KC Bean Boy

Moving

2009-04-30T10:42:00.001-06:00

For those of you that still occasionally poke around here, I'm doing a bit of consolodating with my sports blogs. I'm going to combine KC Bean Boy and The Scarlett Letter into one blog on WordPress here.

Someday all the entries will be on the new blog, however until that time I'll keep all previous posts in this blog.

Kings of the Castle

2009-04-27T09:38:00.005-06:00

From 2-6 to 12-6 in a week and a half. Even with some of the pitching that's been on display since coming home to Fenway. The Sox still found a way to bat their way out of losses, pushing for extra innings and hitting walk-off homers.

Last night I saw one of the more incredible plays I've seen in quite some time, a strait steal of home plate from Jacoby Ellsbury. Andy Pettitte didn't have a clue, which was shocking juxtaposed against him picking off a couple Sox earlier in the night trying to steal second.

Now comes the part where they need to find their game on the road. The next nine will start with Cleveland tonight. This weekend will be the first trip down to Tampa with a short two gamer to follow against the Yankees next Monday and Tuesday in King George's billion dollar palace.

Looks like Big Papi may have found his stroke, Youkilis-Bay-Lowell are hot, and if the Sox can figure their pitching out they should come back to Boston with a winning record from this trip. They still sit one game behind division leading Toronto, however it's a long ways from ESPN pundits entertaining the idea of the Sox being done for the year already.

Tim Wakefield will take the mound for the Sox this evening at Progressive, and the Sox lineup will lock horns with '08 Cy Young winner Cliff Lee who comes in 1-3.

Showtime

2009-04-24T10:59:00.004-06:00

You know what time it is.

It's Red Sox, Yankees time. Lots of intrigue and drama at the Fens tonight. Will Teixeira make it from the dugout to the plate with his head in tact? I'm sure he'll be asking Johnny Damon for a few pointers. Will the Nebraska fan in me cheer for Joba Chamberlain if he has a good outing, or will my inner Sox fan curse the day he was born and wish ill upon his door? How the Hell will Jon Lester respond to the Friday night pressure of the opening Yankee game under the lights? So many questions, so many hours before the first pitch.

Boston fans are the girl you didn't call to go out with in high school like you promised. The only difference is most Boston fans on Landsdowne Street will be fully popped and have no regard for such trivialities as a classy vocabulary or a demure disposition. There will be gnashing of teeth, and seething hatred for Tex in town tonight.

I haven't checked the schedule, but if the game isn't on ESPN you can be sure I'll be squarely positioned in front of my laptop.

"Hi, I'm Doug. Would you like to see my property?"

2009-04-15T00:44:00.004-06:00

Hey everyone. This is former Red Sox catcher, Tim Wakefield personal assistant and World Series champion Doug Mirabelli. He would like to sell you a home as part of the Coldwell Banker team, fresh from spring training. For Realtors.

I'm not bagging on the guy, because as everyone knows when you retire, you can get a legitimate job or become John Kruk or John Salley. It's just sort of weird when a player leaves the game and turns to a job your uncool uncle does or used to do. He looks about as comfortable as an unarmed and pantsless Zack Efron in a Turkish bathhouse doesn't he?

Yet another loss on the Pac coast tonight. It's nice to see people who hate Boston and who have an axe to grind get frothy at the mouth while they are in the cellar with 95 percent still left on the year. It's sort of an odd dichotomy, I want to see Boston fade from from heads of frat boys with cargo shorts and flip flops who wear pink polo shirts on ladies night. But I also want them to win another World Series. Life is pain, brother.

I never thought I would be caught dead putting this on the record either, but part of me is glad to see Beckett get suspended for trying to give Bobby Abreu a labotomy on Sunday. Good thing he's still not pitching in the National League, or he probably wouldn't be pulling shit like this.

The other part of me thinks you're fucking retarded for thinking if Beckett wanted to nail Bobby he missed his mellon because his location was a little off.

Brutality

2009-04-10T22:59:00.005-06:00

Basically what is the Red Sox schedule in the first two months of the season. Nothing is going to come easy, and by the looks of the last few games they're going to need to get better. Fast.

Just a quick note, heartfelt pregame for the Halo's late Nick Adenhart. Classy. Surprised MLB.TV played it since they usually cut out while there is a break in the action.

West Coast road trips have been a killer for AL East teams for awhile. Boston has two stretches in the next two months. The Sox will play no one but division contenders and pre-season favorites until their trip to Detroit June 1st. Well, maybe not so much with Baltimore coming to town in a week.

I'm just disappointed in the pitching thus far, sans Beckett who was on fire and almost pitching in another galaxy Tuesday. Dice-K looks like his control is still a major issue. Wakefield looks another year older. I'm sure it will come around, it always does. It just sucks to start out this way and be 1-3 in the middle of a Pacific Coast swing.

For now I'll take my mind off by watching the Nationals trying to get back into the game against the Braves. Mike Gonzalez just had a grounder bounce off his glove and Washington tied it up in the top of the ninth. Good God, I'm glad it's April.

Not like they drew it up...

2009-04-09T23:30:00.000-06:00

Well, the opener with the Rays opened with a bang and landed with a limp thud. While watching Dice-K toss more meat than a butcher on a Saturday morning, it was hard to contain my discontent while I was in class. Did I say that out loud? Of course I didn't watch baseball in class...how is that even possible? McKay doesn't even have air conditioning, let alone cable.

The Rays took a 4-1 lead into the bottom of the sixth when Boston remembered they were in the middle of an actual game. Watching them sleepwalk through the first two-thirds of the game was about all I could stand. It felt like we were picking up right where we left off last year, being out hustled and even outhit by the young bucks from Florida.

The middle of the lineup woke up with Jason Bay driving in Kevin Youkilis on a shot to dead center on a Manny double. For those of you that don't know, a Manny double is a triple, or a play that 99% of all major league hitters should get to third on, while Manny would have "hustled" for a stand up double. I don't hate Manny, if it weren't for him this team wouldn't have rings. It's just something fans have done with a half joking, half sick sort of sense of humor. Anyway...

The Sox made it interesting in the bottom of the ninth with Jason Varitek blasting a dinger to right field, but were unable to muster up enough to pull into a tie or even pull out some late inning heroics.

Boston takes their 1-2 record to L.A. to play an Angles team reeling from the tragic loss of 22-year-old pitcher Nick Adenhart. It's always sad to see someone who has their life stolen from them with everything still yet to come. Truly a sad day for the Angles, baseball, and well, pretty much everyone.

Opening Day Blahs

2009-04-07T12:43:00.003-06:00

I've always been quick to jump on the Yankees for bad performances in April. Most of my Red Sox loving career it comes back to bite me in the ass in September, or earlier this decade, October. So, this is me not piling on.

Today, as the Sox make up their game from yesterday against the Rays, I will not point out that C.C. Sabathia pitched four and a third and gave up eight hits with six earned. I won't fan the flames on Mark Teixeira going o-fer his first day, or Xavier Nady leaving three on base and being yanked for Nick Swisher.

The only thing that makes me happy is that the subpar performance was in the new Yankee Stadium. What? It was in Baltimore? Shit, I was hoping that would make up for the ho-hum Opening Day.

Sox on at 3:05 against the newly hated Rayvals. That's a good one, copyright on the way. Hope MLB.TV has all the bugs out today.

Not wasting any time

2009-04-04T07:50:00.003-06:00

The Sox will pick up where they left off last season, playing the American League Pennant winning Tampa Rays. Or is it Tampa Bay Rays? Just don't say "Devil." A few of the sports publications that find their way into my mailbox are predicting that both these teams will battle it out for the top spot in the East. Looks like ESPN thinks the Yankees will pull a Detroit Tigers from 2008. Remember that? Cabrera. Willis. I fell for it. Hook, line and sinker.

Number one for things that will have to work for the season to come together for the Sox will be remaining healthy. There are a couple ways this season will go, and without checking, I'm pretty sure this is the exact same prediction that I made last season.

If Boston keeps their training staff busy, it could be a long year. At least by recent standards set since around 2002 when John Henry and company took over. If the team and players like David Ortiz, not getting any younger at 33, Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell keep the injuries to a minimum the sky is the limit for this team like it was in '07.

If we have issues and have to raid Pawtuckett and call up players a bit too early, then the season could turn into '06 very quickly. Let's hope for the former. Nothing would make me more pleased than seeing the Yankees miss the playoffs. Again. I will be intregued to see if the Rays can duplicate the same success they had last year. Naturally, they can wait until next Thursday or Friday to start winning.

Around the Bend

2009-04-01T12:03:00.003-06:00

Only a few days until Opening Day, with MLB TV subscription in hand, I'll be able to get back to work on this blog this season, just like you came to love in 2007. Beware that AT&T U-verse does not have the MLB Extra Innings package. Jerks.

Outspoken

2009-02-17T10:54:00.005-06:00

With the tease of 60 degree days, it's hard not to imagine it's April right now. This is always the toughest part of the year, convincing myself I'm an NBA fan to kill the time. I watched Texas and Texas A&M last night. I can't impart on how boring college hoops is if it's not your team or if you don't have a few bills on the game.

With Spring Training around the bend, things are moving off the stove and onto the field, thank God.

Two big questions surrounding training camp right now is the injury status of '07 World Series MVP Mike Lowell and Jason Bay (probably right about him tomorrow). Rumor is that Lowell is planning to be ready to roll for the Sox opener against the Rays April 6th. Lowell comes in probably in a strange state of mind. Coming off being a folk hero to spending a lot of last season, especially toward the end, riding the bench due to some nagging injuries was a little hard to swallow I'm sure. On top of that whole flirting heavily with Mark Teixeria thing could have made for some awkward moments.

Word is that he's not bitter about the whole thing, because he would have ended up on the block had Teixeria been signed. You have to be able to see past what he's saying. From what I read Lowell acknowledged Teixeria is a better offensive player but more goes into signing a player than numbers, basically saying he's probably an asshole and will disrupt the team's chemistry. Hey, after all the clamor of trying to resign the guy after '07 I'd be a little pissed too.

A-Rod and Bonds are both on trial. One in the all important court of public opinion and the other in real court. David Ortiz decided to use a camera and a couple microphones to sound off about the whole issue. Watching it sort of felt like what it must have been like watching Senator Larry Craig talk about how much he didn't like gay guys and gals wanting to get married. Two minutes before being busted in a Minneapolis airport playing footsie with an undercover cop in the men's room.

If he's clean, then fine. He's just being a holier than thou asshole, which is okay too because he has a point. If he's lying and he winds up on some report of him juicing, yesterday's interview will be played non-stop. My advice to players wanting to take a stand, take a stand. Just don't do it for an audience. Do it behind closed doors and under the protection (whatever is left) of your organization or the players union.

Big Papi did make a great point regarding the treatment of players who either admitted or were outed in regard to their steroid usage. Parading them in front of Congress like they are capital murderers or child rapists is ridiculous. The economy sucks, we're still fighting a war most people disagree with and my state tax refund could be held up if Missouri follows Kansas' lead. Stop worrying about fucking baseball. If the people running the show can't take care of the problem, don't want to take care of the problem or just pretend it doesn't exist. Why not follow your lead you've taken with the rest of privatly owned business and deregulate? Why baseball? Wanting attention can make you do funny things.

All ranting aside, Ortiz said they should ban A-Rod for the whole year. I agree, I want my team to win the East again.

Everyone and Their Brother

2009-02-12T12:02:00.004-06:00

Ignoring this will make it go away, right? Because not getting involved in the self-serving, empty and greedy practices of this era in baseball will make it non-existent in my reality. It's basically the ending of "A Nightmare on Elm Street 4," a complete laugh of a movie, but somewhat plausible.

If reporters and sportswriters are trying to save the game from itself by exposing the game's biggest stars, then a gold star should be reserved for the reporter privy to the report that listed Alex Rodriguez as a participant in the steroid era. Everyone knows. It has been on the front page of the paper here in Kansas City. Like it or not, it's news.

You'd be kidding yourself to think that baseball is the national past time any longer. Telling those of us that would rather watch the Padres and Diamondbacks play out an extra innings pitchers dual at 12:30am on a Wednesday night than go to bed could be difficult, but the NFL displacing baseball in terms of popularity is an argument you won't hear from me.

Of course, this doesn't diminish the cultural relevance and impact. You could spend time relating the mirrored implications between society and baseball, most of which are true. But the elephant in the room is America's willingness to cast stones at fallen superstars, yet line up to slam down their hard earned pay and watch them cheat away as the circus travels from city to city. Our propensity to knock the top 1% off their pedestal and rescue them by telling them they are just like us is as American as apple pie at this point.

What would send the biggest message to Donald Fehr and the players association he presides over? By not consuming the product they put out. It's hard to imagine a game I used to play with friends as a kid as a product in the same way as I view Coke or Pepsi. If Doritos changed their flavors to just liver and onions, would you keep eating them?

It's hard to imagine not spending Saturday nights at 'the K' here in town, or beautiful summer Sunday afternoons on the couch watching the Brewers and Pirates. This latest transgression won't change my wanton desire to waste my summer away watching too many games that exceed normal human consumption. I've even put my name into the lottery to secure my Kansas City Royals Opening Day (well, home opener) tickets because they play, that's right, the New York Yankees. Not that I wouldn't do this anyway (actually, my thoughtful wife did it for me), but I'd be lying if I didn't acknowledge there wasn't some special incentive.

Now we live in a world where the games top player cheated. It's hard not to recall Roger Clemens mowing down would-be Boston hitters in the third game of the 2003 ALCS after giving up two runs in the first. You remember this game even if you don't think you do. Manny takes exception to a high pitch from Clemens, the benches clear and Pedro takes Yankee bench coach Don Zimmer down to the ground. Sure we know Clemens is guilty, but who is to say some of the Sox weren't either?

It's hard to put a stamp on this and say it's over, because it's not. Not until everything that happened from the mid-to late ninties until earlier this decade is brought up and stumped to everyone under the sun. They either admit there was a problem, fix it now and move on. Or, we continue in the perpetual motion of waiting for a juicy scrap to fall from the table to bring back to the rest of the hive to buzz over. I'm just hoping that the biggest fish has been fried and we can get on.

Winter Meetings

2008-12-11T22:31:00.004-06:00

Yeah, we are going to pretend like I haven't neglected this thing for about six months.

The Sox made some strides today (and yesterday) on making a run for free agent Mark Teixeira. The bungling Angels haven't made a formal offer yet, and it's good to see Theo and company making a move. Who is the major competition as of today? The Washington Nationals who put an eight year, $160 million offer on the table. The Orioles and the Yankees are also expected to make a little noise for the 28 year old.

Of course, you couldn't watch ESPN this week without someone talking about Florida Gator saint/quarterback Tim Tebow or the Yankee's deal for C.C. Sabathia. Good for New York, they need to pick up a pitcher for their shitty rotation. The good news is that they just signed him to one of the dumbest contracts I've ever seen. Well, one this big anyway. In essence, if he's lights out for the next three years of his deal he can opt out and become a free agent. If he tanks, the Bombers are on the hook for seven years and $160 mil. However, if he is the former I don't see anyone outspending the Yankees. If I have to watch C.C. dominate the East, might as well watch the Yanks sell the farm.

The Angles claim to be serious about retaining Tex's services, however with no real plan to keep him I'm not convinced he'll be back in Anaheim. Besides, staying on with the Halo's means that he's destined to lose to the Sox in the ALDS every year from here to eternity. On the Boston front, American League MVP Dustin Pedroia, the little second baseman who could, was awarded with a shiny new six year $40.5 million contract to keep him in red and navy.

With the possibility of Texixeira landing at Logan, and players like Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell able to recover from nagging injuries in '08, the next year looks like it could yield some positive outcomes. Some days I'm still scratching my head as to how the Sox made it to Game 7 of the ALCS with all the issues they had with the injury bug. Hopefully we can overcome this year with our new "Hanging Sox" logo (horrible name) and retro alternate unis. Hurray marketing.

Can't wait to see the frat boy d-bags out in full effect with this lid...

See You Later

2008-07-31T14:52:00.003-06:00

So much for today being a quiet off day for Boston. Coming off a sweep at home to the Angels and harsh words from Manny Ramirez saying that "Boston does not deserve a player like me," the Boston brass obliged and sent Manny packing in a three way deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Manny heads out to the West Coast to play in another league. Good luck Joe Torre. Never thought I'd say that. The Pirates will get two minor leaguers from the Sox in Brandon Moss and right handed pitcher Craig Hansen. LA will send Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris to the Pirates. The Sox will get Jason Bay from the Bucs.

Bay is a left fielder who will probably be able to actually play left field and bring some offense to the plate. The 2006 All-Star brings a career .281 average, 140 home runs and an .890 OPS to the Sox. It's not Manny, but I think it might do for the rest of the season. I guess the best question will be is if Manny did have a stranglehold on the the clubhouse and will this trade relieve some pressure and allow the Sox to get back to business. I guess time will tell.

All in all Manny had a great run in Boston. I loved him as a hitter, but that was about it. Having to answer for him as a fan was sort of a pain in the ass. "Manny being Manny" could only take you so far. He'll be missed from what he can produce from the dish, but I doubt he'll be missed for his antics. There are some noted Boston fans that have Sox blogs that will claim Manny was pushed out, but I don't believe the hype surrounding him being defaced to the fans so they (Epstein and company) wouldn't look like bad guys jettisoning a player who helped carry them to two World Series victories. Manny was never really the face of the franchise, as David Ortiz took over that role from Nomar when he was pushed out in 2004.

I remember posting some cut outs of Manny back in 2001 after the deal was made to bring him to Boston at my desk at work. I was incredibly pumped for him to come to Boston and make an impact against the competition and the Yankees mainly. It took a few years, but he was a big part of that run over the past few years. Little did I know the rest of the baggage he'd bring along with him. That I won't miss.

Oh, by the way some other American League teams are on the move before the trade deadline. The Angels traded for Mark Teixeria, the Yankees traded Kyle Farnsworth for Ivan Rodriguez (WTF???) and the White Sox traded for Ken Griffey Jr. While we were worried about getting rid of a headache, the rest of the top teams in the AL were looking for players to put them in position to win a World Series. Does this spell doom for the Sox to not make a serious playoff run? The next month will certainly be interesting.

Sox Win, Manny Goes Too Far

2008-07-23T07:46:00.005-06:00

Wow, so this blog thing is getting away from me again. Well, between the new job (yes, it takes up that much time), dog (she takes twice as much time) and my small town deciding to not send me a sewer bill and turn my water off (don't ask) I will from time to time run out of time to post on here. But just like that bad case of the herpes, I just won't go away. Wow, too much info, right? Right. Let's move on.

Monday night, Lester rocked the Seattle lineup to sleep coming off some extended time off. Last night Dice-K kept his stride he's had over the past four starts and not earning cheap wins as he had been getting into the habit of doing previous to this month. He walked a few last night, but was still able to strike out more and kept his pitch count down to make it through the eighth.

Yes, Manny was arrested last night. For what you ask? Jaywalking. Yes, jaywalking in Seattle gets your harassed by a traffic cop, which in the state of Washington is the equivalent of stealing an old ladies purse apparently. Look, I'm not a huge fan of Manny other than what he brings to the plate, but this is a little ridiculous. Although the cell phone thing turning a pitching change was pretty funny, even the biggest Manny haters will have to admit that.

Tonight the Sox will but Clay Buchholz on the mound to try for the sweep out in the great Northwest. However, I'm sure most fans are looking forward to Friday night's showdown between Josh Beckett and the Sox against Nebraska alumnus Joba Chamberlain the New York Yankees.

Also a stat of note that was achieved last night. Surprisingly, Jonathan Papelbon became the first Sox player to get to 30 saves in three consecutive seasons.

Hey, Nice Comeback

2008-07-09T07:13:00.009-06:00

With my finger on the On/Off button heading into the bottom of the 8th inning last night, I was all prepared to do something other than watch the Twins beat the Sox 5-2. Then I decided that getting off the couch wouldn't be a good idea because, well, I'm sort of lazy most of the time. Good thing I didn't.

It's nice to watch some other team's bullpen screw games up rather than the healthy dose of relief issues I've been witness to this year. Even with a three run lead, I was surprised to see Twins manager Ron Gardenhire bring in Matt Guerrier rather than All-Star Joe Nathan to preserve the lead after Jacoby Ellsbury's lead off double. Even in the next two at bats when Dustin Pedroia singled and pushed Ellsbury to third and JD Drew grounding out to score Jacoby, I was still waiting for the signal from the visitor's dugout to bring in Nathan. Even with the guy who won the game just the night before coming to the plate, Gardenhire stuck with Guerrier.

After Manny's homer I was certain that a pitching change was to be made. You have take your guy out when he's drowning like that, especially in the middle of a raucous Fenway crowd. Right? Nope, Gardy stuck to his guns with the score now tied, even less likely to bring Nathan in now I guessed. I couldn't help but laugh as the Sox took the lead off another double by Youkilis and the eventual go-ahead RBI hit by Brandon Moss.

The Sox and closer Jonathan Papelbon did try and make it interesting with Nick Punto of all people smacking a lead off double and eventually moving to third with only one out. Jason Kubel ended up striking out and Alexi Casilla grounded to Pedroia for the final out of the game. I don't believe the Sox won this game in as much as the Twins coaching staff mis-managed it away. I have to think that Nathan after not being used since Sunday would be capable of pitching for two innings to put the game away. Easier said than done, considering that Gardenhire has been making some poor game time decisions regarding the usage of his pen. Not that I care, a win is a win at this point with the Rays still up by a few games in the division. I'm sure Francona and company will take it any way they can get it.

Random Thoughts

- For those of you that watch SportsCenter, does anyone else think that the "TitleTown USA" contest they are running on their website is much better than last year's "Who's Now?" poll? This is what I hate about ESPN. They take the nickname from a community that is very proud of their team and it's rich history(Green Bay), and trivialize it by having places like Lawrence, Kansas as a finalist for TitleTown. Kansas? Really? Their football team has one good season by playing one of the weakest schedules in all of college football and go to their first major bowl since my Mom was in the 5th grade and now they're at this point?? I understand their basketball program is one of the cornerstones of men's basketball and just coming off their first title in 20 years puts them on the map, but labeling them "TitleTown?" Give me a break. The same goes for Knoxville, Tennessee. And Parkersburg, West Virginia.

- Memo to Brett Favre, please stay on your swamp farm down in Mississippi and shoot some more Wrangler commercials. If I were a Packer fan I would be pissed that one player (albeit a legend) had my entire organization over a barrel. While I was getting ready for work today ESPN analyst John Clayton was talking about how the guys who run the organization don't want to be responsible for running Favre out of town if he wants to come back. Hello! He left town on his own, right?!? I know the Packers are a unique organization, but what a bunch of pussies. General Manager Ted Thompson and company need to grow a sack and tell Favre that the Aaron Rogers era started the day he cried his way out of his retirement press conference. I'm not the guy to tell professional athletes when to retire, but if you say you're gone, then be gone.

All-Star Roll Call

2008-07-08T07:37:00.009-06:00

In my exasperation after last night's 1-0 win over the Minnesota Twins, I failed to mention all of the players that were voted on to this year's All-Star team. As we know, the outcome of the game itself determines which league will have home field advantage for the World Series. The Sox haven't had much need for it during their championship campaigns sweeping the Cardinals in '04 and the Rockies in '07, although it could be argued that opening the series in Fenway for two games did set the tone for the next two on the road both years.

Along with the Chicago Cubs in the National League, the Sox will send seven players to the Bronx for the final All-Star game in Yankee Stadium, more than any other team besides said Cubs. I'm usually game for all the festivities surrounding the break, however this year will be ESPN's goodbye love letter to all things Yankees. I may need to keep a bucket next to my couch for when it gets a little deep.

The Sox will send two outfielders in JD Drew and Manny Ramirez, only one pitcher in the way of Jonathan Papelbon, one surprising (but not really) DH selection with the injured David Ortiz and position players Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia and Jason Varitek. I'm not sure how deserving Manny is for this year, however leave it to the fans to vote the guy in. I guess he gets points and entrance to left field (which is sort of a joke) for being a character.

Ortiz obviously won't play in an exhibition game while only taking his first BP since going on the DL June 3rd, but I'm sure his presence will be felt as it is everywhere while playing or not. I wouldn't expect to see Papelbon closing the game in a save situation as the nod would more than likely go to either the Twins' Joe Nathan, the "Mexecutioner" Joakim Soria of the Royals, or most likely Francisco Rodriguez of the Angels who just broke John Smoltz's save total record for the first half of the season with 35.

Sidetrack: A Simple Request

I encourage everyone to vote for Royals outfielder Jose Guillen for the final vote in player. Not because of his baseball acumen and playing ability, but because he's a giant asshole and does a good job of giving my hometown team's fans fits. It's a constant talk radio topic with Guillen either fighting with pitching coach Bob McClure, or telling the fans to fuck off and calling it motivation. The team sucks, and it's sucked especially hard for the past, well, couple of decades. The fans are complacent save for a few diehards and the community needs some sort of kick in the pants, even if it's from this jackass. I'm not defending Guillen by any means, the guy is clearly a jerk of epic proportions and has played for something like nine teams while only being 31 years of age. But the guy needs to be an All-Star in a Royals uniform, just for that reason alone.

In order to counter balance the picture at the top of this post, I give you my favorite stunt perpetrated by Sox fans at Fenway last year when A-Rod was going through a previous martial indiscretion while being photographed with the award winning exotic dancer in the category of "Best Man to Appear as a Woman Stripper." Enjoy.

The Hard Way

2008-07-07T19:57:00.002-06:00

The Boston Red Sox, losers of their last seven of nine, entered into tonight's contest against the Minnesota Twins who are arguably one of the hottest and most surprising teams in baseball up to this point. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect with the Sox seemingly going impotent against the Yankees this past weekend in the Bronx.

Luckily for the Sox, Dice-K had one of his better performances of the year. He was able to keep his pitch count down and battled his way to his 10th win on the season. One thing that was pleasing to my eyes tonight was the fact that no matter how hard Hideki Okajima tried to give the game away (as the bullpen has been doing this year) in the eighth, the Sox along with Okajima managed to see their way to the bottom of the inning with the games still knotted at 0.

Seeing that the pen has been a major disaster this season so far, Theo has decided to sent Justin Masterson down to the PawSox in exchange for Clay Buchholz entering back into the rotation this weekend. Sending Masterson down for the week to next 10 days isn't without a purpose. Epstein is planning on the young hurler having bullpen work take up 100% of his time while in Rhode Island with the idea he comes back to Fenway to help the floundering pen in the bigs. I think it's a smart move as the Sox really are sort of stagnant when it comes to arms for their middle relief. We'll see if it pays off likely after the break.

Speaking of bolstering middle relief, it's hard to say where or which direction the Sox will take, if any, before the trade deadline at the end of the month. I didn't think the Sox had a realistic shot at landing Sabathia, and I'm almost glad they didn't for the same reason I was happy they didn't sign Johan Santana. I'm still of the mind a trade for Dan Haren would have been a boon for the rotation now that Schilling seems to have been sent out to pasture, at least in Boston.

The next two nights the Sox will have their two best starters on the hill with Jon Lester getting the go tomorrow against Nick Blackburn and Josh Beckett closing the series against Livan Hernandez. The better game will probably be tomorrow night, but who doesn't want to see the battle of the dueling fatties on Wednesday? I know I do.

The New Style?

2008-07-01T10:45:00.001-06:00

As if you didn’t know already, the Tampa Bay Rays are for real. I know some people who still think they are playing above their heads and are waiting for the reality that they are the Rays to settle in as they fade down the stretch. As much as I would like that, I don’t see it happening any time soon. I’m expecting that they battle all the way down to the wire or run away with the division if Boston can’t get healthy or New York can’t find their way.

Last night was the first game after the infamously embarrassing brawl started by Coco Crisp and Rays pitcher James Shields. For me, it was just flat out frustrating to watch given the fact that even though it was close for most of the night, the Sox just never seemed like they were in it. Plus the annoyance of the wondering if some Busch League antics were going to transpire.

So now with the Rays one and a half games in first, each time the put more distance between them and the second place Sox (gulp) it’s going to get more attention considering the Rays come All-Star Break are generally around 25.5 games back. If Boston continues to lose when the play at Tropicana Field I may give up watching Sports Center in the morning, as it will probably lead off each and every day with nothing going on in terms of anything interesting going on in sports.

The Sox are now officially on a slide being the owners of a three game losing streak. Hopefully they can get off the deck tonight against Matt Garza. They won’t get any freebees from him, so they’ll have to earn the W and try to avoid a forth straight loss and the prospect of being behind the Rays by two and a half games. Let’s see if Tim Wakefield can go back to his traditional modus operandi of owning the Rays in Tampa.

Is This Thing On??

2008-06-25T14:34:00.004-06:00

Ah, long time no see, right? Well, a move into a new house and a career change will do that to you. Now that time is a bit more on my side I think I’ll be able to start getting back at it again. Yes, I’ve been keeping up with watching games and keeping tabs on how the season is going in my absence. I’m not convinced that the first place lead in the American League East is Boston’s to lose in any way shape or form.

To this point the Rays are still hanging around, the Yankees have just turned it around which means that no one has really wanted it enough to challenge the Sox for the lead. The Rays have flirted with it, however that’s as far as it’s gone and they haven’t been able to get over the hump the past couple weeks. It sort of reminds me of earlier this decade where the Sox would always win when the Yankees won and lost each time the Yanks lost to where they could never make up any ground. The 7,237 fans that show up each night to Tropicana Field when the Rays are in town must be frustrated.

All kidding aside, the baseball players formerly known as the Devil Rays look to be legit and not just a charming early season nuisance. They have a real rotation and stout line up that can put runs on the board. Last week they took the team with the best record and baseball and chewed them up and spit them back to the Windy City, which despite my greatest efforts to ignore, loved watching. I hate the Cubs, but mostly I hate their fans.

Next time I post, I’ll get into all the crappy things I want to bitch and moan about (Ortiz being out, Youk turning into a clubhouse moron). Excited? I know I am. While scoring games in my underwear whilst eating hot wings the past several weeks I’ve scratched some notes on things I’d like to have written about, but have not had the time to do so. So, here’s to getting back on board with my blog a few weeks shy of the All-Star Break. Timing was never my thing…

No-No on the Back Bay

2008-05-19T20:01:00.008-06:00

No more than eight months after Clay Buchholz threw the 17th no hitter in Boston Red Sox history, Jon Lester tossed the 18th tonight against the Kansas City Royals. He's also the first lefty in half a century to accomplish the feat for the Sox as well. Also a statistic of note, this is only the second time in Royals history they've had a no hitter thrown at them. You have to go back to within the first five years of the franchise in 1973 when Nolan Ryan pitched one for the California Angels.

Lester ended up walking only two batters in the entire game, which included a ninth inning walk Esteban Herman who managed to find his way to third base via a pair of ground outs to third thanks to Tony Pena Jr. and to first by David DeJesus. Lester ended the game with his ninth strike out of the night against Alberto Callapso.

Hopefully tonight will serve as a confidence booster for the young lefty, as his start to the season has been a little inconsistent at times. Now with Buchholz on the DL, the Sox are going to have to rely on Lester a bit more while Dice-K and Josh Beckett shoulder the main responsibility in the rotation. Something Beckett has struggled with as well through the first 50 games.

Not to be outdone tonight and over the weekend's sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers, the offense is lighting things up after returning home to Fenway. The Sox have scored 30 runs in the past four days and lead the AL with 253 runs. They also happen to be the only team in the AL currently flirting with .600 as well. It hasn't been taken care of by your usual cast of characters, even though Ortiz is starting to get his act together a bit while Lowell is finding his groove after returning from the DL.

Go down any list of stats for the Sox at the moment and you'll find that the only two everyday players batting above .300 are Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia and Manny Ramirez. Do I think more than three should be? Maybe, maybe not. I'm not quite so naive as to think you'll have a lineup with four of five hitters above .300, but last year did spoil us all a bit. Youk and Manny are pulling down amazing numbers besides what they are batting for average as well with an OPS of 1.003 and .920 respectively. Manny is still sitting at 498 and may not get to 500 at home while playing against a Royals staff that, for the most part, has been pretty solid the first month and a half.

The Sox will get to enjoy three more games against the Royals at home before getting out on the road for a normally sticky West Coast trip. Boston will set up shop in Oakland for the weekend before traveling up the coast to play the last place Seattle Mariners. After the trip the Sox will travel cross country the weekend after to play a four game series with Baltimore.

Sox Lose. Again.

2008-05-14T17:56:00.002-06:00

And Manny forgets he's Manny and makes this play in left today. At first when he uh, had to jump off the wall I thought he gave the ball away to a fan in the stands not knowing how many outs there were.

I'm too depressed to write anything about how awful the Sox are pitching lately. Hopefully at Fenway this weekend they can beat up on the Brewers a little bit. Please, God?

Domed

2008-05-12T20:45:00.005-06:00

The Sox traveled to Minnesota and got slapped around back to the east coast in convincing fashion by a surprisingly stout Twins line-up over the four game series, dropping three games to the Twinkies. The Twins spotted the Sox three runs in the top of the first inning tonight, but it only took Clay Buchholz three innings to give the lead back when the Twins went ahead on a Delmon Young sacrifice into a fielders choice. The Twins didn't look back and ended up with a 7-3 win.

After trying to battle back last night and coming up one run short, it looked like the Sox packed it in early in the game after Minnesota took the lead. It's not surprising, at this point in the season and in the series with the Twins you'd be kidding yourself if the team wasn't thinking about boarding a plane and getting the fuck out of Minneapolis. Probably in the next couple hours, the Sox will be on their way to Baltimore to play a quick two game series against the O's before heading home to Fenway on Friday for a weekend interleague matchup with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The next three starts will have Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and Dice-K on the mound so hopefully run control won't be as big of an issue as it was in the Metrodome. In the midst of the losing effort over the weekend the Tampa Bay Rays have strung together a five game winning streak and have closed in the Sox lead in the East to half a game. Unfortunately, the Rays don't appear to be waking up anytime soon (to realize they're Tampa) and could possibly be hanging around until the end of the month or beyond, which may give the young team enough confidence to be a thorn in the side of most teams into June and beyond.

We're nearing the fifty game mark, and the Sox are playing streaky at best. Not quite the same consistency as last season, but hell, the first two months of last year were fairly unprecedented for Boston. The Sox are making a habit of winning five or six games in a row or even eight or nine out of 10, and then dropping four in a row or three of four like this past weekend. They've been hit with some injuries early on and some key slumps from some key players. Hopefully as the season lays itself out they'll be able to adjust and find a groove so they can make it back to the postseason (expected) and possibly another division crown.

Manny's March to 500 - Just a quick note, Manny hit his 498th career home run tonight in the first inning to bring him within two homers of the 500 mark, for all you math whiz's out there.

Showdown In Minny

2008-05-10T20:11:00.005-06:00

After Jonathan Papelbon was unable to close on what looked like a great come from behind victory, the Sox dropped their opener with the Twins last night. The blown save was the second in a row for the normally sharp and seemingly inhuman Papelbon.

Tonight, the Sox sang a different tune while Dice-K earned his sixth win of the year. Over the course of seven innings, the second year Japanese pitcher struck out seven while only giving up two earned which is all the Twins were able to muster in the Metrodome this evening. With this past outing in the books Dice-K has racked up 47 K's on the season which puts him near the top in the American League.

Jed Lowrie hit his first major league career home run immediately after Coco Crisp hit his first home run since last season which put the Sox into a 2-2 tie, Lowrie's dinger proved to be the go ahead run for the Sox. Mike Lowell followed suit in the eighth to stretch the lead to 4-2 and Dustin Pedroia knocked in Lowrie to make the contest 5-2 in the top of the ninth.

It's nice to see that the offense is still coming from seemingly every part of the Sox lineup. Now with Lowell back in the lineup after coming back from the 15-day DL last week, things should be a little more consistent. Not that the Sox haven't been trying since the World Series MVP has been out. Boston is currently tops in the AL for runs scored with 198. Only the Arizona Diamondbacks have more in the majors with 204.

Tonight the Twins once again strung together a lot of good hits and put plenty of runners in position to make the game interesting. Tomorrow night will feature Tim Wakefield on the mound for the Sox who has gone 3-2 over the past three season against the Twinks. For tonight, credit the Sox 1-2 bullpen punch of Hideki Okajima and the (at least the past week) slumping Papelbon with closing out the game to seal a win up in the Twin Cities. So far on the season, Boston is 8-3 against the AL Central which only 3.5 games separate the first place Twins from the cellar dwelling Tigers. Hopefully the early season success against the Central can translate into a win tomorrow and even Monday night.

Texas Four Step

2008-04-22T15:22:00.003-06:00

The Sox managed to go 10-2 during a stretch where I might have been happy with 8-4 or 7-5 since I posted last. Mike Lowell is still on the DL, David Ortiz is still batting like shit (but batted .281 in the last 7 games) and Josh Beckett will miss yet another start tonight.

After sweeping AL West cellar dweller Texas Rangers, the Sox will meet the antithesis of the Rangers, the Los Angeles Angels. The young David Pauley will get the start tonight in the stead of the ailing Beckett against the struggling Jered Weaver. Pauley has been called up from Triple-A Pawtucket and filled in not so nicely last year on a couple occasions when Shilling when down. He gave up 14 runs on 31 hits in only 16 innings, however he has started off nicely for the PawSox with a 1.17 ERA.

What did I miss? Well, I didn't miss much but I didn't post on here while the Sox quietly ripped off nine wins out of their last ten. They went 4-and-2 against the Yankees, swept the struggling Indians on a couple of comeback victories and swept the Rangers. Not bad for a team who's ace was not doing so hot and who's slugger was (is) slumping.

Tough Week Ahead

2008-04-11T08:55:00.002-06:00

After getting swept out of the Rogers Centere like an expansion team last weekend, the Sox managed to take two of three from the struggling Tigers. The bad news is that World Series MVP Mike Lowell was placed on the 15-day disabled list in the face of one of the toughest weeks in the first half of the season. Coming up tonight is the Yankees, then in a strange twist of scheduling they Sox travel to Cleveland Monday for two games and then back east to the Bronx for two more games with their rivals Wednesday and Thursday.

If the Sox make it to a week from now below .500 I don't think I'll be surprised. The schedule this first month isn't quite as favorable as it was last year at this time. Ortiz continues to struggle (.083 average at the plate and a .434 OPS) as does Manny. Ramirez did drive in a couple runs yesterday, but in a 12 run game, you should be.

Kevin Youkilis and JD Drew continue to keep the team chugging along with a fairly stout performance yesterday and over the course of the first ten games. Drew has caught fire especially in the past series with Detroit after sitting out most of the first series with Oakland.

So here we go with the Yankees and Sox. I won't be able to watch any games until Sunday. This no cable/no MLB Extra Innings is fucking torture.

.500

2008-04-08T18:31:00.011-06:00

Well, it ain't going to be the same start we had last year. I'm not sure which factors are leading me to this probably premature conclusion, all I know is that this team seems like they could be in for a bit of a bumpy beginning to the season. Today, however, was a day to celebrate, pass out World Series rings and welcome back the one and only Bill Buckner. That's how happy Red Sox Nation is these days. Hands Across America indeed.

Dusting off a former pariah and shipping him to Boston from exile in Idaho is a big step in a direction most long time Sox die hards didn't think would ever happen. The villain from '86 was back throwing out the first pitch after the current roster had, ironically enough, celebrated their second Series victory in four years.

I missed the entire Toronto series due to the fact I was stuck in house without cable painting all damn weekend. Good thing it was my house, or I probably wouldn't have been there in the first place. I did get to listen to classic rock and Royals games while they boys in blue were in Minneapolis, and while not the best substitute, I did my best to make chicken salad out of chicken shit.

Boston pulled themselves out of the American League East cellar today with a 5-0 win over the seemingly hapless Tigers into a third place tie with New York. The Yanks dropped a game against the buzzsaw (I laughed when I typed that) that is the Royals, who are currently in a first place tie in the Central (with Chicago no less!) while Detroit sits five games back in dead last. I still think I'm going to wake up and it's going to be last Monday. Speaking of waking up, someone please tell the Kansas City roster that they need to look down and read their jersey's and that they say "Royals" across the front.

As much as I would like to see my hometown team do well, I'm digressing from the team I actually follow like a religious monk. Briefly, Dice-K had another solid outing subbing for Josh Beckett as the team's ace. He did his typical Dice-K thing giving up five hits over 6 and 2/3rds while striking out seven. Ortiz and Manny continue to struggle for the most part, making me wonder how the rock solid core of this team will be able to hold on. Hopefully they can find a respectable groove in the next few weeks, or days before the Yanks come to town this weekend. While I move. Goddamnit.

One last thing. I hate the fact that the Sox have some of the dumbest celebrities around.

Steven Tyler - Grade A Douchebag; frontman to a band that hasn't been cool since 1978

Dice-KKKKKKKKK

2008-04-02T12:25:00.007-06:00

Now that the fiasco that was purchasing my new home is complete, I can resume my normal duties with posting in this blog with some more consistency. Last night I took the liberty of staying up to watch Boston take a 2-1 lead in their series with the Oakland Athletics. That victory was mostly on the back of solid pitching from Daisuke Matsuzaka. Dice-K went six and two thirds of an inning giving up only one run and striking out nine. The rest of the pitching might was flexed by the primary set up man and closer in Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon, who actually came in at the end of the eighth inning.

David Ortiz continued his hitless streak of going 0-for-11 this season. Hopefully his search for his first hit can end tonight. After coming back from an injury you would hope this wouldn’t be the start of some confidence issues for Big Papi. Although I’m sure most people are must making a mountain out of a mole hill with this one. As far as the actual run production went, Jacoby Ellsbury drove in Kevin Youkilis in the fifth and Jason Varitek doubled in the go ahead run (Youkilis again) in the sixth to give the Sox the lead for good.

Notes
-Speaking of Youk, he extended his errorless streak into a tie with Steve Garvey for the Major League record. Youkilis has played in 193 games without a charged error. He also won his first Gold Glove in 2007.

-Last postseason’s most clutch pitcher Josh Becket is expected to start Sunday in Toronto against the Blue Jays. In his final rehab start in Fort Myers he went five innings, allowing one run on only two hits and no walks.

-The line up has already seen a few changes with JD Drew already showing signs of being an injury issue. Drew should be back in the lineup by the end of the week after recovering from a lower back strain.

-World Series Game Four difference maker Bobby Kielty has decided to stay with the Sox and will more than likely end up in AAA Pawtucket. After he found out that he wouldn’t make the major league roster, he was informed by his handlers that there were no other opportunities for him to play at that level. Big shock.

Tokyo Split

2008-03-26T12:47:00.008-06:00

Now that the "season opener" series between Boston and Oakland is officially split, it's time for the teams to return to their homeland and try to return to the normal rigors of a baseball season. Thankfully, they will have the weekend to recoup from their jet lag and resume the second half of their series come April 1st when the baseball world will be spinning for real.

The Sox were pretty much pounded from the word go this morning. When your team doesn't put up much of a fight at 5:30AM it sort of sucks to be up that early, as I mentioned yesterday. Yesterday's buffoon for the A's turned out to be today's hero. Former Royal fuck up (not royal fuck up, but certainly not far off) Emil Brown blasted a three run homer off Boston starter Jon Lester in the bottom of the third to extend their lead from 1-to-0 to 4-to-0. DH Mike Sweeny went 2-for-4 and scored a run in "former Kansas City Royal Day" at the Tokyo Dome.

David Ortiz is 0-for-6 so far, and while this is probably not cause for panic, it is a little concerning he was unable to get his bat on the ball at least once the past two days. Manny gave the Sox their only run of the game in the 6th inning on a solo shot with two outs. Mike Lowell had another solid day at the plate as well, going 2-for-4 with a couple of singles in the 4th and 9th inning. Unfortunately, the lack of offensive effort beyond this was not enough to hang with the A's. Doesn't look like it matters what continent it's on, the Sox usually suck against the AL West on the road. At least we're getting it out of the way right away this season.

With all the downtime between now and next Tuesday Dice-K and Joe Blanton will return to the hill to face each other for the second time in a week. No word on who will be facing Rich Harden the day after. Josh Beckett perhaps? I'm not sure why, but I've got a worse feeling about the start of this season that I did last year. Even though the team is basically in tact from their World Series run in '07, something just seemed a little off these past two days. For now, my rational side will chalk it up to being on a trip most of them did not want to take.

Just really quick here, back in Fort Myers Bartolo Colon missed his assignment yesterday because of a toothache. I'm not kidding. Can we please just cut him already?

One Down, 161 To Go

2008-03-25T08:13:00.004-06:00

With the first game of the 2008 season officially in the books, all I can say is that I can’t wait until the games are on at night here in the States. Being up at 5AM is officially too early in the morning if I haven’t already been up all night. However, I’m still alive, at work and happy that the Sox grabbed their first win of the year. It wasn’t easy.

Dice-K was roughed up immediately by the A’s in his return to Japan. He looked like he usually does, five or six innings of solid pitching with one inning that looks like he belongs in Double A. Mark Ellis got things started for the Athletics in bottom of the first with a shot to left center. Things quickly descended from there and I wondered why in the hell I got up after only about five hours of sleep. Matsuzaka proceeded to walk hitters, hit batters and throw wild pitches. At the end of the disaster that was the first inning, the Sox were lucky to get out alive only down 0-2.

The bats didn’t have any problems getting on base this morning, but they did have issues driving them in once they were on. The Sox were able to manage five hits before they did some damage to the scoreboard in the top of the sixth. After grounding into a fielder’s choice and grounding to first, Brandon Moss showed up and became a major contributor to the game doubling to right and scoring Manny Ramirez in the sixth and then homering in the top of the ninth to bring the Sox back to a tie with the A’s after entering the inning down 3-to-4 and pushing the game to extra innings.. Moss was a last minute addition after JD Drew was scratched for back problems. Hopefully a little Sake and massage with happy ending can get him back on the right track. I keep waiting for Drew’s injury bug to show up.

Ortiz went hitless and was intentionally walked in the 10^th but still looked better and more comfortable at the dish than he did most of the year at the plate last season. However, I did like how he evolved and adjusted last season after being unable to hit for power because of his knees and hit for average almost better than he ever had in his career. Manny came up big to get things started in the sixth with a two run double and did the same in the 10^th to seal the deal for the Sox. As long as one of the “Big Two” is coming up clutch, I don’t care which one, I’ll be a happy camper this early in the morning.

The one glaring concern was the amount of pitching the Sox had to throw at the A’s to walk away with a 6-4 win. Five pitchers in all were used over the course of the game after Dice-K left the game after the fifth. Kyle Snyder, Javier Lopez, Bryan Corey, Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon all saw action in the last half of the contest. None of them looked especially sharp except for the two middle relievers (Lopez and Corey) and Okajima. Papelbon looked nearly horrid and practically gave the game away in the bottom of the tenth. And thanks for some shitty baserunning by former Kansas City Royal Emil Brown, who is a gigantic dunce cap, the Sox got the second out where Brown should have hit an RBI double with only one out. With two out and nobody on, Papelbon put two more runners on base before getting Kurt Suzuki to ground out to first.

Overall both teams about what was expected of them. The A’s took shots here and there to build a small lead at different points in the game, and the Sox battled their way back into it with some power hitting blended with some clutch pitching when it was needed. Yes, even after I spend the last paragraph blasting (sort of) the staff. Hopefully tomorrow produces another victory in less stressful fashion for me when I’m up at 5AM. Again.

Game of the Rising Sun

2008-03-24T19:36:00.005-06:00

Tomorrow starts the 2008 season for the Boston Red Sox against the Oakland A's in Tokyo, Japan. The game is on at 5:05AM on ESPN2 and yes, I will be watching before I head into work. Dice-K will get the nod tomorrow morning squaring off against Joe Blanton. Hopefully he feels nice and comfortable on his home turf to secure a win for the Sox. Jon Lester will get the start on Wednesday morning wrapping up the first two games of the series against the A's before heading back to the West Coast of the U.S of A. to play the final two games of the series in Oakland. After that, it's straight into the meat grinder on the road in Toronto and then the head back to Boston to open the home schedule against highly touted Detroit and the rival New York Yankees. Yikes.

Boston To Boycott?

2008-03-19T10:27:00.009-06:00

And the MLB still sucks. (But the picture I'm including in this post is pretty cool. I hope she's at least 18.) At least their brass that decided it would be a good idea to reneg on the $40,000 pay day bonus that was originally promised to coaches and staff members of the team does. The players have all voted unanimously that they will not get on the plane to Japan to play their opener against the Oakland A's if the MLB doesn't hold up their end of the bargain on these payouts to the staff.

This may initially appear to be a bunch of greedy, overpaid baseball players intentionally sitting out because something isn't going their way, but if you have half a brain you'd realize they are sticking their necks out for a group of people that aren't protected by one of the most powerful sports unions in history. The MLB pretty much promised them everything under the rising sun to get them to go over their to open the season. Why would you want to anyway? I'm pretty sure I'd be more worried about starting my season off the right way rather than spreading the goodwill of baseball all over the world at the expense of my well-being. Maybe I'm just a self-centered asshole.

The fact will be that no matter what baseball decides as an organization, the Sox will be on a plane to start their season on March 25th. Maybe if the players are really sore about it they could pay the stipend that the MLB is backing out of themselves. I'm sure they could afford it. I highly doubt this happens though. The problem with me is that this is no way to start off a season while looking to repeat last year's success. Curt Schilling is out for at least half of the year, Beckett is having issues getting out of training, Ortiz is coming back from knee surgery, Crisp vs. Ellsbury in center (although I don't really see this as a problem), Bartolo Colon and generally mediocre play so far. Questions in the starting rotation don't help a whole lot either.

The big problem here with this situation is that Bud Selig is a giant dickhead with ears. Always has been, probably always will be. The guy owned and ran the Brewers for Christ sake. What did you expect? Anyway, $40k for the hard workers in the Sox organization in the grand scheme of things for this little venture are peanuts compared to what they (Major League Baseball) are probably making off of it. This could split the team a bit, since it was not a unanimous decision to go to play in Japan in the first place, or it could bring the team together even more in the face of King Bud. The only thing that can happen now is to get the season underway and see where the chips will fall on the season. If everything comes together the Sox have the potential to at least win the division. If the situation splinters and these problems are compounded by more problems, I wouldn't bet against a collapse like in 2006.

Springtime Catch-Up

2008-03-17T16:49:00.003-06:00

Wow, I know it’s been awhile since I’ve posted on here but work has been a bitch lately and time is a commodity I don’t enjoy too much at the moment. I’m not even going to try to get caught up on everything that has happened so far (avoiding the scout in the hotel with his dick out for some underager that probably had Chris Hanson secretly watching in the bushes).

The biggest news out of spring camp is the fact that of Josh Beckett’s health. No, not his gut popping out in that picture either. For now the Sox are using extreme caution with another of their aces out for at least half the season in Curt Schilling. Beckett will not be making the flight to Japan to take on the Oakland A’s and the starting nod was given to Daisuke Matsuzaka today. It’s actually nice to see Dice-K get the opener in his native land in some sense. I’m sure he’ll get one heck of a polite reception.

The Beckett situation isn’t probably as bad as most would think, he’s already throwing without pain and could be getting back into a game by this weekend. Pitching Coach John Farrell said the projected dates for him are to get into the bullpen on Thursday and hopefully some game time by Saturday or Sunday.

Hey this just in! Bartolo Colon sucks! Surprised? I know I’m not. I know the Sox were fairly desperate and the move to acquire him may have been a knee-jerk reaction to losing Schil’ for most of ’08, but good God, is this the best they could come up with? Today’s goal for Colon was to make it through the third inning against the Yankees. Well, he didn’t even make it out of the first folks. I know it’s only spring training, but if this were to happen any time during the regular season it could be one of those mini-disasters that Sox fans would have a hard time getting over. The good news is that Bart isn’t letting the loss get him down, not one iota.

Colon said that all he wants is to stay healthy, God willing. After the game he said he felt “great.” Well, if getting a healthy ass kicking to the tune of 41 pitches (41!!) in 2/3rds of an inning gave up three hits and four earned while walking three and striking out two. Francona has said since camp started that Colon has a great attitude and arm strength, but it’s probably the only two good things he could come up with. Control is going to be a major factor in his possible return to the bigs, hopefully things don’t get so desperate that we have to take a flyer on him at any point in the season. If he’s ready and good to go, then fine, give him a shot. I don’t think I’ll be excited about it at any point though. When the Sox are in Japan, Colon will be pitching a minor league game. He’ll also be available for the exhibition series against Dodgers at the end of the month. Something to note here also, if he’s not on the 25 man roster by May 1^st he has a clause in his contract to where he can bow out.

Happy Fuckin' Friday

2008-02-22T16:08:00.002-06:00

Maybe you've seen this video, maybe you haven't. Who the fuck knows. I figured it's a good way to kick off the fuckin' weekend. I fucking like Josh Beckett. He says fuck in press conferences.

In the Air

2008-02-21T19:02:00.009-06:00

Ah, spring is finally in the air. Well, at least in Florida and Arizona where most players have checked in and reported to their respective clubs for Spring Training. Meanwhile, in Kansas City, it snowed and sleeted today and never got above 10 degrees with the wind chill.

There will be a battle a brewin’ in centerfield in the month of March. Coco Crisp plainly stated yesterday that if he does not start for the Sox in center he will want out of Boston. My stance is with Ellsbury waiting in the wings and poised to take the starting position and with SS Julio Lugo locked up for the next four years, I’d be inclined to make a trade if I were the Sox front office. But I'm not, and my opinion differs a bit.

This is not big news of course, trade talks for the speedy outfielder have been on the surface since the week after the World Series. I like the fact that he wants to start everyday. If he came into camp and said he would be happy sharing time with Jacoby, I’d question his motivation to be on the squad. I’m of the mind (and so is Terry Francona) that Crisp should start out of the gate unless Ellsbury can show that his playoff fireworks is something he can do consistently rather than it just being a hot streak. On the other hand, keeping him down may cost the Sox in the long run.

GM Theo Epstein is keeping a very diplomatic stance saying that Crisp was a major cog that propelled the Sox to their second World Series Championship in four years. Some of the plays that Crisp was able to make in the outfield were pretty spectacular and keep the Sox run prevention at the top of the league, so you have to give him his due in that department.

Guess who showed up to camp on time? That’s right, none other than Mr. “No Respect for the Game” himself, Manny Ramirez. Manny discussed a lot of questions very candidly. Most importantly, he addressed his future in Boston. The Sox have two options for retaining Manny for the next two years after the ’08 season is complete. That means that this could be his last season in a Sox uniform. I wouldn’t count on that being a possibility. The Sox will more than likely keep him through 2010 and cut him loose.

He can do one of two things. He can either retire which is what he has said he would prefer to do, ending his career in Boston, or he could finish out his years on another team. I’ve always been somewhat indifferent to Manny. I love his bat and yes, I even like his loose attitude. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it makes you scratch your head. He plays left field like the average 10 year old, but during the last seven seasons at Fenway he actually looks like he knows what he’s doing out there while he’s playing at home. You take the good with the bad. They don't say "Manny being Manny" for nothing.

The Sox future is also currently on display down in Fort Myers. Prospects that could have been playing in Twins pinstripes are still within the Boston system and ready to prove their potential. Of course Clay Buchholz isn’t really a hidden gem any longer after his no hitter last September against the Baltimore Orioles, but he still has something to prove this spring. I’ve been pulling for him to be the fifth starter, but you may see him in the bullpen or starting the year out in Pawtucket. Justin Masterson, a player who was reported as part of the almost package deal for former Twins ace Johan Santana will show Boston fans why it was probably a good idea to hold on to him. Am I saying he’s better or will be better than Santana? No, of course not. I’m not that fucking stupid. I’m just saying that the Sox were just in the game to drive the price of Santana up so the Yanks would overpay. It’s my theory and I’m sticking to it. Masterson has a ton of upside and could find himself in the show in the next couple of years. More to come on other future players as Spring Training goes on...

I'm ready for this. The last several months have been hell. No baseball, shitty performance from my football teams and the endless nights of the NBA. Thank God my new cable provider has the MLB Extra Innings package.

Schilling's Rehab, Lugo Surprise!

2008-02-18T19:46:00.007-06:00

I’d try to do some sort of lame Amy Winehouse “Rehab” intro for the story with Curt Schilling, but I hate Amy Winehouse and her music so I’ll spare you. Today Red Sox brass met with the injured vet regarding which path would be the best for him to take. Someone who encompasses vast amounts of reason informed him that rehabbing and coming back for what should be his last hurrah with Boston is the best way for him to go. I’m of the mind that Schil rehab and try to work himself into the rotation around the All-Star break. How realistic is this? Probably not very.

There was some speculation of ill will between the two camps as the six time All-Star did sign a new one year deal worth $8 million last November. This was quickly quieted when the players and media converged on Fort Myers, Florida, site of the Red Sox Spring Training facility. John Henry was quoted as saying he didn’t feel duped by Schilling. Likewise Schil said he didn’t feel forced into something other than season ending shoulder surgery. All I can say is that I hope they don’t think they can rely on Julian Tavarez filling the hole. When he showed up to camp the possibility was news to him. He didn’t even know he was considered for the fifth spot. I don’t know if I should respect him for not paying attention to the media, or disgusted because he seems to constantly have his head in the sand. I hope they stop babying Clay Buchholz and let him actually compete for the fifth spot in the ro’.

This past weekend the Sox signed SS Julio Lugo to a four year $36 million deal. I’m not a huge fan of the idea of Lugo hanging around for that long as he’s only batted of .300 one time in his career. Of course, it’s not a forgone conclusion that he can’t have a few seasons up around .280 or .290 with a few more steals than his career average.

My problem is that with the obvious issues with Schilling, who spent time on the 60 day DL last season and will sit for at least the first half this year and not playing, why they didn’t feel the need to go out and try and pick someone up at least for the first half of the year. I heard rumors of Barolo Colon, which is incredibly stupid given that his fat ass hasn’t done anything on the mound in the past two or three seasons. With Buchholz, Kyle Snyder and yes, Tavarez they should be able to weather the storm.

Just a quick ending tidbit...I've heard rumors of the Sox going after Cleveland Indians ace C.C. Sabathia now that this season could be his last in the Forest City. My take? Stop, just stop it. I give it about a 5% chance the Sox even think about going after him. Why? I don't think the Sox are looking to secure another starting pitcher with a bloated salary. Simple as that. Right now with Beckett and Dice-K the Sox are going to turn to their farm system to produce the next wave of young talent.

Let the Countdown Begin

2008-02-14T14:46:00.005-06:00

What has the last week brought to me on the doorstep of Spring Training? Curt Schilling possibly out for the season with a shoulder injury in his pitching arm! Hurray. Now the most hated man, according to me, is in the mix to take over the fifth spot in the Boston rotation. That’s right, Julian Tavarez has just backed up into the starting rotation once again. So, thanks for that Schilling. The organization wants him to rehab so he can play limited ball this year and probably force him into retirement after the season. Schilling wants season ending surgery so he can play in 2009. We’ll see who budges first.

Kevin Youkilis and the Red Sox brass avoided salary arbitration by signing the first baseman to a one year, $3 million contract. Last year Youk went .288 and had 16 home runs with 83 RBI’s. I find it funny on a few message boards that I read where fans will tout GM Theo Epstein as a god because of his ability to avoid salary arbitration with his players. Real tough when you have the second largest payroll in baseball.

Should I say something about Roger Clemens? I’m thinking no, it’s completely played out and I’m tired of talking about it and even more tired of other people talking about. Clemens’ wife should break him in half over her abs.

Roger Clemens is as guilty as a gay guy with a wheelbarrow full of buttholes, but I'm happy to see his name get dragged through the mud because he's a Yankee. I didn't really like Clemens back in the day when he played for the Sox, I just never really like him. I was sort of happy when he went to the Blue Jays, even after his 20 strike out performance in '96 as he was on his way out the door. Hopefully this thing gets wrapped up and buried soon, but I doubt it.

April: Please, Please Hurry

2008-02-04T14:22:00.001-06:00

Last night was the end of the National Football League’s season. I for one couldn’t be any happier. My fantasy season sucked and my team (49ers) took a step backwards from 2006. As soon as everyone made them the “sexy” or “trendy” pick I knew it was the kiss of death. Also see: Dante Culpepper’s last season in Minnesota.

The Super Bowl marked the first time the ninth or tenth best team in the NFL hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy. The Giants winning was nothing more than the St. Louis Cardinals winning the 2006 World Series. Bottom line, they just got hot at the right time. I can’t take too much away from them, but they did lose 17-to-41 to the Vikings. At home. They also went three and three in their division which included being swept in the regular season by the Dallas Cowboys. Of course they made up for this in the Divisional round of the playoffs by vanquishing the ‘Boys in Dallas. And what a price I would pay for rooting for that one.

This has been the Giants in a nutshell this year. You just never saw them coming and you never took them seriously. Eli Manning was responsible for more turnovers than any other player in the NFL this season by a pretty wide margin, but here we are, the day after the Super Bowl and another damn Manning is Super Bowl MVP. I’m officially in football hell. Eli’s not so bad (although I dislike him incredibly for putting an end to Nebraska's winning season streak, 38 seasons in a row, while at Ole Miss) it’s more Payton, but I’m still blaming Eli for being brothers with the biggest commercial whore since Sally Struthers. And that lame Oreo commercial. Fuck Peyton Manning, I'm surprised he wasn't on the podium when the Lombardi trophy was presented. Every time Eli does something, Peyton is there. Or his dad Archie.

I wanted the Patriots to win for two reasons. Number one was because it was Boston versus New York, and because my hatred for the Yankees runs so deep, it bleeds over into football teams that have nothing to do with it. Number two was because I’m sick of hearing about the fucking ’72 Dolphins. You know, the team that didn’t play a playoff team until they got to the playoffs that year. New England seemed to encompass everything that was great about a football team. If you buy into the SpyGate crap, you’re an idiot. Sorry, you just are. If you think Belichick and staff were the only one’s doing this, you’re an even bigger idiot. You aren’t a bigger idiot than the guy who was videotaping the Jets sideline and their coaches in the Meadowlands while wearing Patriots gear, however. So feel good about that. People talk about how it will be a long time before a team ever goes 19-0, especially in this era. I think it will take just as long for a team to achieve 18-0 again. It would make sense, since in order to 19-0 you need to go 18-0 first. Anyway...

So last night those old farts popped a few bottles of champagne and toasted to their success when offensive linemen were 6’1” and 240 pounds. Last night Don Shula was still the only coach in NFL history to guide a team to a perfect season, and Mercury Morris did some blow off Larry Csonka’s balls. Hurray for NFL football.

So, what have the Sox been up to? Glad you asked and I’m glad I don’t feel the need to write about football anymore. It's almost 70 degrees in KC today and I've got baseball on my mind.

The Sox are set for camp and there will be new faces and some familiar faces that won’t be seen during the 2008 campaign. Eric Hinske, who was a fan favorite because of his hard nosed style of play was cut in the offseason and is yet to find another team to sign with. I sort of liked Hinske when he’d come in and plow people over at the plate. The problem was he was so damn slow that 90% he’d be out at the plate. He’s also a player who needs to be in the lineup on a daily basis to be effective and get into a rhythm. Sort of like a Wily Mo Pena. Bobby Kielty was also let go after being picked up late last season. He had the “game winning” home run in Game 4 of the Series, but he basically picked up a free ring just because he rode the bench for two months. With Jacoby Ellsbury and Coco still in the fold, there isn’t enough room for him. Jesus Christ, just look at that guy…I’m glad he’ll be gone. Thanks for the homer, but good Lord.

So what about the guys you really know? The lineup isn’t going to see that big of a facelift, and as we saw last year it will change to Francona’s liking. So far this is what is projected for when Spring Training breaks.

2B Dustin Pedroia
1B Kevin Youkilis
DH David Ortiz
LF Manny Ramirez
3B Mike Lowell
RF JD Drew
C Jason Varitek
CF Jacoby Ellsbury
SS Julio Lugo (if he doesn’t get traded)

The starting rotation is probably going to look like this, again, not a big change.

1. Josh Beckett
2. Daisuke Matsuzaka
3. Curt Schilling
4. Tim Wakefield
5. Jon Lester

Did you catch it? No Julian Tavarez! Fuck yeah!

Oh yeah, there are also some new guys too.

As of last Friday, the Sox agreed to a one year $800,000 deal with veteran first-baseman Sean Casey. Talk about an appropriate name for a Boston player, he’ll be backing up Youk and Ortiz when needed. He’s basically replacing Hinske. He’ll likely play first when Youk is on third when Lowell has a day off and could even fill in for Ortiz at the DH spot. I like this addition if he blends well with all the personalities in the clubhouse. He’s a favorite among his past teams and seems like stand-up guy. His career numbers aren’t too shabby either right at 1,336 games he has a .301 average, 130 homers, 718 RBI’s and a .366 OBP. In his final season with the Tigers he contributed with a .296 average while driving in 54 runs with four homers.

In the next few days I’ll put up some of the other acquisitions up so I have something to write about before Spring Training gets going.

Santana To Mets...Almost

2008-01-30T08:51:00.000-06:00

As of yesterday, the New York Mets have 48 to 72 hours to negotiate a long term deal with soon- to- be- maybe- former Minnesota Twins ace Johan Santana. Word is that Santana and his agent are looking for a deal for five years in the neighborhood of $155 to $160 million. Obviously, this would be the largest contract for a starting pitcher in major league history.

Personally, I’m happy that he is 1) going to the National League and not the American League East and 2) the Sox don’t have to shell out a truckload of cash for a starter they really don’t need.

The Twins effectively took the third best deal on the table for all those serious in the talks for Santana. I’m sure most fans in Minnesota and the surrounding area would have been pleased with players that are either proven (Sox) and those that are on the cusp of superstardom (Yankees) rather than a crop of somewhat unproven commodities. That’s not to say that the Mets’ offering is weak, it’s just not potentially as sure of a thing they could have received with either the Sox or Yankees.

There are some pros and cons to not getting Santana in a Red Sox uniform. The obvious pros have been mentioned above. The money and the players stand out initially to me. The other, just in my opinion, is overloading the starting rotation. You want as few holes in your starting rotation as possible obviously, but you don't want an All-Star team, do you? Beckett, Lester and Dice-K are all young and have bright futures in Boston. Of course Schilling and Wakefield aren’t getting any younger, but they aren’t glaring problems in the current rotation. Adding Santana could have potentially thrown the entire flow of the staff of kilter. I may be alone here, but what would have bringing in Santana done to affect Beckett’s psyche? Or Schilling’s? Word was that Beckett enjoys his role as the "number one" on the mound. Plus, all that damn money. I know if there is another team that can afford it besides the Yanks are the Sox, but still, it’s a ton of fucking money we don’t need to spend.

What about the cons? Well, you’re missing out on probably the best pitcher in baseball. Duh. The Sox are coming off a World Series win, which means every time you play the Royals, Rays or Rangers they’re going to be coming after you like it’s the playoffs. I’m not going to say the Sox flew under the radar in ’07, mostly because of their meteoric April and May, but during spring training there weren’t too many people expecting a whole lot. At least not up until Papelbon’s 8^th inning save down in Arlington that I feel was the emotional catalyst the Sox needed in response to stumbling out of the gate. Anyway, the point I was attempting to make was that if you want to repeat sometimes you need to add a new wrinkle to your team to throw everyone off to give yourself another shot at a ring. What better curveball to throw at the rest of the AL and entire league than having Santana and then Beckett as your 1-2 punch?

Of course, at this point it’s probably a moot point. Santana appears to be headed to Queens or back to Minnesota if a deal doesn’t go through. Then he’d be a free agent and likely headed to Yankee pinstripes for the 2009 season and beyond. I’m hoping the Mets deal goes through and Santana enjoys a fruitful second half to his career in the National League. I’m happy we get to keep Ellsbury and Lester. Even Jed Lowrie, who could develop into an infield counterpart to Dustin Pedroia.

The Twins faithful should keep one thing in mind, and it may help them sleep better at night after losing probably the most dominate pitcher of this era. At least he didn’t go to Boston where he would no doubt have helped the city to yet another championship or superstar filled team. Sleep tight, Minnesota.

What's Happening!!

2008-01-15T19:45:00.000-06:00

Good God, this part of the year drags for me. I know the playoffs are in full swing for the NFL, but when your team isn't playing it's hard to get into it. The college football season was hard to get excited for with the absence of the Huskers. So, basically football has sucked this year.

Obviously baseball was another story. It was fun this past year to kick this blog off during a season in which the team I was following won the World Series. But since the championship, the resigning of Lowell and the on again off again trade talks with Minnesota for Johan Santana there isn't much to really talk about. The stove is not hot for the Sox at this point.

CF Coco Crisp in still in Boston, more or less. I'd be surprised if he's in Spring Training wearing a Boston uniform. It's hard to gauge what the Sox can get for him and the market hasn't been responding to the prospect of Crisp. I hope Theo isn't hanging on in hopes the Twins actually bite on him for a trade because that ain't gonna happen.

Right now the starting rotation has as many as six options for the 2008 season. Josh Beckett, Curt Schilling, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Tim Wakefield, Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz are all starters. With backup catcher and full time Wakefield man-servant Doug Mirabelli back in the fold for '08 it is a clear indicator that the Sox are committed to Wake as a starter. Lester will have the edge for the fifth spot and Buchholz could find himself back in Pawtucket or in the pen for long relief duty.

Other than this, and Jim Rice narrowly missing the Hall, not much is going on in Boston. Of course, league commissioner Bud Selig and players union tzar Donald Fehr talked in front of Congress today.

Every time they show baseball players or brass in a subcommittee room on Capital Hill it reminds me of my favorite line from Mars Attacks! when the aliens take over and torch the Capital Building. The old grandma (Sylvia Sydney) of the main character laughs uncontrollably and blurts out "they blew up Congress!!" Cinematic gold.

Are tickets for the Royals on sale for opening day yet? This sucks.

StFU - Race Relation Style (With Guest Appearance!)

2008-01-10T10:09:00.000-06:00

It’s the New Year and I already have a recipient for the year’s first “Shut the Fuck Up” Award. It never ceases to amaze me the level of stupid people will plunge to, but this one has to take the cake. Or the grits. Let me explain.

Last Friday (keep this in mind that it was nearly a week ago) on the Golf Channel an anchor, Kelly Tilghman, reporting from the Mercedes-Benz Championship said while discussing the dominance of Tiger Woods that young up and coming golfers best solution to stop his winning ways was to “lynch him in a back alley.” If this were a scene in a movie you could hear the needle scratch off the record sound effect .2 seconds after the words came out of her mouth. Unfortunately this was for real, as real as the Golf Channel gets anyway.

Initially the Golf Channel was going to take no actions for Tilghman’s comments. Tiger’s agent even brushed it off because the two are friends (which makes everything okay, I guess) and she had personally apologized to Tiger. This all happened before this was news. So once again, please, keep this in mind. Tiger's agent said it was “a complete non-issue.”

Tilghman’s comments were bone-headed and crass. Some (like me) would even call them racially insensitive. What did she think was going to happen? Did she assume that black people don’t watch the Golf Channel? Which of course would be even more racist and prejudgemental. Or did she just think that people would laugh off her off color joke/idiotic comment. Couldn't she just have said "beat him with a nine iron?" Or kidnap him? Or cut off one of his arms? Any of these would have been better. But "lynch him in a back alley?" Yikes, she might as well have said "lynch him like it's 1899."

To me, this is worse for her than it was for Fuzzy Zoeller when he commented at the 1997 Masters Tournament that they should start serving collared greens and fried chicken in the clubhouse now that Tiger was on tour. I’m sure it was in good humor and Tiger may have taken it well, but the American public is too sensitive to realize this, so it was a big no-no for Fuzzy.

So, now Tilghman is suspended for two weeks from her duties on the Golf Channel. How did we get from this being a non-issue from her being suspended to possibly being fired? You have to ask? Why, the Reverend Al Sharpton of course!

I’d also like to make a special announcement, this is huge for us here at KC Bean Boy because we’ve never interviewed anyone. I believe this is going to put us on the blogosphere map, to be quite honest. So, without further ado I’d like to introduce the one, the only, Reverend Al Sharpton.

KCBB: Thank you for speaking with us and answering some of our questions today in light of this horrible tragedy and being on hand to pass out our Shut the Fuck Up Award to Kelly Tilghman.

You’re welcome whitey, there is nothing I love more than going on national television or speaking with a honky blogger to air my grievances and giving awards to white degradatin’ fools.

KCBB: No problem Al, on behalf of the all the staff here at KC Bean Boy, you have an open invitation to come back anytime, even before you answer any questions.

Thanks again cracker, it is my right to say what I want when I want. Let me set the record straight, that white bread woman on the Golf Network is no better than Don Imus, she is no better than the Ku Klux Klan and no better than even Jefferson Davis himself! Furthermore, firing her is not enough. This morning my legal team lead by Johnny Cochran has filed a civil suit on behalf of black people everywhere.

KCBB: Wow that is going to be quite the undertaking sir. I’m just curious, you really think she is no better than the President of the Confederate States of America? Isn’t that going a little overboard? And isn’t Johnny Cochran dead?

Cochran is alive! Let me tell you and all your cracker, white-America reading followers something else. When someone insults a black person with such racially insensitive remarks as these I come with the wrath of my God down upon thee. What would happen if I said they should take Sandy Koufax into a gas chamber so the San Francisco Giants could have gotten some more hits and wins in the 60’s?

KCBB: Well, you make a very valid point there Rev. Sharpton.

That’s right I do son, and you should be taking notes, because if I catch you making even the slightest of disparaging remarks about the black community as I interpret it, I will have you fired as well.

KCBB: Now Reverend, there is no need to threaten me. The integrity of this blog is of the utmost and highest regard among it’s readers for its racial sensitivity. Let’s get back to the interview. Don’t you think you might be taking this a little too far considering that Woods has said through his agent that this is a “complete non-issue” and that Tilghman has apologized to Woods himself?

There is no way that I am taking this too far honky. It’s like when Don Imus called the Rutgers Women’s Basketball team ‘nappy headed hoes.’ He wasn’t just insulting the team, he was insulting black people all over America. He just wanted to apologize to the team, I wanted him to be fired and spend his time going from door to door in Harlem, in Watts, in Philadelphia, in Newark, in Compton and in Jena personally apologizing to every black person that lives in the United States of America. I believe she should be fired and should have to personally apologize to black people everywhere. You know she went to Duke University, right? Don’t you know that I represent black people everywhere? I am the emperor of black people!

KCBB: I’m apologize, Reverend, I was unaware of your patriarchal status among the black community. While I agree that her comments were out of line and that she should be punished, don’t you believe she should be absolved through her apology to Woods, the man she referenced in the first place?

Absolutely not! This matter is bigger than Tiger Woods! He’s not black enough anyway. Don’t you remember I said that? The punishment should fit the crime here cracker.

KCBB: One final question, doesn’t the Bible in which you preach from talk of forgiveness and learning from one’s mistakes?

You realize I’m not a real minister, right?

KCBB: I was not aware of that either. Thank you again for your time Mr. Sharpton.

Reverend!

KCBB: Oh Al! Thanks for coming on to speak with us.

Bye, honky!

There you have it, our first interview and I’m sure it will go down in history as one of the finest. Reverend Al was on hand to pass out a StFU, how awesome was that? So there you have it Kelly Tilghman, on behalf of KC Bean Boy, Reverend Sharpton and black people everywhere, Shut the Fuck Up!

Added Golf Related Bonus Picture!!

Deservedly So?

2008-01-07T11:07:00.000-06:00

Today I'm taking a queue from a fellow blogger, and since there is not much to talk about other than former Boston outfielder Jim Rice in his 14th attempt to gain enshrinement into the Hall of Fame, we'll focus on that. In my tenure as a Red Sox fan I've asked myself this question around this time every year there aren't slam dunk candidates on the ballot. Does Jim Rice deserve to be in Cooperstown?

Of course every pro-Boston writer probably believes that he should have been voted in over a decade ago, I on the other hand, am not so sure. Of course, in the arena of me vs. the Baseball Writers Association of America, I don't carry any weight. But screw them, this is my Thunderdome and I'll write about and write off whoever I like. Bias because of fandom is something I try to steer clear of.

Jim Rice had a long and fruitful career with the Boston Red Sox. It was solid, you can't take that away from him. Rice was drafted by the Sox in the 1971 amateur draft as the 15th pick overall and played every game of his major league career in a Sox uniform until 1989. In his first full season he batted .309 with 102 RBI's and an OPS of .841. He ended up finishing third in the AL MVP voting behind Fred Lynn (who played for Boston) and John Mayberry of the Kansas City Royals. He finished behind Lynn as well for AL Rookie of the Year honors.

I've read a lot lately from the Herald or on the Globe that Rice was one of the "most feared" hitters in his era. He reached base on balls 670 times in his career, a good portion (but not a majority) of which were intentional. However during his most prosperous years he didn't even rank in the top 10 or even top 25 of players who were intentionally walked. Not very feared if you ask me.

He hit above 40 home runs one time in 1978, the year he won his only AL MVP award. He came close to 40 again in '77, '79 and '83 with 39, but never cracked more than 30 the rest of his career. For a player who is described as a 'feared power hitter' these are hardly impressive numbers. I don't think relying on subjective statements is a great case for any player when considering induction into any hall of fame either.

Over his career he hit 382 homers in his 16 years in the Major Leagues. If you compare that to Mike Schmidt's (who no one will argue was a dominate power hitter of the same era) 548 home runs in 18 seasons you'll see some disparity between the two. Of course you can't compare everyone to Schmidt because his numbers were astounding while he was in his prime, but it does make for some interesting food for thought when he is the measuring stick for power hitters from the mid 70's through the next 10 years or so.

One thing pro-Rice writers will tell you is that he was one of the best players from 1975-1986. The problem is, is that Rice played from 1974-1989. You can cherry pick most people and make a strong case for all the above average players in their respective generations. Sure it's the bulk of his career as a big leaguer, but it certainly doesn't tell the entire story. You shouldn't pick and choose good seasons and separate them from the bad because this isn't the "Hall of Very Good," right? A term I absolutely hate, by the way.

The way I sometimes like to look at it is the "how many times do I have to be on the ballot to get in factor," or the "HMTDIHTBOTBTGIF" as I like to call it. I should really find a shorter way to describe this so I can have an easier to understand acronym. Simply put, Rice has been on the ballot since 1994 and is yet to enter into the Hall. If he doesn't make it in this year against the likes of Rich Gossage, Bert Blyleven or Andre Dawson, he'll be competing with likely first-time-in Rickey Henderson in '09. Having players like Mark McGwire and Brady Anderson on the ballot may help Rice's chances as well.

The players whom I mentioned in the previous paragraph that Rice is competing against he'll likely either pass up or get voted in with. I'm thinking most likely Goose Gossage? But who knows, baseball writers are notoriously caught in public and in print with their heads firmly planted in their asses, noses pointed toward the clouds. If Rice gets in it will be a great victory for the Boston faithful and most will be pleased without any cause other than the fact that he played for the beloved Sox.

It's easy to be blinded by fandamonium, it's harder to reach back to compare and contrast objectively. Your guy isn't always going to get in, but then again sometimes the right guys don't get in either. That's my problem with the Hall. It's great to have on your all-time resume, but sometimes "member of the Baseball Hall of Fame" isn't the true measure of the man. Rice had a great career, but is it HOF worthy? When you go back and look, even as a faithful fan, I'm going to say no. Does that diminish his impact on baseball or his status on the Sox? I'm going to say no to that too.

Offseason Slowdown

2008-01-03T15:50:00.000-06:00

You know it's a slow postseason when the two biggest stories to come out of the Sox camp is Jonathan Papelbon's bulldog eating the final out baseball of the Series and the organization getting slapped with paying a luxury tax.

I wish I had more to write about but there just isn't that much there. General manager Theo Epstein promptly resigned free agents and let go who they didn't want or need back in 2008. The Santana trade talks are going virtually nowhere, making me think the Sox were just in it to inflate his price so the Yankees would sacrifice way too much which is shrewd and genius at the same time.

Curt Schilling said a few weeks ago after the Mitchell Report came out that if in fact Roger Clemens did take 'roids that he should give back his Cy Young awards from when he was with the Blue Jays and Yankees. Some days I'd like to give Schil' one of my patented "Shut the Fuck Up" Awards, but if I did it would start a slippery slope of passing one out to him every other month.

It's fine to have an opinion, but most of the world probably doesn't care. And with Congress sniffing Schilling's ass just as much as they were Clemens', he should count his blessings no one tattled on him too. No sense in being holier than thou, which is also a crappy Metallica song. Nevermind.

Kevin Youkilis is now giving a ringing endorsement to an energy drink called "SlumpBuster," or "SlumpBustah" as I heard it pronounced.

It's less than two months until most players start reporting to spring training. The Sox first game is against Boston College in a split squad matchup on February 28th. The exodus to City of Palms Park cannot get here soon enough as far as I'm concerned.

I was thinking about doing a series of posts about former Sox with kick ass names, like this guy...

One can only hope to have a name as phenomenal as this dudes. Dick Pole totally ruled. Greg Maddux idolized him too, it's true.

StFU Makes a Comeback

2007-12-19T19:03:00.000-06:00

Speaking of handing out awards, I have an award of my own that I'd like to dole out. And since it's been a few months since I've done so, the recipient had to be special.

Today's "Shut the Fuck Up" goes to baseball legend Pete Rose. That's right, everyone's favorite hard nose playin', gamblin' son of a gun gets a StFU for his comments made yesterday regarding the Mitchell Report.

Charlie Hustle was quoted as saying that players who are using HGH, steroids or any other performance enhancing drug are "making a mockery of the sport." Huh? What was that?

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not encouraging players to enhance themselves to gain a competitive edge, but I'm not crying foul on the street corner either pretending to be holier than thou. If a player wants to shrink their nuts to get an extra 15 dingers a year, shoot it up then I guess.

He also said that "I never thought anybody would make me look like a choirboy." Right. Because knowingly betting against your own team while managing it isn't in any way as bad as using chemicals to "cheat" or a conflict of interest in any way.

Rose has never been above blowing his own horn to prove how he deserves to be in Cooperstown, and I suppose it was only a matter of time before he used this scandal to do the same thing he's been doing for over 18 years now.

Do I care if he gets into the Hall of Fame? I'm not sure. I do think it's sort of tragically funny that the home run king (Barry Bonds) and all-time leading hitter (Rose) may not get in to Cooperstown. He also stated that if these players who were on the report get into the Hall of Fame that "I've got a shot somewhere."

This is the cherry on top for me. When asked how much better he would be if steroids were as readily available in his day as they were in the last decade or so, Rose promptly replied that "I would have got 5,000 hits."

Nice one dumbass. You decry the use of 'roids now, but you're basically admitting if they would have been around in the 70's you would have shot the stuff up just as quickly as McGwire and Palmeiro.

My advice, stay in Vegas and sign your balls and keep your opinions out of the media. So here you go Pete Rose, you deserve it, now Shut the Fuck Up.

Awards, Wrapping Up Mitchell

2007-12-19T18:47:00.000-06:00

Another award was handed out today for a Red Sox player. It’s no Cy Young, but reliever Hideki Okajima won MLB.com’s “This Year in Sports” Set-Up Pitcher of the Year. Considering the low expectations for Okajima coming out of spring training, it's not a bad deal.

Normally, this would be pretty cool, but it’s voted on by fans. Don’t take that wrong, it’s just that Sox pitchers dominated with Josh Beckett (best starter) Jonathan Papelbon (best closer) and Clay Buchholz (top performance) largely because the wide reach of the Sox fanbase. But congrats on a great year to Okajima. We’ll have to see if he can perform with expectation in’08. Nice minivan by the way.

With nothing really moving in any direction this off season, (or anymore "awards" to talk about) or the Santana trade talks moving forward there isn’t too much to write about when it comes to the Sox.

No major current players on the Sox current roster were implicated in the Mitchell Report, which is not too surprising considering the ties between the Sox and Mitchell himself.

I found the report to mostly laughable, if you didn’t think players took steroids or HGH in the past 10-15 years you need your eyes adjusted. The players listed were only on said list because trainers or clubhouse lackeys were forced to rat them out. I can’t say I blame them, when you have a former United States Senator breathing down your neck. You’d probably tell him you wear women’s panties if you were in that same position and if he pressured you enough.

Speaking of not placing blame, like many I don’t blame the players entirely for the scandal and situation at hand. Of course a certain amount of blame needs to be placed on the players themselves. However, when faced with a decision between personal accountability and putting food on the table, you can see why players who shouldn’t have been playing in the bigs in the first place stuck a needle in their arm to bolster their bank account by playing a few years for premium dough.

If this were a problem that baseball was serious about curbing, it would have been done without the aid of an independent study group, without the outcry of a public who didn’t mind 10 years ago and without the help of the United States Congress. So basically what I'm saying is that baseball whiffed on correcting it and players were mostly caught in the mania of trying to keep up with each other while we all sat in the stands and cheered for more home runs.

Personally, I don't need a score of 11-8 or even 7-5 every night to be satisfied with the game. Some of the most entertaining games I watched this year were decided by an outcome that resulted in both teams combining for less than 5 runs total. But since most people are lovin' the longball, it's hard for players to just say no. So thank you, dumbass fan, for spawning players like Sammy Sosa and Gary Sheffield. That's fucking great.

Does Anybody Really Care?

2007-12-12T11:31:00.001-06:00

According to reports all over the media, tomorrow will be M-Day, so to speak. At least it's the day when performance enhancing drug investigator George Mitchell will release his "independent" and "impartial" report.

Do I want to know who is on the list? Sure, I guess. But I'm not the type of guy that cares what athletes do when they aren't on the field. Maybe female sports fans will like this more since the fairer sex seems to be what keeps publications like People, In Style and Us Weekly in business.

I'm sure there are going to be names on there. Probably some guys you've even heard of, but not that many. I don't think it's going to be as big as some are making it out to be. Watch it turn out to have 85% minor league players and players that have retired in the last two years.

I wonder how many Red Sox will be on there since Mitchell is a part of the Sox board of trustees or something like that. He's maintained that he hasn't been paid by the Sox since then, but what is he going to go back to when he's done with his investigation? I'm fairly certain you won't see too many Sox on the list.

The chasm between the players union and baseball's owners and probably didn't help matters at all. Mitchell didn't even have any subpoena power during the last year and a half. So I'm also guessing that what he found doesn't even really go that deep.

It all comes down to this. How much do you, the fan, really care if players are juicing or not? Am I personally going to stop watching baseball, or writing about it? Probably not. Am I going to stop going out to Kauffman Stadium to watch the Royals or plan trips to Boston to see the Sox? Definitely not. Am I going to lose some respect for the game? Who knows? Depends on what comes out. I'm not going to lie, my interest in the sport waivered for a couple years after the strike in 1994, but I didn't stop watching completely.

If you care that players are cheating, don't watch. If you don't really care that much, then this report probably matters about as much to you as how many kids Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are adopting from third world countries.

Saying all that, I know I'll sit down and read whatever they put out online about the report itself because I'm a dork like that. I'd like to have a conversation with my buddies about this and know more than they do because I'm an asshole like that.

In any event, this is just another thing to write about during a slow spot in the middle of the week in the baseball world. For now, this is all it means to me at the moment.

Just Who Do You Think You Are??

2007-12-10T18:51:00.000-06:00

I know Star Wars is mostly stupid, but the picture is sort of funny, I guess. You'll see why in a minute.

With Santana talks cooling off this week, a new story seems to be dominating a lot of Red Sox fan sites and news aggregates.

Rookie centerfielder Jacoby Ellsbury signed autographs at the Emerald Square Mall in the Boston metro area this past Saturday. Now, this wouldn't be that big of news except for the fact that he's charging $125 per autograph. That's not all, if you've got a shirt or jersey, that'll cost you an extra $25 bucks.

I've paid for Joe Montana's signature on a football helmet. It wasn't cheap. It's on a $600 authentic NFL San Francisco 49ers helmet. Then I dropped an additional $300 just to have Joe Cool put his John Hancock (I said cock) on it. I may have been young and retarded with too much money to burn, but I might do it again given the chance. It's a pretty fucking cool sight. But $150 for Ellsbury to sign a t-shirt? Get fucked.

Now, you might say that it's because Scott Boras just became his agent. I'd say you're right. According to Sox starter Curt Schilling, who refuses to sign at events that charge for his autograph, the asking price for autographs is set by the agent since they make a small percentage of the take.

Look, the guy is a phenom in the making, but paying a 23-year old kid who has played 33 games in the bigs for his sig? That's just flat out gay. A survey was set up on Boston.com to see if the general public who happen to be Sox fans would pay for his autograph. Guess how many people said they would? 7%. 7%! Red Sox fans are some of the most loyal in all of baseball and less than one in ten people would pay for Ellsbury's name on a hat.

If Scott Boras fell off a cliff and died tonight, I don't think I'd even care tomorrow. Or the next day.

Nice Name

In other news, I'm waiting on the edge of my seat to see if Japanese outfielder Kosuke Fukudome is planning on playing baseball stateside. Mainly because I'd love to cheer for him because his name looks like Fuk u dome to me.

Go Fuck you dome!!!

Anyway, he has some offers from other Japanese ballclubs like the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants, Japan's answer to the New York Yankees. They play in a dome that is modeled after the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. Mike Tyson lost his championship to Buster Douglas there. Those Japs have a long way to go with their stadiums. Along with their team logos.

Meetings Over

2007-12-08T10:34:00.001-06:00

With the winter meetings now in the books, Johan Santana is still a Twin and the Sox still have the same starting rotation as they did last week at this time. I, for one, am sort of happy. I really, really do not like the trade for Santana. I don't think we need him and we don't need to spend the money on him. Just because you can, doesn't always mean you should.

In all honesty, I'm sort of tired about posting about Santana so I'm going to stop right now. If something real happens, for example if both teams agree to the trade and the Sox ask the commissioners office for the 72 hour window to negotiate on a contract extension with Santana, then I'll put something up. Till then, I'll post about the bore that will be the Sox offseason outside of the Santana talks.

Veteran set-up man and reliever Mike Timlin was resigned to a one year agreement. It's probably all he'll be getting from now on since he is in the 40+ club with starter Curt Schilling. But since no one has really been able to figure out his stuff, especially in the post season, he remains a stalwart in the Sox bullpen. The Sox will pay Timlin $3 million for the 2008 season.

Trade deadline pick-up Eric Gagne declined the Sox option for salary arbitration. Happy trails Eric, it was a nice thought bringing you in, but you can collect your World Series ring and close for some other team. I'd rather we kept Kason Gabbard I guess. The move was meant to solidify the Sox already dominant bullpen, but the 2003 Cy Young award winner never adjusted. The Sox still have the right to sign him to a contract, but I'd tend to believe they'll just turn him loose.

For the first time in awhile, the Sox didn't pick up anyone in the Rule 5 Draft. The Sox did lose two pitchers however. The San Francisco Giants picked up lefty starter Jose Capellan and the Philadelphia Phillies picked up Lincoln Holdzkom. The Sox picked up Capellan in the amateur draft in 2003 and he never panned out quite like the Sox had hoped. Holdzkom had a decent year for Double-A Portland but even better for Triple-A Pawtucket, going 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA in 12 appearances. At least they went to NL teams.

If you have been living under a rock this week you missed the trade between the Detroit Tigers and the Florida Marlins. The Marlins shipped Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to the Tigers and the Marlins got six minor league players in return. The Motor City Kitties are going for broke gutting the farm on this one, but will be one of the favorites to win the Series in 2008. The lineup scares me, and if need be they could always bring Willis in to DH. They'll be damn good and probably the best if not the second best lineup next to the Yankees.

Speaking of the bombers, I know A-Rod is going back to the Yanks as a third baseman, but my pet peeve of the year had to be people forgetting that he's a shortstop, plain and simple. Here's proof of that and his and Derek Jeter's mutual man-love for each other. At least before things got chilly.

Blowin' In the Wind?

2007-12-04T18:15:00.000-06:00

Update

Here is some extra credit reading. Something that I'll even admit that I've overlooked.

Is it only a matter of time before there is a press conference with Johan Santana putting a Sox jersey on over his suit? As of this morning, the Twins had requested to see the Red Sox medical records on Jon Lester, showing that progress had been made in trade talks for the two-time Cy Young Award winner.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the story of Jon Lester. It’s incredible. A guy gets cancer, beats it and comes back the next year to pitch a winner in the game clinching contest of the World Series. It could be made into a movie I suppose. But moving him to Minnesota for Johan plus giving up Coco Crisp and two minor leaguers is almost a no brainer, right?

I’ve maintained for the past two weeks since Boston threw their hat into the ring that they were in it to drive up Santana's worth so the Yankees would bite and pay way too much for him. Now with Hank Steinbrenner putting a time limit (last night) on talks with Santana, it looks like the Sox are left standing with a golden ticket. Looks like Steiny didn’t want to see the degradation of the Yankees good name play out in public and have Sox GM Theo Epstein play them for a fool. Probably a good move for the Yanks. Could this be a win-win then?

I’m still not 100% on all of this. I was always a bigger fan of picking up Dan Heron from the Oakland A’s and having Josh Beckett, Heron, Curt Schilling, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Tim Wakefield be the starting five. Maybe throw in a little Clay Buchholz from time to time to give the aging Wake or Schil a break. Now it seams the Sox are convinced and will only be satisfied with Santana and that they are serious about picking him up.

I’m not saying it’s done until it’s done. After getting burned by the whole A-Rod debacle in 2003 I’m cautiously reserving judgment on this potential trade. The two minor league players in question would be shortstop Jed Lowrie and “a gem in the farm system” pitcher Justin Masterson. Lowrie could give the Twins some added depth in the middle of their infield, which is needed, and having more prospects at pitcher the better, right?

So, to trade or not to trade? It it’s for Lester, Crisp and the minor league guys I’d say go for it. I’d rather keep Ellsbury, crazy as that sounds. I think keeping Crisp and picking up Santana puts the team at more of a disadvantage than jettisoning Lester and Crisp and keeping some speed on the team. The Sox needed it this year because of sub-par seasons out of an aging Manny and the oft-injured Big Papi.

Just a thought, and I'm sure it's down the list of possible concerns, but... Since Ellsbury dumped his previous agent and signed with one Scott Boras, could this be a sticking point for the Twins? I'm sure putting up with the super agent who demands a truckload of money for his clients could be more than the Twins may want to deal with down the road. Like I said, just a thought.

All I can say is that I wish they’d just get it over with. I’m not in good shape early this week after the past week when it came to my college football team (Nebraska) deciding their fate in picking a new head coach. So, let’s hurry up and get this done or move on to something else.

Ortiz Recovering and Other Stuff

2007-11-30T12:54:00.000-06:00

The talk of the town is without question the idea of Johan Santana coming to Boston in lieu of a trade. So what else is going on?

Recovery Underway

David Ortiz is currently recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee earlier in November. Hopefully it shouldn't slow him down when it comes to training for the 2008 season come January.
Ortiz has said to reporters and to the Sox that he won't be hindered by the surgery and recovery time and should be good to go in February and March come spring training time.

Lester Wins Joe Conigliaro Award

Starting pitcher Jon Lester won the Joe Conigliaro Award in Boston Wednesday. The award is handed out on a yearly basis for the player who most exemplifies the ability to “overcome adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination and courage.”

As you probably know, Lester was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2006. Lester went through chemotherapy and a long process of rehabilitation to make it back to Boston in time for the end of the season.

The Joe C award was started 1990 and is the namesake of the Red Sox player who was hit in the eye with a pitch. He missed the entire 1968 season and came back in ’69 and ’70 to hit a total of 56 home runs.

Six Man Rotation?

It’s a theory that’s been posed a few times in the last several years. What if a team with a big bank account could somehow form a six man rotation? The Sox and pitching coach John Farrell are now tinkering around with the idea.

The idea is to have pitchers rested when moving into September and possibly October. Dice-K wore down as the season came to an end, Tim Wakefield missed basically all of the playoffs, Curt Schilling was out for most of the summer and who knows how Lester will pitch over an entire season.

The Sox implied this spin on their rotation when the schedule allowed them to put a sixth man into the rotation (usually Julian Tavarez) late in 2007. The Sox may feature this more prominently in ’08 by the sounds of it.

Santana Talk

So I suppose I'd be a fool if I didn't at least mention something about the Santana thing. I was thinking yesterday's report of the Sox making a formal offer for Santana might put more pressure on the Yankees to come up with something better to offer the Twins. As of Friday afternoon the Yankees are balking if the offer is a bluff.

So if the Yankees take the bait what should the Sox do? Reports are hazy, but possibly putting together a trade for Oakland A's All-Star Dan Haren wouldn't be out of the question. Compared to Santana it would be a better value for the Sox since he's only set to be paid over the next three years $16 million with an option for 2010 or less than $9 million the Sox would have to pay Santana in 2009 alone.

There is more pressure for the Yankees to sell the farm and take Santana than there is for the Sox to pillage the minors and give up prospects. It's a sucker deal too. Crisp and Lester plus two minor leaguers for Santana? That would certainly be a steal for GM Theo Epstein. If it falls in his lap I'd expect him to take it, but I would hope Twins GM Bill Smith would want a little more for a player the entire organization relies on not only on the field, but as the basis for their marketing campaign. With a new downtown ballpark opening soon the Twins would be remiss to let Santana go for the Sox initial offer.

For the Birds

2007-11-29T13:42:00.000-06:00

I'm going to post this quick before I have to do some more boring work related business, but I wanted to mention that the speculation is still running wild on the Johan Santana trade. I've been reading just about every site under the sun just to keep up on this. Why? Because I'm at work, that's why.

According to a report I read on TwinCities.com writer Charley Walters is talking to the wildlife up in Minnesota. This is according to one of his feathered friends...

A little birdie says the Boston Red Sox have become the favorite in the Johan Santana trade sweepstakes.

The Twins would receive four players for the Twins' two-time Cy Young Award winner, including center fielder Coco Crisp, 28.

Others would be shortstop prospect Jed Lowry, 23; left-handed pitcher Jon Lester, 23; and right-handed pitcher Justin Masterson, 22.

Before a deal could be made, the Red Sox would have to have time to negotiate a contract extension with Santana, 28, who can become a free agent after next season and could have a market value as high as $150 million over six years.

Lowry did not play in the major leagues this year but is considered ready and is a good-fielding shortstop who also can hit. Lowry had a slugging percentage of .500 at Class AA and Class AAA this year.

Lester made a comeback from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma a year ago and is said to be cancer-free.

Masterson, 6 feet 6, 245 pounds, had 59 strikeouts in 58 innings at Class AA Portland.

Looks fairly promising, right? I don't know, I've always been suspicious of reports like this. Who knows what the hell could happen between now and when the ink is dry on Santana's new contract for his new ballclub, that's if a trade even goes through.

The contract would be huge. $150 million over six years boils down to $25 mil a year for the mathematicians in the house. At the moment Manny Ramirez is the highest paid player on the roster at $17,016,381 per. It's still not Yankees money, but it keeps getting closer and closer.

And like I've said, you'd be an idiot to not want Santana on your team, but do the Sox really need Santana on their team? I'm still saying no. Not even with only having to give up Crisp (who's basically gone anyway), Jon Lester and two minor leaguers.

It's Not Baseball, It's....

2007-11-29T09:24:00.000-06:00

Packers, the Musical!

Today, in order to commemorate two events I could really care less about, the Packers playing against the Cowboys and Broadway reopening, I decided to put the two together. It’s the Game Of The Century II and it’s on the NFL Network. Way to go. To the 378 people that will be watching outside of Texas Stadium I’m sure you’re in for a treat. As for the rest of us? Make your travel reservations now, this is sure to be a hit!

Think of this as the NFL meets West Side Story, or something.

Hugh Jackman as Brett Favre

Fresh off his cancellation of musical/lame television drama about a fictional Las Vegas in Viva Laughlin, Jackman and his five-o’clock shadow are primed to debut in the lead of the singing version of John Madden’s not-so-secret homo-erotic fantasy. This is sure to drive the former Raider coach over the edge and straight onto a float as grand marshal in a gay pride parade.

Nathan Lane as Mike McCarthy

McCarthy is boring, always wears a drab green jacket and is not fabulous. Lane should be able to reverse all of these qualities on stage.

Don Cheadle as Donald Driver

Cheadle is from Kansas City, Missouri. Driver is from Houston, Texas. Cheadle made a movie about genocide in Africa. Driver has 38 career touchdowns. What are the similarities? They share the same Christian name, look kinda the similar and have wonderful singing voices.

Djimon Hounsou as Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila

These guys don’t have as many shared qualities as Don Cheadle and Donald Driver, however they both have names I can’t pronounce, so this is the ultimate qualifier in this equation. Also, I've heard one plays futbol and the other plays football. Oh, and they drive the white women crazy.

Kenan Thompson as Ryan Pickett

Don’t know who Ryan Pickett is? That’s ok. He’s a big, African-American football player for the Packers who’s probably not very funny on Saturday night live. The difference? One is a football player for the Packers.

Andrew Bryniarski as AJ Hawk

Do you know how hard it is to find an actor with that stupid haircut? I really had to dig for this one. I’ve seen Bryniarski in some interviews and he seems borderline nuts. You’d have to be nuts to cut (or not) your hair like it’s 1992 and marry Brady Quinn’s crazy ass sister.

Bill Bellamy as Charles Woodson

Back to the “Any Given Sunday” well, I know, but I needed a Charles Woodson. Uncanny. They could be brothers. Wait...

James Van Der Beek as Tony Romo

Big chin? Check. Irresistible smile? Check. Special place in my heart and America’s heart? Big check.

Will Smith as Terrell Owens

Of course these two don’t look too similar, but it’s more about the award winning egos that each of these men encompass and how they are never short on words to remind you of how awesome they are, even if Owens had a sub par final year in Philly or Smith staring in Wild Wild West. They.still.won’t.stop.fucking.talking.

Morris Chestnut as Roy Williams

I don’t know much about Morris Chestnut other than the fact that his career at USC came to a screeching halt before it got started because Doughboy is a God damn hothead. At least Tre Styles made it college and finally made it with Brandi. What?? That was a movie? Shit.

Anthony Hopkins as Wade Phillips

Hopkins can play any role in the world, he’s from England for God’s sake, they invented acting. Hopkins will take on his greatest role since Hannibal Lecter. Why? Because he’ll need to emulate Phillips’ ability to act like he’s coaching and taking all the credit for his team’s success. Hopkins will have to gain a considerable amount of weight, but he's one of those committed actor types. Phillips is seen here describing the size of the sub he ate before this press conference. Hopkins is shown eating his Oscar Award. He chews solid gold. Solid fucking gold folks.

Burt Reynolds as Jerry Jones

Shave the moustache and you’ve got a formerly wrinkly, now botoxed up old southerner who only makes people happy when he’s doing a good job. Sorry Burt, had to do it.

P.S. I hate you Jerry

Carrie Underwood as Carrie Underwood

Is Romo still dating Underwood? I'll have to consult my wife about this one. Oh well, what guy knows these things anyway? All I know is that if I can stick her on Broadway for a 28-year run of this musical than I’ll finally be rid of her because, well, I don’t like Underwood or pay attention to musicals. I just come up with awesome premises for them.

The Saga Continues

2007-11-28T10:20:00.001-06:00

With the focus off of resigning priorities in Mike Lowell and Curt Schilling and after picking up options on Julian Tavarez and Tim Wakefield, the Sox are basically left waiting for something to do. Yesterday, I wrote that a trade for Minnesota Twins hurler Johan Santana to the Boston Red Sox isn’t very likely. I might be wrong, but I may still be right.

Reports have surfaced that the Sox are dipping their toes in the push for Venezuela’s favorite son. Here are the stats on Santana to this point in his career. He’s a career 3.22 ERA left-hander who can strike out righties and lefties. His record is currently 93-44 and has 1,381 K’s.

Aside from this past year, he’s been ranked number one or two in strikeouts and ERA in each of the previous seasons. Dig a little deeper to more important stats and you’re looking at a pitcher with a career WHIP of 1.094, a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.79, and he’s striking out 9.5 batters every start.

No doubt he’s career numbers are ridiculous. He’s clearly one of the best if not the best starting pitcher in all of baseball. For most Minnesota fans, the ones that don’t kid themselves, they knew given the Twins history of holding on to blue chip talent that Santana’s days under the dome were numbered. So now the arms race (no pun for God’s sake) is on to try and acquire him in a trade this offseason before you have to sell the farm when he’s a free agent.

I know there are other teams in the mix for Santana, clearly I’m not concerned if Santana goes to the Dodgers or Mets. I’m more interested in the prospect of him following Torii Hunter to the Angels or even worse, the possibility of him moving to the Yankees.

Let’s focus on what matters most, and that would be the race between the Yankees and Sox. Let me premise this by saying that the Sox may just be talking to get the Yanks to go overboard on their offer to the Twins. I wouldn’t put it past them, who would?

First, here is what the Twins seem to be looking for. Obviously they’re in the centerfielder market. The Yankees will bring Melky Cabrera and the Sox have either Coco Crisp or Jacoby Ellsbury. A starting pitcher or two will be needed also. New York has Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy. Boston would counter with the no-hitter throwing Clay Buchholz and “Mr. Feelgood Story” Jon Lester. The problem is both teams have players to this point listed as untouchable in Chamberlain for the Yanks and Ellsbury for the Sox.

This tips the balance in the Yankees favor since Cabrera has more upside at the plate than Crisp. Holding out hope that sending Ellsbury into Twins pinstripes in exchange for Crisp returning to his past glory while he was in Cleveland is a stretch. There’s a reason Francona benched Crisp during the playoffs in favor of Ellsbury.

The Yankees are going to be more willing to part with Cabrera to have Santana counter postseason god and Yankee killer Josh Beckett. The Twins have shown more than mild interest in Crisp, however not for a deal of this magnitude. The Sox would have to give up more than just Lester/Buchholz and Crisp.

My guess is that the Sox would have to throw in Lester on top of Buchholz and Crisp. The least likely to go would be Buchholz especially after his no-hitter against Baltimore in September. Hopefully it wasn’t a fluke and was a sign of things to come, or else looking back in a few years it could be seen as huge mistake on Boston’s part.

One other factor that seems most important to me is Santana’s personal interest. He has a full no-trade clause and would more than likely exercise that if any team doesn’t give him exactly what he wants. He’ll more than likely return to form in 2008 and then will demand a king’s ransom when he files for free agency if no trade is made this year. Oh yeah, his personal interest. Reportedly it’s with the Yankees.

After the two teams that I’m most concerned about other players include the Mets, whose chances are dwindling because of their top prospects losing value and interest from other teams. Straight up trade of Santana for Jose Reyes? Anyone? Anyone in Minneapolis?

The Dodgers are loaded with plenty of young viable talent, however the organization itself is a cesspool loaded with front office idiocracy and has been for quite some time. I wouldn’t expect the Dodgers to luck themselves into a trade and land Santana.

Plus, from some of his rants while still with the Twins as they fell apart before the All-Star break, he wants to move to a winner, not an underachieving National League team. Even though with his ability, he could rule the NL along the lines of a tyrant like Hugo Chavez rules his homeland.

I’m giving the most likely scenario to the Yankees, because after all, they have more players and money to offer the Twins and Santana. Having him in the division would make things a little more difficult for the Sox to supplant the Yanks as the top team in the East. Despite the addition of Santana making the Yankees a division and playoff favorite again, let me impart a little information on you.

Santana is the Alex Rodriguez of playoff pitchers. Phenomenal regular season success, marginal post season success. Santana has won one game starting after the regular season is in the books with a 7.94 ERA in his first three postseason starts. He’s given up 35 hits and 15 earned in 34 innings pitched with 32 strikeouts and 10 walks.

Compare this to Beckett and you’re looking at the Sox ace throwing a 1.73 ERA with six wins and two losses, 14 earned runs in 72.2 innings which is less runs in twice as many innings as Santana. He’s also struck out 82 with only 14 walks. And Beckett has two World Series rings, Santana has none. Beckett has been to the dance, and there's no accounting for experience in most cases.

We all know that between the Sox and Yankees in the past few years the postseason is where it counts. A-Rod has come up short while players like Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis and Ellsbury have made names for themselves and come up huge.

You want to give me a choice between having our young talent and having Josh Beckett versus Johan Santana with a depleted lineup and weaker all-around pitching? I’ll take Beckett over Santana because of the postseason factor and because Santana will actually make the Yankees weaker.

Any team would be dumb to not want Santana, but it’s all about what you have to give up with a trade. So go ahead New York, take Santana. Give up some players that could anchor your team in the future. Really, I’d rather you have him given the current circumstances. Better you than us. You still haven’t learned, have you? Patching up your team is no substitute for building a winner the correct way.

Oh, before I forget. Here’s a picture of Kevin Youkilis from a couple weeks ago after shaving off his Van Dyke for charity. It was doing a good job covering up his Bill Cowher-esque chin.

Oye Como Va?

2007-11-27T10:53:00.000-06:00

I’m pretty good, and so are the Sox and their pitching staff. So, are the Sox in the Santana Sweep stakes? Don’t bet on it. A trade for two-time Cy Young winner and Minnesota Twins ace Johan Santana would mean giving up some offensive firepower, one or two starting pitchers, prospects or a combination of the three.

To this point from what I’ve heard and read the Sox front office is unwilling to part with what they have going, aside from jettisoning Coco Crisp. Coming off a World Series victory and winning the Series two times in four years doesn’t usually constitute making a splash (like they did after the 2006 collapse) in the free agent market, let alone making a landmark trade. It would be for Santana sure, but how much better do you need to make the starting rotation? It’s hard not to think about how historic a Santana, Josh Beckett, Dice-K and Curt Schilling rotation would be, however unlikely.

Too many other teams out there have more to offer the Twins in regards to what their ball clubs needs are. The Yankees are getting the ball rolling and as of last night. The candid Hank Steinbrenner of the Yankees was willing to give up the dirt on preliminary proceedings taking place, a far cry from the days when his Dad was running the show. The Bombers would more than likely be willing to give up a Robinson Cano or a Melky Cabrera than the Sox would be willing to part ways with Dustin Pedroia or Jacoby Ellsbury.

I might make this trade for my Xbox 360 Red Sox to pick up Santana, but outside of that I wouldn’t hold my breath on the Sox even being mentioned as a serious contender for him. The Sox have their rotation set and bullpen stocked and probably won’t be looking beyond their existing major players. If the Sox pick up any more pitching this off-season it will be only to bolster the pen.

Another reason would be the amount of money that Santana will demand on his trade. He’s got a couple of aces up his sleeve with his no-trade clause and only one year remaining on his existing deal with the Twins. If he were in the middle of a multi-year deal, more leverage would be placed on the side of the team or teams courting him. The Sox have a crazy payroll, but I’m not sure if they’d be willing to step into Yankee territory in order to secure him. The Sox still have a perception and image to maintain in a world that only includes the Red Sox and Yankees to many of their fans, and they love having a better team with spending less to get there.

Say Goodbye...Probably

2007-11-26T18:08:00.000-06:00

Just because my college football in team is in disarray doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten about the Red Sox. It would be easy to ignore however, at least this week. The biggest news for Sox fans is if Jim Rice will make it in to Cooperstown or not.

What to do with Coco Crisp? He’ll be a talking point for Sox brass come December 3^rd when owners meetings get underway in Nashville, Tennessee. Holding onto Crisp is seemingly not a priority, especially with the emergence of Jacoby Ellsbury. Watch for Crisp to most likely head to another team so the Sox can stock up on depth in the bullpen, catcher or some prospects.

Mike Timlin is still yet to be resigned by the team. The 42 year old vet has been simply great for the Sox in his last five seasons in Boston. I’m not sure how much interest any other team in the league would have in him.

With all the starters from the ’07 World Series squad locked up I’m hoping that some attention gets turned to Sox Captain Jason Veritek. He’s not the best catcher in baseball, but he’s the best catcher in baseball that could play for the Sox. He’s a Scott Boras client, so I doubt he’ll sign until he files for free agency at the end of next year.

General manager Theo Epstein is said to be working hard on an extension for manager Terry Francona. Once he’s sealed up, it will further solidify Boston’s front office as far as good decision making goes. How dumb do you think the Phillies organization feels for letting this guy go?

The Sox will also play the Dodgers in an exhibition game in the LA Coliseum.

Stayin' Put

2007-11-19T16:25:00.001-06:00

I’ll be able to go to Boston next year and see Mike Lowell in a Red Sox uniform. I’ll be the first to admit, I bit pretty hard this weekend on the rumor mill regarding Lowell being a first base candidate for the Yankees. I’ll also be the first to say how happy I am that I was wrong for doing so.

The Sox and Lowell agreed to a three-year, $37.5 million deal a couple hours ago. The Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angels Dodgers reportedly were offering four-year deals, but Lowell wisely took one less year and opted to stay in Boston where he’s loved, and where he’s a winner.

This offseason has seen the Sox retain their big two free agents in Lowell and Curt Schilling plus picking up options on ageless wonder Tim Wakefield and hatch man/face Julian Tavarez. Every clubhouse needs a cheerleader I suppose.

Now A-Rod will definitely not be coming to Boston.

1. Because he wants to stay a Yankee where he can make gobs of money and get lots of attention. Oh, did you think he was going somewhere else?

2. Because everyone under the sun is also under the notion that A-Rod has always played third base (he’s actually a much better short stop and played that position while in Seattle and Texas, remember??) his entire career and now that Lowell is resigned, there is no need to pursue A-Rod.

So, things are all good in Boston. And considering the Patriots are playing in a league above the NFL, I’m sure Bostonians are getting another championship sometime in February. I watched them drill the Bills last night, good God, it’s not ever fair. I’m not a fan, but it is cool to watch Belichick stick it to the league after the whole “SpyGate” ordeal. I don’t condone cheating, but you know they weren’t the only team doing it, they were just the only team that got caught.

Anyway, I’m off my NFL soapbox now…

Dr. Free Agent Love

2007-11-17T08:42:00.000-06:00

Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Mike Lowell Ordeal

Wouldn’t you know it? Guess who is hard at work trying to give Mike Lowell his four year deal that he and his agent Seth Levinson are after? That’s right, the New York Yankees. And yes, that is Lowell to the left there. While this conjures up Johnny Damon-like sentiments, it’s nothing to lose any sleep over. That’s right, I said it.

If Mike Lowell is picked up by the Yanks, it will not be the end of the world for the Boston Red Sox. Finding a 3^rd base replacement with Lowell-like fielding ability and replacing 120 RBI’s from within the lineup will be a challenge. But it won’t be the end of the world.

Lowell was originally drafted by the Yankees in 1995 and played within their system until being shipped to Florida. So it’s not like there aren’t any ties to the Bronx for Lowell.

I’d also understand why Lowell would want to opt for the extra year and the extra $10 mil. This is a guy who has been under-appreciated his whole career. He didn’t earn the moniker of “Throw-In Lowell” for nothing. Does it sound like I've already let the idea of Mike Lowell retiring a Red Sock go? If you get too attached to players you're a douche. Baseball especially. It's mostly business, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Especially when you are competing in a high stakes arms race with New York. Sorry kid, life is a series of disappointments, buy a fucking helmet.

I also know Boston has a predilection to not paying aging talent (Lowell is 34) and allowing them to go to ball clubs that will pay a guy $10-12 million for him when he’s 38. Sure, Lowell had a great season this past year, it will probably be his best ever.

That’s the point right there, and what GM Theo Epstein seems to be banking on. We got him, and we used him for what will probably be his best season in his career. Let someone else overpay him while he declines. Batting behind David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez may also be a major contributor to his success in Boston. It’s easier to make these kinds of rationalizations now that my World Series hangover is subsiding.

Then again, happening across a player like Lowell in a trade for someone else that was your real target doesn’t happen very often. Remember what I said about him doing well behind one of the best 3-4 combos in baseball? He’s the guy who came up big when one of the two wasn’t hitting so well, or injured. I'm not 100% comfortable with all of this.

Bottom line is that Boston will figure out a way to work around Lowell going to another team. They did it with Damon when everyone in Red Sox Nation was crying foul on the Yanks. After putting together another championship season I’m more inclined to side with where Epstein is going. Since the current regime entered the picture it's been Boston 2, New York 0 for World Series titles. I don't think losing Lowell to the Yanks will sway it that much. How well is Damon doing now, by the way?

Sure it would suck if Lowell left, and it would really suck ass if he went to the Yankees. But the Sox front office has learned something over the past five years they’ve been in New England. Building a team around solid pitching and a rock solid bullpen is how you win consistently, not hanging on to aging veterans in the lineup. And until the culture in baseball changes the Sox look like they are in good shape for a long time to come.

Whitey's Revenge

2007-11-15T20:42:00.000-06:00

Here at KC Bean Boy, I'm trying to be as up to date as possible from now on. Sure, I've failed to write about Dustin Pedroia earning AL Rookie of the Year honors and Kevin Youkilis winning his first Gold Glove. These are things I had been calling for for some time and do not make that much of an impact on me.

What does make an impact is when I wanted to get on ESPN tonight to research some stats for my college football page and couldn't because this asshole had to go and get indicted. OJ, now Barry! Get ready...3...2...1...racism! I know I can't wait.

Are we really all still hung up on this? Does Barry Bonds having the all-time home run record really bring a tear of sorrow to our eye? Get over it. Tell your kids a different bedtime story. The sanctity of the game isn't something I've been concerned with since 1994. You shouldn't care either. So he wanted to hit a bunch of home runs and make his balls small because he has an inferiority complex to Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. Hey, if I were Bonds and had to take a backseat to those fuckholes I'd be able to live with some bacne (BACK-nee).

It is funny to me (and almost ironic, but not really) that the people that defend him in San Fran pay $1000 a ticket or nothing at all because it's given to them and paid for by their corporate account to watch him in person, then go back to punching their Blackberry's or talking on their cell phones during the rest of the lineup, and then resume watching the game when he's up again. Most of these people who watch games at SBC or AT&T or whatever they're calling their ballpark these days wouldn't know a split-finger fastball from a split finger in their ass.

And give Mike Lowell his four year deal already. I'm tired of sitting around refreshing the transactions page on ESPN, if I could get to it right now that is.

Oh, I also found out today that Madden 08 comes in an Espanol edition...

Schilling Back, Lowell On the Way

2007-11-09T09:32:00.000-06:00

The offseason and free agent market are heating up. So far since I last posted the Sox have managed to sign Curt Schilling to a one year deal worth $8 million with incentives for performance. Schilling claimed to have turned down some more lucrative offers from other teams to stay in Boston. Can’t say I blame the guy, I don’t think I’d want to leave either after this past season. And he gets his own weight clauses in his contract. As you can see from the picture next to or above this paragraph, it’ll come in handy.

I love the fact that he sort of stuck it to Joe Torre for leaving the Yankees because the $5 million they offered him wasn’t enough in a roundabout way. Schilling had stated this past week that he’s made over $100 million playing baseball and he and his kids and his kids’ kids are set, so why should he be going after money at this point in his career. It would have been cooler if he said, "fuck you Joe Torre, have fun not making the playoffs out in LA!" He wants to play for the team that has the best shot to win a championship so he’s sticking with Boston. I’m personally not ready to christen the Sox as a shoe in for the ’08 Series, but I wouldn’t bet against them either.

This week while the GM’s of the league are in Florida, World Series MVP Mike Lowell was supposedly offered a contract for 3 years and an undisclosed, and probably significant, amount of money. Hopefully he’ll take, Boston wants him back and he’s been quoted many, many times as saying he’d love to stay in Boston. When you’re on top of the sports world in New England, it’s easy money. Hopefully it can stay that way. Of course you know the story, Lowell was an afterthought in the Josh Beckett trade, now he’s a Boston folk hero. Of course, not too many people saw Damon packing his bags for the Bronx after the ’05 season either. When a player files for free agency anything can happen I guess.

Jacoby Ellsbury seems ready for the big time. In a way, he’s already there turning in one of the best World Series performances by a rookie in recent history. Losing Coco Crisp will mean giving up some the speed that helped Boston become the team they were this season, but it’s a small price to pay to keep a player like Ellsbury on a course of development that will pay huge dividends in the future. Crisp was more or less a bridge to get from the departure of Damon to get to Ellsbury after he was drafted in 2005 after a more than respectable career in Corvallis, Oregon for the Beavers of Oregon State.

In what could be an interesting turn of events, the New York Yankees have made their interest public in Florida Marlins 3B Miguel Cabrera. For once, the Marlins are not letting one of their players slip through undetected. Cabrera, as you may know, was part of the price tag for Josh Beckett. If he were to replace Alex Rodriguez on bag number three for the Yankees it would make for a mildly interesting storyline. I say mild because I’d take Beckett and Lowell in a trade for Cabrera again and again. At least after this year.

Once again, signing A-Rod would be a huge mistake for the Sox. Just thought I’d throw that out there again. I’d also like to throw out the fact that 99.9% of the media is reporting Rodriguez to be a 3B replacement for whichever team he signs with. This just in…A-Rod is better as a short stop! I’m sort of sick of turning on ESPN and hearing the talking heads talk about “who would you rather have? Lowell or A-Rod?” Both, you fucktard! I’m not saying it’s going to happen, or that I’d even want it to happen. I’m just saying that you don’t need to give up Lowell to get A-Rod. Jesus, ESPN sucks.

Before I Forget

2007-10-30T11:43:00.001-06:00

Don't you forget to go and get your free World Series taco today at Taco Bell between 2pm and 5pm. Be sure to thank Jacoby Ellsbury before you consume it.

Also, and very off topic; what the fuck is wrong with people in Wisconsin?

Don't Let Him Go

2007-10-30T09:57:00.000-06:00

It’s tempting to go after A-Rod, but don’t let this guy go to do it. He may not be the MVP in the rest of the baseball world, but he is an MVP where it counts.

It’s been less than 48 hours since Alex Rodriguez and Scott Boras announced A-Rod will opt out of his contract and test free agency this off season. The world has been left to ponder the absurd timing of announcing his opt out, where he will end up playing ball in ’08 and the general obnoxiousness of Boras.

Some Boston fans are squawking about the timing of it all and how it stole the thunder away from the Sox running away with the World Series. Most notably, ESPN “Analyst” and non-closeted Red Sox fan Peter Gammons almost cried on the air yesterday with my least favorite human being in the world, Colin Cowherd. Yes, it’s amazing that at this time last year Boston starter Jon Lester was undergoing chemotherapy and pitched a gem of a game to clinch the second championship in four years for the Sox, but come on. I hate the Yankees and I didn’t really care while I was watching the game and guess what? I don’t really care today either. I was too worried about if Francona was going to use an overworked Okajima in the 7^th or 8^th.

Everything that A-Rod does or does not do is going to be big news because people in general are stupid and they love their tabloid news. It’s just how it is these days. People would rather read about Britney Spears than humanitarian efforts in Outer Mongolia. And yes, A-Rod is to baseball what Britney is to the entertainment world. If you consider what she does to be entertainment I guess. The only people that this was breaking news to were people with the attention spans of tadpoles. If you watched any baseball this year you knew it wasn't going to work out between A-Rod and Yankees brass.

There have been talks of the Sox possibly pursuing A-Rod. This would be a monumental blunder. Especially if they let World Series MVP Mike Lowell go to free up money to bag him. A-Rod in a Sox uniform? The very thought makes me queasy. I think Epstein and company will take a pass after being embarrassed by A-Rod and Boras in 2003-04. It was almost as embarrassing as Wade Boggs winning a World Series with the Yankees. So, here are some words for the Red Sox front office to live by. I think it was the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air who once said “if it ain’t broke, then don’t try and fix it.”

Moving away from the crazy ass world of A-Rod and the fallout in the Bronx, Boston will have a victory parade today to honor the 2007 champions. It’s definitely not guaranteed, but since most people that live in Boston are generally assholes, I’m sure there will be some sort of disruption between Lansdowne Street and City Hall. The night of the victory when police tried to break up people celebrating in the street, some party goers threw beer bottles at them. Classy. As much as I love this team and the area they play in, the people kind of suck. Despite that fact, I'll be paying too much for tickets and a hotel room for my wife and I next summer to see them play in Fenway.

The Sox got their due by easily winning the last seven games of their championship run, and I was generally surprised that SportsCenter didn’t focus on it too much. They have to over hype other future matters. Joe Girardi is yet to say yes to the Yanks, Kobe is pushing for a trade and the greatest football game ever played this weekend between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots is on!! I’m tired of that game already, and they haven't even stepped foot on the field. This is how I feel about the Super Bowl usually, except it's still October.

One other thing regarding the Pats. I’m not a fan of their team in any respect, but if you think they ran the score up (they did) and disrespected the game of football by doing so you’re a douche bag. A big one. I think everyone made too big a deal of the videotaping scandal and it's cool Belichick is basically saying "fuck you" to the rest of the NFL. But consider this, maybe the Redskins should have played better? Did you ever think of that? When you suck you suck, and if you can’t compete don’t ask the other team to play the mercy game with you. Just try not sucking as much next time. How about that? Or maybe the next time your mom tucks you into bed at night you can ask her "why is the world so unfair?" If this question transcends from football to baseball this week, you probably live in Denver.

Sox Sweep!!!

2007-10-28T22:43:00.000-06:00

Not much else to say, other than this season was great. That much is obvious. Capping off the year with a World Series sweep and second championship in four years will make any of the pitfalls or down points of the season seem trivial in the face of so much joy.

I'll admit I was skeptical about the Sox taking this series so 'easily.' With Colorado playing as well as they had down the stretch, how could you really bet against them? If short term history was any indicator (ahem, 2006 St. Louis Cardinals) you started to think the team that came in hot was on a fast track to taking it all. Fortunately for the Boston Red Sox, they caught their own momentum by coming back from being down three games to one against the Cleveland Indians in the ALCS and the best team this season won it all.

Tonight a poll and query was posed to America on the Fox broadcast asking the nation which team was better. The 2004 history makers, or the 2007 Sox? This is dumb question. On field talent is of course is no question. The '07 team won more games, took the division and relied on more than just an overpowering offense. That being said, you cannot discredit the '04 team for what they accomplished. If there are such things as curses, they broke it and blazed the trail for this year's darlings.

Speaking of offense, the Sox got sparks from more than just the old reliable fat of their lineup. Rookies Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury got things rolling each and every night. Pitchers like Jonathan Papelbon and even Jon Lester tonight showed the world that even though Boston has the dollars to land huge talent they also know a thing or three about developing talent as well. Make no mistake, the future of this team will rely heavily on the aforementioned players.

What can I say? If I had a choice between Mike Lowell and A-Rod, I'd go with the World Series MVP. Here's the thing...does anyone else besides me remember A-Rod before the Yankees? He's a goddamn shortstop! You don't have to decide between the two. All you have to do is decide between A-Rod and Lugo or Alex Cora. Keeping "Throw-In" Lowell should be a priority for the Boston front office, and I'm confident that it will be. Lowell loves playing there and Red Sox Nation loves Mike Lowell. It would be unconscionable to let him go at this point. Downright stupid.

You can't ask too much more from this team. They made moves on and off the field when they needed to, Manager Terry Francona was nothing short of genius (how big of balls do you have when you bench a red-hot Kevin Youkilis and put Big Papi on first for Games 3 and 4?)and General Manager Theo Epstein brought in players as needed as the season went forward. One of whom was the deciding factor tonight. It will probably be a footnote, but Bobby Kielty's eighth inning home run brought the Sox lead to 4-1 saving extra innings when Garret Atkins blasted a two run shot off of All-Star Hideki Okajima in the bottom of the same inning to bring the Rockies within one run. The score after the dinger ended up being the final, 4-3.

Everything just seemed to come together at the right time for this team. Sometimes that's what it takes to make it all the way to the top. And with all the talent coming up through the organization (and on the field now), the free agent spending power and winning standard it's not hard to imagine Boston contending for years to come. The Sox are now the standard, and that hasn't happened in almost 100 years.

For now, I'll take this. Again.

The Comeback - The Sequel. Or - Back in the Saddle

2007-10-21T22:19:00.000-06:00

It's not an exact replica of the historic run in 2004, however this year's return to the World Series is not without it's gravitas but will no doubt be overshadowed by the recent memory of '04.

Between getting married and honeymooning in Mexico, I missed Games Two through Five. That was fine with me, since three of those four were losses. Good thing I recorded them, as I'll still watch them leading up to Wednesday night. Yeah, I even watch the losses.

Coming back from 3-games to-1 and winning a best of seven series in any sport is highly unlikely. The Red Sox coming back against three of the best pitchers in all of baseball from this season is almost impossible. Even though 2004 taught me that "it's not over until it's over" (sorry for the Yogi quote) I was still banking on the fact that if Cy Young candidate C.C. Sabathia didn't get the Sox, then Fausto Carmona or even Jake Westbrook tonight. Instead the Sox beat up the Indians and outscored them 30-to-5 in the last three games. When this lineup gets clicking, nothing can stop them, in my humble opinion. To illustrate, Westbrook is not one of the three best pitchers I was referring to. That distinction belongs to Rafael Betancourt. When Betancourt entered the game the Sox were only up 3-2. In the past two months Betancourt had only given up three runs. After the smoke cleared it was 11-2.

Even with ALCS MVP Josh Beckett on the mound for Game One of the Worlds Series on Wednesday and with everyone contributing in the batting order, the Sox are running into a buzz saw in the Colorado Rockies. The team that will be dubbed the "team of destiny" is nothing short of miraculous winning 21 if their last 22, holding the Arizona Diamondbacks and Philadelphia Phillies to godaweful numbers and blah blah blah. Everyone who does not have a vested interest in the Sox will probably root, root, root for the Rockies, and they should.

It was my estimation and theory that I pushed on my fellow flight partner last night who did not know me personally on the way back to KC from Denver, that maybe the past week and a half off would help cool off the Rockies as much as the Colorado snow. We'll have to wait and see I suppose if this hypothesis holds up. After watching the Saint Louis Cardinals limp into the playoffs and get hot to with the Series in 2006, I'd hate to see a repeat performance. Sure, the Rockies are a tad different, but I sort of dislike the National League and dislike teams just getting hot at the right time.

One important and pessimistic (what else would you expect from a Sox fan?) fact to remember about the Red Sox vs. Rockies World Series, Boston got bitchslapped back in June at Fenway with Josh Beckett on the mound. Hopefully the offense keeps going like it did the past three games. Just don't count the Sox out until it's all said and done.

P.S. - At this point, you may be mentally retarded if you don't think Dustin Pedroia is a lock for American League Rookie of the Year.

Some Time Off

2007-10-11T09:46:00.000-06:00

This sort of sucks, but I won't be able write about Boston as they begin the ALCS against the Cleveland Indians. It's for good reason because this weekend I'll be getting hitched. That's right, that handsome fellow in the picture above was lucky enough to dupe that attractive lady into marriage. How'd I do that?

Anyway, if all goes well in the ALCS I may even miss a World Series game or two since our honeymoon is after our wedding this weekend. Hopefully Mexico has more than just ESPN Deportes so I'm not stuck with Futbol Mexicano all week.

I knew this was going to happen. I'd get married in the fall and the Sox would have a good shot to go all the way. I wanted to get married when it wasn't the middle of playoff baseball and college football season, but she did. Guess who won that argument?

In any event...Go Sox!!!!

Sweet, Sweet Tears

2007-10-09T12:55:00.001-06:00

I know I may be piling on a bit here, but this so awesome. Lord knows (and everyone else does too) that I hate the Yankees. Sometimes people will come up to me and ask "do you just hate the Yankees on general principle, or are there contributing factors in your disdain?"

This has been covered very well previously at another blog site, so I'm going to focus a little more on Yankees color commentator Suzyn Waldman. She works on 880 WCBS in Gotham and has pulled two of the worst broadcasting performances of the year, possibly even the decade. More on those in a bit.

I'm not a sexist, and I'm certainly not misogynistic, because if this would have been a man it would have made it like 10 times funnier. I just can't believe that they still allow this hag on the air. Then again, everything that happens in the Yankee universe allows the baseball world to revolve the way it does, right? God is a Yankee fan after all. So I suppose her actions and comments are justified in the eyes of Yankee fans.

I am including last night's post game comments from Ms. Waldman regarding what she saw in the locker room and in the press room in what will more than likely by Joe Torre's last game at the helm of the Yankees.

So what's the big deal? Why would I include post game radio comments about a team I clearly hate? Well, there is no better way to say it, but she starts crying about it. On the air. It's so awesome. You have to listen for yourself.

Sure, broadcast partner John Sterling prevents a full on bawl fest, which you can tell would have been coming had the "awesome" Sterling not put the brakes on her rant. But alas, he did stop her by adding some rationality to the conversation. Shocking, I know.

So here you go, the audio clip from last night's post on 880 WCBS.

As an added bonus, you can listen to the most gripping and historic event at Yankee Stadium. The day from earlier in the year when Roger Clemens announced he was returning to the Bronx. That sure did a lot of good, didn't it?

This one's for you Suz and I'll leave you with this. In the end above all I believe in balance in the world and on my blog. So, to balance out my disclaimer about being a feminist loving sensitive tool, I'm closing with this...

Happy Trails?

2007-10-08T22:12:00.000-06:00

So it's over for the Yankees and for their 2007 season. It's also possibly the end of the road for one Joe Torre. That is if owner George Steinbrenner puts his considerable amout of money where his even bigger mouth is. Is it fair? Should Steinbrenner cut Torre loose after three seasons in a row of ALDS defeats? What about all the wins? The pennants? The World Series glory? I'll answer those questions with a question. Who gives a fuck?

If you are looking for some rival fan's misty eyed respectful entry regarding a great manager, you've come to the wrong place. If anything, I'll be happy if they let him go. Torre is the glue that holds that team together. He knows how to handle overpaid egotistical ball players. He's the guy that the players on the roster who haven't been to the World Series look to for advice on how to overcome adversity from a stoic like father figure. I'll give him this much, he has done an excellent job righting the ship with the most bloated payroll in the bigs. Good luck to Don Mattingly if that's who they choose to replace Torre if he is in fact fired in the coming hours, days or weeks.

The club is about two or three bad personnel decisions away from falling into a tailspin. I say let the kookie old crusty owner make one final decision before he retreats to putting puzzles together in his Tampa abode. Let him go ahead and dismantle the dynasty that ruled the mid to late nineties. I'm all for it.

To close this brief rant, I'd like to order everyone on the roster for the Wanks a t-shirt reminding them of the last Championship Series they played in. Enjoy the off-season boys.

ALCS Bound

2007-10-07T18:14:00.000-06:00

The Red Sox completed the ALDS with sweep over the Halos of Orange County today with ease. Boston only held a 2-0 lead going into the top of the eight but you never really got the feeling that the game was close. Curt Schilling pitched in his typical postseason form going seven innings strong with only six hits allowed while striking out four.

The Sox will be shipping back up to Boston and will have to wait until Friday before sinking their teeth into whoever comes out on top of the New York versus Cleveland series. This is of course at the earliest. If the Yankees find themselves coming back and pushing a Game 5 of their series, it could be longer. At least I think so. I'm too lazy to confirm that.

David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez went deep again and back-to-back for the first time all year to set the lead at 2-0 in the forth. The Sox would pile on seven runs in the top of the eighth and put the game out of reach for the Angels. Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell, JD Drew, Jason Varitek and Coco Crisp all batted in runs in the inning.

All in all, Boston flat out dominated this series. The Angels were up for a majority of Game 2, but once again, you never got the feeling that Boston was going to derail. The Angels, who scored 822 runs this season, which was fourth best in the American League, were held to four runs during the entire three game series. Vladimir Guerrero continued his playoff woes only getting two singles the entire series.

The win today ensured that Josh Beckett will get the nod in game one of the League Championship Series and won't have to pitch in a Game 4, which is huge. Having him on the mound to start off the LCS is crucial. It will also give Tim Wakefield a little more time and possibly another Corisone shot to help his aging back for one more go 'round in the playoffs. Hopefully they'll come out sharp with all the time off.

As it stands right now, Cleveland is holding on to a 3-1 lead in the Bronx in the middle of the fifth. Once again, go Tribe.

I just noticed something. If current Florida Gator quarterback Tim Tebow and former Gator signal caller Rex Grossman had a love child, he'd look a lot like Philip Hughes. He almost looks like a product from Conan O'Brien's "If They Mated" machine.

Pick Your Poison

2007-10-06T09:09:00.000-06:00

Big Papi? Or Manny? Who would you rather pitch to with two out in the bottom of the ninth with a tie game? Last night the Angles made their decision and Manny made K-Rod and manager Mike Socia pay after pitching around Papi.

He may play left field like he’s cloaked with the defensive ability of a Little League player, but he can still hit a baseball. Manny smoked one straight over the Monster down to Lansdowne Street for his first playoff walk off dinger since 1996. This is the first time I’ve provided a quote, but I couldn’t pass this one up.

"I am one of the best players in the game," said Ramirez, who missed almost all of September with a strained side muscle and finished with the worst full-season stats of his career. "I have confidence in myself, and I know my train doesn't stop here."

I love Manny, and yet I hate Manny. I love having him on my team because he does shit like he did last night, but I hate him because he’s an incredible douche bag. Most days I just wish he would just keep that fact to himself, but like most bags of douche that I’ve known in my life it’s almost an impossibility to do so. One saving grace is that Manny is within one home run of tying Bernie Williams for the all-time post-season record for going yard with his 21^st last night. Anytime you can supplant a Yankee in a record book is a good day no matter how high a rating on the douche-o-meter.

A close second on my personal hero list for last night’s game is Danny Vinik. Don’t know who that is? He’s the smart lad who stole a foul ball in the fifth from Angles catcher Jeff Mathis. Manny probably should have been out on this at bat, but he ended up walking and then Mike Lowell ended up hitting a sac fly to center to score Dustin Pedroia to tie the game at three. Even Stephen King gave the kid a high five. That’s kinda cool, right? Maybe not. Never the less, good job Danny because you could be (and maybe already are) the next Jeffrey Maier.

Dice-K had two awful innings to start the game. The bullpen and the Boston O were able to transform his performance into an afterthought, but now that the Sox are up 2-0 and will more than likely win this series, he’s making me nervous about what he’s going to do in an ALCS or possible World Series game. Hopefully he doesn’t have to play for another six to seven days to help his “shoulder fatigue.”

JD Drew came up big in the first to get the Sox on the board with a two RBI single. It’s nice to see him finally earning his $13 million contract. Yikes. David Ortiz went 1-for-1 last night. How’d that happen? Well, I’ll tell you. He was walked four goddamn times. I guess the Angels still aren’t over Papi hitting one of his two walk-off homers of the 2004 postseason. Walking Papi gets you to Manny though, and last night we saw how much trouble it can get you into.

Sunday in LA will be the time and place for Game Three. Curt Schilling will take the mound for the good guys and Jered Weaver will throw for the Halos. I'm sure I'll piss off my future in-laws who will want to watch the Kansas City Chiefs play with my requests to change the channel to the Sox game.

Some Yankee Hate

2007-10-05T12:39:00.000-06:00

On the day after the Cleveland Indians laid a ass whoopin' on the Yankees, I just thought I would post a couple videos that confirm a few things...

#1 - A-Rod is a cheap shot player, no matter how good he is. I wish I could find the video of the '04 ALCS Game 6 where he did this...

#2 - I really don't like Matt Damon, but I was amused he went on Letterman in New York to represent.

Nice game last night Wang. The Yankees are gay*. Go Tribe.

*I apologize to the gay community for the insult by tying your sexual orientation to this ball club.

Near Perfection

2007-10-03T20:11:00.000-06:00

Josh Beckett was the hero tonight throwing a four hit shut out to get the postseason underway for the Boston Red Sox. Beckett is no stranger to postseason success, tonight was his third shutout in the playoffs.

Speaking of not being a stranger to postseason heroics, David Ortiz went 2-for-3 with a two run dinger in the bottom of the third to stretch the lead to three at the time. Kevin Youkilis started the night off in the bottom of the first inning with a solo shot and wound up going 2-for-4 on the night. Mike Lowell added the final run of the evening in the third inning as well, driving Manny Ramirez in on a single to center. The big bats of Manny and Big Papi also drew a walk each and went a combined 3-for-6.

All nuts and bolts aside, this game went fucking quick. It came in a hair under 2 ½ hours. Boston did a good job wearing down Angels starter John Lackey, but didn’t really knock him out completely. After the third inning he pitched three scoreless and Boston didn’t get to tear into the Angels bullpen until the seventh. This should help the Halos out in the long run especially since the series will not resume until Friday. Then again, Boston didn’t take a shot in the bullpen either with Beckett going the distance.

Dice-K starts on Friday night and he’d better be rested. I’m sure LA’s lineup won’t be held down the entire series. I don't want to say anything bad about the guy, but still...

There really isn’t too much more to say about tonight’s game. Boston scored as many runs as they needed while the pitching, which was the best in the American League this season, did their (or his) job by not allowing the opposition to get to second base, let alone the scoreboard. I knew Beckett would be automatic this first game, it’s just hard to gauge where Dice-K and Schilling will be. It sucks that Tim Wakefield isn’t on the ALDS roster for the Sox too, but better to rest him and save his back for the ALCS if they make it there. The Sox did help their chances in the short series by winning tonight though. I’m looking for Boston to take a two games to none lead back to LA for Sunday’s Game 3. Fingers crossed of course.

Your 2007 American League East Division Champs

2007-10-02T09:01:00.000-06:00

Over the weekend Boston wrapped up the American League East and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The month of September was getting more than a little scary considering Boston almost blew their lead and relinquished control of the division to the Yankees. Instead of doing what most people in Red Sox Nation thought they’d do, they held on and secured the home field rights to Fenway Park. We’ll see if it helps come Wednesday and Friday night.

I want to take a minute to talk about last night’s one game regular season finale. It may have been the best baseball game I’ve watched all season. I was pulling for the Rockies mainly because it’s cool to see a team rally and come out on top after everyone was throwing dirt on them just a month ago. Too bad in last night's game Matt Holliday didn't touch home plate in the bottom of the 13th, but I'm not going to split hairs on the NL Wild Card race that was. The same thing goes for the Phillies, watching them win the division on Sunday and seeing the Mets historic collapse was awesome.

As exciting as it was for a couple National League teams this weekend, it’s time to visit more important issues, namely the Boston Red Sox and how they stack up against their American League Division Series opponent the Los Angeles Angels.

The Sox took the ten game season series 6-4 in their favor but had trouble in August when they played out west. Boston had the option to take the extra day in the series (which I still think is weird teams can do that) and did so. Just a side note, I think it’s dumb the playoffs could eventually reach November if we get a Game 7 in the World Series. They’ll play Wednesday night with Josh Beckett starting against John Lackey. Manager Terry Francona picked Dice-K to take the second start at home on Friday against Kelvim Escobar. Pretty much everyone expected Curt Schilling to take the Friday night start, but Francona opted to use Schilling on Sunday in LA against Jered Weaver. Hopefully Dice-K can put in a performance like he did last Friday against the Minnesota Twins to clinch the division after the Yankees blew a lead in extra innings in Baltimore. If it pans out, Francona will look like a genius.

The Angels can manufacture runs like no other team in the AL. That type of offense will bode well for them if a game comes down to a pitchers dual. Just don’t count out the Sox offense which has finally been playing up to spec the final nine games of the season scoring 56 runs.

The series is clearly in favor of the Red Sox, as the Angels have been resting players and losing momentum after clinching their division over a week ago. I wouldn’t count them out obviously, with players like Vlad, Casey Kotchman, Chone Figgins and Garret Anderson, moving on to the ALCS is not automatic. However, I wouldn’t count out Boston’s bats and postseason heroics of a few certain players (or one specifically) in that lineup either…

Now it you’ll excuse me, I have to re-work my schedule to coincide with watching the playoffs, despite the baseball schedule sort of sucking.

By A Thread

2007-09-24T19:24:00.001-06:00

If you thought that I hated the fact that Larry the Cable Guy is a Nebraska Cornhuskers fan, you can’t imagine how much I hate this fucktard being a Red Sox fan. It makes me want to hit myself over the head hard with a hammer, but, like, harder. That’s my best impression of Mr. Cook. It almost sucks as much as he does.

So here we go. Six more games to go for the Red Sox and for the New York Yankees. The Sox are going to make the playoffs with no worse than a wild card berth. I would say that “earning” the wild card spot would be a let down and a gateway to a first round exit at the hands of the Cleveland Indians or the Los Angles Angels of Anaheim by way of Orange County in California. Either way, if the Sox roll into the playoffs with no momentum by losing the division look for a similar flame out on par with 2005 after being swept by the Chicago White Sox in the ALDS.

I didn’t watch any baseball this weekend. No, not because I hate watching them play at The Trop, but because I was entrenched in wedding boot camp hell. If you’re Catholic and were married in a Catholic Church you need not ask, you’re already well aware of the atrocities perpetrated by the uber-parishioners that volunteer to run these types of things.

From what I hear from a source that was at all three games in Tampa, Friday’s game was "your typical blowout," Saturday was a "valiant comeback" and Sunday was "too close for comfort." The loss yesterday dropped the Sox back to only leading the Yanks by 1 ½ games. Luckily for Red Sox Nation, the Blue Jays defeated the Yanks in the Bronx 4-1 this afternoon. I actually listened to the game at work. Man, I fucking hate John Sterling.

The Sox and Yankees have decidedly different paths to the postseason. Boston will play host to the Oakland Athletics for two games and will wrap up the season with a four game series against the Minnesota Twins. They Sox have played the A’s like complete shit this season, and the Twins could be dangerous depending on how they view the benefit of wrapping up the season on the road at Fenway Park. They’re young and tend to play over their heads while winning, and on the verge of looking like a AAA team while on the short end of the stick. I’ve circled this series on my calendar, and it’s been that way since about June. I know if the Twins are responsible for the Sox losing the American League East, it will no doubt trigger a lot of shit from my “friends” over at TwinsTown.

The Yankees played their last regular season game in Yankees Stadium today. That means they'll finish on the road. Don't get your AL East Division hats out yet...it's against the Devil Rays and Orioles.

I’m not one to disappoint, so here is a taste of what I went through this weekend…

Going Down

2007-09-18T13:27:00.000-06:00

Yes, losing to the Yankees on Sunday was awful. What made it even more awful was that it was at the hands of Derek Jeter. It always seems to be Jeter. As if losing in the eighth inning AGAIN wasn’t enough the Sox had to tease everyone by loading the bases in bottom of the ninth, coming within one run and sending David Ortiz to the plate only to pop out and end the game.

Last night wasn’t much better having the 72 year-old Frank Thomas go deep three times against Boston pitching. Did I mention the Yankees won last night against Baltimore? If the Orioles win one game in the Bronx this week I’ll be shocked and tickled surprised. So you know what that means, if the Sox want to protect their dwindling lead, currently at 3 ½ games in the AL East, they’ll have to win out in Toronto, a place that has been unforgiving in the past two seasons for the Sox.

Tonight Jon Lester will try his best to win his fifth game on the season against A.J. Burnett. The positive in the Yank’s v. O’s game is that Mike Mussina is on the mound. Hopefully the Orioles can rough him up a bit for an early lead and hang on with Jon Leicester on the mound, but I doubt it.

I would like to take a minute and talk about something else. This ‘something’ is going on in the New England area and has to do with the NFL and nothing to do with the Sox. Yes, I’m going to take a minute and write about Bill Belichick, the New England Patriots and SpyGate or whatever the hell they’re calling it today.

This is the last story we should be worrying about when it comes to the NFL and how they handle the league. I’m tired of reading sportswriters across the country labeling this happening as the end of the NFL’s reign on top of the sports spectrum here in our country. I don’t really see something like this derailing the momentum that the NFL has built up over the past decade or so.

Beyond the league wide implications, the attention that this story is getting is getting a tad ridiculous. Is videotaping a violation of NFL rules? Yes, it is. Do I think that the Patriots, Belichick and his staff are the only people stealing signals in some way shape or form? No, absolutely not, he’s just the only one who’s been caught. He’s been fined, sure it’s not that much, but he was still fined. If someone told me I’d be fined for 10% of my pay for an entire year, I’d be pretty pissed and see it as harsh. Losing draft picks hurts the Patriots as well when it comes to the "punishment fitting the crime." You can’t punish the team for something the coaching staff perpetrated.

Some people want to compare this situation to players getting suspended along the lines of a Michael Vick or someone like Adam "Pac-Man" Jones, but that's comparing apples to oranges and makes those people who make the argument look retarded. People who think that league commissioner Roger Goodell is being too soft on coaches and too harsh on players need to dig in their couch cushions for a quarter and put a brain on lay-a-way. Those players who I mentioned (among a few others) violated NFL rules and broke the law. The last time I checked, videotaping signals from opposing coaches was not a felony in any state.

The influx of everyone squawking about this gets a little overwhelming. People steal signals all the time in baseball and in the NBA. Everyone cheats on something, this time Belichick was just unfortunate and unlucky when he got caught. Most people cheat on their taxes, at their jobs or on their spouses. Come on everyone, get over it.

To Hines Ward and Donovan McNabb complaining about getting playoff and Super Bowl victories back? Look no further than the Patriots and Chargers game Sunday night. To me it doesn’t look like they need the help of videotaping. You should probably worry about your own team.

Look, I’m no Belichick lover or apologist. I just get tired of people making a mountain out of a molehill on this issue and a myriad of other issues in general. This story is the lead on just about any sports program and talk radio station when it comes to the NFL. What about Kevin Everett? How about how the Players Association is planning on dealing with the U.S. Congress regarding retired players’ pensions/benefits? You don’t hear anything about that. Why? Because people are stupid and they want to hear about this whole videotaping debacle over and over and over again.

For those that can't get enough cheating, here is a story about a prominent NFL player caught cheating from earlier in his career.

Speaking of football, I'd like to give a shout out to Chris Cooley who put my fantasy team over the top last night. Too bad he has a predilection to play in his underwear in front of teammates...And his hair sucks. It looks like he has band-aids in there.

Bounce Back

2007-09-15T20:35:00.000-06:00

Last night sucked. Last night sucked about as much as anything in September can suck other than a monumental collapse from the Red Sox. I thought last night’s come from behind victory from the New York Yankees was the start of that.

The Red Sox took a 7-2 lead into the top of the eighth inning with normally automatic Hideki Okajima taking the mound in his usual set up role. Jason Giambi hit a solo shot, the Robinson Cano followed suit with a homer to dead center as well. Not long after Jonathan Papelbon was in taking it on the chin for another three runs as the Yankees pulled off an improbable comeback against one of baseball’s best 1-2 punches out of the bullpen.

I got kicked out of my fiancé’s apartment last night for assaulting the love seat and had to go back to my place to watch the less than thrilling conclusion. The Sox responded to last night’s heartbreaker by routing the Yankees 10-1 today behind Josh Beckett’s 19^th win. The win also came against the Yankee’s best starter in Chin Meng Wong.

Yankee’s captain Derek Jeter got the only run on the day for the Bronx Bombers with a solo home run in the top of the first while Boston countered in the bottom half with an RBI single from Mike Lowell. JD Drew broke the 1-1 tie in the bottom of the fifth with a poke down the left field line. The Red Sox would go on to score eight more runs and score in each inning for the duration of the contest.

Eric Hinske was the catalyst for the win today on an out. Hinske was called out on a play to the plate after a short chopper hit by Dustin Pedroia but absolutely leveled Yankee’s catcher Jorge Posada in the sixth. The Sox scored three more runs after that physical play that the hometown Sox fans ate up.

Jacoby Ellsbury came into the game and smacked in three runs for the injured Kevin Youkilis, who was hit in the wrist by Wong and forced to leave the game. The Sox didn’t really bat an eye at the play I guess to not fan the flames between some heated exchanges already this season that involved Youkilis. However, in the bottom of the seventh with nobody on and two out, Beckett hurled a pitch in the direction of Giambi’s wrist and hit him. Nothing happened, but at that point in the game I guess I didn’t really see the point. You want to protect your players and go after the opponents first baseman obviously, but after the previous night’s comeback I wouldn’t take any chances.

Dustin Pedroia almost seems more and more of a lock for AL Rookie of the Year as the season winds down. Today wasn’t his best outing only going 1-for-5 and leaving five on base, but is clearly the frontrunner. I’ve seen some other picks on other sites/blogs (ahem, Reggie Willits?) but with almost 100 more at bats, more hits, twice as many doubles, a higher OPS, a significantly better average and half as many strike outs I don’t think Willits will be making too much noise for ROY when compared to Pedroia. Willits also has a goose egg on the year for dingers.

Tomorrow night Roger Clemens will take on Curt Schilling in a battle of which older pitcher will break down first. I’m sure Clemens will get a warm Fenway reception. With a win the Sox will take a 6 ½ game lead into the final two weeks of the season.

BOOM!

2007-09-13T11:36:00.001-06:00

It wasn’t a monster shot, but David Ortiz picked up his first game winning walk off home run of the season last night off Devil Ray’s reliever Al Reyes. Ortiz’s shot in the bottom of the ninth sealed the series in Boston's favor against the D-Rays and was the final two of all five runs batted in by Ortiz on home runs in the 5-4 victory. Mr. Clutch’s shot last night was the ninth walk-off of his career.

If Big Papi hadn’t picked up his 30^th and 31^st on the season last night the Sox would be looking at possibly bringing only a 3 ½ game lead into this weekend’s series with New York. Good thing for Boston Ortiz’s day off earlier in the week helped them out quite a bit. More than quite a bit, he was the only pulse in an otherwise anemic offensive performance last night.

Jon Lester was the second Boston starter in a row to get roughed up by the Devil Rays bats. He made it only two outs into the fourth inning giving up eight hits, walking four and surrendering all four earned runs on the evening. The bullpen came in and preserved any hope for the Sox to come back late in the game, with Julian Tavarez pitching three scoreless (shocking) and closer Jonathan Papelbon picking up his first win on the year. His streak of scoreless appearances is now at 16.

Stealing bases has been virtually non-existent in Boston’s game plan for almost 100 years, at least when it comes to having more than one base-stealing threat on the team. Coco Crisp stole his 25^th base last night in the sixth. Julio Lugo currently has 29 on the year. It’s helped Boston move runners over into scoring position without having to rely on constant hitting. Having either guy score from first on a double or well placed single doesn’t hurt much either. I wrote back in May that the new found speed would help to win games that in the past Boston would have struggled to capture. So far, it’s helped them out in about five or six situations I can count in games I’ve watched. It’s hard to say how much that component has actually helped in the wins and losses column, it’s just good that it’s there. I’ll leave it at that.

Boston’s off for the night and the Yankees will try to go for the sweep up at the Rogers Center tonight in Toronto and will start rookie Ian Kennedy. If the Yanks win they’ll pull within 4 ½ of the AL East lead. In a KC Bean Boy note to the Jays, try winning a game goddamnit.

Oh yeah, that's Sir Paul McCartney cheering on the Yankees in New York. I always fucking hated Paul.

Wild One

2007-09-12T10:46:00.000-06:00

All I can say about this week and sports is that it’s going to be tough on me. It’s going to probably take a few years off of my life actually. Between last night’s game, the series with the Yankees this weekend and the Nebraska game against USC on Saturday night I think I may end up with an aneurysm by Sunday night.

Speaking of the hit-fest that went down in Boston last night, it was one hell of an up and down game to watch. I’m surprised I even hung in there after the Devil Rays went up 8-1 in the top of the fourth inning. I flipped to the Yankees and Blue Jays game and thought that the Yanks would pull within four games now after Giambi's grand slam. I was convincing myself that I’m not as interested in baseball now that the college football and Nebraska football seasons had started two weeks ago. Then I thought, who the fuck am I kidding? Who was there when the Huskers went 5-6 enduring their first losing season and missed their first bowl game in 35 years? Who was there that same year my favorite NFL team went 2-14? That’s right, the Red Sox cleared all of that up with a World Series victory. Had Boston been swept in the ALCS by the Yankees, I may have gone off the deep end in '04.

Mike Lowell came up big last night with four hits and scoring three times. Lowell has done a heck of job filling in for Manny while he rehabs his oblique. Hopefully he keeps this level of play in the postseason. And Boston will make the playoffs at this point. If they fold and let the Yankees back in to the race for real this weekend they’ll win the Wild Card at least. As it stands today the Red Sox are nine games ahead of Detroit, who is four games back of New York in the Wild Card race. It would take a monumental collapse and I think Boston is too good to have that happen with only 16 games left. Still, it would be very disappointing to relinquish that lead the Sox have enjoyed pretty much all season.

Tim Wakefield had the shortest outing of this season last night only going three innings and giving up 10 hits with seven earned. Usually Wake is automatic against the Rays, but for some reason they had the knuckleball figured out. Not to be outdone, the Sox roughed up the Rays bullpen last night for 11 runs and victimized them during the three inning turn around where they racked up 13 runs, including a six run sixth.

Kevin Youkilis came up big in the six with a three run triple that put the Sox on top 12-9 after Dustin Pedroia tied it at 9 all with a solo shot. Just a stat, but a good one… The Sox hit for the cycle as a team in the sixth inning alone.

It’s good to see that the Sox didn’t just pack it in and let the D-Rays trounce all over them when the Sox knew they needed that game last night to keep pace over the Yankees. If you think big league ball players don't check the scores on the big boards around stadiums, you're nuts. They knew they needed to come back and win and they did. What bothers me the most is that still the perception is that the Yankees are accustomed to winning and the Red Sox are self-overanalyzing losers who will fold when it’s crunch time. Last night was a gut check for the Sox and hopefully they picked up some much needed momentum to close out the series with a win tonight and for the series this weekend against New York.

Jon Lester will go for his fifth win on the season and will try to stay perfect against 4-14 Edwin Jackson who is 1-1 against the Sox this season.

StFU - College Football Edition

2007-09-11T12:07:00.000-06:00

Hey Mike Hart, in the last four games you’ve played in you and your team have been beaten 417-12, so stop making guarantees that your team is going to win this Saturday against Notre Dame. Just for the love of God, stop fucking talking. Stop being so pissed off and so serious about winning. It's gay.

I know the Irish suck right now, but I don’t care if you're preparing to play Temple or Ann Arbor West High, just shut up. In fact, stop talking all together. Now is not the time for guarantees. Unless you're practicing to be a used car salesman. I guarantee you have that in you because no one else can sell your shitty Wolverine team to their own fans but you.

At this point Lloyd Carr and staff should be prohibiting any players from talking to the media at all. Hell, he shouldn't let them talk to their parents about the program. The seniors are "going to do their job" in getting the team ready? Yeah, look how well that worked against the I-AA champion Appalachian State Mountaineers and the Oregon Ducks. You didn’t just lose these games at the “Big House” and in your home state, you were flat out embarrassed in front of a nation. I couldn’t turn on a TV in any language last week without hearing that clip of the radio announcer from App State sounding like someone was grabbing his balls with vice grips after they won.

Here is how it breaks down, Mr. Hart. You need to shut the fuck up and go out and try and beat a Notre Dame team that is just as shitty and normally just as overrated as your team. The Michigan team last season was no better and maybe worse than the team that lost to Nebraska in the 2005 Alamo Bowl, and somehow the Wolverines not only found themselves in the number two spot behind equally overrated Ohio State last November, but in the national title hunt/discussion of all places. Does anyone else think the Big 10 is overrated as well? Because I sure do. Hopefully Michigan’s performance thus far and Ohio State’s mediocre showing AT HOME against Akron will signify that the Big 10 is not all it’s cracked up to be, finally. Oh, and Notre Dame doesn’t become a national powerhouse until they win a damn bowl game because I say so. Talk about overrated. Don't get me started on fatass Charlie Weiss and the Cryin' Irish.

Back to Hart. His team, despite it’s loss, was still thinking about a Big 10 championship this season before getting schooled by Oregon. That was the one positive I heard out of Michigan apologists last week. "Oh, they still have the Big 10 title in front of them." Yeah, way way far out the fuck in front of them. They’ll be lucky if they sneak into a bowl game this year. I'll take that back a bit, they could make it to post season play but probably playing Montana State in the Idon'tgiveaflyingfuck.com Bowl, but until that time..Mike Hart, shut the fuck up.

Riddled With...

2007-09-11T11:50:00.000-06:00

Ineptitude, offensive impotence…take your pick for last night's "performance" I guess.

The Red Sox looked a little more than lacking in the runs department last night, they looked absolutely clueless. With the Yankees now moving in to within five games of Boston’s lead in the AL East, the next three weeks will show you what kind of team the Sox are. Will they find a way to win? Or will they fold and relinquish their lead they’ve held for about 140 odd games or so?

The injuries are starting to pile up and make their presence felt. Manny Ramirez was an obvious scratch for the game, David Ortiz was held out of the lineup because of the ongoing issues with his right knee, and even backup catcher Doug Mirabelli will not catch for Tim Wakefield in tonight’s contest because of a nagging left hamstring.

Curt Shilling had an otherwise great performance last night, only giving up one run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning to Josh Williams. It would have been a good night for the veteran, except for the fact that the Boston lineup decided not to score any runs. Scott Kazmir is a hell of a good pitcher, I’ll give him that, and with Manny and Papi out of the lineup it makes things more difficult. But come on, one damn run? Shut outs happen but it just hurts when it comes at the hands of the Devil Rays.

On the brighter side, the Sox did manage to keep pace with their lead by taking three of four from the Baltimore Orioles this past weekend as the Yankees swept the Kansas City Royals not 10 minutes from where I live. Thanks Royals. Boston had a chance to pick up another half game on the idle Yanks last night but failed to do so. The Yankees will open a three game set north of the border in Toronto against the Blue Jays before setting course for Boston on Friday.

Boston will try to regroup tonight as Wakefield goes for his 17^th win on the year. He will take on five game winner Andy Sonnanstine. The Sox will basically have to close out the D-Rays tonight and tomorrow if they hope to have more than a four or five game lead on the visiting Yankees come Friday.

Starting Off September Right

2007-09-08T07:58:00.001-06:00

I’m sure the Sox are just about as tired of playing in games where players about get belted with pitches that lead to bench clearing staring contests as I am sitting on my couch watching them.

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Daniel Cabrera threw a head-high, high and tight pitch on Dustin Pedroia that ended up behind his head after he was distracted by Coco Crisp just enough to balk him in. Crisp was on third base in the top of fourth inning and got just enough of a lead between third and home to get Cabrera off balance to the point of balking on the previous play. It was really a thing of beauty to watch.

Immediately after Francona and other players from the visiting dugout protested the pitch which led to umpire Mike DiMuro handing out warnings to both benches that started the whole situation into a tailspin. Boston was pissed because they got a warning, Baltimore flew off the handle because Boston was complaining. It boils down to Cabrera being pissed that he balked in a run and being frustrated with his team being one of the worst since after the All-Star Break, and losing 10 (before they lost the game last night) in a row at Camden Yards.

You can look at situations like this in one of two ways, either baseball players are a bunch of whinny pussies (which, next NBA players, are some of the biggest) or overly protective of their heads being used as target practice for pitchers that can throw upwards of 98 miles an hour, and rightly so. Speaking specifically to last night’s situation, Crisp’s lead off third and causing the balk was a great play and only someone with his type of speed can pull off. Sure, it's a tricky underhanded way to score a run, but it's legal. Cabrera’s temper got the best of him and in his mind, the best way to send a message to Boston’s bench to not make clean plays to score runs was to throw a 95 mph fastball behind Pedroia’s head.

Meanwhile, in the baseball world that matters, Boston did go on to win the game 4-0 and finish their first seven games in September with a 6-1 record. New York kept pace beating the Royals more soundly than the score showed. The final was 3-2, but the Yankees left the bases loaded in the sixth and the seventh and easily could have made the game 7-2 or more. I’m not looking for the Royals to win a single game the rest of the series with Andy Pettitte pitching tonight and Chin Meng Wang pitching Sunday. Boston is going to have to sweep the Orioles, bottom line. Well, I take that back a little. It would be nice if they swept the O’s. Good news for Boston is they’ll return to Fenway on Monday for a series against the Devil Rays and the Yankees will stay out for the second leg of their nine game road trip and travel to play Toronto.

-Jon Lester had a strong road outing last night against the O’s, pitching seven shut-out frames.

-Kevin Youkilis set the American League errorless streak at first base last night also. He has played in 179 games at first with no errors and should be on his way to a Golden Glove. The all time record is currently at 193 straight and held by Steve Garvey which could fall this season. Garvey was on an episode of Baywatch once.

-On the comeback trail, Manny Ramirez should take some swings this weekend which would show he is in the final stages of recovery after a strained left oblique left him on the sidelines since August 28^th.

-Prospective Boston pitching phenom Clay Buchholz pitched three more innings of shut-out baseball in relief in Thursday’s game against last Saturday's no-hitter victim Baltimore.

-Dice-K will be seeking his 15^th win this season tonight against Jon Leicester of the Orioles.

Some Stuff Condensed

2007-09-04T18:33:00.000-06:00

A lot has happened since the last post on this site. If you read this blog as a means to keep up with the Sox, which I’m sure exactly no one in the free world does, then you missed the Yankee’s sweeping of the Sox, a no hitter from Boston Rookie Clay Buchholtz on Saturday night and the Sox lead in the East fluctuating from eight games, to five and back up to seven. You've also been missing my run-on sentences too, haven't you?

Manny is also out and has been since the series down in New York. Manny being out surprisingly hasn’t been much of a factor because of the play of PawSox call-ups Jacoby Ellsbury, Brandon Moss and mid-season acquisition Bobby Kielty.

Other regular day players are starting to heat up as well. The ever-reliable Mike Lowell is still going strong, David Ortiz is finally hitting his paycheck weight and Dustin Pedroia continues his campaign for AL rookie of the year. JD Drew, possibly the season’s biggest disappointment is finding his groove despite the fact he does all he can to avoid it.

The starting pitching is holding up when they aren’t playing in the Bronx and looking every part of a playoff rotation. With the starting three being arguably the most solid in the entire league with Daisuke Matsuzaka, Josh Beckett and Curt Schilling, it's hard to deny they can make serious strides in post-season play. If Tim Wakefield can defy age and Jon Lester can remain consistent the five will be in great shape. Now that Buchholz is on the map in a big way, it will be interesting to see how he’s utilized down the stretch and possibly into the playoffs with him being activated to the 25-man roster just in the nick of time. Don’t hate either, Buchholz’s no-no was no fluke. Hopefully he turns out to be the real deal for a long time to come.

Oh, and another thing. Fuck Julian Tavarez. I fucking hate that guy.

Rumble in the Bronx

2007-08-28T12:37:00.000-06:00

Yeah, I’m pretty sure that the title to this entry has been used countless times since the Jackie Chan movie by the same name was released, maybe even before that. This of course is presupposing that anyone still watches Jackie Chan movies. Tonight in New York, the Red Sox come to town for the second to last regular season showdown between these major league behemoths. How will Boston fair after the dust settles on Thursday afternoon? I’m expecting for the Sox to come away with one victory and hoping for two.

With the most likely of scenarios playing out, the Sox will go back up to Boston with a seven game lead over the Yanks. After the shellacking the Yankees took over the weekend in Detroit, particularly last night losing 16-0 in what was the Yankees worst shut-out loss since 1905 when they lost to the Chicago White Sox 15-0. I’m hard pressed to believe that after that crushing blow the Yankees will bounce back and sweep the Sox. Stranger things have happened though.

I’m guessing that the lineup the Sox will bring to the Bronx will not make quite the same impact against the Yankees as it did against the White Sox, however I’m guessing that at least one of the games they should be able to manage to score five or more runs and if timing permits, it should come on the day Beckett pitches. The one the thing I’m looking for (and praying for) in this series is that the Sox need to give Dice-K a little more run support. Some random act of God is preventing the Sox potent lineup from driving in runs when he takes the mound. I’m convinced Dice-K should have 17 or 18 wins right now, and if he did, the question of rookie of the year in the AL would be over. Even though the idea of giving the Rookie of Year award to veteran Japanese player is a little dicey, and I’m a huge fan of my team and Dice-K.

Joe Torre and company will throw Pettitte, Clemens and Wang in that order. The idea of a potential future Boston ace (Beckett) pitching against arguably the most legendary former ace (Clemens) of the modern Boston era is an intriguing side story for tomorrow night’s game. If Beckett can hold the Yankees to three or even four runs that should be the best shot at a W in New York. Schilling versus Wang is more than likely the Yankee’s best shot and most probable win. Tonight is the toss up game in my opinion. All the Sox need to do is score some damn runs against Pettitte, which has been done this season, and Dice-K can minimize his mistakes which he has been improving upon the past few weeks.

Despite my personal excitement and rooting interests, this series will more than likely take a backseat to the National League Central’s showdown between the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers, which makes sense considering their race, is much tighter, albeit in the most mediocre division in baseball. I swear to God, if another team from this division wins the World Series again, I many come completely unglued come October.

Timeout

2007-08-27T11:07:00.000-06:00

Taken from my Nebraska Cornhuskers blog, "The Scarlet Letter"...

Before I get started, let me get one thing out there. I’ve never really liked Michael Vick as a football player. I never really liked him even while I was watching him at Virginia Tech back in the late 90’s. I didn’t think a black quarterback that could run and make plays with his legs was that revolutionary. For those that read this blog, Tommie Frazier had already accomplished the same type of success that Vick was. Of course as the record shows, the NFL rightly decided to recruit Vick into their ranks and allowed his type of play to sweep the country and make fans around the world. This was all fine with me, despite the fact that I was never a big fan of Michael Vick the football player. He seemed selfish, however I was a fan of playing football a different way.

We all know now what he did or maybe didn’t do. He has made his admission of guilt and in my opinion that is all you really need to know. During the entire process from after the evidence was found on his property in Virginia on a drug raid, up until he chose to plead guilty to lesser crimes than he was charged with, I’ve maintained with my friends that it is important to let the system do it’s job. When we come out on the other end, then I’ll let my opinion be known. Well, now that Vick has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to run an interstate dog-fighting ring my opinion is this.

In black and white in regards to our justice system (no racial sort-of-pun intended) I believe that he should serve out his sentence that will be handed down on December 10^th. Following his time in or out of prison he should be given the same opportunity as any convicted felon in getting his old job back. That is what would happen in an equal, perfect world. Let’s look at reality for a second. Consider yourself and you in your job. Let’s say that you are at a bar with your wife/girlfriend or husband/boyfriend and you’ve had one too many drinks. Someone at the bar repeatedly harasses you and your spouse/partner for the duration of the night. When it’s time to go home, you’ve finally had enough and you beat the person that has been heckling your partner, who you love, to the point of paramedics needing to be called to the scene. You’re arrested and eventually charged with felony assault. Now whether this action warrants this type of punishment, I don’t know, but for the sake of the story just follow me on this one. I know that in my job if I’m even charged with a felony I will lose my job. Not convicted or pleading guilty mind you, just charged, I’m fired. Let’s say the worst happens and you’re convicted of felony assault and having no criminal record you’re sentenced to one year in prison and the rest of the five year sentence gets suspended as probation. Like I’ve said, I’m not sure if this is how it works, just go with it. Now it’s the day you get out of prison and you meet with your probation officer and you inquire about getting your old job back. Tell me, what do you believe are the chances of that actually happening?

Here’s my prediction. Michael Vick will serve his time and his suspension away from playing in the NFL with no further issue. Two or three years from now, you’ll see Vick back in an NFL uniform. He won’t have the same positive exposure as before. He won’t get an endorsement deal, but he’ll be back in the NFL and playing again. People that say he should be banned for life, I’m not so sure I agree. It’s not up to us what should be done with Vick. We don’t run the NFL and if you don’t want to see him play ever again, I guess that’s just too bad. Don’t watch the games he plays in, or don’t watch the game that allows him to play. How deep do your convictions really go? That’s a good question for holier than thou individuals. Color me indifferent in regard to my personal opinion when it comes to Vick being allowed back into the NFL. Some team will take a chance on him, believe me. If NFL commissioner Roger Goodell does not ban Vick for life, he will be back. Talent supercedes almost everything in professional sports. Look at Leonard Little, look at Warren Moon and yes, even look at Lawrence Phillips. Look at every NFL or college football player that has been charged with anything. They’ve been given chance after chance, opportunity after opportunity. So, will this type of crime be where we stand up as a society of NFL fans or just sports fans and say enough is enough? Someone needs to learn a lesson and someone needs to be made an example of? I doubt it. Despite the fact that there have been many, many arrests this past offseason with NFL players and crime. I’ve even come up with a clever nickname for the NFL, the Numerous Felons League. Pretty stupid, huh? Anyway, I think the majority of people are too lazy and weak to make any kind of stand to boycott professional sports. Issues like this will just keep churning along.

I just finished listening to Vick’s statement and it went just like I expected. He said he doesn’t speak well, so we should forgive him for that. He apologized to commissioner Goodell, Atlanta Falcon’s owner Arthur Blank, Falcon’s coach Bobby Patrino (who’s probably secretly happy his team will tank and he’ll be able to draft Louisville Cardinal’s senior quarterback Brian Brohm) his Falcon’s teammates, and of course, finally, the children. Letting down the kids is probably the worst thing you can do, right? Well he left someone else out. He left out the overwhelming majority of people that are indifferent to all the people he apologized to. Do I care about the trials and tribulations of a millionaire like Blank? The answer is an emphatic no. Unless there is a silent majority that just does not care, Vick is leaving out the most important of NFL constituents, and that is the fan that pays his salary. People like you and I.

Michael Vick himself and the charges against him are only the tip of the iceberg. Do you think that when the dust has settled on this case and after he has been sentenced a few weeks before Christmas this year that it will be over? I’m inclined to say no. Why? Because of the issue of race. From day one the cry was small and concentrated. Now the swell of shrieks of racism will bubble over into not only sports media, but mainstream media as well. It already has, but it will increase and be discussed for a great deal of time. Will this be a watershed moment in examining race relations in our country? Will race relations regarding a sports figure serve as a metaphor for society? You’d think that the answer would be yes, considering the almost perfect storm of situations colliding in the middle. You have the face (not my opinion) of the NFL from the past few years, you have our most popular sport in our country and you have a subject that is near and dear to many American’s hearts. The easy answer is race, however the subject I’m referring to is the issue of your family pet and animal cruelty. If this were Peyton Manning that had been running a dog-fighting ring, would there be this much public outcry? Could you imagine a good old boy with his slow southern draw Peyton Manning in the center of a scandal like this? If you’re thinking that Peyton Manning couldn’t be in the middle of something like this because of who he is, then you’re probably a little racist. Look, Manning is a southern, white guy who comes from a good family with NFL pedigree, given every opportunity in life and because he his who he is, it would be harder to stomach for white America. It’s easy to pin this sort of thing on a black guy because most white people probably expect it. You may not say it, but you probably think it.

I am already tired of the countless representatives from the black community playing the race card. I’m equally tired of most white people that have spread the word of his guilt since this story broke almost as quickly. This issue is a magnified look into how we as American’s feel about race. Overall, white and black people don’t seem to trust each other, at least not on this issue. I know making this generalization might get me into a little bit of trouble, however if I were wrong why would this situation be breaking down like it is? And why will it continue to play itself out as such? Will we as a society surprise future historians and prove this to be our shinning moment in the sun in finally understanding each other as white and black societies? Doubtful.

White people, or white commentators I’ve listened to on this subject, are much more subversive in regards to how they add up the evidence and allegations that lead to Vick’s guilt. They talk about his mom being a single mom, how his brother has been in trouble with the law since you knew who he was and how he was raised in a community from the “wrong side of the tracks.” They talk about the culture shock of going from a nobody and someone everyone wanted to be and how hard that is on a poor black kid from Virginia. They talk about how hard it is for a black kid to cut ties with people from “the hood” from his past that he should leave behind, because poor black kids turn into poor black adults that are desperate and commit crimes like this. That’s how they break you down, the listener, into believing that Vick is guilty. Of course he’s guilty because he couldn’t help it, that's what they want you to believe. It makes you feel he’s guilty and allows you to feel sorry for him like he’s a criminal and a victim all at the same time. This is wrong and how a lot of white people want you to feel about black people. Did I mention that it's wrong?

Let me say this quick, I am not defending Vick and his actions that he has now plead guilty to. I don’t defend what he did or didn’t do, what he may have done and what he probably did. I think Vick’s aberrant actions and behavior are grotesque. I think cruelty to animals is right up there with cruelty to children. They are both innocent and helpless to a certain degree, and for adults to take advantage of this shows the lowest of the low of human spirit and capacity to be evil. Now that my late disclaimer has been stated for the record, let’s move on.

The individuals who have been nationally representing the black community on this subject, at least in the publications I have read or watched, have been a little more forthright in their mistrust of mostly white America jumping to their inevitable conclusion of “guilty.” “It’s OJ all over again, and this time we lost.” This was a quote from a sports talk show host that was on ESPN a couple of weeks ago. This has stuck with me for quite some time. Are we still harboring feelings from the OJ case that was wrapped up over a decade ago? Just a side note, I remember the OJ case was so big that when the jury came back with the verdict, they announced it over the intercom at our high school. I’m not kidding. I was watching ESPN this morning and a guy who’s name and credentials I did not happen to catch said that the reason white American is so quick to cut down a young black athlete is because we, as whites, have a hard time stomaching a young black man being rich and successful. Here is where I don’t open a can of worms regarding racial double standards. I will ask this, only because I believe it is worth asking. Who exactly was the first group of people to lob the race bomb into the mix?

I don’t have any problems with young black kids signing multi-million dollar deals to play sports. If I did, I wouldn’t watch them. I think that any professional athlete who squanders their opportunity by hanging around people that don’t have their best interests in mind should have examined their situation a little closer. We all have this problem though, there are always those couple of kids we probably shouldn’t be friends with because of the choices they make. The only difference between you and Vick is that Vick has much more to lose. When you are blessed with the talent to play on a level where you are paid a king’s ransom it is a privilege, not a right. That thought allows many fans to feel justified in persecuting athletes in the court of public opinion.

Vick’s story is yet to be completely played out, and I will always ultimately believe that he is admitting to something less than what he is truly guilty of. That is my opinion and it is based on this. Any person that will tell you they are innocent and vehemently claim their innocence and proclaim they will have their day in court and the evidence will show that they are innocent and then turn around and plead guilty to the charges they once denied, are guilty. I’m sure when Vick and his attorneys sat in either their office or in a separate room in a courthouse and were presented with the evidence that the federal prosecutors had put together, Vick and his lawyers quickly changed their tune. A man innocent of these charges would not do something like this. He would want to fight to clear his name. To this point, Vick has done nothing to clear his name. He’s taking the easier way out and not fighting the good fight to hear the words “we the jury find the defendant not guilty.” He’d rather take his plea and run and turn state’s witness and give up more information on his cohorts. That’s why I think he’s guilty of all he was charged with. There was a dog-fighting ring on your property and you didn’t know about it? Please. Oh, well, I knew about it but I didn’t gamble on it at all. Get real. Well, I may have covered all the losses for people that bet on the dogs that fought and died, but I never killed the dogs myself. Hogwash. When you’re a nobody and you get charged with prison time, you’ll flip almost immediately, just like Vick’s friends did. They sold him out and said he killed those dogs with his bare hands, and I believe them. Not because I jump to conclusions, not because I’m jealous of Vick and his money and fame, and certainly not because I’m racist. It’s because when people are backed into corners they become the most honest of honest. It is forced attrition, and it is hard to deny or refute.

I believe in forgiveness. I believe in redemption. I believe in second chances. I believe in these ideals and principles but only if they are honest and heartfelt. If Vick is truly sorry for what he did, he deserves a second chance. If his intentions are contrived in any way, shape or form then those falsehoods will show through and Vick will likely wind up in more trouble. What he did or did not do on that compound to those dogs he will have to live with. If he chooses to live with no remorse, than the God he has claimed to turn his life over to today will have something to say when his time in this time is over.

Calm Before the Storm

2007-08-26T22:24:00.001-06:00

First team to 80 wins! It's not that important, considering the amount of baseball still left to be played. Still cool though.

Since splitting last weekend’s series with the Los Angeles Angels the Sox have gone 6-and-1 including a four game sweep of the Chicago White Sox at US Cellular Field. In said series against the pale sox, the Red Sox outscored their opponent 46 to seven. The Sox have been relying on the “big inning” and sometimes have been having more than one per game. The run bonanza was sparked by, well, basically everyone. The highlights of course include Ortiz’s performance on Friday night hitting two home runs and moving him into a tie with the likes of Red Sox great Carl Yastrzemski for multiple home runs in a game, and anytime a current player moves into a tie or breaks a record that belonged to Yaz, it’s certainly noteworthy.

Dustin Pedroia has also made more noise this week in his campaign for American League Rookie of the Year, hitting .262 with an OPS of .718 and three RBI’s. Certainly not out of this world, however quite solid. Mike Lowell has had stellar outings against the Devil Rays earlier in the week and the ChiSox this weekend with a team high 11 runs batted in. Former Rookie of the Year Eric Hinske has filled in quite well since last week getting on base frequently and racking up an OPS of 1.464, second only to Ortiz.

The Red Sox starters have also been solid. If Dice-K didn’t make his one fateful mistake in Tampa on Wednesday, giving up a two-run homer to BJ Upton, we’d be talking about Boston’s seven game winning streak. Jon Lester is still a bit of a question mark having some solid starts but basically having a rough go of it since being called up from the PawSox in late July. Surprisingly, Julian Tavarez pitched very well today in place of Lester. I watched the entire game while at my fantasy football draft and the quality of his pitches and pitch counts were that of, well, a good starter. I’m not ready to jump on the JT bandwagon, since he will be back in the bullpen when Francona and staff feel that Lester is ready to resume his roll in the five spot. Obviously, the bullpen hasn’t had much of workout, at least from the standpoint of it being meaningful. When you’re taking nine or 10 run leads into the seventh, eighth and ninth innings all you’re really doing is practicing. That’s fine, because they’re going to need all the practice they can get going into the coming week.

Jumping back a bit to the subject of starting pitching, the Sox will throw the “big three” as they wrap up their 10 game road trip in the Bronx as they face down the New York Yankees. Dice-K, Josh Beckett and Curt Schilling will all start in that order. The two teams have not played since June, where the Sox were nearly swept at Fenway as the Yanks where in the midst of torrent streak of winning baseball. Now, the Yanks are in a bit of a slump by the standards they’ve set since early June. They have been having a rough go on the road away from the confines of Yankee Stadium against quality opponents. They’re currently 2-and-4 against the Angels and Detroit Tigers, who they will wrap a four game series with tomorrow night and Comerica Park.

So now it’s time to start breaking down the rest of the regular season picture in regards to the Red Sox and Yankees. As it currently stands, the Sox will go in with no worse than a seven game lead on Tuesday night. This plays out well considering that if the Sox get swept (at worst) the Yankees will still be four games back which is where the two teams were before the Yanks last road trip. On the flip side (at best) if the Yankees drop another game to Detroit and the Sox sweep in New York, the good guys will have an 11 game lead come Thursday about 4:30 Central Time. Of course these are obvious extremes with probably neither one coming to fruition.

Looking a couple series’ beyond the AL East showdown the Sox will return home to face two other AL East opponents in the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. The Yankees will stay at home as well and play the D-Rays and Wild Card competition in the Seattle Mariners. Here’s another interesting point to consider when wrapping up the season for these two teams. New York has two more road trips including a nine gamer starting September 7^th and won’t return home until the 17^thwhich includes a trip up to Boston. They will also finish the season on the road in Tampa and Baltimore. I’m sure both teams would love to play spoiler to their playoff and (God forbid they’re in contention) dreams of another division crown. The Red Sox, on the other hand, also have two road trips. Don’t be fooled, it won’t be quite as challenging. The Sox will play the O’s, Jays and Devil Rays on the road for a total of ten games. The rest will be played at home against mostly divisional foes. The Sox have the easier road, but they’ll need to capitalize on every opportunity despite the lack of measurable competition.

This may be the most important fact regarding these two teams, and I'm placing this in a separate paragraph for a reason. The Yankees are 41-and-24 at home, on the road they're an unimpressive 31-and-34. Compare that to Boston's 40-and-23 at Fenway and 40-and-28 on the road. The Yankees play 15 out of their last 31 games away from the Bronx.

Are the Sox heating up for their eventual run into and hopefully through the playoffs? Or were the White Sox just that bad? I’m thinking a combination of the two, but playing this well against teams like the White Sox is exactly what Boston will need to do to keep their lead on the Yankees until the end of September.

Well Played, Sir

2007-08-18T22:17:00.001-06:00

Very quickly, in what will be (maybe) the shortest post ever, is that tonight may have been the most emotional up and down so far this season watching the Sox. Just when I thought they were going to pack it in and I was ready to abandon all hope and watch HBO's Hard Knocks on the Kansas City Chiefs ('08 seasons tickets, here I come) the Sox pull one out of their ass and then add to it late in the game rather than coast.
It gave me some hope, despite the fact that perennial hack Julian Tavarez will start tomorrow afternoon. Back to tonight, the Sox did it with their traditional powers that be. Ortiz came through with a grand salami in the fifth, the bully line-up of All-Stars Okajima and Papelbon put the final nail in the coffin of the Angels. Hell, even Manny made a key defensive play. How often does that happen? It's a lot of fun to see the two best teams in the American League (save for the Yankees, who are playing with the best record in the last two months) slug it out and trade shots. Hopefully the Sox can score the knockout blow tomorrow before heading back out on the road next week. Talk all you want about the Central, I don't think any team other than the division champ will make the playoffs at this point. Here is an "early" post-season prediction.

Boston, New York, Detroit, LA with the dark horse being Seattle should the Sox, Angels or Yankees falter.

Oh, completely unrelated, but go see Superbad.