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  1. bob burda

    Did Schiraldi really crumble under the pressure?

    It didn’t happen in a concerted way, but Dick Howser used his starters in high leverage long relief in 1985 ALCS G6 and G7 (Bud Black and Charlie Leibrant). Bill James later pointed out how this may have been aimed at triggering Bobby Cox’s strict platooning and get Dan Quisenberry favorable...
  2. bob burda

    True Stories About Old Red Sox

    There is no greater Zimmer hater on this board than me (though I am sure there are equals), but I’m pretty sure the guy Gammons said was responsible for making Hurst miserable with the talk about drinking and screwing in his rookie year, was his pitching coach, Johnny Podres. That said...
  3. bob burda

    NFL Conference Championship Sunday Game Thread

    KC was good on short yardage and the Bills coaches didn't have an answer for them.
  4. bob burda

    NFL Conference Championship Sunday Game Thread

    He really should be. Just a waste of Allen's championship window. I feel terrible for Allen.
  5. bob burda

    How much do you hate the Yankees?

    Your earlier post is a narration of my early fandom, starting as an 8 yr old in ‘71, and then it closely follows the contours of Gammons’ “Beyond the Sixth Game” take on that specific time frame. I think you nail it in how the Orioles, and for a little while the Tigers, were a much bigger...
  6. bob burda

    2024 WS: Yankees vs. Dodgers

    I’m OK with a discussion that goes “if it can't be a Dodger sweep, then what is the next best alternative.” I took the posts hoping for something other than a sweep in that spirit. I don’t think there’s a Sox fan here that can bear any unnecessary delay of YED.
  7. bob burda

    Misremembered Greatness on the Red Sox

    Fred Lynn He was a very good all-star level. player, with his ROY season off the charts as if establishing him as a HOF level talent, but he was not nearly as good as I thought he was when I was in my early adolescent yrs. In Boston he had huge home/road and platoon splits. These eased off...
  8. bob burda

    Joe Castiglione to retire at end of season

    I became comfortable with Castig over time, and will miss him for the great familiarity he provided. If you are maybe a 58+ yr old Sox fan, you might still (like me) grieve for the Martin/Woods combo, which seemed magical at times and served as a virtuoso accompaniment to the operatic highs...
  9. bob burda

    Angel Hernandez to retire

    Apologies for cutting your post - I think the “you’ve got to be shitting me” reaction is legit for something that smacks of BS like this, but I watched this guy for yrs and I actually think it’s genuine. My reaction was “I’ll bet (eyeroll).” There is a kind of person strongly attracted “regal...
  10. bob burda

    2004 WS Celebration

    I'd invite all Sox fans here who dealt with the operatic experience of the 2004 post-season to think of what it felt like on Oct.27, 2004 - and if you had been asked then if the Sox should celebrate this in the 20th year after, maybe on opening day 2024. I imagine all of us would have said...
  11. bob burda

    2023 WS Game/Discussion Thread: 2021 100+ Game Loser Edition

    So the ’62 expansion Senators turned Rangers get a world title….another one down. Also happy for Nate, a bona fide Red Sox hero.
  12. bob burda

    What made Koji so great?

    I’d read something like this somewhere, that he did have unusual spin rates and it caused his fastball to jump or have “late life” as it got to the plate. He got many swings and misses on it. I don’t think you could chalk it up just to the batter not expecting it or being “caught in between” the...
  13. bob burda

    2023 LCS Game/Discussion Thread: Battle of Texas, Philly vs NL West WC Redux

    I like me some YED, and while everything else pales in comparison, I will admit that AED is growing on me.
  14. bob burda

    Nadir

    I’m sure being 15 had a lot to do with how terrible the ‘78 playoff game was for me, but it was more than just that game. Being only 2yrs into baseball consciousness as of ‘72, that particular season was a disappointing result but also the start of worse, which was the ‘74 collapse. Then ‘75...
  15. bob burda

    The Rose-Bud Incident: 1973 Pete Rose-Bud Harrelson playoff brawl

    Denny McLain....though he was always a bit of a bad boy (getting suspended for gambling as a player before turning to crime afterwards), it was a very long fall. I'll bet there are still people who would defend Rose, think he should be in the Hall, since he was Charlie Hustle, had the hits...
  16. bob burda

    Brooks Robinson has passed away

    I saw him play many times on TV in the early 70s, saw him live as a 7 and 8 yr old but I mostly only recall two Orioles guys with “ Robinson” on their backs w/different initials, and as little Sox fans we were being taught to fear them. Watching some of the highlight reels, the thing that gets...
  17. bob burda

    8/21 Beat the Astors

    There is no such thing as the Red Sox sweeping the Yankees and it being "nothing." It is glorious in seasons when they win 65 games, or 87 games or 100+ games.
  18. bob burda

    Just how good was Nomar Garciaparra?

    Except Schwarber will take a walk. He‘s a 3 true outcomes guy, while Kingman was only a 2 outof 3 true outcomes guy. Schwarber is also not a clubhouse cancer, supports other teammates, doesn’t harass female reporters for being female, doesn’t assault reporters by dumping a bucket of ice water...
  19. bob burda

    Just how good was Nomar Garciaparra?

    I want to give Nomar credit for one more after that; he starts the 9th inning rally off Mo Rivera (“Fruitbat”) in the famous July 24, 2004 “turning point” game (the Arod-Tek “we don’t throw at .260 hitters” brawl/Mueller walk off bomb for an 11-10 win). It is a big hit in a key win just a week...
  20. bob burda

    How Many of the Red Sox Managers of Your Lifetime do you have a Visceral Hatred for?

    It wasn’t just that, it’s well documented in Gammo’s book. There was a personality/generational/cultural clash between the two of them. Lee thrived again under Dick Williams who mostly only cared that you adhered to his basic direction and if you could help him win. This points up how Zimmer’s...