Saturday, October 6, 2007

And now, a message from the Department of Mixed Blessings

CLE 2, NYY 1 (F/11)

It was the best of times (top-notch starting pitching; bite-your-nails action); it was the worst of times (nice Biblical bug swarm, shores of beautiful Lake Erie). As a Yankee fan, I feel jobbed by two things: the umps' failure to stop the game until Joba Chamberlain was not coated in insects, which seemed to me pretty clearly to be causing his control issues; and the umps' failure to bust that elbow-armor dude for not getting out of the way of that one pitch. Not that it made the final difference.

But why dwell on these bagatelles? Obviously it's A-Rod's fault, even though nobody else hit a lick either except Cabrera and the team wouldn't even have made October without Rodriguez. He'll get blamed, and then he'll go to Chicago.

However: Andrew and I pick up 3 for a Tribe win in extra innings, plus I get 3 more for the Rivera Ks.


BOS 6, LAA 3

As much as I irrationally loathe certain current players on the Red Sox (Varitek and Youkilis, Greek God of walks: eat bees, today), I have to give it up -- they play exciting ball, and I'm often reminded, watching that team, why I love the game. Papelbon is just fun to watch pitch. The kid thinks he's putting out actual fires out there. And a walk-off bottom-of-the-ninth two-outs dinger from Manny? That shit is hot, come on.

Sadly, nobody picked Prof. Ramirez as their slugger, but Boston pickers get 2, and Angela joins us at last with 3 points.

Updated pool standings and today's sked in a sec.

4 comments:

Aaron C. said...

Papelbon's contrived "mad face" when he's on the mound makes me wanna punch Curt Schilling in the mouth (as most things do).

Highlight of last night was watching Grimace Ortiz have to run from 2nd base on, like, a dozen straight 2-out 3-2 counts to the batter.

We missed out on a full myocardial infarction by just one more foul ball.

Anonymous said...

"Perhaps, after all these years and all these Cleveland losses, God decided to become an Indians fan. He certainly couldn't have picked a better time or the better Old Testament vengeance for fouling up the Yankees.

Drought, mildew and famine would have lacked the immediate impact. Pestilence would have been too mean; fire mixed with blood too messy; grasshoppers, probably too obvious."

Joe Reid said...

Sarah forgot to mention one other highlight in the late game: Angels catcher/hottie Jeff Mathis getting reverse-Bartman'd for a foul ball, then coming *thisclose* to punching the thirteen-year-old culprit in the head, which would have sent him careening one row back into the folksy waiting arms of Stephen King. Who would have never seen it coming on account of the Coke-bottle specs. That was fun.

Sarah D. Bunting said...

Let's split the difference and hope God in His infinite Indians-rooting wisdom contrives a way for Mathis to punch Schilling in the face. With his hand wrapped in a bloody sock.