6/27 Twins at Fenway, game 2

[SoxHop]

Before tonight's game:

 

Young

vs RHP: .760

vs LHP: .636

 

Even more bizarre....

JBJ

vs RHP: .748

vs LHP: 1.196

 

It's almost enough to get me to give up on my fixation with splits and suggested platoons.

 

Easy guys, I said "almost"!

 

 

 

Didn't Shaw do the same thing last year....? At least at the beginning....

 

Who the hell knows Moon......... this game is strange...

[SoxHop]

This crowd is effin nutz with the howling..

[Emp9]

Travis w/ the nice tag

[SoxHop]

There it is folks...... everyone......... GO TO BED ....

 

Win one out of the next two.......... take the series.

 

This team has some grit.......... which I think we weren't sure we had earlier....

[iortiz]

i arrived in Coyocan, Mexico (just south of Mexico City) Friday. I'm leaving early in the morning on Thursday (to Monterrey).

 

Be back in Sugar Land, TX by Friday evening, unless we get mugged or worse.

 

I lived in Mexico City for 4.5 years (during Bush II's second term).

 

Coyoacan is beautiful. I live in the north of Mexico City (Chiluca), actually in the State of Mexico.

 

I lived in Monterrey as well for 15 years. You have to go and eat cabrito in "El rey del Cabrito" in Monterrey. Enjoy your trip my friend.

[Emp9]

There it is folks...... everyone......... GO TO BED ....

 

Win one out of the next two.......... take the series.

 

This team has some grit.......... which I think we weren't sure we had earlier....

 

Back in 1st place (sole possession)! I can sleep sound now.

[moonslav59]

Coyoacan is beautiful. I live in the north of Mexico City (Chiluca), actually in the State of Mexico.

 

I lived in Monterrey as well for 15 years. You have to go and eat cabrito in "El rey del Cabrito" in Monterrey. Enjoy your trip my friend.

 

I've been to "El Rey del Cabrito" a while back, when we visited some friends and explored the big cave. Excellent food.

 

We lived in Colonia Taxquena for 3.5 years and in El Sifon for 1 year. Both are close to Coyocan.

[cp176]

Slasher love for my boy Pom Pom gets it done. Sign this boy up for a few more years.

[Kimmi]

I'm only 3 hours from Virginia. We can all have a talksox party in Virginia!

 

Sounds like a plan! Just don't have one in Fairfax! LOL

[Kimmi]

He should just bunt almost every time.

 

The problem with that strategy is that he can't bunt either.

[Kimmi]

Yankees just took the lead. The white sox are putrid

 

I figured that at that point, the game was over too.

 

Walk off wins are a thing of beauty, unless they're against your team, of course.

[Kimmi]

Right on...... Great work by Pom to get out of that!

 

Those two Ks were also a thing of beauty.

 

Pom looked really good last night, and that's with an hour plus rain delay. Not only did he save the game, but he saved our pen as well.

[Kimmi]

Not much relavant to your post. But what I thought was interesting is recently in June, Cleveland swept a 4 game series from Minnesota, then a week later got swept in a 3 game series...... baseball is strange...

 

Strange = Random

 

Of course I'd love to sweep, but if we can take 3 of 4, I'd consider that a success.

[Kimmi]

We should be winning this division by like 5 games right now.

 

Considering that we have played kind of 'meh' ball to date, I think being in first place is a good thing, even if it's only by one game. Like Eck said on the telecast last night, this team really hasn't taken off yet. When they do, look out.

[Maxbialystock]

A nice win. Pomeranz once again proves you can be an effective starter with just two pitches--fast ball and knuckle curve--and decent command. It's hard to maintain my skepticism in the face of his undeniable success.

 

These game threads have a strong tendency toward excoriating anything our players do wrong and almost ignoring what they do right. Pedroia was 3 for 3 with an rbi and 2 runs scored last night, but the only comment was about his terrible baserunning--"worst in baseball"--for trying to stretch a single off the green monster into a double. The attack on Pedroia occurred during a game whose outcome after the Vazquez 2 run dinger was never in doubt, rare as that is these days.

 

The game started late because of the rain and then had a lengthy delay near the end of the 2d inning, yet Pomeranz hung in there to go 5 innings, giving up 1 run--but a couple of people complained he didn't go 6 innings and that this unduly stressed the bullpen.

 

Meanwhile, the Sox, who just lost 2 of 3 to the .500 Angels, have now taken 2 straight from the Twins who only have the best road record (but might not after this series) in MLB.

 

I've said this at least twice before but it bears repeating. The Sox are something like 40-10 this year when they score 4 or more runs. The hitting is way off from the usual Sox standard, but the pitching has been pretty darn good--especially the bullpen--and should be even better after the ASG when Rodriguez (one can only hope) returns.

[Kimmi]

A nice win. Pomeranz once again proves you can be an effective starter with just two pitches--fast ball and knuckle curve--and decent command. It's hard to maintain my skepticism in the face of his undeniable success.

 

These game threads have a strong tendency toward excoriating anything our players do wrong and almost ignoring what they do right. Pedroia was 3 for 3 with an rbi and 2 runs scored last night, but the only comment was about his terrible baserunning--"worst in baseball"--for trying to stretch a single off the green monster into a double. The attack on Pedroia occurred during a game whose outcome after the Vazquez 2 run dinger was never in doubt, rare as that is these days.

 

The game started late because of the rain and then had a lengthy delay near the end of the 2d inning, yet Pomeranz hung in there to go 5 innings, giving up 1 run--but a couple of people complained he didn't go 6 innings and that this unduly stressed the bullpen.

 

Meanwhile, the Sox, who just lost 2 of 3 to the .500 Angels, have now taken 2 straight from the Twins who only have the best road record (but might not after this series) in MLB.

 

I've said this at least twice before but it bears repeating. The Sox are something like 40-10 this year when they score 4 or more runs. The hitting is way off from the usual Sox standard, but the pitching has been pretty darn good--especially the bullpen--and should be even better after the ASG when Rodriguez (one can only hope) returns.

 

This is why I can't do game threads during the game. Every year or two, I give it a try, but am quickly reminded of why I stopped participating in them. At any rate, I do what Moon does. DVR the game so that I can ff through the Southwest commercials. LOL

 

Our team has a better record this year than we had last year through the same number of games.

[Maxbialystock]

Considering that we have played kind of 'meh' ball to date, I think being in first place is a good thing, even if it's only by one game. Like Eck said on the telecast last night, this team really hasn't taken off yet. When they do, look out.

 

Our optimist, but I happen to agree that being 1 game up on the Yankees is a good thing. While I agree with the possibility of the team--primarily the hitting--taking off, I am less sure that will happen than you are. On the other hand, I also think injuries have affected the hitting. Not the crew at 3B of course, but HanRam and maybe Betts and maybe Pedroia.

 

Our .558 winning percentage projects to 90 wins, so better hitting would be most welcome even though that .558 is actually the 2d best percentage in the AL. .558 also means that NY, Tampa, and Baltimore (now at .500) are close behind. Any one of them might also get hot.

[Kimmi]

Our optimist, but I happen to agree that being 1 game up on the Yankees is a good thing. While I agree with the possibility of the team--primarily the hitting--taking off, I am less sure that will happen than you are. On the other hand, I also think injuries have affected the hitting. Not the crew at 3B of course, but HanRam and maybe Betts and maybe Pedroia.

 

Our .558 winning percentage projects to 90 wins, so better hitting would be most welcome even though that .558 is actually the 2d best percentage in the AL. .558 also means that NY, Tampa, and Baltimore (now at .500) are close behind. Any one of them might also get hot.

 

People, not you specifically, are always so sure that our competitors will get hot, but at the same time are sure that we won't. While it's possible for any of the teams to get hot, I like our chances as much as, if not more than, any of our competitors.

 

I asked in another thread if people would rather be in the Red Sox or the Yankees position going forward. That can be extended to any of the teams in our division. I would rather be where the Red Sox are going forward, warts and all, than be in other other AL East team's situation.

[Bellhorn04]

I'm fairly happy with where we are right now. I just don't look ahead very much. I just sort of watch things unfold. Just keep playing good ball, and above all, stay healthy!

[d-money]

People, not you specifically, are always so sure that our competitors will get hot, but at the same time are sure that we won't. While it's possible for any of the teams to get hot, I like our chances as much as, if not more than, any of our competitors.

 

I asked in another thread if people would rather be in the Red Sox or the Yankees position going forward. That can be extended to any of the teams in our division. I would rather be where the Red Sox are going forward, warts and all, than be in other other AL East team's situation.

 

We have the best rotation on paper in the A.L. Just need to start showing it on the field a lot more.

[Emp9]

Our team has a better record this year than we had last year through the same number of games.

 

Exactly. They're not losing more this year, they're just losing different.

 

Even with Papi, the team usually needed half a season to calibrate.

 

If this team can play like they should against their own division, something they haven't done yet IMHO, they should be fine.

[mvp 78]

If the offense comes around, this team could win the division pretty easily.

[moonslav59]

The problem with that strategy is that he can't bunt either.

 

He's got to have a better contact rate bunting.

[moonslav59]

People, not you specifically, are always so sure that our competitors will get hot, but at the same time are sure that we won't. While it's possible for any of the teams to get hot, I like our chances as much as, if not more than, any of our competitors.

 

I asked in another thread if people would rather be in the Red Sox or the Yankees position going forward. That can be extended to any of the teams in our division. I would rather be where the Red Sox are going forward, warts and all, than be in other other AL East team's situation.

 

The Yanks (and others) may be better after we hit "the cliff".

 

I wouldn't sub our team for any AL team over the next 3-4 year period--even the Astros.

[Maxbialystock]

This is why I can't do game threads during the game. Every year or two, I give it a try, but am quickly reminded of why I stopped participating in them. At any rate, I do what Moon does. DVR the game so that I can ff through the Southwest commercials. LOL

 

Our team has a better record this year than we had last year through the same number of games.

 

I would be dishonest if I didn't admit that I too have excoriated our players during the game and in the heat of the moment.

 

What I really like about talksox, however, is that there are usually a lot of very thoughtful comments in the postgame part of game threads. See, for example, all the comments above on the Sox situation in the pennant race.

 

I think you can make a solid case for pessimism or for optimism this year--take your pick. But what I really like about this season is that to me it is different. We are prevailing despite the loss of Ortiz and because the pitching has been so good. We have some new guys too and maybe more to come.

[Slasher9]

100% we should all be optimistic for this season.

we are in first place.

[mvp 78]

100% we should all be optimistic for this season.

we are in first place.

 

If the Sox are in first place on 7/1 and anyone is poopy about it, they should be launched into the stratosphere.

[Bellhorn04]

Sox fans are geniuses at complaining though. As Max pointed out, Pedroia had 3 hits and a walk last night and the only comment was about his bad base running.

[a700hitter]

I'm fairly happy with where we are right now. I just don't look ahead very much. I just sort of watch things unfold. Just keep playing good ball, and above all, stay healthy!

Remaining healthy is the key. The hitting has been underperforming. Maybe DD will address the issue at 3B. The starting pitching, except for Sale, has underperformed. If the hitting and starting pitching reach it's norms we should win the Division comfortably.

[Spudboy]

If the offense comes around, this team could win the division pretty easily.

 

I tend to agree with that.