More Good News in NE

As expected, New England's Tom Brady was named the NFL's MVP after he led the team to a 16-0 season. I have been out of town and therefore with very little news so I just found this out today, but it comes as no surprise! Just look at his records this year:

Most touchdown passes in a single season (50).
Most games with three or more touchdown passes in a single season (12).
Highest touchdown-interception differential in a single season (+42)
Most consecutive games with three or more touchdown passes (10).
Most touchdown passes in a single month (20, October).
Most consecutive games with completion pct. of 75% or higher in a single season (4 games from 9/9/07 to 10/1/07).
Most completions in first 100 passes of a season (79).
Most touchdown passes in a game since 1970 AFL-NFL Merger (6 on 10/21/07; tied with 11 others).
Highest single-game passer rating (perfect 158.3 rating, 10/21/07; 17th time since 1970)

Pretty good! If only Mike Lowell could have been the AL MVP to complete the NE Goodness.

No Red Sox news to report...except the Mailbag, which answered a question I have always wondered about...

I've always wondered about how lockers are assigned in the clubhouse. Who does the assigning? Who is next to whom? Where are the "best" locations in the room, and who has lockers there? Do veterans get to pick their own locker location? Do players change their locker location? Is it possible to get a layout of who is where or is that private information?
-- Abbe B., Vineyard Haven, Mass.

Red Sox equipment manager Joe Cochran is mainly in charge of aligning the lockers in the clubhouse. Cochran has been with the Red Sox for a long time, and he has a good understanding of the dynamic of the team and how to make everyone most comfortable. I'm sure that in certain cases, Cochran asks Francona or Epstein where to put certain players.

When you walk in to the clubhouse and look to your left, it's a long row of most of your position players. In that row, you will find Pedroia, Lowell, Alex Cora, Julio Lugo, Youkilis and others. Off in their own little corner are Ortiz and Ramirez. To the right is another little corner tucked away where you'll find Varitek, Curt Schilling and Tim Wakefield. To the right of that is "pitchers' row," where you'll find relievers such as Mike Timlin, Javy Lopez, Manny Delcarmen, etc.

At the end of that row is one more corner, where you'll find Hideki Okajima, Matsuzaka, Beckett and Papelbon. Papelbon's space has always gone to a player with some clout on the team. It once belonged to Carl Yastrzemski, and it has been passed on to others such as Dwight Evans, Bret Saberhagen, Pedro Martinez and Keith Foulke through the years.

The Less I Write...

I've noticed something. The less I update my site, the more the Red Sox win. Let's hope I don't jinx them for tonight's game.

But seriously, they've been pretty awesome over the last few days. I'm still excited about Manny's bottom of the 8th home run to win Matsuzaka's game (what is up with him, by the way?) a couple days ago. Wakefield was damn near perfect last night, allowing no runs and only 3 hits over 7 innings. I bet he was awfully frustrated with the lack of run support, until the 6th when Ortiz launched a solo shot to put the Sox ahead. Romero, Donnelly, Papelbon - the bullpen is NOT blowing games. Truly amazing, considering last year.

So Boston needs no help winning right now, they are 7-3 in their last 10 games and are sitting pretty on top of the AL East. They have a 6.5 game lead over everyone!

I guess now I need to address the serious matter of Tom Brady's latest faux pas. All the non-Sox fans say Sox fans shouldn't care. But...it's a big deal! Right?! How do you not know that people are going to think that's pretty crappy? I think he must be a little nutty, and that's my final conclusion.

Sadness and Happiness

Well, I think the thrill of liking Tom Brady is gone. He gets two women pregnant in the same time period, and I think that's the kiss of death. He's still hot and his calendar will still remain on my wall, but...oh, Tom. I'm sighing deep sighs of disappointment.

In less stupid news, Mike Timlin is still having problems, and has been sidelined for the time being because of his strained side muscle. And the Sox won today 11-10, despite a 4-run 9th inning by Philly. Kason Gabbard allowed three runs (two earned) in two innings, and Ortiz, Lugo, and Mirabelli contributed offensively.

23 days until Opening Day! Man, I so cannot wait. The Sox will be on national TV on Wednesday, March 21st at 1 on ESPN; I will have to DVR that since I have a stupid job now.

I miss Baseball Tonight.

Ohhhh Snap

Looks like Tom Brady's got some trouble - his ex, Bridget Moynahan, is apparently with child. And we all know he's got a new girlfriend...oooh! As long as it doesn't interfere with football, I do not care.

And um, in real news, we have this: Some Boston players have decided to (or were told to) lose weight over the offseason. Dustin Pedroia will look better, as will a certain Mr. Ortiz: from Francona, "He's in very good shape. He lost some weight and got firmer." Perhaps the weight loss will be the equivalent of Manny's new hair from last year?

Speaking of Manny, what will the deal be with him this year? The Globe reports:

There's been no word from Camp Manny since he curiously quit in the middle of the crucial Yankees series at Fenway in late August. Nothing from agent Greg Genske. Nothing from Red Sox management. Nothing from Manny's teammates who loathe his attitude but bite their tongues and say nothing in the hope that Manny will return and post his customary .320, 35, 110. Certainly, there has been nothing from Manny. And please remember that we're all OK with that...Everyone assumes Manny is going to show up this week and act as if nothing happened last year.

I guess we find out this week just what's going on with Manny. Hopefully, we can avoid any drama and just get back to baseball.

Oh, and we'll get our first real look at Matsuzaka March 2nd, when he will be pitching against Boston College. 6:05 pm. Not too far away at all!

In closer news, John Farrell said this the other day, "We haven't actually anointed a closer, as we sit here today. Certainly, there are candidates with Mike Timlin, Joel Pineiro, Brendan Donnelly or Julian Tavarez." To which I say, HOLD UP. Where's Hansen? Why are Timlin and Tavarez options? Do they not remember what happened last year when Mike Timlin and Julian Tavarez tried to end games? WHY?

Time to Move On

I can't wallow in sorrow about the Patriots forever. Time to move on...and talk about my other favorite sports team!

From the Mailbag:
Can you tell me who was the last guy to start on Opening Day at second base for the Sox in back-to-back seasons?

-- John D., South Meriden, Conn.

Definitely a valid question, considering the turnover at that position in the last decade or so. But the answer to your question is a lot more recent than you would think. Mark Bellhorn started on Opening Day in both 2004 and '05.

A-ha! I always love seeing Mark Bellhorn news, and that's good enough at the moment.

As usual, nothing on J.D. Drew.

And because I love tennis, I must discuss it. James Blake played Gonzalez last night, and he played like junk. I was looking forward to him advancing far in this Australian Open after having such a good year last year, but he was not himself last night. Kind of like the Patriots!

Here's hoping Mardy Fish beats Andy Roddick tonight!

Very Sad

The game started off crazy with a 3rd and inches play a few feet away from a touchdown - Brady handed it off to Maroney, who apparently didn't know he was going to get the ball! He didn't even make an attempt to grab the ball, so it goes down and 3 Colts go after it - somehow the ball got away from all of them and a Patriot grabbed it in the end zone and scored! I don't know how Indy let that one go, but they did, and it was awesome.

Then some bad stuff happened when the Colts kept scoring until they tied the game at 21.

But then Ellis Hobbs had an 80-yard punt return to make up for his pass interference call in the end zone that basically gave the Colts 8 points. So Brady throws a perfect touchdown pass but Caldwell just dropped it. But then a push out got us a TD anyway! Gaffney had control of the ball all the way down and they ruled it a TD, despite Indy's challenge.

So it's 28-28, the Pats are set to score, and Caldwell drops his second wide open pass of the day. He had this shocked look on his face, which all us fans had too. They only got a field goal out of it, which I was not pleased with.

And then...

Indianapolis threw for 52 yards...and of course Vinatieri got a field goal to tie it at 31 apiece.

On the punt, Hobbs brought it back to the NE 46. However, they didn't get much farther, and Gostkowski got 3 points with 3:49 to go. Indy had the ball and basically went nowhere with it, so NE had it back again with 3:33 on the clock. Of course NE did nothing with it, so the Colts got it back with 2:17 to go. And it was bad. They got a whole lot of yardage, there was a flag, and at the 2 minute warning it was not looking good.

The Colts took the lead for the first time the whole game with one minute to go.

And New England cried.

If only Caldwell had caught the ball and they could have gotten 7 points, it would have been tied at 38 instead of being down by 4.

Tom threw an interception with 16 seconds to go.

Largest comeback ever. Gotta say, the Pats threw this one away. And I am very disappointed.

I really hope Chicago wins.

Why Must It Always Be Something?

Is there some feud between the Patriots and Chargers that I didn't know about? I guess I didn't even really know anything was going on, then this morning I saw LaDainian Tomlinson's press conference. This is what I have gathered from various sources:

"..I did see at least one [Patriots] player gesture to the Chargers bench in the form of Shawne Merriman's "Lights Out" dance and a choke sign toward kicker Nate Kaeding after missing the final field goal. I also saw at least one Patriots player stand at midfield and gesture toward the crowd."

"..[LT] went after an unidentified Patriots player, yelling and pointing, and had to be restrained by a teammate and former Charge Reche Caldwell."

"I would never react in that way. I was very upset," Tomlinson said. "When you go to the middle of our field and start doing the dance Shawne Merriman known for, that is disrespectful. They showed no class and maybe that comes from the head coach."

Here's what I think. Yes, some New England players were out of line, and clearly wouldn't have liked it if they were home and the Chargers won and did it to them. Instead of responding with class, LT handled it the wrong way and brought himself down to the level of the people he was referring to. Why involve Belichick like that? The Charger's QB, on the other hand, handled it the right way: "They won and they deserve a lot of credit," Rivers said. "Personally I was disappointed in the way they handled winning. … But that's neither here nor there. They're playing next week and we're not." Let them know you're not happy, but don't make yourself look like a sore loser in the process.

Ahh, if only everyone had the same level of class and decency as Tom Brady.

The Patriots Did It!

It wasn't the prettiest game I've ever seen, but Tom Brady and his team managed to make the plays when it counted. My biggest gripe was they kept trying to run the ball and it clearly wasn't working - note that when Brady threw the ball that was really the only time anything happened. They were losing the majority of the game but the only score that matters is the final one - and that one shows New England by 3. Gostkowski was cool and calm and scored the winning field goal with 1:10 to go...and now they'll face the Colts next week. I am so happy they won!!

I have to say Brady didn't look as sharp as I was expecting him to, but maybe I just had really high expectations. Tomlinson was as awesome as he usually is, but his quarterback Rivers couldn't get in gear. Brady threw 3 interceptions (one with a fumble and NE recovery, which was huge) and was still the better of the 2 QBs.

Next Sunday at 6:30, in Indianapolis, be there or be square.

QotD:
Q - "You're not very popular in the country right now. Does that get to you?"
Dubya - "Not really."
Yeah, why care what the people that you are supposed to be leading think about you?

The Biggest Day Thus Far

It's the big day! The Patriots are the underdogs, which is insane, but everyone seems to think they have their work cut out for them. Little do they know Tom Brady knows all that and is incredibly angry that they are doubting his team, and now he will put on quite a show to prove them wrong. Underestimating Brady...it should be a sin!

So my thoughts on the other games: Obviously, I am upset that the Eagles lost. They are my second favorite team, but at least I can console myself by saying it wasn't McNabb's fault. Plus, I do like the Saints (and I have for many many years), and they have a good story, so I can cheer for them next week.

I like the Colts because I like the Brothers Manning, but I did want them to lose yesterday. Baltimore is close to me, plus that Vinatieri is not my favorite person. And I'm still upset that Manning fell apart and lost to the Steelers last year. But they will lose next week against New England, so it's okay.

It is 71 degrees out and absolutely beautiful, so I'm off to play tennis. I don't care too much about the Bears/Seattle game, but I'd pick the Bears to win. They'll lose to the Saints next week, I hope!

Go Pats!!

What a Win

I may be a day late, but the excitement over the Patriots win has not died out yet. I knew the Jets didn't stand a chance, but they really didn't even put up a fight - the Pats scored 3 minutes into the game! New York did have the lead for a while (10-7), but it didn't take long for New England to take it back.

And Tom Brady was great as always!

The Eagles were also winners in a close one. This time, they won with no time left instead of being the losers with no time left. Yesterday was a pretty good day, football-wise!

Randy Johnson is now back with the Diamondbacks, but I don't really care about that. There's no good Red Sox news...so I present a list of select search terms that brought folks to my site:

what's the deal with bill belichick's sweatshirt
trot nixon 2007
when did david ortiz join the red sox

And my personal favorite:

tom brady is so hot

That person knows the deal.

I Hope It's a Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everyone out there. I hope this year turns out to be a great one, and here are a few things that will help make that happen:

1. Find a closer. The Red Sox once again have their work cut out for them when it comes to closing games - with Papelbon as one of the starting 5, the job is up for grabs. It would be nice if one of the guys we have on the team now would step up during Spring Training and take the job with ferocity.

2. Figure out what the hell is going on with J.D. Drew -- we're all sick of writing about him.

3. The Patriots need to win the Super Bowl. Because we can all use a little more Tom Brady pictures in our lives.

4. David Ortiz needs to be the AL MVP. We all know he has been for the past 2 years, a little recognition would be nice.

5. Josh Beckett and Tim Wakefield need to improve in the way of reliability. Who can forget Josh Beckett's first inning disaster against the Yankees? No more of that, please.

6. Coco Crisp should have a better year. He wasn't right after the injury to his hand in Baltimore (I remember because I was there and I told him not to try to steal that base and he did it anyway), but he should be ready to go in the spring. Plus, he won't have to be leadoff now that Julio Lugo is on the team.

7. Somebody will have to free me from my depression over losing Trot Nixon, Mark Loretta, Gabe Kapler, and my beautiful beloved Alex "The Gonz" Gonzalez. His defense was incredible and, to me, made up for his not-so-hot offense. I will miss the hell out of him, but I am glad he will join Bronson Arroyo in Cincy. I hope he has another great year.

And Trot? What can I say. I wanted him to stay on the team more than anyone (even the Gonz), he was my favorite Boston player. It sucks going to the Red Sox roster site and not seeing Trot there, he's been a staple for so long. One month ago we were reading about the possibility that he might stay in Boston, but... Right field misses him already, and it will never be the same!

40-7

40-7! The Patriots had their way with the Texans, who did not stand a chance. They didn't even score until the 3rd quarter. The Patriots' defense was just too good for Houston's offense.

If New England beats Jacksonville next week, they will clinch their division and be on their way to another SuperBowl.

Obviously, Tom Brady's ended relationship did not affect his performance this week. Maybe that's why he was messed up a few weeks ago; but he seems to be over it now!

The Philadelphia Eagles are up by 4 in the 3rd quarter. Here's some interesting trivia: every week since McNabb has been injured, the Eagles have been on TV locally. That figures, since the reason why we like the Eagles is because of McNabb!

And in Red Sox news: J.D. Drew's shoulder is the reason why there's been no official announcement of his pending Red Sox-ness. I hope Boston is making sure they have some sort of Get Out of Jail Free card with this guy and his many, many injuries. More than that though, I hope he has an injury-free season next year!

An Actual Trade AND THE BEST NEWS EVER

Boston traded Phil Seibel (played with farm clubs) to the Angels for reliever Brendan Donnelly. A pitcher who doesn't suck (I hope)! Donnelly was 6-0 with a 3.94 ERA in 62 games last season. He had a 5-0 record and a 3.52 ERA in 29 games after the All-Star break, and held the opposition scoreless in 19 of his last 21 appearances.

I'm still pretty giddy over the Matsuzaka signing. He's really on our team! He said he really wants to meet Curt Schilling, which is cool because Schill has been learning Japanese to be able to speak with him. Ahh, I love this team.


I do, however, have sad news. Listening to the games on WEEI just won't be the same anymore -- Jerry Trupiano officially retired and is being replaced by Dave O'Brien and Glenn Geffner. Joe Castiglione will stick around, but it just won't be as good.

Quote of the Day:
Matsuzaka - "Right now, I'm just very happy and excited to have become a member of the Red Sox."

EDIT: And the best news ever part? Yeah, Tom Brady is single again. Haha, I know. But I think it's just terrific.