So, per my success with Game 5 (see my previous entries to see how dead I was convinced the Sox were), I followed the entirety of Game 6 on ESPN GameCast, wearing my Boston Bruins retro hoodie and watching the B's on NESN. Looks like it worked, again.
The reports of Josh Beckett's postseason demise seems to be rather exaggerated, though I'll have to watch all the the recaps to see just how much pain he seemed to be in tonight. Didn't seem to have his 2003 or 2007 stuff, but a gutsy performance. I get the sense that he said "There's no way I'm losing this fucking game", and just manned up. But apart from Josh's accolades, here's my ring of heroes for the evening:
1. Kevin Youkilis. With Beckett looking shaky through the beginning of the game, BJ Upton hits his 675th home run of the series. At this point I'm rocking back and forth with my head between my legs, as with Beckett looking like Game 5 Josh, I'm not sure if the Sox can come back if he's gonna keep giving up hits likes this (I know, I know, oh ye of little faith...) Then Youk comes up and notches the game, and knocks the Rays fans down a peg. Having followed this guy since he was a Sea Dog, I can't say enough about him (and bears mentioning, that beard is a thing of beauty. Hope he keeps it).
2. Hideki Okajima. Not taking anything away from Beckett, but Okaji takes what was a gutsy game on the brink and eats up a couple of innings right when the Red Sox needed it. I also have kind of a soft spot for him, but it's nice to see him return to his trusty 2007 form at the best possible time.
3. Coco Crisp. Quite the Bizarro series from Cavelli. Last year it's all about Jacoby, and Coco is so cold we can't trade him fast enough. Now this year he battles through as a valuable 4th outfielder, and come the ALCS, it's 2007 in reverse. A couple more clutch hits and general hustle from Employee #10, which makes me take back every negative thing I ever said about him.
4. John Farrell. I could put Justin Masterson here for the bridge he built to Pap, but since he looked kinda shaky before Farrell's visit and comfortable after it, whatever John said was exactly what the kid needed to hear. Justin remains someone I trust in theory, as his stuff is good and he's a ground ball machine. But he can look a little lost sometimes...
5. Terry Francona. I was yelling about as loud at Tito as anyone for jumbling the starters for the series and making some seriously weird decisions though the first couple games. I also was a charter member of the "Start Lester in Game 6" Club, founded October 17, 2008. But as he's done in the past, Terry has proved to me why he's the manager, and I'm the yahoo fan. Hopefully tomorrow he continunes the trend.
I'll go into the Bruins' clutch win in Ottawa later, as again they deserve their own entry. Good fight, Good Night.
No comments:
Post a Comment