I think the words you were looking for were ‘Anahiem Angels’.
Quite right; you could easily replace “Red Sox” with “Anaheim Angels” and the sentence would still make perfect logical sense. 
(Go A’s!)
10 game streak!
2.5 games behind the suck-a-lots!
Howyadoin,
In the words of my occasionally brilliant nephew…
“The Red Sox traded Nomar Garciaparra for a National League team.”
Offensively, the team was doing well without Garciaparra. But the number of unearned runs they were allowing was horrific. You can’t spot teams two extra outs or a couple runs a game and expect to be successful. You’ve got to be able to control the flow of the game, and letting a guy get on on what should have been the third out completely disrupts that. So whattyado?
I’ve been very happy with the acquisitions the Sox have made in the wake of Nomar’s departure. At face value, the trade tends to favor the other parties, but not as much as was first imagined.
Consider that Mientkiewicz over the course of next season might save 20 runs by playing Gold-Glove-caliber first base. Oh, and he is signed for next year… Cabrera seems cool under pressure, and really looks to be enjoying the run. No complaints about his arm, either. Mientkiewicz is a pro, to go with the consummate pro Bill Mueller over at third. Dave Roberts brings a whole new dimension to the Sox on the basepaths. He tortured Bartolo Colon from second base so bad the other night I thought Colon was gonna slurve in his pants.
Consider also the apparent difference in the clubhouse atmosphere, which several players remarked upon in the days after the Nomar trade.
The Sox only defensive weakness now is the lack of outfield arms, although Kapler’s not too bad, and Roberts is at least accurate. If nothing else, they’ve got to be, in the Kapler/Damon/Roberts configuration, the fastest outfield in Red Sox history.
Man, what a great run this is. Timely hitting, sparkling defense, excellent pitching for the most part… Mowing down Anaheim was a big statement. Texas is going to be a challenge if they get the bats going. They got a good performance from Wasdin tonight other than the two “Way-Backs”.
Ah, a great night for my two favorite baseball teams… The Sox, and whoever’s playing the Yankees!
-Rav
The team with the best regular season record usually doesn’t win the World Series.
2003 - Best Record: New York and Atlanta (101-61) World Series Winner: Florida
2002 - Best Record: New York (103-58) World Series Winner: Anaheim
2001 - Best Record: Seattle (116-46) World Series Winner: Arizona
2000 - Best Record: San Francisco (97-65) World Series Winner: New York
1999 - Best Record: Atlanta (103-59) World Series Winner: New York
1998 - Same team: New York (114-48)
1997 - Best Record: Atlanta (101-61) World Series Winner: Florida
1996 - Best Record: Cleveland (99-62) World Series Winner: New York
1995 - Best Record: Cleveland (100-44) World Series Winner: Atlanta
1993 - Best Record: Atlanta (104-58) World Series Winner: Toronto
1992 - Best Record: Atlanta (98-64) World Series Winner: Toronto
1991 - Best Record: Pittsburgh (98-64) World Series Winner: Minnesota
1990 - Best Record: Oakland (103-59) World Series Winner: Cincinnati
1989 - Same team: Oakland (99-63)
1988 - Best Record: Oakland (104-58) World Series Winner: Los Angeles
1987 - Best Record: Detroit (98-64) World Series Winner: Minnesota
1986 - Same team: New York Mets (108-54)
1985 - Best Record: St. Louis (101-61) World Series Winner: Kansas City
1984 - Same team: Detroit (104-58)
The team with the best record has won the World Series only once in the last fourteen seasons, and even before then didn’t win more often than not. In those fourteen years the regular season champ didn’t even make it TO the World Series seven times. In fact, if someone asks you to bet $50 on whether or not the Cardinals will win the World Series, you absolutely should bet against them. No matter how many regular season games they win the odds are against winning three playoff series.
Hey. You. Get offa my cloud.
Sorry, Dio. I like Dougie Baseball, and I miss his intensity and the quality of his play – but he ain’t that good. He is a great defensive first baseman, but the “saves us a run a game” myth propagated by the Twins media machine is just that.
A run per game would be 150+ runs a year – and that would make a big difference in the standings, perhaps as much as 15 games. That’s a huge impact.
**The_Raven **has it pretty close. Defense is hard to analyze, but the folks at Baseball Prospectus have him pegged at 17 runs above the average AL first baseman in his best full year, 2001. That’s worth a couple of games, maybe more if you save those runs in the right circumstances. But it’s a far cry from a run a game.
Logical test of this: would you rather have Dougie Baseball or Barry Bonds? Barry’s got more RBI, sure, but if you give Doug credit for the runs prevented, he’d make more of an impact… IF he was preventing 150 runs a year. He’s not.
Oh, and on-topic: Go Sox! Teach those Yankees the meaning of pain. We’ll try to help. 
Bottom line: Boston was leading the AL in unearned runs allowed before the trade. Since then, they’ve allowed only 1 total. Part of that, probably most of it, is Cabrera for Nomar, part of it is Mientkewicz for Millar and Ortiz (most games), part of it is increased confidence by the pitchers (especially Lowe) that they can throw ground-ball outs now, but so far it’s worked. A hockey-style plus/minus stat for runs might be interesting to look at in the heated Barry Bonds vs. “the guy who lost his job to Justin Morneau” debate, but it would have a helluva lot of statistical noise.
Medical update: Kevin Brown is having surgery on his fifth metacarpal and is out for probably the season. Tee hee hee, :wally .
And yes, I do feel much better now, thank you.
The “Dougie saves a run a game” assertion is hard to support objectively, sure, but nevertheless there was a graphic on yesterday’s game that Boston’s staff ERA is about a full run lower since the trade, in addition to unearned runs having almost disappeared.
But if it were true, Minnesota would have simultaneously collapsed once he left - if he saved a run a game he’d be the greatest player in baseball history - which they obviously didn’t.
Boston’s PITCHING of late has been amazingly stingy with walks, but generous with strikeouts, which would suggest it’s been the arms, not the leather. In the 28 games prior to this post, Boston has been giving up less than two walks per game, a phenomenal performance.
It could still be true if Morneau is about as good defensively, or if other factors have been involved (like Mientkewicz not having played all the much for the Twins this year anyway, and therefore not able to save that run/game). Not having seen Morneau play much this year, I don’t know. Bear in mind the artificial turf in the HumpDome, anyway - fielding performance there isn’t easily translateable to the natural stuff. (Ever been to a game there? It’s a miserable experience.)
Boston’s pitchers have indeed been visibly more confident lately, more likely to challenge hitters and less likely to try to trim the corners. Lowe in particular doesn’t have that “Dan Quayle in the headlights” look anymore when runners get on. That means more pitches down the middle and fewer walks, as you noted. It’s the arms, yes, but the leather has made the arms. It’s a team game, of course.
All of which might mean crap in a 7-game series.
Can we all agree that Boston is on fire right now, and the Yankees suck? 
No, I’ve never had the opportunity to see a game in the Metrodome. But I just might, very soon; I’ll be in Minneapolis in mid-October. If the schedule lucks out I might score a ticket.
However, it cannot possibly be as bad an experience as seeing a game in Montreal.
If it weren’t for the crowd size in Minneapolis vs. the empty echo chamber in The Big O, yes, it *would * be as bad or even worse. Done that too. Plus, the PA system in Minny is cranked up to painful levels, and their announcer does the “And here are YOUR Minnesota Twins!” crap. I don’t remember a mascot there, but he couldn’t be as irritating as Youppi. Getting blown out the door by the ceiling-inflation pressure is a trip, too. Plus, Minny has the giant Hefty Bag thing over the retracted football stands for your viewing pleasure, and all the seats are aimed at the fifty yard line instead of the infield, so you have to sit sideways. I don’t know what’s worse - knowing Minny can’t retract the roof, or that Montreal could but won’t. Either place would be better off without it.
It’s a bit weird finding the plaque on the floor of the Mall of America, right in the middle of Camp Snoopy, where Metropolitan Stadium’s home plate used to be. Look up at the second-level railing and you can see the seat Harmon Killebrew hit with his longest homer, attached and hanging out. Or imagine the Vikings playing in their shirtsleeves, with icicles hanging off their noses, while the opponents shivered with frostbite, right where you stand - the Vikes have been soft since moving indoors, ya know?
Did I say Francona would at least not dare to leave Pedro in after seven innings and a hundred pitches?
My bad. He does dare. Bring back Grady - he at least must know better by now.
We can all agree that the Yankees suck this year. Or at least, that the pitching staff does. I don’t think anyone can say a bad word about Jeter and A-Rod, or the rest of the in and outfield. As far as comes to mind, they’ve been nigh-gentlemen, going above and beyond, with some truly spectacular moments. (Especially against the Sox.) There was the beginning of the year slump, and a few other issues…
But Steinbrenner screwed the team all year with his complete lack of interest in the pitching staff. Which is where they were weak last year. And now Clemens is gone. Jerk he may be, he was damn good.
Might as well point out, though, you guys are cursing yourselves. Digging pianos out of a pond. Hmph.
And remember, it’s not always about money. How big a budget do the Marlins have?
My wife threatened to take away my remote privs for yelling at Tito. After the game I had to go downstairs and beat up my workout bag for a while.
The only small redemption I can see is that at least it was regular season, and not the playoffs. But that sure as hell don’t justify anything.
Ya know, both situations (Friday night, and last October) had another thing in common. Hideki Matsui.
With the game on the line and a base open, why the hell do you give him a pitch to hit in this series?
I missed this.
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Montreal’s roof cannot be retracted. Yes, it was SUPPOSED to be retractable, but it’s not possible to do it in response to the weather.
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There is no possible way the Metrodome can smell as bad, or be as filthy, as Stade Olympique. It’s just awful. And The Big Owe has the worst food in the majors - hell, maybe the worst above Double A.