I refused to panic after last night’s game. Four and a half up with a couple of weeks to go seemed like enough. But right now the Sox are losing and the Yankees are winning — again. Three and a half? Good grief.
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Steve
Hey, Friday night got me out on the ledge. I was coaxed in Saturday, but I’m out there again!We’re going to have to face them anyway in the post-season, but I’m not optimistic about our chances right about now. The Yankees are playing amazing baseball.
Bill Toscano
Dan: I have known this was gonna happen all along.C’mon, you remember ’86 and ’78, and maybe you remember ’67.Doesn’t matter, though.The wildcard is secured. The tension is gone.I just wish for once we’d win it, and theyt would not make it.
Larz
If you’re from Bahstin, you know enough not to get re-e-e-e-aly emotionally involved with your Sox. Maybe that’s part of the problem. Do you really, really believe they can do it? Can Dumbo really fly? But when it really happens, it’s so-o-o-o good!Of course they can.
O-FISH-L
Where to begin? While I still warily believe they will be saved by the bell and win the division, this team has looked shaky for most of the second half. Unless they get it together, the playoffs will be shortlived.Outside of Becket, the starters have been a concern. Sox catchers are an almost guaranteed out when at the plate, with Captain Varitek “leading” them at .253, Mirabelli at .219 and Cash an impressive .125, actually less after going hitless tonight. Drew seemed to be improving at the plate until he stunk again the last two nights. Ortiz is still a respectable .326 but another September and Manny is nowhere to be found, he’s gotta go. Youkilis’ act is getting really tired, between whining at the homeplate umps to throwing his bat and helmet after hitting his latest pop-up.When Becket is the only reliable starter and the best bats are the unsigned and unsung Mike Lowell and rookies Pedroia and Ellsbury, we got problems, kids.While they have a great record, something about this team’s cohesion has never seemed right to me. While I wasn’t a huge Kevin Millar fan, he did seem to bring some unity to the 2004 World Champ squad. Don Baylor and his legendary “Kangaroo Court” helped unite the ’86 AL champ team. I don’t get see anyone of their ilk who brings this 2007 squad together.
Dan Kennedy
Well, I’m hoping the Angels might knock off the Yankees in the first round of the playoffs. They could meet, right? The Yankees don’t match up well with the Angels. And, at least lately, the Sox don’t match up well with the Yankees.
mike_b1
*Yawn*
Anonymous
Hey they are talking about bringing Buchholtz out of the frozen food locker. What does that tell you about what FO really thinks of Dice-K and Wakefield?
Wes
Having lost 6 out of 7 to the NYY isn’t as ominous as the overall lack of “fire in the belly.”The Captain has faded from the offense, as has Youk. Drew sparks once in a while, but Nixon would have been better.I know Manny’s hurt, he never dogs it and badly wanted to hit 500 this year with Thome, one of his favorite teamates.Age getting to Wake and Schill, but watching Beckett is a true pleasure. Think the clock getting Mirabelli too.Lowell, Petroia, Coco terrific.Where would the team be without Tavares?The kiddoes look great, but that’s in the future (unless they’re traded).
Stella
ERRATA:The s(t)inking Sox?Please correct.
Steve
Dan – The Angels-Yankees matchup is low probability I think. The Red Sox would have to win the division, yet lose 2+ games in the standings to the Angels so the Angels would have the best record. But if the Red Sox lose those 2+ games, the Yankees would also have to lose enough so the Red Sox win the division. (If that happens to the Yankees, the Tigers might catch them.)(BTW, I finally wrote up my trip to Fenway on Buchholz’s first day here.)
Suldog
Dice-K’s last start was fine. It was Okee-Dokee and Paps who blew the lead. Schilling looked swell against the Yanks, until the 8th. Beckett is consistently good. These are your three starters for the playoffs.Despite the bad outing against the Yanks, Okee-Dokee and Paps are folks I have great faith in. DelCarmen is good and Lopez is servicable. Add Wake and Tavarez out of the pen and I’m not worrying about the pitching.Hitting? We need Manny’s bat back in the line-up, no doubt. Stick him between Papi and Lowell and that takes a huge bit of pressure off.We win the division. The Yanks win the wildcard. Everything before then is just for the handwringers to worry about.
Steve
Well, apparently I’m full of it. Is it still true that two teams from the same division can’t meet in the first round of the playoffs? If so, the chance that the Yankees and Angels meet is pretty good (and it would be the case if the season was over now).But I’m having a very hard time finding the playoff rules online anywhere, so maybe I *still* don’t grok the issue.Anyone seen Manny?
Don (no longer) Fluffy
Maybe it’s Bill Buckner Syndrome. But not the Curse. . . . that’s gone, isn’t it?
Wes
Two in the loss, bubbe.
Wes
Revision:One in the loss, bubela.