The End of the 2009 Season

Well.

What a day.

Up 5-1 and then lose 7-6. That was not what I was expecting.

Everything had been going so well. Pedroia had a 2 RBI double, Drew hit a HR, they grabbed an insurance run in the 8th to go up 6-4....and Papelbon was coming in to pitch the 9th, after picking off some dude at 1st to end the 8th.


And then....the world fell off its axis and the Red Sox lost as Papelbon gave up 3 runs.

Still in shock. I thought for sure I'd have a Sox game to watch tomorrow night.

Did I say I liked the Angels before? Well, I think I changed my mind.

And P.S. What the HELL was up with the umpires this series? These fools are supposed to be the best of the best? Sad.

Oh, and....I'm not mad at Papelbon. I don't know what the hell happened to him, but I'm not mad. Shocked is still the only word I can come up with. No one is more mad at Papelbon than Papelbon...he doesn't need us fans mad at him, too.

A Loong Time

I am deeply ashamed for not posting during the entire month of September. Really, it wasn't the greatest month for Boston, but I could have at least said something, right. It's amazing, medical school takes your soul and doesn't let go...but I get in as much baseball as I can.

Anyway, in the long absence, Boston got the wild card and the Yankees, who are losing 12-1 right now (yes it means nothing but hey, it's a nice thing to look at), are champs of the A.L. East this year. And honestly...and please know that this pains me...they are a really freaking good team. I still have 100% confidence that the Sox will beat them in the postseason (unless of course NY doesn't make it to the ALCS!) despite the couple of sweeps we've had to suffer through of late. October is a whole different animal...and this last series will be nothing but a distant memory...kind of like any memory of my normal life...

Youkilis just got a couple RBI to put Boston up 6-2 against the Indians. Nice!

So we are playing the Angels in the ALDS next week (next week!), which is NEVER a bad thing. How much have we owned L.A. over the years? Haven't they won one game in 4 series? And that, my friends, is a trend that never needs to end. What are the chances Detroit or Minnesota can stop the Yanks? I don't think it's too likely, but that makes it all the more interesting. Who doesn't love a Boston/NY ALCS matchup*?

*Yes, I know, a lot of people. But they are just mad because their teams didn't make it. Obviously.

Yay for August 2nd!

Where will I be Sunday, August 2nd?

Why, in Baltimore, for my annual road trip to see a Red Sox/Orioles game!

(Except last year it didn't happen because my tickets were for mid-August and I was in school. But that doesn't count.)

ALL I WANT IS WAKEFIELD NOT TO PITCH. I swear he is out there EVERY time we see a game (except once, I think Schilling pitched). And I want them to win, otherwise those Orioles fans are quite rude.

All Good Things....

I didn't want to have to write this post, but....I must.

The Rays won. As you know. Boston fought hard these last few games but couldn't pull it out in the end.

I am very depressed.

But, I guess we can't win every year. Now we just have to root for the Phillies. Because the Rays are now my least favorite team.

One comment: Why do all the Boston hitters suddenly decide to get hits when there are 2 outs? Why can we only get hits with 2 outs? That is not going to win games.

And one more thing: That was the same umpire as Game 2. He single-handedly lost the game for Boston. Okay, maybe it wasn't that dramatic but it IS true since we would have won in 6 if he hadn't cheated in Game 2.

Another year....

As Expected!

As I expected, it was a very close game last night between the Sox and Rays. What was not expected was just how many times Matsuzaka scared the crap out of me! He got himself into a bunch of tight places and yet, as you know, he worked out of every one. He even had a no-hitter going throughout most of the game (which my mother jinxed!). Boston won the game 2-0 and that puts us up 1-0 in the ALCS.

If I could, for a brief moment, discuss the NLCS (I know, who cares). Philadelphia is up 2-0 over the Dodgers. This is good news and also bad news.
Good: Don't really want to see Manny do well. SORRY I am....bitter? That's not the right word but the very season he leaves Boston he cannot win the World Series!!
Bad: I want Joe Torre to do well now that he isn't with the Yankees. Not because I like him but because I want NYY to see the mistake they made (like they don't already, right!)

So I don't know about that one.

But the ALCS is going according to plan. They play again tonight, with Beckett going against Kazmir. Kazmir went 12-8 this season (3.49 ERA), which doesn't sound too great but then again, Beckett was 12-10 (4.03 ERA). So who knows. Be there and find out!!

I am Back For Now

My life has been all anatomy for the last week and now I am ready to write a post.

(Though, don't think for a minute I let a huge exam get in the way of watching the Red Sox!)

I am slightly disappointed that we let the Angels win a game (well, Javier Lopez let the Angels win a game). But that series is over, Boston won, of course, and now...

Now they have to play those damn Rays.

The ones who were supposed to freak out and lose.

They did not lose.

They have been a problem all season long.

Time to lose, Rays!!

Friday night. Matsuzaka is going. Be there or be square!

Not a Good Performance

I would really like a win today. Losing by 11 to the Blue Jays is not exactly comforting when you know the next series is against the Enemy. Or wait, is Tampa Bay the Enemy now?

So these were Jon Lester's words after his interesting performance yesterday: "I stunk." Succinct. I like it.

This puts us 5 1/2 games behind the Rays now, since they OF COURSE won. How awful do the standings look right now, by the way? Rays, Boston, New York, Jays, Baltimore. That is totally out of order. It is supposed to be Boston, New York, Baltimore, Jays, Rays. Again with the change thing, not liking it too much. I mean, the TAMPA BAY DEVIL RAYS (oh sorry, no devil anymore) have the BEST record in the majors!! It's simply Not Right.

So, we need a very good outing from Matsuzaka today because the Sox haven't done very well against A.J. Burnett in the past. They are 0-4 to be precise, and the ERA from Burnett's perspective is really good. Basically, we need all the help we can get. Go offense!

Seriously, the Angels?!

What is this thing with the Angels and so many, many losses to them? Do the Red Sox not remember that they have owned them in the postseason? Remember the 2 sweeps in '04 and '07? Try harder, gents!

I am thoroughly disgusted with yet another sweeping loss to this LA team. What hurts the most is the Angels are in fact my second favorite team in the league. I mostly like them because I love me some Vlad but also because WE ALWAYS USED TO BEAT THEM. Sickening. Ugh.

Okay, on a more positive note, I have some excellent news to pass along. I received an email from a nice lady telling me about the 7th annual WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon, which will be held August 14th and 15th. All money raised goes directly to cancer research and patient care at the Jimmy Fund and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Get together with your friends (or hey, even people you meet at bars and stuff) to watch the games and raise some money for what you all know is a fantastic cause. They want to raise $4 million, so let's help them along :)

And seriously, Sox men, let's start to win again. And forget about sending Manny to Florida, I don't like that talk. I can't imagine getting anything in return that is worth Manny's bat, even though it comes with quite a mouth.

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!

Keep Up the Winning

Things have been going quite well lately, haven't they? Boston has won 2 days in a row whereas NY has lost 2 days in a row, and the Lake Oswego Little League team is moving on to the next round. If only things could stay this good...

Because the Angels are my second favorite AL team, I must quote this: Garret Anderson of the Angels turned in a performance for the ages, driving in a team-record 10 RBIs with two homers (a grand slam and three-run homer) as the Angels poured in 18 runs on the Yankees. Anderson isn't my favorite Angel (that is, of course, Vlad Guerrero), but I must throw out some congratulations to the man because he did a great thing while playing the right team.

Wily Mo Pena is doing pretty good in Washington, and the deal for him was finalized yesterday when we got Chris Carter. Carter is a left-handed-hitting first baseman who comes from Triple-A Tucson to Boston. He hit .324 there with 18 homers and 84 RBIs in 126 games this season. Prior to the trade, he led the Pacific Coast League in hits (163), was tied for second in doubles (39), ranked fifth in batting and ninth in RBIs.

We'll see.