Extra Bases reported that Manny was seen in the scoreboard, escaping the sweltering sun at Fenway yesterday during a pitching change. I know it's not unusual for Manny to be seen in the scoreboard. What was unusual this time, is that he was seen making a phone call. Lol. Manny got his bat back and his sense of humor =) In more cellphone news, Extra Bases also reported that Mike Lowell was caught stealing -- a cellphone, not a base! When asked about it, Lowell said he only stole the phone because there were no peanuts or nachos to steal. He said he's always on the look out for peanuts and nachos. Would have been even funnier if he stole a beer! There are video clips of the snatch on the Extra Bases blog.
And most importantly, the batting gods smiled upon the struggling sox lineup last night and gave every slumping sock his swing back. Even long after the game was one and everyone, especially Jerry Remy, wanted to go home and kick back a cold beer, they kept on hitting and hitting and hitting. This game will definitely be used as an argument in favor of allowing to teams to forfeit their at-bats.... Here's hoping the boys can keep the hitting going right through the weekend as the Orioles come to town.
Personally, I've been buying into all the all-star hype, getting all psyched up for another all-star game, forgetting that I hate all-star snooze-fests. I've been a little bit stressed about what exactly I'm going to do with myself over the 3 off days, though. And then I remembered that the All-Star break isn't a national holiday and I don't actually have any days off! Still don't know what I'm going to do without ballgames to watch!
Unfortunately redlasso doesn't cover all networks (like NESN, for instance). But here's hoping. In the meanwhile it does cover FOX and as always there are laughs when Francona does a live dugout interview:
I've been kicked off both youtube and uncutvideo for copyright infringement. How the heck am I supposed to blog about baseball without video clips?? It's just not right. Well, the folks at redlasso.com must have had the same problem because they've created a system in which you can clip from tv and embed it in your blogs. I'm test-driving it right now (with today's game). It's not exactly intuitive but I'm sure I'll figure it out. Sooner or later...
I had heard the rumors, but I hadn't actually seen it for myself. But there it was, Jason Giambi's porn star mustache:. I love the slew of fans mocking it, I mean, showing their support, I think. I like Yankee fans so much better than those (Devil) Ray fans....
This is not a catch, although I was thoroughly convinced at the time: Damon was really convincing. He even convinced himself, but look closer: See? The ball was definitely not in the glove. (I really like this picture because you can see Damon's foot in the air. It's too bad he got hurt, otherwise the whole thing would have been really funny!)
Now, this, on the other hand, is a catch, although Wally Bell was thoroughly convinced that it was not: See? The ball was definitely in the glove. I'm sure once instant replay is a part of the game I will have a long list of complaints, but I do believe it's time has come...
I have no idea how Beckett could concentrate looking at that ridiculous chest protector. Maybe he was trying to throw at it instead of the glove. But it's all good because it's being auctioned off for charity.
I love you, A-Rod. You are so stinking funny... really... now news (I use the term lightly, as this story came from tmz) is reporting that Madonna has brain-washed the batter. tmz.com reports:
"I don't recognize the man he's become," Cynthia Rodriguez told a pal, according to the New York Daily News. "I feel like Madonna is using mind control over him. ... Today he's very cold and calculating." Still, say pals, Cynthia is still in love with the slugger.
Maybe she'll brain-wash him into not choking in the post-season ;)
I just wanted to thank A-Rod for his off-the-field antics. Madonna divorcing her husband. A-Rod visiting Madonna late at night. A-Rod visiting Madonna the day after his baby was born. A-Rod's wife shacking up with Lenny Kravitz. Laughs. I really felt sorry for A-Rod's wife there for a minute. I mean, he went to Madonna's the day after the baby was born. Not cool. But if she's really shacking up with Lenny Kravitz, clearly, she's won!
It's been a long painful road-trip for the sox and the pessimism of those long 86 years is starting to come back, in my mind, at least. So thank you A-Rod for a moment or two of levity!
In Sunday's game in Cincinnati, little Jacoby Ellsbury quietly broke the Red Sox record for steals in a rookie season. And yes, it's only June. In his first at bat, Ellsbury hit a single to left, landing himself on first base. The Reds young pitcher is apparently slow to throw home, so Jacoby stole second on the first pitch for his 32nd steal of the season, breaking the club record of 31 which was set in 1908. And almost immediately after, he took off for third with another successful steal. I often think he's getting cocky when I see him take off almost immediately, but at 33 for 36, he deserves to be cocky. The boy can run.
Decorated with blue eye black for fathers' day, the Sox were obviously told that money would go to save their daddies from prostate cancer for each home run hit. So the boys stepped up and JD Drew (of course) delivered. Surprisingly, so did almost all of the little guys, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, and Coco Crisp. As a result, $84,000 was donated to prostate cancer research.
aol hates me, as they have locked me out of my account and deleted most of my videos :( so I'm taking a break from videos. I'd love to make a video of this damn Lakers intro which is currently making me a little nauseous and flashing back to Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson. I haven't watched basketball in years, but I'm going to watch this one, just to cheer against Kobe Bryant. Bryant, when asked to comment about Schilling's comments about him, replied GO YANKEES. Haha. BEAT LA BEAT LA BEAT LA. I swore I could hear the Sox fans chanting it in Cin city.....
Pap made it clear that there will be more drama to come in the days ahead for the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays. The Sox go to Tampa at the end of the month... seatbelts fastened... I'm having trouble keeping the rotation straight, but it looks like it'll be 4, 5, 1, or Wakey, Dice, and BECKETT. =)
I have to admit I was really worried about Coco when the whole of the Rays dugout landed on top of him. And the big guys thowing punches. I was surprised when he came out of the pack not bleeding. And afterwards he had this to say:
“I charged the mound. I feigned it like I was going to go to first base, just to get Navarro off me a little bit, and just charged the mound,” Crisp said. “He tried to hit me with a haymaker. He missed. I threw a punch. I pretty much missed. And the rest, went down to the ground… like the scratches on my face were people trying to scratch like we were playing football or something, like little girls, trying to scratch out my eyes. I move one hand down, scratch me right here [points to scratch to the right of his nose].“
“After that, people were trying to pull my hair like little girls. Instead of throwing some real punches or something like that… I’m down on the ground, I mean the fight’s pretty much over baseball-term wise. You wanna come in late, and throw some extra blows and get your little blows in, that’s cool. I’ll cover up. It’s all good, trying to pull some hair. It’s all right. It was between me and Shields that time and everybody tried to get their little blows in I think even more… he was unsure if he really wanted to hit me or not it seemed like, but ‘cause he didn’t really hit me hard."
I couldn't figure out what to title this blog....Kevin Youkilis plays right field. Again.... The only team I hate more than the Yankees. .. In this corner, wearing the red socks: Cocovelli Crisp...The Sox turn on themselves. .. Manny not being Manny... A little toooo much testosterone at Fenway park.... The craziest game I've ever seen.... It's not even a full moon.... I heart both Chris Carters... What the H$@@??!?!? .... THe Red Sox steal back the limelight from the Celtics.... Cash plays DH while Youk plays RF... Lowell makes an error!!.. Timlin Rules!... Hell freezes over...
What an adrenaline rush. JD Drew still rocking the #3 spot. A 3-run homer for Manny. A bench clearing brawl. The starting pitcher tossed in the 2nd. Our centerfielder tossed...A game ending injury for Ellsbury (the back up center fielder). Kevin Youkilis in right field. Again. A first major league hit for another Chris Carter.... a whole bunch of catches for Chris Carter... A fight between Manny and Youk?!?! ... Whew!!
I often fall asleep during the last few innings of games and have to watch them the next morning. It's not that the games are dull. It's that I get up at 5am. Nonetheless, I fear I might not sleep at all tonight. The Sox-Rays game is an adrenaline roller-coaster. The best and worst of baseball all rolled into one never-ending game that's conflicting with the Celtics game, even though it was moved up in order to not conflict. Woah, I can't remember such a wild game as this. It really started Wednesday night when Coco Crisp was blocked diving into second on a steal and hurt his thumb. He retaliated a few innings later by taking out Iwamura who was covering the bag.
So the first innning, Dustin Pedroia gets hit and takes his base. It has no meaning to me. Yet... JD Drew is loving life at number 3 and gets a hit. 2 are on. Manny hits 503. A 3-run homerun. He hit it right over the monster. In fact, some guys in the parking lot retrieve it. I launch off the couch. Life is good!
Then the 2nd inning, Coco Crisp leads off. I ran to the bedroom during the commercial break to get some laundry. I heard a lot of cheering and no announcing. I run back in. HOLY CRAP!!! Huge pile of players. I rewind... 2nd pitch to Coco, Shields throws directly at his thigh. Coco shakes his head like he knew it was coming. Then he charges the mound. Shields winds and throws a punch but Coco dodges and gets a punch in to the shoulder. Complete choas ensues. It may well be the best brawl I've seen. It'll be way funnier when I stop being mad...
I gotta say that I can't not believe the nastiness from Carl Crawford and Johnny Gomes. They were not at all involved in the original issue, yet they come in and start punching a pinned Coco Crisp in the head. Gomes got caught and tossed. Crawford will sure share in the suspension. The suspension concerns me because we are short one maybe two outfielders... but we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. The beautiful moment of the brawl: Coco popping out of the pile between someone's legs and not bleeding. That and that dodge of the first punch, his boxer dad must be proud. It had to be done. This fight was going to happen and it was genius for Crisp to get it over with in the first inning -- before Lugo and/or Pedroia got hit -- before Shields got deep into the game. So the Rays lose their starter and the Sox lose their centerfielder. No worries... Our left fielder (Ellsbury) is also a centerfielder and we've just called up a rookie left-fielder, so Manny can DH. So I'm reeling. I'm so excited to witness the stupidity of the Rays that they'd throw at Crisp in his first at bat. I've seen times when our starters wanted to throw at someone but refrain because of the threat of suspension or the threat of losing the games. But the Rays don't have this sense. I'm prepared for a huge blowout ballgame. Bring it!!
And it goes well. Not super-well, but well enough until. gASP! Ellsbury makes a superlative catch but rolls his wrist ala JD Drew in the process. CRAP. Francona is out to check. CRAP. He takes Ellsbury out of the game. On any other day this would be not the biggest deal. A bummer for sure, but today... Coco Crisp is already ejected and Manny is the DH so he can't move to left. The Sox are, once again, forced to put Kevin Youkilis in right field. Oh brother. This is quickly becoming a nightmare. Ladies and gentlemen, announcing, from left to right, your Boston Red Sox outfield... CHRIS CARTER, JD Drew, and KEVIN YOUKILIS. Oh, God, help us!
Okay, it all seems okay. Lester is pitching really well, so that helps the Sox make it through the next few inning then WHAT THE ??@?$?@$ A brawl in the dugout??? In our dugout?? What?? between Youk and and and MANNY???? Don't be ridiculous! What did Youk say he was a better outfielder than Manny?? Check it, Manny full on, has to be restrained:
Unbelievable. Rendered speechless, Don and Jerry have no choice but to turn on one another:
It reminds me of an X-Files episode where the moons and stars and birthdates aligned to turn friends to enemies. It was probably written by the other Chris Carter...
I remember reading about Chris Carter during spring training. I liked him immediately since he shared a name with the X-files creator. The article set him up as the guy who had nothing going for him but worked harder than anyone. He was on the field at first light still there well after the sun had set. I liked him. And here he is.. and lucky for Youk, the Rays hit ball after ball to left and Chris Carter proved he is awesome and Youk didn't have to prove anything. Eventually Youk had to catch a few and did so just fine. He's a dirtdog, afterall.. And after all sorts of more mild drama, Timlin pitched an inning and 2/3rd (i think) of shut out ball. Manny out with his hamstring. Cash in to pinch run... Youk got hit by a pitch but all really was well (enough) and the Sox won 7-1. I was hoping for 20-1 but I'll take whatever I can get. The Tampa Bay Rays have officially moved to the top of my most hated team list thanks to the unpunished, Carl Crawford. Watch out, Crawford. The Sox never forget...
The real highlight of the game: Coco Crisp got a standing O from the Fenway Faithful when he got kicked out of the game for fighting. God bless you, Coco Crisp....
I've wanted to believe that there would be an X-Files movie for years now and it's finally on the way!! Xfiles.com now has a trailer up and some photos. The premiere is schedule for July 25th!
I feel for catchers. I can't imagine squatting for 3 or more hours a day for a 100 days or more of the year. But I've noticed that Tek actually squats down to rest when he's on base! It's like he's more comfortable in a squat than he is standing up! I wonder if he squats to watch tv in the off-season ;)
so MLB.tv has started sprinkling the commercial breaks with their own ads. Yes, I pay to see the games on MLB.tv and StiLL get commercials for MLB.tv. Messed up. The commercials are mostly a smattering of MLB players saying keep watching MLB.tv. They've been adding lots of players lately which, I suppose, is supposed to make the words MLB.tv less boring. And honestly, hearly A-Rod struggle with the pronunciation, is less boring. However, Coco Crisp is the latest and greatest addition. Listen to how he adds the line with style. I've heard it 100 times and it still makes me laugh. I'm cuckoo for Coco Crisp.
I remember finishing my Master's degree. I remember sitting in that meeting, answering question after question. I remember walking out into an empty office knowing I'd done it-- that i had finished. I remember the lack of event. No fireworks. The world didn't stop. The lack of fanfare was shocking and disappointing. Years of study went into that lack of fanfare. Many many more years went into Manny's lack of fanfare at Camden Yard.
I hate MASN. I watch all the Sox games on MLB.tv (more on that later) and I see all the other networks. Obviously I find NESN the most entertaining. And in a close second I dig YES. And Way way way in last are the biased boys of MASN. They are the ones who reported that Shill's sock was a fake. So yes, if Manny were to hit his 500 with the absolutely least appreciative network, it would surely be MASN. They never miss an opportunity to insult Manny. And they didn't even after Manny inducted himself unceremoniously into the hall of fame. I feel blessed to have witness this, Manny's 500th homerun, the 24th such homerun to be hit in major league baseball. Clearly, we are all blessed to have witnessed such a hitter as they clearly do not come along every day.
LOST is always full of Red Sox references. Tonight the Sox game included a LOST reference! Juliet (aka Elizabeth Mitchell) was spotted in the crowd wearing a Sox hat, of course!
Nothing is better than a bench clearing ejection, but almost as fun is a random double ejection! Pent up and permanently frustrated Lugo got thrown out while minding his business at short and Francona followed. I loving watching Tito jaw with the umps because he's otherwise so mellow. It's shocking (and funny) to see him so worked up...
I don't think this was scored as an error but I'm sure it would have been if Lugo had been the one at short. I wish the media would cut Lugo a little slack because the (1) shortstop is a hard position and probably the one in which you have the opportunity for the most errors and (2) the stress of sucking only makes you suck more...
Before he came out of the game, clutching his back with a fatigued shoulder, I watched Dice-K do these crazy jumping jacks behind the mound.
It took me a minute to realize that he was cleaning his cleats. Sure is an athletic fellow... Now let me just state for the record, that before Dice-K's back, I mean, shoulder injury, I mean, fatigue, he was losing his first game. Now the ironic part is that he was pitching better, IMHO, than we've seen him all year. By that I mean that he was not walking every other batter. There are rumblings about putting him on the DL. Thankfully, the Sox have a plethora of pitchers...
I love Mike Timlin. He seems like a great guy. I'm sure there are tons of benefits to keep the veteran clubhouse guy on the roster, but I've begun to cringe everytime he takes the mound. While it's not as bad as when Gagne' took the mound last season, I do have to watch through my fingers. I do assume that Timlin will give up a homerun. Granted, I am occasionally pleasantly surprised. But on a night when the rest of the was glorious, the Sox handed the Mariners the win. While the Mariners went for it, taking the risk by throwing JJ Putz, their closer, in the ninth. We played it, uh, safe, I guess, by saving our best for last. Last never came.
While some pitchers recreate themselves, replacing velocity with command, Timlin hasn't exactly done this. Sad as it is to say, I think it might be time for Timmy to retire. Or at least be reserved for days when the game has been decided long before the ninth...
I don't have the luxury of watching all the Sox games on NESN. Being on the left coast, I rely on MLB.tv for my game coverage and they generally opt to show the home team's network. So I see the game but I don't get the in-depth explanations of the all-knowing Jerry Remy and Don Orsillo. For example, why, oh why, did Jason Varitek bleach his gear? Beige is not a good look on a drab grey uniform. However if it busts this traveling slump I guess I'm for it.. BTW, Happy 2,000th game, Manny!
It's been rainy and cold here for the better part of the week. It's getting depressing. And the Sox.... well, that's getting depressing, too. So I decided to take a trip down memory lane to last week when the boys hit 2 grand slams in one game.
The Sox bullpen got it's mojo back with a little feng shui. Upon returning to Fenway, the boys decorated with this pirate flag and it seemed to do the trick. No blown saves, no lost holds since!
The highlight from yesterday's disaster of an outing in Baltimore was clearly Manny's crazy catch and assist. Manny made an out-stretched catch just shy of the wall, ran up the wall and high-fived a Sox fan, ran down the wall, and fired to the infield in time to get the runner who had to go back to first to tag. Lovelovelove when Manny plays defense!
Casey and Cora came back this weekend and it looked like the team was whole again for the first time since I can't even remember when. But they had to let Julian Tavarez go, to fit Casey and Cora back on the roster. Tavarez no doubt put a crazy voodoo curse on the team. Just look at the evidence:
Lugo's concussion
Jacoby's bruised knee
Francona's mother in law died
JD Drew's sprained wrist
Coco's upset stomach
Youk in right field -- seriously, can anything good come of that?
Buchholz' broken fingernail
Big Papi's ejection
Beckett's win-loss record
THE RAYS IN FIRST PLACE
Seriously? Poor Brad Mills got way more than he bargained for, huh? Did I mention that Youk played right field? All I can say is that I can't wait for the boys to get back to Boston and put this road trip behind them. And I can't wait for a NESN game. I seriously can't take anymore talk about AJ Drew, Joey Cora, and Dustin Pedroia's bruised knee from bunting.
The Red Sox have designated Julian Tavarez for assignment. It looks like they are trying to trade him to the Rockies. Either way, it's the end of an era. As much as he drove me nuts, I'm really gonna miss the crazy fellow! For old times sake, here's Manny petting Julian...
During the height of the Red Sox battle against the cold and flu season, I went to Fenway and came home with the flu! Coincidence? I think not! They lost that game against the Angels, but it was still great fun to be back at Fenway.
We got there in time to watch some batting practice and Mike Timlin shag fly balls. Ortiz hit a bunch of balls out to us, which gave me a new appreciation for outfielders. The balls simply disappeared in the bright blue sky. I had to duck. Julian Tavarez spent the entire batting practice talking at Oki and his translator. I'm pretty sure Oki doesn't understand a word Julian says. Luckily no fly balls hit the back of Julian's head. Parlay the Parrot was safe and sound in the bullpen. The Red Chair It was supposed to be a Jon Lester game, but the flu wrecked havoc on the rotation. As a result, Justin Masterson was called up from AA and I got to see his outstanding Major League debut. Luckily, Wally didn't get the flu...The pirates make their way to the pen. Most of them were affected by the flu, which was evident when they went on to lose the game for the rookie pitcher. and about 5 minutes later, Julian Tavarez made his way to the pen. Someone forgot to wake him. One of the highlights of the game was Big Papi's 2 run homer in the 9th. It was too little too late for the Sox, but slump busting for Big Papi. The other highlight was definitely the great debut of the young Masterson. The hawk even made an appearance. It was good to see the new World Series flag flying high!Outside after the game, President and CEO, Larry Lucchino, was walking around like a mere mortal, talking to vendors.
Lots of antics over the weekend at Fenway Park... Clip one is Lester harrassing the robotic dugout camera. You know you're in trouble when your young pitcher is trying to emulate your bad boy ace and your rookie pitcher, in turn, emulates your young pitcher. Luckily, Lester has better aim with a baseball than with sunflower seeds.
And Jerry Remy was in fine form when he got a new cellphone from NESN.
And Julio Lugo wound up in left field! And somehow, through it all, the Sox have found themselves back on top...
Well, Jason Varitek pinch hit the go-ahead run and just about won baseball boyfriend of the day, but at the very last second Jacoby Ellsbury made this crazy foul ball catch in the stands. It looks even crazier in the replay as you can see his legs flailing about. The best is he comes up all attitude like he's bad-ass. Silly rookie ;) I love him!
David Ortiz has never been in a bigger slump than he has so far this season. So on Sunday, Ortiz sat on the bench while his team played the Yankees and his jersey was dug of the new Yankee Stadium. On Monday, Ortiz and his jersery were back in the lineup and Big Papi got TWO hits! Coincidence? I think not! The curse of the jersey wasn't on the Yankees but on Ortiz. Now, with the curse lifted, we can look forward to many homeruns to come!
Can you guess whose line that is? Oki? MannyD? Nope!! It belongs to this nutcase: And his partner in crime hit a game winning homerun, they are definitely my collective player of the game... The come-from-behind 9th inning was phenomenal. It had it all -- great base running, bunting, Ortiz hitting!!!, and Manny's homerun. I couldn't pick a clip of the day so here's the whole half inning (up until the pitching change)...
And Manny actually spoke to the press about it. Well, "spoke to the press about it" might be an exaggeration. But he did stand in front of the mic looking just slightly less annoyed than Josh Beckett. His answers are, of course, unintentionally hilarious.
In an attempt to curse the New York Yankees, a Red Sox fan on the construction crew of the new Yankee Stadium buried an Ortiz jersey in the concrete of the new stadium. At first the Yankee management thought it was a joke, but upon realizing it was true, promptly dug it up. It took laborers 5 hours of overtime to collect the jersey. And I thought only Red Sox fans believed in curses.
I had heard the rumblings. I heard that the Sox might try to make Manny DelCarmen a closer -- just for those days that Papelbon is off, of course. Well, Manny D proved he's got the goods, as he earned a save against the New York Yankees on Sunday night. Watch out, Pap! You've got competition....
I don't have cable. Yesterday I thanked that baseball gods that I have MLB.tv because otherwise I would have missed the 9th inning of the Yankees game. I was excited to watch a game on FOX but I don't have FX! Today, I'm blacked out on MLB.tv and I don't have ESPN. So I'm cursing the baseball gods and MLB.tv. I decided to occupy myself with a game from last August, back when David Ortiz could hit. For some reason, the boys at Rays TV showed the Coco Crisp gets run over by a moose clip. It was a really good video of the incident, so I uploaded it for your viewing pleasure. That is, if you're not otherwise occupied by a certain Yankees game!
"I believe in the Church of Baseball. I've tried all the major religions, and most of the minor ones. I've worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I heard that I gave Jesus a chace. But it just didn't work out between us. The Lord laid too much guilt on me. I prefer metaphysics to theology. You see, there's no guilt in baseball, and it's never boring, which makes it like sex... it's a long season and you gotta trust. I've tried 'em all, I really have, and the only church that truly feeds the soul, day in, day out, is the Church of Baseball." -Bull Durham
