The Crowd Bows Down to Belichick

Is it just me or do other people think it is funny how much deference NFL draft analysts now give New England Coach Bill Belichick and Personnel Director Scott Pioli? On Saturday, you could look far and wide, but almost no print or broadcast analysts were willing to criticize the Patriots brain trust for selecting Fresno State tackle Logan Mankins at the end of the first round, even though Mankins was considered by many to be a prospective third rounder. Other teams would have been vilified for selecting Mankins, especially by NFL draft guru Mel Kiper who usually takes teams to task for reaching in the first two rounds. But Kiper was silent early Saturday evening when Mankins name was called, and the thought here is Kiper, along with other draft analysts, is leery of challenging anything that Belichick and Pioli touch. My sense is Pioli and Bells have nailed so many home runs in the past that analysts no longer have the confidence or the balls necessary to challenge their primary picks. After all, these are the guys who found Brady in the sixth round, starting center Dan Koppen in the fifth round and starting receiver David Givens in the seventh round. With that kind of track record, who is to say that Mankins won’t be playing in Hawaii within a couple years?

These thoughts must have been racing through Kiper’s head as he tripped over the English language explaining how Mankins was a safe and defensible pick. After searching the literature, the only mainstream guy I have seen criticize the pick is Kevin Mannix of the Boston Herald who noted that Mankins could have probably been nabbed a round later. Mannix may be right, but I am going to side with the crowd and cut Belichick some deserved slack here. I think Coach B looks at the draft a little different then others do. He clearly is looking for people who can fit into his system and perhaps Mankins was just a perfect fit. There were a slew of talented people still on the board when the Pats picked, like corner Justin Miller from Clemson and Florida linebacker Channing Crowder, but both of these kids had rap sheets and that just doesn’t cut it with Belichick. As for Mankins, he had a strong endorsement from Fresno State coach Pat Hill and that probably goes a long way with Belichick since the two used to coach together. I will be the first to admit I too was a bit surprised by the pick even though the Pats needed an interior lineman. But that is not to say I am disappointed. Given the Pats recent history, Mankins will most likely turn out to be a very good player. But just as importantly, I have every confidence that somebody picked in the later rounds will also turn out to be a stud. I have given up trying to second guess Belichick. That is what happens when a guy wins three Super Bowls in four years. It buys him some deference, even from this lifelong cynic.

Here are a couple of other thoughts on the Pats and their 2005 draft. First off, this may be a bit of a stretch, but I am a bit more confident today that Teddy Bruschi will be back on the field this year. I say this because the Pats hardly lifted a finger to select an inside backer to help fill what could be a gaping hole in the middle this fall. Sure, inside linebacker Ryan Claridge was selected out of Vegas in the fifth round, but that is not exactly the kind of commitment I would have expected if the front office was convinced Teddy is through playing. The counter to this argument is Belichick never sees anything he likes at linebacker and that is why none were selected until Claridge was picked. That may be so and it is also possible that Belichick will address this need with a veteran free agent signing (Chad Brown?), but if I had to guess, I would say it is no longer a slam dunk that Bruschi sits out. I still don’t think the odds that number 54 will play this year are great, but they are incrementally improving, at least in my mind.

This is something I have come to expect, but there is a common thread that runs through all of the Patriots top five selections. If you scan the bios published by Scout Inc. each pick is described in the same general terms. All are considered hard working, all are considered versatile and intelligent, all have a mean streak and most are considered to be very physical. It has become cliché to say it, but it is clear that Belichick and Pioli consider these characteristics to be every bit as important as speed and agility. Another thing I find interesting is two players this year were selected from Fresno State, which as I mentioned before, is coached by Belichick’s old buddy Pat Hill. Bill used to select a ton of guys out of LSU when his friend Nick Saban was coaching down there and this year, he moved west and invaded another friend’s stable. It is clear to me that Belichick has an inner circle that he trusts very much, especially in the area of talent evaluation, and it is also clear to me that if a player gets an endorsement from someone in this circle, he stands a good chance of ending up in New England. It should also be noted that no LSU players were selected by the Pats this year, perhaps because Saban turned off the faucet the minute he left school and became coach of the Patriots rival down in Florida.

Brady Bombs on Broadway

Tom Brady hosted Saturday Night Live this week and the results were a bit on the shaky side as the writers forced him to play with a dreadful game plan. The writing was truly awful and making Tom play with Rachel Dratch and Amy Poehler is a bit like making him play in the Super Bowl with backup Cedric Cobbs at running back and some receivers off the extended practice squad. Heck, there were certainly no Will Ferrell’s or Chris Farley’s out there to protect Brady’s backside or get deep down the field for some big laughs. The game started off alright as Brady’s opening monologue was decent and showed off some decent skills. It wasn’t a touchdown drive, but I’ll give him three points for his dance moves. He followed that up with a skit that featured him as a guy who couldn’t throw a football threw a hole at an amusement park. Again, it was not horrible, but it was certainly nothing to get too excited about. I’ll be generous and say Vinaterri nailed a long one for Tom to get another three on the board. What followed was real ugly. There was a horrific skit with Rachal Dratch where Tom and her pretended to be a couple receiving some counseling from Dr. Phil. This was a BOMB and therefore I am giving this TD to the opposition. What followed was a ridiculous cameo where Tom played a lost hiker in a moronic skit about a guy who was half man and half falcon. Since it was just a cameo, I am only going to award three points to Tom’s opponent. So at halftime, Brady is only down 10-6.

The second half opened with Tom having to scramble for his life in an atrocious skit promoting a fictitious Middle Eastern restaurant in South Jersey. This was clearly a touchdown for the defense. But just when you thought it couldn’t get worse, the game was broken open when Tom had to play a character who was struggling with the decision of whether to get married. The skit ended in an Amy Poehler fumble which led to a touchdown and a two point conversion. Adding insult to injury was another “Behind the Music” sketch where Brady played Jim MacMahon of the 1985 Bears. It wasn’t a disaster but Brady was sacked in the end zone for a safety. The game ended with Brady getting a meaningless three off a skit that featured an impression of Peyton and Donovan, but it wasn’t nearly enough to win or cover the spread. The final score: 27-9. That certainly isn’t a victory and I have to admit I was expecting a bit better performance. But again, he was weighed down by poor surrounding talent and a terrible game plan. Other athletes – such as Nancy Kerrigan, Marvin Hagler and Wayne Gretzky – had no such liabilities when they appeared and that is why I am not ready to put Brady’s performance at the bottom of the SNL scrap heap. He did not shine, but we are not talking about Tony Eason in the 1985 Super Bowl here. No, I am going to cut Tom some slack here and say his performance was more like Scott Zolak’s 21 of 44 in the Patriots 25-10 wildcard loss to Jacksonville in 1998.

Have The Sox Solved Their "Lefty" Problem?

It is no secret that in recent years, the Red Sox have been particularly vulnerable to lefties. Whether it was Sox killer Andy Pettitte, Jays southpaw Ted Lilly or youngsters like Scott Kazmir and Bobby Mardritsch, Boston has struggled mightily against lefthanders. It is too early to make a definitive judgment, but there is reason to hope that the 2005 Sox will enjoy more success against lefties than Sox teams from past years. I say this for a few reasons, the most important of which may be the addition of Edgar Renteria. In case anyone forgot, Nomar had an absolutely miserable time hitting lefties in 2004, hitting just .240 and slugging .370. Now to be fair, OC was passable against lefties, but Pokey was a disaster, much like Nomie. You may have some criticisms of Renteria, like the fact that he doesn’t walk a whole lot, but one thing you cannot say is he punks out against southpaws. In 2004, he slugged .550 against lefties and since 1997, his OPS is about 100 points higher against lefties than right-handers. Renteria showed some of his skill against southpaws last Thursday when he took Randy Johnson yard. I wouldn’t try drawing too much from that at bat, but it is clear that this guy can and will hit lefties, and good ones at that. The other marked change that could pay dividends is the acquisition of Jay Payton and the recognition that Trot just should not be out there against southpaws. For some reason, Trot just can’t get it done against lefties, as evidenced by some woeful number in 2004 and historic numbers that are not so hot either. Well, in comes Payton who actually has a pretty nice resume against lefties. Since 1997, Payton’s OPS versus lefties is a respectable .818, which is more than fifty points higher than his OPS versus right-handers. More importantly, that .818 number is almost 200 points higher than Trot’s over the same time period. As such, there is almost no way someone can justify playing Nixon ahead of Payton when a lefty is on the mound. The last point worth making on this subject is that the Sox cause against lefties would sure be helped if Billy Mueller could return to his 2003 form when hitting right-handed. He was miserable hitting right-handed last year and the Sox need him to bump up his production against lefties. He drew some walks today, but Billy M needs to start parking some balls off that wall. So how did my theory work out today against Scott Kazmir. Well, I cannot exactly claim victory since the Sox only put up three runs against Kazmir in five innings, but that sure beats the two outings the Sox had against Scott in 2004. As for my boys, Renteria jacked one and Payton had a single that scored two. It is too early to call my theory bulletproof, but I like some of the early data points.

Did Tito Catch Bruschi's Stroke?

Is it possible that two Boston sports figures suffered mild strokes in the past few months. I am well aware that Teddy Bruschi had some sort of aneurysm, but did Terry Francona suffer one as well? It sure seemed like it last night when Francona did everything in his power to convince me that his recent viral infection caused some sort of ancillary brain damage. What else could explain Tito’s decision to leave Curt Schiiling in a 2-2 game after he had thrown ninety plus pitches in his first game of the year. What was so important about last night’s game that Francona felt a need to press his ace to his limit? It made no sense whatsoever. Francona played last night’s game like it was game 2 of the ALCS when if fact was just the eighth game of the year. He got five innings and 90 pitches out of Schilling and that is about all he could have expected. So why did he trot him out in the Sixth and once he gave up a hit, why was Curt not lifted? I cannot answer that question.

As for Schilling, I thought he threw a fine game through five, albeit one that was not exactly pitch efficient. He seemed aggressive by coming out and throwing strikes from the get go, constantly getting ahead of Yankee hitters. The only problem I saw was Yankee hitters were fouling off pitches all night, thus driving up the pitch count. Schilling was around the plate early and often, but he lacked an out pitch and that probably ended up costing him twenty additional pitches. I am confident that splitter will come so I am not exactly ready to press the panic button yet.

As for the rest of the game, I thought it was basically lost in the bottom of the third when Jaret Wright couldn’t find the dish with a map of Fenway yet the Sox were only able to plate a single run. When David Ortiz is up there and its bases loaded with one out, you gotta think you are going to get more then a single run. But Ortiz was only able to lob a soft fly to Matsui and Renteria was unable to come up with the big two out hit. Had the Sox come up with another hit in that frame, the game would have been played on different terms.

The New Schedule Is Out, The New Schedule Is Out!

It is always tough to predict the difficulty of an NFL schedule ahead of time, but at first glance, it looks like the Patriots will have a challenging yet navigable road to a three-peat. While we knew the opponents and the sites months ago, it wasn’t until yesterday that the official NFL schedule was released. Upon review, there is no reason to sound any alarms, but the Pats have a seemingly difficult road ahead, especially early on. Opening up at home against Oakland is nothing to get excited about, but I sure wish this cupcake came later and could used as a respite to break up a tough stretch. After Oakland departs, the Pats have a very tough stretch that includes games at Carolina, at Pittsburgh, at home with San Diego and then at Atlanta. This stretch features two teams in last year’s final four, a powerhouse in the making, and a Panther team that was as hot as anyone during the second half of last season. That game at Pittsburgh looks particularly precarious given how last year ended for the Steelers. With that said, I would be surprised if the Pats are better then 3-2 at this point. Optimists can hope for four wins, but three seems more likelyto this cat. From there, the team heads to Denver, which was a cemetery for the Pats up until the 2003 Miracle on Monday night. But the Broncos are on a slippery slope to nowhere so I am banking on that as a win and the Pats going into a well-placed bye-week with a 4-2 record. Coming out of the bye, the Pats have Buffalo and Indy at home. I would have preferred the Colts game a bit later in the year, just to tilt the scales a bit more, but does it really matter when Belichek plays either of these guys, especially at the Razor? That is a rhetorical question. So I am looking for a 6-2 record in the first half and that looks pretty doable.

In the second half, things look a bit smoother, although there are five division games on tap, including two against the Jets within five weeks of each other. Playing at Kansas City is never easy, but the scheduling gods are keeping the Pats in the Northeast for every game after Thanksgiving and that always bodes well for a strong finish. That penultimate game at the Meadowlands looks like a tough spot and playing at Buffalo in December is never easy, but I don’t see why the Pats cannot go 7-1 in the back half. As such, I am looking for something along the lines of 13-3, with 12-4 more likely than 14-2.

A thirteen win season with a victory over Indy should get the boys a first round bye and that is critical. Getting both Indy and San Diego at home is nice as far as tie-breakers go, although that road game at Pittsburgh offsets some of the good fortune. Other positives include avoiding Jacksonville and Cleveland. I feel the Jags are an up and comer, while I didn’t want to get hit with all that Romeo squares off his against his old team garbage. Also, there are no road games to the Pacific Time Zone. Last year, KC was our longest fight and this year it is Denver. It could have been a whole lot more taxing having to make trips to Oakland and SD. Lastly, going to Miami in November instead of September is a nice changeup since it spares the Pats from that late summer humidity.

It should be noted that while penning this piece, I felt like a talk show host that has nothing else to discuss. All talk of the season ahead is a bit premature until we see the draft and get a look into pre-season. A few injuries here and a few injuries there, and this entire slate of predictions falls by the wayside. Hell, if Bruschi sits out, as I expect, and a couple of guys get banged up, wins at Denver and at home against Buffalo and San Diego are far from certain. About the only thing I can be certain about is that come hell or highwater, the Pats will beat Peyton on November 7th. You can bank on that!

The Knucklehaed Has New York's Number

David Ortiz gets all the attention as the great Yankee killer on Boston’s twenty-five man roster but perhaps it is time to start recognizing the guy who really has the Yankees number. Of course I am talking about Tim Wakefield who has been absolutely lights out against the Yankees since the 2003 ALCS. Here are the numbers in case you need a little refresher. In the 2003 ALCS, Wakefield would have been series MVP had Grady Little not crapped the bed in the eighth inning of game 7. Lest you forget, Wakefield won two games in that series, each over Mike Mussina, and had given up only three earned runs in 14 innings before Arron Boone won the lottery in the 11th inning of game 7. Since that inglorious moment, it has been all Wakefield. In 2004, Wakes was 1-0 in three starts against the Yanks with an era of 1.82. He then absolutely shut them down for three critical innings in game five of the ALCS when the Sox had absolutely exhausted their pen. And this year, Wakes has pitched great in two starts against the Yanks, winning yesterday's game and befuddling the Yanks over six and change last Wednesday. When it is all pieced together, Wakefield’s record against the Yanks is nothing short of outstanding. For some reason or another, they just can’t figure him out. Jeter hangs in tough against Wakefield, but guys like Matsui, Giambi, Arod and Bernie are helpless against the old man. He has the Yankees number and so long as he does, the Sox have a very important advantage in a head-to-head matchup with the Yanks. If this Knucklehead could pitch half as well against the rest of the league as he does New York, the Sox would have the makings of a decent staff.

Raising the Flag

There is a line from Fever Pitch where a young kid asks Jimmy Fallon the following question: “You have always loved the Red Sox, but have they ever loved you back?” I can’t speak for Jimmy Fallon, but after thirty years of being largely teased by the Olde Towne Team, the Sox finally showed me some love yesterday afternoon at Fenway Park. While I was too cheap to spend the $500 to attend, I was able to watch all the yesterday’s festivities via NESN, and let me tell you, I now regret my decision to stay at home. That is because yesterday was a historic day for Red Sox fans and one that can never be repeated. There may be championship ring ceremonies in the future, and hopefully in the not too distant future, but there will never be a ceremony like yesterday. It is just not possible since yesterday was more than just a day to honor last year’s world champions. It was a day of cleansing and redemption and reflection. For me, it was a day to savor the past. Not just the past twelve months and the miracle of last October, but a past that spans almost thirty years. After all, I fell in love with this chick in October of 1975 and have been stalking her ever since. Wherever she has gone, I have followed. Over the years, she has teased me to the point of insanity, but yesterday was different. Yesterday she stopped, kissed me on the lips and invited me up to her bedroom. My days of stalking this girl are finally over.

I have to admit that yesterday was an emotional day for me and I will concede that I had a hard time keeping my shit together when Johnny Pesky, Derrick Lowe and Dave Roberts were handed their championship rings. Why was I so moved by these three incidents? Well, the case of Johnny Pesky is pretty obvious - isn’t it? Pesky is the Boston Red Sox. He has been with the organization since the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Heck he played with Double X and just narrowly missed out on playing shortstop behind Lefty Grove. When I picked up this team in 75, Pesky had already served a lifetime sentence and what followed was another 30 year sentence filled with torture. How can you not get a little chocked up seeing an innocent man pardoned after serving 60 years in Hell? I, for one, will always remember the scene of Pesky getting his ring and then being embraced by each and every member of the 2004 team. I say this because Pesky is a symbol of Red Sox fans everywhere. He has been there since day one, pouring his life into this organization. When players were embracing him, they were basically saying this one is for you Johnny, and in doing so, they were saying this one is for an entire nation of psychotic fans who have always stuck by this team.

While Pesky was the highlight, I was also moved the moment that Derrick Lowe was introduced. I am not entirely sure why since I was never a huge fan of Lowe as a player, but perhaps it was because I always thought he was a great guy who was ruthlessly castigated by both the fans and the media. There were times when Lowe drove me crazy but I always felt this guy wanted to win a championship and I have long felt that last year’s championship meant as much to him as anyone on that twenty-five man roster. With that said, I thought it was great that he was able to come back and participate in yesterday’s festivities. Some cynics may argue that Lowe only returned because he can’t pass up a good party, but I disagree. I think Lowe came back, in part, to clear the air with Red Sox fans and this is what ended up happening. By coming back, Lowe basically said he had no hard feelings for all the abuse he took, and judging from the applause he received upon being introduced, it is clear that Red Sox fans now appreciate his contribution to the cause. To me, it was almost like watching a child reconciling with his estranged father and all is now forgiven.

The last moment that I thought was pretty memorable came when Dave Roberts was introduced. Little Dave Roberts did nothing less than save the season and it was good to see him rightfully adored. I kind of expected this would happen, but it was good to see someone other than David Ortiz or Curt Schilling showered with applause. Roberts, like so many others, played a huge roll in last October’s miracle and I am glad that Sox fans duly recognized this contribution with a thunderous ovation.

I only have two complaints with yesterday, and the second is really more a question then a critique. First off, who decided that it was a good idea to have some guy singing a tortured song during the raising of the 2004 championship flag? The song was simply dreadful and the singer lacked any skill whatsoever. It was not a highlight. My other question is why Tom Brady wasn’t available to throw out the first pitch. In case you missed it, Rill Russell, Bobby Orr, Teddy Bruschi and Richard Seymour were brought in to throw on the first pitches. Bruschi has some sentimental appeal and both he and Seymour are cornerstones on the three-time world champion Patriots, but let’s be honest here – neither has a place reserved on the Mount Rushmore of Boston sports heroes. Brady’s face is already being carved into that stone and I found it curious why he wasn’t out there yesterday.

Hung Over Or Just Plain Drunk?

Are the Red Sox hung over from the off-season or were they just flat out drunk this weekend? Judging from recent evidence collected in Toronto, I am leaning towards the latter. I say this because the Sox were stumbling all weekend against the lowly Jays and it sure looked to me like their collective blood alcohol was above what is permissible under Massachusetts state traffic law. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say the guys started boozing around 8:30 EST on Friday and by the time Mike Timlin gave up the game winner on Sunday afternoon, the hometown boys were three sheets to the wind. Wells was flat out housed on Saturday, while Kevin Millar and Mark Belhorn were doing Dudley Moore impressions all weekend. Manny seemed to sober up a bit on Sunday, but his senseless steal of third in the seventh proved he wasn’t quite ready to get behind the wheel. And please don’t get me started with the drunk bastards in the pen. Now I know what they do to kill time out there.

There is no sugar coating this weekend – it was ugly with a capital U. It all started on Friday night when Keith Foulke entered the game and started handing out singles like they were souvenir bobbleheads and everyone in the Jays lineup was entitled to one. In case you missed it, Foulke came in with a three run lead and the softest save opportunity he will ever see, but then gave up two runs and ended up loading the bases before getting the final out. It was about as pretty as watching the fat chick from Heart (Ann Wilson) try squeezing into a string bikini. Foulke was helpless out there of Friday night, looking like anything but the guy who shut down the evil empire last year.

Foulke wasn’t the only stumbling drunk out there this weekend. Mark Belhorn was waving at everything under the roof, Kevin Millar proved the Yankee series was a fluke and David Wells showed why he should be working in a Baghdad bomb factory. Wells gave up three jacks in four minutes on Saturday and that clearly is not a good sign for a guy who has had trouble over his career keeping the ball out of the bleachers. With an ERA of almost nine over Wells first two starts, is it too early to ask whether the Sox should have saved some money and gone with Frank Castillo or Pedro Astacio instead of Orson. Probably so, but with three more poor starts, the people in Boston are going to begin wondering if number three is a Yankee plant. Meanwhile, Millar had a 1-11 weekend after being a tough out at Yankee Stadium earlier in the week. Making matters worse, as per usual, Millar had some very unproductive outs when runners had to be moved. This is typical Millar, but just because its customary, doesn’t make it more appetizing. Has this guy ever hit it to the right side with a runner on second and no outs? If anyone can answer this in the affirmative, please point me in the right direction.

Can you believe that Mark Belhorn has already struck out eleven times this year? That is not a misprint. ELEVEN TIMES! That is 11 K’s in six games and it puts him on pace to easily shatter the Adam Dunn’s year old record. Last year, Belhorn earned some points for his run production and his walks, but such virtues have not shown up in the early stages of 2005. He has no walks or RBI’s over the season’s first week and he looks a lot like the player who was almost benched before he warmed up and hit that big dong in game six of the ALCS last year. The word coming out of Spring Training this year was Belhorn was going to be more aggressive in 2005, hoping to avoid taking so many strikes early and thus reducing his exposure to unfavorable counts. I have no confidence that this strategy will pay any dividends whatsoever since Belhorn is just as prone to rack up strikes swinging as he does taking pitches. I probably asked this question 112 times last year, but it bears repeating: have you ever seen a guy swing and miss pitches as badly as Belhorn?

I am not going to dwell only on the negatives today and therefore I would like to point out that Bronson Arroyo and David Ortiz must have been appointed as designated drivers while the rest of the team boozed it up this weekend. Ortiz was typical Papi, hitting that game tying bomb on Saturday to pull the Sox even. The only spot on Papi’s resume this weekend came on Sunday when he failed to knock in Manny from third with two outs in the 8th. I have become so used to Papi coming through in such spots that I was speechless when Ortiz popped out to end that inning. Meanwhile, Arroyo was very good on Friday night, throwing six very strong innings. The one thing you can say about Brandon is he has balls. Last year, he proved his worth by wearing those corn rows, shutting down the Angles and plunking the purse snatcher. Friday night, he showed the spine necessary to throw inside early in the count and come back later with breaking stuff when he is on the wrong side of the count. His slider to right-handers is more then passable and his backdoor curve to lefties was very effective Friday night. I don’t care how the staff sorts itself out – this guy deserves a spot in the rotation.

Bring Out the Gimp!

Folks, I am not a religious scholar but I think on Wednesday, we witnessed the fourth sign of the apocalypse. I can’t be sure, but I seem to recall an obscure part of the bible says the world will end when Yankee fans turn on one of their most beloved heroes. Well, that event happened this week so if the best-selling tabloid is correct, our days on this earth are numbered.

What we saw Wednesday in the Bronx was surreal and perhaps historic. I didn’t think I would live to see it, but we saw Yankee legend Mariano Rivera booed in front of the hometown folks at Yankee Stadium. That bears repeating. THE GIMP WAS BOOED AT YANKEE STADIUM! Are you kidding me? This is not Paul O’Neil. This is not Roger Clemens or Andy Petitte. This is Mary Rivera. This is the big guy. This is the cornerstone of the core. This is the difference-maker. This is the Godfather of Gimps for gods sake. But none of that mattered at 4: 21 EST in the Bronx Wednesday when a chorus of boos came cascading down on Mariano as he trudged off the mound, battered and bruised once again at the hands of the Red Sox. Fans sporting Boston lids probably contributed the lionshare of the chatter, but it was clear from the replay that many Yankee fans were willing accomplices.

So what is going on here? Clearly, the Sox have his number. I realize the 13th Amendment to the Constitution bans slavery and involuntary servitude, but the Sox own this guy. Pure and simple – Mary is the Sox bitch. The Yankees may be Pedro’s daddy, but the Sox are the dominatrix that leads Mary around the dungeon on a leash. Before you take issue with that comment, you may want to take a look at the recent history of this one-sided relationship. The Sox have gotten to him six times since last July and he has blown his last four save opportunities against his nemesis. Six is not a coincidence. Six is ownership. In fact, upon consideration, calling Mo a bitch may be a bit too generous.

The big question now is whether Mo’s problems will continue against the rest of the league. After all, he is 35 and relievers are prone to fall off cliffs, especially after they pass the five touchdown mark. And judging from what we saw this week, that cliff doesn’t seem too far off. Listen, I don’t expect Mo to become Bob Wickman or Uggy Urbina overnight. He probably still has enough in the tank to be a steady closer, but that is no longer a certainty. The fact is Mo is like Maverick in Top Gun. That accident in Game 4 of last year’s ALCS shook him up, much like Goose’s death threw Maverick for a loop. As a result of that mishap, Mo now lacks confidence and the willingness to engage. He may get his game back, much like Maverick did, but Yankee fans should be warned that real life does not always unfold like a Jerry Bruckheimer film. In real life, the MIG’s sometime shoot straight. Mariano found that out four times last year and twice again this week.

Pauly's Propaganda

The Yankee TV crew was in rare form this week as the Sox came to town. And becasue it is a special occasion, Paulie O’Neil was flown in from Ohio to offer his two jaded and worthless cents. O’Neil was a nice ball player but he is nothing short of a pinstripe propagandist in the booth. He is a modern day Joe Goebbles, who in case you forgot, was the spokesman for the twentieth century’s other evil empire. O’Neil just cannot help himself from praising his old Yankee mates and apologizing for any and all of their mistakes. When Mariano Rivera blew a save yesterday, O’Neil nearly choked as he was coughing up excuses for the gimp. Paulie basically calls a game much like a thirteen year adoring kid would call a game. His comments are so laden with adulation that you might think the comments were coming from an autograph seeker and not a former player. Case in point - just now - Tino hits a deep fly to left and Pauly screams "GET OUT OF HERE!" Is that professional? Maybe in Latin America and dogpatch USA it is, but that isn't quite up Sculley-esque. Not only that, but Paulina cannot compliment a single player in baseball without parsing it with some sort of deference for a Yankee. Case in point, Paulie could never talk up Miguel Tejada too aggressively since that could be construed to mean there is a MLB shortstop that may be better than Mr. Jeter. It is bad enough that we have to stomach Mike Kay’s thinly veiled nonsense for 130-140 games a year, but O’Neil is just too much for my stomach lining to absorb. I guess if could be worse though. If Steinbrenner really wanted to kill me he would bring that other right-fielder into the booth. You know the guy – he wore number forty four.

Do I See a Silver Lining in that 4-3 Loss?

It was a pretty bleak in the Bronx this afternoon but there was a silver lining and it came in the form of a Jason Varitek bomb off Mariano Rivera. While the Red Sox went down 4-3 to the Yanks, Tek’s ninth inning blast off Rivera was confirmation that the Sox have taken ownership of the great Mariano. And if the game tying blast wasn’t enough to prove the thesis, Billy Mueller followed with a sharp single and Johnny Damon came about four feet short of planting a two-run tree in the right field seats. It is pretty clear for all to see that the Sox no longer fear Mr. Rivera. They knocked him around twice during last year’s regular season and who can forget game 4 of the ALCS. If you throw today’s game in the mix, the Sox have gotten to Rivera five times since July 1st of last year. That amounts to domination in this day and age.

Rivera’s struggles stem from the fact that Boston’s lefties are perfectly comfortable standing in on Rivera’s cutter. That pitch has dogged hitters for a decade, but the Sox are just opening up their stances and having no trouble pulling the ball. If I were the Sox, I would send out a missive to the league, with a video attachment, demonstrating how it is done. Clearly, the Sox have the recipe and it now needs to be disseminated. Who knows, if the secret is finally out, the Yankees have a problem that they had not contemplated. Moreover, it is a problem that cannot be fixed with all the money in the world. If the Sox had to lose a game to find this out, it was well worth the cost.

As for the rest of the game – it was fairly ugly and fairly typical of last May and June. There were plenty of base-runners and some ill-timed double plays. Trot proved once again that he is useless against lefties, even those lefties like Mike Stanton who are on loan from the March of Dimes. I wonder if Nixon could hit off 48 year old Bob Ojeda. Foulke pitched a solid eighth, but you got to question what he was doing throwing that cheese to Jeter with a full count in the ninth. That brings me to Clement who was a bit shy of mediocre. He pitched well in a couple of spots and his defense really let him down, but his control wasn’t great, as evidenced by three walks in four plus innings. Varitek was supposed to help with that but I guess we now know it will take some time.

Today’s big goat was Edgar Renteria who is off to quite a start in his new digs. Aside from going 0-4 with a key inning ending double play, our two-time gold glover muffed a sure double play that led to the Yanks big three run inning. He makes that routine play and its two outs with no one on. Post muff, its second and third with nobody out. Sheffield then grounded out, meaning the inning would have been over at that point had Renteria not flubbed the easy chance. So what happens next? Godzilla parks a two run Honda in the right field parking lot. So just like that the Sox are down 3-0. Edgar then had a shot at redemption in the sixth with one out and runners on first and second, but rather then deliver a big knock, he hit into an inning-ending double play. So in a nutshell, Renteria is 0-8 with one error and two other misplays in just two games. That isn’t exactly the way to make new friends. If Edgar takes a collar or boots one tomorrow, not even the fat kid in the corner is going to speak with Boston's forty million dollar man.

Tomorrow we throw Wakes against Moose in a rematch of games 1 and 4 of the 2003 ALCS. I don’t like the matchup at all and I am not sure why the Yanks are only minus 135. Shouldn’t you hve to pay at least 150 for a yanks win? The Sox will need the offense to come alive if they are going to avoid the sweep. You hear that Manny.

Get Off The Edge Or I'lll Thumb Your Eye Out!

Okay, folks, get off the ledge! It was a single game and the first of 162. There is no reason to panic. There is no reason to analyze. There is no cause to be concerned and tomorrow is not do-or-die. The Red Sox lost a game last night – big deal. Sure, it was against the Yankees and it would have been better had they not been skunked, but let’s not make this into something more than it was. After all, this was nothing more than Secretariat breaking slowly in the 1973 Belmont or Joan Benoit Samuelson stumbling 300 yards into the 1984 Olympic Marathon. Hell, the U.S. lost at Pearl Harbor 23-1 but that didn't compel surrender did it? .

Okay, so the Sox looked a bit flat and uninspired last night, but was this loss all that surprising? You had to be a bit on the crazy side to think this team, led by David Wells, was going to go into Yankee Stadium on Opening Night and beat a tough lefty like Randy Johnson. In case anyone forgot – the Sox haven’t hit a lefty in two years. They can’t hit the bad ones let alone Hall of Famers like Randy Johnson. You want evidence. How about some of last year’s massacres at the feet of Scott Kazmir, Bobby Mardisitch, and Ted Lilly? Heck, John Halama could probably make it through this lineup once before getting lit up. Lefties generally own this lineup and there was no reason to think that the King of all Southpaws was going to be any different. With that said, I actually came away a bit encouraged that the Sox got some good wood on a number of pitches. I didn’t think Johnson was nearly as impressive as the press is reporting, even though he did hold the sox to one run over six innings. I thought his control was a bit spotty and his velocity was a little light. Was he better than Wells – yes. Was he vintage Johnson – no. As an optimist, I will say right now that I didn’t see anything last night that confirms to me that Johnson is guaranteed to dominate this year.

The other thing I am hearing this morning is a ton of criticism aimed at David Wells. Guys, David Wells is not Steve Carlton. He is not Warren Spahn, He is not even Bruce Hurst. He is a 41 year old who had an era of 3.73 last season in a great pitchers park and in front of a solid defense. In otherwords, he is a bit better than the league average, but he is no ace. As such, it's time for some optimists to adjust their expectations. In the AL, I would be content with an ERA of anything under 4.25. That is all I ever hoped for and it's still what I currently expect. If Wells can hit this number, the Sox offense will hand him 15 wins. That is what happens when you hold teams to four runs and your team scores nearly six. That recipe works a good deal of the time and that is what Wells was brought in to do. But let's be frank - Wells is not a stopper, and hasn’t been for five years. But this shouldn’t be a surprise. In fact, Theo put it in the press release that went along with the signing. I will concede Wells didn’t do his part last night, largely because he couldn’t hit any of his spots, but I am not going to go crazy over one outing, especially since we are going to see plenty of this over the balance of the season. On some nights, the Sox will be able to bail Wells out, but there are going to be nights like Sunday where Wells takes a few loads off his chin. That is what he is – get used to it!

The other point some are making this morning concerns the Sox new shortstop. You are not going to hear me argue that this guy had a nice night because he obviously didn’t. Two poor plays and 0-4 at the plate is certainly not an impressive start. But calm down guys. Edgar has a good glove. I would probably take Cabrera’s leather, but Edgar can field and he has a lengthy track record to prove it. So give the guy another day or two before you throw him under the bus. I think his record of service merits a second chance. And while you’re backing off on Edgar – it might help to take some prozac and settle in for a long season.