Portland Sox Fan

…that fell apart yesterday. I was listening on and off yesterday; by the time I got where I was going yesterday afternoon it was 9-4 in the 7th, and apparantly it stayed that way. Why can’t the Twins roll over and die for the Sox like they apparantly do for the Yankees? Oh, well. At least the Yanks got beat as well. And the Twins AA team absolutely crushed the Yanks AA team..so maybe the next generation won’t be so pathetic. Is it me; or is the vaunted offense of the 2003 Yanks generally held in check by good pitching this year? I haven’t taken the time to look at it in detail, but my hunch is that seems to be the case so far.

A rare quote from Dan Shaugnessy on this page (I’m not a huge fan) that I thought was funny in a column today that was about the fickleness of the Sox fan:

Tim Wakefield, yesterday’s starter and who has been in Boston longer than any active Sox player, said, ”You [media] contribute to it. They take what you write down as gospel [not what my e-mailers report, Tim]. But overall, I guess they are as competitive as we are and want us to do well. They are as frustrated as us and it’s been that way here a long time.”

I was amused at the self-depreciation there…”Honestly, Tim, my readers think I’m a dink!”

What a gem by Pedro. Great performance, some clutch hitting, batting around in an inning…just an all around great game. Plus the Yanks lost, so that makes it even better.

Here are just a few of the pictures that I took from my seat…

One thing I’ve loved about the Sox so far this year is that there is apparantly no quit on this team. Well; very little quit, that is. After a stupendous effort in the bottom of the 7th last night, I have to think that by the bottom of the 8th, the Sox batters felt like a good samaritan who was punched squarely in the gut by an old lady after retrieving her stolen purse from a thug.

I loved the fact that when I turned on the tv, it was 5-0 Twins, and I immediately thought “Big deal; they can come back”. To bad they couldn’t hold on to it.

Some might think that it was some kind of great crime to put in Mendoza with 1 out in the 8th and only a 1 run lead. Hopefully, those people remember that 4 out of his last 5 outings were pretty damn good; and the 5th outing was an excellent first inning followed by a mini-meltdown in his second. He would have been my next guy out of the pen as well; based on his last few outings and who was used the night before. Manager can’t be blamed for poor performances.

Let me preface my next comment with this statement: I think Nomar is an excellent player, and I am extremely happy that he plays for the Sox. However, I’m getting a little tired of statements like these:

Any thoughts of looking at another pitch against Santana, who had thrown six consecutive balls?
“No,” Garciaparra said. “I haven’t done it in seven years. Why do it now? Go with my strengths.” Doyle

That’s kind of arrogant, in my opinion. Seems to translate into “My way works; to hell with baseball convention or even a little common sense.” Am I the only one that doesn’t feel as excited as I did in the past when Nomar is coming to bat in a crucial spot so far this year? I’d sure like to get that feeling back…

So I’ll be at the game today. A friend of mine has great seats (I took this one of Pedro from them last year; coincidentally also vs. the Twins) and I am lucky enough to go with him once or twice a year. Even luckier is that it is Pedro again. For a guy who gets to between 5-10 games a year, I have seen Pedro an awful lot. In 2001, I bought a 4 game package that was all Pedro starts, in 99 I was at Yankee Stadium for the masterful 1 hitter, last year I saw a couple…and now today.

Well, I can’t say too much about last night as I only listened to/saw from the 6th inning on…and needless to say I was a tad confused. When I got in the car, Timlin was pitching…and they mentioned that Woodard was on the hook. It was 5-3 at the time. So I thought to myself; “Wow; Fossum was pulled in the 5th after giving up 5 runs? That seems like an early hook…”

Then I find out that Fossum got a REALLY early hook. So hat’s off to Woodard for basically starting the game and giving up 3 runs…bullpen hasn’t looked too bad as of late, eh?

Gotta love these exciting finishes with everybody contributing!

So Damon was a little miffed that he didn’t start last night. Seems odd that the only player to complain about rotating lineups is the one who is hitting the worst. And of course, all the Sox media have prominant stories on Damon’s displeasure.

Damon said even though he hasn’t found a groove, he can still help the team win with his defense and speed.

“I think that’s why Boston got me. They know I can do that. But swinging the bat is the measuring stick that everyone always uses. Unfortunately, I don’t look at it that way. I know a bunch of players don’t look at it that way. There’s so many other ways you can help beat the other team with me having 10-pitch at-bats.” HEUSCHKEL

Ummm..does that seem silly to anybody else? Yes, they have you for speed and defense; two things that Jackson does well off the bench. The Sox need you to get your bat going. I’m sure he will in time…as far as I can tell, this is the first time this year that a player didn’t know about their off day beforehand…

Damon, who prides himself on his durability, has averaged 156 games over the last three years, which has made the rate of his offdays this year particularly shocking to him. He entered the night batting .240 with a .304 on-base percentage, the lowest among Sox regulars. He also was hitting .087 (2 for 23) with runners in scoring position, third worst in the league.

”We want to give him a day here and see if he can think his way back into the right groove,” manager Grady Little said. HOHLER

He did actually get into the game as a pinch runner without an at-bat.

Don’t be at all surprised if Shea is sitting tonight; he looked like he was in pain after taking the 2nd pitch on the same spot in 2 days.