Looking Foward To September

[ACL BoSox]

Well, we are coming down to the last month of the regular season and the Sox are right in the thick of it. As of right now, the Red Sox are 6.5 games out in the East, and 0.5 games up in the Wild Card.

 

The past week has been nothing short of Euphoric for the Red Sox. Making up the ground they did is an amazing feat. However, in my opinion, and I've felt this for a while, for the Red Sox to even think about the East they must enter September with a deficit under 5 games, which is entirely possible.

 

September is no easy feat. It's starts pretty rough and then softens out at the end. For those who don't have a schedule on them this is what September looks like.

 

Hard Part

-------------------

Aug. 31-Sept. 2 vs. Anahiem

Sept. 3- Sept. 5 vs. Texas

Sept. 6-Sept. 8 @ Oakland

 

Easier Part

--------------------

Sept. 9-Sept.12 @ Seattle

Sept. 14-Sept. 16 vs. Tampa Bay

 

This series could be very important

-------------------------------------------

Sept. 17-Sept-19 @ New York

 

Back home against that annoying team from Balt & NY again

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Sept. 20-Sept. 23 vs. Baltimore

Sept. 24-Sept. 27 vs. New York

Sept. 28-Sept. 30 @ Tampa Bay

 

September is very balanced between teams in the playoff hunt, teams out of the playoff hunt, and 2 very integral series against the Yankees.

 

If the Red Sox are close in the standings (under 5 games), I would really want Francona to manipulate the lineup to have Pedro, Wakefield, and Schilling pitch against the Yanks. If were trying to beat the Yanks we'll need our two aces, as well as Wakefield who has a history of success against the Yanks.

 

My feeling is that if we keep playing like we have been we can win the East, and even if we don't the Wild Card is still very attainable. We just need to keep up the good defense, and improve on the clutch hitting.

 

We have everything we need on this team except for clutch hitting.

[schillingouttheks]

im not worried about this at all. we have had success this year against NY and could easily pick up at least 2 games on the yanks with the remaining games we have. oakland shouldnt be too much of a problem and the texas series should be a good chance to make our lead longer..although the angels are right on us too. the angels...enough said. we need to beat this team one way or the other. we have had a horrible year against them. 2-4 against them i believe so far this year.

 

we can do it. lets put the yanks win and our loss behind us and just focus on winning games. one of the biggest mistakes we can make is thinking about catching up to the yanks. just play the games and go for the win. and things will work out. dont over look your competition.

[sarasoxfan]

I am completely looking forward to the coming weeks.

 

The club even while losing seems to be pulling together and capable of pulling any game out. Last night just was some awesome pitching.

 

We have got to keep winning and not start watching the yankees..

 

I like the schedule--except we always seem to struggle against the O's

 

I'm not quite sure why they did that Varitek thing right now...they could have waited agame or two....

 

 

This is what it is all about and thank god we are right in thick of things.

[elsrbueno]

September's going to be interesting. I think the last week is a VERY good example of how unpredictable baseball really is.

 

In the last week:

 

The Red Sox gain 5 games on the Yankees

The Guardians go from contenders to pretenders

 

CAN the Red Sox catch the Yankees? Yes.

WILL the Red Sox catch the Yankees? Not so sure. While I believe that we have a better overall team, the Yankees have a FAR easier schedule ahead of them. They are going to feast on teams like Tampa, Baltimore, etc while we have games against Oakland, Anaheim, and Texas remaining.

 

To catch the Yankees, they are going to have to collapse completely against some pretty bad teams....and I just don't see it happening. 6.5 games in a little over a month is a HUGE feat.

 

The Red Sox need to focus on themselves right now. Focus on winning every game, NOT on the Yankees.

 

The Red Sox' fate is in their own hands. They will have head to head games against each of the wild card contenders from the west, and 6 games against the Yankees.

 

It's going to be a fun month, and while I would be thrilled with the AL East Title, I would settle for the Wild Card, because this team can be very dangerous in the playoffs.

 

Go Sox!

[schillingouttheks]

cant agree more...

 

you are a quality poster ELS.

[noonanberg]

As long as the Sox win every series from here on in they should be in good shape. Like the rest of you, the O's worry me, but maybe our luck will change. Whatever they do though, the Sox MUST win their series against Anaheim and Texas. If they want a shot at the East, they'll need to take 5 of 6 from the Yanks. Most of you would probably say four of six, but that still leaves us four out, which is still a big enough deficit. Winning five will put us only two out, a much more likely deficit for which the Sox could come back.

[elsrbueno]

The Sox have done a good job this season of stepping up their game against the Yankees, and they should be able to do so again. They've had trouble with Anaheim and Texas before, so they need to come through and play well against them in the upcoming series.

 

The Sox are 14-7 in August. If they take care of their own business...They'll be fine

[schillingouttheks]

all i can say is...GO SOX...

[RedSox24]

what he said.

[Sizzlin22]

As far as the WC goes I'm not worrying about the Angels I see them winning the West but we need to beat the A's I'm really worried about them need to beat them up and as far as the Yankees are concerned if we get within id say 4 games then I believe we can win it but this is a VERY important stretch.

[mosox]

Keep the faith.

[yeszir]

August 31st - September 8th is the most important stretch of the entire season. If we can win each of those series I'd say we're in a good position to win the wildcard.

[YanksHater213]

Originally posted by yeszir@Aug 25 2004, 04:41 AM

August 31st - September 8th is the most important stretch of the entire season. If we can win each of those series I'd say we're in a good position to win the wildcard.

duh! its against our two closest WC opponents. I think that we will though, because Anaheim is fairly an inconsisent starting pitching team. It seems like Oakland loses a big hitter every year, they do not have the hitting of anyone else. We should take both of these series

[elsrbueno]

We've played very crappily against Anaheim this year, so it's key that we take 2 of 3 in that series.

 

I agree that Anaheim should win the West, they are a much stronger team than Oakland. However, Oakland is still playing very well and should not be overlooked for the WC. I have to admit I figured Texas would be out of the running by now, with that pitching staff, I can't believe they're still in the race!

 

Go Sox!

[Zenny]

Originally posted by YanksHater213@Aug 25 2004, 06:09 AM

It seems like Oakland loses a big hitter every year, they do not have the hitting of anyone else. We should take both of these series

I don't agree with that they have no hitting.

 

Eric Chavez, in his somewhat limited time, has been just as good as Scott Rolen this year, not to mention that he's three years younger, is better at getting on base and is developing more power than Rolen. The AB/HR and BB/K say it all, Chavez is better in both of them. Give them full healthy seasons at 27 and 30 respectively next year and Eric Chavez will outproduce Scott Rolen, that's a guarantee.

 

At the top of the order, Kotsay and Byrnes have been very good at getting on base. While behind Chavez; Dye, Hatteberg, Durazo, Crosby and even Damian Miller have been very solid. All of them (except Dye) are on base at a minimum of a .350 clip and three of them (Dye, Durazo, Crosby) should finish the year with 25 homeruns.

 

I think their offensive attack is more consistent than the Angels. Once you get past Vlad and Guillen, nothing is really scary. Injuries have hampered Anderson (who's overrated anyway) and Darin Erstad is playing over his head right now. Other than that, none of their hitters are really any good. I'd take the A's offense over the Angels offense, no matter how many of you call me crazy.

[Zenny]

Originally posted by elsrbueno@Aug 25 2004, 09:56 AM

I agree that Anaheim should win the West, they are a much stronger team than Oakland. However, Oakland is still playing very well and should not be overlooked for the WC. I have to admit I figured Texas would be out of the running by now, with that pitching staff, I can't believe they're still in the race!

Wow, what is this, Sell Oakland Short For Another Year Day?

 

The Angels rotation is pitiful while the A's rotation is among the top three in the game. Advantage A's.

 

The A's have the edge in team OBP, SLG and OPS. The Angels have only scored a handful more runs, but with Chavez consistently in the lineup, they're a completely different (and better) team. Not to mention that Glaus is out of the year and those runs he produced early now have no bearing. Advantage A's.

 

The A's are the best fielding team in the American League. Advantage A's.

 

The Angels have the better bullpen, but Dotel has been far less shaky of late. Advantage Angels.

 

So in three out of the four categories, the A's are better than the Angels, especially where it counts: the starting rotation, by a wide margin. The A's are winning this division this year. They are, no question, the Rodney Dangerfield of MLB. While everyone gets caught up in the Vlad's and Blalock's and the "exciting" teams, the A's continue to do the job. No one is catching them in the West.

[noonanberg]

I agree, the A's still have a solid team. Personally, I think the A's will still take the West. They have a good enough lineup that they can't be shut down consistently, and they also still have one of the best pitching staffs in the league. Mulder will probably win the Cy and Zito is still a threat. Hudson's injury problems weaken the rotation, but it is still never an easy win.

 

Meanwhile, after Colon the A's pitching is weak. Even Colon hasn't been stellar this year. However, the Angels are still a good team and will challenge us for the WC til the end.

 

As for Texas, call me crazy, but I think their success is dwindling. I've felt this way for a while and yet they're still in the thick of it, but I don't think they have enough to get through the final month. Their pitching is awful, and except for Blalock and Soriano, their hitting isn't anything to brag about. I think in the next few weeks (provided we win our series against them) Texas will slowly drop out of the race, leaving just us and the Angels.

[elsrbueno]

Zenny,

You have a point that the A's are underappreciated in the AL West. Kinda like Atlanta in the NL East. Absolutely everyone predicted someone ELSE to finish above them, but they are right there on top again.

 

It's going to be a tight race in the AL West, I think Texas will falter, I think it will be between Oakland and Anaheim. It's hard to bet against a team with Zito, Mulder, Hudson, especially since they always seem to get hot at the end of the season.

 

I don't think you're giving Anaheim's defense enough credit. Their outfield is very good with the gloves with Guillen, Guerrero, and Anderson. Plus Guillen/Guerrero have some of the best arms in the game.

 

Erstad/Kennedy/Eckstein/Figgins is a solid enough defence, and Molina is good behind the plate.

 

Oakland has OBP guys and power guys (Chavez,Durazo,Dye) but like the Red Sox, not a lot of speed. Anaheim has the extra weapon of being able to manufacture runs.

 

Both teams are dangerous for sure, and you've got to give Anaheim a lot of credit for sweeping the Yankees...Oakland lost 2 of 3 in their last meeting

[yeszir]

Underrated, overrated, whatever you think of them, Oakland certainly has the potential to be the Red Sox's best friend going into the last month of the season.

 

There's no doubt in my mind that the A's will win the west. But aside from the 3 games against us that they have in september, they play 7 against Texas and 3 against Anaheim. The A's could easily hand us the wild card spot by winning these series. Of course, we'd have to face them in the playoffs (for a change), but by that time we could make enemies out of them.

 

In the meantime, go A's!

[elsrbueno]

Speaking of which, we've got to hope that Toronto starts a hot streak tonight. They play The Yankees for 4, and play Oakland, Anaheim, and Texas in September. Plus, we don't play them again this year.

 

Go Jays!

 

Also, the Twinkies could help us too. Texas and Anaheim now, and they finish up the year VS the Yankees.

 

Go Twins!

 

Speaking of which, we've got 20 games before we play the Yankees in late September. If we can cut their lead to 3 games by then, we've got a real shot at the division. As of this writing, we're 5.5 games back. It's doable, but I'm still focused on the Wild Card at this point.

[schillingouttheks]

ill look at the east when we have command in the wild card. its too close for comfort now. and ill look at the wild card after we win games. i never think of what the standings would look like if we win and another loses. just win the game and everything will fall into place.