9/28/04 at Devil Rays W 10-8 11 innings

This team has heart. No one can question that. Our starting pitcher gave up 4 runs in the first two innings? No problem. We can score 4 back. We tied the game and our starter gave up another? No problem, we'll score 2. They don't ever give up. They feel like they can put up whatever the numbers of runs that are needed on any given night. It's not true of course, but they are right more often than not.

How huge is David Ortiz? He could very easily end the season with 50 doubles on top of his 40 homers and what is to be certain more than his current 135 RBI's. This is a guy that was carrying this team on his back after the All-Star game. Manny was sick and hurt, when he got back he was slumping. Francona decided to swap lineup positions between them (a move I did not like at the time), and within the week, Manny had broken out of his slump, and was carrying the offense himself. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect on Papi. He dropped from a scorching .365 in June to just .259 in August. Did you hear him complain? Of course not. This guy is a pro, and an honest-to-goodness team player.

Derek Lowe is finished. Whatever his problem is, he very obviously not get it corrected this season. Likely he will not get it fixed with the Red Sox. I can't imagine them shelling out anything near to what he will want for a contract in the off-season. I remember watching the Braves-Sox game on July 4th. The Sox had spotted him to a 4 run lead in the 3rd inning. He had done a nice job of setting down the first two frames. I was on the phone with my sister, and I remember telling her: "The telltale sign here is how he can handle pitching with a lead". He gave up a run in the third, and struggled to get out of the fourth, and then the floodgates opened in the fifth. He managed to get only one out in that inning (a FC hit by the pitcher). When Jimmy Anderson finally got the third out of the inning, the Sox trailed 10-4.

Don't get me wrong, at one point he had a nice stretch. In August he posted a 3-1 record in five starts with a 4.19 ERA. But he only managed to pitch 34 1/3 innings over that period. For a guy considered to be your 3rd starter, that's just not good enough. At this point, the way he's pitching, I don't even think you can put him on the playoff roster. If you do, he's got to be a long reliever and nothing else. This guy can not be allowed to pitch if the game is on the line - period.

Look for Pedro to bounce back with a big performance tonight in Tampa. Everyone has made such a big deal about the "Yankees are my daddy" comment, I think he'll be out to prove it was meaningless. The hilarious thing about that comment and all the garbage media coverage about it - AT LEAST HE DIDN'T PUNCH A WALL AND BREAK HIS HAND! Get over it. He was shaking it off, nothing more. What would you rather see; an off-the-cuff remark, and a complete tirade. I think it means nothing. I hope it means in the same situation, he'll be lifted after 7.