Bats are hot in Tampa Bay!

July 29, 2007 - Sunday

Bats are hot in Tampa Bay!

First...and most importantly: 9 Games Ahead. Impressive. Pat yourselves on the back, Men....hey, not too hard now, you know you must not be lulled into a false sense of security! :-) Stay hungry.

It's been a fantastic few days of baseball. Talent is just oozing from your sweaty pores - even in the climate-controlled dome. The bats are hot, no doubt about that. Even Willy Mo - a 3 run home run, an rbi double...4 out of 5 - against the Indians? And, I thought hell froze over with Lugo's GS. This was an unexpected surprise from you, Pena...ah, but then - there was the little snafu that cost Wake the near shut-out the next night...and your bat silent. Sorry, Willy Mo...quite frankly, one night does not a career make - and don't give me that: "If I played more, I'd get better" crap - we let you play, you're inconsistent. We can't let you play more if you're going to s*ck. That's the facts, Jack.

Am I too tough on Willy Mo? Po' Willy Mo....boo freakin' hoo. I don't know about you, but if I performed that poorly at my job, I'd be fired....and, I don't earn ten percent of what the Sox are paying him. Pardon me if I don't feel so badly for Mr. Pena. Trade deadline looms...and, I still say: "No Mo' Willy Mo!"

Quite sincerely - Curt, kudos for joining your team and not playing the prima donna role other pitchers (not mentioning any names, Rocket) fall into. Can't wait to see the "dominance" everyone's buzzing about.

Finally - I just want to say - I stayed up for the 12th inning win last night. Whoa. No one who didn't watch that entire game could ever comprehend the amazing power that brought in this particular win. Anyone reading the sports page this morning, glancing over the scores - "Oh, the Sox won last night, cool"...doesn't cut it. You'd have had to watch the process...the grueling frustration of losing the lead at the hand of Papelbon and the scoreless, excruciating extra innings. And then - I don't know what happened....whether it was some extra-ordinarily motivating pep talk from the batting coach, some wise words from Tito, perhaps someone in the dugout mentioned if they didn't hurry up and get this game over - they were going to miss "last call" - but, whatever motivates a team in this very unique and special way - is Ok with me. If I were Stokes, the only thing that would save my ego today - after walking in the winning run - is that they hit even more after that! Way to get the job done, Gentlemen...6 runs in the 12th. A bit overkill, but I like it....might as well make damn sure!

**As a side note: How can MLB/The press call this Papelbon's "first blown save since May 1?" I'm sorry, but I was there on June 3. I not only saw our young Jonathan throw the ball that A-Rod hit into the Bleachers, but I blogged about it. Am I missing something??

All in all...Thanks again for the great baseball. I'm just so proud of you guys. Keep up the great work.