I was at the game last night. Scoring those 5 runs was probably the most exciting moment in my life. Seeing Wily Mo Pena actually hit a breaking ball was like seeing Jesus walk on water. Thinking back on it, any game where Wily Mo is the hero can't be a good sign. Lugo's bunt was amazing. I don't think I've ever loved that guy more than that one moment, and that's saying a lot because I put him on my list of bums who can't hack it in Boston a while ago. I'm also starting to think that Gagne is damaged goods. He's pitched horribly everytime we've brought him in. J.D. Drew is a bum, too, because he should have given up his body to block that ball. The pretty boy didnt want to hurt his fragile body, I guess. But the real idiot award goes to Francona. Why bring in a righty to face lefties, a lefty to face righties, and leave your best arm sitting in the pen? I'm so demoralized right now.
Go Sox.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Thursday, August 9, 2007
755*
Barry finally hit it. The all-time home run record is one of the most important records in all of sports. As a fan, I felt that I had to witness that piece of history being made, and to tell the truth, I smiled when I saw the ball go out of the park. But when I think back on it, I wasn't happy that Barry was breaking the record; I was happy that I was watching the record being broken. It's true that without steroids Barry would never have been able to do what he's done, but it's also true that without steroids he still would have been a lock for the Hall of Fame. The very fact that we have to wonder and question if his pursuit was fair tarnishes the glory of the moment. Yes, I was happy as I watched Bonds round the bases, but all I could think was how I wished he had done it like Hank had. I liken the ceremony to what's said about the loser in a Presidential race. The comment is often made that if the losing candidate had carried himself the way he did in his concession speech, he would have won the race by a landslide. If Barry Bonds had let us into his life, had showed he was a real, emotional person like he did after breaking the record, I think people would have gotten behind him. Even with the allegations of steroids if Barry Bonds had been a guy you could root for, a bit more of the glory would be restored to his achievement.
Not only has Bonds tarnished one of the greatest records of all time, but he's tarnished the pursuit of it. Alex Rodriguez has the best shot of any player to break whatever record Bonds sets, and now he's going to have to answer the same questions that Bonds is being asked. Jose Canseco has already hinted at allegations he may throw at A-Rod that perhaps he isn't as natural as we all seem. Whether this is just a ploy to make more money or not will remain to be seen, but it is sad for baseball that it's greatest players will have this monkey on their backs for the foreseeable future. I think a lot of things about A-Rod and many of them aren't nice, but you can't deny he's one of the best in the game and no matter what anyone says, I have a real hard time believing that he's a juicer. So questions aside, I hope in 10 years or so I'm watching this record breaking achievement one more time.
Now onto the regular stuff...
I've come to the conclusion that no matter how good or how bad the season begins, I'm always going to be worried by August. I'm still confidant that we're going to win the division, but I'm still worried. The Yankees are now only six games back, thanks to a brilliant comeback last night, and this time of year the Yankees always scare me. They really might find a way into the playoffs this year, and once you're in October you might as well forget the regular season even happened, because it's literally a whole new ballgame.
But just for a second let's talk about that comeback. I kind of see the Angels series as a spiderweb that you walk into in the woods. It sticks you and holds you down for a while, and even though you get out of it, it took a hard fight and you feel tired and disgusted afterwards. We blew so many chances to make a statement against the team that we're going to end up facing in October. Last night when I went to bed, the Angels had just gone up 6-5 and they still had two men on with only 1 out. I was disgusted. I hate going to bed with that feeling, but I couldn't bare to stay awake, lose more sleep, and only perpetuate that horrible feeling in my belly. When I woke up and checked the score, I really had a hard time believing it for a second. We really had some tremendous plays from the usual cast: Petey, Youk, and Lowell. We really should start calling Pedroia "Little Papi" with how clutch some of his play has been this season. That tie-breaking solo shot was HUGE! But then again, so was the fact that Garrett Anderson was playing left. With Vlady getting the night to rest his legs at DH, Reggie Willits was put into right. That kid is a gamer and I'm sure he would have found a way to get two inches higher and rob Petey of that home run. Anyway, I think last night was the perfect example of how good the trade for Frenchy really was. Having him at the back end of the pen allowed Okie to come in and hold down the fort. There were seven important outs we had to get before even getting to Pap, and I don't know if we could have done it without Gagne. Now if we can get Manny and Papi to start hitting with the rest of the team? Say hello to the World Series.
*Without steroids
Not only has Bonds tarnished one of the greatest records of all time, but he's tarnished the pursuit of it. Alex Rodriguez has the best shot of any player to break whatever record Bonds sets, and now he's going to have to answer the same questions that Bonds is being asked. Jose Canseco has already hinted at allegations he may throw at A-Rod that perhaps he isn't as natural as we all seem. Whether this is just a ploy to make more money or not will remain to be seen, but it is sad for baseball that it's greatest players will have this monkey on their backs for the foreseeable future. I think a lot of things about A-Rod and many of them aren't nice, but you can't deny he's one of the best in the game and no matter what anyone says, I have a real hard time believing that he's a juicer. So questions aside, I hope in 10 years or so I'm watching this record breaking achievement one more time.
Now onto the regular stuff...
I've come to the conclusion that no matter how good or how bad the season begins, I'm always going to be worried by August. I'm still confidant that we're going to win the division, but I'm still worried. The Yankees are now only six games back, thanks to a brilliant comeback last night, and this time of year the Yankees always scare me. They really might find a way into the playoffs this year, and once you're in October you might as well forget the regular season even happened, because it's literally a whole new ballgame.
But just for a second let's talk about that comeback. I kind of see the Angels series as a spiderweb that you walk into in the woods. It sticks you and holds you down for a while, and even though you get out of it, it took a hard fight and you feel tired and disgusted afterwards. We blew so many chances to make a statement against the team that we're going to end up facing in October. Last night when I went to bed, the Angels had just gone up 6-5 and they still had two men on with only 1 out. I was disgusted. I hate going to bed with that feeling, but I couldn't bare to stay awake, lose more sleep, and only perpetuate that horrible feeling in my belly. When I woke up and checked the score, I really had a hard time believing it for a second. We really had some tremendous plays from the usual cast: Petey, Youk, and Lowell. We really should start calling Pedroia "Little Papi" with how clutch some of his play has been this season. That tie-breaking solo shot was HUGE! But then again, so was the fact that Garrett Anderson was playing left. With Vlady getting the night to rest his legs at DH, Reggie Willits was put into right. That kid is a gamer and I'm sure he would have found a way to get two inches higher and rob Petey of that home run. Anyway, I think last night was the perfect example of how good the trade for Frenchy really was. Having him at the back end of the pen allowed Okie to come in and hold down the fort. There were seven important outs we had to get before even getting to Pap, and I don't know if we could have done it without Gagne. Now if we can get Manny and Papi to start hitting with the rest of the team? Say hello to the World Series.
*Without steroids
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Bonjour, Monsieur Gagne
This was quite possibly one of the most boring trade deadlines ever. There was so much hype for so long, and now that it's over there were really only four teams that did anything significant. While some of you may accuse me as being a "homer" I'm crediting the Red Sox with the best move the trade deadline, although Atlanta comes in at a close second. We didn't really lose too much in this trade. As much as I love Kason Gabbard and as sad as it made me to see him go, I realize that it was a great move. This guy already has four elbow surgeries under his belt and only projects to be a back end of the rotation kind of pitcher. With several great pitching prospects in the pipeline (Bucholz, Bowden, and Masterson), losing Gabbard is definitely not a long term problem. David Murphy, while good defensively, may never play better than your average major-leaguer, and it's not like the Sox are short on outfield prospects with Jacoby Ellsbury and Brandon Moss only a year or so away from the bigs. The real piece in this deal for Texas was Engel Beltre, who scouts have compared to Ken Griffey, Jr. and Barry Bonds. Although, he's four or five years away from the majors so there's plenty of time for his stock to plummet. But now that we've talked about what the Rangers got, let's salivate over the fact that we now have three of the best bullpen arms in the majors in our bullpen. It really sounds like some sort of bad, baseball comedy with a Deep South Redneck being setup by an uber-cool, yet French-Canadian hurler and a ninja-like Japanese lefty. The unintentional comedy that these three guys bring to the fold is surely too much to bare, but what really counts is that all three are lights out, and the Red Sox have now made every game a six inning contest. Even Julian Tavarez might be able to thrive in this starting rotation, not that we need him, because the second biggest trade we made this summer was a Mr. Curt Schilling traded from the Disabled List for Lefty Lopez (sent to the minors), who will surely be back at some point with the alternately lights out and decrepit Mike Timlin still trolling around the Boston bullpen. Seriously, I dare someone to try and beat us. We have the best rotation in baseball, especially now with Schilling coming back. We have the best bullpen in baseball. We have one of the best lineups in baseball, because even now when not all our cylinders are firing, we're still sitting pretty atop the AL East. We've also proven we're better than all the other post-season bound AL teams. Detroit doesn't have the bullpen to get us, the Angels don't have the hitters to get by our rotation, and Cleveland doesn't have enough pitching, either in their bullpen or their rotation, to hold us down. The only team that scares me is the Yankees, and it's not because of the surge they're in right now, it's just because I'm a Red Sox fan and they're the Yankees and no matter our records, lineups, pitchers, or circumstances, those games are never predictable.
The team I award second place in the deadline deals to is Atlanta. They really earn a close second, because they failed to improve their rotation which will be the reason they don't make it to the end of October, unless they get performances not seen since Jeff Weaver forgot he was Jeff Weaver and thought he was Jered Weaver. There were some starters that were available, or at least one that was but I'll get to that eventually. Adding Dotel and Tex were huge moves. Atlanta now has arguably the best lineup in the NL East (reason to argue, the Mets if they're all every healthy at the same time), and one of the best bullpens in the entire National League, but I don't know if anyone is getting past the Padres starters. The NL will be very interesting to watch come October. I think the Padres are guaranteed a spot in the NLCS, with the other going to either the Cubbies or Atlanta. I think I like Chicago a little better than Atlanta in that matchup, since they seem like a more complete team (i.e. they're afraid of Lou Piniella like Whiffy Mo Pena is afraid of hitting singles), but San Diego's rotation really does scare me, from the standpoint of any NL lineup.
The third place award, which I'm renaming the "Oh Shit!" award goes to the Philadelphia Phillies. The perennial stretch run failures seemed to take a huge loss when Utley went down with a broken hand. In a very un-Pat Gillick move, the Phillie's GM traded for Tad Iguchi to replace Utley. Tad isn't the player that Utley is, but he's a clear step above any bench player that KFC Charlie could have thrown in there for the month, or so, that Chase will be out. Surprisingly, and I swear I'm not making this up, Manuel speaks Japanese, and it is hoped that will help Tad's transition onto the team. Stop laughing, and keep reading. I swear it, he really does speak Japanese. Add to the Tad trade the acquisition of Kyle Lohse. This is the pitcher I was hinting at with Atlanta, but I am glad to see the Phillies make a move to bolster the real part of their team that was in need of help: the starting rotation. They have offense, a good enough bullpen, but the Phillies rotation was holding them back all season. This isn't to say it still won't hold them back, but despite the lack of virtually any starters at the deadline, at least they didn't just stand pat. Sadly, the injury bug has been all over the Phillies like Manuel is all over a bucket of Original Recipe as the Flyin' Hawaiin Shane Victorino and speedy Michael Bourn have both gone down. I really think the Phillies season is over. I mean, even without all the injuries, any team that relies on Pat Burrel to carry them for a month is not a team I would ever put an ounce of faith in.
But I'm not quite done analyzing the Phillies just yet. If we look back on some of Pat Gillick's trades over the past few years, we see an interesting trend. Aaron Rowand, Tad Iguchi, and Freddy Garcia, all mediocre players, were all traded for by the Phillies. What else do these players have in common? That's right, they all won the 2005 World Series. Perhaps Gillick thinks that by adding World Series winners to his team, he can win one too. If I read in Truth and Rumors that Gillick has been showing interest in So Taguchi, Preston Wilson, Aaron Miles, or any other such players, I promise you I will find Pat Gillick and fire him. I'm not sure if he'll listen, but I think if I sound official enough and yell loud enough, he'll do anything I say. I'll just wear a White Sox 2005 World Series Champions t-shirt.
The team I award second place in the deadline deals to is Atlanta. They really earn a close second, because they failed to improve their rotation which will be the reason they don't make it to the end of October, unless they get performances not seen since Jeff Weaver forgot he was Jeff Weaver and thought he was Jered Weaver. There were some starters that were available, or at least one that was but I'll get to that eventually. Adding Dotel and Tex were huge moves. Atlanta now has arguably the best lineup in the NL East (reason to argue, the Mets if they're all every healthy at the same time), and one of the best bullpens in the entire National League, but I don't know if anyone is getting past the Padres starters. The NL will be very interesting to watch come October. I think the Padres are guaranteed a spot in the NLCS, with the other going to either the Cubbies or Atlanta. I think I like Chicago a little better than Atlanta in that matchup, since they seem like a more complete team (i.e. they're afraid of Lou Piniella like Whiffy Mo Pena is afraid of hitting singles), but San Diego's rotation really does scare me, from the standpoint of any NL lineup.
The third place award, which I'm renaming the "Oh Shit!" award goes to the Philadelphia Phillies. The perennial stretch run failures seemed to take a huge loss when Utley went down with a broken hand. In a very un-Pat Gillick move, the Phillie's GM traded for Tad Iguchi to replace Utley. Tad isn't the player that Utley is, but he's a clear step above any bench player that KFC Charlie could have thrown in there for the month, or so, that Chase will be out. Surprisingly, and I swear I'm not making this up, Manuel speaks Japanese, and it is hoped that will help Tad's transition onto the team. Stop laughing, and keep reading. I swear it, he really does speak Japanese. Add to the Tad trade the acquisition of Kyle Lohse. This is the pitcher I was hinting at with Atlanta, but I am glad to see the Phillies make a move to bolster the real part of their team that was in need of help: the starting rotation. They have offense, a good enough bullpen, but the Phillies rotation was holding them back all season. This isn't to say it still won't hold them back, but despite the lack of virtually any starters at the deadline, at least they didn't just stand pat. Sadly, the injury bug has been all over the Phillies like Manuel is all over a bucket of Original Recipe as the Flyin' Hawaiin Shane Victorino and speedy Michael Bourn have both gone down. I really think the Phillies season is over. I mean, even without all the injuries, any team that relies on Pat Burrel to carry them for a month is not a team I would ever put an ounce of faith in.
But I'm not quite done analyzing the Phillies just yet. If we look back on some of Pat Gillick's trades over the past few years, we see an interesting trend. Aaron Rowand, Tad Iguchi, and Freddy Garcia, all mediocre players, were all traded for by the Phillies. What else do these players have in common? That's right, they all won the 2005 World Series. Perhaps Gillick thinks that by adding World Series winners to his team, he can win one too. If I read in Truth and Rumors that Gillick has been showing interest in So Taguchi, Preston Wilson, Aaron Miles, or any other such players, I promise you I will find Pat Gillick and fire him. I'm not sure if he'll listen, but I think if I sound official enough and yell loud enough, he'll do anything I say. I'll just wear a White Sox 2005 World Series Champions t-shirt.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
A Few Thoughts
We've run into good pitching like Wily Mo runs into strikeouts. Seriously, I'm writing this in the top of the eighth in our second of 1-0 games in consecutive days. My nerves can't take this. Speaking of nerves, who wouldn't give a huge shout out to Jon Lester. Welcome back to the bigs, Jon. We missed you and we're all glad to see you back on the mound.
Another thing we're all glad to see is that the offense still works without Ortiz in it. It's always nice to see the wheels turning without all the spokes. That makes no sense, but I think you know what I mean.
As we're approaching the trade deadline, the latest rumors I've heard is that we're out of the running for Tex but that we're close to getting Bobby Kielty. Apparently, the Rangers asked for some big prospects (Bucholz and Ellsbury). We laughed at them, hung up the phone, and then laughed some more. Kielty, on the other hand, is reportedly only a matter of time. Our highly touted Spring Training closer was finally designated for assignment (another blessing related to Jon Lester's cancer comeback), but the A's aren't interested in pine-riding Pineiro. But I'm sure there's plenty of Little League teams looking for another arm in the pen with the stretch run to Williamsport coming up. Hopefully they could find some room for Joel. Maybe even the outfield?
But seriously, Kielty seems to be a better fit than Wily Mo. Which is to say that even though he doesn't hit much better, at least he actually has baseball instincts and can play defense, run the bases, and other baseball activites. You know, all that stuff that whenever the coach in Little League starting talking about, Wily Mo started giving a wet willy to the kid next to him.
The way I see it, Theo will find a way to make this Kielty move and maybe even add another arm to the pen without changing the face of the team too dramatically. It'll be a big move, but not a monster move on the scale of the Nomar trade. We're in great shape and could just use a little more depth to make sure we have enough stamina to make it all the way to the end of October.
While these words have been written, AC singled, Lugo was put in as a pinch runner and got caught stealing. Beckett is back out on the mound going strong. Take one pitch away and this is an even more nerve killing score of 0-0. Trot (or as he's known in some circles: the guy who is playing just as badly as J.D. Drew, but would have been cheaper and adored by fans) just singled so hopefully that's a setup to a nice double-play and not an RBI chance. This coffin needs no more nails. No DP but a K and a flyout to Mr. Overpaid will do. Seriously, Drew is a bum. Andrew, I've reached that point and he didn't even have to go on the DL. I officially hate J.D. Drew. Give me some batteries. If somehow we could trade him, you would not be able to pry the smile off my face ever again. Ever.
And, sadly, Joe Borowski closes the door for the Tribe. I really feel bad for Beckett, because he doesn't deserve the loss. He didn't lose this game, the offense did. They couldn't get one single run. Back to back 1-0 games are hard on me as a fan so I really hope this doesn't kill our momentum. We've got Gabby going tomorrow against Cliff Lee, which should rejuvenate even the quietest of bats. And then it's off to every batting average's favorite place: Tampa Bay. May the spirit of the Splendid Splinter be with us all tonight.
And not that I'm saying anything, but in case you were wondering Andrew is still alive and well, with lots of time on his hands too.
Another thing we're all glad to see is that the offense still works without Ortiz in it. It's always nice to see the wheels turning without all the spokes. That makes no sense, but I think you know what I mean.
As we're approaching the trade deadline, the latest rumors I've heard is that we're out of the running for Tex but that we're close to getting Bobby Kielty. Apparently, the Rangers asked for some big prospects (Bucholz and Ellsbury). We laughed at them, hung up the phone, and then laughed some more. Kielty, on the other hand, is reportedly only a matter of time. Our highly touted Spring Training closer was finally designated for assignment (another blessing related to Jon Lester's cancer comeback), but the A's aren't interested in pine-riding Pineiro. But I'm sure there's plenty of Little League teams looking for another arm in the pen with the stretch run to Williamsport coming up. Hopefully they could find some room for Joel. Maybe even the outfield?
But seriously, Kielty seems to be a better fit than Wily Mo. Which is to say that even though he doesn't hit much better, at least he actually has baseball instincts and can play defense, run the bases, and other baseball activites. You know, all that stuff that whenever the coach in Little League starting talking about, Wily Mo started giving a wet willy to the kid next to him.
The way I see it, Theo will find a way to make this Kielty move and maybe even add another arm to the pen without changing the face of the team too dramatically. It'll be a big move, but not a monster move on the scale of the Nomar trade. We're in great shape and could just use a little more depth to make sure we have enough stamina to make it all the way to the end of October.
While these words have been written, AC singled, Lugo was put in as a pinch runner and got caught stealing. Beckett is back out on the mound going strong. Take one pitch away and this is an even more nerve killing score of 0-0. Trot (or as he's known in some circles: the guy who is playing just as badly as J.D. Drew, but would have been cheaper and adored by fans) just singled so hopefully that's a setup to a nice double-play and not an RBI chance. This coffin needs no more nails. No DP but a K and a flyout to Mr. Overpaid will do. Seriously, Drew is a bum. Andrew, I've reached that point and he didn't even have to go on the DL. I officially hate J.D. Drew. Give me some batteries. If somehow we could trade him, you would not be able to pry the smile off my face ever again. Ever.
And, sadly, Joe Borowski closes the door for the Tribe. I really feel bad for Beckett, because he doesn't deserve the loss. He didn't lose this game, the offense did. They couldn't get one single run. Back to back 1-0 games are hard on me as a fan so I really hope this doesn't kill our momentum. We've got Gabby going tomorrow against Cliff Lee, which should rejuvenate even the quietest of bats. And then it's off to every batting average's favorite place: Tampa Bay. May the spirit of the Splendid Splinter be with us all tonight.
And not that I'm saying anything, but in case you were wondering Andrew is still alive and well, with lots of time on his hands too.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Baseball Hall of Fame
This blog is coming to you from the surprisingly sleepy town of Cooperstown, New York. This town is home to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame and a friendly, small town America atmosphere. It is also home to probably the most moving baseball experience I've ever had. With my ever economical Dad learning that a ticket purchased after 7 p.m. could be used the next day, we of course took advantage of this opportunity to take just a quick peak at the museum and the Hall. It was the first place I wanted to go, and I can safely say my mind is still there wandering the walls, looking at each of the plaques, and absorbing the indescribable and overwhelming feeling that the Hall of Fame breathes into its visitors. I guess I never really understood what the Hall meant until actually setting foot in it. From a numbers perspective, only about a single percent of all who ever played the game ever made it into the Hall of Fame. Think of all the names of players you've rooted for in your lifetime, think of how great they may have been, and think of how many are in the Hall. In my young life I've rooted for Nomar, Trot, Papi and Manny, Youk, Pedro, Schill, Tek, and Cal. From that list, only one has made it into the Hall, and maybe only two or three more ever will. I never understood how truly special of a player a man had to be to actually achieve immortality. The players, coaches, umps, and baseball executives dominated their sport in every sense of the word. I can't possibly imagine how it must feel to achieve this greatness. From the perspective of a fan, I can think of no other honor greater to a player than this Hall. I hope it is as great an experience as the one I had walking through those alcoves looking at the names and faces you only hear about in old highlight reels. There are not enough words to describe the magnitude of this place, and I strongly believe that every baseball fan must see it to truly appreciate the game we all love.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
eh.............
I apologize for not posting in a while but hey what can I say I didn’t feel like it. One the heels of the impending milestone for the phillies I thought I would post but don’t have really anything to say. The phillies need pitching and have no way of acquiring it. The only thing I can hope for is Burrell has the most amazing 10 days of his life and hits like .900 in the next ten games with like 15 homeruns so we can trade his ass. I just hope someone finds Pat Gillick and tells him that he should try to make a trade.
I think we need to trade Rowand. Burrell isn’t going anywhere unfortunately and the only thing people would want is Rowand. I think it is easier for the Phillies to replace Rowand in the farm system then you can use young pitching. Just give me something Gillick please I beg of you….I will blog more later when I can actually think of something.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Sorry For The Delay
Let me begin this blog by apologizing for the delay. From June 23rd to this past Monday, I had been house sitting for my boss. It was an amazing time and I'd do anything to do it again, although it would be nice to at least have internet and a suite of ESPN channels. Sans those requests, it was still great. Andrew, on the other hand, has absolutely no excuse for not posting anything. Shame on you, Andrew! Shame!
Speaking of Andrew, I can't make fun of the guy too much because he did take me to the Phillies game last night. We had awesome seats. The guy walked us to them and wiped them down. Apparently you're supposed to tip him a dollar for doing so, but I wasn't familiar with this "rich seat" tradition so to him I owe an apology as well. Ironically enough, Tarc was at the game too and offered to take me along, but I had already been asked by Andrew. His seats were just two sections over so all I missed was a long car ride without a radio.
I wanted to see at least one of two things going into this game. The first was that I wanted to see Albert Pujols hit a home run. It's not often that a Heclanian gets the chance to see one of the premier players in baseball up close, so I definitely wanted to see him jack one. The second thing I wouldn't mind seeing, although I don't think many in the stadium would agree with me, is the inevitable 10,000th loss of the Phillies. I would consider myself lucky to be in attendance the night the franchise finally reaches this mark. I mean, who doesn't want to see an already depressed fan base celebrate the one thing their city's sports teams truly excel at: losses. Bars beware: you're taps will be flowing full bore whenever this mark is reached.
I only got to see one of those things, and I guess it's the better of the two. Pujols really did whack the ball far. It was estimated at 470 feet, and he hit it off none other than J.C. Romero. I didn't realize who had come into the game until Andrew started getting all excited. J.C. was doing his finest impression of himself, by walking a batter and then giving up the Pujols bomb. This signaled our time to depart, since even the Phillies bullpen couldn't give up the lead the team had at this point. Perhaps the happiest people in the stadium to see us leave were the two older women sitting in front of us. Andrew and I are what you could call bleacher-seat fans. We like to yell and cheer on our team, boo the opponents (and Pat Burrell), and make sure the umps understand that they are completely and totally incapable of doing their jobs. The ladies in front of us did not appreciate the experience of sitting in front of true baseball fans. Thankfully, some of those around us understood who and what we were: true fans of America's past time. My favorite thing to do all night was wait for the older lady to take her fingers our of her ears (because she put them in when the PA announcer said each players name, which was consistently followed by Andrew and I giving them an appropriate welcome) to start cheering again. This is the only bad thing about sitting in the good seats: the people there just don't know how to be fans. Maybe it's better in Fenway. If I ever find a couple thousand bucks in the street, I'll buy myself some good tickets at the Fens and see if the same stuck up, snotty rich folk migrate there as well.
With all this talk of migrating stuck up, snotty rich folk, I can't help but think of A-Rod. The most recent updates of Truth and Rumors have him coming to the Sox. (PREDICTION: If A-Rod is not playing for the Yankees next year, he will be in Boston or San Francisco. You read it here first, folks.) My dad and I just had this conversation about A-Rod.
Dad: Would I root for A-Rod if he played shortstop for the Red Sox? You bet!
Me: So would you move Lugo to third, then?
Dad: We can move him to Tampa Bay.
That doesn't sound like such a bad idea, Dad. And actually, the more I think about it, it does make some sense. Let me put aside how much I hate A-Rod (even though I root for him in the deep dark recesses of my mind, because I know he has to catch Bonds and eclipse whatever home run mark he reaches) and consider this move. Add to it the resigning of Mike Lowell, and this could work out very well. Drew will continue to leadoff, which he's done very well lately at a clip of .346 in his last 52 AB's. Pedroia hits second, followed by A-Rod in the three-hole. This pushes Papi down to fourth, and Manny at fifth, since the guy we hired to bat fifth has now (in a move straight out of the twilight zone) become our leadoff man, that is, when he decides he's healthy enough to play. We can follow this with Youkilis, Lowell, and Varitek in really any order and Crisp batting ninth or leadoff, depending on whichever gods control the health of J.D. Drew.
But thinking about A-Rod in a Sox uniform is even more painful than watching Drew leadoff, so we'll just end this speculation here. You are, however, allowed to dream of Julio Lugo playing in some city far away from Boston.
Speaking of Andrew, I can't make fun of the guy too much because he did take me to the Phillies game last night. We had awesome seats. The guy walked us to them and wiped them down. Apparently you're supposed to tip him a dollar for doing so, but I wasn't familiar with this "rich seat" tradition so to him I owe an apology as well. Ironically enough, Tarc was at the game too and offered to take me along, but I had already been asked by Andrew. His seats were just two sections over so all I missed was a long car ride without a radio.
I wanted to see at least one of two things going into this game. The first was that I wanted to see Albert Pujols hit a home run. It's not often that a Heclanian gets the chance to see one of the premier players in baseball up close, so I definitely wanted to see him jack one. The second thing I wouldn't mind seeing, although I don't think many in the stadium would agree with me, is the inevitable 10,000th loss of the Phillies. I would consider myself lucky to be in attendance the night the franchise finally reaches this mark. I mean, who doesn't want to see an already depressed fan base celebrate the one thing their city's sports teams truly excel at: losses. Bars beware: you're taps will be flowing full bore whenever this mark is reached.
I only got to see one of those things, and I guess it's the better of the two. Pujols really did whack the ball far. It was estimated at 470 feet, and he hit it off none other than J.C. Romero. I didn't realize who had come into the game until Andrew started getting all excited. J.C. was doing his finest impression of himself, by walking a batter and then giving up the Pujols bomb. This signaled our time to depart, since even the Phillies bullpen couldn't give up the lead the team had at this point. Perhaps the happiest people in the stadium to see us leave were the two older women sitting in front of us. Andrew and I are what you could call bleacher-seat fans. We like to yell and cheer on our team, boo the opponents (and Pat Burrell), and make sure the umps understand that they are completely and totally incapable of doing their jobs. The ladies in front of us did not appreciate the experience of sitting in front of true baseball fans. Thankfully, some of those around us understood who and what we were: true fans of America's past time. My favorite thing to do all night was wait for the older lady to take her fingers our of her ears (because she put them in when the PA announcer said each players name, which was consistently followed by Andrew and I giving them an appropriate welcome) to start cheering again. This is the only bad thing about sitting in the good seats: the people there just don't know how to be fans. Maybe it's better in Fenway. If I ever find a couple thousand bucks in the street, I'll buy myself some good tickets at the Fens and see if the same stuck up, snotty rich folk migrate there as well.
With all this talk of migrating stuck up, snotty rich folk, I can't help but think of A-Rod. The most recent updates of Truth and Rumors have him coming to the Sox. (PREDICTION: If A-Rod is not playing for the Yankees next year, he will be in Boston or San Francisco. You read it here first, folks.) My dad and I just had this conversation about A-Rod.
Dad: Would I root for A-Rod if he played shortstop for the Red Sox? You bet!
Me: So would you move Lugo to third, then?
Dad: We can move him to Tampa Bay.
That doesn't sound like such a bad idea, Dad. And actually, the more I think about it, it does make some sense. Let me put aside how much I hate A-Rod (even though I root for him in the deep dark recesses of my mind, because I know he has to catch Bonds and eclipse whatever home run mark he reaches) and consider this move. Add to it the resigning of Mike Lowell, and this could work out very well. Drew will continue to leadoff, which he's done very well lately at a clip of .346 in his last 52 AB's. Pedroia hits second, followed by A-Rod in the three-hole. This pushes Papi down to fourth, and Manny at fifth, since the guy we hired to bat fifth has now (in a move straight out of the twilight zone) become our leadoff man, that is, when he decides he's healthy enough to play. We can follow this with Youkilis, Lowell, and Varitek in really any order and Crisp batting ninth or leadoff, depending on whichever gods control the health of J.D. Drew.
But thinking about A-Rod in a Sox uniform is even more painful than watching Drew leadoff, so we'll just end this speculation here. You are, however, allowed to dream of Julio Lugo playing in some city far away from Boston.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Blogging With A View
First of all let me say that this blog is coming from my back patio outside. I absolutely love wireless technology.
This weekend has been a good one for Red Sox fans. A sweep of the Giants in their first trip to Fenway since the 1912 World Series is a nice addition to any Nation member's weekend. It's brought about quite a few revelations, at least in my mind. That said, here's another list of Things I've Realized This Weekend:
1. Even though it may cause a hole in the time-space continuum to open up, or maybe because this has already happened, J.D. Drew has emerged as a solid leadoff man. I know that this really does upset many of you, just like it upsets me, but it works. As long as it keeps working let's not change it.
2. Wily Mo Pena and Julio Lugo have got to go. I know I've been calling for the Sox to pull off, essentially, a Coco for Torii Hunter deal, but Coco is too valuable to the team in comparison to these two guys. Coco is just great in the outfield; a clear five steps above Wily Mo as far as defense goes. It's interesting to point out that Wily Mo was recently voted by Major League players as the player with the most talent who does not take advantage of that talent. Way to go, Wily Mo. They're essentially saying you're a bum. You're that stoner from high school who was brilliantly intelligent but too blazed to ever do well in school, except you're (probably) not on pot. You're just a waste, and you need to go. Hopefully we can package you along with Julio Lugo and ship you off to somewhere else. Lugo, you're a nice guy and a great baserunner, but .207 just ain't gonna cut it in this town, pal. There's plenty of guys out there who can bat ninth, 30 or 40 points above you, and steal bases just as well. Look out, because you're going to be calling a different clubhouse home soon. This brings me back to the rumor about Tejada. He'd fit in our clubhouse, he's already great friends with David Ortiz, but I just don't think I like the move at all. He's past his prime, not the type of hitter we're looking at, and doesn't really provide anything we're lacking. Then again, anything besides Lugo is a step up, but I just don't see a trade forming between the O's and us. I wouldn't mind seeing Orlando Cabrera come back. Although the Angels are looking for a power hitter to protect Vlad, and I don't see them taking a chance on Pena. Did someone say three way deal? That would be nice, but I'm definitely not knowledgeable enough to figure that one out, so we'll just leave this speculation for your minds.
3. This one is about the Phillies. I'm going to be pretty harsh right now on Pat Gillick, because Philly, not only do you guys have Charlie Manuel managing you team, but you've got the GM equivalent of him too. Back in the spring you had six solid starters and a shaky bullpen. I'm not going to harp on Pat for the Freddy Garcia trade like Andrew did. He and I disagree on this point, but I think the Garcia move was a good one. Nobody could have really foreseen this injury. That being said, Gillick should have given you guys a solid bullpen if not in the offseason, than by at least the end of the Spring. Maybe Myers should have been the closer from day one, maybe a trade should have been made, but going into the season expecting to use Gordon as long as he'll hold up, and then figure it out on the run whenever he breaks down is NEVER a good strategy. Now Philly is forced to move Aaron Rowand when he's such a valuable part of the team. Granted, he's playing well above average right now and his stock will surely fall, but it will never be as low as Burrell's. There's a guy who's wasting the talent you have in Dobbs, Bourn, and Werth. They could be platooning right now, but no, Pat Burrell is a suck-fest out there in left. Just take it as a loss and eat his contract. Pull a Pittsburgh-Jason Kendall type deal and ship him off to a team who won't be paying the majority of his contract for its length. I'm worried about the Phillies. They need starters, they need a bullpen, and Ryan Howard needs to remember that it's okay to hit the ball inside the park too, and not at anyone either.
4. Getting shot in the manboob with a paintball gun hurts. Ok, so this isn't baseball related, but during our paintball battle today Rocky caught me right in the chest. I don't recall ever being hit there before, and now it kind of looks like I have a third nipple. Great.
5. Wearing a tie-die shirt is hard. I'm a rookie to this kind of fashion, and I can't keep my damn eyes off of it. It's kind of like one of those bug lights: I can't look away.
Well folks it appears the sun has gone down and the crickets are coming out. The 'skeeters have also come out so maybe blogging outside wasn't the best idea.
-Flig
This weekend has been a good one for Red Sox fans. A sweep of the Giants in their first trip to Fenway since the 1912 World Series is a nice addition to any Nation member's weekend. It's brought about quite a few revelations, at least in my mind. That said, here's another list of Things I've Realized This Weekend:
1. Even though it may cause a hole in the time-space continuum to open up, or maybe because this has already happened, J.D. Drew has emerged as a solid leadoff man. I know that this really does upset many of you, just like it upsets me, but it works. As long as it keeps working let's not change it.
2. Wily Mo Pena and Julio Lugo have got to go. I know I've been calling for the Sox to pull off, essentially, a Coco for Torii Hunter deal, but Coco is too valuable to the team in comparison to these two guys. Coco is just great in the outfield; a clear five steps above Wily Mo as far as defense goes. It's interesting to point out that Wily Mo was recently voted by Major League players as the player with the most talent who does not take advantage of that talent. Way to go, Wily Mo. They're essentially saying you're a bum. You're that stoner from high school who was brilliantly intelligent but too blazed to ever do well in school, except you're (probably) not on pot. You're just a waste, and you need to go. Hopefully we can package you along with Julio Lugo and ship you off to somewhere else. Lugo, you're a nice guy and a great baserunner, but .207 just ain't gonna cut it in this town, pal. There's plenty of guys out there who can bat ninth, 30 or 40 points above you, and steal bases just as well. Look out, because you're going to be calling a different clubhouse home soon. This brings me back to the rumor about Tejada. He'd fit in our clubhouse, he's already great friends with David Ortiz, but I just don't think I like the move at all. He's past his prime, not the type of hitter we're looking at, and doesn't really provide anything we're lacking. Then again, anything besides Lugo is a step up, but I just don't see a trade forming between the O's and us. I wouldn't mind seeing Orlando Cabrera come back. Although the Angels are looking for a power hitter to protect Vlad, and I don't see them taking a chance on Pena. Did someone say three way deal? That would be nice, but I'm definitely not knowledgeable enough to figure that one out, so we'll just leave this speculation for your minds.
3. This one is about the Phillies. I'm going to be pretty harsh right now on Pat Gillick, because Philly, not only do you guys have Charlie Manuel managing you team, but you've got the GM equivalent of him too. Back in the spring you had six solid starters and a shaky bullpen. I'm not going to harp on Pat for the Freddy Garcia trade like Andrew did. He and I disagree on this point, but I think the Garcia move was a good one. Nobody could have really foreseen this injury. That being said, Gillick should have given you guys a solid bullpen if not in the offseason, than by at least the end of the Spring. Maybe Myers should have been the closer from day one, maybe a trade should have been made, but going into the season expecting to use Gordon as long as he'll hold up, and then figure it out on the run whenever he breaks down is NEVER a good strategy. Now Philly is forced to move Aaron Rowand when he's such a valuable part of the team. Granted, he's playing well above average right now and his stock will surely fall, but it will never be as low as Burrell's. There's a guy who's wasting the talent you have in Dobbs, Bourn, and Werth. They could be platooning right now, but no, Pat Burrell is a suck-fest out there in left. Just take it as a loss and eat his contract. Pull a Pittsburgh-Jason Kendall type deal and ship him off to a team who won't be paying the majority of his contract for its length. I'm worried about the Phillies. They need starters, they need a bullpen, and Ryan Howard needs to remember that it's okay to hit the ball inside the park too, and not at anyone either.
4. Getting shot in the manboob with a paintball gun hurts. Ok, so this isn't baseball related, but during our paintball battle today Rocky caught me right in the chest. I don't recall ever being hit there before, and now it kind of looks like I have a third nipple. Great.
5. Wearing a tie-die shirt is hard. I'm a rookie to this kind of fashion, and I can't keep my damn eyes off of it. It's kind of like one of those bug lights: I can't look away.
Well folks it appears the sun has gone down and the crickets are coming out. The 'skeeters have also come out so maybe blogging outside wasn't the best idea.
-Flig
If we are PTI which one of us is Black?
Todays blog is brought to you by the semi colon
Sorry for the lapse in blog like my friend pat said I have been in
I would like to create a new rule; the phillies are not allowed to trade for pitchers. I will use two case studies, Kevin Millwood and Freddy Garcia. At the time I loved both of these trades. We received a quality starting pitcher for appeared to be nothing. WRONG! Lets examine the Kevin Millwood trade. Kevin Millwood for that slow poke Johnny Estrada. At the time I loved it, he was a guy coming off a twenty win season for a back up catcher. However, at the time I forgot who my starting catcher was Mike I don’t know my pitchers pitches Leibertahl. Not only did the trade make me sit through 3 more years of this guy, it also made me watch Kevin Millwood I am not sure which was worse. And this whole Freddy Garcia deal may turn out to be a huge stinker. Paul Abbot had the same number of wins that’s all im going to say.
Ok so I went to the game Friday night and here are a few thoughts I had at the game for you all to nibble on. …
- Pat you should have asked where the girls behind us were from…you blew it worse then mitch Williams in 1993…
- J.C. Romero and Joel Pinero aren’t an upgrade. ARE YOU F***ING Serious!”?!?! How can you make that statement and trot out Jose Table? Does anyone else not see that this makes no sense. It is one of the most brain dead moves by a gm ever. Take a chance they were on waivers it wouldn’t even cost them anything to get the two pitchers.
- However, if the Phillies get Myers and Gordon back they may actually have a decent bullpen. I think they would be one arm away unless Joe Table and Alfonseca find the fountain of youth and pretend its 1996 all over again. You have
- One of these days Pat Burrell will get hot it’s for those two days you must trade him. Pat Gillick this is my one job for you, you can even pass on pitching just get rid of that bum Pat Burrell I will take a ham sandwich. He needs to get off the team, you can platoon Jason Wearth, Dobbs, Robertson, And Bourn in the outfield I would take that for the rest of the season I really would.
- The sandwich was good pat….screw Kosher
- Do we really need to trade Aaron Rowand, if we could swindle a team for a pitcher for Burrell it would be amazing. I think Rowand is a key piece to this team and I don’t want to see us lose him. However because Gillick is our GM it doesn’t look like we have a choice. He plays hard, cares, and at the moment he is actually hitting which is a good thing. I really don’t want to see him go.
- You really blew it with those girls pat
- I really hope soon Howard can hit for average I don’t know how long I can see 1 for 5 with a home run. I want the Ryan Howard from last year he is trying to do to much right now and I think its hurting the team. I blame part of this on the team not signing him. I think he knows he has his first big pay day coming up after the season and is trying to repeat last year. However, I do not know if he can do that again. He can come close but I think he just has to play his game a relax. I think the idea of going to arbitration for money is in the back of his head and he is playing for the money. Even if we were stuck with him into his decline we should have signed him long term, now money is in his head and he can’t hit for shit.
- I cant wait to be sucked in 1500000 more times by this team…its going to be a long summer
All I know is if no moves are made…I officially know that I would make a better GM then Pat Gillick
Until next time peace ya’all stay human!
Saturday, June 16, 2007
PTI, Here I Come
I love baseball. Last night, along with Andrew and his Dad, I made the trek to Citizens Bank Park to see an interleague matchup of the Phillies vs. the Detroit Tigers. This was a great experience and here's a list of why this is so:
1. Roast Pork Sandwich. This has got to be the first thing on my list. When Andrew first asked if I wanted to go to the game the very first thing that popped into my mind was the memory of that oh so delicious roast pork sandwich I had back in Spring Training. This thing is seriously good. I know Philly is famous for the cheese steak and I'm not knocking that hoagie by any means, but my recommendation to you, my loyal readers, is fork over the cash and buy a roast pork sandwich. Your taste buds will thank you later.
2. It was stress free. Just like watching a non-Red Sox game on TV, this was the most stress free, relaxed baseball game I've ever been to. I liken to being a fan of any West Coast baseball team. You follow the team, and you go to the games, but really you just go to hang out. I didn't have to worry about the players, the record, the opposing team. I just got to yell and scream and have a good time.
3. Red Sox Nation is everywhere. Even though I was at a Phillies/Tigers game I was still decked out in Red Sox gear, and I wasn't the only one. The Nation really is so strong that we show up to games we're not even involved in. This brings me to my next reason...
4. Girls. Specifically, the five who sat behind us at the game, one of which was a Red Sox fan. I milked that all night long. Every run scored, even though we were down the whole game, led to a round of high fives. We even got on the big screen (making me 2-5 life time at the big league level, and 1-2 at AA). In hindsight, I should have got some names but oh well. I'll just have to go back again.
5. I got to yell at Gary Sheffield. All night long in any play Sheffield was involved in, I booed, I let him know he sucks, I reminded him that he's on steroids. The line of the night had to come from the guy in front of me. I had asked some of the Detroit fans sitting in our section how they could root for Gary Sheffield. The guy in front of me turns around and goes "maybe they sell steroids." It was great.
It really was an awesome experience, so a big thank you has to go out to the Horrow's for allowing me to have it. Thanks guys, I really appreciate it.
And now down to business...
First of all, Pat Gillick you're retarded. Saying you don't need relievers like J.C. Romero and Joel Pineiro is like saying C.C. Sabathia doesn't need to tilt his cap to the side to look so damn cool. We all see right through you Pat; don't lie.
This brings me to another quick point: the Phillies really are bringing shame to my name. Pat Gillick. Pat Burrell. I share the first name of these guys. On behalf of Pats all around the world, step it up and bring some respect back to noble name!
But anyway, I've been giving a lot of thought to the trade situation I described earlier. One thing I realized is that Red Sox Nation really has to start jumping on the White Sox bandwagon and get that team going. They have the pitching, so if their bats can just wake up they'll easily bury Minnesota to last place (seriously, who really counts the Royals? I think they're just a figment of our collective imaginations) in the AL Central. That'll make it a little easier for the Twins to part with Torii Hunter. As for some other rumors, I understand that the Twins are interested in Mike Lowell, and that we're taking a look at Mark Teixeira. In my mind, and through a combination of deals, this is the outcome I wouldn't mind seeing. We give up major leaguers Coco Crisp and Mike Lowell, high prospect Craig Hansen, mid-level prospects David Murphy, Kasson Gabbard, Devern Hansack, David Pauley (pick three, any three). In return, we get equally unknown mid-level prospects, Torii Hunter, and Mark Teixeira. I really love this deal. Both Hunter and Teixeira are hitting over .300 with 14 and 12 homers, respectively. Granted, our infield defense will suffer a bit, but not by much. Hunter is a gold-glove centerfielder, so there's nothing to worry about as far as that goes. What does this do to our lineup? Well, if Tito can get off the hippie lettuce and show a little consistency, here's a lineup I wouldn't mind seeing:
2B Pedroia
3B Youk
DH Papi
LF Manny
CF Hunter
1B Teixeira
RF Drew
C Tek
SS Lugo
That sounds pretty solid to me. Now, I also heard that we were again interested in Miguel Tejada. As much as I would love to see Miggy in a Red Sox uniform, I never really like inter-division trades. We'd have to involve a third party in this, so maybe it could fit into the Twins/Texas trade or another bullpen deal that I'm sure we'll make.
Then again, none of this will probably come true. But if it does, or at least comes reasonably close, just remember that you read about it right here. I was the first to have this information (and by that I mean pull it right out of my ass), and I think that at least deserves a spot on Around the Horn, if not a Good Five Minutes on PTI.
And last, but not least, the Giants have come to Fenway. If for no other reason, this is why Interleague play is so great. How else would you guarantee a matchup of two clubs like these? It also gives Red Sox fans a chance to boo Barry up close, and pay some respect to the great Dave Roberts. That guy will always have a special place in each and every Red Sox fan's heart. He will never pay for a drink or a meal in New England again.
So anyway, I honestly have no explanation for what Tito is doing with the lineup right now. None whatsover. I'm just not even going to speculate. I'm treating this like you treat one of those really hard concepts in physics. You just accept that it's true and move on in life. Don't think about it, don't analyze it, just accept that it's there and move on. It's also kind of like how the Toronto Blue Jays treat Greg Zaun. But the craziest part about this is, for Drew and Pedroia it's working! Drew went 3-4 with three runs and three RBI's and Pedroia (now called Petey by his teammates) went 5-5, two runs, a homer, and five RBI's!! The rest of the team went a collective 1-24, with Coco providing that lone remaining hit. What is going on in the world?!?
So in conclusion, remember to tune your TV's into Fox this afternoon (but not your ears) so we can all watch another Petey and Drew show. Hopefully the rest of the team decides to show up today to support the Mohawk-toting Dice Man as he dismantles the Giants lineup piece by piece. That's how I want it done, Dice Man. No walks, no losing your control or poise, just pitch em like you see em. Except for Bonds, because injecting steroids into the baseball won't help it at all (see also David Bell).
1. Roast Pork Sandwich. This has got to be the first thing on my list. When Andrew first asked if I wanted to go to the game the very first thing that popped into my mind was the memory of that oh so delicious roast pork sandwich I had back in Spring Training. This thing is seriously good. I know Philly is famous for the cheese steak and I'm not knocking that hoagie by any means, but my recommendation to you, my loyal readers, is fork over the cash and buy a roast pork sandwich. Your taste buds will thank you later.
2. It was stress free. Just like watching a non-Red Sox game on TV, this was the most stress free, relaxed baseball game I've ever been to. I liken to being a fan of any West Coast baseball team. You follow the team, and you go to the games, but really you just go to hang out. I didn't have to worry about the players, the record, the opposing team. I just got to yell and scream and have a good time.
3. Red Sox Nation is everywhere. Even though I was at a Phillies/Tigers game I was still decked out in Red Sox gear, and I wasn't the only one. The Nation really is so strong that we show up to games we're not even involved in. This brings me to my next reason...
4. Girls. Specifically, the five who sat behind us at the game, one of which was a Red Sox fan. I milked that all night long. Every run scored, even though we were down the whole game, led to a round of high fives. We even got on the big screen (making me 2-5 life time at the big league level, and 1-2 at AA). In hindsight, I should have got some names but oh well. I'll just have to go back again.
5. I got to yell at Gary Sheffield. All night long in any play Sheffield was involved in, I booed, I let him know he sucks, I reminded him that he's on steroids. The line of the night had to come from the guy in front of me. I had asked some of the Detroit fans sitting in our section how they could root for Gary Sheffield. The guy in front of me turns around and goes "maybe they sell steroids." It was great.
It really was an awesome experience, so a big thank you has to go out to the Horrow's for allowing me to have it. Thanks guys, I really appreciate it.
And now down to business...
First of all, Pat Gillick you're retarded. Saying you don't need relievers like J.C. Romero and Joel Pineiro is like saying C.C. Sabathia doesn't need to tilt his cap to the side to look so damn cool. We all see right through you Pat; don't lie.
This brings me to another quick point: the Phillies really are bringing shame to my name. Pat Gillick. Pat Burrell. I share the first name of these guys. On behalf of Pats all around the world, step it up and bring some respect back to noble name!
But anyway, I've been giving a lot of thought to the trade situation I described earlier. One thing I realized is that Red Sox Nation really has to start jumping on the White Sox bandwagon and get that team going. They have the pitching, so if their bats can just wake up they'll easily bury Minnesota to last place (seriously, who really counts the Royals? I think they're just a figment of our collective imaginations) in the AL Central. That'll make it a little easier for the Twins to part with Torii Hunter. As for some other rumors, I understand that the Twins are interested in Mike Lowell, and that we're taking a look at Mark Teixeira. In my mind, and through a combination of deals, this is the outcome I wouldn't mind seeing. We give up major leaguers Coco Crisp and Mike Lowell, high prospect Craig Hansen, mid-level prospects David Murphy, Kasson Gabbard, Devern Hansack, David Pauley (pick three, any three). In return, we get equally unknown mid-level prospects, Torii Hunter, and Mark Teixeira. I really love this deal. Both Hunter and Teixeira are hitting over .300 with 14 and 12 homers, respectively. Granted, our infield defense will suffer a bit, but not by much. Hunter is a gold-glove centerfielder, so there's nothing to worry about as far as that goes. What does this do to our lineup? Well, if Tito can get off the hippie lettuce and show a little consistency, here's a lineup I wouldn't mind seeing:
2B Pedroia
3B Youk
DH Papi
LF Manny
CF Hunter
1B Teixeira
RF Drew
C Tek
SS Lugo
That sounds pretty solid to me. Now, I also heard that we were again interested in Miguel Tejada. As much as I would love to see Miggy in a Red Sox uniform, I never really like inter-division trades. We'd have to involve a third party in this, so maybe it could fit into the Twins/Texas trade or another bullpen deal that I'm sure we'll make.
Then again, none of this will probably come true. But if it does, or at least comes reasonably close, just remember that you read about it right here. I was the first to have this information (and by that I mean pull it right out of my ass), and I think that at least deserves a spot on Around the Horn, if not a Good Five Minutes on PTI.
And last, but not least, the Giants have come to Fenway. If for no other reason, this is why Interleague play is so great. How else would you guarantee a matchup of two clubs like these? It also gives Red Sox fans a chance to boo Barry up close, and pay some respect to the great Dave Roberts. That guy will always have a special place in each and every Red Sox fan's heart. He will never pay for a drink or a meal in New England again.
So anyway, I honestly have no explanation for what Tito is doing with the lineup right now. None whatsover. I'm just not even going to speculate. I'm treating this like you treat one of those really hard concepts in physics. You just accept that it's true and move on in life. Don't think about it, don't analyze it, just accept that it's there and move on. It's also kind of like how the Toronto Blue Jays treat Greg Zaun. But the craziest part about this is, for Drew and Pedroia it's working! Drew went 3-4 with three runs and three RBI's and Pedroia (now called Petey by his teammates) went 5-5, two runs, a homer, and five RBI's!! The rest of the team went a collective 1-24, with Coco providing that lone remaining hit. What is going on in the world?!?
So in conclusion, remember to tune your TV's into Fox this afternoon (but not your ears) so we can all watch another Petey and Drew show. Hopefully the rest of the team decides to show up today to support the Mohawk-toting Dice Man as he dismantles the Giants lineup piece by piece. That's how I want it done, Dice Man. No walks, no losing your control or poise, just pitch em like you see em. Except for Bonds, because injecting steroids into the baseball won't help it at all (see also David Bell).
Monday, June 11, 2007
Theo Got His Deadline Ideas From This Blog
I'm living in sports hell right now, and no it's not San Diego. It's right here in Hecla. Apparently, and after three angry phone calls, I've learned that Service Electric is doing some "work on the lines" meaning that I don't have 26 of my channels. Now, some can be found by adding a prefix of 7, but not all of them, and most importantly not ESPN. What do they expect me to do? Talk to my parents? They're out of their minds. Nevermind the fact that I could just watch ESPN on one of the non-digital cable box TV's, but that's just crazy talk right there. How do they expect me to regress to the stone ages of not having that little guide bar allowing me to know pointless information about the program I'm currently watching. Or how I'm able to see what's on other channels while still watching the channel I'm on, or in other words, a channel surfer's wet dream come true.
But to recap on the sports stories of late...
Curt Schilling nearly pitched a no-hitter! Admittedly, I fell asleep for most of it. Hey, it was a tough day at work so lay off. I woke up just in time to see him shake off Tek with two outs in the ninth, and consequently give up a hit to Shannon Stewart. (Shannon has quite a gangster official MLB picture, by the way. Shannon: this is not the NBA.) See Pedro Martinez, August 29, 2000. It was a clean hit by Stewart so there's nothing to complain about there. I promptly returned to my nap. This does prove my point of the Red Sox having two legitimate aces. Beckett's record speaks for itself, and Schilling's ability to be the stopper proves his ace-status.
Dice Man matched up very well against The Big Unit. Once again, walks killed him. So did Mike Timlin's error, but even without it we still lost the game. Dice walks two leadoff batters which both ended up scoring the only two runs he gave up. Johnson looked very good and nothing like the old fart he really is. I hope this isn't a trend that extends to another aged, fat, fatigued groin pitcher. Besides his errant throw, Timlin looked sharp in coming off the DL. It would be great if he could regain some of his old form. It would add to what is already one of the deepest and best bullpens in all of baseball. That fact makes me very excited to approach the trade deadline. With all the bullpen help needed out there, it really is a seller's market. I'd rather not see any moves made until July (except for Pineiro who I will personally help pack his bags), just because I don't want to mess with our team too early and we'll be able to get a lot more for a lot less as the deadline approaches.
So what's a move that's on my mind? Well, Tori Hunter is looking pretty good right now. If the Twins continue to fall behind the Indians and Detroit, as well as wild card contenders like the Yankees or Oakland, getting rid of the contract-year Hunter should look pretty attractive. I wouldn't mind seeing us sending a major leaguer (Coco/Wily Mo), a high end pitcher (Hansen/Tavarez/Delcarman), and a mid-level prospect or two (Hansack/Gabbard/Pauley/Murphy) for Hunter. The way I see it, he brings just as good defense as Coco as well as an awesome bat. We could bat him second behind Julio "hopefully hitting by July" Lugo allowing us to drop Youkilis down and making our lineup totally solid one through nine. Maybe we could talk Hunter into a one year extension, but I doubt this. The best course of action would be to go after one of the lesser known outfield free agents and platoon them with Wily Mo (and yes, this means I am expecting Coco the one to be traded, even though I love the guy) until Ellsbury is ready. Hopefully that will be by mid-season 2008, but either way I expect to see Jacob Ellsbury playing center field in 2009. That gives him a year to get used to the bigs before he steps into the leadoff role. That's also assuming Julio Lugo is still around, but I wouldn't make any bets on that. Nothing against Julio, but the Boston infield, and especially middle infielders, has been quite the revolving door of late, although I do expect to number 15 between second and first for many years to come.
Anyway, with one of the deepest pitching staffs in the league, and an always present need for good pitching, I wouldn't be surprised nor upset to see us loose some depth at the deadline in order to improve in an area that we may be lacking at. A blockbuster deadline along with some lesser known deals (see July 31, 2004) would be real nice, Theo. (Yeah, you know he reads this.) I was in Boston last season on the deadline. At the time, it was probably the worst deadline experience we've ever had. The Yankees made the moves they needed to while we looked like Wily Mo Pena after he's swung at the third straight curveball in the dirt. We seriously Greg Zauned the 2006 deadline, but in the long run, I think it was the best move. The trade that would have happened but didn't involved Andruw Jones (see slumping and swinging at everything...see also Wily Mo Pena), Jon Lester, and Craig Hansen. Lester is too important to us to give up, and Hansen will be great trade bait again this year. That's the Theo we all know and love: looking out for the long term interests of the team while still considering short-term results.
On a personal note, that was one of the greatest days of my life. It totally deserves it's own blog and one day out of boredom I'm sure I'll fill you all in. For now, I'll leave you guessing in suspense.
On another personal note, if you don't want your life to be consumed by video games do not, I repeat DO NOT purchase MLB '07 The Show. There's a time in every man's life when he realizes that he won't play professional baseball, and this game will surely prolong that realization. The world as we know it will never be the same.
So tonight, I'll have to survive by living in the stone ages of watching non-digital ESPN. I bet Service Electric is a bunch of Yankee fans, too.
-Flig
But to recap on the sports stories of late...
Curt Schilling nearly pitched a no-hitter! Admittedly, I fell asleep for most of it. Hey, it was a tough day at work so lay off. I woke up just in time to see him shake off Tek with two outs in the ninth, and consequently give up a hit to Shannon Stewart. (Shannon has quite a gangster official MLB picture, by the way. Shannon: this is not the NBA.) See Pedro Martinez, August 29, 2000. It was a clean hit by Stewart so there's nothing to complain about there. I promptly returned to my nap. This does prove my point of the Red Sox having two legitimate aces. Beckett's record speaks for itself, and Schilling's ability to be the stopper proves his ace-status.
Dice Man matched up very well against The Big Unit. Once again, walks killed him. So did Mike Timlin's error, but even without it we still lost the game. Dice walks two leadoff batters which both ended up scoring the only two runs he gave up. Johnson looked very good and nothing like the old fart he really is. I hope this isn't a trend that extends to another aged, fat, fatigued groin pitcher. Besides his errant throw, Timlin looked sharp in coming off the DL. It would be great if he could regain some of his old form. It would add to what is already one of the deepest and best bullpens in all of baseball. That fact makes me very excited to approach the trade deadline. With all the bullpen help needed out there, it really is a seller's market. I'd rather not see any moves made until July (except for Pineiro who I will personally help pack his bags), just because I don't want to mess with our team too early and we'll be able to get a lot more for a lot less as the deadline approaches.
So what's a move that's on my mind? Well, Tori Hunter is looking pretty good right now. If the Twins continue to fall behind the Indians and Detroit, as well as wild card contenders like the Yankees or Oakland, getting rid of the contract-year Hunter should look pretty attractive. I wouldn't mind seeing us sending a major leaguer (Coco/Wily Mo), a high end pitcher (Hansen/Tavarez/Delcarman), and a mid-level prospect or two (Hansack/Gabbard/Pauley/Murphy) for Hunter. The way I see it, he brings just as good defense as Coco as well as an awesome bat. We could bat him second behind Julio "hopefully hitting by July" Lugo allowing us to drop Youkilis down and making our lineup totally solid one through nine. Maybe we could talk Hunter into a one year extension, but I doubt this. The best course of action would be to go after one of the lesser known outfield free agents and platoon them with Wily Mo (and yes, this means I am expecting Coco the one to be traded, even though I love the guy) until Ellsbury is ready. Hopefully that will be by mid-season 2008, but either way I expect to see Jacob Ellsbury playing center field in 2009. That gives him a year to get used to the bigs before he steps into the leadoff role. That's also assuming Julio Lugo is still around, but I wouldn't make any bets on that. Nothing against Julio, but the Boston infield, and especially middle infielders, has been quite the revolving door of late, although I do expect to number 15 between second and first for many years to come.
Anyway, with one of the deepest pitching staffs in the league, and an always present need for good pitching, I wouldn't be surprised nor upset to see us loose some depth at the deadline in order to improve in an area that we may be lacking at. A blockbuster deadline along with some lesser known deals (see July 31, 2004) would be real nice, Theo. (Yeah, you know he reads this.) I was in Boston last season on the deadline. At the time, it was probably the worst deadline experience we've ever had. The Yankees made the moves they needed to while we looked like Wily Mo Pena after he's swung at the third straight curveball in the dirt. We seriously Greg Zauned the 2006 deadline, but in the long run, I think it was the best move. The trade that would have happened but didn't involved Andruw Jones (see slumping and swinging at everything...see also Wily Mo Pena), Jon Lester, and Craig Hansen. Lester is too important to us to give up, and Hansen will be great trade bait again this year. That's the Theo we all know and love: looking out for the long term interests of the team while still considering short-term results.
On a personal note, that was one of the greatest days of my life. It totally deserves it's own blog and one day out of boredom I'm sure I'll fill you all in. For now, I'll leave you guessing in suspense.
On another personal note, if you don't want your life to be consumed by video games do not, I repeat DO NOT purchase MLB '07 The Show. There's a time in every man's life when he realizes that he won't play professional baseball, and this game will surely prolong that realization. The world as we know it will never be the same.
So tonight, I'll have to survive by living in the stone ages of watching non-digital ESPN. I bet Service Electric is a bunch of Yankee fans, too.
-Flig
Sunday, June 3, 2007
Red Sox Thoughts
This blog has typically been used for my attempted comical musings on baseball and select parts of my life. Today, I feel like talking straight baseball so here it goes.
The Pitching Situation:
Now onto our second ace, Mr. Josh Beckett. This guy has pretty much made the strongest case to be the starter at the All-Star Game this summer. I don't know if there is anyone out there who is pitching better right now. His curveball is buckling knees, his changeup is wrapping guys up, and his fastball is blowing everyone away. One minor injury hasn't seemed to slow Beckett down, and so may we all pray for the strength of Josh Beckett's finger skin. I really don't know what else to say about Beckett. He's been lights out this year. Absolutely electric.
Remember how I said we have two legitimate aces this year? Does anyone recall the last time we had two legitimate aces? That's right folks, 2004. Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling. What else did we have that year? A lights out closer. What do we have this year? A lights out closer. Papelbon is having another amazing year at the back end of the bullpen. It's obvious that the Sox are treating him a little more carefully this year, and it hasn't effected his game. A 1.77 ERA, only 10 walks and 28 strikeouts in 20.1 innings, and 13 saves in 14 opportunities has once again cemented Papelbon as one of the best closers in the game.
But Papelbon isn't all we've got in the pen. Hideki Okajima has pretty much blown every expectation out of the water. Here's a guy that was basically thrown onto the team to make Dice feel a little more comfortable in his surroundings. Nobody expected him to be be the best setup man in all of baseball. His "okie-dokie" is probably the nastiest offspeed pitch in any bullpen on any team, and when Papelbon is getting his rest, Okie has been able to step in and save the game without breaking a sweat.
But Okie isn't all we've got in the pen, either. Brenden Donnelly and Kyle Snyder have both pitched very well. JC Romero and Javier Lopez have done well as lefty specialists, although Romero does make me a little nervous sometimes. The guy that really gets me shaking in my boots is Piniero. I can't believe we actually thought this guy would be our closer. He sucks. Plain and simple. Hopefully Mike Timlin can come back and be healthy. He's been such a workhorse for us over the years and I hate to see him struggle with injuries and his command like he has recently.
Just for kicks, I'd like to mention that we've got some pretty reliable arms down in the farm as well. Manny Delcarman and Craig Hansen are both arms of the future that will either supply great innings out of the bullpen, or great trade bait. Kason Gabbard was called up to spot start for us this year and pitched brilliantly. Devern Hansack didn't fare as well as Gabbard, but he has shown flares of competency in the past as has a kid by the name of David Pauley. This may be the deepest we've ever been as far as pitching goes.
The Position Players:
Except for 2004, I don't know if there's a team with more likable personalities than this one. That being said, let's take a look at how this team has been underachieving, overachieving, and yet still at the top of the majors.
Julio Lugo was bought in the offseason to step in and fill the shoes of Johnny Damon that have been empty since he left in the '05 offseason. So far this year Lugo has been underachieving. A .283 OBP doesn't really make anybody an elite leadoff man, but we're getting by. What Lugo does bring us is good defense and a threat on the basepaths. He's 16 for 16 in stolen bases (obviously well above the Moneyball threshold of 80%) and it does seem that when Lugo gets a hit, it's in a timely situation.
With the leadoff situation in mind, let's take a look at Coco Crisp. Obviously our expectations of Coco were set too high when we got him last year. We thought he could step in and pretty much replace the fallen one (Damon) who was at the time the best leadoff hitter in baseball.Coco can't do that. What he does give us is good defense out there in center field (I qualify it as good because even though he doesn't have the greatest arm, he has great range and a great glove), a threat on the basepaths, and the scrappiness, good clubhouse-guy intangibles.
If you ask me, the guys who have really been carrying the team so far this season are Mike Lowell and Kevin Youkilis. Both are off to awesome tears and have really been playing well. Lowell is still showing off his gold-glove caliber play at third, and his presence behind the plate is being felt by all our opponents. It's not Manny, Papi, or J.D. Drew who leads the team in RBI's; it's Mike Lowell. Yooooouuuuuk is doing just as well. Here's a guy who had a 23 game hitting streak on the line yesterday, and yet he drew 3 walks. He didn't selfishly reach for pitches so he could keep his streak going. What Youk wanted to do was win the game. That's all. He didn't care about himself he cared about the team. It's a real shame that the All-Star game is being played in an NL park this year and Youk isn't on the ballot for the Sox. Both these guys are All-Stars.
The argument could be made that the Sox are relying too heavily on Youkilis and Lowell, since both those guys are typically better in the first half than in the second. Worried? No. Because two other guys on our team have yet to really get going. And those two guys are Big Papi and Manny Ramirez. Just like past seasons, their bats will continue to heat up with the summer. Manny has shown signs of life as he's boosted his average to .284 and with Papi's hamstring woes hopefully past him his power should soon return. So if Lowell and Youkilis tail off as they have in the past, they will be picked up by the resurgence of David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, the most feared 3-4 combo in all the bigs.
Three feel-good stories surround Dustin Pedroia, Alex Cora, and Jason Varitek. Pedroia is the first rookie position player to start the season since Shea Hillenbrand in 2001. After a slow start, Pedroia is making Francona look like a genius. He's now hitting .333 with an OBP of .411 and SLG. .465. If Pedroia can keep this up he'll be making a very legitimate case for Rookie of the Year.
Pedroia's partner in crime Alex Cora is off to a great start as well. However, I've made this argument before and I'll make it again. There is only so much good baseball in Alex Cora. If we make him play everyday, he has to spread that good baseball out and so it won't be as good. But if we only play Cora once in a while (to spell the rookie Pedroia or the tired legs of Lugo, just as Francona has been doing) he gets to use that good baseball all at once. It's proven a good strategy.
And now to my favorite player, the Captain: Jason Varitek. After a year of injury slowed Varitek down, and a slow start this season had many worried, Varitek has climbed back into his old form. Six home runs and a .276 average to go along with a .374 OBP and .469 SLG have got to make the Captain feel good. His importance to our pitchers was never made so painfully aware than last season when he went on the DL. Even Josh Beckett said this spring that one way he knows he will improve is by listening to Varitek more often. Varitek is the glue of the Red Sox.
And now for the underachievers. After getting off to a terrific start, J.D. Drew has pretty much sucked. The guy took a near .400 average and dropped it down to .222. Sure, he's on base at a clip of .340, but where's the fearsome #5 hitter I was told we were getting? He was here in April, but apparently those April showers didn't bring May flowers, they brought a slumping J.D. Drew. Hopefully his hamstring rehab will bring back memories of his swing. In the mean time we're stuck with Swing-and-a-miss Wily Mo Pena. Here's a guy that makes me angry every time I hear his name. He has more potential than any guy on our team, and yet he wastes it away. If he could learn patience at the plate, and how to track down a fly ball, he'd be an MVP every year. When he figures out how to play this game, Wily Mo will be a dangerous, dangerous threat. I only hope that time comes sooner rather than later, or that some other GM thinks his team can solve Pena's problem and will give us a sweet trade package.
Another underachiever is Doug Mirabelli, but Dougie isn't all that bad. He took a big cut in pay, which was good of him because his numbers don't deserve top dollar. He's a great clubhouse presence and bench guy. He plays great defense and knows how to catch Wake which is a quality that is pretty valuable. Except, of course, for his last outing. That was probably the worst performance I've ever seen by Dougie and Wake. I really hope this battery can figure their problems out and be that consistent presence they've been in the past.
The last guy to talk about his Eric Hinske. I really feel bad for the former ROY because he's not as good as anybody (including himself) thought he was. I've seen him play and he hits with a heck of a lot of power. I'd characterize Hinske as a top of the line bench player, but low order everyday guy. He's shown he'll really lay out for the team, and he can play all four corners which adds a lot of value to him as a bench guy. All in all, I'm glad he's with us.
This is our team. This is the team that's given us a Major League leading 37-17 record. This is the team that's never lost more than two games in a row. This is the team that's buried the Yankees. This is the team that has striking similarities to 2004. Hopefully, they achieve one more similarity when they are crowned 2007 World Champions. But let's not give too much thought to that just yet.
-Flig
The Pitching Situation:
Obviously we have to get Jon Lester into our rotation. He’s a young kid with great stuff and he has proven he knows how to use it at the major league level.
Just to be safe, I think we should hold on to Tavarez until Lester gets going. You never know what might happen. But by the trade deadline, I expect him to be moved for maybe a "Dave Roberts" type acquisition. we do have a lot of starting pitching depth in the minors for us to draw on (Hansack, gab bard, Pauley) so I wouldn't be too upset if the sox moved Tavarez sooner than later after Lester comes back.
And somebody up above me suggested sending Snyder down. We can't do that and we shouldn't do that. We can't because he's out of options meaning he'd have to clear waivers before we could send him down. And we shouldn't because he's been pretty good out of the pen this year. Somebody else suggested sending Pineiro down. That’s a move I could agree with, but does he have options on his contract or would we have to sneak him through waivers? Although I wouldn't mind seeing him go for good. Although, he'd probably be another David Riske and he'd go on a 14 inning scoreless streak for whatever borderline team would pick him up. GAMBLING ALERT: if any of our relievers go on waivers in an attempt to make a roster spot, I’ll bet you any money the tigers pick them up. Any takers?
Even though Tavarez is going to be the guy pushed out of our rotation to make room for Lester, the starter I’m most worried about is
The rest of our rotation has been pretty solid. If we ignore the expectations placed onto Daisuke by some and treat the Dice Man for what he really is (a quasi-rookie #3 starter) he's doing extremely well. We didn't need this guy to step in and be our ace. What we wanted to see was continuing improvement as he adapts to American style baseball. His stuff is absolutely nasty (that's not filthy, THAT'S NASTY!...thanks BBTN) and once he learns to trust it he'll do a lot better. One area of his game that he really needs to improve on is pitching out of the stretch. Dice really loses a lot on his control when he's pitching out of the stretch. In Japan, pitchers hardly do this so he really doesn't have a lot of experience. In time, he'll learn how to pitch effectively with runners on and this will markedly improve his game. But really, look at what our #3 starter has done so far: 7-2 record, 4.83 ERA, and 3.24 K/BB, which will improve once he learns to pitch out of the stretch. That's not too shabby for a #3 starter.
Now onto our second ace, Mr. Josh Beckett. This guy has pretty much made the strongest case to be the starter at the All-Star Game this summer. I don't know if there is anyone out there who is pitching better right now. His curveball is buckling knees, his changeup is wrapping guys up, and his fastball is blowing everyone away. One minor injury hasn't seemed to slow Beckett down, and so may we all pray for the strength of Josh Beckett's finger skin. I really don't know what else to say about Beckett. He's been lights out this year. Absolutely electric.
Remember how I said we have two legitimate aces this year? Does anyone recall the last time we had two legitimate aces? That's right folks, 2004. Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling. What else did we have that year? A lights out closer. What do we have this year? A lights out closer. Papelbon is having another amazing year at the back end of the bullpen. It's obvious that the Sox are treating him a little more carefully this year, and it hasn't effected his game. A 1.77 ERA, only 10 walks and 28 strikeouts in 20.1 innings, and 13 saves in 14 opportunities has once again cemented Papelbon as one of the best closers in the game.
But Papelbon isn't all we've got in the pen. Hideki Okajima has pretty much blown every expectation out of the water. Here's a guy that was basically thrown onto the team to make Dice feel a little more comfortable in his surroundings. Nobody expected him to be be the best setup man in all of baseball. His "okie-dokie" is probably the nastiest offspeed pitch in any bullpen on any team, and when Papelbon is getting his rest, Okie has been able to step in and save the game without breaking a sweat.
But Okie isn't all we've got in the pen, either. Brenden Donnelly and Kyle Snyder have both pitched very well. JC Romero and Javier Lopez have done well as lefty specialists, although Romero does make me a little nervous sometimes. The guy that really gets me shaking in my boots is Piniero. I can't believe we actually thought this guy would be our closer. He sucks. Plain and simple. Hopefully Mike Timlin can come back and be healthy. He's been such a workhorse for us over the years and I hate to see him struggle with injuries and his command like he has recently.
Just for kicks, I'd like to mention that we've got some pretty reliable arms down in the farm as well. Manny Delcarman and Craig Hansen are both arms of the future that will either supply great innings out of the bullpen, or great trade bait. Kason Gabbard was called up to spot start for us this year and pitched brilliantly. Devern Hansack didn't fare as well as Gabbard, but he has shown flares of competency in the past as has a kid by the name of David Pauley. This may be the deepest we've ever been as far as pitching goes.
The Position Players:
Except for 2004, I don't know if there's a team with more likable personalities than this one. That being said, let's take a look at how this team has been underachieving, overachieving, and yet still at the top of the majors.
Julio Lugo was bought in the offseason to step in and fill the shoes of Johnny Damon that have been empty since he left in the '05 offseason. So far this year Lugo has been underachieving. A .283 OBP doesn't really make anybody an elite leadoff man, but we're getting by. What Lugo does bring us is good defense and a threat on the basepaths. He's 16 for 16 in stolen bases (obviously well above the Moneyball threshold of 80%) and it does seem that when Lugo gets a hit, it's in a timely situation.
With the leadoff situation in mind, let's take a look at Coco Crisp. Obviously our expectations of Coco were set too high when we got him last year. We thought he could step in and pretty much replace the fallen one (Damon) who was at the time the best leadoff hitter in baseball.
If you ask me, the guys who have really been carrying the team so far this season are Mike Lowell and Kevin Youkilis. Both are off to awesome tears and have really been playing well. Lowell is still showing off his gold-glove caliber play at third, and his presence behind the plate is being felt by all our opponents. It's not Manny, Papi, or J.D. Drew who leads the team in RBI's; it's Mike Lowell. Yooooouuuuuk is doing just as well. Here's a guy who had a 23 game hitting streak on the line yesterday, and yet he drew 3 walks. He didn't selfishly reach for pitches so he could keep his streak going. What Youk wanted to do was win the game. That's all. He didn't care about himself he cared about the team. It's a real shame that the All-Star game is being played in an NL park this year and Youk isn't on the ballot for the Sox. Both these guys are All-Stars.
The argument could be made that the Sox are relying too heavily on Youkilis and Lowell, since both those guys are typically better in the first half than in the second. Worried? No. Because two other guys on our team have yet to really get going. And those two guys are Big Papi and Manny Ramirez. Just like past seasons, their bats will continue to heat up with the summer. Manny has shown signs of life as he's boosted his average to .284 and with Papi's hamstring woes hopefully past him his power should soon return. So if Lowell and Youkilis tail off as they have in the past, they will be picked up by the resurgence of David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, the most feared 3-4 combo in all the bigs.
Three feel-good stories surround Dustin Pedroia, Alex Cora, and Jason Varitek. Pedroia is the first rookie position player to start the season since Shea Hillenbrand in 2001. After a slow start, Pedroia is making Francona look like a genius. He's now hitting .333 with an OBP of .411 and SLG. .465. If Pedroia can keep this up he'll be making a very legitimate case for Rookie of the Year.
Pedroia's partner in crime Alex Cora is off to a great start as well. However, I've made this argument before and I'll make it again. There is only so much good baseball in Alex Cora. If we make him play everyday, he has to spread that good baseball out and so it won't be as good. But if we only play Cora once in a while (to spell the rookie Pedroia or the tired legs of Lugo, just as Francona has been doing) he gets to use that good baseball all at once. It's proven a good strategy.
And now to my favorite player, the Captain: Jason Varitek. After a year of injury slowed Varitek down, and a slow start this season had many worried, Varitek has climbed back into his old form. Six home runs and a .276 average to go along with a .374 OBP and .469 SLG have got to make the Captain feel good. His importance to our pitchers was never made so painfully aware than last season when he went on the DL. Even Josh Beckett said this spring that one way he knows he will improve is by listening to Varitek more often. Varitek is the glue of the Red Sox.
And now for the underachievers. After getting off to a terrific start, J.D. Drew has pretty much sucked. The guy took a near .400 average and dropped it down to .222. Sure, he's on base at a clip of .340, but where's the fearsome #5 hitter I was told we were getting? He was here in April, but apparently those April showers didn't bring May flowers, they brought a slumping J.D. Drew. Hopefully his hamstring rehab will bring back memories of his swing. In the mean time we're stuck with Swing-and-a-miss Wily Mo Pena. Here's a guy that makes me angry every time I hear his name. He has more potential than any guy on our team, and yet he wastes it away. If he could learn patience at the plate, and how to track down a fly ball, he'd be an MVP every year. When he figures out how to play this game, Wily Mo will be a dangerous, dangerous threat. I only hope that time comes sooner rather than later, or that some other GM thinks his team can solve Pena's problem and will give us a sweet trade package.
Another underachiever is Doug Mirabelli, but Dougie isn't all that bad. He took a big cut in pay, which was good of him because his numbers don't deserve top dollar. He's a great clubhouse presence and bench guy. He plays great defense and knows how to catch Wake which is a quality that is pretty valuable. Except, of course, for his last outing. That was probably the worst performance I've ever seen by Dougie and Wake. I really hope this battery can figure their problems out and be that consistent presence they've been in the past.
The last guy to talk about his Eric Hinske. I really feel bad for the former ROY because he's not as good as anybody (including himself) thought he was. I've seen him play and he hits with a heck of a lot of power. I'd characterize Hinske as a top of the line bench player, but low order everyday guy. He's shown he'll really lay out for the team, and he can play all four corners which adds a lot of value to him as a bench guy. All in all, I'm glad he's with us.
This is our team. This is the team that's given us a Major League leading 37-17 record. This is the team that's never lost more than two games in a row. This is the team that's buried the Yankees. This is the team that has striking similarities to 2004. Hopefully, they achieve one more similarity when they are crowned 2007 World Champions. But let's not give too much thought to that just yet.
-Flig
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Tim McCarver Has A Tired Groin
Tim McCarver has a tired groin. More to follow...
It's been a while. I'd like to apologize to our loyal readers for our long absence. Andrew is living it up over in Israel right now. His girlfriend was worried that he'd meet a nice Jewish girl. I'm more worried he'll meet an angry Palestinian.
Today, Tarc and I went on our First Official Golf Outing of the Summer. The first three holes were fantastic. We felt on top of the world. The match was shaping up to be a close battle between two evenly matched foes. And then number four came along. Number four: the bane of my existence. This hole single handedly destroyed our confidence as golfers just like Wily Mo Pena destroys any chance at a base on balls. (Everytime an announcer says "and Wily Mo strikes out swinging" somebody donates a dollar to something. We could cure diabetes people!) After this hole Tarc and I were merely trying to finish the round and make it to Wing Street. Thrown clubs, lost balls, and the enforcement of the "Ladies Tee" rule was witnessed on this woe some excuse of a golf outing. For the sake of our pride I will not report the exact score of this outing, but suffice it to say we both had real integers between 0 and 47 trillion.
And so two tired, sweaty, defeated golfers sullenly strode into Wing Street. This was the second time I've been there, and both times I've acted like a total deer in headlights when the cute hostess asked if we were dining in. I think this time I awkwardly held up a reversed peace sign that was supposed to indicate there were two of us, but more than likely indicated my complete dorky-ness. After waiting an interminable amount of time to be waited on, we came to the conclusion that our waitress either hates her job with a passion or was having the worst day ever. The Red Sox were being shown on ESPN as the game was coming back from a rain delay. Just as it came back on the Sox got the bases loaded, and Mike Lowell gave a nice, clean elbow to Robbie Cano knocking Cano to the ground. A few innings later (and me resting comfortably on the living room couch of the Mayor's Mansion) Mike Lowell inadvertently collided with Doug Mientkiewicz's head. It was downright bad. Dougie M. lay on the ground for a while with the Yankees clustering around him and Fox disgracefully replaying the shot a thousand different times from a thousand different angles. Disgusting. I hate to take the lead like this. Thankfully, the Yankees bullpen remembered it was time to start imploding. This was combined with the Yankees infield regressing to Little League and forgetting where to stand and Bobby "I'm-afraid-of-a-wall" Abreu living up to his not-so-creative nickname.
During this time the announcers, Joe Buck and the Human Mute Button (Tim McCarver) brought up everyone's favorite topic: Roger Clemens. It seems the old fart has, as Tim McCarver described, a tired groin. In the words of McCarver, "a lot of pitchers pitch with a tired groin everyday. I don't see what kind of problem a tired groin poses." Please, America, tell me you laughed at this as hard as I did. Red Sox fans, please also rejoice that the Yankees have, indeed, thrown even more money down the toilet by paying for the tired groin to come back to New York in the first ever recorded instance of a rat jumping ON to a sinking ship.
And so as the "Yankees Suck!" cheer erupts around Fenway the Red Sox roll to their 37th win. I hope Dougie M. is ok, and I hope none of you out there are bothered by a tired groin.
-Flig
It's been a while. I'd like to apologize to our loyal readers for our long absence. Andrew is living it up over in Israel right now. His girlfriend was worried that he'd meet a nice Jewish girl. I'm more worried he'll meet an angry Palestinian.
Today, Tarc and I went on our First Official Golf Outing of the Summer. The first three holes were fantastic. We felt on top of the world. The match was shaping up to be a close battle between two evenly matched foes. And then number four came along. Number four: the bane of my existence. This hole single handedly destroyed our confidence as golfers just like Wily Mo Pena destroys any chance at a base on balls. (Everytime an announcer says "and Wily Mo strikes out swinging" somebody donates a dollar to something. We could cure diabetes people!) After this hole Tarc and I were merely trying to finish the round and make it to Wing Street. Thrown clubs, lost balls, and the enforcement of the "Ladies Tee" rule was witnessed on this woe some excuse of a golf outing. For the sake of our pride I will not report the exact score of this outing, but suffice it to say we both had real integers between 0 and 47 trillion.
And so two tired, sweaty, defeated golfers sullenly strode into Wing Street. This was the second time I've been there, and both times I've acted like a total deer in headlights when the cute hostess asked if we were dining in. I think this time I awkwardly held up a reversed peace sign that was supposed to indicate there were two of us, but more than likely indicated my complete dorky-ness. After waiting an interminable amount of time to be waited on, we came to the conclusion that our waitress either hates her job with a passion or was having the worst day ever. The Red Sox were being shown on ESPN as the game was coming back from a rain delay. Just as it came back on the Sox got the bases loaded, and Mike Lowell gave a nice, clean elbow to Robbie Cano knocking Cano to the ground. A few innings later (and me resting comfortably on the living room couch of the Mayor's Mansion) Mike Lowell inadvertently collided with Doug Mientkiewicz's head. It was downright bad. Dougie M. lay on the ground for a while with the Yankees clustering around him and Fox disgracefully replaying the shot a thousand different times from a thousand different angles. Disgusting. I hate to take the lead like this. Thankfully, the Yankees bullpen remembered it was time to start imploding. This was combined with the Yankees infield regressing to Little League and forgetting where to stand and Bobby "I'm-afraid-of-a-wall" Abreu living up to his not-so-creative nickname.
During this time the announcers, Joe Buck and the Human Mute Button (Tim McCarver) brought up everyone's favorite topic: Roger Clemens. It seems the old fart has, as Tim McCarver described, a tired groin. In the words of McCarver, "a lot of pitchers pitch with a tired groin everyday. I don't see what kind of problem a tired groin poses." Please, America, tell me you laughed at this as hard as I did. Red Sox fans, please also rejoice that the Yankees have, indeed, thrown even more money down the toilet by paying for the tired groin to come back to New York in the first ever recorded instance of a rat jumping ON to a sinking ship.
And so as the "Yankees Suck!" cheer erupts around Fenway the Red Sox roll to their 37th win. I hope Dougie M. is ok, and I hope none of you out there are bothered by a tired groin.
-Flig
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
once again having no grammer, and no spelling skills...ladies and gentlemen...Andrew Horrow
ok i was looking at the phillies score(lost to the marlins) and this got me thinking...screw moneyball can the marlins GM write a book?
Look at it here is a team that was trying desperately to tank. They win the world series and get rid of everyone including the man who waters the pitching mound. The idea is we tank...we can move...and then we win. The last part of that equation requires getting young players who need time to develop and will eventually turn into superstars. But somehow in trying not to win in five years they won in 3, the players who were not supposed to mature, matured. They were able to beat Satan and win the world series. The thing that troubles me is, is trying not to win the only way to win? The phillies last year were out of the playoff race and had just had a fire sale, and GM Pat (I am in the AARP with jose valintine) Gillick said we were 3 years out....what happened next you ask, we go on a tear and end up 1 game out. The Florida Marlins were 5 years out...they won the World Series....
The Flyers, Sixers, Phillies, and Eagles have no chance this year they are 15 years out....(now fate do ur duty)
I also really want to know how the Florida Gm does it. Recently i was playing MLB 2k7 carrier mode and tired to be the Marlins with their whopping payroll of 44 million 7th lowest. In my first off season i had to trade willis in order to think about keeping anyone in my infield even when my bankroll increased it was still not possible to win, i want to know how they did it i tried everything...(in 2010 i would quit there take over the Indians and go on to win 5 straight world series before turning off the xbox) HOW FLORIDA HOW???
On a completely other subject i want to rant about Bobby Abreu. There was a recent article on Si.com prising the Flyin Hawian Shane Victorino and his ability to replace Bobby Abreu. The true reason he has been able to do that is because he cares whether his team wins or loses, Abreu is what we call a numbers and money guy. These men only care about their individual numbers and how much they make and not on the teams preformance. These include just in baseball in no order, Abreu, Adrain Beltire, Bonds, A rod, Jeff Kent,sheffield(thanks pat) and Chris Therian(i know he doesnt play baseball but i f*%King hate him, he sucks he should never touch a hockey stick again)
Abreu never hit after the 5th inning, he never hit with runners on, he never did anything productive....as Joe Morgan says "anyone can hit a hr up big, but it takes a special player to hit one in the clutch"
Bobby Abreu you are not a special player you may physically be but when it comes to mental toughness in the clutch you dont have it, you can have it New York, ill take Shane Victorino any day...
Peace y'all im out
Stay Human
ok i was looking at the phillies score(lost to the marlins) and this got me thinking...screw moneyball can the marlins GM write a book?
Look at it here is a team that was trying desperately to tank. They win the world series and get rid of everyone including the man who waters the pitching mound. The idea is we tank...we can move...and then we win. The last part of that equation requires getting young players who need time to develop and will eventually turn into superstars. But somehow in trying not to win in five years they won in 3, the players who were not supposed to mature, matured. They were able to beat Satan and win the world series. The thing that troubles me is, is trying not to win the only way to win? The phillies last year were out of the playoff race and had just had a fire sale, and GM Pat (I am in the AARP with jose valintine) Gillick said we were 3 years out....what happened next you ask, we go on a tear and end up 1 game out. The Florida Marlins were 5 years out...they won the World Series....
The Flyers, Sixers, Phillies, and Eagles have no chance this year they are 15 years out....(now fate do ur duty)
I also really want to know how the Florida Gm does it. Recently i was playing MLB 2k7 carrier mode and tired to be the Marlins with their whopping payroll of 44 million 7th lowest. In my first off season i had to trade willis in order to think about keeping anyone in my infield even when my bankroll increased it was still not possible to win, i want to know how they did it i tried everything...(in 2010 i would quit there take over the Indians and go on to win 5 straight world series before turning off the xbox) HOW FLORIDA HOW???
On a completely other subject i want to rant about Bobby Abreu. There was a recent article on Si.com prising the Flyin Hawian Shane Victorino and his ability to replace Bobby Abreu. The true reason he has been able to do that is because he cares whether his team wins or loses, Abreu is what we call a numbers and money guy. These men only care about their individual numbers and how much they make and not on the teams preformance. These include just in baseball in no order, Abreu, Adrain Beltire, Bonds, A rod, Jeff Kent,sheffield(thanks pat) and Chris Therian(i know he doesnt play baseball but i f*%King hate him, he sucks he should never touch a hockey stick again)
Abreu never hit after the 5th inning, he never hit with runners on, he never did anything productive....as Joe Morgan says "anyone can hit a hr up big, but it takes a special player to hit one in the clutch"
Bobby Abreu you are not a special player you may physically be but when it comes to mental toughness in the clutch you dont have it, you can have it New York, ill take Shane Victorino any day...
Peace y'all im out
Stay Human
ROID RAGE
I'M ON ROIDS!!! No really, I am. It seems that my claim of being immune to poison ivy has finally been thrown aside. I most definitely am allergic to poison ivy, oak, sumac, maple tree pollen (yes, I can still eat syrup), and the New York Yankees. So after a night waking up scratching my arms, I broke down and went to the doc's. They prescribed a tasty steroid and not only is my ivy less bothersome but just yesterday I LIFTED AN ENTIRE SCHOOL BUS ABOVE MY HEAD!!! That's right, Barry, I'm coming after you.
Two games into round three of the Sox/Yanks series this summer and we've split the three game set so far. Rubber match tomorrow of the wheeling, dealing, fellow blogger Curt Schilling vs. Andy "Roger-come-play-with-me" Pettite. Last night's game put me in a TV hell. Why would they schedule a nationally broadcast Sox/Yanks game on the same night as the season finale of 24?!?! Are they crazy?!?! And what about that episode? WOW! I'm speechless. The silent clock at the end? Did Jack jump? I can't wait for January. Wait...yes I can.
Back to baseball.
So last night's TV quandry kind of solved itself once the Sox dropped a few runs behind the Yanks. I gave up on flipping back and forth and decided that for my health it would be better to watch Jack Bauer save the world. Then tonight, after creating a sweet new room setup (thanks Mom and Dad) I realize that the game has been on TV and I haven't been watching. It's ok though. We're up 7-2 and we've got Okie-Dokie in the 8th and surely Pap to follow in the 9th. My dad sits down just as I turn it on and Okie is getting ready for his first pitch. Dad happens to say, "We just can't walk anybody." Enter two walks by Okie and Pap each. I also knew that the Yankees commentator (it was being broadcast by the YES! network...what elementary school guidance counselor came up with that name?) pretty much jinxed Okie by saying "Well one more inning and Okajima holds the Red Sox reliever's record for longest scoreless streak." Thanks, pal. Okie gives up one run and Pap comes in and strikes out Jeter on two very borderline pitches to end the game. This almost makes up for A-rod who earlier in the game got a little dirty by throwing elbows at noodle-arm Pedroia. Seriously A-Rod, pick on somebody your own size. I hope Schill wacks him in the ass tomorrow.
Speaking of tomorrow, we all get to say goodbye for one final time to a very special lady. You'll always live on in our hearts, Gran. These words are for you tonight. I love you.
-Flig
Two games into round three of the Sox/Yanks series this summer and we've split the three game set so far. Rubber match tomorrow of the wheeling, dealing, fellow blogger Curt Schilling vs. Andy "Roger-come-play-with-me" Pettite. Last night's game put me in a TV hell. Why would they schedule a nationally broadcast Sox/Yanks game on the same night as the season finale of 24?!?! Are they crazy?!?! And what about that episode? WOW! I'm speechless. The silent clock at the end? Did Jack jump? I can't wait for January. Wait...yes I can.
Back to baseball.
So last night's TV quandry kind of solved itself once the Sox dropped a few runs behind the Yanks. I gave up on flipping back and forth and decided that for my health it would be better to watch Jack Bauer save the world. Then tonight, after creating a sweet new room setup (thanks Mom and Dad) I realize that the game has been on TV and I haven't been watching. It's ok though. We're up 7-2 and we've got Okie-Dokie in the 8th and surely Pap to follow in the 9th. My dad sits down just as I turn it on and Okie is getting ready for his first pitch. Dad happens to say, "We just can't walk anybody." Enter two walks by Okie and Pap each. I also knew that the Yankees commentator (it was being broadcast by the YES! network...what elementary school guidance counselor came up with that name?) pretty much jinxed Okie by saying "Well one more inning and Okajima holds the Red Sox reliever's record for longest scoreless streak." Thanks, pal. Okie gives up one run and Pap comes in and strikes out Jeter on two very borderline pitches to end the game. This almost makes up for A-rod who earlier in the game got a little dirty by throwing elbows at noodle-arm Pedroia. Seriously A-Rod, pick on somebody your own size. I hope Schill wacks him in the ass tomorrow.
Speaking of tomorrow, we all get to say goodbye for one final time to a very special lady. You'll always live on in our hearts, Gran. These words are for you tonight. I love you.
-Flig
Friday, May 18, 2007
Baseball is as baseball does
"What we should have done a long time ago was stand up -- players, ownership, everybody -- and said: 'We made a mistake.'''
These words by Jason Giambi. Whoever would have thought the Giambino would turn into the moral compass of the MLB. It is about time that the entire system comes out and says what happened was wrong. I know that not everyone took steroids. I know that it wasn't being handed out by the ownership. And I also know that as a fan I'm complicit in these shenanigans as well. I cheered Mark McGwire when he stepped up to the plate. Two vivid memories stick in my mind involving McGwire's home run chase and subsequent fall from grace.
1. I was watching the game with my parents. Cubbies and Cards and Marky Mark was at 61 homers. Early in the game and despite my valiant protests my mom insisted I take a shower. I told her that she better yell if McGwire comes to the plate. Just as I put the shampoo in my hair I heard a frantic yell, and so I got to watch McGwire's first AB which didn't yield the record breaking home run. I finished my shower and continued watching the game with the folks. I got to see the record breaker sitting on the couch with my dad, clean, by virtue of my mother. Thanks mom.
2. The day of the baseball steroids hearing on Capital Hill I was (conveniently) sick and had to stay home from school. So I sat there and watched what I thought were four heroes (Schilling, Palmeiro, McGwire, and Sosa) and one goat (Canseco) talk about steroids in baseball. Sammy forgot how to speak English (which led to a hilarious skit on SNL that week involving Keenan Thompson), Schilling was his usual political self (the guy's surely gonna run for office some day and I'm just glad he's a Republican so I don't have to find a way to rationalize voting for him other than the bloody sock), Palmeiro was waving fingers, Canseco loved to hear himself speak (which fit well with many of the people facing him behind the nice wooden desk), and then there was McGwire. And Mark refused "to talk about the past." Here's the guy who saved baseball. The guy I watched all summer chasing Slammin' Sammy. The guy was as heroic as a sports figure could be, and it crushed my heart.
The homers of the "steroid years" sucked me in as much as any other, but that doesn't make it right. Giambi is a better man for saying what he said knowing that it could lead to a suspension. Although knowing Giambi I doubt he would have admitted his use if he had indeed used steroids since 05. I'd like to hear more players come out and say the same. I won't hold it against them. As a fan, I'd appreciate their honesty. I'm ok with talking about the past.
But on a lighter side of things...
My Sox were rained out tonight. This means I'm relegated to watching one of the less obvious rivalry interleague matchups in the form of a Blue Jays-Phillies game. If any of my loyal readers could point out any history of rivalry beyond what the announcers have already explained (apparently having your team's spring facility located five miles from another team's spring facility makes for some heated tension........right, and Zauny is a first ballet HOF'er) that would be awesome. By virtue of my home state I root for the Phils, as long as they aren't playing the Sox of course. They've had a very "Phillie" season and any Phillie fan knows what I'm talking about. They've turned it around lately, though, which is good for the Phils. If Howard can come back and start hitting, and then Flash Gordon and Ryan Madson come back into the bullpen, they have a pretty complete team. Although they also have the Mets and Braves in front of them. It should be an interesting season in the NL East.
Speaking of interesting, a commercial for the Phillies just played where Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins repeatedly gave each other purple nurples. The receiver of the nurple would then pretend to be electrocuted. There's a lot of questions this raises, but I think the most important of them is what does Charlie Manuel, who is essentially the baseball version of Forrest Gump, think of this? On the list of people who probably shouldn't have a talk show but get one anyway, Charlie Manuel needs to be right at the top.
WOW! Great defensive play to end the game. Bases loaded, two-out, infield playing on the outfield grass Alex Rios hits a slow ground ball to third. Honest Abe Nunez charges the ball nearly colliding with Aaron Hill who is running hard for third and throws the ball to first. Wes Helms has to dive to glove the ball around the runner for a bang-bang play to end the game. This was actually exciting! A Phillies-Jays game being described as exciting. There's an accomplishment and reason number 7 (or 4,207 if your Bud Selig) for keeping interleague. And yeah, I pulled both numbers out of my ass.
As an end to this blog I'd like to give a shout out to Erik Lis, the left handed hitting 2005 9th round selection of the Minnesota Twints. Erik hit a homer off of Roger tonight in Roger's Class A debut. Good job, Erik. Red Sox Nation is proud. Fourty-four year old fat guys with groin problems beware: RSN is coming for you!
-Flig
These words by Jason Giambi. Whoever would have thought the Giambino would turn into the moral compass of the MLB. It is about time that the entire system comes out and says what happened was wrong. I know that not everyone took steroids. I know that it wasn't being handed out by the ownership. And I also know that as a fan I'm complicit in these shenanigans as well. I cheered Mark McGwire when he stepped up to the plate. Two vivid memories stick in my mind involving McGwire's home run chase and subsequent fall from grace.
1. I was watching the game with my parents. Cubbies and Cards and Marky Mark was at 61 homers. Early in the game and despite my valiant protests my mom insisted I take a shower. I told her that she better yell if McGwire comes to the plate. Just as I put the shampoo in my hair I heard a frantic yell, and so I got to watch McGwire's first AB which didn't yield the record breaking home run. I finished my shower and continued watching the game with the folks. I got to see the record breaker sitting on the couch with my dad, clean, by virtue of my mother. Thanks mom.
2. The day of the baseball steroids hearing on Capital Hill I was (conveniently) sick and had to stay home from school. So I sat there and watched what I thought were four heroes (Schilling, Palmeiro, McGwire, and Sosa) and one goat (Canseco) talk about steroids in baseball. Sammy forgot how to speak English (which led to a hilarious skit on SNL that week involving Keenan Thompson), Schilling was his usual political self (the guy's surely gonna run for office some day and I'm just glad he's a Republican so I don't have to find a way to rationalize voting for him other than the bloody sock), Palmeiro was waving fingers, Canseco loved to hear himself speak (which fit well with many of the people facing him behind the nice wooden desk), and then there was McGwire. And Mark refused "to talk about the past." Here's the guy who saved baseball. The guy I watched all summer chasing Slammin' Sammy. The guy was as heroic as a sports figure could be, and it crushed my heart.
The homers of the "steroid years" sucked me in as much as any other, but that doesn't make it right. Giambi is a better man for saying what he said knowing that it could lead to a suspension. Although knowing Giambi I doubt he would have admitted his use if he had indeed used steroids since 05. I'd like to hear more players come out and say the same. I won't hold it against them. As a fan, I'd appreciate their honesty. I'm ok with talking about the past.
But on a lighter side of things...
My Sox were rained out tonight. This means I'm relegated to watching one of the less obvious rivalry interleague matchups in the form of a Blue Jays-Phillies game. If any of my loyal readers could point out any history of rivalry beyond what the announcers have already explained (apparently having your team's spring facility located five miles from another team's spring facility makes for some heated tension........right, and Zauny is a first ballet HOF'er) that would be awesome. By virtue of my home state I root for the Phils, as long as they aren't playing the Sox of course. They've had a very "Phillie" season and any Phillie fan knows what I'm talking about. They've turned it around lately, though, which is good for the Phils. If Howard can come back and start hitting, and then Flash Gordon and Ryan Madson come back into the bullpen, they have a pretty complete team. Although they also have the Mets and Braves in front of them. It should be an interesting season in the NL East.
Speaking of interesting, a commercial for the Phillies just played where Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins repeatedly gave each other purple nurples. The receiver of the nurple would then pretend to be electrocuted. There's a lot of questions this raises, but I think the most important of them is what does Charlie Manuel, who is essentially the baseball version of Forrest Gump, think of this? On the list of people who probably shouldn't have a talk show but get one anyway, Charlie Manuel needs to be right at the top.
WOW! Great defensive play to end the game. Bases loaded, two-out, infield playing on the outfield grass Alex Rios hits a slow ground ball to third. Honest Abe Nunez charges the ball nearly colliding with Aaron Hill who is running hard for third and throws the ball to first. Wes Helms has to dive to glove the ball around the runner for a bang-bang play to end the game. This was actually exciting! A Phillies-Jays game being described as exciting. There's an accomplishment and reason number 7 (or 4,207 if your Bud Selig) for keeping interleague. And yeah, I pulled both numbers out of my ass.
As an end to this blog I'd like to give a shout out to Erik Lis, the left handed hitting 2005 9th round selection of the Minnesota Twints. Erik hit a homer off of Roger tonight in Roger's Class A debut. Good job, Erik. Red Sox Nation is proud. Fourty-four year old fat guys with groin problems beware: RSN is coming for you!
-Flig
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Derek Turnbow: Phillies MVP
While I'm sure Andrew will be the one talking about the Phillies, I couldn't resist this topic. What do you get when you mix a hard luck baseball team with an even harder luck reliever? Some of the most entertaining ends to baseball games. Watching the Phillies play the Brewers is kind of like a Home Alone movie. Everyone just wants to see the bad guys get hit in the head, burned on the hands, and fall on their asses. So I guess that makes the Brew-Crew the bad guys (only because that's how the analogy makes sense; no harsh feelings, guys...in other words I'm hoping Prince Fielder doesn't read this, get angry, and decide to eat me), and Derek Turnbow is that big pipe that comes swinging at Harry and Marv. And yes, that does make the Philadelphia Phillies Macaulay Culkin. I'll leave you fill in your own jokes here.
My team lost tonight, but that doesn't really surprise me. We're playing the second best team in the majors, and the only reason they're second best is that our win yesterday broke the tie we had with them. It's a four game set and I'd put my money on a 50-50 split. Wakefield pitched for us and Verlander pitched for the Tigers. Up to now, Wakefield was leading the bigs in ERA. I'm pretty sure this has absolutely nothing to do with Tim Wakefield and everything to do with the Gods of the Knuckleball. But don't think that I'm knocking Wakefield. He's a stand up guy and anybody who can throw one good knuckler, let alone 100 consecutive good ones is a hell of a pitcher. Even so, I think this is an equation that would need four or five Bill James's to figure out.
Right now I'm watching the highlights from Tim Hudson's near perfect game against the Nats. After Hudson finally walks a Nat, they cut to the one fan who is on his feet clapping like a fool for his team. Coincidently, the man was also the only one in the stadium who was awake. I'm sure he was a little upset that he didn't receive a baseball or jockstrap with a message on it. Perhaps Hudson could have given him a signed copy of the rub-on tatoo he has on his right wrist. What the hell is that thing anyway? At least Zumaya's tats look intimidating with the fire coming out of his hand. Hudson's mark kind of reminds me of a Rorschach Test. First thing that comes to mind? Well if I was Tim Hudson I'm sure it's "boy, these Nats are great for my ERA! Maybe Turnbow should try this..."
Tampa Bay played in Disney World tonight in an effort to make them a "Florida team and not just a Tampa Bay team." It's no wonder this didn't work; old retired Jews still root for the Yankees or Mets no matter where they are.
Well I, and the rest of you loyal readers, need to get to bed. Don't forget to watch ESPN's Wednesday night game when Julian "how-long-til-Lester's-back" Tavarez matches up against Mike Maroth. It should be an excellent chance to see our bullpen in action. Okie dokie!
-Flig
My team lost tonight, but that doesn't really surprise me. We're playing the second best team in the majors, and the only reason they're second best is that our win yesterday broke the tie we had with them. It's a four game set and I'd put my money on a 50-50 split. Wakefield pitched for us and Verlander pitched for the Tigers. Up to now, Wakefield was leading the bigs in ERA. I'm pretty sure this has absolutely nothing to do with Tim Wakefield and everything to do with the Gods of the Knuckleball. But don't think that I'm knocking Wakefield. He's a stand up guy and anybody who can throw one good knuckler, let alone 100 consecutive good ones is a hell of a pitcher. Even so, I think this is an equation that would need four or five Bill James's to figure out.
Right now I'm watching the highlights from Tim Hudson's near perfect game against the Nats. After Hudson finally walks a Nat, they cut to the one fan who is on his feet clapping like a fool for his team. Coincidently, the man was also the only one in the stadium who was awake. I'm sure he was a little upset that he didn't receive a baseball or jockstrap with a message on it. Perhaps Hudson could have given him a signed copy of the rub-on tatoo he has on his right wrist. What the hell is that thing anyway? At least Zumaya's tats look intimidating with the fire coming out of his hand. Hudson's mark kind of reminds me of a Rorschach Test. First thing that comes to mind? Well if I was Tim Hudson I'm sure it's "boy, these Nats are great for my ERA! Maybe Turnbow should try this..."
Tampa Bay played in Disney World tonight in an effort to make them a "Florida team and not just a Tampa Bay team." It's no wonder this didn't work; old retired Jews still root for the Yankees or Mets no matter where they are.
Well I, and the rest of you loyal readers, need to get to bed. Don't forget to watch ESPN's Wednesday night game when Julian "how-long-til-Lester's-back" Tavarez matches up against Mike Maroth. It should be an excellent chance to see our bullpen in action. Okie dokie!
-Flig
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Weekend thoughts
Pat may have the writing, thinking, grammatical, edge here but i have the....
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umm ill come back to that now enjoy the show....
as i ice my elbow from todays nonstop playing of guitar hero here are my thoughts on the phillies weekend series with the cubs
1. Soriano would have made an amazing phillie end of story...
2. Pat Burrell work up from his slumber friday night with two huge home runs, and then went back to sleep on sunday...is that the quickest i have ever seen a player go from curtain call to being boo'ed ....welcome to Philadelphia...
3. Someone sent the Phillies the wrong pink bats because they could not hit crap on sunday
4. Shane Victorino is going to turn out to be a very nice player. He has a cannon and is not afriad to use it. I bet you if we told him osama bin ladin was heading for home he would hit him in towel country. His hitting needs work but the power is there and i think he could be a real 20-25 homer threat once he gets going
5. Where is Jimmy Rollins and who is this non hitting bum that has replaced him
6. We should just put Ryan Howard on the 30 day DL makes sure hes really healthy...healthy enough that he can carry the bullpen in august and September...he will need to at this point.
7. Rosario, Hernandez, Geary, Condrey, Alfonseca, Castro...thats our bullpen...our closer was our opening day starter....lord help us.....
8. Tom Gordon if he can find his curve ball will make an amazing set up man to myers, it will be like him on the yankees all over again
9. Watching Myers Saturday in the non save situation he looked good. He may not have the best stuff but watching his face and him pitch he reminded me a lot of Papelbon...he doesnt look like he wants to take shit from anyone...if he can take kim myers he can take on the world..(oo low blow)...
10. The phillies are about 2 bullpen arms coming together to winning this division. Their starting pitching has been amazing and you know its only a matter of time before howard is back and swinging, however if the bullpen doesnt come together we could see a lot of games like saturday night and thats not good for anyones heart...
until next time Happy mothers day to all and to all a good night
Hi Mr. Fligge
Andrew
...
...
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umm ill come back to that now enjoy the show....
as i ice my elbow from todays nonstop playing of guitar hero here are my thoughts on the phillies weekend series with the cubs
1. Soriano would have made an amazing phillie end of story...
2. Pat Burrell work up from his slumber friday night with two huge home runs, and then went back to sleep on sunday...is that the quickest i have ever seen a player go from curtain call to being boo'ed ....welcome to Philadelphia...
3. Someone sent the Phillies the wrong pink bats because they could not hit crap on sunday
4. Shane Victorino is going to turn out to be a very nice player. He has a cannon and is not afriad to use it. I bet you if we told him osama bin ladin was heading for home he would hit him in towel country. His hitting needs work but the power is there and i think he could be a real 20-25 homer threat once he gets going
5. Where is Jimmy Rollins and who is this non hitting bum that has replaced him
6. We should just put Ryan Howard on the 30 day DL makes sure hes really healthy...healthy enough that he can carry the bullpen in august and September...he will need to at this point.
7. Rosario, Hernandez, Geary, Condrey, Alfonseca, Castro...thats our bullpen...our closer was our opening day starter....lord help us.....
8. Tom Gordon if he can find his curve ball will make an amazing set up man to myers, it will be like him on the yankees all over again
9. Watching Myers Saturday in the non save situation he looked good. He may not have the best stuff but watching his face and him pitch he reminded me a lot of Papelbon...he doesnt look like he wants to take shit from anyone...if he can take kim myers he can take on the world..(oo low blow)...
10. The phillies are about 2 bullpen arms coming together to winning this division. Their starting pitching has been amazing and you know its only a matter of time before howard is back and swinging, however if the bullpen doesnt come together we could see a lot of games like saturday night and thats not good for anyones heart...
until next time Happy mothers day to all and to all a good night
Hi Mr. Fligge
Andrew
We can win anyway
So I leave my house at 4:30 with an injured Josh Beckett and a four run deficit. I come home and find we've scored 6 runs in the ninth inning to win it and Beckett might not even miss his next start. Can baseball life get better?
This is a message to the Phillies: you guys can score every day of the week, not just one day at a time (an 11 run mark last night). I'm still pretty amazed that they give Geary the ball. You'd think they would have learned by now.
Dusty Baker is now part of the baseball tonight crew. Apparently to gain a position there you have to have gone to the Joe Morgan School of Useless Phrases. I especially loved the end of the show when each broadcaster was asked to say something very quickly and Dusty just kept uttering the names of baseball teams. Senility much? No wonder the Cubbies are going into shock with Pinella. The past few seasons they probably thought they were the A-Team at the Chicago Regional Mental Health Center. Don't get me wrong Dusty seems to be one of the nicest guys to walk the Earth, but he kind of reminds me of one of those dolls that you pull the string and they say something funny.
Speaking of Baseball Tonight, I think John Kruk might be one of the most unintentionally funny individuals on the face of the Earth. Three Kruk stories:
1. During one episode of Baseball Tonight a year or two ago, Kruk was explaining how to pick up the ball as it came out of the pitcher's hand. At the end, one of the other commentators asked him how you pickup a submarine pitcher's delivery, since Kruker had been demonstrating for the typical pitcher's delivery. Kruk replied, "Oh I never could hit those guys." One of the funniest things that isn't on youtube (or so I think).
2. The diet pill commercial where Jon Kruk appears on screen for only about 8 seconds but manages to say "Now my wife doesn't find me so disgusting!"
3. The best for last. I know this one is out there on the internet. It's from an episode of the Best Damn Sports Show Period. A comedian named Jeff Dunham whose act includes ventriloquy was on the show. One of Dunham's "characters" is a wooden puppet named Walter who loves to make fun of people. The doll was ribbing all of the people on the show that night, but then looks at Kruk and says "300 million sperm and that's the one that makes it through." Kruk was visibly angry at a piece of wood! He either forgot or didn't realize that there was a real live human being that had his hand up the puppet's ass. It was great TV.
In a somewhat related story I'm writing this from the sofa of my living room. The Fligge's have finally become wireless. Although my dad still doesn't know how to set the clock on the answering machine.
Happy Mothers Day to all my readers. So yeah, Andrew tell your mom I said Happy Mom's Day.
-Flig
This is a message to the Phillies: you guys can score every day of the week, not just one day at a time (an 11 run mark last night). I'm still pretty amazed that they give Geary the ball. You'd think they would have learned by now.
Dusty Baker is now part of the baseball tonight crew. Apparently to gain a position there you have to have gone to the Joe Morgan School of Useless Phrases. I especially loved the end of the show when each broadcaster was asked to say something very quickly and Dusty just kept uttering the names of baseball teams. Senility much? No wonder the Cubbies are going into shock with Pinella. The past few seasons they probably thought they were the A-Team at the Chicago Regional Mental Health Center. Don't get me wrong Dusty seems to be one of the nicest guys to walk the Earth, but he kind of reminds me of one of those dolls that you pull the string and they say something funny.
Speaking of Baseball Tonight, I think John Kruk might be one of the most unintentionally funny individuals on the face of the Earth. Three Kruk stories:
1. During one episode of Baseball Tonight a year or two ago, Kruk was explaining how to pick up the ball as it came out of the pitcher's hand. At the end, one of the other commentators asked him how you pickup a submarine pitcher's delivery, since Kruker had been demonstrating for the typical pitcher's delivery. Kruk replied, "Oh I never could hit those guys." One of the funniest things that isn't on youtube (or so I think).
2. The diet pill commercial where Jon Kruk appears on screen for only about 8 seconds but manages to say "Now my wife doesn't find me so disgusting!"
3. The best for last. I know this one is out there on the internet. It's from an episode of the Best Damn Sports Show Period. A comedian named Jeff Dunham whose act includes ventriloquy was on the show. One of Dunham's "characters" is a wooden puppet named Walter who loves to make fun of people. The doll was ribbing all of the people on the show that night, but then looks at Kruk and says "300 million sperm and that's the one that makes it through." Kruk was visibly angry at a piece of wood! He either forgot or didn't realize that there was a real live human being that had his hand up the puppet's ass. It was great TV.
In a somewhat related story I'm writing this from the sofa of my living room. The Fligge's have finally become wireless. Although my dad still doesn't know how to set the clock on the answering machine.
Happy Mothers Day to all my readers. So yeah, Andrew tell your mom I said Happy Mom's Day.
-Flig
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Letter to Simmons
So I guess you could say that in our minds, Bill Simmons is a sportswriter's God. Or just a God without even bringing sportswriting into the mix. Just like a dog who tries to please its master only to be ignored, I sent what is surely the first of many duly ignored emails to Simmons. It's about Roger. And it goes like this:
Roger Clemens is back in baseball (again) and his biggest fan is excited to see him. That biggest fan is Roger himself. You and I share a hatred for this man. I mean, all he had to do was mention us, the fans, once when he left but no, Roger showed his true colors. He has one allegiance: his wallet. Is Roger returning to the Yankees for the fans? Is he going back because that's where he won his rings? Of course not. Roger is going back because the Yankees are a bottomless pit of cash and they're allowing him to come and go as he pleases. He doesn't have to be there on his off days. He doesn't even have to be in the same state as the rest of the team as long as he shows up every fifth day to pitch. Some say that he does this because he's a family man. So what does that make every other baseball player without the same luxury? Is it a league filled with dead-beat dads? No, of course it isn't. Because of his stature Roger may be able to secure a contract that allows him to be a better father, but now he's a dead-beat teammate. I can't imagine playing with a guy who decides he's so good that he doesn't have to show up in February, drive across
I hope we dont Greg Zaun this
The following blogs are the byproduct (pros to andrew for using a polysyllabic there...and yeah he's looking that word up right now) of two bored Muhlenberg Scholars (ok, one's a Dana but we won't hold that against him) who are looking for ANYTHING to do besides their work. The following blogs are purely our own opinions. They more than likely do not contain anything even closely resembling a fact and probably won't be coherent anyway. Then again, who is reading this anyway. (thanks dad...for clicking the link i sent you and pretending that you read this far) Thank you, and enjoy the ballgame.
But not you Greg Zaun.
But not you Greg Zaun.
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