Koji's Dream

Did it really happen? Or was it just a dream? Did the Boston RedSox win their third World Series Championship in the last decade?

Last night, when I gave Susan her meds after midnight, she asked me who had won, and I told her that the Sox had won the Series again. She said to me, "Everybody helped." I told her she was right; last night it had been Victorino and Drew who had the big hits, after not doing much of anything during the first five games. "No", she said, not the players, everybody you sent the email to. "Everybody pulled for the Sox and helped them win." And she was right again. Everybody on the email list, including all our friends who are Yankee fans, helped out, and pushed this 2013 season over the top. So thank you Danny; and thank you, G-Man; and thank you one and all. It was a big day around the Bergs' household: First, Susan came home, and then, once she was comfortably back in her own surroundings, the Red Sox completed their improbable worst to first odyssey, knocking out the previously unhittable Wacha, and beating the Cardinals convincingly, 6-1, to take Game Six and the 2013 championship.

It was another night with big hits. Victorino had the biggest, almost a replay of his ALCS Game Six Grand Slam. Drew finally found his stroke, and put one in the bullpen. John Lackey changed his Boston legacy forever, and became the first guy to pitch World Series clinchers for two different teams. And the bullpen lived up to its reputation: Tazawa snuffed the Cards' seventh inning rally with the bases loaded; Workman and Uehara were so dominant that no drama developed in the eighth or ninth. Both innings seemed to go by in a flash, until Koji got the final strikeout.

And in a post-season of memorable moments, I was really moved by the fans last night. In the ninth inning, we had this 38 year old journeyman on the mound, a guy who was our third choice for closer this season, a guy who had played baseball in relative obscurity for a long time. And there he was, in the final inning of the final game of the World Series, about to close the series for the winning team, with almost forty thousand rabid fans chanting his name: "Koji! Koji! Koji!" How great was that?

A colleague emailed the other day and asked, if the Sox win, who deserves the MVP? Lester or Ortiz? I voted with the majority and told him Ortiz. Lester had been fabulous throughout the post-season, and Boston would never had been on the cusp of another title without Jon Lester's performance -- beating the Cardinals' ace in two head-to-head games. Still, it had to be Ortiz, because his hitting had been historic. Any time a player gets compared to Gehrig or Ruth, you know something special has happened. .688 batting average; .760 on base percentage; and an OPS of just under two -- 1.948. And not only that, but he continually had huge hits when they were needed most: the Grand Slam in Game Two of the ALCS was the biggest, of course; without that hit, I doubt they would have made it to the series; the two-run homer off Wacha in Game Two; the double in the first inning of Game Five. And when was the last time we saw a player, any player, gather his teammates in the dugout like Ortiz did in Game Four? One inning later, Gomes hit his three-run homer, and all the momentum swung over to Boston from that point on.

Certainly among RedSox Nation, players who are instrumental in the team's success are forever remembered. Dave Roberts is the best example of that - the entire Nation loves him for a single stolen base. JD Drew, who had a mediocre career in Fenway's right field, will always be remembered for his ALCS grand slam. So this year, we can add Shane Victorino and Mike Napoli and Jonny Gomes to that list. Shane especially. He played gold glove defense all year, but his bat was relatively quiet. But two enormous post-season hits will make it impossible for fans to forget him. And Lackey too, who really hadn't justified the big contract he got, finally earned his dough with a great post-season performance.

When he was interviewed after the game, the always humble Uehara said that he felt like he was in a dream. I think we all feel that way. For years, RedSox fans came to each April with high expectations, yet found themselves disappointed in the end.  Four Game Seven losses between '46 and '86; Bucky Dent in '78; Pedro's meltdown in '03. This year, however, fans had no expectations after the disasters of 2011 and 2012. And now to think that the season ended with the Sox winning their third title in a decade -- it doesn't quite seem real. But dream or not, this post-season has washed away all the disappointments of the eighty-six year drought. All of that seems like it happened in another lifetime. Or maybe all of that was just a bad dream; maybe we've only been awake since 2004.

One final note; 2013 was special for a personal reason; it was the first time the boys and I had been together to watch the Sox play in the World Series.  Let's hope we get to do that again; and can do it without any busted ribs. How does the fall of 2014 sound? Is it too early to think about next year? And do I have to go without shaving all of next summer? Go Sox!!!

Returning to Fenway for Game Six

For obvious reasons, I haven't been able to post over the past week, but Susan is doing better, perhaps heading home tomorrow, and I need to get one posting up while the Series is still ongoing.

Great win last night, and it's amazing that they took two out of three in St. Louis, against a terrific Cardinals team. In fact, had they not made a hundred and one mistakes in Game Three, both on the field and in the dugout, the Sox might have swept those three games.  Having said that however, the Cards have a great pitching staff, and no one is conceding these final two games, even if they will be played in Fenway. Boston will not have a picnic tomorrow night, facing Wacha for the second time. And if this thing goes to Game Seven, I'm not sure who will start for Boston. Peavy? Doubront? How about Pedro or Curt Schilling?

One thing I find interesting is that, although the entire lineup has contributed in this post-season -- they wouldn't have made it past the Tigers without huge hits from Napoli and Victorino -- it's been the four guys who played in 2007 who have anchored this year's post-season run, especially in the Series. John Lester has been incredible, notwithstanding the fact that the talking heads all seemed to focus on Wainwright before last night's game. Just like the ALCS, most of the talk has been about the opposing pitching staff; Boston's rotation, as good as it has been, has been largely overlooked. Until last night. After Lester once again shut down the Cardinals, and gave up a single earned run in fifteen-plus innings, and by the way, won two games when he went head to head with their ace, now the pundits are finally giving him his due.

And speaking of incredible, what is there to say about Papi's post-season performance? Couple home runs in the Division Series; the game tying grand slam in Game Two of the ALCS, probably the biggest hit of the entire season; and all of that a prelude to his .733 batting average in the series. Check out this number: after the first five games, Papi's On-Base-Plus-Slugging is 2.017!!! Who ever heard of a number like that? I've been amazed that the Cardinals are still pitching to him. Especially last night, when first base was open after Pedroia had doubled. Why not just put him on first and pitch to Gomes? Whatever the reason, I'm glad the Cards keep testing him, and keep allowing him to add to his singular post-season resume.

Pedroia's bat hasn't been as hot as it could have been, but his play in the field has been stellar. That play at the end of Game Three, when he threw out Molina at the plate, would have gone down in Sox lore, had Salty not chosen to throw the ball away needlessly. All through the post-season, Pedroia has made one remarkable play after another, and the combination of Drew and Pedie has made the Sox a formidable defensive team. The importance of that cannot be overstated, when one considers the level of starting pitching the Sox have faced all through the post-season.

I have watched the start of every game from Susan's hospital room, although because the games typically run so late, I'm home in time for the final out. Speaking of which, didn't Koji do a great job last night? With Lester going so deep into the game, Koji gave the rest of the pen a chance to recover. Let's hope that Breslow can recover his pre-series form; maybe Farrell will help out by letting him start an inning, and not come into another pressure-cooker situation.  Let's also hope that Susan gets discharged tomorrow, and that we can watch Game Six at home, in front of our TV, with a Rusty Nail close at hand. Go Sox!

Sox Return to the Series

[Note to my readers: I wrote this on Sunday night, intending to post yesterday morning. One problem with the blog is that I cannot post any more from our MacBook at home. So I compose and send it to the office. I was planning to post at lunch hour, when the call came that Susan had been in an accident. Now that she's better, and before the Series starts tomorrow, I wanted to get this up on the blog.]

 

I became a Sox fan in 1967, the year of the Impossible Dream. My first night in Boston, I was invited to the Park, and saw the Sox beat the Yankees; Yaz homered; and Mickey Mantle, who entered the game in the late innings, had a base hit. The Sox lost in seven games to the Cardinals that year. Their ace, Jim Lonborg, had to pitch on the last day of the regular season, and could not start Game One of the Series. (Back then, there were no playoffs, just the regular season and the Series.) So he had to start Game Seven on only two days rest, against a well rested Bob Gibson; in the end it almost seemed inevitable when they lost.

Over the next 36 years, the Sox returned to the Series only twice; losing in seven to the Big Red Machine in 1975, and to the Mets in 86. Everyone remembers Fisk’s twelfth inning blast off the foul pole (Pedie just missed that pole by inches Saturday night), but I remember Spaceman Lee’s blister in Game Seven. He couldn’t finish the game, and Boston’s bullpen could not keep Cincinnati in check. And speaking of what everyone remembers, it wasn’t Buckner who lost Game Six in 86; it was the pen, who couldn’t close out, after getting the Mets down to their last strike, with the bases empty. By the time that ball went through Buckner’s legs, the Series was over.

Anyway, after decades of disappointment, with only an occasional chance to play in October, the Sox have made it to the Series for the third time in the last ten years. Who ever imagined that would happen? And who thought we could watch the Series, and enjoy it as play-off baseball, instead of a matter of life and death. No one in the Nation is going to tune in on Wednesday night wondering if they will ever see a World Series championship before going to their grave.

A couple observations about this ALCS. First, no one player dominated the series for Boston. It was Papi with the big hit in Game Two; Napoli carrying the offense in Games Three and Five; and Victorino in the clinching Game Six on Saturday. And that pretty much mirrored the regular season, when anyone in the lineup could break out and carry the team on any given night. By way if example only, Middlebrooks, who isn’t even starting, had seven RBIs in a late season victory.

Secondly, I was pleased that Uehara was awarded the MVP, because truthfully, he has been the most valuable guy on the team over the second half of the season. Check out these numbers for his post-season performance: five for five in save opportunities; thirteen Ks and no walks; and WHIP of .56. During his post-game interview, a reporter mentioned that, coming into the ALCS, there was talk about whether Uehara would be tired, having worked so much in the second half of the season. Would he care to comment on that? His response: “I am tired.” What’s not to love about this guy?

Third, let’s not overlook Boston’s defense, particularly the sparkling play of Drew and Pedroia up the middle. In Game Six, Drew snuffed another Tigers rally with a great play on Cabrera’s grounder behind second base. So far in the post-season, Drew and Pedroia between them have made 36 put-outs, 58 assists, and a single error. Eleven double plays. Against a pitching staff as strong as Detroit’s how important was that defense?

Lastly, how about the composure of Xander Bogaerts? The run scoring double in the fifth inning, and two huge walks, including one in the crucial seventh. He was behind in the count for both of those walks, yet was able to lay off bad pitches, and work his way on base. We were all sorry to see Iglesias go in the trade for Peavy, but after watching Bogaerts in the ALCS, it’s easy to understand why the front office was willing to make that trade.

So it’s another week or more of not shaving, and hardly sleeping. I’m expecting to have many more nervous breakdowns, but am prepared for them, having refreshed my stock of Drambuie and Scotch, so that I can continue with this year’s beverage regimen. And for the heart of RedSox Nation, after the horror of last April, how sweet has this October been? Go Sox; B Strong.

Doing My Part for the Post-Season

A Nerve-Wracking Game Five

Not long after falling asleep last night (more like very early this morning), I dreamt that it was the ninth inning again, Uehara was on the mound, and the Tigers had a couple men on base. I awoke in an anxious sweat, and had to look at the computer once more to make sure that the Sox had actually won Game Five. Then I had a scotch so I could calm down and get back to sleep. What a nerve-wracking game last night! The seventh inning, when Detroit had two men on, no outs, and Cabrera coming to the plate.  All I could envision was disaster, but once again the bullpen rallied, and after that one run scored on the double play, the Tigers never really threatened. Of course, that’s easy to say in retrospect. When it’s a one-run game, there’s a threat of a game tying hit every time someone comes to the plate. 

Fortunately, Uehara has continued his 2013 mastery of just about everyone in the AL. He has a post-season ERA of 1.13 but that’s only because he gave up a solo home run in the ALDS. That was his sole earned run.  An even better stat is his strikeout to walk  ratio, which at the present time is infinite. Eleven K’s and no walks. I’m glad he has a day off after last night’s five out save. 

And what about Mike Napoli these past two games? Two big hits, and two runs in last night’s one-run victory; two consecutive games when he homered off overpowering right handers. Not to mention that he has the greatest overall volume of whiskers among all the Sox. One thing that carried Boston through the regular season was the fact that almost any one of the bats could get hot at any one time, helping to carry the Sox on any given night. Napoli was on fire early in the season, but seemed to go quiet after the all-star break. Nice to see him heating up when it matters most. Not only that, but maybe the rest of the lineup will come to life as well. Jacoby has been hitting better the past couple games  -- four hits in the Game Four loss – and if we could just get one night when the lineup was hitting top to bottom, that would take some pressure off the pitching staff. 

It was a game of breaks, and close plays last night, and Game Five really could have gone either way. Early on, Sox were catching breaks: when Miggy ran through the stop sign and got thrown out at the plate; and then when he couldn’t field Gomes’ ground ball, which led to Boston’s second run. The luck seemed to change in the middle innings, after Iglesias had run down Papi’s blooper one at-bat before Napoli homered, the Tigers started getting a number of seeing eye hits – ground balls just beyond the reach of Drew and Pedroia, or soft line drives falling in front of the outfielders. In the end, however, Boston got just enough breaks to leave Comerica Park with another road win. 

I know the Sox are up 3-2, and that they get to play Games Six and Seven in the friendly confines of Fenway Park.  But they have to come home to face Scherzer and Verlander. And unless they can figure out one of those guys, as they seemed to have figured out Sanchez last night, they are going to have a tough time scratching out a win. Speaking of early season form, it would be nice to see Buckholz shutting down Detroit’s lineup, pitching the way he did in the first couple months of the season. 

Until this weekend, Go Sox; B Strong.  

Still No Offense, but Sox Take Game Three

Three games into the ALCS, the Red Sox are batting .133, the worst of any team in either championship series. They have struck out 43 times, meaning that more than half their outs over the past three games came by way of the K. And although the pundits predicted that the Sox were the only playoff team that could hit their way to victory, regardless of pitching, their collective OPS is a paltry .450. Yet despite this anemic performance at the plate, they are leading the Tigers two games to one as they prepare for tonight’s pivotal Game Four.

 

For the most part, the Nation can thank Boston’s pitching staff for this surprising showing. With the exception of one inning, when Buckholz was hammered by the middle of Detroit’s line-up, their starting rotation has shut the Tigers down. Maybe we’re not talking about the same level of dominance that’s been displayed by Scherzer, Verlander et al, but when they’ve needed to make pitches, they’ve managed to keep the Tigers from scoring. Last night was a perfect example. In the first inning, Lackey had men on first and third, and didn’t allow a run. In the fifth, he gave up a lead-off double, yet once again Detroit was unable to cash in. And as good as the starters have been, the bullpen has been even better. Lights out. In the eighth inning last night, with Boston clinging to that one run lead, Detroit again put men on first and third with one out, and the middle of the order coming to the plate. Tazawa struck out Miggy, and then Uehara struck out Prince, and all that remained was a one-two-three ninth, and the Sox had managed a win against the almost unhittable Verlander.

 

Of course, credit also goes to Papi, whose Game Two grand slam brought the Sox back from what had been a five run deficit, and turned the ALCS around for Boston. It’s his only hit of the series so far; and come to think of it, Napoli’s solo shot last night was his only hit of the series. Talk about timely hitting. Boston will need more offense at some point, if they are going to advance in this post-season; I’d like to see another twelve run outing, like Game One against the Rays. Not only would it ensure a win, but it would keep me from having a nervous breakdown every other inning.  But for now, I’ll settle for great pitching, with the hopes that sooner or later, some of the bats will come to life. Until that happens, Go Sox; B Strong.

 

 

A Memorable Game Two

Unbelievable!!! Un-freakin believable! Shut out through the first fourteen innings of the ALCS; setting post-season records for the most strikeouts in back to back games; unable even to get a hit through the first five and two-thirds last night, only one night after being one-hit; and coming within a whisker of heading off to Detroit, down 0-2, with Verlander on the mound; the Sox suddenly came to life, got up off the canvas, and knocked out the Tigers in the eighth and ninth innings. 

In a way, it was even crazier than 2004. That year, Games Four and Five were actually see-saw affairs, and the Sox trailed by no more than two runs. Their comebacks were so amazing because Boston had to score on the invincible Rivera, their nemesis for so many years. But in each of those games, when the Red Sox tied it up late, they had only to score a single run. Last night though, the Sox were completely dormant through five innings. For the second night in a row, they had not only been shut out; they were hitless. And even worse, they seemed unable even to make contact with the ball. Sanchez and Scherzer were striking out Boston's bats at the rate of two per inning; the Sox had gone almost fifteen innings without a run; and in those fifteen innings, they had set a post-season record for most Ks. Coming to bat in the sixth, they trailed by five runs. In a word, they looked beaten.

Suddenly, in the eighth, Middlebrooks doubled into the left field corner, and Ellsbury walked, just barely. The Tigers had been getting all those close calls for two nights, but now the Sox had two on base. Pedroiia singled, and how many times this year had Boston been thrown out at the plate? But last night Butterfield held up Middlebrooks, loading the bases for Papi. One pitch later, the game was tied at 5. It happened like lightning, even faster than the Patriots' final drive yesterday. (More on that in a minute.)

Then in the ninth inning, didn’t it seem inevitable that Boston was going to walk off? The Tigers had played flawlessly for two nights, but then an error, a wild pitch, and Salty’s single through the drawn in infield brought home a run. Jonny Gomes, who so often this year seemed to play a role in walk-off wins, had started the rally, and scored the winning run. Boston improbably walked off 6-5 for Game Two.  And with the ALCS headed for Detroit, Boston had knotted up the series after facing two of the most dominating starting performances anyone had seen all year long.

Earlier on Sunday, I watched another miraculous finish, when Tom Brady led the Patriots back against the undefeated Saints. Twice in the last three minutes, the Pats gave the ball back to New Orleans, once on downs (and that led to a Saints field goal, which gave them a four point lead) and once with an interception. But each time, they got the ball back. And in the end, after not throwing  a TD pass for seven quarters, and without any of his leading receivers on the field, Brady marched the Pats down the field with one minute to go, and no time-outs. The winning throw came with five seconds on the clock, and was caught by an undrafted rookie free agent. I’m not a Pats fan (not a hater either), and was watching just to see a good football game - Brees v. Brady. The undefeated Saints v. the perennially tough Patriots.  But watching the Pats’ miraculous comeback, I thought, maybe there’s something in the air today in New England, and maybe there was. But it didn’t reach Fenway until after eleven o’clock -- after any normal fan would have given up, and resigned himself to falling behind 0-2.

Not that Boston has any advantage despite the comeback. The Tigers managed a win in Fenway; the Sox still have to face Verlander; and despite the late-inning dramatics, Detroit still has an overpowering rotation. But if they could make a game of it last night, then maybe they can make a game of it on any night. For my way of thinking, let’s just win one in Detroit, so this thing returns to Fenway. Go Sox. B Strong.

Boston Bounces Back

After a tough loss in Game Three, which featured a Tampa Bay rally, and a blown save by Uehara, the Sox eliminated the Rays late last night, and moved on to the ALCS. (I guess I’m not shaving for at least another week.) All in all, it was a pretty good showing for the Sox in the ALDS.

 

First of all, and perhaps most importantly, they got good pitching from their starters – Lester and Peavy in particular. Buckholz wasn’t up to his early season standards, and allowed his pitch count to get too high. But if he had walked Longoria, and pitched instead to the rookie, maybe (just maybe) he would have escaped without any earned runs. In other words, he really didn’t pitch too badly.  Lackey too was not up to his 2013 standards, so I guess we can say there is still room for improvement from the starters.

 

Second, the bullpen was terrific. Again, there were some hiccups in Game Three, which allowed the Rays to tie the game at 4-4, and then win it in the ninth with a rare home run off of Koji. But last night, clinging to a 2-1 lead, Breslow and Uehara were great, and the best thing about their performance was that only one night after his blown save, Koji was back to his efficient self. In three appearances, he gave up only that one hit. And how about Breslow’s appearance? Four straight Ks; not to mention a degree from Yale in biochemistry and molecular biophysics. 

 

Third, against a formidable pitching staff, the Sox hit .286 for the series, with contributions from a number of players all through the lineup. Regardless of whom they next face, the Sox will be up against another great pitching staff. But as they did through much of 2013, Boston had timely hits. They also took advantage of the Rays’ miscues, to build leads in the first two games, and then to give Peavy the support he needed last night. No one expects them to score 12 runs against any of these post-season opponents, but they remain a lineup that can do damage on any night, against any opponent, anywhere from leadoff to the number nine spot.

 

So now it’s on to the ALCS and another week of October baseball. Looking back over the past decade, I realized that Boston has gone to Game Seven in each of the last four championship series in which they have appeared. Not only that, but they have fallen behind in the last three series. It would be nice not to do that this year – not to have to face multiple elimination games, requiring everyone in the Nation to have a series of nervous breakdowns on consecutive nights. However, if that’s what it takes, so be it. This year’s crew seems to have the clubhouse attitude that the 2004 idiots had – the ability not to give up no matter the score or the inning or the adversary.

 

So to all of you readers: catch up on your sleep over the next couple days, because once the ALCS starts, these games will be running past midnight almost every night. And by the way -- Go Sox.

A Hot Start at Fenway

The Sox are off to a good start in the ALDS, thanks mainly to their bats, which have been so hot, I’m amazed they haven’t caught fire.  In Game One, everyone in the line-up got at least one hit. Game Two, everyone other than Napoli hit; and he was on base twice, thanks to his patience at the plate. In two games, the Sox have racked up eleven extra-base hits, continuing a season-long pattern. So even though Lackey was not very sharp last night, Boston was still able to take a 2-0 lead in the ALDS, despite facing two of the Rays' aces.

And even though the bats got most of the press for the first two games, other than Lackey, the pitching has been great as well. Lester looked sharp in Game One, giving up only three hits (admittedly, two were homers) and striking out seven.  I don’t want to say he was dominant, but with the lineup hitting so well, his holding the Rays to two runs made it easy for the Sox to take Game One.

Saturday night was a lot tighter, even after Boston had jumped out to an early lead, and looked like they might run away with another game. But the Rays fought back, and the game was really in the balance in the late innings. However, Boston’s bullpen, which had looked like a big question mark early in the season, shut the Rays down over three and two-thirds innings. (Five scoreless innings in the first two games.) They were helped, in large measure, by the defense, which came up with inning ending double plays in the seventh and eighth. (How great has Pedroia looked all season?) And then Koji shut down the Rays on eleven pitches. Two Ks.

So it’s off to Tampa for Game Three, with Buckholz on the mound. Will the bats stay hot? Will Buckholz keep the Rays in check? Will anyone figure out Uehara before this season ends?

Oh, by the way, let’s not overlook the contribution of my sister-in-law, Janie, who sat behind home plate for Game One, and was instrumental in getting Boston off to a hot start in this series. So Jane, see if you can score tickets for the next time the Sox play at Fenway. Because, of course, every little bit helps. Go Sox.

The Post-Season

In less than twenty-four hours, the Red Sox will return to post-season play, hosting the Rays in Game One of the ALDS. Jon Lester will be on the mound, and everyone seems reasonably healthy. So expectations are high all across Red Sox Nation.  And why not?  The Sox led the majors in runs scored, as well as a host of other batting stats, including on-base percentage, OPS, extra base hits, and beards in the dugout. Speaking of which, now that the wedding festivities are concluded, and no one will bug me about my appearance, I'm going to let my beard grow until they are eliminated from the post-season. It's a show of solidarity -- Boston Strong.

I'm not thrilled that the Sox are facing the Rays. I know they got the better of Tampa Bay during the regular season, but the Rays have great pitching, and in a short series, pitching usually rules. Also, the Rays have had more opportunities to face Boston's pitchers, particularly Koji, who has somehow baffled everyone this year, but who may have become a known quantity to the Rays, after they have seen him umpteen times. Still, there are no crappy teams in the post-season, and if Boston is going to advance, they are only going to see better and better teams as they go deeper into October. So what the hell? Indians, Rangers, Rays, whatever. I'm just happy they are still playing baseball. Last few years, I could barely bring myself to pay attention to the ALDS.

The other day, for no particular reason, I rewatched the ceremony at Fenway when baseball resumed after the bombing. I did it mainly to hear Papi's inspirational and profane little speech. In all the excitement generated by the Sox success this year, it's easy to forget how traumatized the city was for a few days in April. It's not 2001; and I don't expect the country to be rooting for Boston just to be supportive, as fans across the country did for the Yankees that year. But it just provides a sense of perspective: we're only talking about baseball here.

And one more thing. Isn't it great to think about October baseball, without having to worry if we'll ever see a World Series championship in our lifetimes? Ever since 2004, and especially after they repeated in 2007, I feel like we're playing with house money. Another championship would be wonderful, but it's nice that we can be thankful just for the opportunity to be playing baseball in October. Go Sox.

September 28, 2013

No matter what else happens this fall, 2013 has been a year we won't forget!!