Red Sox Reality Check

"David Wells was hired to win this game." I think Mike Lupica owns this one, but it might be John Dennis. Whoever, whenever, they were right. Wells, the mercurial lefty (redundancy) came through beating The Team That Must Never Be Named in the ballpark that he'd like to blow up. Mike Timlin celenrated winning the 10th Player car with a vital save, while the 'LayDown Dogs White Sox' are tied with the Tribe 1-1 in extra innings. Gerry Moses is on the post-game show with Bob Lobel, and Gerry is a nice man. I met him a few years back and asked about Yazoo, MS. He said, "how do you know I'm from Yazoo?" I replied, "Red Sox fans know these things." Sweating the small things won tonight's game, from stolen bases by Johnny Damon, to pretty good defense, strategic relief by the bad-mouthed (by me as much as anyone) bullpen, but mostly Mr. Wells winning number 15 and ringing the cash register. Wells is now tied for 7th in the league in wins, one ...

It largely boils down to a four game season, with anything less than three wins (barring total collapse by Cleveland) guaranteeing an early exit. Arroyo-yo was at the bottom of his game last night as the Jays dropped another bomb on the Sox. As for the overall morale of the team, who can know? Not since the Clemens-Greenwell fiascos of the past has the end-of-season complaining reached these crescendos. Someone argues that Schilling gets a free pass (bloody sock victories over your mortal enemy does that) while Damon deserves his own special commentary. A patient came to my office talking about the games. He had recently been laid off, but mostly has worked two blue collar jobs to make ends meet, in tough physical environments. He said that working a full day isn't hard enough, but often he would then work landscaping or plowing snow (in season) and have to go back to work the next day. That's tough, and that's just to pay the bills. Joe Theismann wrote about Joe Gibbs sayi...

Tony LaRussa ruined baseball. Although statistics-based performance became the rage, the lefty-righty situational strategy became a drag on the game. Everyone's a specialist. Be like Mike, Myers that is. The Jesse Oroscos, Lee Guettermans, Buddy Grooms, and others will have a job as long as they can't collect from Social Security. With eight games to go in the regular season, the Sox and The Team That Must Never Be Named move into a dead heat. Five game winner Jaret Wright remains stuck on five as the Jays handle the competition. I don't have a problem with Hansen coming in. You can't ask for the strong-armed kids and then curse them when they can't deliver every time. Plenty of 'finesse' vets haven't gotten it done this season either. 'Home' crowds on the road create a surreal atmosphere, as though the Red Sox got a new home ballpark. Were two-thirds of the fans there pulling for the Sox? Do the Orioles hate that other team in the division enoug...

The Red Sox won the World Season last year, thanks to the biggest collapse in the history of professional sports, orchestrated by the New York Yankees. With just more than a week to go in the season, can the Yankees repeat last year's el foldo and maybe even miss the playoffs entirely? After all, there are small children in New York who have never witnessed a Yankee Championship. Brian Cashman has his closet well-stocked with Arid, Secret, Right Guard, but hopefully not cyanide as his neck is on the line in the near future with the 'World Series or Bust' posters surely adorning much of the Bronx. Cashman's main catches, Randy Johnson, Carl Pavano, and Jaret Wright collectively led the league in missed starts, and the National Leaguers found that American League lineups had nine hitters, including the particularly potent DHs nowhere to be found in the Senior Circuit. Gary Sheffield limps down the stretch, must still be off the juice, while Jason G. bulks up again. Must b...

To me, true success in life would be to develop both physically and spiritually to our fullest and to endure to the end!" - Harmon Killebrew Watching the Red Sox often becomes a religious experience - awe and penance. As we rapidly approach the last week of the baseball season, the Red Sox pitching failed them, as a solid performance by Tim Wakefield morphed into a nightmare of 'wild in the strike zone' by Mike Timlin, who couldn't hit his spots. Timlin escaped a couple of hanging pitches to Jonny Gomes, who eventually capitalized with a gap triple. The Sox have a day off to lick their wounds and (maybe) probably drink heavily to forget. Baseball players have to have a short memory to deal with the inevitable failure attendant in baseball. Great pitchers win 60 percent of their games; great hitters succeed over three times in ten. So Sox fans will sleep fitfully. Some will drink, smoke, or eat too much, dogs will wonder why their masters curse, and too many will sullen...

The Red Sox haven't played scintillating ball lately. Whether it's fatigue, collective slumping, or just the vicissitudes of baseball, who can say? I don't think that lack of effort or intensity generally becomes a cogent explanation for pennant contenders in September. You'll never tell me that Ortiz, Varitek, Nixon, or Mueller are dogging it. Dog-tired, maybe. "Drive for show and put for dough." Maybe it's hit for show and pitch for dough in September. The Sox 'ace' slot lists Tim Wakefield, with the number two, three, and four spots are open, and Matt Clement has become (although a very standup guy) Mr. Inconsistent. The Sprowlism of 1978 has never reared its ugly head, and at times, Papelbon, DelCarmen, and now Hansen have looked like major league pitchers. The same hasn't exactly been true for DiNardo thus far in his return. So, with the finger squarely on the panic button, we watch the Sox respond with a Ray-burning 10 runs so far in four...

Only one word describes my feelings about Keith Foulke - ambivalence. Foulke had a proven track record before signing on as a mercenary (coming for the top dollar), and last year he deserved to be the World Series MVP. He threw strikes, controlling the zone with both his fastball and his 'Bugs Bunny' changeup. He pitched intelligently, made few mistakes, and stayed away from his weakness, breaking stuff. This season has just been a nightmare for him, between personal issues (one's home life does make a difference), professional ones, and injuries. I'd feel sorry for him whether he were making the minimum or winning the lottery annually if his life were totally miserable. Yesterday, he exposed that misery to the public on his weekly radio gig. To paraphrase Deion Sanders, "he's a baseball player, not a baseball fan." So it comes down to a choice for Red Sox fans, do we have some compassion for the player, or just beat on him, because that 's what northe...

Mid-September in Boston, no longer Loserville but the City of Champions. Whatever the sentiment on "Idiot Radio", the Fan on the Street isn't feeling 100% confident with both the Team That Must Never Be Named and the resurgent Tribe breathing down our collective necks. All of which calls for a departure from sturm and drang (a trip here should be an educational experience) to tongue-in-cheek. How do the organizations of the World Champion Red Sox and the thrice World Champion New England Patriots stack up? We're all familiar with John Henry, lead owner of the Sox, billionaire trader (nerves of steel, wallet of platinum) who knows not only how many RBI David Ortiz has, but the value of a franc, be it French, Swiss, or Belgian. Somehow I'm betting that his safety deposit box is stuffed with gold doubloons, not Hank Aaron baseball cards. In contrast, nouveau riche Bob Kraft, has gone from 'The Paper Guy' to a candidate for the lead role in the remake of '...

I don't have a lot to add to the MVP discussions but that never stopped me before. Winning counts more than whining, and I don't know of anything that prohibits any position player or pitcher from winning the award. Obviously, a designated hitter doesn't get additional points for his defensive contribution, but should he be penalized for something he doesn't do? I don't have a problem with supremely dominant pitchers winning the award either, starter or reliever, if they 'deserve' it. I'm on board with the concept of the Player of the Year Award, which can go to the best player, even if his team underachieves. A-Rod would be the odds-on favorite every year, and his teams have coincidentally underachieved since his Seattle days. It's hard to be the league Most Valuable Player on a losing team, because they could have finished last without you. Isn't value ultimately about winning, not about statistics alone? I'm a believer in statistics, becau...

The Sox lost despite a heroic effort (sports-wise) by Tim Wakefield. My, my hasn't Jason Giambi bulked up recently, must be some good old fashioned noshing. "Life without chemicals would be impossible." The Sox have put together a few decent starts, less the Wells effort Friday, and generally, the staff doesn't look so desperate. What last year's championship run did was destroy the panic and sense of inevitability of defeat amongst the fans. The Sox lose, we are much more likely to say "get 'em tomorrow." Randy Johnson looked pretty good for a guy too old to be playing professional sports, although there was a lot of grousing on sports radio about the lineup. Feeling stupid? Listen to a few minutes of sports radio and you'll definitely emerge as though you're Einstein having slept at a Holiday Inn. This week's atrocity was Mike Adams, generally likeable, wondering how people could be so stupid as to remain in their apartments with a hurr...

Stop the madness. Curt Schilling did it today, looking like the ace of this year's staff, if not like the Schilling of old, shutting down the Yankees over eight innings allowing just two runs. The rotation is shaping up to be Schilling, Clement, Wells, Wakefield, and Arroyo, with likely Arroyo slated for bullpen duty should the Sox reach the post-season. The bullpen has generally looked more consistent, although visions of sugar plums or Craig Hansen in our heads are just that, hallucinations. Keith Foulke has been getting people out, rotten grapefruit or not, and Timlin, Papelbon, Myers, and possibly Harville look serviceable. The defense is what it is. Manny being Manny in left (for better or worse days), Johnny Damon looking tired in center at times, and Trot Nixon playing hard in right. The defense tends to look better with Cora and Olerud in there, and Renteria and Mueller have generally been solid lately. Is this a 'Championship Team'? Compared with some of the better...

The Sox 'celebrate' a Labor Day holiday with a makeup against the AL's number one seed, the Chicago White Sox. Chicago has some pretty decent starting pitching with Buehrle, Garland, and Garcia with a balanced offense. The principal weakness the White Sox have (if it counts) is that they haven't played an games under pressure for months. Sure, one could always have a 1964 Phillies collapse for the White Sox( http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/whitesox/cs-050901soxfeech,1,3746.story?coll=cs-home-headlines ) but that seems less likely than coasting into the ALDS. The Sox meanwhile have enjoyed a couple of good days from their starters, which gives Mike Timlin some needed rest and more time for the rest of the bullpen to lick their collective wounds. Over at the Usenet Sox board, fans are bemoaning the A's inability to handle the Yankees, but the Sox compete against both for playoff position so either way a contender gets a loss. The Sox clearly co...

"That which we are, we are, and if we are to be any better, now is the time to begin." Alfred Lord Tennyson As we cruise into September, we face the reality of a team without good pitching or defense (mediocre), but with astonishing offensive potency. Or, as they say, it is better to be important than impotent. Signing Jason Varitek for all that dinero looks to be a good investment, at least in year one of the deal. Although Damon has been outstanding, Varitek is the guy they would miss the most. Edgar Renteria got off to a slow start, both offensively and defensively, but he continues to advance, with his batting average at .288 (as I type), and 84 runs scored on the year. Terry Francona seems to take a lot of abuse for a manager who's enjoyed an awful lot of success. The Sox keep manufacturing runs via hitting behind the runner (Damon tonight, Cora last night), taking the extra base (Kapler, Renteria tonight), and sacrifice flies... Maybe Manny wouldn't get so many ...