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Sox Gamers/Postmortems

We’re #1: Sox-Yanks Gamer XII

That's right, the Sox are first. If you are aiming for fourth, that is.

Tonight the Sox can add another half game to their lead on the Rays (losers to Seattle), and keep pace with the Rangers (winners over Anaheim).  Really, who cares about the hosts – they're a lock, a smoothly sailing ship, healthy, wealthy, and wise, and now their goal will just be to stay injury-free. Tune them out Sox fans, if you can, and just check the DL every few days with fingers crossed.* 

Go Sox!  

Comment here.

* We kid. We wish no injuries on anyone. Club-wide stomach flu, maybe. But not injuries.

301 replies on “We’re #1: Sox-Yanks Gamer XII”

I love my wife. She has no stake in the Sox basically (not a sports fan) but an ad comes on with a certain shortstop and I hear, not to anyone, “I don’t like Derek Jeter”.
I have said nothing about him to her, either. And I actually don’t dislike Derek Jeter, for that matter. Not sure where it came from.

The Sox haven’t won since I’ve been in Europe. I’m back now, so we can begin our 17-game winning streak!

YF, we all feel your pain. Joe Morgan has already mentioned both Cano and Sheffield, the only two players he knows how to comment on.

The Sox are starting Tazawa on Tuesday. It’s odd that they aren’t starting Bowden, who lines up schedule-wise, basically, and instead going with Tazawa.
Excited to see the kid pitch.

I don’t believe that we haven’t scored for 25 innings. It has to be way more than that.

Wow, Tex wants to kiss Youkilis because the Spin The Bat ended up facing him down there by shortstop. Crazy.

Well SF, we scored those last runs in the 9th inning of the first game, and that was a blowout so it really doesn’t count. If you ignore those then it has really been 29 innings.

And no score against Andy?Come on Sox.If Andy hold you down for 4 more innings it’s over. And as SF said,turn off the sound and turn on the radio,sometimes I do that.

Visited my family in Ascot, just outside of London. We drove up to Scotland for four days though, which was sweet. Saw Edinburgh, Loch Ness (boring), Glasgow, a few whiskey factories, and then the castle in Warwick on the way back down.

Team wide stomach flu…Very funny SF.
Jon Miller, Joe Morgan and Steve Phillips. Good thing I ate a light dinner and I have plenty of beer on hand.

Ath,I don’t know what you think,but I really liked Edinburgh.Onde of those cities of Europe people don’t often make plans to visit but end up being a pleasant experience.And if you have the chance to drive up country by the coast in Scotland,that’s rather incredible. Not to mention the scotch factories ;)

why does everyone forget how awesomely clutch alex was in his mvp seasons?
Because he’s a douche. You really need to ask this?

To YF: Probably for the same reason the masses believe Papi took “Vitamins” and not steroids or any other PED. Some players can do no wrong while others deservedly or not can do nothing right.

Mike, I loved Edinburgh. We were staying right on the Royal Mile between the castle and Holyroodhouse Palace, so it was an easy walk to both. Great town, the people were extremely friendly at the pubs and happy to chat up some visitors.
The highlands were the best part though. Amazing views, great crags. I need to go back and go hiking up there.
Oh hey, rally-killer Varitek strikes out.

Probably for the same reason the masses believe Papi took “Vitamins” and not steroids or any other PED.
No, it’s all because A-Rod is a Yankee. It’s always about the Yankees. Yankees Yankees Yankees.
Seriously, give this shit a rest. 1/2 the SF mods, at the absolute least, think Ortiz is a liar. So can we stop with this “Ortiz is free and clear” BS?
I think people have forgotten A-Rod’s clutchness from several years ago because a) announcers are STUPID and have short memories. They aren’t paid to do research, it’s why we TURN THE SOUND OFF.

Yeah,I think Scotland,specially the Highlands and the bigger cities is a place very much worth visiting.It’s not all fog and rain.Oh,and I’m not from there,before you all think I work for the tourism office of Scotland ;P

By the way, just read the earlier thread about all the HBP from the last few games. All I have to say is this: if we’re losing badly by the 7th or 8th inning we need to bean ARod or Teix in order to start a fight. This team needs a goddamn fire lit under it, 2004 style.

SF who said anything about the mods or even regs here? Listen to our sports talk radio…even NY based hosts and callers are giving this guy a break or benefit of the doubt. My point in comparing is some players are loved and others are tolerated. Didn’t mean to get you all worked up.

Ath, both were thrown at, one hit. Feel free to fire your team up by hitting Hairston.

John, I’m in panic mode for my team right now. So if it’s the 5th inning and we’re losing 7-0, hit both of them. Back to back beans. They come up again in the 7th, and it’s 9-2? Do it again. Do it until a fight breaks out, because right now that would be infinitely more entertaining than watching the sequel to the 2006 Boston Massacre.

Oh,I wanted to see a pickoff by Andy today.He’s always trying no matter who is on base.

Well,depending on the point of view,a Boston massacre wouldn’t look bad.Not for me :)

I guarantee if the Sox got in a fight right now they wouldn’t land a single punch.
I also realized that if the Sox got a clubhouse stomach flu (like I wished on the Yankees), it would only be via barfing. No runs!!

DP baby.Man,this sox offense is really suck.I mean, are they really relying only on the homers?Wow.

What is the record for most scoreless innings by a team, on offense? It’s gotta be pretty long, and I am not thinking that we are near a record (though it feels that way), but the level of suck is getting damn near comical.

Luis Tiant is cool, but can we stop the veterans circle-jerk and actually commentate on the game? This is a joke.

I was about to say the same thing,Ath.It’s nice to hear him, even when sometimes he starts to mix spanish and english,but he’s cool.But they only do it because there’s not much going on in the field

SF,i think Paul would have that number ready to give you.And Ath, we’d like some too.It’s just that since the sox can’t score for a while,they should be putting drag bunts and steals and everything they come up with.

“…Not sure where it came from….”
really sf, you mean that your wife doesn’t know that you are a devout sox fan and that jeter is the face of the “hated” rival yankees…uh huh… ;)

cripes are we headed for another 15 inning nadafest???
attn yanks:
see the ball.
hit the ball.
run.

“…No, it’s all because A-Rod is a Yankee. It’s always about the Yankees. Yankees Yankees Yankees….”
glad to hear you finally admit it sf…now don’t you feel better ;)
“…I guarantee if the Sox got in a fight right now they wouldn’t land a single punch.
I also realized that if the Sox got a clubhouse stomach flu (like I wished on the Yankees), it would only be via barfing. No runs!!”
now that’s some funny shit sf [pardon the pun]

Hey look some offense.
The commentator just called Posada “A great ball blocker”

speaking of wives, in my case ex, and sports, my son told me that his mom wanted to get more interested in sports, specifically baseball, so as a symbol of this new interest, she purchased a pink baseball cap with the interlocking ‘ny’ on the front, which she proudly wore to a social event, loudly proclaiming her devotion to the yankees…imagine her surprise and embarrassment when one of her friends informed her that her new cap actually had the mets logo and not the yanks…now that’s funny…

Bases loaded. Time for Varitek to strand more runners.
DC, that story is hilarious! That’s like John Kerry saying that his favorite Sox player was “Manny Ortiz”

And then a visit to the mound,Posada comes in an says:All right it’s varitek now, you know what to do:pitch right down the middle,baby!

Honestly, this doesn’t faze me. I went like three years in college without scoring, what’s three days?
Losers.

Tek is incredibly consistent. He’s like 2 for his last 29 at both the plate AND throwing out runners.

Man,sox fans must be very p-ssed at Varitek right now. And the Yanks playing the smallball, I gound you to second,he grounds you to third and hope for a 2 out hit/error.

at least you’re hot tonight sf…funny stuff
has anybody else noticed that the yankees kind of suck at hitting the past few days too?
the non-morgan guy just said varitek is a good “ball blocker” too…damn

I didn’t hear the comment,DC,my volume is turned very low,like most people here ;)
And yes, the Yankees are having a hitting issue,but it’s overshadowed by the sox bigger issues.At least for the series.

Case in point,Slusher POPS!!Not even a pretense for a deep flyout.17 innings today.

Nick Green with ANOTHER lead-off single. Too bad he’ll get stranded there.
Just called my fortune teller: the next Red Sox run will be scored on September 17.

Pettitte nearly decapitated there.
Ellsbury bunts for the hit, poorly. Productive out, but Pettitte’s been getting hammered, I am not sure that was the right play.

dc, the Yanks score 13 in game and 5 in another. The third game was an anomaly (but facing Beckett) and tonight they’ve got Lester. I think the Yanks have done ok, actually.

The ESPN announcers in closed captioning (wife sleeping) are actually even MORE illiterate.

for those of you with your sound down, phillips just said that pedroia and youk are the “grit” of the sox, and specifically that ped is “gritty”….wow
let me know if you want me to stop reporting these gems
;)

If only Gardner was healthy, otherwise he’d grit out walks and steal a base with the pure grit he secretes from his pores.

Wow, this is just an epic piece of fail. Forty years and I am having a hard time remembering a longer run of ineptitude, and I have rooted for some terrible teams. And this isn’t even CLOSE to a terrible team.

No prob here,DC.Maybe it will give us something to comment on until they start scoring from the 11th inning on. :)

You’d think that at some point a team almost has to score a run by accident, one not necessarily even of their own making.

Joe Morgan talking about how the key to hitting is gliding, and then popping. I don’t know what the f*ck to say to that.

Maybe that’s what boston wants, get pettitte high in the count, get him out.But if who comes is Ace or Phil,that’s no good gamble at all

“…I think the Yanks have done ok, actually….”
i agree sf, especially since coming up on the winning side hides a lot of flaws, but you could also use the “these are our best pitchers” to explain the sox offensive woes in the past 2 games [burnett and sabathia]…tonight i’d give you guys the edge pitching wise, but pettite seems to have some houdini in him…sometimes when it goes bad, it’s real bad…the yanks went through some of what the sox are going through for quite a bit of the first part of the season…

This is a weird strikezone, both to Pettitte and Lester. Lester throws 5 strikes in order to get the K.

I think Tito should go with a backwards lineup. It would be both funny, memorable, and probably take the players out of their comfort zone, which clearly is WAY too comfortable.

Joe Morgan talking about how the key to hitting is gliding, and then popping. I don’t know what the f*ck to say to that.
I thought that was the key to breakdancing.

To be fair, Morgan was comparing Cano’s “gliding and popping” batting approach to Pedroia’s more violent swing.

the yanks went through some of what the sox are going through for quite a bit of the first part of the season
Um, no they didn’t. Nobody has, ever, if the records are to be believed as quoted above.

Yeah,SF, maybe they should try hitting doing the moonwalk on the box,if it helped Morgan,why can’t it help the sox? ;P

“the yanks went through some of what the sox are going through for quite a bit of the first part of the season”
I know you’re trying to cheer up SF, but seriously.

to Jason Bay, in memory of John Hughes:
Buhner? Buhner? Anyone? Buhner?
Theo should have shopped him.

i like youk, and if i were a sox fan i’d adore him, but he’s really got to figure out a way to hit without giving his bat a handjob.
work it out with your shrink, youk.

Drew gives one a ride, but poorly vectored. Another zero.
The Sox linescores lately have had more zeroes than a Dungeons and Dragons convention. Shee-it.

And doesn’t the mall with a ballpark inside(The New Stadium) look beautiful at night? Looks like Andy just started to deal too. Now,runs,Yankees!

you got me there sf…i wasn’t claiming record-breaking ineptitude, i just meant the general offensive malaise and specifically with runners in scoring position…i don’t have the stats handy to support my claim, but my gut and the yankees early season record are proof enough…some of the guys got off to very slow starts as i recall…

Little did Jon Lester know that he’d be back pitching for Pawtucket.
Oh, wait, I got confused after watching the offense.

I sort of jokingly posted about it earlier, but does anyone think that Dave Magadan ISN’T thinking about what he might have to fill his days with pretty soon?

actually doug, i wasn’t trying to make sf feel better…why would i do that? ;)
actually, i was trying to point out that teams get hot, they get cold, it’s a long season…sox had their hot streak, early, it’s the yanks turn now…that’s all…
by the way, i thought ys was a big homer haven…a hitters paradise…hmm

Miller’s zone has actually been pretty good – pitch FX says he’s only missed two striks in the zone (1 for each team) so far, but he is gving quite a bit of leeway off he plate to both pitchers (inside corner to RHB’s) – like the pitch Damon was just called out on.

and on and on and on.
that pitch to damon was way outside. if they’re getting that, we could be here till tuesday.

If the Red Sox ever decide to start doing even SHIT at the plate again and somehow make the playoffs, they will be dangerous, VERY dangerous if Beckett and Lester pitch anything like they did this week.
And that is why Cliff Lee (or Halladay) should have been Theo’s focus, not a marginal upgrade (?!?!?) to the offense.

I always feel like those “best team in baseball” for ESPN are just throwing it in my face.

ESPN is so predictable. Anytime an outfielder leaves his feet while making/after making a catch, they immediately deem it a great play. No wonder they spooed all over Jim Edmonds all the time.

Whatever anyone says about Pettitte, he is AlWAYS strong in the second half and he is USUALLY strong in big games. I know the Sox are hurting right now, but I want some props (from YFs and SFs alike) for Pettitte.

“that pitch to damon was way outside. if they’re getting that, we could be here till tuesday.”
gameday had it on the outside part of the paint. probably should have been a ball.

Look, Pettitte and Lester are two pitchers that I really like. Watching Andy stay strong through however many innings it was in the locust game AND hold a man on third after a leadoff triple was nothing short of inspiring. And it’s pretty hard to top Lester’s story.

Ah,I see now,IBM.But since the Whalers left what became of the place?Where they played,the civic center,right?
Andy,doing that magic again?Whoa boy,he’s trying to match the previous Yankees outings.And doing it.Way to go,lefty!

“…The old Hartford Civic Center…”
yep, i went to a few games, concerts, and other events, and it was a nice place in it’s heyday…there was even a nice Sheraton as part of the complex…the economy, specifically a mass exodus of business and citizens, and a lack of interest in the whalers, basically buried the civic center as i remember it…

ESPN is actually ignoring batting average and using OBP for determining how valuable a player is!

i haven’t lived in the hartford area for awhile, but i think the facility is now called the “XL center”, owned by the city of Hartford…still used for sports, concerts, etc., including some of the the UCONN men’s and women’s basketball games…

“Given the chance, I’d rather have a beer with Killebrew.”
Given the chance, I’d rather have A-Rod, you know, ON MY BASEBALL TEAM.

I wish I could do the negative stuff krueg does,I hope he’s doing it right now. Yeah,YANKS

I don’t know about that Fiddy my fine feathered friend, but krueg was all optimist yesterday and that worked out for us pretty well!

IBM – but if you had a beer with ARod, you probably could write a book on it..
Tight game.

Given the chance I would rather have a beer with Jim Thome, but that’s not particularly relevant I’m afraid.

I think I’d rather have a beer with anyone in this game thread over just about any professional athlete.

Doug – Yeah,he was trying to hold off the optimism,but the way the game went he couldn’t.It excited him – and us – a lot, when we were able to score(!).

you’re only allowed to make fun of jeter’s lack of range, and turning the routine play into a spectacular one…come andrew, you know that by now, read the damn TOS man…

Oops, there goes the lead. Hughes was probably not available today, having pitched the last several games.

I swear to god if that is ESPN fucking with us and splicing in something from BP I am going to end my subscription.

And Youk follows that up with a solid single. Why hasn’t Girardi realized that Coke sucks yet?

1 run game and you have Coke in the game? Why? He got the lefty out…why the f-ck wasn’t Hughes brought in then?
Girardi just blew the sweep. Great job Joe. Not.

Hughes there to one batter in each of the last 2 games. You can’t tell me he wasn’t available tonight.

The two biggest myths in sports are that one fan’s team is morally superior to another fan’s team, and that this site is biased towards the Sox. Honestly.
Actually, that’s not true. Our team IS morally superior.
;-)

Why hasn’t Girardi realized that Coke sucks yet?
There’s a drug-related joke in here and I can’t yet find it.

Ugh. You know, Joe, we have another guy named Phil who sucks a lot less. Are you sure you just didn’t get crossed up with the bullpen?

At least he got the DP. There goes the 31 1/2 inning scoreless streak. Now a record to be broken.Or not

Hughes has only thrown nine pitches the past two games. Coke is slightly better than a LOOGY but he’s not good enough to face Martinez.
Plus Martinez was in front of everything, why throw a fastball? Blergh.

If the game ends like this, and it very well may not, then at least Lester and Pettitte will both get what they deserve.

Could have put the boot to the throat of the Sox tonight…blew a big opportunity on a stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid f-cking move by Girardi. Un-F-CKING-believable.

Double sweet. Back where you belong V-Mart. Next time try not to do the Manny-admire-my-shot BS.

Interesting that he didn’t go to Oki for Damon and then turn Tex around with Oki. Did Oki pitch yesterday? (I didn’t see the game)

Too bad Pettitte won’t get the win even if Mo can hold the Sox down in the 9th. For now I’ll just be thrilled if Month can shut them down. If the Sox bats are beginning their inevitable awakening, I want them out of the Bronx ASAP.

From the previous page, if it gets lost, did Oki pitch yesterday? Would have made some sense to bring him in for Damon and then Tex (turn him around) if he didn’t. Or maybe even if he did.

that damon shot was a ys classic, but teixeira…sitting here i called “upper deck.” you can ask the wife!

“Classy, IH”
Exactly what was unclassy there SF? V-Mart standing at the plate after hitting the go-ahead HR or me pointing out that he did it?

You gotta do what you gotta do,man.Glad you’re here.
”I want them out of the Bronx ASAP”
So let’s sweep them out,IH!! ;)

OK – peace now SF – serious question: why would Okajima have been better. Hasn’t Bard been unhittable in the 8th?

HIP HIP….DOUBLE!!!!
Sorry dougie fresh…I’ve been watching obviously, just couldn’t post. I’ve never been a lucky charm before???? ;)

What if krueg IS the Old Yankee Stadium squirrel?
Have you ever seen them together at the same time? COINCIDENCE?

to turn Tex around – short porch in right, no reason to have Tex hitting against a guy like Bard with that kind of distance to cover. Make him hit one out to the deeper part of the park.
Once Damon hits it out then for sure turn Tex around.

well, since the floodgates opened, why not break the hinges and do what we do?Sweep!!

Have you ever seen them together at the same time? COINCIDENCE?
They’re the SAME PERSON!

robinson!
apropos of nothing, not a fan of the neckware trend on pitchers. jewelry is for girls, gentlemen. and the whole cowrie shell thing…

the ONLY good thing about this is that it’s August.
Good night, everyone – well done by the Yanks for sure.
Time to focus on Texas and Tampa, and also to see if Clay Buchholz can turn into something that we all hope he can be. If this season turns into 2006, at the very least it would be nice to see some young players develop while it happens.

Word is in that there’s been told in the Yankees dugout that the squirrel is back

“that damon shot was a ys classic”
I dunno about that..I’m pretty sure it was out in the old stadium too. It was very well struck and still had plenty of velo when it hit the back wall of the bullpen.

It’s the Red Sox, IBM. This isn’t the kind of thing that needs to be explained. It’s when this doesn’t happen that requires explanation.

“Okay Sox Fans, mass suicide time. I’ll bring the kool-aid.”
this made me IRL LOL. well done ath

It’s getting pretty old bitching about the Stadium…the wall is the same distance for both teams. Someone call the waaaaaaaaambulance???
ENTER SANDMAN!!!!

i dunno mark-yf. seemed like an air-current special to me. wall shot at ys2? i dunno. what evs:
rivera time.

“Okay Sox Fans, mass suicide time. I’ll bring the kool-aid.”
You can tell the young guys in here. This is NO fun, but this is nothing.

Why on Earth would they bring Ortiz in, Mr. Commentators, when he is on a slump and was benched for it?

Hey look, Varitek strikes out yet again. Now we get to watch Ortiz K to end the game and this series.

I do appreciate the aesthetic virtues of having Ortiz end this. It really puts the vomit cherry on the shit sundae that was the week.

Steve Phillips is criticizing Mo’s pitch location. Holy shit, shut the fuck up dude. You don’t criticize Mo.

Mo is merciful, he grants Oritz a free base to spare him the humiliation of ending the series.

IBM: have you seen Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple? Extremely powerful documentary.

Why are the home fans dissing their 3rd baseman?
I think that’s for the Yankees starting pitcher, SF.

Well, I HATED the walk to Ortiz there (seriously, is there anything more infuriatng than walking a meaningless batter to bring up the tying run in the ninth?) but it all worked out. SWEEP.

I cannot believe we swept the series. Seriously. That was amazing.
Way to hang in there SF’s. I think we all stayed cool throughout.
Well, off to finish my laundry boys, have a great week!!!
LET’S GO YANKEES!!!

“That was amazing.”
Ahh. RS have been in a slump for 6 weeks. all this did was magnify it.
Not to say the sweep wasn’t monumental. It was. Both ways. But crap, we haven’t hit since June. And the Orioles don’t count.


Why are the home fans dissing their 3rd baseman?
I think that’s for the Yankees starting pitcher, SF.
Does that mean that Sox fans were just doing detective work when they chanted it at A-Rod?

Obviously, this could be discounted based on the circumstances, but I feel strangely certain that the Yankees are destined to win the WS this year. Ugh.

So I have caught grief from some YFs, but moreso from some SFs here about being overly pessimistic about the Sox, about being a Chicken Little, by speculating, a couple of weeks ago, that our team could be “several games out” sooner rather than later.
Am I still a Chicken Little? Or was I just realistic?

however much one wants to credit the lack of Sox hitting over the presence of strong Yankee pitching for what happened here, the Yanks starting rotation and bullpen have both been very impressive over the same 6-week period that the Sox have been slumping after a first half of the season that was really pretty mediocre – especially for the starters. In that first half, if it weren’t for some crazy late-inning hitting by the offense, the Yanks would have been in a very deep hole.
Other than the starting pitching for both teams on Thursday and the Boston relievers tonight, the pitching on both sides of this series has been pretty exceptional.
I don’t know what the Sox do about their offense. While I’ve never thought much of Varitek at the plate, Pedroia, Youkilis, Ortiz, Lowell, Ellsbury, Bay, and now the addition of Martinez would not – on paper – have struck me as weak by any stretch. Not that I’m complaining, but I also don’t expect their bats to remain dormant.

The Sox look bad now, but both the Sox and Yanks have proven in recent years they they are not dead until you drive the stake through their hearts. Well, except the Yanks in 08 and the Sox in 06.

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