Everything I feared today came true.
Another worthless, half-assed effort from the Red Sox today. They fell behind early, and they were dead. Don't be fooled by the three runs they scored in the seventh inning. It was over long before that. David Price even got knocked out of the game with an injury after four innings. It appeared to make no difference.
The Red Sox look like a team playing out the schedule. No life, no fire, no spark. These games mean more on the surface than it appears. The Rays may still have an uphill battle on their hands, but they look prepared for a fight. The Red Sox look like they care more about playing golf on September 29th.
Tim Wakefield should retire after the season. Forget that stupid team record for wins. He has nothing left, and shouldn't be in the rotation. There are fewer things sadder in sports as seeing a once-great athlete just hanging on to reach a number. I hope he retains his dignity and retires with honor this winter. The Sox miss Clay Buchholz and even Daisuke Matsuzaka very badly, as they have to trot out Wakefield, Kyle Weiland, John Lackey and Andrew Miller out there in their place, and it has really cost the Red Sox big time.
And again, don't take the Baltimore Orioles for patsies right now. They have played some good ball over the past ten days, and you know Buck Showalter will put out his A-team for this coming four game series. You know they will be motivated to stick it to the Sox this week, as the Red Sox have beaten them in all five meetings at Fenway this season. All the Red Sox have to do is take care of the Orioles, play good ball and it should work out for them. But what I've seen over the past three weeks, I'm not so sure of that happening.
Tomorrow's doubleheader starters for the Red Sox will be: Weiland and Lackey.
Bloody hell.
The Yankees can do the Red Sox a big favor by taking care of the Rays, as the Sox clearly can't seem to do it. They went 6-12 against Tampa Bay this season.
And BTW, don't believe any comparisons you might be hearing to what happened to the Red Sox in 1978. That season was a great late-season comeback by the Sox, as they won their last eight games as New York blew a 3 1/2 game lead with 12 games to go. It is more like 1974, when the Sox were 7 games up on August 23rd, and proceeded to go down the elevator shaft, losing 24 of their last 38 and finished in third place, seven games back.
1974 was far worse than 1978, but I have come to one conclusion as to why few fans remember 1974: the New York Yankees were not involved, as it was the Orioles who passed the Sox and won the division that year.
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