Beantown Sports Guys

BoSox slam door shut on Halos, advance to ALCS

You can't point to one guy in this win and say he was the reason why they won. It was an all-around effort. On both sides.

The Angels hung in there for a while, while Lackey did what he could to keep the Sox at bay, his fielders behind him weren't at the top of their game (save Texieria).

Varitek's tag on a squeeze play that would have put the Angels up a run in the 9th was both controversial and pivotal. Tek tagged Reggie Willits as he was retreating to third base and after he tagged him out, he stumbled and the ball popped loose when he hit the ground. It was made clear by MLB that the right call was made by Umpire Tim Welke who noted that it was not a case where the ground can cause a fumble.

"That's the NFL," said Steve Palermo, the Major League supervisor of umpires, after the game. "We don't have that in baseball. He had possession of the ball when he made the tag."

Tek certainly had possession of the ball, and Welke signaled Willits was out even before the ball popped out.

In the bottom of the 9th Jason Bay hit a ground rule double that bounced into the stands as Willits dove for it. Had the ball not hopped into the stands, there was a good shot that Bay could have ended the game with a walk-off inside the park HR.

But he didn't need to.

Jed Lowrie came up to the plate and lined it to the outfield and Bay rounded third with a head of steam, diving headfirst into home and slapping home before jumping up and being mobbed by his teammates.

The Angels were arguably the team to beat in all of MLB, and the Red Sox took their best shot. But now they head to Tampa for what will surely be a series that goes to 7 games and will have it all: solid pitching, good hitting, and great fielding, from both clubs.

This is why we love October.

Bay, Lester come up big for Sox, shuts down Halos

Before things went south with Manny Ramirez this season, if you asked the Red Sox who they would rather have in their lineup: Ramirez or Jason Bay, who do you think they would have picked?

The answer was clear then and even more clear last night, but for different reasons.

Manny hit his 25^th playoff home run. Jason Bay's two-run home run in the sixth inning last night against the Angels is probably the biggest home run he has ever hit in his career.

Danny Moloshok/Reuters

Bay hustled all over the field last night, but Manny got an infield single. I cannot remember the last time Manny sprinted down the first base line.

So who would I rather have in the lineup in the postseason, where it matters most?

Jason Bay.

Not because Manny left Boston on such a sour note, but because Bay has shown he can handle Boston and Boston loves him for it. Boston loved Manny when he was doing things we would chastise other clubs for letting players get away with. Bay plays hard every single game for the Sox. Did Manny? Not even close. I don't care what he says, he was like Clemens, finding a way out of Boston, claiming injuries. As soon as he leaves, he's hitting over .400, has almost as many HRs in a couple months than he did the entire season and he could be the NL MVP. What does that say about Manny's character? It tells me he isn't someone I respect as a person. As a player? Sure. But you get the whole package of an individual when they play for you.

The media went crazy when Francona pushed Beckett to start the 3^rd game, rather than the first. Red Sox Nation didn't bat an eye. Lester has been spot on, and last night he showed that the Sox don't have just one ace, they arguably have 2, maybe 3. Allowing only one unearned run on an muffed lazy grounder to Jed Lowrie, Lester shut down the bats of the Angels giving up only 1 walk, 6 hits, and striking out 7 in 7 innings of work. Masterson gave up a pair of hits in the 8^th, but he got out of the inning unscathed to give way to Papelbon who gave up a hit and struckout all three to secure the save.

The Sox turn to Dice-K tomorrow while the Angels how Ervin Santana can stop the bleeding. There is nothing the Sox want more than to leave Anaheim up 2 games with arguably October's best pitcher in baseball taking the mound on Sunday.

 

It’s on, like Donkey Kong

The tentative ALDS and NLDS schedule is ready (taken from my email):

TBS does a great job of covering the post season so I look forward to that. What I don't look forward to are the late, late, late nights. God I had playing West Coast teams.

Bring on the Angels?? I’ll take it

What a season this has been for the Red Sox. The regular season is over and the new season begins: playoffs.

For the first time since I personally can remember, the Yankees are at home already which is an impressive feat in itself. They did everything they could to hang in there, Mussina got his 20 wins finally, and they said goodbye to Yankee Stadium in grand fashion. My only question is why not close Yankee Stadium on the last series of the season, against the Red Sox? I think it would have been even better if the Sox were there. Win or lose, the Yankees gave the fans what they wanted when they said goodbye to the House that Ruth Built. And Red Sox fans said goodbye to them as they entered the post season and look to defend their World Series title.

This year more than any will be the toughest. The Sox are facing the best hitting team in baseball and arguably the best pitching team. They play small ball and are no strangers to the long ball. They play hard through every inning and have one of the best closers in baseball in K-Rod, who is now the proud owner of the most saves in a season category.

Here are just a few reasons I think the Sox have a shot at upsetting the Angels:

1. Psychological Edge – BoSox have bounced the Angels from the playoffs how many times in recent years?
2. Nothing to lose mentality – BoSox have been up and down all season and lost the division to the Rays.
3. Fenway – in October, Fenway is insane. If they come home with a 1-1 split, I think they have a good shot at winning.
4. Pitching matchups – They are fairly even, but Beckett (when healthy) is the best October pitcher in baseball. Lester is lights out and Dice-K can't seem to lose.
5. Ortiz – he's heating up at just the right time.

The Angels are a great team. They win close games, they have hitting, they have fantastic manager. This could be the year for them.

But don't bet against the Sox in October.