18 replies to this topic

[redsoxedmunds24]

Dice-k looked like Dice-k in the first walking the bases loaded and battling out of it. It was looking like a typical battle through 5 outing from Dice but he settled in and pitched a whale of a game. Taking the no-no into the 7th before allowing 2 hits only to make like houdini and get out of a 1st and 3rd jam with nobody out unscathed. He really looked pretty damn sharp tonight. I was not a fan of bringing him back out for the 8th and he got into a little situation but Okie and Masterson bailed him out. (Tito's got balls going to Masterson there). I wanted to see MDC but Jedi came up big with the double play ball induced.

In the 9th it was Papelbon nailing it shut 1-2-3 to close out the win. Threw a couple splitters to Navarro and got the K to end it.

Offensively Kotsay's lucky check swing was a big break for the sox as it dropped fair and set up Jed Lowrie to produce the sac fly and get the run home. Later it was Youk with a little help from Crawford. Sox got the 2 runs in tonight but they could have done more damage, fortunately it did not come back to haunt them.

Looking ahead to tommorow we send Josh Beckett to the mound looking to Josh to be October Josh and come up with another great outing keeping the Tampa bats quiet and shifting this thing back home with a 2-0 series lead. Would be nice. Dice going deep allows Tito to use the bullpen to the max tommorow if need be.

[SemperFidelisSox]

The only real concern I have moving forward continues to be the offense. I suppose if they continue to pitch the way they have, they can keep on winning games 2-0 until they are holding the Commissioner's Trophy, but it still merits mentioning.

[SoxFan58]

I think Shields in the Trop is the best they have to offer. Something tells me the Sox are winning tomorrow to go up 2-0

[kenneycb]

Words cannot describe how relieved I am that the Sox won the first game. I was a f'n mess walking back to a computer. I was trying to talk myself into a clutch Dice-K start (6 innings for me) where the Sox scored a few runs.

Thank god that Oki and the Master Son held on to give the ball to Paps. Once I saw he was pitching my heart rate fell about 100 points.

Would love to see some more runs as nobody knows what to expect out of the Greatest Postseason Pitcher of this Era but I'm feeling like something special might happen. These 2:30 AM local time starts suck but something feels strange about them in a good way. Do it GPPotE, do it.

Edit: Tito is the best postseason manager since Joe Torre. Before then I cannot name one as good as either for a long time (I was born in '88 so Larussa's failures are still fresh in my mind). As crazy as some of his decisions may be he has earned the right to see before questioning. As Simmons said in his mailbag today, he has a horseshoe stuck up his ass. I will gladly ride that horseshoe for as long as the Sox can.

Edited by kenneycb, 10 October 2008 - 11:46 PM.

[mikeford]

BAD FRANCONA.
DONT DO THAT AGAIN.

Running Dice-K out there on 107 pitches BEFORE THROWING A SINGLE PITCH IN THE 8TH was more than living dangerously. That was insanity.

[kenneycb]

BAD FRANCONA.
DONT DO THAT AGAIN.

Running Dice-K out there on 107 pitches BEFORE THROWING A SINGLE PITCH IN THE 8TH was more than living dangerously. That was insanity.

I wrote this in my edit but Francona has pretty much reached the Tyson Zone with the postseason. Until it falters I will not question Tito. This may be cult-ish but I feel he deserves it.

[redsoxedmunds24]

The only real concern I have moving forward continues to be the offense. I suppose if they continue to pitch the way they have, they can keep on winning games 2-0 until they are holding the Commissioner's Trophy, but it still merits mentioning.

Its the playoffs, runs are tough to come by. Thats why pitching wins championships. Sure it'd be nice if they broke out like they did late in that Cleveland series and to start the World Series but this October its just a matter of good enough pitching and the timely hitting. Sox did great in the LDS scoring with 2 outs.

[magnetichf]

Its the playoffs, runs are tough to come by. Thats why pitching wins championships. Sure it'd be nice if they broke out like they did late in that Cleveland series and to start the World Series but this October its just a matter of good enough pitching and the timely hitting. Sox did great in the LDS scoring with 2 outs.

Totally agree; I think it's asking too much to expect blowouts at this time of year. Just pitch well, get the W, and move on.

On that note, am I the only one who feels so gratified by Dice's performance tonight? I so want him to be the pitcher that we were all excited to see the Sox get two years ago, and tonight he was that guy, in spades. Good on him.

It is simply breathtaking to see this organization vanquish years of frustration and futility, and replace it with a club that just wins, baby. Yes, I recognize this was just Game 1, but dammit, I'm expecting them to go out and win Game 2, and that is truly a seachange for Red Sox fans.

I heart this team.

[SemperFidelisSox]

Oh, and before I forget....

Varitek. Wow. Just an awful postseason. Ortiz looks equally as bad at the plate, but at least he has been walking.

[mikeford]

Oh, and before I forget....

Varitek. Wow. Just an awful postseason.

i fixed it.

[betheriver]

This might belong in another thread, but how about that TB crowd? All noise and cowbells to start, but you could see them walking out en masse while Papelbon was pitching in the 9th. I know hope was waning, but I couldn't imagine leaving Fenway with the Sox batting in the 9th down two runs.

The fans are showing their true colors, and I'm not impressed by the Ray's "homefield advantage" after that display.

[soxfansr1]

This might belong in another thread, but how about that TB crowd? All noise and cowbells to start, but you could see them walking out en masse while Papelbon was pitching in the 9th. I know hope was waning, but I couldn't imagine leaving Fenway with the Sox batting in the 9th down two runs.

The fans are showing their true colors, and I'm not impressed by the Ray's "homefield advantage" after that display.

Yes, I would agree, Remember we Red Sox fans are a different breed. Were like a bunch of coaches, and that is why we watch too the end as a coach would. I often think back to 1986, game 6 against the Mets, for we know anything can happen. As much as that hurt, it made me closer to the sox.

Edited by soxfansr1, 11 October 2008 - 09:56 AM.

[LogansDad]

Angles fans did the same thing in game 1 of the ALDS. I know that Sox fans can be dicks sometimes, but for all these people who talk shit about us, at least we stay and support our team until the very end. And I won't even go into the use of props at a baseball game.....

[RedSox04]

Angles fans did the same thing in game 1 of the ALDS. I know that Sox fans can be dicks sometimes, but for all these people who talk shit about us, at least we stay and support our team until the very end. And I won't even go into the use of props at a baseball game.....

Perhaps, but I don't think that there were tons of fans sticking around for the end of the 19-8 drubbing we took in Game 3 of the 2004 ALCS, but your point about Tampa fans leaving down just 2 runs is well taken.

I still come back to last night's bottom of the 8th inning. Alot of times, I'm very squeamish about our chances because I never assume wins. I think Game 6 of the 1986 World Series did that to me. I also think a lot of posters here have no memory of that Series, so they have trouble understanding where I'm coming from, but they do remember Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS, and man, did that 8th inning come rushing back to me when Tito left Daisuke in for the 8th. And I don't think I'm alone in that. Tito liked the Daisuke/Upton matchup alot, but I think he was ignoring the fact that Iwamura does know how to hit Daisuke, especially a tiring Daisuke. I was stunned that Okajima didn't get the call for at least Iwamura and Upton, and possibly Pena if the tying run wasn't on, and perhaps a 4 or 5 out save for a well-rested Paps. I felt shades of Grady Little. I'm a huge fan of Tito Francona, but I can't agree with his keeping Daisuke out there. I think he pulled an OJ Simpson, and got away with murder.

One other thing that I noticed. In all the game coverage angles, nobody (except Tomasse of all people) seemed to want to talk to the very affable Masterson about the crucial double play ball he induced off the bat of Longoria. That seems very underplayed and underappreciated in the story of this game. (With that, I guess I have to give kudos to Tito - apparently Tito loved the Masterson/Longoria matchup while Maddon dreaded it - I didn't know that Longoria had been 0-7 against Masterson.)

Oh yeah, did I mention - awesome, much need win!! I hope our offense wakes up and Beckett spins a beauty.

Edited by RedSox04, 11 October 2008 - 10:27 AM.

[ifmanis5]

Pedey's steal of 2b to set up Youk's RBI "hit" to Crawford was a big play.
Masterson's GIDP on Longoria biggest play of the game.
And then there's Dice....We saw both sides last night- the suckfest walking side in the 1st and then the side that attacks the zone with sick 2-seamers for the rest of the game. That good side, the one that trusts his fastball, is a dominating SP in this league and truly deserves the posting fee. Can only hope we see more of that.
Rays have to be wondering if they have the intestinal fortitude and mental toughness to beat the battle-tested RS in the playoffs.
If the healthy Beckett shows up tonight this could be a very short series.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that I HATE, HATE, HATED Tito running Dice back out there after the long inning. Just a dumb mistake. Bullpen picked him up on that.

Edited by ifmanis5, 11 October 2008 - 11:32 AM.

[jhp64]

Perhaps, but I don't think that there were tons of fans sticking around for the end of the 19-8 drubbing we took in Game 3 of the 2004 ALCS, but your point about Tampa fans leaving down just 2 runs is well taken.

A better comparison might be game 4 in 2004: did anyone leave when we were down by 1, Mariano pitching, bottom of the ninth?

[Jed Zeppelin]

Would love to see some more runs as nobody knows what to expect out of the Greatest Postseason Pitcher of this Era but I'm feeling like something special might happen. These 2:30 AM local time starts suck but something feels strange about them in a good way. Do it GPPotE, do it.

I was in England for the entirety of the postseason last year. Yeah, it sucks, but in the end I felt fucking validated as a fan, watching every playoff game on my laptop screen in the university library completely alone at 1:30 in the morning for the first pitch. Bizarre, bizarre experience.

[shepard50]

One other thing that I noticed. In all the game coverage angles, nobody (except Tomasse of all people) seemed to want to talk to the very affable Masterson about the crucial double play ball he induced off the bat of Longoria. That seems very underplayed and underappreciated in the story of this game. (With that, I guess I have to give kudos to Tito - apparently Tito loved the Masterson/Longoria matchup while Maddon dreaded it - I didn't know that Longoria had been 0-7 against Masterson.)

I think was the game right here - this goes poorly and we lose. This was the Rays best chance to score, many people in the game thread were screaming for Paps and here comes young JM to induce the DP. Great move by Tito and ballsy pitching by the kid.

[The Yellow Submarine]

That game was so huge. Daisuke's stuff was just what the doctor ordered for the first game. Those ray's players must be so frustrated right now. Its the perfect place to put that inexperienced team.