Wily Mo

I still think trading away Bronson Arroyo was a mistake, and having him on the pitching staff near the end of the 2006 season might have slowed down the collapse, but damn it's fun to watch Wily Mo Pena hit home runs! He just hit a grand slam against the Orioles in the eighth inning to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 5-2 lead just like that (snapped my fingers). And he didn't scrape any paint off the back of the fence, either. He absolutely crushed that ball, and it even made the Orioles announcers gasp a little bit. Would I like to have Arroyo still pitching for the Sox? Sure. But Pena's "upside" is fun to think about, especially after shots like that.

How Sweep It Is!!!

A wise man once said "It's a long season," and I'm pretty sure he was talking about baseball, not winter. That's one reason I'm trying real hard (I said trying, not succeeding) not to get to excited about this weekend's sweep of the Yankees at Fenway. For starters, the Sox had their pitching lined up just perfectly for the series, as Schilling started Friday, Beckett on Saturday, and Dice-K making his debut against the Yankees on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball. Despite all that good pitching, the Boys from Beantown had to come from behind in every game. But who cares how they did it; the important thing is that they DID IT. Swept the bastards, that is.

Yankee fans can make all the excuses they want about inexperienced pitching, injuries, etc., but those excuses fell on deaf ears when the Sox collapsed last year. No sale. You play with the team you have, and that's baseball.

The highlight of the weekend had to have been Sunday night's third inning, when the Sox hit FOUR HOME RUNS IN A ROW. Manny, J.D. Drew, Mike Lowell, and Jason Varitek all went yard off rookie Chase Wright, welcoming him to Fenway. And although A-Rod stayed hot all weekend (bombing two homers on Friday night), he ended Sunday's game with a wimpy groundout off a fired up Papelbon.

So as I say, I'm really trying hard not to get excited, but these Sox look good, and I think it's going to be a good year. I still fear and respect the Yankees, but I'm going to enjoy the hell out of this sweep. Next weekend, to the Bronx.

Dice K is the real deal!!!

I know the guy has been under-publicized, but this Dice-K guy looks to be the real deal. He's heading to the 7th inning of an absolute gem over the Kansas City Royals in his Red Sox debut, and he looks terrific. Great command of the strike zone, and he seems to be getting the Royals to do exactly what he wants them to do -- the mark of a truly great pitcher. One mistake -- a solo home run by the Royals -- but otherwise a fantastic day. I just wish the press would give this guy some attention.

2007 Season Opener

I’ve never been a big fan of the thinking that the season opener is a “barometer” of things to come for the season. And it’s a pretty darn good thing today, as the Sox dropped their season opener at Kansas City this afternoon, Curt Schilling getting touched up in the process.  What the hell is it with Kansas City?  The Sox got swept their last year in a sign of bad things to come, and then they start off the new season with a lopsided loss at KC.  And then against the rest of the league, the Royals turn into the Bad News Bears.  I just don’t get it.

 

Anyway, I am optimistic about this season. Dice-K looks to be the real deal, I like the acquisition of Lugo at SS, and some other pickups are pretty key. I could never understand why things went so bad so quickly last year, so maybe my optimism is misplaced, but there you go.  Let the games begin, let’s play two, and all that stuff.  Can’t wait for this season to get into full swing!