Running 2011 Baseball Thread, Vol. I: Dedicated to spnited

Not to sound like the dude who rooted against the Arizona Cardinals when they made it to the Super Bowl, but as a Sox fan, I'm kind of glad they got bounced the way they did. The whole organization and fanbase needs a dose of humble pie. This team was going nowhere in the postseason, and maybe this will walk back some of the insufferable arrogance that has become impossible to ignore. It's hard to admit this, but so many Sox fans have become gigantic assholes in the last few years. And it really does feel like the fan behavior either influences the entitlement the players now feel, or it's a reflection of a collection of jerks on the field. Yankee fans built up their insufferable arrogance over the course of about 90 years. The Sox microwaved theirs, and micorwaved food always leaves you feeling disgusted.

I don't know. Maybe I'm projecting too much, but I never felt connected to this team all year. The Rays just seem to deserve this so much more.

 

Can't think that there's ever been a night like this in MLB history. Or at least in the television era.

The only regular season night I can think of that even comes remotely close is the Dave Stewart-Fernando Valenzuela double no-hitter night back in 1990. Both games were on ESPN and were essentially back-to-back because the A's were in Toronto & the Dodgers were at home.

 

I hate the extended version of the strike call, but I'm glad it doesn't seem to extend to other facets. Can you imagine that kind of a wait on a close call at the plate?

 

Me likey.

I jokingly say the Red Sox comeback from 3-0 down ruined baseball. Boston's lot in life was the miserable loss -- the Bucky Dent homer, Bill Buckner, losing to the Reds in 1975 in Game 7. But the Sawx seemed to always be there in the end, unlike many other teams (say, the Indians, for example). Boston may have patented the crushing loss, but your team has to be in position to take the crushing loss. Theirs always was.

If they had finally won the World Series in just regular old fashion, without the greatest comeback of all time against their arch-rival, it would have been much better for everyone. Instead it was like a comic-book rewrite where Superman dies but then comes back to life a few issues later. Boston's victory in 2004 ruined continuity and opened up a parallel universe ala Fringe. I really think we've been living in the wrong universe for the past half-decade or so.

As happens in comics, even the rewrites get rewritten. Perhaps the Red Sox utter collapse this last month is because someone out there remembered what the universe was supposed to be like and has finally after all this time been able to restore the world to its rightful state. Red Sox lose, screwed by the Yankees. Only now if they cry about it they can wipe their tears away with the two championship pennants from the last seven years.

 

I did. I was "watching" the game in front of me, but had the mlb.com gameday app or whatever it is up on my phone. I gleefully reported every hit and every run of that amazing first inning to the dooshes sitting next to me.

 

Oh, please.

Every team has heartbreaks. They just don't get mythologized and romanticized the way the Red Sox have. Well, except for the Cubs.

The whole Red Sox mythology is just another example of people trying to impose order on a chaotic universe.

 

I liked George Will in the Baseball series talking about intellectuals treating the Red Sox and their woes as metaphors for "life, death, the federal reserve board ..."

 

When they hadn't won a Series since 1918 and were lovable chokers, the Red Sox were sort of endearing. I was dating a girl from Farmington, Maine, in the early 1990s and I sort of became a bit of a Sox fan. But since they won two World Series, their fans are just as insufferable, pompous, whiny and douchy as Cowboys or Gator fans.

 

William of Greenwich:

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7033950/a-running-diary-game-162

 

Does anybody think the Red Sox get Jerry Bruckenheimered during the offseason? I could see management possibly blowing shit up (unless John Henry's still busy playing with his new NASCAR and Premier League toys).
I'd equate what happened to the Sox this year with Borders - management getting so caught up with the ancillaries (coffee shops, DVDs, CDs, etc.) that they didn't keep a close enough eye on their core business. Last night was the big climax.
Time to let it go, fellow Sox fans. For all the talk about the $160M payroll, that's gone next year (and I don't see many free agents worth the splurge).
* J.D. Drew and his $14M off the books.
* Dice-K off the books.
* Wakefield, in all likelihood, retires (I don't see him trying to catch on elsewhere).
* Varitek (though no longer a big salary) is probably let go. The jury's still out on Lavarnway as catcher of the future, but he's a big righthanded bat, and the Orioles didn't exactly run wild on him the past two nights.
* Ortiz is gone. Youkilis is probably through as an everyday player in the field and has two more years, so he becomes the principal DH. Big Papi had a good enough season to command more years than the Sox are likely to offer him (though the Bronx won't be interested, since they're going through the Youk issue with A-Rod), and he'll bring a compensatory first-rounder. At third next year, Lowrie/Aviles is good enough to get by until Will Middlebrooks gets enough AAA.
* As great a season as Papelbon had, he probably cost himself a few million last night. I could see the Yankees trying to money-whip him (they snatched the Rays' closer last year, why not snatch the Sox' and promise HIM he'll be Rivera's heir apparent?). Since the last month has killed the "if Pap leaves, we'll let Bard close" meme, chances are the Sox will overpay to keep him here (he's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he's proven, unlike Lackey or Crawford, he can handle the big stage of a Boston or New York).
* Guys that need to get paid: Pap (if he stays), Ellsbury and Aceves.
* Another starting pitcher is needed, since the Sox farm system, which has pissed gold the past 10 years, is tapped out, at least for now. It may be time to restock, and if some team looking for a starting pitcher mentions Beckett, they're at least worth a listen.
* A housecleaning may include a new manager and GM. I fear Tito takes the fall, and I wonder how well Theo and Lucchino are getting along. If the Cubs money-whip Theo, management lets him go.
A little less googly-moogly over Fenway-Roush and Liverpool AC, and a little more attention to the core asset, please.

 

Would be nice if MLB released the times of Saturday & Sunday's games ... just sayin'.

 

You should go shit on The Odyssey while you're at it.