The End of Bellhorn's Hibernation

Conventional wisdom holds that game six was all about Schilling’s bloody sock. And while I’m not here to disturb anyone’s memory of Curt, or his sock, nor to minimize the contribution he made to the Sox all season long, and throughout the post-season, with the exception, of course of game one, I feel compelled to celebrate two other highlights from this game.

In game four, when the Yankees rallied to take the lead, only moments after Ortiz had put the Sox ahead with his first two RBIs, their last run was scored when Bellhorn failed to come up with a ball hit between first and second. He had to dive to his left, and managed to get the glove on the ball, but ended up just knocking it down. No error; an infield hit. But the Yankees led 4-3, and the crowd took up a chant : “Pokey! Pokey! Pokey!” Looking back, it’s hard not to feel for Bellhorn, mired in a slump, leading the universe in strikeouts. And having to hear all of Fenway chanting for him to sit down.

In game five, he started to get hits, but didn’t produce any runs. And then, Game Six. And his first game winning home run of the post-season. Who would have picked Bellhorn from that entire lineup to go four straight nights with crucial hits? Three homers, in three consecutive games, followed by a two-run double. By the time the Sox had left Fenway for good, with the Cardinals down 2-0, no one was calling for Bellhorn’s head anymore. And one more great thing about the guy. As he hit the game winner in the eighth inning of the first game of the series, Fox zooms in on him just as the ball is banging off the Pesky pole. No jumping around; no fist in the air; not even a smile. In fact, if you saw the expression alone you couldn’t tell if he had just hit that World Series game winner, or struck out for the two thousandth time. Anyway, it’s enough to forgive him for taking up pinstripes this past year. Even haters can let that one go

And speaking of haters, the other defining moment of game six was A-Rod, or more accurately, A-Fraud, getting called out in the eighth for slapping the ball out of Arroyo’s mitt. What better way to end that game? Within days, he’ll probably win the AL MVP for this past year, which is a disgrace. Because I don’t care what kind of numbers he put up this year, how was he the most valuable guy for that team? What, the Yankees would have missed the post-season without him? When did this guy ever bring a championship to any of the teams he’s ever played on? Nitwit sportswriters might be unable to tell any better, but every Sox fan knows. It’s the emperor’s new clothes. If you want to see the real A-Rod, go check out game six.