Friday, April 30, 2010

Another great dream

This has been a great month for dreams. Once in a while, I go to bed hoping to dream about something in particular- and almost never end up dreaming about it that night. Lately, though, it has been a given almost each night that my dreams involve something baseball-related.

I recently received a call from the Director of Baseball Ops for the Red Sox. Our conversation left me inspired and motivated, and I couldnt sleep for most of that night- I was up fidgeting and thinking even as I was trying to embrace rest. Even once I did get to sleep sometime around 2am, I was awake and alert once more by 7am.

Last night, I dreamed that I was standing and talking with Jonathan Papelbon, my Cinco Ocho (play on Chad Ocho Cinco.. Pap wears #58). We were in a boxed off section a little ways down the first base line from the dugout. He asked me to go get Dusty Brown's chest protector from the Sox' workout room/clubhouse. I set out to get the requested piece of equipment, and made my way through Gordon College's campus, where old friend Josh Morrison warned me not to take a detour through Drew Hall because visiting hours were over. My destination was where Jenks/the Library is in real life, and once inside the big building I descended some stairs and entered the workout room where a bunch of players, mostly prospects that I know of, were getting their work in. I went to where a pile of styrofoam, multi-pieced chest protectors were and selected the blue one as Cinco has instructed. A coach (reminded me of Torey Lovullo, new Paw Sox Manager) asked if I wanted either of the green or white ones, as they were bigger than the undersized blue  chest protector I held, but I told him that Papelbon told me blue. As I climbed back up the stairs, suddenly I was in an outdoor mall complex that my friend Tiffany and I had visited last weekend. It was nighttime and very busy. I dont think I ever made it back to Cinco but as I was on my return journey the individual pieces of the chest protector started falling out of place.


John Buck made the Lansdownahs proud last night(Lansdownahs=my roto team). 3 homeruns, 5 RBI in one go.
My pitching is also tearing it up for me. If i could get a couple adequate bats- not even a BIG bat, just a few regular performers- I would be in formidable shape.
Oh Lars Anderson. Like Beckett, I've just never been super impressed with the person of Lars. Admittedly, he's off to a strong 2010, but we'll see what the season brings. The reason I mention it at all is because he was called up and had his AAA debut yesterday.

One more... Bowden, what's the problem? It hurts to see you struggle so much. I want to know what the hangup/s is/are because his last start... well, lets just say that I'm not going to be posting a screenshot of it. Not good. Are his adjustments not working for him? Or does he simply have some kinks to work out? Was it just a bad day? More information please.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

While I'm Taking Screen Shots...

(the guy pictured is not on the Quakes anymore)

good old R.A. Dickey. I remember watching Zink vs Dickey last year in RI... duel of the knuckleballers
"He threw 90 pitches, 68 for strikes."
WOWWW. That's beautiful. Really. Average of 10 pitches per inning.. and phenomenal command.

thanks www.MiLB.com ... good stuff today.

Lovin Lestah

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Just a dull ache now..

Yeah, y'know, being away from Fenway is not the life for me.

One day, I'll work there. It may be soon, it may not be for years, but everything comes back around to baseball. If I could do anything, I think I'd be Mike Hazen's sidekick.

I've had a ripping headache all day, didnt sleep well last night after spending hours on drawing up an important cover letter. Dreamt about front office people (not kidding).. no one in particular, but i remember being stressed out, which clearly ties directly into my current situation. Tossed, turned, got up at 7 and worked on the cover letter for a couple more hours until work.

Alrighty. Well, tonight I'm really just writing to post something. We can start with the easy stuff... Petey was incredible last night, and Youk and Scutaro were right there with him. combined 9 for 15! 9 runs and 4 rbi! noice.  I'll have to go back and see if Petey did that thing he does when he steals... I watched a lot of the game but was out of the house for some of it. I believe those were his first steals of 2010. AND Mr Jason Varitek, 3 for 5 with 2 runs and 4 rbi (as many as Petey/Youk/Scutaro put together!)... part of me is so stoked that Tek is showing more than just signs of life. He's never been a favorite, but I like the way he plays the game and I appreciate what he means to our pitching staff.
How many times have i mentioned that I'm not a Beckett fan, never have been? Trust me, I'd love to be. If only he'd give me a reason to be. His temper makes him entertaining to me, but otherwise he's just frustrating. He has this reputation for being so ... good. But... he's not been our team's Ace over the past few years. I must have gone off on this tangent before so I'll end it here.

I'm listening to the Paw Sox broadcast; the accents are so endearing. The commercials are quite small-townish and they make me smile. The team that the PawSox are playing came out on top of their game last night... after 15 innings. They're dead tired. There should be no question who wins tonight, and yet we're trailing by 2 runs. Kason Gabbard (who has bounced around a bit over the past few years) is pitching in place of Fabio Castro who got bumped up to Boston. Good Lord. Boston. What a mess it is up there. Nothing that cant be fixed, but it requires good players performing at or above their "par" levels. When my head isnt throbbing I will try to post some good points from the farm system, because there are some sharp looking players early on in 2010.

With that said... Bill Hall just doesnt fit on this team. I hate to be yet another hop-on on the bludgeoning bandwagon, but I'm trying to bring to mind anything that Bill Hall has contributed yet this season. Ah. One RBI.



Well well well. Check you out, Buckaroo. (Shoot, sorry, I know that some nicknames are gratingly obnoxious. I like "Buckaroo" so much because it's somewhat deprecating, and I've often had trouble taking Clay's attitude, or the attitude I've perceived him to have, seriously.) So far he's thrown 82 pitches over 6 innings! Efficient. Has only given up 1 ER! Pitching well though his strike out and hit against counts are not exactly stellar. I'm going to live in the moment because at any second he could start to crumble, as have become characteristic of the rest of our starters. It's refreshing to see so few runs scored against. The fact that we have only scored once in response is another story all together. Buckaroo. Reminds me of both a little kid and Dunkaroos.



You were waiting for it! I know you were... Michael Bowden is up tomorrow. Tonight he's sitting a handful of rows up from the net behind home, charting and texting and feeling bored. What I wouldnt give to be a 23 year old guy who gets paid many hundreds of thousands of dollars.. I would gladly chart games a few times each week, and wouldnt even be bored doing it.

Alright, my eyes are burning out of my head (or so it feels). Went to a Quakes game on Sunday, was one of those impeccably sunny warm days that make me desperate for Fenway, McCoy, or Hadlock. Sunny Sunday afternoons were MADE for baseball.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Red Sox, you are the only-only-only..

We finally get some wins under our belts, and I dont have time to post about it. I promise that I'm not one of those who only likes to complain. I still have to watch tonight's game anyhow, before I can write... I was treated to a very nice dinner out tonight so I missed my baseball for the evening. sounds like youk was the hero of the night... and mcdonald was the man last night. Quick thoughts on yesterday's game... Darnell McDonald manufactured that win for the Red Sox. Between Reddick and McDonald.. well, lets just say that the Paw Sox portion of the lineup was a more potent force than the remainder of the team that the Red Sox fielded. I also appreciated how McDonald subsequently started in CF tonight. Players dont always get instantly rewarded like that for doing well, but I think that's the message that needs to be sent to this team. Perform, contribute, and you'll see playing time.. no matter if you're out of Pawtucket or Boston, if you've been with the team for half a day or a number of years. Geez, and look what he did tonight- 1-for-3 with a walk, 2 runs, and an RBI. He's definitely making a case for himself. (Unfortunately, Petey was 0-for-5. Did draw a walk though.)

Great, now i'm looking at tonight's box score. I'm never gonna get to sleep, and I need it. Well, ok, we'll end on this note. Cinco Ocho got the win last night, Oki got the win today... he struck 2 batters out in his 1 inning. Bard looked verrrry nice today over two innings of middle relief and 29 total pitches (21 thrown for strikes), striking out 3.
(and finally, if Bard's line for the night looks good, take a gander at Neftali Feliz's 2 innings- he also struck out 3 batters, but over a total of only 23 pitches! (15 for strikes) Yow.)


More later, of that you can be sure.
Oh. Had an incredible dream starring Jeff Natale and Michael Bowden of all people, sitting in the stands at a minor league park I've been to in past dreams. Wasnt really a personal dream, but that's all you're getting. Suffice it to say, during and after I felt like I was missed equally as much as I myself am missing McCoy. I'm thankful for these baseball dreams that I've been having. They've been very deep and vivid, emotionally. And they've all made me happy.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Back for more

That was fun last night. I think I'll try it again.

I hadnt seen a Sox game since last week, so as soon as I was awake I started up Boxee and caught the game around the 3rd inning. Ugh. Terrible. And it seems like that's how it went while I was away up north. Swept by the Rays in a 4 game series, that's just embarrassing. The Rays are a strong team, so the embarrassment has nothing to do with them... but WE should be much better than that.

..and then I look at our team. I take a good concentrated look, and see that maybe we're really not better than that. I'm not sold on one single acquisition we made in the offseason. Beltre, Scutaro, Hall, Cameron, Lackey- none of them feel like they're part of our champion-caliber, gritty, tough, always-contending team. They're still strangers. I didnt have that feeling with Bay or VMart when they joined us.
(sorry, i couldnt help including this. i miss jason bay .. just a little.)
I feel like I could get used to Mike Cameron and Adrian Beltre, but the others... I mean, clearly Lackey has been widely hyped for his performance, so it's not that I think they're all no good. Although Lackey isnt an ace as far as 2010 proves it, and that's all that matters to me, what he can do for the Sox. For a team touted as having 3 aces (and a 4th in the making in Buchholz) we sure dont seem to be able to keep opponents' bats quiet. Look at the facts here, ladies and gentlemen:

The Red Sox have played 13 games as of the time of this writing.
We've won 5 of those games.
(Dont do the math to find out how far under .500 we are... it hurts. Just tell yourself that it's early, there's no sense getting worked up, and read on.)
We've held the opposing team to 5 runs or less in 6 games, and have only won 3 of those 6 (meaning, more often than not when we get beat, the other team is really scoring runs; and even after holding them to 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 runs, we havent been able to produce enough of our own to come out on top).
On the other side of things, we've been held to 5 runs or less in 9 games (9 out of 13 total), and we've won ONE of those (meaning, other teams' pitching has been more effective against us than ours has been against them slash our offense is perhaps just very weak, as supported by the previous bullet point).

If we're not going to be scoring runs, our starters have GOTTTTTTT to be stepping things up. That's the most anxiety-inducing part of these early-season struggles for me... pitchers are strange and wonderful beings, impossible to understand, complex, unpredictable, and filled to overflowing with intensity.
Mechanics, psychological stuff... everything from the concrete to the abstract can throw a pitcher off his groove. If they're not working right, so to speak, how do we make them work again?
I've never been a huge Beckett believer... have seen him toss some gems, for sure, but I've always liked Lester as our #1. Sure, I acknowledge that there's a sort of gruff, constantly pissed, murderous-temper quality that gives Beckett more of an Alpha aura, but when it comes to results I'd see Johnny more surely getting things done right, if anyone.
Still, no matter about my personal preferences... they're both considered to be toward the top of the list in MLB. Lackey too (for the record I was unenthused by this pickup, though I did and still do hope that he would make our strong rotation even stronger).

so what's going on here?!


The Sox need to start assigning laps and pushups for fielding errors. And maybe if they incentivize for increased offense.... say, Tito takes everyone out to JP Licks after every game in which at least 7 of 9 guys get a hit. Or we could dream a little smaller and just say that the team gets a pizza party every time Papi only strikes out once in a game.

Hmm, interesting. I'm looking at the individual player stats.
Petey has 5 home runs, the most of any of the guys- can you guess who has the second most right now? Jason Varitek, with 3. (I should note here that he has only played in 3 games to date.) Pedroia is also breaking away from the pack in Total Bases (37.... next in line is Youk with 21!), Hits (18, Beltre and Scutaro after him with 12 apiece), RBI (13, Hermida/Youk/Beltre each with 6), and then the stats (BA, OBP, SLG, OPS). Petey is a machine of a man right now, more than usual. So while I dont enjoy watching my team bumble around on the field game after game (lately), it is incredibly fun watching Petey be on FI-YA.

Again, we're working off of a small sample size here. They've been playing for mere weeks. But until things have had a chance to balance and settle, what else is there to do but talk about what's happened thus far?

I must be Boston at heart.. I've rambled on about nothing for a long time here, but have done it with vigor. At least, I feel invigorated.

Here, let's end on a positive note. I was reading through my scorebook tonight, looking at the games I'd recorded, and I came across the game Bowdie pitched that nearly ended up being a no-hitter.
(taken at the 7.19.09 game, actually)
Paw Sox vs the Indianapolis Indians, 7.19.09. It was literally down to 2 outs in the top of the 9th with no hits allowed to that point, and Fernando Cabrera gave up a scorcher of a line drive right into left-center. FCab, of all people- around that time last season he could do no wrong, he was on a roll. That was a beautiful day. There was a fair on the neighboring football field after the game with a mini baseball history museum, and some games, and food, and booths, etc. Some notes from my scorebook: I sat in Sec 10, Row C, Seat 9. Bowdie went 5 innings, a somewhat high count of 4 BB but 5 SO, two of them looking. I apparently found it necessary to note that Mike screamed  F&*# from the mound after walking Shelby Ford in the 5th- his 4th walk issued in the game, frustrating as he doesnt think of himself as a pitcher who walks a lot of guys. Oh, and the gun read 101mph on Bowden's first strike thrown in the 2nd inning. Haha. Fat chance. Finally- looking at the Indy Indians' current roster, it seems like they've got a lot of familiar names: Argenis Diaz, Brandon Moss, Jonathan Van Every, Craig Hansen... some old friends :) Anyhow, we won 3-2!





Taken on the night I became a Red Sox fan.


Aaaand we're back..

(Note: I wrote all of this, then started searching through my archives for a picture of Petey to post, and decided to look through pics for half an hour.. then tried to fit a bunch of random favorites in here. Enjoy my mad photography skillz.)


http://youcanfeelthesun.blogspot.com/

Since i moved, I've been posting on the blog linked above. It's just life stuff, but it has been baseball-heavy of course. I really dont think most people who check that blog care about my baseball fixation, so maybe i'll try to split my content matter between sites.

2010! Moving right along, isnt it? Unfortunately for Red Sox Nation, all is not well. The Red Sox have tried to keep steady focus on their season, to leave dwelling on their collective personal issue outside of work hours so to speak, but clearly their distraught hearts are affecting their play.
..distraught because they're missing a rambunctious and previously-very-present fan at Fenway of course.
Had I known that my leaving would have THIS kind of effect on the start of the season, believe me, I never would have moved away. To the Red Sox, I would like to say this: I'm hurting as much as (and probably more than) you guys.

Hurting, in part, because you guys have had some pretty pathetic moments already. Thankfully, as usual, Dustin Pedroia is keeping me- and all of you- afloat when it's gametime.
No matter how bad things are looking... flat offense, errors, disappointing pitching... Petey steps up to the plate and within a minute I'm on my feet and my hands are in the air- homerun! stand-up double! rbi! He's always doing something right.



I have no specific agenda in writing tonight. Not sure if i'm missing the PawSox or RedSox more... at least I can watch the Red Sox. At least the Red Sox will come out this way in a few months. I listen to Paw Sox broadcasts when I can... just wish i could be there now and then. If Fenway was home, McCoy was my best friend's house, you know? The place I wanted to be if I couldnt be at Fenway. I almost always went alone, but i had many friends and acquaintances there- players, people who worked there, other fans. It's strange for me to think that Sean Danielson and Jeff Natale are gone.


Jeff and Sean

Sean
Neither of these guys got their due allotment of playing time last year, so in a way I'm glad that they're free to move on to new opportunities (Sean's in the Reds organization now but Jeff is unsigned last i heard).. still, even beyond their contribution to the actual games played, they were fixtures at McCoy for various reasons.. they made auxiliary marks on Pawtucket. I miss Charlie Zink too- it just wasnt his year last year.
He got picked up by the Cardinals in the offseason but was eventually let go during Spring Training. Sad sad sad. Such are the Minors though.

Last year around the trade deadline, I remember having a panic attack at work. My coworker Bill, who shared a room in the office with me, can attest. I was a mess, repeating over and over in my head that the rumors about an impending trade involving Michael Bowden were just rumors until proven otherwise, checking twitter and google news every 30 seconds up until the deadline- and then a few minutes beyond, just to make sure that I knew what was happening if and when anything did. He was just too big a part of my Paw Sox (and subsequently, Red Sox) experience last year.
I've come a long way. I like the guy a lot and root for him loudly, and beyond that I do believe in his ability and his work ethic, but without any anxiety I can say that this may be the year that Boston gives him up. I'm not basing this off of his performace thus far- over two starts, he's gone 6.1 innings, with 3 very solid and 3.1 not so spotless- is reminiscent of last year, which was spectacular at times and pretty subpar at others. Again, it's pointless to make any conclusions after two starts, and so few innings thrown.. I'm just bringing you  up to speed a bit on his 2010 so far. In any case, there are prospects who should be stuck with through serious developmental challenges; anyone who knows me knows that I'm not a Buchholz fan, but his ceiling is high if/when he gets himself together. You hang on to a struggling ace, I'm all for that, I see the sense in that sort of investment. Bowden has never projected to be an ace (that's ok, we cant all be) and for a while now it looks like the Sox have lost hope/interest in grooming Bowdie to crack their rotation- he knows his role has changed and has publicly embraced it, which is a very smart move on his part- even if it could be looked upon as something of a demotion (but whether it is or isnt, a team player just wants to help his team win in the end).
Still, they've got him starting for the Paw Sox because 1) it's easier to stick a trained starter into a relief situation than a bullpen guy into a starting role and 2) may as well exercise his stamina/endurance if he's going to be a middle reliever, an innings eater. And who knows? Any given pitching staff is stupidly volatile (stupidly, because they're here one minute and gone the next, freak injuries, psychological blocks... it's crazy how quickly we went from having what felt like 10 big league/ready, momentum-carrying starters last year to having 3 to count on, who were performing unpredictably at best). Bowdie might have a shot at the rotation again, I dont think anyone has said Absolutely Not to that idea. It will be an interesting first few months, because he's a different pitcher now in a lot of ways- changed form/mechanics, leaner, new fashion statement (no socks showing... what a shame; the PawSox look like sandlot kids next to Scranton-Wilkes Barre (Yankees AAA) where everyone wears their socks showing, so sharp (they play sharply too, another way in which SWB makes the PawSox look like neighborhood kids, hehe)).
In summation, I'm definitely pulling for this guy as much as I ever was- I hope this season finds him making great progress and exceeding expectations. If it comes to it, though, and we get something/someone we need (take your pick at this point..) in exchange for Bowden, I wont despair.
But as things stand right now, what say the Sox call him up to the big club in time for their series in Los Angeles vs the Angels?

I had such a good Dustin Pedroia dream last week.
It's detailed on my other blog.. maybe I'll paste it here soon. Forgive the dull descriptive word here, but I just felt so happy both during and after the dream, like I had had an unexpected visit from a good friend who I'd been missing.

What else... Chris Carter (traded from the PawSox to the Mets organization last year) ate the Paw Sox alive in one of their recent games. He was 4 for 4 with something like 30 homeruns and 77 stolen bases. Or something like that.
Well, he really did go 4 for 4. It was really impressive, but clearly i'm fading fast.. i should definitely be sleeping after the weekend I've had. I saw Scott Kazmir pitch for the Angels' A team, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. He did well and pitched more than half the game (too lazy to go look at my scorebook). Oh, and just now as I was looking for a good pic of Petey to post, I came across a bunch of other pics that I decided I'd like to post too. They're all from one of the most memorable games I've ever been to- June 20 2008, the night of the Celtics parade. We played the Cardinals.. it rained something terrible before the game/during the Celtics parade inside Fenway, so much so that many typically-hearty New England folk left the park. I was a direct beneficiary of this, and had a couple VERY good seats behind the on deck circle (i think my ticket was actually for the bleachers, so it was quite a steal). Anyhow, in perusing that night's pictures, I decided that I should mention the following:

(With the Royals now.) He had a lot of fun with the Sox just recently.. and i JUST missed picking him up in fantasy. Argh. Someone got him off waivers right before I could.



Maybe going into a slide wasnt necessary, Jacoby. But everyone in RSN should be upset w Beltre (ok, that's a bit harsh); he had little to no business trying to catch that ball when you were running in on it. PLEASE heal quickly.

I like him, always have. But Wake and question marks go hand in hand these days.

One more time for tonight.. man this guy is awesome.


On my long drives to and from Laytonville this weekend, I listened to this Kings of Leon song quite a bit, as most of the lyrics remind me of Boston, the Sox, and everything that fits under that sentimental and beloved umbrella:

What a night for a dance, dont you know I'm a dancing machine
With the fire in my bones and the sweet taste of kerosene
I get lost in the night so high I don't wanna come down
To face the loss of the good thing that I had found


Woo hoo hoooo
Woo hoo hoooo

In the dark of the night I can hear you calling my name
With the hardest of hearts, I still feel full of pain
So I drink and I smoke and I ask you if youre ever around
Even though it was me who drove us right in the ground


See the time we shared it was precious to me
But all the while I was dreaming of revelry

Gonna run baby run like a stream down a mountainside
With the wind in my back I wont ever even bat an eye
Just know it was you all along that had a hold of my heart
But the demon in me was a best friend from the start

So the time we shared it was precious to me
All the while I was dreaming of revelry
Dreaming of revelry

And I told myself Boy, away you go 
It rained so hard it felt like snow
Everything came tumbling down on me
In the back of the woods, in the dark of the night
Paleness of the old moonlight

Everything just felt so incomplete

Dreaming of revelry

Followers

About Me

My photo
There is no offseason.