db41

Got to watch the first couple of innings on Fox before they flipped over to the Phillies/Braves game. Got to witness the errors, near misses, and the fat watermelon thrown to Tex the punk. It's interesting watching our AAA team against the best team in Baseball. So, I switched over to watch on the computer and, guess what, I'm "blacked out." At this point, you just have to laugh. The misery of being a Sox fan right now is entertaining. Gonna go jump in the ocean and laugh at it all. Oh, almost forgot, Yankees suck.

This is brilliant advice and the only thing reliable about being a sox fan in 2012. What a mess we are.

So hopeful, though I fear you are right.

These are two different issues. I'll give you the fact that Beckett is disconnected with reality and stinks. Fact is, we were winning games with Youk on the team. The only "bitch whining" was our manager. Youk was a pro and helped mentor WMB. Bobby V has made so many mistakes handling this team it's impossible to list them all-- but start with going after a proven veteran and winner in Spring Training. Tonight: not moving the runners on a 3-2 pitch with a sidearm sinkerball pitcher in the 8th blew mind mind-- Jeter simply backhanded the ball in left field and threw to third. I miss players that care about winning.

If you have depth, you keep it. If you're winning games, let it ride. Youk wasn't a clubhouse problem, only the "fear" that he might be amplified by the wonderful Boston media initiated this trade. Players don't need to "get along," just win.

I find myself watching more of the White Sox than the Red Sox. At least I'm watching a team with sack. It's difficult to root for a team with no concept of itself. At least we didn't lose today. Teams talk so much about depth, maintaining a deep 40 man roster where everyone is "quality." The last time we had too much pitching depth we traded Bronson Arroyo-- he's had a pretty decent stint and thrown a few innings for the Reds since we determined he was "expendable." When you have "depth," keep it. It's up to the manager to rotate the lineup and manage the clubhouse-- isn't this what Valentine is supposedly good at? For all of the media hype over how "unhappy" Youk was, we still won games during that stretch. Sometimes a little tension is good for a team. Immediately upon being handed the wheel at 3b, WMB started booting balls and looking like he was lost at the plate. Then, the hammy. If it was Youk pulling the hammy we'd get on him b/c of his age. Youk was a class act and now has a chip on his shoulder the size of Bobby V's ego.

Thanks for the link! I've been looking for a "backdoor." The "blackout" policies are inane. In Hawaii, I'm blacked out of 6 markets (Seattle, Oakland, SF, 2 LA teams, and SD) even though I've purchased the MLB package. Geography, it seems, is not the strong suit of these decision makers.

The 8th inning was no party either-- 1st and 2nd, no outs, no imagination, no ball sack, no heart.

Deja vu all over again. Bobby V was supposed to be the unconventional guy with the imagination. To me, this is Tito all over again: no movement on the bases, the hit and run has yet to be invented, and men on 1st and 2nd with no outs in a one run game is a perfect time time to sit on your ass and do nothing while your "rbi" guy strikes out. Our offense is predictable, and in this league it mean your offense sucks ass. The unwillingness of our guys to lay a bunt down combined with the lack of situational hitting is absolutely killing this team. Don't put this loss on Aceves, our offense had many chances to push across a run or two but instead chose to play for the big inning and got squat. Bobby says he doesn't like losing but he manages like he's afraid to win. This team has no depth and little heart.

Lessons from today's game: 1) In game threads can be insane, moody, and just plain weird. 2) Laffey stuck it to us and pitched a great game, jeez, give the guy some credit. He had it going today. 3) WMB is still an unproven commodity, especially on defense, let's not put him in the HOF quite yet. 4) Dice-K works best when he works quickly and changes speeds. 5) We got nothing in return for Youk in Mr. Lillibridge. 6) Our manager likes to start our subs and then bring our best players off the bench in the late innings just to confuse the opposition, thus creating a new style of game play called "V Ball." Jackass.