are intelligent. I've enjoyed becoming acquainted with the smart blogs Over The Monster and Joy of Sox.

Finally, I didn't realize how much of a fan I am of Bay personally until I saw him succeeding in games that mattered. My heart skips a beat whenever he's at the plate now and when he has a nice play or a good hit I get so excited!! Because what he does actually affects the fortunes of a team now. I have a feeling he's going to be better than ever with the Sox.

Standing Ovation

Another title I considered for this post:

"Go Red Sox," because as I've said, I will cheer for Jason Bay's new team until the Pirates are good again. I will still be a Pirates fan, of course, but you can expect me to follow the Red Sox closely come playoff time, especially when Bay's at the plate.

But ultimately when I think about the trade deadline, I am blown away by the Pirates' rookie GM Neal Huntington.

Huntington was hired with no prospects and a pathetic major league roster. Many fans clamored this offseason for him to trade away Bay, Jack Wilson, Nady, Marte, and others right away. He resisted.

As it turned out, every one of those guys improved on last year's performances, especially Nady and Bay, who churned out All-Star-caliber years.

Another player improved, our center fielder Nate McLouth. The result was that we had a pretty darn good offense this season. Our pitching was terrible though, worst in the league. Conventional wisdom says to hang on for dear life to those hitters and try desperately to improve pitching through trades and offseason signings.

That is perhaps what former GM Dave Littlefield would have done, desperate for the team to look at least average, mortgaging the future for the illusion of competing.

But Huntington made the right choice. He knows that to truly compete, the Pirates need a stronger minor league system and not just talent at the major league level, but talent with depth. After making no significant moves in the offseason, Huntington had what appears to be a decent draft, although there are still many good players from the draft who haven't signed.

At the deadline, all eyes were now on the former Indians Assistant GM to make his move. And he performed a magic trick.

Over the weekend, he sent Xavier Nady (an impending free agent) and Damasco Marte to the Bronx in return for one top-shelf-potential-but-very-young OF prospect and three very ordinary, average pitching prospects. (Of course, they instantly became the Pirates' 2nd, 3rd, and 4th best pitching prospects.)

Some praised the return Huntington got for a LOOGY and a mediocre OF having a career year who would leave in a couple months. Others complained that it wasn't enough. Perhaps it's not an easy call.

As it turned out, though, Neal had mysterious ways, and ulterior motives in making a New York trade five days before the deadline.

Still spouting lies that the Pirates had no serious intentions of trading Jason Bay, Huntington began talks with two teams who suddenly had incentive to improve: the Yankees division rivals Tampa Bay and Boston. Tampa Bay, whose system is so rich with prospects that they don't know what to do with them, seemed unwilling to budge on a few players the Pirates were demanding. Meanwhile, Boston, who needed to rid themselves of Ramierez, searched desperately for the right team to send him to so that they could replace him with Bay.

At this point, TB and Boston had incentive not just to one-up the Yankees but to avoid having the other team improve. Not only was Huntington selling Bay at his highest value, but he was in a self-created perfect situation for negotiating with the upper hand.

As a result, Huntington was able to reject offers all week right up until the last second, ultimately taking 3B Andy LaRoche, SP Brandon Morris, RP Craig Hansen, and OF Brandon Moss. From what I've read in the past 24 hours, LaRoche is a gem, a major-league ready player who should eventually be a star. Morris has star potential and is only 21. Hansen and Moss have less potential but can step right in and be certain contributors for years here.

This deal was more fruitful than any of the rumored deals we "had together" with Florida or Tampa Bay. Huntington took players at their peak value, traded them to a team who had incentive to trade that was created by Huntington, and picked up great prospects who are being undervalued by the Dodgers, along with solid contributors fromo Boston.

Bravo, Neal. For two impending free agents and Jason Bay, you got 3 guys who SHOULD be future All-Stars and 5 other guys who should be contributors on the Pirates' eventual turnaround team in a couple years.

Until then, GO RED SOX!!