Thanks Cap’t

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Today is a sad day in the Nation: The captain is riding off into the sunset.

Today will mark the end of Jason Varitek‘s career as a baseball player.  He will go down as the benchmark for all other Red Sox catchers.  He is and always will be the epitome of hard work, dedication, smarts, toughness and love for the game.

For many reasons he was my favorite Red Sox player.  For many years, I argued he was the best all-around backstop in the game.    He could hit, field, throw, block and lead.  Sure, other catchers could do some things better than him, but he had the whole package.  No one controled the pitching game like he did.  He came up with the game plans everyday and when that failed he took the blame over the pitchers.  He never once threw one of his hurlers under the bus.  When the team won, it was due to the pitchers executing when the team lost, it was him having a bad game plan.  That’s a sign of a true leader and a great catcher.

If anyone had any doubt what kind of receiver he was, just take a look at what he did that no one else has ever done: he played in the Little League, College and MLB World Series, he caught four no-hitters and beat the piss out of A-Rod.

Over the years, his skills have diminished.  He became a relegated to back-up duties the past few years but that didn’t change the way his teammates felt about him.  He was still their rock both in the clubhouse and on the field.

When I coach my catchers, I want them to emulate Tek.  I figure if that’s the goal we shoot for, even if we fall a little short, I’ll have some pretty damn good catchers on my hands.  I guess yo can say I really loved how he played the game.  He was always dirty, he busted his ass on very play, hell I even loved how he sprinted around the bases after a homerun, almost as if to say, I gotta hurry up and get back in the dugout and do my job.

This season will be a very different Red Sox seasons for a lot of reasons.  The top one on my list will be not seeing #33 running out and leading this team.

From one of your biggest fans: Thank you Jason Varitek for 15 great seasons.  You will always have a place in Red Sox lore.  Enjoy your retirement.  You’ve earned every minute of it!!

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The Cure For What Ails Ya

No matter how bummed I feel, there is always one thing that can rip me out of my mid-February doldrums: The start of

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Spring Training!

Today is the first official workout for the Boston Red Sox.  A day in which all fans and I hope all players were looking forward to as we sweep the bad memories of 2011 under the rug and look forward to a season that is full of hope and enthusiasm.  Well unless you are a Mets fan that is.

This day is almost like Christmas morning to me.  I woke up today automatically feeling better about myself and the world around me.  Work was better, the drive in was better, hell the latest Celtics loss doesn’t even piss me off.  That’s because you can almost hear the pop of the ball, the crack of the bat and the hint of pine tar and leather in the air.

Nothing like the late winter sun to help wash away the bad taste of beer and fried chicken that has lingered over this franchise since October.  Lester gets a new start, Beckett gets to prove it all was a fluke, Crawford has a chance to relax and just play ball, Youk is healthy and all the rest of the crew is on the field under the watchful eye of Bobby Valentine.

I’m excited at the possibilities of this season.  Once in a while some change is needed and that’s exactly what this off-season was.  The Sox got younger and more athletic.  Gone are old stalwarts Wakefield, Paps, Tek and JD.  In are new starter Bard, new closer Bailey and a few more fresh faces looking to make their own impact on the storied history of this franchise.

I, for one, can’t wait for this season.  I think the new blood will be a good thing.  Not that I had anything against Tito and the others, but I think it will be addition by subtraction.  Sometimes complete humiliation and utter failure can be great motivators.  Of course, they can also be a dark cloud that just hangs over a team.

I’m going down the positive road, I have full faith that this team will rise above and surprise the masses.  Lets not forget, the Sox have some pretty good players to lean on.

God damn I love this game!!!!!!!!!

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The V Show

Today, the Boston Red Sox FINALLY name their next manager.  All of you have heard by now that Bobby Valentine will be the next manager on Yawkey Way. 

To be honest, I’m still don’t know how I feel about this.  I don’t get the “warm-fuzzies” like I did with Francona.  For some reason, Tito made sense to me.  Just something about him clicked with me.  I really can’t tell you what it was but I just knew it was the right move.

This time around, I just don’t know.  Yeah, he’s been succesful at all his stops, but at what costs?  He wore out his welcome relatively quickly in Texas and New York.  Then he went to Japan and to his credit, completely dominated Japanese baseball.  In a way, he Americanized it a bit and in the process, Japan players infiltrated MLB more and more. 

Bobby V just has a way about him.  Some people love it, others hate it.  Me, I’ve always been rubbed the wrong way with him.  Never really liked the way he worked on TV.  He seemed to always come across as a know-it-all.  I guess he just never had the way to pass along great info without coming across as a douche. 

There is no doubt he knows the game.  I’m just not sure if he’ll fit in Boston.  Normally I would trust the Sox brass that they’ve made the right call, but these guys have done nothing yet to win me over.  I trusted Theo and Co. in 2003.  He proved that he had an eye for talent.  Ben Cherington has done nothing yet.  He won’t last long as GM if his first major hire blew up in his face.

I hope beyond hope that it all works out.  I want Bobby Valentine to succeed in Beantown.  The franchise is desperate for a new start and a new direction.  The players are ready for a new voice and leader.  I’m just still not sure he is it.

If you need me, I’ll be on the fence for a while.

My Two Cents: the 2011 Boston #Redsox

I think like every other Red Sox fan that read the Boston Globe article earlier this week, many emotions bubbled to the surface.  I was angry, upset, disappointed and cheated. 

I thought this team was the perfect combination of power, pitching, speed and timely hitting.  I had no idea that fried chicken, video games and beer would play such a huge part in one of the greatest downfalls in MLB history.  They went from being top-line pitchers to three guys in the basement of their mom’s house in a matter of weeks.

The other “issues” that the article mentioned I thought were pointless and classless.  I have all the respect in the world for Francona.  He was the perfect manager at the perfect time but over the years he lost the clubhouse.  Bringing up the fact that he lived in a hotel and had pain medication had no affect on the September swoon.  No one brought this up during May-August when they were the best team in baseball.  No, what killed this team in the long run was complacency and lack of conditioning.

I think it’s a good move to bring in a new manager.  A new voice and a new perspective can bring a breath of fresh air into the team.  With that being said, it makes sense for Theo to leave now.  He can go to the Cubbies and become a cult hero in two baseball towns.  He can’t hire the new manager and then risk in a year being fired and the new GM come in and hire another manager. No, the best way is a complete overhaul.  Let the new GM hire his coach and start from there.  It’s not like this team doesn’t have the talent.  Even after their awful month, they were still a strike from being in the playoffs.

Now, I was going to write about all the changes I thought the Sox should do this offseason but Gordon Edes kinda beat me to the punch.  First thing first, fix Carl Crawford.  Let him bad 2nd.  He never should have left that spot.  Francona handled that situation poorly.  A lineup with the  top three hitters of Ells, Crawford and Petey is pretty dangerous.  He has to be good and the Red Sox have to get him to that level.

Making a decision on Youk/Ortiz will be key.  Both are older players.  Youk was injured a good portion of the year and Ortiz is just a DH.  One of the two have to go.  Youk may have more trade value at this point.  He is younger, can play 1st base and has a great contract.  If the Sox trade him for a younger 3rd baseman or an older guy who can DH, do it. 

This team needs to get younger.  I would love to see a guy like Will Middlebrooks get a shot at 3rd base.  Lavarnaway and Salty have to be the catchers next year.  As much as I love Tek, he’s done.  Cut ties now and let him go.  BTW, he can take Wakefield with him.  This team was the oldest in baseball and that showed in September. 

Get the pitchers in shape.  Lester and Beckett got soft, literally, as the season progressed.  The new S+C coach has got to be a prick about in season conditioning work.  In fact, this has to be a point for the whole team.  I know the season is a grind but with younger players, they can do more strength work to keep strong for the marathon.  Older players are more likely to break down with too much use, again another factor in September.

Getting back to the finger-pointing article from the Globe.  I was embarrassed for all parties involved; from upper management all the way down to the players.  I feel there was no need to air all that dirty laundry after the fact.  If the Sox got in and then were swept ou of the first round, would that article still be published?  The fans know what happened, the team flat-out sucked.  We didn’t need anymore explanation we just want to see better results next year.  It’s like sausage making: we don’t care how it’s made, just that it tastes good.  No one cared about all that shit in August when Boston was up 2 on the Yanks and 9 on the Rays.

I’ve never heard of the reporter before and I read the globe online a lot for their Sox coverage.  Whoever was his source should be found and fired.  It goes against everything that teams try to hold onto.  Keeping things in-house.   

I’m pissed off at the guilty parties but it won’t change how I feel about the team nd the organization.  I always have and always will love this team.  I still think they have the best talent in the game from top to bottom but somethings just a bit off.  I have full faith that the new leadership will get this thing right again. 

Of course, that’s all we have as fans is hope and optimism.  Lets hope that the players are just as pissed off and rededicate themselves to being World Champs once again.

One final thing, make Pedroia the captain.  No one better exemplifies what it means to be a red Sox and a major league baseball player more than Petey.  DO that and I think everything else can fall into line quite nicely.

You Lay in the Bed You Make

It’s the morning after the end of the 2011 Boston Red Sox season. A season that was both magical and mysterious.  A team that was great from May to August but had bookend historically awful months.  Am I upset this morning?  Hardly.  I cashed this season in a few weeks ago.  Yeah, of course I wanted the team to make the playoffs, but not the September team.  Not the team that was beset by injuries and lackadaisical play.  I wanted to watch the team that was proving all the haters wrong after the rough start, not the team that ended up proving all the haters right. 

This team thought that the playoffs was their right, the Rays knew the playoffs had to be earned and they played like it.  Do I blame the Yanks for how they played, nope.  Not going there.  The regulars got a 7 run lead.  They should hold that lead.  DO you  know when the last time the Yanks blew a 7 run lead after the 7th inning?  1953!!!  My only issue was the fact that they didn’t bring in Mo for the save but in the end it hurt them more because Texas now has the home-field advantage. 

My only problem this morning is with the Olde Towne team.  Do I blame Tito, nope.  What more was he to do.  He put the players out there and they are the ones that fucked it all up.  I put blame on Theo for not building a balanced team and for having a weak bullpen.  If he’s even here next year, that’s gotta be his focus.  Power arms out of the pen and developing a good balance of young/old and righty/lefty players.  I loved the way the Sox played during the summer but there was always something there that didn’t draw me in.  Maybe it was the lack of personality or the lack of intensity.  To me they seem to corporate.  Hell, the Yankees looked like they had much more fun as a team.  The two have flip-flopped.  The Sox need guys like Swisher, Burnett and Granderson.  Guys that play the game just for the love of the game.  Clubhouse cut-ups that also show it on the field.  Guys who really appreciate where they are and how they got there, not a bunch of entitled players who somewhere along the lines forgot that baseball is a game for boys. 

What next for the Sox?  Drew is gone.  Pap may be gone.  Ellsbury will need to be re-signed.  Can Youk stay healthy?  Which Crawford will show up in 2012?  Is Gonzo’s shoulder going to be a lasting issue?  What about Clay’s back?  Can Lackey pitch in Boston?  Are Salty and Lavarnaway the answers behind the plate?  These are a ton of questions for a team that barely missed the playoffs but hasn’t been there in two years. The Rays are going nowhere and the Yanks, well they are still the Yanks.

These are just the problems on the outside.  How does this collapse effect this team next September.  That’s all they will hear about next year.  Are they mentally tough enough to overcome.  The Mets have folded as an organization after their epic collapse.  What will this team do?  I guess none of these can be answered till next year. 

Is this the start of a new curse like I’ve heard all day today.  First off, I never believed in the 1st curse so my answer is no.  I do find the timing of the collapse really poor considering that both SI and ESPN the Magazine had cover stores on the Red Sox and the Red Sox way.  Uhhhhhh, maybe they should have held off on those.  Oh well.  Cest la Vie.

One last point, at least this gives me more time to focus on the 4-0 Wolverines and the surprisingly 2-1 Giants.  Don’t forget about hockey either.  With the NBA all having their heads up their asses, the boys on ice have a chance to have a real impact this winter. 

 

 

September Suckitude

When was the last time you can recall a title contender playing this bad down the home stretch?  The Red Sox are in the midst of one of baseball’s biggest September implosions and while I only speak for myself, it is very embarrassing to be a Red Sox fan today.

Don’t go taking that sentence out of context.  I still hope that they hold one and lock up the wild card spot.  Once you are in it’s a clean slate and I still will match the talent on Boston against any of the other three AL teams.  Getting there just seems to be the issue. 

One Sept. 1st, exactly three weeks ago, the Sox were a 1/2 game up on the Yanks, 9 up on the Rays and 9 1/2 up on the Angels.  They go .500 for the month and they are already in.  Since that point they have won FIVE games and the AL East is gone while the Rays and Angels sit just 2 1/2 out.  What the hell happened???

Well, for one thing, injuries caught up to us.  Youk is down.  Lackey seems to have his head lodged up his ass, Buchholz is still hurtin’ and god damn how much you miss Dice-K?  Second, the Sox are to inconsistent in scoring runs.  Take a look at their September scores.  In four out of the five wins, they have scored 12 or more runs.  In their losses they have scored an average of 3.5 runs a game.  So in five wins they have scored 62 runs and just 56 in their 16 losses.  That run differential is way to large.  Funny, it’s something I wrote about just last year.

Yes, they have the best offense in the league but it is way to inconsistent.  Know, there are a lot of reasons for this, #1 and #1a or the lack of JD Drew and Carl Crawford.  Laugh if you must about JD, but the guy got on base and scored runs from the bottom of the lineup and Carl has not had a Carl type year.  Those are two huge cogs that have not produced at an all-star level.  This puts much more pressure on Reddick, Salty and Scutaro who are frankly role players thrust into bigger roles that they can’t fill.

These offensive problems, along with bad starts and an even worse bullpen have made this a September to forget in the Back Bay.  Bard has been brutal, Albers is awful, Pabelbon: paltry at best.  The only legitimate pen guy is Aceves who may be on the verge of burning out.  Bard has four losses this month himself.  Not a great stat for your setup guy. 

With all that being said, the team is still in the driver’s seat.  They have 3 games against the Yanks and three against the o’s.  If they go 2-4 in these six games, both LA and Tampa have to go 5-2 to get a three-way tie.  The Rays have four games against the Yanks and three against the Blue Jays, not an easy task.  The Angels have 1 against the Blue Jays and three a piece against the A’s and Rangers.  A much easier road than the Rays but those three against the Rangers could be a tough go. 

If you were to tell me that the Sox would be 5-16 during the last month and still be 2 1/2 up for a play-off spot I’d call you crazy.  Considering all that has gone wrong we still have hope.  It’s nice to see the players feeling the heat a bit.  Makes you think they care a bit.  I know Fenway is nervous.  I was there Saturday and you could feel the uneasiness in the crowd.  I still like the odds and am scared as to what could happen if the Sox blow this (Theo to the Cubs??). 

If they do hold on into October history os on their side.  In 2000, the Yanks lost 15 of 18 to close the season and still went on to beat the Mets in the World Series.

So here’s to holding out hope!

 

What to do, What to do?

So, as I sit here on this Friday morning I am contemplating what to do this weekend.  It’s tough you know when your family is away to try to find something to do. 

Wait, what’s that you say?  The Red Sox and Yankees play this weekend with 1st place on the line?  Well, I guess I can squeeze in a few innings or so. 

Hold on,  you’re telling me that it’s going to be a great night to play golf?  Well, maybe I can fit in a few holes.

All right, I guess that helps fill out my Friday night a bit but what about the rest of the weekend. 

If only I knew of someone who was planning on cooking lobsters and steamers………  Oh well, I guess that’s just a pipe dream.

Now that just leaves Sunday.  Man, it’s gonna really suck sleeping in.  I have no idea how I am going to adjust.  Maybe I will be awake by the afternoon for some more golf. 

I tell you what, it’s tough living like this.  Seriously though, all this is just to fill time till Nikki and Avery come home Monday.  The house is way too quiet w/o them.  As much as I always think time by myself would be good, I get a bit stir crazy in the house with no one else there. 

Never thought I’d be saying that. 

Enjoy the weekend!

The Amazing Avery

I had no idea my daughter had such remarkable powers.  I mean I have come to learn that she can ruin a bad mood with a simple smile.  She can save a bad day with a loveable laugh.  She has even been known to erase the thought of a bad loss with an arms-wide-open run yelling Da-Da.  Last night though, a whole new gift was discovered.

We flipped on the Red Sox game at about 8:30 and it was a 0-0 tie.  So I had a quick thought.  We have a Wally doll that sits proudly next to the TV as  part of my yearly baseball tradition.  (During football, the setup involves some various Michigan stuff, yes Nikki lives with this and no I don’t think I have a problem.)  Sorry, back to the point: Wally was laying on our coffee table because Avery was trying to feed him some dinner.  This was after I told her that Wally eats only Yankee fans, but I digress.  I told Avery to pick Wally up, give him a kiss, sy Go Red Sox and put Wally back in his home.  With an adorable “O Tay” she did just what I asked. 

The next three hitters: triple, walk, 3-run homer.  How’s that for doin work?  She had no idea what she did but since Daddy was happy and cheering, she did the same thing.  It was one of those great father/daughter moments with Nikki shaking her head thinking ” I may be losing my girl.” 

Now, I just gotta figure out how to make money off of this………….

The Home Stretch

Four games in four days is what we have left in our baseball season.  We ahve already qualified for the state tournament but we are still in contention for a home game.  We win three or four we should get one.  This stretch will tell us a lot about our team.  If we can play well I think we should be able to make some noise (pun intended) in the states.  These four games could tax our pitchers but it will also test them in big time games.  The 1st three games are all against other state tourney qualified teams.  I am really looking forward to see how these guys respond.

Keeping with the baseball theme, I was able to catch our 1st Red Sox game of the season Saturday.  We had standing room seats up in the Bud Deck above rightfield.  What a great spot.  We were able to get a spot right on the railing so we had a great view.    What’s great about this spot is the bar right behind you (except only beer they had was Bud, whoda thunk?)  and full food service.  So you have to stand for the whole game, who cares about that though.  It was a great night, until about the 8th inning when the Sox decided to play like a JV team.  Overall, it was a great couple days in Boston. 

Before the game, we ate at Boston Beer Works.  On game days they offer communal seating.  If you are a twosome and wouldn’e mind being paired up with another they offer that as a way to move people in and out faster.  I think it’s a pretty good idea.  Luckily we were paired up with a couple Sox fans from New Hampshire.  I wonder though: do they offer this during Yanks series???

So glad I was able to catch the Sox only loss the past 8 games.  Oh well, unlike everyone else in CT, I got to see the game.  Really FOX, there has to be a better way to broadcast games.  You completly screwed over half the state by chosing Mets/Yanks over the Sox.  You have to give the viewers in CT both options that’s the only answer.  Do better next time.

Man Crush

I’ve had a few over the years.  Obviously the ultimate is Larry Bird.  Everyone who knows me understands my deep and long-lasting crush on Basketball Jesus.  Other sports stars have filled the role over time: David Ortiz, Rajon Rondo and Aaron Rodgers to name a few.  The newest one has a chance to last a while if he keeps doing this, this and especially this.   (Sorry for the links, but MLB is dumb and doesn’t allow highlights on YouTube.  Yep forward thinking………)

He’s got everything you could want: a sweet swing, smooth glove and a kick-ass latino goatee. 

Anyway, this may go down as Theo’s best trade.  Already a month and a half into the year (woohoo, above .500) and AdGo may be the best 1st baseman in Red Sox history.  What a joy he is to watch and he’s clutch to boot.  The scary thing is he’s just warming up.  I think the next seven summers with him are going to be so memorable.  What we are witnessing is the budding career of a hall-of-famer.  I think he quickly supplants Pujols as the best hitter in the game. 

My love for him is beginning to know no bounds and now that the Sox are on the right side of .500, April will be a distant memory in the Nation. 

Plus. I Betcha won’t see him bitching his way out of the line-up.  Boy this week has been great so far!!!