2013 Official Major League Baseball Thread.

[Merlot]

Hello BOYZ!!!

....and now a very important message to Yankees fans that should not be missed. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh EB, Joe, iggy, DD, cut and paste...yoohoo, anyone still believe in or even care about the Yankees? Ahem, it must be very crowded in the cave.

It seems the pinstriper bandwagon has retired. I wonder why? Could it be humiliation? Let's see why.

I've got my predictions for the season...

East
Toronto X
New York Y
Tampa
Boston
Baltimore

...my prediction stands, Red Sox will finish in dead last place.

Posted to Rumps...

....it is very likely you WILL NOT be posting in here past the All-Star break, :wave: so prove me wrong when your misfits fail like the last 2 AWESOME seaons!

Where has iggy been since the All-Star break. Oh that's right, taking cheap shots in free-for-alls...out of season too. Talk about MAJOR FAIL! Dead wrong, boy. DEAD WRONG!!! :nod:

Funny how the same boys who all bragged the Sox would finish last have disappeared for so long now. The Red Sox are now not just in 1st, but busy building a cushion...IN SEPTEMBER!!! And the pompous pinstripe braggarts...cricket, cricket, cricket is all that's left of them. I can't say I blame any of them for hiding with the Yanks plunging to 9 games back in SEPTEMBER!

Then again...howz bout dem Jays? Mathematically eliminated before September...mostly by the Boston Red Sox. :lol:

Blue Jays: Most disappointing team of the year

http://www.themlbnation.com/2013/08/29/blue-jays-disappointment/#

The 2013 season has been a disappointment for the Toronto Blue Jays and their fans, especially now that they’re mathematically eliminated.

During the off-season, Toronto made a big splash by acquiring shortstop Jose Reyes, left-hander Mark Buehrle, Josh Johnson, Emilio Bonifacio and John Buck from the Miami Marlins, in exchange for a ton of prospects. Afterwards, they received former National League Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey along with Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas from the New York Mets while they giving up John Buck, Travis d’Arnaud, Noah Syndergaard and Wuilmer Becerra, and signed outfielder Melky Cabrera to a two-year contract worth $16 million. Not mention, Blue Jays lost manager John Farrell to the Boston Red Sox, and former manager John Gibbons returned to manage the Blue Jays.

With these kind of moves, many fanatics were optimistic that the Blue Jays had a potential lineup which could eventually lead them to the post season.

Before Spring Training began, the lineup was often compared to 1993, when the Jays won their second (consecutive) World Series championship.

Toronto kicked off the season by going 10-17 in April. Many fans began panicking, but others said it’s too early to tell. To make things worse, they lost Jose Reyes for four weeks due to an ankle injury. In June, the Blue Jays gave their fans some hope by winning eleven consecutive games and reaching the .500 mark. At the all-star break, they went back to playing below .500 and eventually never returned. Ever since, they have been in the American League East basement, and without a doubt became the most disappointing team of the year. What went wrong? Essentially, the players they acquired in the off-season didn’t perform as expected or got sidelined, which led to their poor season and leaving a huge payroll (which is the ninth-highest MLB payroll at $117 million US).

STARTING PITCHING:

The Blue Jays were in desperate need of pitching as most of their starters had horrible starts at the bringing of the year, although they would not actually acquire nobody.

Here’s what their rotation looks like as of now:

J.A. Happ (3-4; 5.46 ERA), Brandon Morrow (2-3; 5.63 ERA), Josh Johnson (2-8; 6.20 ERA), Mark Buehrle (10-7; 4.08 ERA) and R.A. Dickey (10-12; 4.39 ERA).

INJURIES:

Injuries impacted the Blue Jays as well. Both, Melky Cabrera and Brandon Morrow are both done for the season while Colby Rasmus, Steve Delabar, Maicer Izturis, Dustin McGowan, Jose Bautista and Josh Johnson are all on the disabled list.

BAD MANAGEMENT?

Can you blame hitting coach Chad Mottola and pitching coach Pete Walker? General Manager Alex Anthopoulos or manager John Gibbons? They basically had two back-ups at third and second base when Jose Reyes and Brett Lawrie were out injured. Should they have kept Munenori Kawasaki with the big league club during June?

WHAT TO DO NOW?

With this very sad season almost in the books, what should the Toronto Blue Jays do for what’s best for the ball club’s future? Two decisions: rebuild, or hope for a better season with the team they have now.

YIKES!!!



Merlot

 

[lgna69xxx]

Wow, does paranoia have no end? ROFL! to either save my post you quoted all these weeks or to go look it up sure says alot merlie....Scary LOT

Where has iggy been since the All-Star break. Oh that's right, taking cheap shots in free-for-alls...out of season too. Talk about MAJOR FAIL! Dead wrong, boy. DEAD WRONG!
Merlot

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

This'll get you to the playoffs in a hurry.:


IP H R ER BB K HR WHIP ERA
Andy Pettitte 6.0 7 2 2 0 3 0 1.40 4.01
Shawn Kelley(L, 4-2)(BS, 1) 0.0 2 2 2 0 0 1 1.26 3.96
Boone Logan 0.0 1 2 2 1 0 0 1.16 3.16
Joba Chamberlain 2.0 1 1 1 0 2 1 1.54 4.23
David Huff 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.28 4.05
Dellin Betances 0.1 1 0 0 0 1 0 7.00 36.00

I gotta hand it to you boys. You gotta have a lotta balls to trash after the most devastating loss of the season.

From Lohud:

Bullpen turns a series sweep into a brutal defeat
No reliever in baseball has stranded runners as consistently as Shawn Kelley this season, but when he tried to put out a fire this afternoon, he instead started a complete bullpen meltdown in a stunning 7-3 Yankees loss to the Orioles. Andy Pettitte had pitched six scoreless innings before allowing back-to-back singles to start the seventh. With a three-run lead, Joe Girardi went to Kelley, who promptly allowed an RBI single and a go-ahead, three-run home run, his second home run allowed since May 16. He’d previously allowed just two of 37 inherited runners to score this year, the best percentage in baseball. Things got worse when Boone Logan let two on and Joba Chamberlain allowed a three-run homer to Adam Jones. Similar aggressive bullpen managing worked for Girardi on Friday, but if backfired in this opportunity to sweep a pivotal series. Of course, it didn’t help that the Yankees were 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position and left 10 runners stranded.

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

Oh goodie, now it's the Yanks turn to play the terrible White Sox.

Oh, Joe, poor Joe. You mean the same terrible White Sox who swept the Yankees just a few weeks back? When you get done with your bookie's breakfast dishes, you may want to focus on recent history. Before coming into Fenway and getting trounced by the Sox, the White Sox were one of the hottest teams in baseball.

Immediately before hitting Boston, the White Sox won 2 of 3 from Houston, 2 of 3 from Texas, 3 of 3 from Kansas City, 3 of 4 from Minnesota, 2 of 3 from Detroit, 1 of 4 from Minnesota, and the run started with a SWEEP OF 3 OVER THE LIGHT-HITTING NY YANKEES.

In all likelihood, the Sox will take 2 of 3 in New York, definitively knocking the light hitting Yankees out of the race.

Scenario question - If team A wins the division and team B makes the playoffs by wildcard but goes further in the playoffs than team A which team is considered to have had the better season?, just a thought.:smile:

Just how is this relevant in relation to the Yankees?

 

[Merlot]

BOYZ,

Scenario question - If team A wins the division and team B makes the playoffs by wildcard but goes further in the playoffs ...

Blah blah blah...someone is truly desperate to save face for a miserably failed season, especially desperate being well out of the wild card and sending CC up with his 4.91 ERA.

BTW - The one-game wild card system is tailor made for a lucky game. It's an insult to every team.

...Scary

You psychotically dancing with Cairo for weeks on end calling each other gay. Sick! :crazy:

I gotta hand it to you boys. You gotta have a lotta balls to trash after the most devastating loss of the season.

Did you expect them to deal with reality. :lol:

http://www.lohud.com/article/20130901/SPORTS/309010055/Yankees-blow-lead-over-Orioles-lose-7-3

NEW YORK — Andy Pettitte did not argue. He did not point figures or thump his chest. He did not say, would not say, that he should have been the one on the mound Sunday afternoon with a three-run lead and a series sweep within reach.

But there was also little hiding Pettitte’s disappointment after a late Yankees lead became a crushing 7-3 loss to the Orioles at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. Pettitte was pulled in the seventh, and sat in the dugout as all seven Baltimore runs scored against a string of relievers.

“It’s terrible,” Pettitte said. “It was like pulling teeth sitting there, especially seeing them put up that big a number.”

The Yankees were six outs away from a series sweep against a team they’d just passed in the wild card standings, but the loss dropped them a half game behind Baltimore and into a tie with Cleveland, still three and a half games behind Tampa Bay for the final playoff spot. “You hate that,” Pettitte said. “Because you feel like we were right there, late in the ballgame with a lead, and we usually win those games. But it just didn’t happen.”

:thumb:,

Merlot

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

An interesting article this morning by Jeff Passan at Yahoo. He rates the schedules of the teams remaining in the playoff hunt. While no team has a brutal schedule, the toughest one does belong to the Red Sox, whose remaining opponents have an aggregate winning percentage of .526. However, with four days off, a commanding 5 1/2 game lead, and four pitchers working beautifully, this should not be a problem. Mitigating the Sox' tough schedule is that they play the Cabrera-less Tigers in Fenway Park today through Wednesday.

The next toughest schedule belongs to the Rays, whose opponents play to a .506 winning percentage. The Yankees run sixth, their opponents playing to a .496. The second easiest schedule belongs to the Oakland A's. With a 5 1/2 game lead in the wild card race, they're an easy bet to make it in.

Here's the bad news for the light hitting Yankees, and for the Rays. The easiest schedule, by far, belongs to the Cleveland Indians, whose opponents play to a .448 record. In fact, only 9 of their remaining 26 games are against teams with winning records. They also play 15 of their 26 remaining games at home.

In all likelihood, the two wild card teams will be Oakland and either Cleveland or Tampa Bay.

 

[Joe.t]

Very interesting article by the respected "bleacher report" website, they make some very interesting points that could pan out.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...new-york-yankees-can-make-a-september-miracle

BOYZ,



Blah blah blah...someone is truly desperate to save face for a miserably failed season, especially desperate being well out of the wild card and sending CC up with his 4.91 ERA.

BTW - The one-game wild card system is tailor made for a lucky game. It's an insult to every team.

Merlot

Making excuses already?, I could be wrong but it sounds to me like you are not very confident in your team heading into the playoffs.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Day 1 of each series? :thumb: to Mr.T

Oh goodie, now it's the Yanks turn to play the terrible White Sox, I have a feeling that the landscape in the East will look quite differently after the Sox play the Tigers

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

Day 2 to Jon Lester and Joe's bookie. Magic number now 19.

Starting to look like Jon Lester's going to start game 1 of the World Serious.

 

[Merlot]

Hello Boyz,

Very interesting article by the respected "bleacher report" website, they make some very interesting points that could pan out.

I don't think you have an honest answer in you, but are you the only one in the world who likes the one-game playoff where because of rotation you might have to risk a 162 game season on your worse starter?

red sox 2, tigers 1

It was a superb win by the Sox last night going up against the best pitcher in baseball 19-1 Max Scherzer leading one of the MLBs top teams...not the pathetic White Sox. Lester spread Tiger runners so thin they could barely score, Farrell played the bullpen perfectly in the 8th sending out just the right man to take on each Tiger star, and Uehara continued his domination that has made him the best reliever in the league since summer began.

Meanwhile the luckiest bookie in the world continues to reap the benefits of his money machine Joe.t and his pet.

*Short attention spans needn't read further.

Red Sox pin 2nd loss on Tigers’ Max Scherzer

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2013/09/03/sox-running/u2a4OOBtpTabwdgUI4dNhP/story.html

Jon Lester was a fire-breathing dragon on the mound, pitching one of his best games of the season as the Sox beat the Detroit Tigers in a 2-1 thriller before a crowd of 32,071.

Lester and four relievers beat Detroit ace Max Scherzer, who was seeking his 20th win. The Sox were held to six hits, but one was a two-run single by Will Middlebrooks.

None of the players tried pretending this was just another game when it was over. The Sox (83-57) and Tigers (81-58) are the two best teams in the American League and could meet again in the postseason.

“It was not a usual Tuesday night,” said Jonny Gomes, who had two hits and scored a run playing in place of an injured Jacoby Ellsbury. “You could feel how excited the fans were and it was that way on the field, too.”

Lester allowed eight hits over seven innings but just one run as he left five runners stranded in scoring position. He struck out a season-best nine without a walk.

Lester has started 13 games after a loss this season. He has a 2.68 earned run average in those games and the Sox have won 11 times. Several teammates mentioned how emotional the big lefthander was over the course of the game.

“That’s who I am. I’m not going to change that. If I’m happy or confident or feeling good about myself, you’re going to know,” Lester said. “If things aren’t going so well you’re going to know about it, too.”

Detroit’s lineup was an aggregate 39 of 94 (.414) against Lester (including postseason), with Miguel Cabrera returning after a three-game absence because of an abdominal strain. But Lester controlled the highest-scoring team in baseball with a fastball that has built up velocity in recent weeks, a sharp cutter, and a curveball he could spot for strikes.

“Powerful, a lot of strikes,” manager John Farrell said. “Over the last probably three or four starts his cutter has come back to where it was as we’ve seen a couple of years ago.”

........

Farrell used three pitchers to get through the eighth inning.

Rookie Brandon Workman had the difficult task of facing Cabrera in a one-run game. He fell behind 2 and 0, challenged Cabrera with a fastball, and got a fly ball to right field.

Lefty Craig Breslow got Prince Fielder to ground out into the shift before Victor Martinez singled to left. Junichi Tazawa struck out Infante with a fastball to end the inning.

Koji Uehara got the final three outs for his 17th save, striking out the final two and bouncing off the mound with a huge smile.

He has thrown 25 consecutive scoreless innings and retired the last 21 batters to face him.

Red Sox closer Koji Uehara might be the most important player in the American League

http://www.weei.com/sports/boston/b...red-sox-closer-koji-uehara-might-be-most-impo

When John Farrell was asked about Koji Uehara, two sentences from the manager offered the highest compliment a closer might receive.

"You kind of marvel at what he's doing at this stretch of time," Farrell said, adding about the pitcher's latest round of perfection: "It's a very calm inning from our perspective."

Let's face it, for most major league managers, living through the final outs of any close game isn't conducive to marveling or calmness. Much of the time it is strikingly similar to the scene in "Talladega Nights" when Will Ferrell's character is thrust into a locked car with a cougar while his father shouts, "Ricky, control your heart rate" while the animal does its flesh-tearing business.

Easier said than done.

But what Uehara has delivered is not only borderline historic -- now one inning shy of Daniel Bard's team mark of 25 consecutive scoreless innings -- it is downright soothing.

During these last 24 innings (21 outings) Uehara has allowed just seven baserunners, striking out 30 while walking only one. This while averaging just 11.9 pitches per inning. Think about that: It's not even four pitches per plate appearance for the 77 batters he has faced.

It all leads to the kind of definitive statements not usually uttered by those whose job it is to be somewhat measured over the course of a 162-game season.

"I would have to say," said Red Sox pitching coach Juan Nieves, "he's the best closer in the big leagues, by far."

Added Nieves: "It’s just his way of being efficient of with all of his pitches and making all his pitches look good. It almost looks like a strike out of the hand, and hitters obviously confuse that."

UNFREAKING REAL!!!!! :thumb:

Merlot

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

Still waiting for Joe.T's predictions for this weekend in the Bronx.

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

What a bitter bitter loss as the torch passes from Mo to Koji. Magic number: 16

This Yankees loss feels like it should count as two

This is the problem with perfection, see.

This is the fix you find yourself in when the final month of the season feels less like a series of baseball games and more a daily dance with elimination. This is what it feels like when you have less margin for error than a man juggling six chainsaws on a wire above Niagara Falls.
This is how baseball can chew you the hell up.

“I like how our guys came back tonight,” Joe Girardi whispered when it was over, after the Yankees had risen from the dust and then fallen back into the dirt, after the Red Sox had stolen a 9-8 victory away from them Thursday night, an hour or so after it seemed the Yankees would be the ones to get away with thievery.

“But you have to be able to overcome things.”

Mostly, the Yankees are trying to overcome a 4 ½-months start to the season that left them buried behind a pile of wild-card hopefuls. So much of that time it seemed the Yankees would treat the scoreboard like a gas-rationing line, only touching the plate on alternating days.
Now, they score runs in wonderful, gluttonous bunches.

But they have to. That’s the rub. That’s the problem. The days dwindle down and so do the Yankees’ opportunities, and they know as well as anyone — and say it often — that they don’t simply have to win, cannot merely take series, they have to win — quite literally — every day.
And when that’s the mission, days like this, losses like this, almost feel like they count for two. When Mariano Rivera has two outs, nobody on, two strikes on Mike Napoli, that’s an invitation to stream for the exits. Except when it isn’t. Except when you remember the Red Sox aren’t the White Sox, aren’t the Blue Jays, aren’t even the kid-brother Orioles, that they play varsity ball for 27 outs. And beyond, when necessary.

And can steal one right out of you front pocket after you’d done the same to their back pocket a few innings before.

“They never give up,” Alfonso Soriano said. “They’re like us.”

That is a fair analogy, with one caveat: the Red Sox beat the Yankees here on Opening Day and they’ve never stopped running, never stopped rushing for the top of the division and the best record in the sport. The Yankees kept up for a while, fell back, then way back. They buried themselves, and have spent the better part of a month with a shovel in their hands.

There are times this mission not only seems doable, but inevitable. That was the bottom of the seventh last night, Lyle Overbay at the plate for the Yankees, Junichi Tazawa on the mound for the Red Sox, the count 1-2, the score 7-6, Red Sox, after it had been 7-2, Red Sox only minutes before.

Overbay swung, scorched a ground ball toward second. Dustin Pedroia started to his right before realizing the ball was skipping by him to his left.

Base hit. Joy. Valhalla. Yankees 8. Red Sox 7.

“We were flying,” Soriano would say later. “And it seemed like everyone was in it together.”

Win. Every day. Every game.

“We know what’s in front of us,” Austin Romine said, in the quiet of a beaten clubhouse. “We know what we have to do.”

It was Romine’s poor throw that allowed Quintin Berry — running for Napoli, channeling Dave Roberts — to not only steal second but skip to third when the ball bounced away, and then score on Stephen Drew’s broken-bat single. It was the kind of imperfect play the Yankees can’t afford, the way they couldn’t afford the artistic baserunning stylings of Soriano in the bottom of the ninth when he was, in essence, picked off twice as the winning run.

Yankees bullpen implodes in heartbreaking loss to Red Sox

There are bad losses, heart-breaking losses and losses that freeze bone marrow.

It remains to be known if the Yankees can rebound from the most devastating defeat of the season Thursday night, when a six-run seventh inning that erased a five-run deficit wasn’t enough to avoid inhaling a 9-8 loss in 10 innings to the Red Sox due to a bevy of reasons.

Start with Preston Claiborne’s ineffective relief stint after Ivan Nova’s subpar start.

Move to catcher Austin Romine’s low throw to second in the ninth that set up the tying run. How about Alfonso Soriano getting caught trying to steal third by Boston pitcher Craig Breslow in the ninth?

While it included a broken-bat single and was fueled by Romine’s bad throw, Mariano Rivera flushed his six save in 47 chances. Finally, Joba Chamberlain, who was pitching because Shawn Kelley has a sore triceps, gave up the game-winning hit.

“It’s a tough loss, no doubt about it,’’ manager Joe Girardi said. “But you can’t feel sorry for yourself.’’

The Yankees, who have 22 games remaining, caught a break because the Rays lost 6-2 to the Angels Thursday night. The Bombers remain just 2¹/₂ games behind Tampa Bay in the battle for the final wild-card spot.

The Red Sox, who lead the third-place Yankees by nine games in the AL East, have won nine of 11 and, at 85-57, have the best record in the league.

Six runs in the seventh eliminated a 7-2 deficit, and the rally was highlighted by Lyle Overbay’s two-run, two-out single that put the Yankees ahead, 8-7.

David Robertson worked a perfect eighth and Rivera retired the first two batters in the ninth before Mike Napoli’s broken-bat single to right gave the Red Sox a chance.

Pinch-runner Quintin Berry was safe at second when Romine’s throw glanced off Derek Jeter’s glove and trickled far enough into the outfield to let Berry get to third. He then scored on Stephen Drew’s single to right.

With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Soriano drew a walk and made it to second when first baseman Daniel Nava couldn’t handle Breslow’s pickoff throw.

Believing they wouldn’t try to pick him off twice, Soriano broke for third with Curtis Granderson at the plate and was caught in a rundown for the second out.

“You can’t get thrown out,’’ Girardi said of Soriano’s mistake.

Girardi turned to the struggling Chamberlain with the scored tied in the 10th.

Jacoby Ellsbury singled with one out and swiped second. At 2-2, Chamberlain and the Yankees’ dugout believed Shane Victorino had taken his swing far enough around for a third strike. Plate umpire Rob Drake asked first base ump Joe West for help, and West ruled Victorino didn’t swing.

Victorino laced the next pitch to right and scored Ellsbury.

“If I see the barrel of the bat at me, I kind of have a good idea,’’ Chamberlain said of the costly call.

Chamberlain was replaced by Boone Logan and then promptly ejected by West.

Nova was bad, Claiborne terrible.

Pitch count hell forced Nova to exit far too early and Claiborne, who followed, let the Yankees fall behind, 6-2, after five innings.

Nova, the AL pitcher of the month for August, left after four innings (his shortest stint of the year), in which he allowed three runs, five hits and threw 96 pitches.

Summoned to begin the fifth, Claiborne didn’t retire any of the five batters he faced and started the inning by giving up a homer to Victorino.

 

[Merlot]

BOYZ,

— that they don’t simply have to win, cannot merely take series, they have to win — quite literally — every day.
And when that’s the mission, days like this, losses like this, almost feel like they count for two. When Mariano Rivera has two outs, nobody on, two strikes on Mike Napoli, that’s an invitation to stream for the exits. Except when it isn’t. Except when you remember the Red Sox aren’t the White Sox, aren’t the Blue Jays, aren’t even the kid-brother Orioles, that they play varsity ball for 27 outs. And beyond, when necessary.

No wonder iggy's now deleted post was looking forward to football. :lol: :thumb:

The paragraph above puts a stamp on who the Red Sox and Yankees are this year. When pushed to the edge of all pressure the Red Sox are still fighting for an advantage and finding it. For the Yanks, they put the legend out there and with one strike left...JUST ONE STRIKE...it fell apart. Romine's poor throw and Joba's failure were just the inevitable icing. Yankee fans knew it when many of they moaned or booed at the sight of big declining Joba. It's was an amazing microcosm game of one team that just doesn't have the tools to make and one that always seems to find a way.

Hey Joe...hey iggy...hey Doc...how's that September collapse theory working out for you BOYYZZZ!


September has begun, but this Red Sox team won't collapse

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/writer...has-begun-but-this-red-sox-team-wont-collapse

BOSTON -- Through 140 games in 2011, the Red Sox were 84-56 and held a seven-game lead over the Rays for the final playoff spot. We didn't know it then, but the collapse had already begun.

Through 140 games this year: 83-57, with a 5½-game lead in the American League East and what amounts to an eight-game lead in the race for a postseason spot. It feels safe to say there will be no repeat collapse. Two years ago, there were already signs of trouble. We just overlooked them.


Now, September has begun and the Red Sox are getting stronger rather than weaker. Their rotation is full rather than falling apart. They just won a series from the Dodgers, who might be the best team in the National League, and this week impressively won a series from the Tigers, who might be the (other) best team in the American League.

"We've learned from all the bad things we've been through," said David Ortiz after Wednesday's eight-homer, 20-4 Red Sox victory.

The team has a different look. The clubhouse has a different feel.

And as the Red Sox begin an 11-day stretch against the wild-card contending Yankees and Rays, the big question isn't whether the Sox will be in the playoffs, but rather who they'll bring with them.

With seven games over the next week and a half against the Yankees, they could please their fans by burying the Yankees' flickering playoff hopes. With three games in between against the Rays, who have a tenuous hold on the final postseason spot, the Red Sox could give hope to anyone on the outside looking in.

Like, perhaps, Terry Francona's Indians.

Would there be any better way of pushing September 2011 into the past than by the Red Sox pushing through to win the AL East, and in the process helping carry their former manager to the postseason with them?

It could happen.

Francona's Indians won again Wednesday night, too, remaining only one game behind the Yankees and 3½ games behind the Rays.

But here's the thing: Have you seen the Indians' schedule the rest of the way?

Mets, Royals, White Sox, Royals, Astros, White Sox, Twins.

Meanwhile, the Rays have series against the Red Sox, Rangers, Orioles and Yankees. The Yankees have those seven against the Red Sox, and play the Orioles and Rays, as well.

The Red Sox say they don't care who else makes it, as long as they do.

"No," Jonny Gomes said. "That's irrelevant."

Perhaps, but the Red Sox are 6-1 this year against the Indians. They're above .500 against the Rays and Yankees, too, but not by nearly as big a margin.

Besides, do they really want to risk a playoff series in which they might see David Price or Matt Moore twice, with Chris Archer and Alex Cobb, too? Do they really want to risk facing a revived Yankees team in October?

The Red Sox, at this point, have no reason to fear anyone. And there's no guarantee they would actually see any of these teams, since whoever wins that wild-card spot would first face a one-game playoff, likely against either the A's or Rangers.

"We just want the home-field advantage," Gomes said. "We've played good at home. We've played good against everyone at home."

They were record-tying good against the Tigers on Wednesday, hitting eight home runs in a game for just the second time in their history (and becoming the first team ever to do it against the 113-year-old Tigers franchise). Ortiz hit two of the home runs and added a double for his 2,000th career hit.

It left the Red Sox with a good feeling they rarely if ever had two Septembers ago, even early in the month when their record was still good and their lead over the Rays was still big.

This is a different team, and has been for quite a while.

"This is a very focused and driven team," manager John Farrell said. "It's a very committed group. And I thought from the first day of spring training on that they felt they had a chance to do something special.

"And that might be in the process."

The Red Sox are about to begin a stretch of games that could define this season -- but not for them. Their season won't be defined by September this time around.

Four games into the month, that much is already a given.

Cheers,

Merlot

 

[Joe.t]

What a bitter bitter loss as the torch passes from Mo to Koji. Magic number: 16

At 38 years of age and with a fastball that tops out at 89-91 MPH, Bawhahahlaha!!!!, good one rumps, they will figure him out sooner or later and when they do watch out because it won't be pretty, also 32 saves in the last 7 years is nothing to write home to mother about.

 

[Merlot]

Hey Boyz,

Where's EB???

There have been an amazing 11 home runs by one team in the House That Ruth Never Built over the last two games. It's been a terrific display of prowess and power that should swell the pride of any loyal fan. It's exactly the kind of exhibition that has always had our good buddy eager bragger puffing his feathers, making grand declarations of team character and tradition, then pronouncing the rise of great dynasties to come. But our pal has been stunningly absent. Uh oh, oh oh, I know, I know. The team making those BIG BANGS is in the wrong uniforms. It's the first place by 7.5 and leading the Yankees by 10.0...BOSTON RED SOX who set off all those beautiful fireworks!!!

The Sox, Mike Napoli and I would like to thank the New York Yankees and their owners for creating the same home run ally they've feasted on. The problem with that decision is it's there for anyone to do the same. Last night it was just close enough to allow Napoli and the Sox do something that hasn't been done to the Yankees since 1911...get beaten twice in a row at home despite scoring at least 8 runs in a game. The new Yankee Stadium is the only park in the MLB where Napoli's fly ball could be turned into a home run. And, oh that much vaunted bullpen. Many thanks to Hughes, Logan, Claiborne, and the ever loveable Chamberlain.

NEW YORK -- Two nights in a row, the Red Sox have pulled off the final rally at Yankee Stadium.

Mike Napoli hit a tying grand slam in the seventh, Shane Victorino had a go-ahead homer one inning later and Boston beat the New York Yankees 12-8 on Friday night for its fourth straight victory.

Will Middlebrooks went deep for the third straight day and the Red Sox erased a five-run deficit in another wild game between these longtime rivals. One night earlier, the Yankees took an 8-7 lead with a six-run seventh -- only to lose 9-8 in 10 innings on Victorino's tiebreaking single.

"We never feel like we're out of it," Boston manager John Farrell said.

New York has lost consecutive games when scoring at least eight runs for the first time since September 1949, according to STATS. The last time it happened with both games at home was 1911 against Cleveland.

Napoli also doubled, singled and walked twice in a perfect night at the plate. He scored three times, one night after sparking Boston's ninth-inning comeback with a two-out single off closer Mariano Rivera.

The Red Sox, who began the day with a 6½-game lead in the AL East over Tampa Bay, have slowed New York's wild-card charge by winning the first two in a four-game set to improve to 9-5 against New York this year. They have scored 41 runs in their past three games and won 11 of 13 overall.

"We don't give up, we don't give in," Middlebrooks said. "It doesn't matter what the scoreboard says. We're going to come out, we're going to fight, we're going to grind it out."

NOTE: Thanks for the collapse prediction Joe. Your bookie and I love it.

UPDATE: The Yankees are TOAST again in game 3 of the series. There were 4 more home runs for the Red Sox making it 15 versus 1 for the Yanks. Oh how Beav would be puffing himself to explode if only the humiliation didn't belong to his team.

Game over: Red Sox 13, Yankees 9: The Red Sox have taken three straight with another offensive barrage including four homers, two by Mike Napoli. The Yankees trailed 12-3 at one time and then scored four runs in the sixth but it was too little too late. Xander Bogaerts hit his first major league homer and had two hits and made a nice barehanded play in the field. Jonny Gomes also hit a three-run homer in the third. The game was played in 3:32 before a sellout 49,046 at Yankee Stadium.

Hey thanks for coming Yankees fans. I hope you enjoyed the show as much as I did.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...-yankees-mike-napoli-xander-bogaerts/2780517/

NEW YORK (AP) — Mike Napoli hit two home runs, Jonny Gomes and prized rookie Xander Bogaerts also connected, and the Boston Red Sox kept up their dizzying scoring spree at Yankee Stadium, bashing New York 13-9 Saturday for their fifth straight win.

The AL East leaders became the first visiting team in more than a century to score at least nine runs on three straight days against the Yankees. In fact, the last time it happened, they weren't called the Yankees — Boston did it in 1912 to the Highlanders at Hilltop Park.

Down 12-3, the Yankees rallied with four runs in the sixth inning and chased John Lackey (9-12). Mark Reynolds added a two-run double in the eighth off Red Sox reliever Drake Britton that made it 12-9.

David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia each contributed to Boston's five doubles. By the end of the fourth inning, it was 10-2 and every Red Sox batter had gotten a hit. They had all scored, too, except for Pedroia.

Each line drive that echoed around the ballpark was met by noticeable groans from New York fans. A couple of "Let's go, Red Sox!" chants broke out among the many Boston fans.

Even Boston's loud outs hurt. Right fielder Ichiro Suzuki slammed into the padded wall catching a drive by Ortiz and stayed down for a moment.

The Red Sox arrived in the Bronx fresh from a 20-4 pasting of Detroit. The highest-scoring team in the majors beat the Yankees 9-8 in 10 innings Thursday and rallied for a 12-8 win Friday.

Napoli hit a two-run homer in the second and a solo drive in the ninth. Gomes added a three-run shot.

Bogaerts doubled early, then hit a two-run shot in the fifth for his first major league homer. In the bottom half, the 20-year-old shortstop charged in for a nifty barehanded pickup to throw out Robinson Cano.

The Yankees scored at least six runs for the sixth game in a row. That wasn't enough for David Huff (2-1), tagged for nine runs and eight hits in 3 1-3 innings.

Huff made his first start of the season, moving from the bullpen to the rotation in place of ineffective Phil Hughes.

Boston improved to 10-5 against New York this year and won all three series at Yankee Stadium. The Red Sox won minus center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury. His injured right foot was put in a protective boot, and there is no timetable for his return to the lineup.

How the tables of fortune have turned against the pinstripers...and by a patchwork team. :thumb:

Cheers,

Merlot

 

[Joe.t]

I'd be petrified if I were a Red Sox fan heading into the playoffs, giving up 25 runs in just three games against the "light hitting Yankees", very shaky pitching to say the least.

 

[daydreamer41]

You are right, Joe. The Yankees lost 3 games due to really shaky pitching, especially today's game where the starting pitcher gave up 9 runs in 3 1/3 innings.

And the Red Sox's pitching is not impressive at all, giving up all of those runs the last 3 games.

You can't call the current Yankee lineup "light hitting". I say the Detroit Tigers handle the Red Sox in 5 games of a 7 game series, or 4 games in a 5 game series.

Although, it's very unlikely that NY is going to catch the Red Sox for the division title, NYY are only 3 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays for the second wild card. It's a 4 team race between NY, Baltimore, Cleveland and Tampa Bay.

 

[Joe.t]

Excellent analysis dd41, my money is on the Tigers if they were to play the Red Sox and their shaky pitching, oh BTW, I'm always right.:smile:

 

[Merlot]

Boyz,

I'd be petrified if I were a Red Sox fan heading into the playoffs, giving up 25 runs in just three games against the "light hitting Yankees", very shaky pitching to say the least.

No doubt both teams have had very sloppy pitching. However, sometimes that just the intensity and chemistry of the rivalry at work. The same pitchers only gave up 7 runs in three games just prior to this series against the allegedly superior mighty Tigers. There's plenty of time left in the season to see if there is any continuing pattern of sloppiness that has not been seen for a long time until this series.

However, coming out on top every time is significant too. When the team can consistently win the low scoring ones, the close ones and the barn burners...the losses are inevitably few.

The Yankees are TOAST for the division tittle now that they are 11 back, and never had a shot any way. They are lucky both Tampa and Baltimore have been in a rut. If the Yankees manage to survive for a playoff, and then manage to survive that awful one-game playoff they are far too depleted of talent, and their own pitching has been bad and declining to do anything more.

As for the Red Sox they now have the 87 wins maximum I hoped for, with plenty of time to get into the mid 90s. Winning the division is only icing for me. This year has been one of the most enjoyable ever. Going from very small expectations to being able to watch a patchwork team that never stops fighting for every inch and frequently comes through has been magnificent and extremely special. I'm completely satisfied now.

...oh BTW, I'm always right.

:lol: I see your Meds have run out...again.

BTW: I hear your bookie is planning to add a heliport to his estate courtesy of you.

Cheers funny boy,

Merlot

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

We got some funny guys here. With the Sox magic number down to 12, the same reliable sources who just days ago were predicting a Sox collapse have finally accepted the inevitable.

The geniuses are now predicting that the Sox will go down to the same Tigers who they schooled last week, just prior to this weekend's humiliation of the pitching poor Yankees. While these losers aren't much good at predicting things, there is one thing that is very predictable: them.

You can go back under your rock, Daydreamer.