Official Red Sox 2007 Playoff Thread

[Mildcat]

Please, please, please Francona

DO NOT LET ERIC GAGNE THROW ANOTHER PITCH

granted, he wasn't the only one to blame tonight, but the guy has done absolutely NOTHING positive for the Red Sox

No Kidding!!! What the hell is Gag-me even doing on the playoff roster? I can't believe Francona left off Tavarez for this guy. Tavarez can be shaky but I feel he's earned a spot on the roster. He's pitched whatever role they ask him to and did ok. What has Gagne done? He's had one 1-2-3 inning since coming to the Sox.

 

[deadheadskier]

Come on now you can't blame him for what happened. It probably would have been better to have left him in. There was no big shots off of him. They really need to set up the fielding different when he pitches. The Sox had their chance in the ninth.

What do you mean you can't blame him? Did he give up all the runs? No, but the first two were his responsibility.

The guy has a 13.5 ERA in the playoffs

He had a 6.75 ERA with the sox during the regular season

Plan and simple, the guy has SUCKED since he's come to Boston and partly responsible for more losses for the team than wins. Last night was no exception.

 

[thetrailboss]

:blink: Whoa. What a loss last night...I turned it off at the right time...

 

[JimG.]

Cheer up Sox fans...your biggest ally right now is a long 7 game series. Win it 4 games to 3.

Because Colorado is going to sweep the D-backs and the only way you're going to beat the Rockies is if they cool off. Having to sit for a week after sweeping Arizona is the ticket for you.

If they keep on playing they're going to win it all.

 

[Paul]

Cheer up Sox fans...your biggest ally right now is a long 7 game series. Win it 4 games to 3.

Because Colorado is going to sweep the D-backs and the only way you're going to beat the Rockies is if they cool off. Having to sit for a week after sweeping Arizona is the ticket for you.

If they keep on playing they're going to win it all.

This is true.

Also, Gagne getting hit by a bus wouldn't hurt either....

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

Well i cant blame Gagne tonite, ummm bases loaded and no runs early in the game. Too many double plays hit into to. The redsox offense was to blame, if they cant score more than 2runs against the #3 starter well i dont know what to say. Dice K well he proved once again that he wasnt worth the money we paid him, giving up 2run HR's to a 40year old guy, geesh. Got our work cut out for us now gotta take 3/4.

 

[Paul]

Well i cant blame Gagne tonite, ummm bases loaded and no runs early in the game. Too many double plays hit into to. The redsox offense was to blame, if they cant score more than 2runs against the #3 starter well i dont know what to say. Dice K well he proved once again that he wasnt worth the money we paid him, giving up 2run HR's to a 40year old guy, geesh. Got our work cut out for us now gotta take 3/4.

Giving up 4 runs isn't the end of the world. Dice-K's biggest problem all year has been a lack of run support. He's doing about as well as can be expected given all the adjustments he has to make to the American game.

It was the giant, killer bugs.

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

Giving up 4 runs isn't the end of the world. Dice-K's biggest problem all year has been a lack of run support. He's doing about as well as can be expected given all the adjustments he has to make to the American game.

It was the giant, killer bugs.

Sorry, but I don't think Dice-K's biggest problem has been lack of run support. He's just having a problem adjusting to MLB's higher, and more demanding, level of play. He might adjust with a stricter training regime, or he'll turn out to be another Nomo. At any rate, I don't know who has more upside in a game for the rest of the playoffs, Dice-K or Gagne (seriously, I'm not trying to be sarcastic, for once).

Verducci at SI.com noted the following today:

"ALCS Game 3 left no doubt: Diasuke Matsuzaka hit the wall hard in his first major league season. With more starts, less rest and deeper lineups to contend with than he did in Japan, Matsuzaka has been a collosal late-season failure. Here is one way to measure his severe crash, postseason included, with Aug. 15 as the dividing line:


.............GS......W-L.....ERA.....Inn/GS.....WHIP......NP/9IP
Before.....24.....13-8......3.59.......6.6..........1.26.........150
After.......10..... 2-4.......7.07.......5.6..........1.61.........168"

 

[JimG.]

This is true.

Also, Gagne getting hit by a bus wouldn't hurt either....

That made me laugh.

Theo made no friends in Boston with that trade.

 

[JimG.]

I watched all 5 innings Dice-K pitched...a big problem is his rhythm. He has none.

He stands around too much and he seems unsure. He should speed up his delivery.

Andy Pettitte used to have this problem...he adjusted and increased his delivery pace. It makes a big difference.

 

[Paul]

I watched all 5 innings Dice-K pitched...a big problem is his rhythm. He has none.

He stands around too much and he seems unsure. He should speed up his delivery.

Andy Pettitte used to have this problem...he adjusted and increased his delivery pace. It makes a big difference.

Well if Lofton would gettinthedamnbox already!!!!!!:angry:

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

Wellllll the Sox are in some serious trouble, 3hr's in a row is great but they are just solo shots, nobody can get on base, cleveland is very pesky and just keeps chipping away until something good happens.. Look ive seen it before in 2004 with great comebacks, but going against CC in game 5 will be tough enough , then his counterpart in game 6 if it got that far.. Beckett hasnt been great on the road. I hate to say it and im pretty optimistic but i dont see it happening, i do not see the redsox winning 3 straight against this team, i just have a total bad vibe about things, put it in the books Jim and Puddles, Its Over!!!!!

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

Wellllll the Sox are in some serious trouble, 3hr's in a row is great but they are just solo shots, nobody can get on base, cleveland is very pesky and just keeps chipping away until something good happens.. Look ive seen it before in 2004 with great comebacks, but going against CC in game 5 will be tough enough , then his counterpart in game 6 if it got that far.. Beckett hasnt been great on the road. I hate to say it and im pretty optimistic but i dont see it happening, i do not see the redsox winning 3 straight against this team, i just have a total bad vibe about things, put it in the books Jim and Puddles, Its Over!!!!!

Never say never! But, if the Sox don't pull it out, can we stop referencing 2004? LOL.

Indians-Rockies. Who would have thunk it? Get ready for MEGA ratings. Could be an interesting series, though.

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

By the way, looks like a Sox player pulled an A-Rod and went slap-happy on his way to first base during an ALCS. Can we get this dude blue lipstick and a purse too?? Sweet, sweet redemption. I feel much better about '04 now....

 

[deadheadskier]

Can't do much but tip your hat to Cleveland's pitching. They shut down the best offense in the game in the Yankees and are now doing the same to Boston. They're a gritty, hungry young team playing very well. After 2004, I won't concede that it's over, but things certainly sure don't look good for the Sox right now.

 

[thetrailboss]

It was painful watching that game.....

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

By the way, looks like a Sox player pulled an A-Rod and went slap-happy on his way to first base during an ALCS. Can we get this dude blue lipstick and a purse too?? Sweet, sweet redemption. I feel much better about '04 now....

Thats exactly what i thought of too when i saw that, arods was a little more flagrant but ya he looked like he was slapping at the glove. You cant feel that much better about 04 until you beat the Sox in the playoffs again, its hard to live thru another team like the Indians, its much sweeter if you do it yourself in my opinion.. Its like in 04 if the redsox still won the world series but didnt play the Yankees id never hear the end of it on how if they played them they wouldnt have won the whole thing.. You gotta slay the dragon yourself for sweet redemption.

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

Can't do much but tip your hat to Cleveland's pitching. They shut down the best offense in the game in the Yankees and are now doing the same to Boston. They're a gritty, hungry young team playing very well. After 2004, I won't concede that it's over, but things certainly sure don't look good for the Sox right now.

If and this is a big if they could get it back to Boston, Schilling would pitch game 6, if i remember correctly he pitched a pretty good game 6 in NY in 04, Dice for game 7 though, uggg id rather throw tavares in there or something.

 

[KingM]

I think we've got a decent chance of winning game five, and then it's back to Boston, where anything can happen. It's not over yet, although it's looking grim.

It's simply painful to watch Dice-K pitch. Each at bat is a major ordeal, each inning survived feels like a miracle. I feel bad because I like the guy--I even have a Matsuzake t-shirt--but he's just not getting it done.

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

Thats exactly what i thought of too when i saw that, arods was a little more flagrant but ya he looked like he was slapping at the glove. You cant feel that much better about 04 until you beat the Sox in the playoffs again, its hard to live thru another team like the Indians, its much sweeter if you do it yourself in my opinion.. Its like in 04 if the redsox still won the world series but didnt play the Yankees id never hear the end of it on how if they played them they wouldnt have won the whole thing.. You gotta slay the dragon yourself for sweet redemption.

All true. All true. Even when what you say happens and the Yankees dispatch the Red Sox in the playoffs en route to another World Championship, people will talk about 2004. I admit it. I'm happy to be a Yankees fan, and 1996-2000 was very special, but it'd be nice to have a good memory like the 2004 comeback. Call me a greedy Yankees fan that's bad for baseball, I guess.

I was talking more about A-Rod's little brain fart in Game 6 when he swatted Arroyo. After all the holier than thou comments I got from friends of mine that are Red Sox fans (yes, it's true, I do have such friends), I'm just happy that a Red Sox player did the same thing.

Actually, if you look at the replay, the dude slapped with two hands, not just one, so I guess that makes him 2x as wussy as A-Rod. LOL.