Midwest Manners

Shiite town is in Iraq

I just want to say I thought that was a really good try by Middlebrooks to trip Craig, had Joyce not seen it would have been a great play. Keep up the good work Red Sox you're doing great, this is a fantastic series.

that was a really good try by salty there to make throw to third to throw out jay he almost threw the ball to the 3rd baseman. Brezlow made a good effort too, I would have clapped him trying.

I want everyone in Boston to know that we in the Midwest do not hold any ill will to Jon Lester having green goop in his glove. As a member of the best fans in baseball we are used to boston players cheating during a championship game against st louis teams. I would like to know how you were able to drug pete kozma before the game started however.

The lord works in mysterious ways, clearly it was God's plan for the Red Sox to score 9 runs all of which could have been prevented by not making horrendous errors. But luckily for us God is a member of the best fans in baseball, so the prayers will keep coming. Have a Terrific Day and God Bless, Midwest Manners

Tough loss for God's team tonight, but you really have to applaud their effort. Wainwright was very close to catching that ball a couple more inches in and it would have fallen in his glove. Really have to appreciate these guys playing their hearts out on the big stage. As a member of the greatest fans in baseball, we are not daunted by the loss tonight as we cheer win or lose. Good Luck tomorrow and God Bless, Midwest Manners

Sir I think you might have missed the part where I mentioned that his last name is Buck.

You Red Sox fans are in for a treat tonight because you get to hear the greatest play by play man in baseball, Joe Buck. Joe Buck brings a lot of play by play skills to the booth in particular having the last name Buck, and well that's all I can think of right now.

you're probably right about buying into the narratives to much in the 2004 case but in my 30 years of cardinals fandom I've never seen such a dominant team as the 2004 team. 4 games is a small sample size but it just felt over after Julian Taveras blew the game in Game 1.

Make no mistake that 105 win 2004 team was the best Cardinals team I've ever seen, they ran out of gas in the world series and were hurt by the loss of Chris Carpenter, but that was a very good team. No team was going to beat the 2004 Red Sox after they won 4 in a row against the Yankees. As far as your points about Busch, Busch isn't really that much of a pitcher's park it's pretty fair. Cards are 25th in homeruns on the road and 27th in home runs at home. They just don't hit home runs because besides for Carlos Beltran they don't try to pull the ball, they just take what the pitcher gives them.

No of course not why would we do that?

The numbers on Yadi's thrown out percentage are misleading, because anymore so few runners actually run on him. The steals that happen against Yadi are almost always solely the fault of the pitcher. Yadi does a good job at shutting down the running game by way more than just just having a strong arm. So you'll probably see the Red Sox picking their spots more and much fewer attempts than normal. Berry might be another matter though, the Reds in September would pinch run Billy Hamilton and it didn't seem it mattered what Yadi did Hamilton was going to steal and did a couple of times.

Craig has been taking taking at bats for the last week or two from pitchers who didn't make the Cardinals roster to freshen up. One thing that will work to Craigs advantage is that he has a very short compact swing which will make it easier to get in sync than it might for a traditional pull hitter. The thing going against him is that they haven't come out and said Craig is healed or that he's definitely going to be on the roster with Matheny saying he'l make that evaluation tomorrow. It would be a real shock if Craig isn't on the roster but he's probably not close to 100 percent right now. One thing I will tell you about the cardinals is not be fooled by the low power numbers, this does not mean that the team does not have power potential rather it is a decision made by the players to focus more on hitting the ball the other way and up the middle than to pull the ball. This along with luck is why the Cardinals have such a high average with runners in scoring position, the cards are completely happy to pass the baton to the next guy rather than go for the 3 run blast.

The situation I described is not obvious if it's in the 5th inning and you have a bullpen like Detroit had this year

You could argue about entertainment, but how can you say that DH creates more strategy? In NL games you can have a pitchers duel going and a runner on second with the 8th man up, the opposing manager an walk the 8th man to make your manager have to decide do you pinch hit for your pitcher who is dealing for a chance to score or do you ride it out with your pitcher? The DH extends careers and creates more offense but for me I'd much prefer to see the strategy of a national league game.

No I got it I was just speaking to the intangibles that you bring up. Just about everything Yadi does except for hit and throw out baserunners is intangible.

With all do respect sir, when you're looking at intangibles you are truly under estimating the value of Yadier Molina, it cannot be measured by a defensive metric. There isn't a smarter player in the game and he will use that understanding of the game to beat you. His value to the cardinals is immeasurable. And while Boston is a great base stealing team don't count on them being able to do so against Yadi. I will tell you this if the series does go 7 I do believe the Red Sox will win because Joe Kelly in Fenway versus a patient Boston lineup is not a good matchup for him, but I think the cardinals have a clear pitching advantage in games 1 2 5 and 6 with game 4 being a complete tossup between Lynn and Peavy of pitchers who have the potential to be really good or really bad. Another wrinkle of this could be if Game 1 is rained out, then Game 5 becomes Shelby Miller versus Ryan Dempster or Doubrant. I'm not sure who has the edge in that matchup but it would mean that Wainwright and Wacha would pitch games 1 2 6 and 7 and the cards would have the pitching edge in all of Boston's home games. Your analysis on defense is accurate the cardinals have a solid fielding percentage but do not have much range, and one area where your team probably has a little bit of an edge is in the bench. But the cardinals will gain a significant advantage in St Louis when baseball is played the way God intended it to be and Ortiz plays first and Napoli rides the bench.

Sir, In St Louis we have three golden rules to live by 1. Never forget that we are part of the greatest fans in baseball 2. No Blacks or Gays allowed except for Nelly 3. Business in the Front Party in the Back Have a super day, and God Bless

you sir could use a lesson in Midwestern Manners, in St Louis we have the decency to speak to our fellow Amuricans with respect and dignity. Further I do not put penises in my mouth as that is an abomination before God, I will say a prayer for you, God Bless

I'm sorry I couldn't reply sooner, I just got back from the Wal Mart to pick up some jean shorts. Not sure how I talk differently than anyone else, just spreading the love about this upcoming series. Oh and just in case any of you guys think the Red Sox are going to sweep our team again, I made a sign to show you http://lwtc247.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/get-a-brain-morans.jpg

No sir, I was just visiting family in Dallas this weekend. I can assure you that Dallas fans are not the best fans in baseball. Ranger fans are really just cowboy fans waiting for the football season to start. I did however clap for Neftali Feliz and the good effort he made in the 9th inning of game 6 of the 2011 world series. A lot of people gave him a hard time because he didn't save the game, but winning isn't everything he made a good effort and Jesus loves him for that. Thank you for letting me visit your forum and act as an ambassador for the best friends in baseball. Have a terrific day and God Bless, Midwest Manners

Sorry only Catholics do that, we don't have Catholics in the Midwest so I do not believe Jesus would approve of the crossing thing.

Not here to troll sir, just trying to spread The Best Fans in Baseball's Midwestern values like comradery, sportsmanship, realizing that your part of the best fans in baseball, racism, and love of chewing tobacco, Jesus, nascar, spousal abuse, and camouflage. Have a great day and God Bless, Midwest Manners

Hello Red Sox Fans, As one of baseball's greatest fans I would like to congratulate your team and their great fan base on beating the Tigers and winning the American League Pennant. It looked to be a very hard fought contest and you all should be very happy that you made it that far. As a member of the best fans in baseball let me tell you we are really looking forward to this series. I have tickets to game 3 to watch the Joe Kelly outpitch John Lackey. I plan on wearing my nicest wife beater and camouflage cargo shorts to the game and I got an extra big can of Copenhagen to truly watch the game in style. Don't worry because I am one of the best fans in baseball I will pray to my lord and savior Jesus Christ that your pitcher John Lackey pitches well, I'm sure he will he's had a great bounce back year, you should really thank Jesus that he has decided to stop eating so much fried chicken. It truly is a miracle how great he has pitched this year. Unfortunately though for you I think our Joe Kelly will pitch just a little better, but we will be sure to clap for your players for putting up a good effort. Now I know what you are thinking "why would one of the best fans in baseball be so nice to us uppity Red Sox fans?" Well let me tell you as a true God Fearing Amurican we have forgiven you for winning the 2004 world series by cheating with steroid users David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez. We have also forgiven you for cheating in the 2001 Superbowl. You may not realize it but our cities have a lot in common, we both have accents that makes other people look at us like we are retarded, we are predominantly white, and we both don't like black people. So as a member of the greatest fans in baseball I wanted to come to your forum and congratulate you on a great season and I truly hope that after this series is over that you still remember that even though you lost it in 5 games that it was truly a good season for your team and that you should applaud your team for a job well done. Best of luck, you'll need it. Midwest Manners Member of Best Fans in Baseball