When was the last time a team with the best record in the majors going into September looked so clearly in need of a major roster overall?
Only a few years ago that the Sox had a lineup of almost entirely .300 hitters and Jason Veritek. Yes, pitching wins in the post-season. And in baseball a seven games series is something of a coin flip. Still, it doesn't get much more frustrating then watching the Sox bats lay down game after game in front of the Yankee's awful pitching staff.
Lugo, Crisp, Drew, Varitek, Manny: when half of your lineup sucks eggs and your #4 hitter becomes relatively average it makes for a lot of 4-3 and 5-3 loses.
Of course, as long as we can play the Devil Rays in the playoffs we should be all set.
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Related half-serious questions: Did Crisp really just go 0-12 in this series with 5 strikeouts?
And did JD Drew hit a ball out of the infield this entire series?*
Ladies and gentlemen: your number two and number five hitters!
* Drew fly out to center in game two, and singled to right. So in a dozen at-bats he got the ball out of the infield twice, or the same number of times he grounded into rally-killing double plays. I feel much better.
We score 46 runs in the series against the White Sox, and then the bats disappear for the Yankees. Just as it would be a mistake to have been too excited five days ago, it would be a mistake to get too depressed now. OTOH, neither the Red Sox nor any other team is all that good this year, so playoff success will be a function of who gets hot. Which could just as easily be us as anyone else.
JD Drew for ALCS MVP!
I think you misinterpret the sentiment behind these posts somewhat, although since what I wrote focused on the Sox hitters that was understandable. Frustration over the NY sweep doesn't reflect 'excitment' or 'depression' over the Sox. It's about a completely petty, juvenile and irrational desire to stick it to New York.
The Yankees have finished with the best record in the AL East for the last nine years. This year's squad is a playoff-caliber team; the only reason their post-season is in question is because they started the season so incredible slowly. Even with their poor pitching, it would be great not to face that murderous lineup in a short playoff series for all the reasons we've just seen.
The Sox just had the chance to not only clinch the division but effectively knock the Yankees out of the wild card race. And they blew it. Whether you are a cold-blooded or hot-blooded Sox fan, that's a disappointment.
White Sox me no White Sox: Boston's lineup has been a big disappointment. If anything JD Drew has been worse then advertised. He used to be a passionless effective hitter. Now he's a passionless, complete un-clutch and bad hitter. He needs to officially change his name to 'rally-killing double play' Drew.
My post was directed more to myself. I watched the first game of the series, and then decided not to watch the second and third games because I was starting to care too much. It's still August. I've got to chill a little.
Agree re the line-up completely. If not for good years from Lowell and Youkilis, the production would be even worse.
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