This is just an update on my last post. I still hate everything Boston. What’s worse is watching a Red Sox/Yankees game on NESN. Pure torture. A close second? Listening to the “Hawk” doing a White Sox game. What is it with these teams winning the World Series once every hundred years and then talking it up like they know what they’re talking about? Like winning it all is now second nature to them. Puh-leeze!

I hate Boston. I hate the Red Sox. I hate the Patriots. I hate the Bruins (and I don’t even follow hockey). I hate the Revolution. I hate the Celtics. I hate people who wear Red Sox caps. Real new ones, too. Boston wins one World Series in a hundred years and now everybody’s a fan. Puke. I’m tired of travelling somewhere, anywhere, and running into some loser wearing a Red Sox cap! Are you kidding me?! That’s not fashionable. They won once. They haven’t even won their division in over 10 years!! I’m letting them get to me, I’m letting them get to me.
The last straw was when I was at Grand Central Station…in NEW YORK CITY!!….and behind the counter at one of the coffee shops is this girl….wearing a Red Sox hat!!! I literally stopped, in the middle of Grand Central, with people bumping me and shoving me, trying to get by….and I just looked up, hoping for an anwer from above; or perhaps hoping He would look down at her and strike her down.

I hate Boston.

Dear Boston fans:
Don’t hate. Don’t hate. We got the leadoff hitter we’ve been craving for four years. Who do you have? Some dude named Stern? Nice. Damon was the heart of the lineup, the ignition, the table setter. He was the main reason why you even got to the World Series. Remember Game 7 of the ALCS? How could your team not do everything in its power to go after Damon? Talk about a lack of appreciation. Hey but going after Rudy Seanez was important, though, right? Pathetic.

Your loss. Our gain.

Thanks and a Merry Christmas to all you haters in Beantown!

Mark Loretta for Doug Mirabelli. You even utter those words in a fantasy league and you lose respect for life; followed by things like, “who let this guy in the league?” or “Are you insane or just stupid…stupid, right?” or “why don’t you go back to watching the Food Network and let us men handle this.”
Let’s see…the Padres gave up their starting second basemen and #3 hitter in the lineup for Boston’s backup catcher. Right. Why even ask for Doug Mirabelli? Why not just exchange Loretta for a boquet of flowers and a thank you card? What do you want Mirabelli for? And don’t tell me you have big plans for him in 2006. Stop it. Now, if you’ve got a slow-pitch softball team and you’re playing for a keg of beer every night, then Mirabelli’s your next Jason Varitek. Lead the way, Captain!

But these are the Big Leagues. The league where Mirabelli is a career .241 hitter. Loretta? .301. Wow. And in case you’re wondering about potential, Mirabelli is 35 and Loretta is 34. A lot better to be in your early to mid 30s and be in the middle infield than behind the plate. But who cares, right? Oh yeah, and the most games Mirabelli has ever played in one season? 82 games in 2000 for the San Francisco Giants where he batted a robust .230.

And then it hit me. The Padres’ GM is Kevin Towers. The Red Sox’s President is Larry Lucchino. The same Larry Lucchino who used to have the same position only a couple of years ago with the San Diego Padres. Who do you think hired Towers? I got it. One last favor for the ol’ big guy, huh Towers?

O.k., how about this: how about Brian Giles for I don’t know…say, Enrique Wilson? The Yankees can sign and trade him. Whatta you say? I’d offer you Flaherty but I can see you’re set at that position. C’mon, you’re into over-the-hill backups. Hey, Larry said it was o.k. Oh wait, you’re gonna give them Giles for Alejandro Machado, right?

Ridiculous.

The Marlins should never play another game in Miami. And when they move, they should never be allowed to wear anything that resembles the current franchise. It’s pathetic. In their 13 years of existance, they won 2 World Series titles. That’s one more than the Atlanta Braves. The Braves, for crying out loud! And the Marlins did this without winning their division one time!! Unbelievable.
And now, as was the case after the ’97 Championship season, there’s a fire sale in Miami. Good players going cheap…get ‘em while they’re hot. Ownership says it can’t survive in Miami without a new stadium. They knew this from the very beginning but chose to downplay it at first. Back in Feb. 2002, when owner, Jeffrey Loria, first took hold of the team, and when asked about the team’s uncertain future given the stadium question, he answered, “I’m here for the long run, I’m here for the long run and I’m here for the long run.” Now, like John Henry before him, he’s saying “No new stadium, no more Marlins.” It’s all about the here and now. Or is eight seasons considered a long run? (The lease expires after the 2010 season)

I understand the Marlins need a new stadium. Joe Robbie, Pro Player, Dolphins Stadium, or whatever it’s called nowadays, is a horrible place to watch a ball game. And South Florida can’t go 3 hours without a couple of rain showers. Didn’t the League know any of this when it gave Miami an expansion team? Didn’t anybody care about this when they signed that horrible lease back in the early 90′s? Oh wait, Wayne Huizenga, back then, owned the Marlins and the stadium. Nice. No potential conflict of interest there, right?

But where are the fans? Where are the fans sticking it out until that day when the team gets their new stadium? With as many latinos as there are in South Florida, and as crazy as they are about their beisbol…you’re telling me you can’t get a decent crowd there for every game? Sadly, no. This is the same city, that in ’91, when it hosted its first official Spring Training game between the Yankees and the Orioles, it drew a record crowd of 67,654. They drew more than 3 million during their inaugural season in ’93. Now they only show up if there are games in October. And what’s more pathetic are those Florida politicians sitting front row during the World Series. The same politicians who keep denying the ballclub a new stadium…even one that is mostly privately financed. Unbelievable.

Neither the fans or the city of Miami deserve a major league franchise.

Funny, the ’97 and the ’03 World Series are more known for the team that lost than for the team that won. Interesting.

Dear A-Rod,
I watched you all season long and I am as surprised as you are about your recent MVP award. Your season was not unlike Ripken’s MVP season in ’91 or Pudge Rodriguez’s season in ’99. Similar numbers. But for Ripken and Pudge, those were career years. And in each of those seasons both of these players were clearly not only the most valuable players of the league, but the most valuable players of their team.

Which begs the question. How can you be the American League Most Valuable Player when you weren’t even the Yankees Most Valuable Player?

You had a soft 2005 season and you were not clutch. Period. David Ortiz was as deserving of winning the MVP award as you were back in ’96. And he was just as equally robbed.

Sincererly,
A lifelong Yankees fan

Normally, I couldn’t care less that the Boston Red Sox couldn’t re-sign their GM.  Who cares?  But this whole fiasco in Beantown has given me a better appreciation for the apathy I feel towards the Red Sox.

Theo Epstein was the youngest GM in the game; and he was the youngest GM to ever win a World Series championship.  His contract was up and he asked for $1.5 million a year.  A good price, a competitive one, given his one little accomplishment; engineering the cursed Sox to their first title since 1918.  After low balling him to death, those ingrates…specifically, Larry Lucchino…finally offered Epstein what he was requesting.  And Epstein then rejected it and walked away!  The power struggle between Lucchino and Epstein finally erupted and this is the fallout, or at least the beginning of it all.  Lucchino has to be one of the biggest idiots in baseball.

You’ve been with the Red Sox organization for only a few years, as part of the new ownership group, and you’re responsible for both putting together a championship ball club and dismantling one at the same time.  How’s that for a legacy?  You couldn’t leave well enough alone?  Amazing.  For as nice of a guy as John Henry is…how does he team up with such a power hungry, controlling freak?  Easy, when John Henry bought the Boston Red Sox, he was part of a group that was also led by former San Diego Padres owner, Tom Werner.  And guess who his club president was?  Yep, good ol’ Larry.  You know, for somebody who’s supposed to be one of the great Trend Followers of all time, John Henry doesn’t seem to be following the right trends here.

Hey Larry, you couldn’t borrow a page from Theo Epstein’s book on managing and simply remain out of the spotlight?  This is after all, about the players and the fans.  Outside of George Steinbrenner, who even cares who the owners are?  Or worst, who the club presidents are?  Nobody.  But this is the same Larry Lucchino who  couldn’t stay away and threw himself into the players’ celebration after the Sox won the World Series last year.   Ironically enough, seen here celebrating alongside, former Red Sox GM, Theo Epstein.  I hope you’re happy, you attention hungry fiend! 

Then there’s the concern the players themselves have.  The team captain, Jason Varitek, went public with his frustration and disappointment over the Epstein situation.  In addition, the assistant GM, Josh Byrnes, is gone.  He was hired as the GM of the Arizona Diamondbacks.  The same Arizona Diamondbacks who lost 111 games only one year ago…the same year the Red Sox won it all.  So Josh Byrnes said hello Arizona, rather than replace Epstein as the Red Sox GM.  Hmm.  Oh, and Manny still wants out…now more than ever.  And David Wells says he would like to play elsewhere next year.  And Damon sounds less and less confident that he’ll be back next year.  And remember Pedro?

Again, I shouldn’t care about what happens in Boston.  But given what’s been going on over there, it makes you think…what team is the Evil Empire again?

"Mr. President we have some news.  Very shocking news.  The Houston Astros were swept in the World Series.  It confirms that your home state of Texas simply – for lack of a better word – stinks in baseball.  Sir?  Sir?!  Mr. President?  Can we get some help over here!  Same thing happened to his father…he’s still refusing to leave the stadium."

When you play not to lose, guess what happens?  Yep.  Curious, why is Lidge in the game in the 8th inning?  Of a 0-0 game?  To face the top of the White Sox lineup?  After pitching a tough 1.1 innings last night?  He’s there because if you’re going to lose, you better lose with your horse on the mound.  And Garner was ready to lose. 

Congratulations Ozzie Guillen and the Chicago White Sox for a brilliant season.  To go through the postseason with only one loss is an incredible feat; particularly when along the way, they eliminated the ’02 WS champs and the ’04 WS champs.  Congratulations Ozzie on your fearless managing.  I only hope your tactics and strategies are the beginning of a trend that future managers will emulate and not one the rest of the league considers a fluke.  When Sciosia did it three years ago, he was considered a genius.  Not only did you defeat Sciosia and the Angels in 5, but you surpassed anything he did by sweeping the World Series. 

This wasn’t a fluke.  It wasn’t luck.  The White Sox were a good team made great by the brilliance of one man.  Ozzie Guillen.    Congratulations.

So long Astros.  Thank you for showing us the true meaning of a Wild Card team.  You should’ve never been in the playoffs…but you backdoored your way in thanks to the Wild Card.  At least you showed your gratitude by losing the World Series to a Divisional Champion.  And by losing it the way you were supposed to…by getting swept.  Try winning the NL Central Division next year.

The National League had lost its last 6 World Series games.  The Astros were determined to end that streak.  Who better than Roy Oswalt at home?   Well, it took over 5 hours for Oswalt plus six other pitchers in 14 innings to extend that streak to 7.  The good news for the Astros?  I don’t think there were many people awake to see them lose.

Extra innings are not fun.  They’re tiring.  One thing is to do it in the Division Series where your bullpen has a chance to get some rest and bounce back, but to do it in the World Series?  Where every game is so critical and where rest is so precious?  Yeah, yeah, both teams are in the same predicament…but after all is said and done, Houston is still down 3 games to 0.  Forget about the psychological effect of this game for a second.  Lidge pitched 1.1 innings.  What are you going to do for Game 4?  And the majority of the pitches he threw were sliders.  Do you know what that pitch does to the elbow?  No Lidge, no save, no win.  Who else you got left in that bullpen to help you win Game 4?  Anyone?  Bueller?

In the bottom of the 10th:  Why didn’t Garner have Jason Lane bunt the runner over?  This is the National League, right?  The kings of small ball?  Lead off man gets on, has good speed…it’s elementary, right?  Instead Garner has him swinging away at the first pitch!  And Ausmus swinging on a 1-1 count with Palmeiro basically standing at second base with an easy steal going, "Bro, what are you doing?  Take a pitch will you!  I’m trying to get in scoring position for you!  Help me help you!"  Nice teamwork.  Typical Wild Card team.  What do you expect?  Championship caliber baseball?  From a team that couldn’t even win its own division?  Then men on first and second with only one out in the 11th inning and again, nothing.  No surprise.  And yet again, in the 13th inning with the leadoff man on and Biggio doesn’t bunt him over.  Wow.  Taveras doesn’t even bunt him over, you know, for BERKMAN who’s on deck.  Oh, I get it.  This is the same Garner who managed the Brewers right?  I guess losing is a bad habit to kick.

Remember, this was a game the Astros had to win.  Not just because it was Game 3 (and the Astros couldn’t afford to go down 0-3); not just because it was Roy Oswalt on the mound; but because the Astros were up in this game 4-0 in the 5th inning.  You don’t lose those games.  You can’t.  Because once you’re down 0-3, you’re out.  "But what about Boston?  They were down 0-3 to the Yankees, blah, blah, blah…"  Boston was down 0-2 to the White Sox this year in the Divisional Series and what happened?  And besides, what happened in ’04 with the Yankees didn’t happen in the World Series.  This is a whole ‘nother monster.  Don’t look at the ’04 Red Sox for inspiration…look at the ’05 Red Sox.  You’re done.  But thanks for playing the Wild Card. 

Right now the Astros wouldn’t know how to win a game even with a bases loaded walk.  They’re that bad. 

White Sox in 5? 

Hurry up people, bandwagon’s filling up fast.  There’s still some room near the back.  All aboard!