k:
Not to jinx the Red Sox any more than they already are, but all signs point to this being Boston's year.
Any team that can outsmart Joe Torre, whip Mariano Rivera and Babe Ruth simultaneously, shut down and shut up Gary Sheffield and, with their backs to the Green Monster, beat the feared Yankees four straight has to win it all.
Absolutely has to.
The Red Sox have suffered enough for their sin of selling Ruth 84 years ago to finance Broadway plays. "No, No Nanette" closed three-quarters of a century ago. The Curse has to wear off sometime, no?
If Ruth still had any power left over the Red Sox, there's no way he lets the Yankees suffer the indignity of losing after being up 3-zip in games. Or, at the very least, he makes sure the Red Sox lose to the Astros of Roger "Twilight of His Career" Clemens or the Cubs of Nomar Garciaparra, Steve Bartman and the billy goat in the World Series. Now neither can happen.
St. Louis has no connection to Ruth and very little to do with the jinx, aside from helping to extend it in 1946 and 1967 by beating Boston in seven games in the World Series. St. Louis is a nice Midwestern city with nice Midwestern fans, any one of whom would be horrified by what goes on inside Boston's Animal House clubhouse.
What's going to happen on the field might not be pretty, either. Kevin Brown and Javy Vazquez will look like Hall of Famers after the Red Sox's relentless lineup gets through with Cardinals pitching. Speaking of Boston's hitters, one American League scout said, "They kill average pitching."
St. Louis has a staff full of that. The only thing above-average about the Cardinals' pitching is coach Dave Duncan, who coaxed nice years out of former Red Sox righthander Jeff Suppan (left off the playoff roster by Boston last year), Staten Island product Jason Marquis, Chris Carpenter (who's hurt) and Julian Tavarez, whose temper tantrum was child's play compared with Brown's.
That's not to say Boston's hurlers will be putting up a lot of zeroes, either, except maybe for its sutured-up ace, Curt Schilling. We have to give him credit for a valiant effort in ALCS Game 6, but if there are any sutures left over, will someone please stitch Schilling's mouth closed so we aren't subjected to his postgame proselytizing?
Pedro Martinez will do better than he did against the Yankees, partly because St. Louisans are too polite to chant, "Who's your daddy?"
It's a shame Martinez won't get to start Game 1 in Boston, thanks to Terry Francona's mindless whim to get him into the Yankee-crushing Game 7 party after otherwise outmanaging Torre. But this actually could be even better, because now Game 7 should be Pedro's. That would provide a fitting ending to a great pitching run overshadowed lately by his quirky diva qualities, such as arriving unfashionably late, saying nutty things and using an actual human being, the 29-inch Nelson de la Rosa, as a lucky charm.
There's nothing to suggest this won't be a slugfest from start to finish, though. The Cardinals have the NL's deepest lineup and Boston has the AL's, two more pieces of evidence to disprove the myth that pitching is somehow more important than hitting.
The Cardinals have been lighting up scoreboards all year. But Boston is just a little bit hotter, a little more imposing.
Johnny Damon seems to have gotten power from that hair of his. Manny Ramirez looks ready to break out. And David Ortiz is an impossible out right now.
Plus, they are all a little off-center, which they utilize to their advantage. If The Curse affected the mindsets of past Red Sox, this one obviously is feeling lucky.
The one and only bad sign for the Red Sox was a stray quote or two regarding what they'd just accomplished -- such as Tom Werner, the TV guy who's part of club ownership, telling the Boston Herald, "The World Series is great, but we've done something historic."
That, of course, is exactly the kind of wrong-headed thinking they have to guard against now. Assuming Werner was speaking only for their eggheaded ownership contingent (how about those yellow ear plugs John Henry wore during the champagne dousing?), they should take this in six wild games.
The Red Sox possess the hotter closer and the only two starters resembling aces, assuming Schilling still can stand upright and Martinez isn't permanently scarred from the abuse he took in the Bronx.
Everything's breaking Boston's way, including the interference call on noted slap hitter Alex Rodriguez.
If the Sox don't win it all this year, they should start scouring Fenway for ghosts. Maybe do a power washing of the lovely tenement they call home.
Because after what they've been through and done, everyone knows they deserve a title.
Jon Heyman, Newsday
Any team that can outsmart Joe Torre, whip Mariano Rivera and Babe Ruth simultaneously, shut down and shut up Gary Sheffield and, with their backs to the Green Monster, beat the feared Yankees four straight has to win it all.
Absolutely has to.
The Red Sox have suffered enough for their sin of selling Ruth 84 years ago to finance Broadway plays. "No, No Nanette" closed three-quarters of a century ago. The Curse has to wear off sometime, no?
If Ruth still had any power left over the Red Sox, there's no way he lets the Yankees suffer the indignity of losing after being up 3-zip in games. Or, at the very least, he makes sure the Red Sox lose to the Astros of Roger "Twilight of His Career" Clemens or the Cubs of Nomar Garciaparra, Steve Bartman and the billy goat in the World Series. Now neither can happen.
St. Louis has no connection to Ruth and very little to do with the jinx, aside from helping to extend it in 1946 and 1967 by beating Boston in seven games in the World Series. St. Louis is a nice Midwestern city with nice Midwestern fans, any one of whom would be horrified by what goes on inside Boston's Animal House clubhouse.
What's going to happen on the field might not be pretty, either. Kevin Brown and Javy Vazquez will look like Hall of Famers after the Red Sox's relentless lineup gets through with Cardinals pitching. Speaking of Boston's hitters, one American League scout said, "They kill average pitching."
St. Louis has a staff full of that. The only thing above-average about the Cardinals' pitching is coach Dave Duncan, who coaxed nice years out of former Red Sox righthander Jeff Suppan (left off the playoff roster by Boston last year), Staten Island product Jason Marquis, Chris Carpenter (who's hurt) and Julian Tavarez, whose temper tantrum was child's play compared with Brown's.
That's not to say Boston's hurlers will be putting up a lot of zeroes, either, except maybe for its sutured-up ace, Curt Schilling. We have to give him credit for a valiant effort in ALCS Game 6, but if there are any sutures left over, will someone please stitch Schilling's mouth closed so we aren't subjected to his postgame proselytizing?
Pedro Martinez will do better than he did against the Yankees, partly because St. Louisans are too polite to chant, "Who's your daddy?"
It's a shame Martinez won't get to start Game 1 in Boston, thanks to Terry Francona's mindless whim to get him into the Yankee-crushing Game 7 party after otherwise outmanaging Torre. But this actually could be even better, because now Game 7 should be Pedro's. That would provide a fitting ending to a great pitching run overshadowed lately by his quirky diva qualities, such as arriving unfashionably late, saying nutty things and using an actual human being, the 29-inch Nelson de la Rosa, as a lucky charm.
There's nothing to suggest this won't be a slugfest from start to finish, though. The Cardinals have the NL's deepest lineup and Boston has the AL's, two more pieces of evidence to disprove the myth that pitching is somehow more important than hitting.
The Cardinals have been lighting up scoreboards all year. But Boston is just a little bit hotter, a little more imposing.
Johnny Damon seems to have gotten power from that hair of his. Manny Ramirez looks ready to break out. And David Ortiz is an impossible out right now.
Plus, they are all a little off-center, which they utilize to their advantage. If The Curse affected the mindsets of past Red Sox, this one obviously is feeling lucky.
The one and only bad sign for the Red Sox was a stray quote or two regarding what they'd just accomplished -- such as Tom Werner, the TV guy who's part of club ownership, telling the Boston Herald, "The World Series is great, but we've done something historic."
That, of course, is exactly the kind of wrong-headed thinking they have to guard against now. Assuming Werner was speaking only for their eggheaded ownership contingent (how about those yellow ear plugs John Henry wore during the champagne dousing?), they should take this in six wild games.
The Red Sox possess the hotter closer and the only two starters resembling aces, assuming Schilling still can stand upright and Martinez isn't permanently scarred from the abuse he took in the Bronx.
Everything's breaking Boston's way, including the interference call on noted slap hitter Alex Rodriguez.
If the Sox don't win it all this year, they should start scouring Fenway for ghosts. Maybe do a power washing of the lovely tenement they call home.
Because after what they've been through and done, everyone knows they deserve a title.
Jon Heyman, Newsday
All this talk is just because the made history by defeating the overrated yankees..... let' face it, if they would've defeated Minn instead, they wouldn't be talking like that about Bos.....
And who exactly do you think StL was playing against?? Alajuelita high school team? C'mon, they beat Houston in a very close series with Carlos Beltran, one of the players in the league imo.... Remember the teams' records during the regular season Bos 98-64 vs StL 105-57.... Do you really think Bos deserves the title more just because they beat the Yanks?
And who exactly do you think StL was playing against?? Alajuelita high school team? C'mon, they beat Houston in a very close series with Carlos Beltran, one of the players in the league imo.... Remember the teams' records during the regular season Bos 98-64 vs StL 105-57.... Do you really think Bos deserves the title more just because they beat the Yanks?
Do the math
Lets see the Sox knocked off the Yanks who have won what 26 World Series and the Cards knocked off the dreaded Houston Astros who have won (opps never mind they have never been to a series).
wil.:heh:
SubZ relax these kind of threads are just woof fests and mean nothing as far as who really has the better team goes.
Lets see the Sox knocked off the Yanks who have won what 26 World Series and the Cards knocked off the dreaded Houston Astros who have won (opps never mind they have never been to a series).
wil.:heh:
SubZ relax these kind of threads are just woof fests and mean nothing as far as who really has the better team goes.
True but look back and check the series line after game 3. Also it seems to me the Cards were favored also. To be honest I think the Cardinals will win this series and posted that here yesterday or Thrusday (can't recall what day). Like I mentioned these threads are imo not to be taken to seriously by anyone actually betting the series, just a bit of venting by fans of both teams.
wil.
wil.
