as a kid growing up i used to go see the red sox play the white sox every year in chicago. my dad grew up near boston, and we lived near chicago. so he rooted for the red sox and i for the white sox. i was too young to remember carlton fisk playing for boston, which became my second favorite team. but i'll never forget his hustle and amazing play for the white sox. it seemed that no one was tougher and played the game better. there is no question as to why he is my all time favorite player. mlb.com has a nice article on fisk today. worth a quick read.
i finally got to catch some of a sox game last night. i've been very few and far between, just catching a few innings on xm or tv this year. the tv schedule has worked out exactly wrong for me so far this season.
i saw some rough play at times last night, but i saw some great gems too. jermaine dye's catch was brilliant. the sox may be struggling around .500 now, and that is where they should be based on what i saw last night, but there is a long time to go. if the pitching and hitting can both get consistent at the same time, this could be a very interesting season.
i'll be heading through chicago next week, but sadly the sox aren't in town. maybe next year...
frank thomas as been released from the blue jays. i'm really bummed to see this. the big hurt was one of my favorite players as a kid. up until a year or two ago my pin number for my atm card included his number 35. he had a rough start to 08 and now he's looking for a job. i would hate to see his career end this way. it is so tough to watch a future hall of famer that i loved as a kid end up floundering around a bit. his last two years have been a nice addendum to his career. hopefully he gets on somewhere to finish out this season and can retire in style.
as for my sox, they are off to a better start than anyone thought they would be. at 10-7 they sit atop the al central. everyone in the media seems to have forgotten this is a team that won the world series in 05. last year was a horrible year by a team that should have been good. i'm not overly surprised to see them shaking it off and making it into the contender category again.
hopefully much more on baseball lies ahead...
next game: today at tampa bay. looking to take the series.
there just seems to be something wrong when a trade makes you want to cry. so far most moves williams pulls out end up making me months later say, "ahh, ok, i get it now..." but i have a hard time believing thats a possibility with this one. the sox gave up 17 game winner freddy garcia (remember that streak he had at the end of the season?) to pick up gavin floyd (who?) and the famous player to be named later (who seems to be gio gonzalez... traded him away a year ago... and now he's back).
it just doesn't seem to be a great sign when the best thing to say about gavin floyd in the white sox' own press release was, "gavin floyd finished the afl season with an 0-1 record and a 5.57 era over six starts." despite the fact that he will be slotted for the bullpen (and i'm assuming gio will either go pen also, or stay in triple a) instead of taking freddy's spot in the rotation (obviously that will go to brandon mccarthy) i have a hard time believing we sox fans won't be wishing freddy were still around come spring.
i've been spoiled...
all my life i've been a die hard sox fan. and i realize now i've been spoiled. my father grew up outside boston, and although he tends to be a homer for wherever he lives at the time when it comes to most sports, when it comes to baseball his allegiance has never swayed.
i grew up in iowa... three hours from chicago. at an early age i had to choose between the cubs and the white sox, and the choice was easy for a typical non conformist. every year my dad and i would go to chicago to see a white sox vs red sox game. he'd cheer for boston, and i for chicago. easily out of this grew my allegiences. the white sox have always come first... the red sox second.
the past three years of playoffs have been memorable for me, then. in 2003 we watched the red sox take the alcs to game 7, only to see the world series hopes crash at the hands of aaron freakin' boone. but 2004 set off a two year span that couldn't have been much better. the red sox came back from 0-3 against the yankees to rattle off 7 straight and a world championship.
the following october was even sweeter as my true love rolled through the playoffs, losing only one game on the way to a world series sweep. after attending the ring ceremony in chicago, as well as two world series rematch games against the astros, i'm spoiled.
no white sox in the play offs... not even red. and its been a tough adjustment no team can win every year... and not every team can be the yankees and blow it in the playoffs every year. but there is drama to be found in october.
last night as i watched the tigers take game two in oakland i remembered how great october baseball can be. bottom of the 9th... 2 outs... bases loaded... oakland down by 3... and one of my all time favorite players, frank thomas at the plate. it ended with a pop out to center... but that drama... that unknown... that feeling of anythign can happen.
thats why i love october baseball.
even without any sox.
