October 7, 2008
How 'Bout Dem New Sox?
Jason Bay and Jed Lowrie may be new to a Boston uniform, but they've proven unbelievably crucial to the Red Sox season.
Jed Lowrie, despite his .258/.339 line on the season has proven himself more than capable of being the Red Sox's longterm shortstop. In 260 at-bats, he had 46 RBI. Compare that to Julio Lugo and his 261 at-bats for the Sox this year where he netted 22 RBI. Ouch. How much joy do you think Lowrie derived to go from starting the year in the minors to delivering the ALDS-clinching RBI?
Jason Bay, in the playoff hunt for the first time, may not have made Sox fans forget about Manny and his quirkiness, but he did produce Manny-like at-bats for the Sox (not the Dodger Manny, the discontented-Manny, but we can only compare Bay to the Manny of Boston because that's what we were getting) and has played a significant role for these Sox in the playoffs. How much joy do you think he derived from scoring the winning run to make it past the first round of the playoffs?
The comments in the game thread also excoriate Justin Masterson and the Fire Brand T-shirt sales took a hit in the process, but he also played a crucial role in the ALDS victory.
We've seen a lot of the Angels in the playoffs these past years, and although I'm thrilled for advancing, I can't help but feel melancholy for the Angels. After all, any Red Sox fan can identify with failure, right? (Well, unless you were born in 2004 or future years past that.) So for the Angels... Vladimir Guerrero went a long way towards exorcising his playoff demons, Torii Hunter showed why the Angels went after him to replace Gary Matthews Jr. and Mike Napoli came up big in a do-or-die game for the Angels. John Lackey, Ervin Saunders and Joe Saunders proved that they should be feared across the league and Mark Teixeira can flat out play.
Onto Tampa...
Now we head to Tampa Bay, where we attempt to destroy the upstart Rays' Cinderella season. It won't be an easy task; they're the division champions for a reason and give opposing teams a lot of trouble in their home park. What should the rotation be?
Who knows what Tito and Theo come up with, but it should be Dice-K, Lester, Beckett and Wakefield. This ensures that Beckett and Lester line up for Games 6 and 7 as needed and keeps everyone on the normal rotation.
Of course, this means that Wakefield wouldn't start in the dome, but I'm not comfortable moving Lester and Beckett from the 2/3 slot, so if we were to move Wake, it would necessitate him kicking the series off, and I'm not comfortable with him doing that after having been off for so long.
Mike Lowell can't play in the ALCS due to being removed from the ALDS roster prior to last night. Gil Velazquez is likely to remain as the backup but shouldn't come close to sniffing an at-bat. Youkilis will probably shuttle between first and third in the ALCS, with Alex Cora and Mark Kotsay picking up the bulk of the time.
Speaking of Kotsay...
What's with the infatuation of him over Sean Casey? I'm not begrudging Kotsay his due as he is a good fielder and brings a solid bat, but what exactly happened to have the team start playing him over Casey who has done nothing but hit the entire year? So what if he can't hit a homer? He gets hits, period. Kotsay may be more athletic and have more power potential, but Casey is far more proven this year.
That said, does Casey make that athletic catch Kotsay made in the late innings last night? I say no.
Predictions...
I hate making predictions because they almost always make everyone look silly, but it's fun to debate. Sox in 6.
Discussion
22 Comments on "How 'Bout Dem New Sox?"
#1
Posted by Devine, October 7, 2008 4:17 AM
Casey's hitting sucked in the second half (though I think he had a couple big hits) and he's not a good defender. To paraphrase...did you see that catch Kotsay made?
Winning is fun. My hopes are low RE: the next series, but we'll see.
#2
Posted by Evan Brunell, October 7, 2008 5:13 AM
Yep, saw that catch he made. I alluded to it in the article.
Globe says its about defense: wanted an athletic player for the Angels' bunting and aggressive playing.
Will we see Casey against Tampa?
#3
Posted by Sam K, October 7, 2008 6:51 AM
Who is Gil Valezquez and why is he any better than, say, Jeff Bailey?
#4
Posted by Ryne Crabb, October 7, 2008 7:22 AM
its actually "Gil Velazquez" and he hit .260 with 10 HRs this year with Pawtucket ... good guy to have on the roster, can play all infield and outfield positions ... basically a more defense oriented player than bailey ...
Evan - thanks for brining up the casey/kotsay quesiton, it was driving me nuts during the game last night - looking forward to seeing the feedback from our readers
#5
Posted by Shane, October 7, 2008 8:00 AM
I too felt bad for the Angles (the shot of Vlad in the dugout all moist eyed really got me), but then they switched to a shot of Papi hugging Tito with a HUGE smile on his face and I went back to enjoying the win.
In all seriousness the Angles were a good team that should have played better than they did. At times it just looked like they thought they'd lose.
I was always bearish on Tex (playing on a launching pad most of his career), but his time with the Braves and Angles are starting to bring me around. I don't think he'll be worth the money he'll get by any means, but I do think he'll be a good player.
#6
Posted by Shane, October 7, 2008 8:11 AM
Two things off topic
1) Did I see Timlin sitting in the bullpen during a game? If you're left of the roster but were on the 25 man during the normal year do you get the still sit on the bench?
2) Evan, did you know that you might have inadvertently started a new curse with of the Fire Brand of the Year Award? If I only use stats that support my argument (just getting ready for the debate tonight) you clearly see that:
2008 FBotY Mike Lowell injured
2007 FBotY David Ortiz injured
2006 FBotY Mike Timlin old (perhaps not your fault)
2005 FBotY Bronson Arroyo traded
2004 FBotY Tim Wakefield curse only an infant, Timmy has down year
#8
Posted by Colin, October 7, 2008 9:53 AM
Or just not have it at all Evan. (insert stupid smiley)
Kotsay certainly got himself in the game when we finally put him on the roster. His hits were clutch and his catching too. Figures now he shows it.
It's sad to see Lowell out but if the man's hurt the man is hurt and I'm sure Lowell himself admits it more than anyone. As for feeling bad for the Angels, I treat it like the White Sox. Angels won in 2002, White Sox won in 2005. I don't think they have any drought as compared to what Boston suffered and the Cubs continue to suffer. I also really, really do not like Anaheim, the OC, and the fanbase/people that I've met coming from there. Sure it's spite but damn they piss me off more than the 26 Rings fans sometimes.
My predictions with the Rays? I think it'll reach 7 games just like the past two ALCS's that we've won and once again I think we'll come out on top.
#9
Posted by Ryne Crabb, October 7, 2008 10:31 AM
Curse of the FBotY??? Don't let Dan Shaunssaslkdfjsaldf hear about this one
#10
Posted by Sean O, October 7, 2008 10:32 AM
Anyone else feel like death this morning? And I don't even drink.
oye.
#11
Posted by Kevin R, October 7, 2008 10:34 AM
If you're feeling bad for the Angels, just read this, it should cure you:
Someone needs to call the waaaaaambulance.
#12
Posted by Mayor Hoiberg, October 7, 2008 10:37 AM
I wanted to see Casey hit for Cora Sunday night, but have no problem with Kotsay getting the playing time. I'd have a different view if Casey had some power. I don't know that many 1B's run down the flare Kotsay caught in foul territory last night. That said, I think that most 1B's would've made the play at second on Garrrett Anderson's grounder in the third.
I know that Mike Scioscia is generally thought of as one of the best managers in the game, but do the Angels really play like a well-managed team? Vlad, Willits, Kendrick, Matthews and Aybar all made dumb/tight mistakes at key times. Add to that Lackey's moronic post-game comments and I really prefer our guy. I wanted to see Casey pinch hit, and I did not want to see Javy face a bunch of switch hitters in game 3 - but Francona deserves a TON of credit for keeping his team loose and focused at the same time.
#13
Posted by Sean O, October 7, 2008 10:41 AM
Sorry John, blame Vlad (virtually no RBIs, idiot baserunning in game, Torii for stupidly injuring himself arguing with a call in game 2, missing the 3 run popup yesterday and getting thrown out in game 3, Santana for giving up the early runs, Aybar's bunt, and so forth.
The way I see it, much like the Patriots lost the Super Bowl this year, the Angels just plain lost this series. But if we can win a series vs a 100 win team without Dustin Pedroia or David Ortiz, that's a damn good sign.
#14
Posted by Colin, October 7, 2008 10:43 AM
Dude brah Lackey, you need to chill out man. Seriously brah, how about shreddin' some gnar on the waves of the OC to take the stress off dude? You're just too cool for those Boston losers anyway even if you did lose to them.
Lie on your couch, shut the fuck up, and go watch reruns of Laguna Beach/The Hills Lackey. We don't need the likes of you.
#15
Posted by Bob, October 7, 2008 11:12 AM
Kotsay just brings more to the table than Casey. He's a better fielder, runs better, and I would argue is a better hitter too. I like Casey, but he is what he is, a singles hitter. Kotsay is just as likely to hit a single as Casey, and unlike Casey he has some potential to stretch out extra base hits.
As for the Angels, I don't really feel all that bad. All they've been doing all series is whining and talking about how they're the better team. They got beat plain and simple, they helped the Red Sox a lot, but the end result is the same, one team won and one team lost. That said, I'm not going to hate on California, most of my family lives in the LA area and I spent most of my summers there when I was growing up. I love it and hopefully will move there fairly soon.
#16
Posted by J.Goodwin, October 7, 2008 11:50 AM
Boston has always been at war with LA (or at least since the 80s, thank you The Freeze).
You can often make a legitimate argument that one team didn't play up, or that the other team is the "objectively worse" team, but when you just got swept isn't one of those times. That's one of the times when you go get your coffee, and try not to worry about whether you'll be managing that team next year.
#17
Posted by Tessie's Dad, October 7, 2008 1:19 PM
Mr. Lackey:
Quit whining and shut up. And break out the good stationery: you owe a thank-you letter to Justin Masterson. After all, he's the only reason you didn't get a second 'L' hung around your neck in a four-game series.
#18
Posted by Colin, October 7, 2008 1:25 PM
Hey TD:
While he's at it, perhaps he'd like to forward the message to Torii (who the fuck spells their name like that?) and Teixeira who also feel like whining. Shut the fuck up all three of you. God you're almost as bad as Hank Steinbrenner.
Tampa is going to be one hundred times classier than your OC lot.
#19
Posted by LD, October 7, 2008 1:39 PM
"[Monday] night they scored on a broken-bat ground ball and a fly ball that anywhere else in America is an out, and he's fist-pumping on second base like he did something great."
this lackey quote made me really angry.
#20
Posted by Mostly Running., October 7, 2008 2:42 PM
Dear Mr. Lacking,
I'm glad you got to sniff being a champion again. You're a mighty fine pitcher, but beyond that you need to shut the fuck up and deliver when it matters. I'm not going to make fun of you for being on the west coast, that would be stereotyping. Instead I'll just go with the facts you have presented throughout your career: you're a scapegoating douche bag who probably huffs glue, gambles obsessively or sneaks sips of mouthwash in the dugout between innings. Your team lost. Your team might be the better dressers, better dads, better at the reach around or better at origami, but you are not the better team as far as baseball goes. Good luck, have a safe and relaxing off-season and maybe we'll see you next year.
Cheers,
MR
#21
Posted by SamR, October 7, 2008 8:51 PM
Angels - Winning = Classless
Thats it ... plain and simple ... and I know everyone hates being disappointed ... but shut the fuck up already ... it's over ... you got beat ... now go home
#22
Posted by Mostly Running., October 7, 2008 10:19 PM
Couldn't have said it better:
http://www.lookoutlanding.com/2008/10/7/630497/the-angels-are-delusional
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