The Parade

Today was the day when thousands of Red Sox fans waited along the streets of Boston to catch a glimpse of their favorite team as they rolled on by to thank the fans and celebrate with them. As always, I have many pictures to document the parade (there are way too many but I couldn't stop, they were all too good):

Something tells me Papelbon is a really fun guy to hang out with:

I was going to caption this one with something about how cool it would be to be on one of these flights, but I'm so distracted by the size of Varitek's arms...huge!

Love this kid:And I want his jersey!

More Papelbon being awesome:

Who doesn't love Don?

Gotta have a picture of the man, David Ortiz:

And the man that gave America free tacos eats his!

Love the Pedroia:

Our fearless leader:

Some pitchers for your viewing pleasure:

More Papelbon (never enough!):

And the best of them all, Varitek holding the "Resign Lowell" sign:

As far as actual news goes, there's Schilling writing goodbye letters to his teammates and filing for free agency. "There's a very realistic chance I won't ever play with them again."

It's too soon to think about all that. Can we just think about winning the World Series for the next few weeks? Slow it down, the game was only a couple days ago and they're already talking about next year!

Does it Get Any Better?

It's still true the next day -- the Boston Red Sox totally won the World Series last night.

I know anything I say right now can't capture the moment we all experienced last night when our team won their 2nd title in 4 years, but I'll try! My favorite part about the postseason, and really the whole year, was that this was such a team effort. Of course, we have the big names, Ortiz, Ramirez, Beckett...but even when they weren't awesome (well, Beckett was always awesome), the rest of the team came through and got hits and RBIs. Even trying to figure out who the MVP was, I couldn't really decide on anyone because they all contributed in their own way. But hearing it was Lowell, well, it made sense (especially since he should be the AL MVP and won't get it).

I think the Globe front page says it all--they are the best, and they certainly proved it these past few weeks. Down but never out, that's who they are. Man, am I going to miss this season...and this team, because you know it won't look the same come spring training. So let's enjoy it while we can....and bask in the knowledge that WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!!!

World Series Game 3 (Emotional Rollercoaster)

12:56 am: Let me preface this by saying the following paragraphs were written at exactly the times/innings listed. So what I'm really saying is, I'm kind of psychic...

Pre-game: Jacoby Ellsbury (see, now that he has proven himself, I will bestow upon him the honor of calling him by his real name instead of Jacob) does the cutest starting lineup ever. Had to say that, because it's the truth. I think I've mentioned that I've decided he will be my second favorite player on the team, behind Pedroia of course. Love those rookies!

8:30 pm: Josh Fogg, in the regular season, was 10-9 with a 4.94 ERA. This should be good.

3rd inning: Same thing as the first: Ellsbury and Pedroia got on (JE with a double and DP with a bunt). In the 1st, the next 3 batters were out. This time, Ortiz hit an RBI double, Manny was IBB'd, Lowell hit a 2-RBI single, Drew was out, & Varitek hit a single that Manny tried to score on, but was called out at the plate. Boo. Anyway, Lugo walked and then Matsuzaka got a hit! Scored Lowell and Varitek to put us up 5-0. Ellsbury got ANOTHER double and that made it 6-0!

6th inning: Not so great. After 5 good innings, Matsuzaka got the boot after allowing 2 walks, then Javier Lopez came in and gave up an RBI single. He then proceeded to give up another RBI single. Lopez=not good. Timlin came in and Spilborghs hit one that Ellsbury caught at the very, very end of the field. So close and so good for us. Then Lugo caught a ball at the very top of his jump, it was pretty. Kept the lead safe.

11:40 pm: Timlin has started to suck. 2 batters faced, 2 men on. Perhaps it is time for him to make his exit? Yes! Okajima is coming in to stop the pain. FOX tried to jinx it by saying Okajima has allowed 0 runs in 9 2/3 innings and Papelbon has also allowed 0 runs in 7 2/3. Would it work? AHH YES IT WORKED HE GAVE UP A 3-RUN HR ON THE FIRST PITCH DAMN YOU FOX!!

12:12 am: ELLSBURY YOU WONDERFUL MAN! 4th hit of the night=another run to put it at 7-5! Pedroia!! Another hit for him to make it 9-5! Man, can I pick 'em or can I pick 'em?

9th inning: Lowell just stole 3rd base. How awesomely unexpected.
Bottom of 9th: 3 outs to go for a 3-0 lead..a deficit I don't think Colorado has a chance at overcoming. Easy out, easy out, triple (which one doesn't belong), easy out. So funny to see the depressed Rockies fans after they were cheering like crazy when it was 6-5.

12:58 am: So what did I mean by the psychic thing? Ellsbury and Pedroia had amazing games, Ellsbury especially, and I'm pretty sure I had everything to do with that by calling them out in the pre-game :)

LOVED the post-game interviews with JE and DP!

Let us all remember this day for what it really is: in 2004, Boston won the World Series on this day. So it was fantastic 3 years ago and pretty damn good in '07.

See you all tomorrow, on a night that could hold a World Series championship for the Sox..

Only 2 More to Go

That game made me a lot more nervous than Wednesday's game, but I do have to admit to something: I kind of fell asleep.

It was either the 7th or 8th inning (I was so tired I can't even remember!) and Schilling had pitched a good one, Okajima was doing his usual awesomeness, and then...I couldn't keep my eyes open! There is no excuse for falling asleep during a Red Sox World Series game, so I will not offer any. But I did wake up in the 9th. And I saw Papelbon was in, I knew we'd win, and....I fell back asleep. I KNOW IT IS WRONG but I have to get up early yo!

Okay, but what I did see was pretty funny. They showed the Holliday pick off (great article detailing the Rockies' suckiness here) on replay and that was some pretty good stuff. Not too many hits from Boston last night, but apparently we had enough: usually 2 runs on 6 hits isn't enough to win a ballgame, but it is when you play against a very disheveled Colorado Rockies team.

Let the dominance continue as they head to Colorado. Actually, it might be nice to lose a game so Fenway can celebrate Boston winning. Yes, that might be nice. The way they're playing though...we'll be celebrating in Colorado for sure.

Pics time!Looks like my advice to Mrs. Papelbon was taken! Much, much better.

That is just way too cute not to post!

AL MVP, right here.

I never need a reason for putting up a Dustin Pedroia picture!

Can They All Be Like This?

Game's not over yet, but the current score of 13-1 tells me we won it.

Yo. Beckett is just incredible. The entire lineup is swinging the bat amazingly well. There is not a single flaw amongst them all!

Colorado was losing with the first pitch of the night, when Pedroia sent the ball over the Monster (well, on top of it, but at Fenway that's a HR). When stuff like that happens...you know it's gonna be a good game.

DP's leadoff home run. Chants of "DP! DP! DP!" were heard 'round the house.

"The Man"

I kind of feel bad for the pitchers. Not bad enough to want to see them pitch well, but bad nonetheless. I mean, look at Francis' face! I kind of want to hug him. Then thank him for doing such a mediocre job.

This one is just a cool picture.

Gagne can't believe he got through a whole inning without allowing a run. Neither can we.

The AL Pennant is Back Home

Five minutes ago, the only thing I remembered about winning the AL pennant last night was I was sick for the majority of the game.

With a little prodding though, I now recall Pedroia being incredibly awesome; Beckett getting the most deserved MVP award ever; 3 people holding up MVP signs when Lowell was up, thus proving I am not the only one who thinks Lowell is the AL MVP; Papelbon's excited/exuberant/a little scary face when Crisp caught that last ball; Matsuzaka doing better than I'd expected/hoped.

What a night.

That game literally had me ill for the most part, even though we always had the lead and I felt the whole day that we would win, it was still very uncomfortable to watch. Anything can happen in baseball. And when Okajima stayed in 2 batters longer than I wanted, I started feeling the sickness hard...and then Papelbon came in and I was 100% better. Where would we be without him?!

Actually, where would we be without everyone on this team? Ortiz and Manny were hot the first few games and when their production decreased a bit, the bottom half stepped it up and played great. This is a well-rounded team that totally deserves to be where they are now.

Next up, a World Series win. I don't think those Rockies stand a chance.

Now for the pictures!

Oh yeah, Millar was there in the beginning! What a great way to start the game.

I'm so glad to have this picture--we saw this sign last night and thought it was great. So many clever Boston fans!

A great one for those dumb towel-waving Cleveland people. The man holding the sign had a great line: "We're not a bunch of towel waving geeks..Don't wave a white towel unless you are surrendering."

I'm throwing this one in here just because Harold Reynolds is in it and I miss him!!

What the hell kind of Red Sox wife doesn't wear a Red Sox shirt?


See ya Wednesday!!

Yo Drew

J.D. Drew just hit a grand slam!!

Yo, it could not have been better scripted! He needed that in a big way for his confidence...and we needed it too! What a great way to start the game!

Hopefully when it ends we'll be as excited as we were when it began!

EDIT #1: 9:02: SCHILLING GIVES UP HR, NO SURPRISE THERE

EDIT #2: 10:01: 10-1 lead this is awesome!!

EDIT #3: 12:58: Game over! Huge 12-2 win. Schilling was so much better than I had even hoped for (7 strong); everyone was hitting, especially the bottom of the order (Lugo hit a beauty down the 3rd base line)..it was such a great game to watch. Funniest moment: Youkilis getting plunked on the head in a rundown (and he ended up safe!).

Game 7 time. Be there or be--wait, where else are you gonna be?!

Josh Rules

If it wasn't official before, it is now: The Only hope we have left is Josh Beckett.

He pitched 8 wonderful innings last night to get us a win and put the series at 3 games to 2. Unfortunately, what that means is Beckett's game is over, and we have Schilling up next. Who was NOT that good during his last start. We really need him to pitch a good one to get us to Game 7, so if need be, Josh can come out of the bullpen.

But that bottom of the order? You all cannot get away with 0 or 1 hits all night! They need to improve the most, because we can't win without them coming through.

Boyfriend #3 had a good game last night (might I add, finally), with 2 hits, one of which was a double. It gets hard when your favorite player is not playing well...last night was a pleasant surprise.

And where were Boyfriends #1 and 2 yesterday? Playing each other! Boyfriend #2 beat #1, which I was not too happy about. But it was really close, and it was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC to watch them!!

P.S. In case it is not readily apparent, #1 is Juan Carlos Ferrero, #2 is Novak Djokovic, and #3 is Dustin Pedroia (if you didn't get #3, you should reconsider your fandom). Word to #2--lose the facial hair! PLEASE!

Dumb Fest

Another day, another loss, another game closer to being out of the postseason.

Everything that could go wrong is going wrong. Pitchers can't make it through 5 innings, the offense is hitting ground ball after ground ball after fly out, Cleveland is taking advantage of every opportunity they get. Beckett is going on Thursday, the one positive thing we have to look forward to. The offense better bring it, and by that, I mean Pedroia, Drew, Crisp, Lugo, Varitek...oh screw it, I mean ALL OF THEM.

I guess we're in it for the long haul, now we have to have 7 games instead of the 4 that I hoped for before the series began.

Umpire Ruins World

During last night's game, I swear...I have NEVER, EVER, even come close in my entire life, to seeing an umpire make more bad calls. Strikes were called balls, balls were called strikes, Manny should have walked to load the bases with one out but instead he GIDP. If this picture helps, this is what it looked like:
That umpire controlled the game and the batters, pitchers, catchers...had NOTHING to do with it. At the end, Boston players were swinging at everything, because ANYTHING was a strike.

I'd love to punch him in his stupid face.

Oh, Gagne

I am sure Eric Gagne is a very nice man.

I bet he is a lot of things, actually: maybe he can cook, maybe he's a really good dad, maybe he does a lot of charity work..

But I know one thing he can't do: close games. Wait, close games in a GOOD way.

It's a 6-6 game. Each team has played really well, actually, clawing their way back whenever they've been down. Papelbon has pitched more than he's pitched at any one time the whole season. Who is left in the bullpen? Eric Gagne, Javier Lopez, and Jon Lester. Who is the one man you don't pick in a 6-6 game in the 11th inning? Gagne. Who did Francona pick? Gagne.

He got one out, and I was thinking maybe I shouldn't have been so hard on him. Then Grady Sizemore swung his bat and from there, everything came crashing down. By the time Lopez came in to relieve Gagne, it was way, WAY too late.

I don't know. I feel bad for him, since he knows that every time the fans see him come in, we know we're gonna lose. He must feel like crap right now, I'm sure it isn't easy being called on in the 11th, knowing you haven't been throwing your best stuff for months now. But something has to happen to make him the way he used to be. He's like the Alex Rodriguez of Boston: get in a must-win situation for a major team in the playoffs and he chokes.

One thing I did NOT like last night: the booing. People, I know he sucked and he blew the game but you must not boo! That is certainly not how fans react to struggling players (and yes, I realize he's been struggling since he came to Boston), and the booing DOES NOT HELP.

By the way, Curt Schilling was so not great last night. A better outing from him would have gone a long way. The 3-run HR, that we could have done without. And I don't want to overlook Ortiz' hustle to get to 1st, followed by a Manny home run and a Lowell home run that without, we wouldn't have even gone to extra innings. So kudos to them, sorry it ended the way it did. And they were all so happy until the end...

It is Done

That's it, we are going to the ALCS!

The Red Sox just completed a 3-game sweep of the Angels, quite easily, to the tune of 9-1. A 7-run 8th inning sealed the deal for us. Those other 2 runs came early in the game from 2 solo home runs from Mr. Ortiz and Mr. Ramirez.

The Player of the Game was the starting pitcher, Mr. Curt Schilling, who went 7 innings and allowed absolutely nothing. Well, 6 hits, but nothing of meaning on the scoreboard. It was a really great outing from him, and with his postseason performances of past, it was expected!

Do you feel a ring??

A Perfect Friday

Don't expect the Angels to walk Ortiz to get to Manny again!

The walk-off 3-run home run from Ramirez was a perfect way to end the night, after Ortiz was IBB'd twice in the game. Manny was having none of that and this picture says it all:

Matsuzaka was not perfect, but he only gave up 3 runs; to Boston's offense, not that much of a threat. The bullpen, however, was perfect: they didn't allow a single run. Papelbon was so excited to get out of the 8th and 9th innings:

A special thanks to this kid, who saved an out by taking the ball from the Angels catcher and allowing the Sox to keep their inning going:

And without J.D. Drew, who singled in the first with bases loaded, the game might not have ended in our favor.

Also, the Yankees losing was fantastic.

SO Impressive

Josh Beckett is the new MVP of the world.

He retired 19 batters in a row, only allowed 4 hits over 9 innings, threw 83 strikes in 108 pitches, and most important of all: the bullpen was not used.

He was just great. Impeccable. Amazing. Exactly what we needed. I cannot stress enough how awesome he was!

Offense was very helpful, with David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis contributing home runs and Lowell RBI-ing Manny Ramirez.

If this is how they play over the next month....watch out.

It's That Time of Year

Well, here we are. Regular season is over (except for those 2 suckers the Padres and Rockies) and we have the postseason to look forward to.

A List of Things:

1. Beckett is pitching Game 1. Which is fantastic and really important. I'd love a 3 game series and Beckett is the man to get us off to a winning start. Matsuzaka will pitch Game 2, hopefully he will do well and if not, Schilling can pick things up in Game 3. They'll all be fine, though.

2. I am somewhat depressed that we have to play the Angels. I LOVE Vlad Guerrero, but not as much as any Boston player! It will still suck to have to play against my second favorite team. But I will get over it :)

3. It's officially October! It's going to start getting cold (okay, maybe not where I live but definitely in Boston) and it's really going to start feeling like World Series time soon. I wish I was up in New England, because it's just not the same when you're hundreds of miles away!