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| Wednesday, February 06, 2008 |
| In Any Other City In The World |
In any other city in the world I would have been over it by now. Sure, I would have been devastated. But I would have had time to properly mourn. I would have been able to hang my head, drown my sorrows in my beer, and wonder over and over again ... what went wrong? I would have been able to avoid certain websites, not listen to certain radio stations, and completely avoided whole channel blocks on my television until the mere mention of the event stopped sending daggers into my heart.
The Giants are the Super Bowl Champions.
I want to be the bigger person. To give the Giants their due. I mean, they won! It wasn't some cheaply won, bad call kind of game, they out played the team I root for. But the minute the game was over it started. The taunting. The jeering. The chants in the street of "18 AND 1!" "18 AND 1". When you live in enemy territory, well, it's just what you get.
The next morning I tried to avoid any mention of the game. I got ready in silence, choosing to awaken to my alarm instead of my typical Mike and Mike in the morning. My massive hangover from drowning my sorrows as the last of the seconds ticked away the night before dulling the dread of what I knew awaited me outside the safety of my apartment. The joy.
It surrounded me on the subway. Even with my nose shoved firmly into the spine of my book I could see images Eli Manning hoisting the trophy above his head all around me. On the backs of papers. On the fronts of papers. His goofy I'm-only-twelve-years-old face mocked me everywhere I went. When I got into my office my coworkers had plastered him to my door. So what that I was nice to them when their Mets COLLAPSED at the end of the season? The Giants won the Super Bowl!
Coworkers stopped by to gloat. Especially one who had called, back in July, that the Pats only loss was going to be to the Giants. Of course, he was thinking week 17, but his prediction came true none-the-less. On Tuesday it was just as bad. Giants jerseys were everywhere as the city celebrated their heroes with a parade.
Most days I love this city. This week? I think I'd rather be anywhere but.
Bring on pitchers and catchers.Labels: Boston, NYC, Patriots, sports |
posted by FINY @ Wednesday, February 06, 2008   |
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| Thursday, June 21, 2007 |
| Baseball Brain Dump |
Since the hangover I am currently suffering through is inhibiting my ability to write a coherent blog post I instead present you with a baseball brain dump.
* So I'm currently reading Big Papi: My Story of Big Dreams and Big Hits by David Ortiz (with Tony Massarotti) and there are a few things to note. A) I have NEVER gotten as many looks on the subway as I have when I've read this book on the way to and from work. They range from amusement, confusion, disgust, and mutual affection. It's kind of fun to watch. B) Massarotti alternates between writing in his own voice and "ghost writing" in Papi's. Massarotti's chapters are fantastic. And I like hearing Papi's stories, but ... I think they went a little far in capturing Ortiz's "voice". Because the word "bro" can appear upwards of 8 times on a page. It's completely over the top and is incredibly distracting. There is a reason people don't write the way they speak.
* Last night's game was just a whole lot of fun to watch. While a girlfriend and I were at the bar watching, we started talking about those seasons. You know those seasons where it just feels right. This is one of those seasons for us. I knew I had hit a turning point as a fan when I got word of the Schilling DL stint and I thought "Ok, that sucks but no big deal". I had (and have) complete faith in the rest of our rotation to hold it together. This happens five years ago and even with a ten game lead in the AL East and I'm packing it in for the season expecting the worst. I like this way better.
* By now my love for all things Tim Wakefield has been well documented. But I also happen to have an affinity for the pitch he throws most often as well. And because of that I have been intermittently following the career of Sox prospect Charlie Zink. Zink's had an up and down career over the past couple years, but this week he threw a complete game for the Portland Sea Dogs with a 6H, 1R, 2BB, 4K line. He started out with Sarasota in 2002, is 27, and has bounced around every level of the Sox farm system, but he seems to have started getting some consistency. With my little brother heading back to the Portland area for school this August, I may try to get up there to catch a game either late in the season or early next spring. I'd love to see this kid pitch (ha, I just called him a kid - the guy's my age!).Labels: baseball, books, Boston, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Thursday, June 21, 2007 |
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| Tuesday, June 19, 2007 |
| You Take The Good With The Bad |
I once had a friend accuse me of caring more about 25 men I had never met more than I cared about my real-life friends.
It was October of 2004, the Red Sox had just won the ALCS in dramatic fashion and were about to sweep the St. Louis Cardinals to win their first World Series in 86 years.
But I didn't know that yet. What I knew was that we were scheduled to host a Halloween party in my apartment that, if the series made it that far, would fall on the same night as Game 7. And under no circumstances was I planning on being at the party if that proved true.
In the end we all know it didn't get that far, and I was able to both watch my team celebrate in St. Louis AND attend my own party, but that comment from my friend stuck with me.
Do non-sports fans simply not understand? In a way, it does feel like you know these guys. You read all the articles, you watch the games, by the end of the season you probably know more about them than you do about that girl who you called your best friend in third grade simply because she wore the same scrunchy you did.
And not only that, but it bonds you to other people that you actually do get to meet in real life as well. Take last night. That game sucked. It just sucked. Schilling got knocked around and even two home runs from Coco, who had only hit one home run in the entire season leading up to the game, couldn't save the Sox.
But as I stood in Professor Thom's watching the Sox implode, I began talking with a guy named Brian from the New York City Red Sox Meetup Group. As we were talking he sort of just stops for a second and says, "Finy?". Turns out Brian is an occasional commenter/regular reader (so he's one of the five of you!). Never would have met him if it wasn't for the Sox. Same holds true for quite a few of my good friends to be honest.
Loving a sports team and loving your friends are not mutually exclusive. It just occasionally gets in the way of scheduling.Labels: baseball, Boston, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, June 19, 2007 |
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| Tuesday, June 12, 2007 |
| How Did I Miss This? |
Sam Presti was named the General Manager of the Supersonics.
Now, I'm not a basketball fan (I will never understand watching the entire game when the last two minutes are all that really matter), but I actually went to college with Sam. And as a fellow Emerson College athlete when so few students play sports there (number one comment when I told fellow Emersonians I played softball: we have sports?) I'm super happy for him. Sure he probably wouldn't remember me by name, but it's still damn cool. And with so many fellow graduates making names for themselves in television, film, radio, etc. it's cool to see someone making a mark in the sporting world.
The Emerson Mafia - taking over the world.Labels: college, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, June 12, 2007 |
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| Monday, May 07, 2007 |
| An Exercise in Pictoral Excuses |
Yes, I have been absent over the last few weeks, months, etc. But really, I've got some pretty good excuses.
First, I went to a Sox game at Yankee Stadium where I watched Dice-K pitch and the Sox win:
And ate a lot of peanuts:
After the game, I got way too wasted when the Twin showed up at Prof. Thom's after a 6 month absence. But he wasn't alone, he had the new-me with him. I held it together while at the bar, but the evening ended with me crying on the sidewalk in the Welshman's arms. Look for a post soon about the rules of post break-up behavior. I think The Twin needs a memo.
So the next day I was hoping the Sox would cheer me up when I attended the second game in the series. That didn't happen, since they lost, but at least I got to watch Wakefield pitch.
The third game in the series was watched at Thom's. Much beer was imbibed during the day. And into the night. 12 straight hours of drinking does not a good blogger make:
After a few days break in which I recovered from said weekend, I went to a very swanky and very successful Alzheimer's Association Junior Committee gala:
At which I was the PICTURE of decorum:
Two days later I was at a Cinco De Mayo party in Boston:
That didn't end until the sun was rising:
Long story short? I'm such an ass that I am not even going to promise that I'll be blogging more now (even though I will, no really, I swear).Labels: Alzheimer's, baseball, blogging, Boston, dating, drinking, misc., NYC, photos, Red Sox, sports, travel |
| posted by FINY @ Monday, May 07, 2007 |
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| Monday, January 22, 2007 |
| 24 Days ... |
Well, I am still a little bit in mourning over the game last night. It hurt. But we deserved to lose playing like that. Watching the second half was just ... disheartening. Thankfully, I had many MANY friends at Prof. Thom's to share our misery (and more than a few beers). But damn ... just ... damn.
So now it's time to turn our attention to baseball. Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in 24 days. Let's go Sox.Labels: Patriots, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Monday, January 22, 2007 |
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| Sunday, January 21, 2007 |
| The Way It Had To Be |
Brady and Manning. New England and Indy. The Pats and The Colts. You get the feeling it had to be this way. Here's the problem. If you equate this to the Sox v. Patriots ... the Pats are the Yankees.
Yikes.
Most of the country is sick of my team. They're sick of us winning. 3 Super Bowls in the last 5 years. Constantly in the hunt. For a while it was a great underdog story. Now ... people want another team to get a shot at it. You have no idea how weird that is to say. We New England fans are living through an of sports team dominance that we never even imagined. It's still kind of unreal. I think we're all afraid that suddenly, poof it's all going to be gone. One misstep, one bad game, one wrong move, and we'll be watching our grandkids wondering whether the Pats or the Sox or the Celtics or the Bruins will ever win again.
So I am going to enjoy this while it lasts. Today's game is going to be absolutely insane. There's no way it could be anything but. And I'll be sitting at the bar, with a couple hundred other Pats fans, hanging on every single play. If I don't post for a few days, forgive me, I'm probably just recovering.Labels: Patriots, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Sunday, January 21, 2007 |
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| Monday, January 15, 2007 |
| Indy, Here We Come! |
I had been streaming WEEI on the web obsessively the last week. I'd read the articles, I'd checked the sports blogs, I'd read the posting boards. And really all it got me was a large dose of nerves.
This was always going to be a close game. I don't think there was anyone who really thought it could be any other way. Watching the game at Prof. Thom's with a couple hundred other Pat's fans we collectively hung on every play. I thought my phone was going to explode with all of the text messages that were flying between my friends scattered across the country, all simultaneuously having heart attacks. It was amazing. A game that will surely be a classic one day.
The Pat's lucked out at a lot of moments. And Playoff Brady didn't show up until the second half. But God it was a great football game to watch. I'm already pumped for the Indy game next week. Pats v. Indy is starting to turn into the Sox v. Yanks in that the road to the superbowl almost has to include those two teams playing each other.
So it starts again. I've got WEEI streaming as we speak. I've got some articles, blogs, and boards to go read, excuse me.Labels: Patriots, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Monday, January 15, 2007 |
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| Wednesday, January 03, 2007 |
| Cheer Cheer For Old Notre Dame |
Wake up those echos, it's time for ND vs. LSU in the Sugar Bowl.
I've got one question before the game starts ... as I am watching the pre-game, I have to wonder, am I going to look like a heartless human being rooting against LSU tonight? I mean, the game is IN New Orleans, every human-interest story is about Katrina, is it completely terrible that I am still hoping that the Irish beat the living hell out of them?Labels: Fighting Irish, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Wednesday, January 03, 2007 |
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| Thursday, December 28, 2006 |
| A Crazy Christmas Story |
It started out innocently enough. A good morning here and there. A how are you thrown in for effect. He was one of the things I loved about my neighborhood. Or really, he was the embodiment of what I loved about my neighborhood. Friendly, affable, not at all the stereotypical New York asshole.
One day I walked by with my Sox hat on. He immediately made a comment.
"Uh oh, a Sox fan in Brooklyn?" Upon seeing my defenses go up, he broke into the wide smile I had come to know and laughed about our shared hatred of the Yankees. It seems he was a Mets fan.
Well me being me, that of course meant that from that point forward, Jose and I needed to talk sports every morning. I'd mention something I heard on Mike and Mike, he'd counter with something he'd read in the Post. This went on for months.
And then, early this week, he stopped me. "I've got something for you, be sure to stop by tonight and pick it up." Befuddled, I smiled, said OK, and walked away. And then proceeded to forget to pick it up for three straight days.
Not tonight though. No, tonight I was going to get whatever was coming to me. I assumed holiday card. MAYBE a small trinket. I mean, hell, Jose and I only exchange a few words a day, as I am juggling my purse, my cigarette, and my coffee on my way to the subway. Besides, he's not even the super of MY building. He's the super of a building on my street. What in the hell could he have for me to pick up other than some tiny "Happy Holidays" kind of thing?
Oh, it was so much more than that. As I walked into the lobby of the building, the old man with the gold tooth who watches the door at night smiled and shook his head. "This has been waiting for you!" And out from behind the desk he brings a HUGE pink bag, filled with a large gift box. He proceeds to give me a big hug, wish me a happy new year, and send me on my way, nearly running to my apartment and laughing the whole way. What in the hell had Jose done?
He'd bought me a Red Sox jersey.
Yes, you read that right. A Red Sox jersey. The super. Of a building I don't even live in.
Here's a picture of it. I've actually never seen a jersey like it. (picture taken off of an ebay posting ... it was all I could find).
I've been laughing ever since. I mean, you can't make this shit up, right? I used to joke that men didn't buy me drinks in bars (they don't). This is WAY better. Barnard Boy better watch out, Jose seems to be gunning for his position! ;)Labels: misc., Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Thursday, December 28, 2006 |
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| Tuesday, December 12, 2006 |
| Brain Dump Part ... 23475 |
Really isn't everything I post here a brain dump? I've used that title so many times I don't even know what number I'm on now. So on with the brain dump:
* The interviews are going well. I had a second interview with one organization yesterday that included a writing test and providing them with writing samples (shockingly none of which I took from here). Today is the second interview for the position that I am REALLY excited about, so keep your fingers crossed for me.
* An unexpected up-side to the interview process? I had to go out and buy a new suit. Now, spending all that money, not so much fun. But on the whole, I tend to hate shopping. Seriously, I hate it more than most things. But shopping for a suit? Holy hell is that fun! I'm serious, it's fantastic. There's something about putting on a really nice suit. You feel so polished, so accomplished, so ... professional. Sure I wouldn't want to wear one every day, but a night of trying various suits on was actually quite a bit of fun!
* The holiday season is officially kicking my ass though. Between the interviews, the job hunt, trying to still be productive in my current position, the increase in social engagements because of the time of year, the shopping, the card writing ... I'm stretched a little thin. Ok, a lot thin. To the point that there's the possibility that I had a teensy weensy break down while in Maine with my family this weekend that carried over into my Monday. The Holiday Blues have taken themselves to a whole other level with me this year, and I attribute most of it to the stress of trying to look for a new job while in the middle of one of the most chaotic months of the year. I'm really looking forward to 2007 at this point.
* Speaking of 2007, let's talk about what my 2007 Red Sox are going to look like. Oh wait, I really couldn't tell you. Are we going to get Matsusaka? Did I even spell that right? Do I even care? This offseason has really frustrated me. I mean, the offseason always does, I hate the rumors, the whispers, the hey-this-could-be-true shit. But this season it seems like the Red Sox, and really the MLB in general, are throwing money around like it's just paper with no value attached. What happened to the days of the Sox farm system being the top priority? Of homegrown talent? Of small-name deals instead of blockbuster salaries? The Sox are moving in a direction I am not entirely comfortable with, to be honest. I'm going to miss guys like Trot. And it'd be nice to have a shortstop stick around for more than a season. I guess we'll see how this all shakes out, but I'm not feeling totally confident in my hometown team.
* I never told you about the second Ryan Adams show! Great set list, but holy hell was the audience annoying! To the point that he cut the show short because people kept yelling at him to play certain songs. Now, I understand that people do this from time to time, but not only was it constant, RA actually told them to stop doing it multiple times. It was bad enough that it even started pissing ME off and it's not even like I'm a huge Ryan Adams fan.
Ok, I think that's it for now, hope you're all having a great Tuesday!Labels: music, Red Sox, sports, Unemployment |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, December 12, 2006 |
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| Tuesday, November 14, 2006 |
| Congratulations, Hanley |
I have to say, I am happy for the Marlin's shortstop, Hanley Ramirez, for winning the NL Rookie of the Year. But at the same time, I'm still a little sad we let him go.
The Sox should find out today if they were the highest bidders in the race to talk to Daisuke Matsuzaka, a Japanese pitcher, supposedly the next big thing. Right now, I am just amused by the process in general. MLB teams had to submit closed bids just to be able to TALK to this guy. Just to talk to him about contract negotiations. If the winning team doesn't come to an agreement with him, or more accurately, with his agent Scott Boras, then he stays in Japan for one more year and becomes a free agent. Which is a scary prospect considering how much this guy could garner.
I don't really know what to think about Matsuzaka. Everything I've read indicates he's just nasty. But he's pitched a LOT of innings. Since 1999 he's pitched less than 100 innings only once, and he's topped out at 240 (in 2001). If his arm can hold up and continue producing the way he is, I'll be the happiest Sox fan around. But the Sox have gotten burned by big time pitching deals in the past ... so let's say I'm skeptical. Then again, we don't even know if the Sox are allowed to speak with him yet, so who knows.
In the meantime, I am going to go try to figure out how I can incorporate this blind bidding system into my everyday life ...Labels: Boston, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, November 14, 2006 |
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| Tuesday, September 26, 2006 |
| Brain Dump |
Ok, it's been a crazy three days, and my head is spinning with stuff I want to mention, so a quick brain dump for you while I get an actual post together:
* The weekend in DC was absolutely awesome. There will be an entire post devoted to it once I get all of my notes together (because yes, I am a dork, and I took notes. How else was I supposed to remember all the stories Papa told me?) Matty, you were right, I didn't get your comment until I returned home. It would have been so great to meet you in person. Next time I am down there I promise I'll be in touch. And the same should go for you if you're ever in the NYC area.
* I know I haven't mentioned the Red Sox recently, but I have still been paying attention. But honestly, it hurts too much to talk about. Congrats to Papi though. At least there's something good that came out of the season.
* The Notre Dame game on Saturday ... yeah, we had absolutely no right winning that game. It was clear from the beginning that the media had overhyped the Fighting Irish, but holy lord, they have looked absolutely horrendous. It was quite the comeback and a very exciting game to watch, but damn, that was ugly.
* I made the mistake of forgetting to set my fantasy football line up before leaving for the weekend and got DESTROYED this week. I'm playing in a league with four of my guy friends from RI and one guy that one of them knows, so clearly I am trying to make sure I at least make a good showing as I'm the only girl in the league and this group tends towards the never-letting-you-live-something-down, so thankfully I am still in second with a 2-1-0 record, but still, I hope this isn't the beginning of a downward spiral.
* Is anyone else completely hooked on Studio 60? Watched the second episode last night, and yup, I'm in. I knew I'd love it since it's Sorkin, and I adored the West Wing, but I was afraid I had it built up too big in my head. Not the case. I love it.
* My job duties yesterday? Sit on a gold course for hours watching to see if anyone hit a hole in one, and then get dressed up to take people's money during a live auction all the while getting all the free food and drink that I wanted. Sometimes the non-profit world is awesome.
* This is going to get it's own post too, but it should be noted that in the week since my parents and I (ok more my parents than me) caulked and steel-wooled every nook and cranny of my kitchen a week ago I've seen only five or six roaches and they've all been tiny and on the verge of death. I am clearly keeping up the fight with sprays, keeping everything spotless, etc. But it feels like I am finally winning. And the major up-side of that? I am almost completely set up in the apartment. And loving every second of living on my own.
* This week is going to be crazy too, but damn if I'm not having a blast. Two weeks after The Twin walked out of my life, I feel better than I have in a LONG time. No more worrying about working him into my schedule. No more fears that I'm somehow annoying him. No more feeling like I constantly had to live up to some unknown standard. As selfish as it sounds I get to focus completely on me, and it's fantastic. Sure certain things still remind me of him - like the American flags I saw everywhere this weekend. Or the beads he bought me from Mardi Gras that I threw out last night as I unpacked my last box. But it doesn't hurt anymore. Now it's more of a "eh" feeling. Sure it's going to suck if I ever see him in the street with another girl, but only for a minute or two. Ok, maybe ten - days. But I'm getting there, I really and truly am.Labels: family, Fighting Irish, misc., Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, September 26, 2006 |
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| Thursday, August 17, 2006 |
| Red Sox. Yankees. Beer. A Good Cause. Doesn't Get Much Better Than That! |
Well, as you can see under the "Organizations I Care About" Links, one of the causes I am tied to is the National Down Syndrome Society. And tomorrow, I get to combine that, with a Red Sox v. Yankees game and my favorite bar. Can't get much better than that now can it.
For those of you who don't know about the organization, NDSS is committed to being the national leader in supporting and enhancing the quality of life and realizing the potential of all people with Down syndrome through education, research, and advocacy initiatives.
So here's how you can help. Show up at the bar. Drink beer. Watch the Red Sox Game. Buy some raffle tickets. I know, I know, it's a tall order. Here are the details:
WHEN: Friday, August 18th. We are building the fundraiser around the 8:05 RED SOX v. YANKEES game, but I would get there early, Prof. Thom's always gets packed for these games. Oh wait, I haven’t told you where yet …
WHERE: Professor Thom's. Located on 2nd Avenue, between 13th and 14th Streets
WHY: Because you were going to watch the Sox game anyway. Because you were going to be drinking that night anyway. Because you want to win one of the many great raffle prizes we'll be having. Because you support individuals with Down syndrome (hmmm, maybe I should have put that first). Because you support ME damnit!
Anyway, it's sure to be a GREAT time, so I look forward to seeing some of you there.Labels: drinking, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Thursday, August 17, 2006 |
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| Thursday, August 10, 2006 |
| This.Is.Not.OK. |
I know I haven't talked about the Sox much lately, and I know it may look to the casual observer that I'm not paying attention to my beloved team. That is not the case, a girl can just only write about so much stuff at once. So let me just say this about tonight's game.
It's not Ok.
Sitting at Shea Stadium tonight with The Twin, The Welshman, and a host of others for Alzheimer's Awareness Day at Shea, we watched the score of the Sox game on the scoreboard. And maybe I got too comfortable with it. It stayed at 4-3 for so long, I stopped looking. Even when I got home and called the Twin to let him know I had arrived safely, the game was still tied.
And then, just now, I checked in. 5-4 Royals. The mother-fucking Royals. Game over.
Not Ok.Labels: Alzheimer's, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Thursday, August 10, 2006 |
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| Tuesday, August 01, 2006 |
| The Home Stretch |
The All-Star game has come and gone. The trade deadline has passed. Save some unlikely waiver wire movement, the teams are now set for the push to October.
I sat and listened to WEEI online all day yesterday while at the office. As rumors were thrown around about Andruw Jones I started to feel uneasy. The rumored deal would have given us Jones, but sent Crisp, Hansen, and Lester.
I've always been of the opinion that cultivating a farm system is the way to go. And right now the Sox farm system has quite a few players who, while not ready for the bigs quite yet, have the potential to really make an impact with the Sox in 2007 and beyond. Was Theo seriously thinking of getting rid of them to fill holes with a few rent-a-players? Were we going to turn into the Yankees? Hasn't done them much good in the last six years.
Luckily Theo stood pat. And now we're hearing about all sorts of deals that fell through, the most notable being a deal that would have landed the Sox Roy Oswalt. Of course there are still concerns. The Yankees landing Abreu is troublesome. The Sox DL list getting longer and longer has also got me worried. But hey, Wily Mo went 3-4 last night, with a monster home run, just a double short of the cycle. Not a bad replacement for Trot until he's back. And is there even anything left to say about David Ortiz? I think the world has officially run out of adjectives to describe this man.
As the game was winding down last night, I was on the phone with The Twin. He was listening to the game, I was not. "The Sox have three outs to score two runs to tie it," he said. And then Alex Cora hit a single. And then Youks walked. Papi was at the plate representing the winning run with one out.
He couldn't do it again. Could he?
Oh, oh he did. And I'm out of ways to say how much I love that man. And Boston's love of Big Papi is to the point that if I offered myself up to him, I'm pretty sure The Twin would give me his blessings. To watch him swing the bat, you just know, you KNOW that someday, years from now, we're all going to be telling the generations that come after us that we saw David Ortiz play.
Coco Crisp was quoted in the Globe this morning as saying:
""You know how they say that it ain't over till the fat lady sings?" Crisp said. "Here, it ain't over till the big man swings.""
Too true, Coco, too true.Labels: Boston, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, August 01, 2006 |
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| Wednesday, June 28, 2006 |
| Well Done, Sox Fans, Well Done |
Pedro Martinez's first start at Fenway since leaving the Red Sox isn't officially until tonight. But last night, after the Sox played a "Welcome Back Pedro" message on the jumborton, the Sox fans in attendance welcomed him back exactly the way they should have: with a hearty ovation.
In my mind, and in the minds of every other Sox fan I know, there was really no other way to greet the man that brough us seven years of some of the most electric baseball this team has ever seen. Nevermind a World Championship.
I'm not going to go into a history of Pedro with the Sox, or list his substantial baseball resume: the media and thousands of others out there have me covered on that front. What I will say, is I would give anything to be there tonight. Just to be in the park and stand and cheer and clap wildly in thanks.
So well done Sox fans. Well done ignoring the "Are they going to boo him" questions that media idiots all over the country posed to us. Well done for proving, once again, that we're some of the classiest fans in baseball.Labels: Boston, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Wednesday, June 28, 2006 |
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| Get Well Gammons |
| Peter Gammons, who suffered a brain aneurysm on Tuesday morning, was resting in an ICU last night after coming out of surgery. Best wishes to his wife and family, we all hope he pulls through this. Labels: misc., sports |
| posted by FINY @ Wednesday, June 28, 2006 |
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| Tuesday, June 20, 2006 |
| Back to Baseball |
I've really fallen down on the job baseball wise. It's been forever since I've blogged about my beloved Red Sox. So what better way to get back into it than to welcome back one of my favorite members of the 2004 World Series team, Gabe Kapler?
After a brief stint in Japan, and an even briefer comeback to the Red Sox before rupturing his Achilles rounding second base last season, Gabe Kapler is finally back with the Sox. He went 2 for 4 last night with a double and an RBI. I caught his first AB of the night while waiting to meet up with friends for dinner, and was so happy to see everyone at Fenway on their feet.
As it happened, The Welshman turned to me and asked "Is there anymore beloved backup player?" Probably not. Well, maybe Doug Mirabelli. Even Kapler's return couldn't top that one. But I think it says something about Sox fans that we hold even our bench players so close to our hearts. And no, it's not just because this one happens to be aptly nicknamed "Gabe the Babe".
I think Kapler himself put it best in an article in today's Boston Globe:
``We have the best, and, to be more specific, the classiest fans in all of sports," said Kapler, who took Trot Nixon's spot in right field and batted eighth against the Nationals last night. ``And the reason I say that is because they recognize and care about hard work as well as people, human beings. Contributions [from players] other than superstars. They recognize every player on the roster."
And it's true. At least for me. One of the things I love about Kapler is that he seems like one of those guys who's just so happy to be with the team. Ok, so perhaps it took an lack-luster stint overseas to really make him realize it, but even when he left you got the feeling that he was truly going to miss Boston. He's never bitched about his role, he's never complained about his playing time. He knows he's got a specific duty in this lineup, and he's willing to do what he needs to for the team. Or at least that's the impression I get, it's not like I know the guy.
Regardless, for a player who's only been with the team for a few years, Kapler has completely won me over. Welcome back, Gabe, welcome back.Labels: Boston, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Tuesday, June 20, 2006 |
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| Thursday, June 08, 2006 |
| Rain, Rain, Go Away |
I love New York in the spring. With the trees in bloom, the warm but not too warm weather, and everyone in a good mood after emerging from their winter-long hibernation.
What I DON'T love, is New York when it rains. This is a pretty grey city already, what with the acres of concrete and the buildings that can blot out the sky from certain angles. And when it rains, it just gets worse. I can feel it affecting my mood.
So when the Red Sox game was rained out last night, even though I had been incredibly excited to be in attendance, I was almost glad that I got to do the very thing I dream about doing every time it rains around here. I went home, curled up in bed under my down blanket, and promptly went to sleep. At like, 9pm. Felt fantastic.
And when it comes down to it, this may help the Sox in the long run. The Yankees were on a roll in the series, this unexpected day off could put a halt to the momentum. Another added bonus? While they haven't announced the make-up date yet, I can't see any other time for the two teams to play an extra game at Yankee Stadium is during their last visit here, from Sept. 15-17. So while I would have loved to see the Sox play last night, a game in Sept., just two weeks before the end of the season, between the Red Sox and the Yankees in Yankee Stadium? Yeah, I'll take that.Labels: Boston, NYC, Red Sox, sports |
| posted by FINY @ Thursday, June 08, 2006 |
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