jacksonianmarch

What the sweep allowed was the sox to actually celebrate their wild card berth. Cause if they were still in play for the East, and clinched a playoff berth, would they have celebrated or no?

both. He injured his groin and wouldnt have been available for a week or two and with the SS woes, they needed to add Woodward, so he was the odd man out

actually, ORS, if Bay goes to any other team than NY (and assuming its a team that doesnt pick in the top 15) then the "swap out" of Bay for Holliday moves them up in the draft while netting a sandwich pick and a better player. The only prohibitive factor in all of this is the cost.

and we were 7-0 vs the Guardians prior to their ALDS victory vs us in 2007. Its Yankees-Red Sox. Its gonna be unpredictable and it will, in all likelihood, go 7 games

Its a cop out, and I wasnt expecting it from you

My point exactly. I think it has a lot to do with the leadership of the sox team this yr and the (lack of) leadership of the 2008 yankees.

The season is essentially over and its time to reflect on the season. And even though the yankees were clearly the better team through 162, the sox were a hell of a team and will be in the playoffs. It isnt their fault that they are in the same division as NY. They do get some credit. Actually, the sox remind me of the 2008 yankees with all their injuries and ineffectiveness to the pitching staff.

once again, you can put words together, but it doesnt mean they make sense. Are you trying to say that he shouldnt have pitched if he was injured?

True, he sounds like he should be an interior decorator

Neither are going anywhere. Drop it

I watched Beckett tear through NY in 2003. I watched him tear through the AL in 2007. He is not the kind of guy who cries especially when the chips were on the line. If you want to say he was faking it, then how do you explain the drop in velocity? His velocity was a good 3-5mph slower in the playoffs than it was pre announced injury?

that might be the dumbest set of words ever put together in the history of the human language

How awesome would a NYY-BOS ALCS be?

with the name Federowicz, he likely will never make an impact, lol. That being said, good defensive catcher, marginal offense projection. Might be a defense first backup one day

I honestly dont see how he cant sit Varitek. He doesnt block the ball well. He doesnt throw the ball well. He doesnt make contact well. He doesnt hit for power anymore at least recently. Varitek went from being useful with the stick and only a small liability behind the dish in April to being one of the worst players I have ever seen. His body has betrayed him and when you consider the fact that father time has also drained his stamina, he is just a crumbled wreck. The sox would be better off with him off the playoff roster and someone with actual ability taking his place. But that wont happen.

actually, we'll have home field. And with our ballpark, thats a bit of an advantage. Not a huge one, but it is an advantage nonetheless

Hence why Lester is starting game 1 of the playoffs. Dude, you need to chill and actually enjoy the fact that your team is gonna be in the playoffs for a 3rd yr in a row. 2006 must be pretty far from your memory. Nothing sucked more than not watching playoff baseball in the Bronx last yr. I would have taken a guaranteed WC ticket in the offseason.

Byrd allowed 3ER in 6IP in Yankee stadium against the yankee offense. Do you know how good that is?

Actually, look at the congratulations posts from previous yrs. I always give the teams their due once they've won something. And I will do the same when the sox take the wild card.

The sox getting to the post season and potentially having the second best record in baseball is Francona's fault? There are 30 teams in baseball who would sign up for that on April 1 every yr. This season for the sox was really managed well IMO. To be honest with you, everyone knows Francona is an awful in game manager. But look at the adversity he had to overcome. His best hitter was an automatic out for 2 months. His best power threat outside of Papi took 2 months off as well in Bay. He had 2 pitchers in the rotation go down for extended periods of time during a hot pennant and wild card chase, only to see one come back recently and another come back lame and useless. The top 2 contenders for the #5 slot in the rotation are now pitching in the NL. A rookie was holding down the #3 spot in the rotation for a little while, while a japanese rookie got a few starts. The sox SS position was held down by Nick Green for 3 months. JD Drew was hitting .230 or only up until about a month or so ago. And Jason Varitek became the worst hitter in the major leagues almost overnight. Nothing went swimmingly for the 2009 Boston Red Sox. Their offense was feast or famine. Their rotation was really 2 men deep until recently. Their bullpen was ridiculous up until recently as well. But when you have that much turnover in a rotation, you shouldnt make the playoffs. The poise Lester and Beckett had when they both knew they really couldnt lose, and the poise that Buchholz had to lock up a spot in the rotation when he was really the last chance shows something. The team was focused through adversity and didnt let their failures tear the team apart. And that has everything to do with the manager. I know you might not like Tito in game. But without Tito this yr, this team finishes a few games over .500 and out of the playoffs IMO.

Got to watch the last 2 innings of today's win. Its really nice to take another AL East crown and its even better to see this team firing on all cylinders at the right time. 6ER in 19IP for our starters vs one of the best lineups in baseball is pretty nice. And to see the 423 million look like a good investment after yr 1 is nice as well. On to the playoffs and home field. If we lose this thing a la the past few seasons (read as without a fight), then it will be incredibly disappointing

well, enjoy the series. I am moving this weekend, so I wont be around for awhile. Its just nice to see the yankees take 7 of the last 8. Looks like the AL East title is gonna find its way to its rightful place in NY. The funny thing is, the sox have the third best record in the game, a half game behind the dodgers. These two teams in the same division make for great drama, but dont give any other team a chance outside of a few outliers (see Rays, Tampa). Have a good weekend y'all.

you dont know me very well now do you