Farewell, Jimmy

It is a strange thing how I feel about Jim Edmonds being traded. For most of the last couple years I can only say that I had little confidence in Jim at the plate, usually forseeing a strikeout on a pitch up around his helmet. I was surprised when they signed him to a two year $19M contract last year since he had done so poorly and been so hurt the year before...and he didn't seem to have much left in the tank. Probably from running into so many walls and throwing himself all over centerfield so long. (My roommate--loser Cub fan--seems to think all Jim does is catch the ball and fall down...cynic...he just doesn't know baseball).

So, after half wishing they hadn't resigned him and thrown money at a player so obviously not going to live up to it and groaning when he would come to the plate in clutch situations...well, I am sad that he is gone. I was a little surprised, to tell you the truth. Not just because another team would want to trade for him (and I hope he plays well for the Pads...what about Cameron, though?). Jim just seemed like one of those guys the Cardinals would hold onto because he was a real Cardinal and would retire a Cardinal. He has certainly been a fan favorite for years and it won't be the same without him in center. I won't miss his swing-and-miss approach to hitting these last few years, but he was amazing out in the field and still gave me confidence that that part of the diamond was covered. I guess this is what happens when a team gets old and needs to start looking to the future.

Farewell, Jimmy. You will be missed. (and not just by my friend Brian, who likes to pretend you are his biological father)

what a sad, sad day

i can't believe the phillies didn't give aaron rowand what he wanted. he was looking for a long-term deal where he could settle down for awhile. and the phils weren't willing to give it to him, so he moved on.

i think they may have been scared of another pat burrell incident.

burrell was a beast a few years ago... and they gave him a huge contract to keep him in philly. problem was, he started sucking. for three years he became an albatross that the phillies had no choice but to carry, since no other team wanted to pick up a mediocre, over-payed player. it was helpful for the bat of... well, "pat the bat" to pick up again the second half of this past season.

back to rowand. here's a guy who thrives in philadelphia b/c he's a philly-type of guy. he appeals to the blue-collar, gritty south philly crowd b/c he's a gritty-run-into-the-wall-and-break-your-nose kinda guy. that's who we want in philly.

sadly, before rowand, we hadn't had a guy like him since my favorite baseball player of all time, lenny dykstra. coincidentally, also a centerfielder who was covered in dirt after every game. or was it his tobacco juice? ehh... i think it was both.

let's talk about the philadelphia management for a moment. their out loud excuse is that they don't want to pay the money to keep rowand there long-term when they need to spend the money on good pitching.

problem #1: they don't get good pitchers. they get average guys who they say "have a lot of potential." so they don't keep rowand [who, for argument's sake was perhaps a little bit greedy and would have been better off playing three years in a contending city than spending five in san fran, who for all intents and purposes sucks] to save money... and do what with it? THEY SURE DON'T GO AFTER HIGH QUALITY PITCHERS! they're looking at average guys and are willing to give them a shot.

problem #2: there is no shot available to average guys at citizen's bank park. it's a hitter's ball park... and the only way for a pitcher to truly be successful there is to be GREAT... not average.
countless pitchers over the last few years [garcia, eaton, lidle, leiber, etc.] who came in with high hopes sucked.

solution: when your pitching sucks, and there's no hope for having a solid pitching order b/c you're playing most of your games at cbp, it would make the most sense to bulk up your offensive line-up as much as humanly possible and spend the money to bring in ridiculously good pitchers.

this means, keeping your gold-glove, all-star, .300-hitting center fielder.

it means keeping michael bourn, potentially the fastest man in baseball right now.

it means getting rid of two of your four mid-career 3rd basemen to build up some cash or three of your four if you're gonna go after a great corner guy.

it means getting rid of the sucky catcher you paid big bucks for last off season who didn't end up starting after all to find a great 3rd baseman or better yet, some high-quality, sustainable pitching. [which... in looking at their roster, they seemed to have done.]

it means not letting GREAT players leave... like curt schilling all those years ago... who they thought was probably done [though i'll never know why]... but ended up being a hero on what... three world series teams?

the management in philadelphia is insufferable.

so, now they're on a hunt for another outfielder [since they gave up both rowand AND bourn]. they still don't have a great third baseman AND they let iguchi run off with another team, who could have filled that spot.

and alas... they still don't have too much hope beyond cole hamels from the pitcher's mound. we'll see what happens with lidge in the mix... and whatever other scoundrel they pick up.

the philadelphia phillies just dropped down a notch.

you're going backwards, boys... you're supposed to be making your team BETTER... not worse by giving away your great players...

A pleading

Dear Phillies,

Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, PLEASE... don't let Aaron Rowand go.

Thank you.

Respectfully submitted,

Mrs. Utley??????

Free Agents Part 1

Reports are that the Red Sox are close to signing Schilling. I heard 10 million for 1 year, which means if he pitches as well as he did this year, he will earn more than 1 million dollars a win. Not too shabby for him.

It doesn't bother me though. The Red Sox can afford it. If you believe otherwise they've fooled you.

The great debate is Mike Lowell vs. A-Rod. I say try to get them both. Imagine A-Rod and his 55+ homers replacing Lugo and his, well, 55+ hits. Again, if you don't believe the Red Sox can afford it, they've fooled you. They're a lot richer than they let the fan base think.

The other argument is everyone here hates A-Rod. True. But, those of us who were around back in the late 90s (when you could show up the day of the game and buy a ticket...when Fenway had less seats...and the tickets were half the price they are now...) remember that the most hated player in Boston was Manny Rameriz. Funny how things change.

Ellsberry
Youkilis
Ortiz
Rameriz
Rodriguez
Lowell
Pedroia
Varitek
Drew

That's a lineup.

2004 vs 2007 Red Sox

So, I've been catching up on work and I haven't read anything about the World Series and I missed the parade today. But here is just a thought:

Regardless of who had the better team, the 2004 Red Sox will always be number 1 as far as I'm concerned. No one ever had to overcome more and no one ever will.

75 percent of this region was convinced the Red Sox were cursed. I say 75% now, but in all honesty, it was 100%. I was on record as saying "I'm agnostic when it comes to the Curse of the Bambino," which is mostly because as a Christian I didn't believe Babe Ruth or any other mortal had the power to do that. But it was getting harder and harder every year to argue against it.

Aside from having every single fan in the ball park night after night debate on how the Red Sox would collapse, you had old players, managers and general managers whose careers had been ruined. Grady Little was on record as saying that throughout the playoffs he had players coming to him saying they were terrified of becoming the next Buckner. I believe that.

Then, on top of that, you have to play the Yankees. You don't even understand how much of an inferior complex Boston had to New York. It was horrible. Yankee fans were correct in stating the rivalry was the equivilant of the rivalry between the hammer and the nail. And on the rare occassions the nail won, we were all reminded how irrelevant it was "NINETEEN-EIGHTEEN." It's true the Celtics are historically better than the Knicks, the Patriots are better than the Jets, and hockey is irrelevant. But New Yorkers knew better than anyone that Boston is a baseball town. If you beat Boston in baseball, you've beaten Boston. The region would have traded Super Bowl XXXVI for a World Series in a heartbeat. It might have even traded Super Bowl XXXVI and Super Bowl XXXVIII for a World Series. And all of New York knew that.

(Random Aside- I never once before 2004 met a New Yorker who was a Jet fan. As soon as you'd try in chat rooms or message boards or real life to shield Boston sports from taking a beating by bringing the Patriots into it, you could never find a New Yorker who admitted to watching football. I've never once met a New Yorker who was a Jet fan since either. Do the Jets have any fans???? How do they still exist as a franchise?)

Then you go down 3 games to nothing and are losing in the 8th inning of game 4 with a man who had dominated the league for the last 8 seasons on the mound needing 5 defensive outs. You'd have to be, well, for lack of a better term, an idiot to not realize what was at stake and collapse and fold under the pressure. Cue Kevin Millar. That was amazing. It was a wild ride. The floor I lived on had predominantly people who were from New York. In fact, there was 1 other room besides mine with Red Sox fans. They looked pretty depressed before game 4, which was how I felt. I saw them though, wearing Red Sox gear, and I said "Hey, you gotta keep the faith. And what better way to break a curse then to come back and beat those... in 4 straight." I don't really think I believed what I was saying. I thought they were toast too.

Man, the excitement of that 2004 run will never be matched. Even if the Cubs come back from down 0-2 in the NLDS, go down 0-3 to St. Louis and come back and win the series, then go down 0-3 to the White Sox and come back and win a World Series, there is a precident.

Sure, 2007 had a better rotation than 2004. And it's true 2007 had a better closer. 2004 could hit the ball a lot better and their middle relief would get the edge. 2004 was an aging team which was on it's last legs, and 2007 is a young team on the way up. We'll really see that come 2008 when the Red Sox might win back to back World Series for the first time since 1915-1916. But in the grand scheme of things, 2004 opened the door for 2007 to accomplish what it did. I don't think 2007 could have otherwise.

After the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series, in the middle of the celebration, Schilling called them all together and offered a toast along the lines of "To the 2004 Red Sox, the greatest Red Sox team EVER."

I agree with that statement a lot more now then I did then.

it's a sad day...

... because baseball is gone until the springtime.

CONGRATS to john and the red sox! i'm glad at least someone on our blog had a great ending to the season.

do pitchers have a report date yet?

in the meantime... i suppose there are still things to write about. like off-season trades and where a-rod might be going... how our teams could be better... why the nl is so tragically worse than the al... why people insist on bunting being appropriate for baseball... and that joe buck and tim mccarver really aren't all that bad. i like them! [course... i have to like mccarver, being a former phillie and all.]

congrats again to the red sox. they played like champions... there's no doubt about that!

Who is the Best Team in Major League Baseball?

Boston Red Sox
Seven Time World Series Champions
1903 1912 1915 1916 1918 2004 2007

EXCELLENT!!!!!!!!

"WELL I LOVE THAT DIRTY WATER....OH- BOSTON YOUR MY HOME!!!!!!!!!"

"DON'T BLAME US IF WE EVER DOUBT YOU, YOU KNOW WE COULDN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU-RED SOX YOU ARE THE ONLY ONLY ONLY"

This one was no where near as stressful as 2004. I remember hanging on every pitch in 2004, wondering who was gonna blow it. I remember "Ground Ball Back to Foulke" and expecting him to throw it into the first row of the seats. This one I didn't. I knew it was over tonight. I would have flipped out if the Cardinals pulled within 1 run in game 4 of '04, but I just got annoyed at the Rockies in the eight and delaying the inevitable. Really, Colorado had no business being on the same field as Boston. They are who I thought they were. A team that got hot at the right time and got lucky and played in the National League. And the Red Sox didn't let them off the hook. I don't have any great indepth analysis or anything right now. I might ramble on for a bit or I might stop the post here.

2007 World Champions. I really don't know what to say. There's no way to sum it up. It's definitely no where near as special as the 2004 Championship. But it's much better than any other year since 1985.

When Papelbon blew away Seth Smith, another guy I never heard of, two things happened. I screamed at the top of my lungs "HE GOT HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!" and I noticed Varitek put the ball in his pocket. The Red Sox owners made a huge deal over the 2004 ball with Mientkiewicz. I hope they let Varitek have it. If they complain, I hope Varitek sells it on EBAY or something. Difference between 2004 and 2007: 2004-ground ball, I fall to my knees and almost have heart failure, hanging on Joe Bucks' every word (he sucks so much by the way, he keeps insisting Youk wasn't active in 2004. Why doesn't someone from Fox enlighten AND/or fire him? Note the stress on the AND...) 2007- up and walking back and forth excited, watching Papelbon be Papelbon and then yelling loud enough to block out Buck and McCaver before my baseball IQ dropped any lower.

My grandfather was born in 1915. The Red Sox won the 1915, 1916 and 1918 World Series in his life time. Then he turned 4 and they stopped. He died in May of 1987. The last World Series he ever saw was 1986 when the Red Sox blew a two run lead in game six in the tenth and a three run lead in game seven.

My grandmother was born in February of 1919. The Red Sox were defending World Champions. She died in November of 2003. The Red Sox won the very next World Series.

I had a friend I went to high school with who died in April of 2004. The Red Sox were gonna play in Texas that night, but it was rained out. It was very fitting, cause the last thing I wanted to do was watch a baseball game. He never got to see a Red Sox World Series Championship.

There are plenty of stories like that. Eddie Andleman is a talk show host around here who had his tombstone made up saying "Here lies Eddie Andelman. He never saw the Red Sox win a World Series." He's still alive, so I hope for his sake he wasn't watching in 2004 and didn't watch tonight. Otherwise, he'll need a new tombstone, and those are probably expensive.

As great as it is to be a fan of the World Series Champions, I've learned that baseball isn't everything. I never would have typed that before 2004. In 2004, my thoughts were about people who never got to see it. I guess now I am thinking about that too. But watching the game, my thoughts were along the same lines as Billy Chapel's in the movie For Love of the Game. He pitched a perfect game, and then the next day raced to an airport to meet his ex who was leaving him to take a job in London. He said something along the lines of "Last night should have been the best night of my life, but it wasn't because you weren't there to celebrate with me." I'm not saying it wasn't fun. But I am saying I would have enjoyed it A LOT more if I was in Amherst with my girlfriend Amanda, or if she were in Boston with me. She doesn't even reads this, so you know its true.

Boston Red Sox
Seven Time World Series Champions
1903 1912 1915 1916 1918 2004 2007

And counting...

Game 2

Well, I expected a each side to score more runs, but in the grand scheme of things, the result was the same I anticipated. The Boston Red Sox are now 2 games away from winning the 2007 World Series.

Schilling pitched well. He's been spectacular this postseason, minus that game 2 start in the ALCS. I honestly didn't think he still had it in him. He went 9-8 this regular season, and he's 3-0 in the playoffs. Granted he was hurt for a good deal of the year so I don't know if he's just healthy now or if it's adrenaline from pitching in the postseason or if he's looking for a big pay day next year or whatever. Doesn't matter. It only helps the cause.

On a personal note, I watched the game at home last night. I watched the entire 2004 World Series in Amherst and game 1 this year at a friend's house, so that was the first time I watched the Red Sox play in a World Series game at my house since 1986 when I was one year old. My mom says I watched then, but I don't really remember too well...

Diasuke pitches tomorrow night. The big debate is which of the three do you sit in the NL park? Ortiz, Youkilis or Lowell. I might sit Big Papi to tell you the truth. Crazy as it sounds, Youk and Lowell are too valuable defensively and Ortiz knees hurt. Sit him game 3 and see what happens before making a decision. Plus, you could use Papi to pinch hit for Matsuzaka. I think Papi would be best at that, seeing as how being a DH is pretty much just pinch hitting four times a game anyway...

Speaking of Youkilis, Fox keeps saying he wasn't active during the 2004 World Series. Before this postseason, I had 0 respect for either Buck or McCarver, cause they both are horrible. I gained some because they were better than whoever TBS sent to cover the Boston-LA of Anaheim Series. I've lost all that respect again.

I knew Youk was active in 2004 during the series. After they won the world series, I went to redsox.com and memorized the active roster. But if you hear Buck and McCarver say he wasn't active night after night after night, you begin to doubt yourself. I tried copying and pasting a link but it doesn't work. Go to redsox.com, then go to the press releases, then to the archives and check out October 23, 2004. Interestingly enough, the Red Sox active roster for the 2004 World Series includes 20 Youkilis, Kevin. I should announce the games. I know more about the Red Sox than either of those two.

Game 1

Firstly. Josh Beckett is the greatest postseason pitcher in Red Sox history. That is an undeniable fact. He is arguably the greatest postseason pitcher period. Another start or two and that'll be undenable fact...

Secondly, I can't say I expected the Red Sox to demonlish the Rockies like that. On the other hand, I can't really say I'm surprised either.

I overheard a Rockies fan on the Boston College Shuttle (last week there were Cleveland fans all over campus. Now, besides the three or four in the discussion section I teach they've all dissapeared. Since yesterday I've seen 2 Rockies fans. Where do these people come from? Where do they vanish off to afterwards?) complaining about how Beckett threw nothing but fastballs for four innings and Colorado was so rusty they couldn't catch up. I mention this because it's an excellent point to bring up. Rust had to be a factor. Major Leaguers should be able to catch up to any fastball if they see it over and over again a time and a half through the lineup. Therefore, I am willing to be the rest of the series will be more competitive.

It's interesting though. Game 1 of the ALCS was a blowout too. While it's nice to give Beckett run support, he really doesn't need to much of it. It would have been nice to save that type of production for whoever is pitching game 4 (Lestor?). But, whatever. A win is a win.

I was thinking about it. I know Colorado might win this World Series, but how good are they really? I think the Red Sox and Yankees are better than them. The Rockies are definately better than Baltimore and Tampa Bay. What about the Blue Jays? I give the edge to Toronto, especially if B.J. Ryan is healthy. The Rockies a 4th place team in the AL East. I think Cleveland and Detroit are better, and probably Minnesota, especially if Liriano is healthy. Colorado would be a 3rd or 4th place team in the AL Central. In the AL West, I think I'd go with the Angels as a better team. Seattle-Colorado is a toss up. Pitching to the Mariners, offense to the Rockies. I give the edge to pitching, so the Rockies are a 3rd place team in the AL West.

Regardless, the Rockies are a middle of the road team that finishes about 10 games out of the wild card in the AL, and they might win the World Series. Only in America! Especially now that the Expos don't exist...

Game 2 is tonight. Schilling is on the mound for what might be his last start as a member of the Boston Red Sox. Let's Go Boston!

World Series

Ok, I'm gonna be honest. If I saw any Rockies games this year, they were the 3 against the Red Sox in June. I checked the blog, and I made a reference to the series here, but that was more of an "I'm against Interleague play" type post. I don't really remember any of the three games, which could be either because the Red Sox were blown out in 2 of 3 and I blocked it from my memory, or I was working those nights so I didn't catch them. So, the Rockies are an unknown. Even if I did remember anything, that's all irrevelant now, as it seems they became a completely different team this past September.

That being said, I'm gonna be honest. I truly believe the American League is exponentially better than the National League. I truly believe the Red Sox are the best team in the American League. I don't know if I believe the Rockies are the best team in the NL or just the hottest. Either way, I think the Red Sox should kill them.

I think the Beckett, Schilling and Diasuke are better than any starter the Rockies have. I'd take Manny any day of the week over Matt Holiday. I'd take Mike Lowell over Garrett Atkins. I'd take Dustin Pedroia over Kaz Matsui. I think Youkilis can hang with Helton, and even if you give the edge to Todd, I'd go ahead and take Ortiz over Helton. I'd take Varitek over Torrealba. I'd take Papelbon over anyone. In 64 less games, Ellsbury had 1 more homer, 1 less triple, and 6 less RBI than Taveras. I think it's safe to say Ellsbury is at least as good as Taveras, if not better. The only advantages I'd give Colorado are at Shortstop and Right Field.

The Red Sox should win this World Series. Losing would be the biggest upset in team history.

Game 7

So what team lost the 2007 ALCS? Doesn't matter. They're irrelevant.

I can't believe it. Down 3-1 in the series, come back and beat two Cy Young Candidates to force game seven. Then jump out to an early 3 run lead, but almost blow it.

Up by one in the 7th, Julio Lugo drops an easy pop up, letting the game tying run get to second base. But Cleveland choked. Base hit to left field that easily could have scored Loftin, and they held him. Next batter grounds into a double play to end the inning, lead still intact. Excellent! I truly believe that wouldn't have happened before 2004. They would have been worried about ghosts and would have collapsed, fallen apart just like the Cubs after Bartmen. The ground ball would have went right past Lowell just like it did Rameriz in 2003. But Lowell threw it to Pedroia who threw it to Youk to end the inning.

That brings us to the bottom of the 7th and reason number 2 why John shouldn't manage the Red Sox: Dustin Pedroia up with a runner on third, up by one run and I think there's one out. I say aloud "I'd suicide squeeze here." This is very unusual for me. I am almost always against bunts. By almost always, I mean every time besides tonight when I called for a suicide squeeze. First pitch is a strike. "You're not gonna squeeze with one strike. That's stupid. Actually, no one's expecting it. Yeah, whatever. Suicide squeeze!" Dustin Pedroia swung away against my wishes and deposited the ball into the Green Monster seats. As I've stated before, what do I know?

What do I know? I know Boston exploded for 6 runs in the 8th. I know Coco Crisp made a spectacular catch to end the game. Most importantly, I know that the Boston Red Sox are going to the 2007 World Series to play the Colorado Rockies.

Do Or Die

170+ games comes down to this. The winner goes to the World Series. The loser joins 28 other teams in obscurity. After all, who lost the 1997 ALCS and NLCS? What about in 1987? Chances are, unless your favorite team was somehow involved, you have no idea. For the American League I think it was Baltimore in '97 and no idea for '87. Maybe Detroit? I can't even fathom a guess for the National League. Atlanta in '97? The Mets in '87? Whoever it was is irrelevant. As for who played in the 1997 World Series, Cleveland and Florida. 1987? Minnesota and St. Louis. I know that and I was two years old at the time.

Jake Westbrook vs. Diasuke Matsuzaka with the season on the line.

Don't let these past two games go to waste. Never mind that. Don't let these past 171 games go to waste.

To quote the legendary Ken Casey, "LET'S GO BOSTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"