shave ice & gelato

I know this is very off topic for an Italy blog, even more so than my Hawaii posts have been. I guess I should start thinking about a new name for my blog. Any ideas?

I have stayed away from any Red Sox comments but today was a day for the record books and I just had to comment on an such an amazing feat.

If you are not a baseball fan, let me explain. A "no-no" is a no-hitter. That means that no one on the other team gets a hit during the entire game. The scoreboard will reflect this by a 0 under the H (R H E - Runs, Hits, Errors) on the right side of the scoreboard.

What made this no-hitter even more amazing was that the pitcher accomplishing this feat was a 23-year old kid who was pitching his second game ever in the major leagues. I say kid because he looks like he is 16 or 17!

Clay Buchholz pitched his first ever major league two weeks ago against the Angels. I happened to see that game on TV while staying up on the North Shore. I had been trying to explain baseball to my friends from Italy and was thrilled to find the game on TV when I woke up. I remember commenting about how young he looked as we watched a few innings together while eating breakfast. I didn't even know he was on the Red Sox roster and had no idea where he came from. I do remember being quite impressed with his pitching though, probably because he looked so young.

After our 4 game skid losing 3 to the Yankees and then a very close game to the Orioles, I wasn't sure what to think when I heard Clay Buchholz would be pitching again today. I was just hoping for a win and never expected a game as exciting as today's game ended up being.

There were a few nail biting moments in the game today and of course the last couple of innings were pretty intense. Dustin Pedroia, who in my humble opinion should be rookie of the year, made yet another amazing play which prevented a hit and should make the top 10 plays on ESPN. Coco Crisp certainly did his part out in center field as did the rest of the defense. The offense also helped by scoring 10 runs to take the pressure off Clay and Jason Varitek was an important part of the game, but in the end, the kid made the pitches and threw the no-hitter. What a thrill for Clay Buchholz, for the Red Sox, and for all of the faithful fans.

And for a little history, Clay Buchholz became the 17th rookie to throw a no-hitter and the third pitcher since 1900 to throw a no-hitter in his first or second major league start. he is 2-0 with his second game as a no-hitter, something many very famous pitchers never accomplish in their lifetimes. Simply Amazing!!

GO SOX!!!!!

What a great season and a great series!
Red Sox win the ALCS 4-3!!
4 more games to go!!!!

Here is a baseball related tidbit that my be of interest to even non-baseball lovers. Taco Bell is offering a free Crunchy Seasoned Beef Taco to "every legal resident" in the US (50 states + DC) if a base is stolen during the World Series. Crazy huh? Of course, Taco Bell needs to determine that it is an "eligible" stolen base, whatever that means. The other catch seems to be that it needs to be at a "participating" Taco Bell restaurant, again whatever that means.

You can get your free taco on Tuesday, October 30, 2007 if the base is stolen during games 1 or 2 and on November 6, 2007 if the base is stolen during games 3-7. Pick up time is between 2 & 5 pm local time. The fine print also says that if you are in line by 5, you can still get your free taco. Do you think there will be a mob scene at each Taco Bell?

It was pretty funny today listening to two of the Red Sox players discussing this offer in the dugout during the game. They were trying to figure out how this offer could be for real. How would Taco Bell know if you already got a free taco at one Taco Bell and then went to another Taco Bell for another free taco? It actually says in the fine print that Taco Bell has the right to deny you a free taco if the management thinks you already got a free taco. So don't forget to use a napkin and hide those Taco Bell bags when you go for your second free taco.

Now in no way am I promoting Taco Bell. I personally do not eat at Taco Bell...so please feel free to have my taco if there is a stolen base. Sorry Leslie, you will have to fly to one of the 50 states to get your free taco.

I will update my blog after each game to let everyone know the stolen base situation.

Game 1 - Red Sox 13 - Rockies 1 - no stolen bases.

GO SOX!!!!

Jacoby Ellsbury stole second! Free tacos for everyone next Tuesday, October 30th, from 2-5 pm local time!! Spread the word.

Game is tied, bottom of the 4th.

GO SOX!!!

As I am sure you all know by now, the Red Sox are the 2007 World Series Champions!!!! Congratulations Red Sox!!!!

At the end of the season, I was just so happy for the Red Sox to be in first place in the AL East. Having the best record in baseball this year was thrilling. Winning the World Series was really more than I ever dreamed when the season began. What an amazing season it was!!

I thought Mike Lowell was a good choice for MVP, but there were many many MVPs on this Red Sox team. It was definitely a true team effort where every single member made a significant contribution. I am just so proud of all that they have accomplished this year.

It certainly was a very different win this year. After all those years of always thinking something was going to happen, even after 2 outs in the 9th with a huge lead. This year, I just knew in my heart when it got to the 9th with a one run lead that we were going to win. I have to thank the 2004 Red Sox team for that. Although I was not screaming as much this time, I still had that big grin on my face for many hours after they won along with a few tears of joy.

I sympathized with the Indians and Rockies and all of their fans. We certainly have been there many many times and know how it feels to watch another team celebrate. Hopefully someday it will be their turn (and I still hope one day soon to see the Cubbies win). But this is our year, and again, I am thrilled!! I do have to say though that I am glad I won't have to watch those white annoying towels anymore!

I was so thankful to actually see the Red Sox win the World Series once in my lifetime. After all those years of hope and pain, and now, they have won twice! It really is more than I ever dreamed of. Thank you Red Sox for an incredible year, one I will never forget!

Oh, and Kim, your congratulations meant quite a lot to me. My sincere hope is to see the Red Sox and the Yankees finally make peace with each other. I may need to go into a little bit of therapy to help make this happen but am going to try and hope others will too. There is enough unnecessary fighting already in the world.

I apologize to anyone reading this twice (here and on the Everything Else section of Slow Travel). Since that is a members only thread, I decided to post here also.

OK...enough baseball talk, I promise...
I will get back to regular blog posts real soon!

Merry Christmas
Mele Kalikimaka
Buon Natale
Joyeux Noël
Frohe Weihnachten
Feliz Natal
Feliz Navidad
Happy Kwanzaa
and a belated Happy Channakuh

Hope you all get what you wish for. I did! :)

If you want your very own Sports Spud Boston Red Sox 2007 World Series
Champs Mr Potato Head or a variety of other baseball toys/games, head over
to the MLB shop.

I am going to be good, sit on my hands, and refrain from commenting on the whole Roger Clemens/Brian McNamee testimony today.

Instead, here's my photo of the day (taken yesterday during our field trip).

Annie recently wrote a post called "What's a Tar Heel?". In her post, Annie wrote about her team, the North Carolina Tar Heels. She also wrote about the history of the name "Tar Heels" and about the team's mascot. I loved how she described the Tar Heel mascot:
But here’s what really confuses people. Our mascot is a ram named Ramses. But we are NOT the UNC Rams, we’re the UNC Tar Heels. Even I don’t completely understand that. Maybe it was just too hard to make a furry suit that looks like a foot?

I made a comment on her blog about my trying to picture how one would portray a tar heel. Annie in turn asked me about the Red Sox mascot. Well, I am always more than happy to talk Sox here, so Annie, here is the short history of our Red Sox mascot, Wally the Green Monster.

The Red Sox did not have a mascot until 1997. I personally think they should have kept it that way. However, being a huge Red Sox fan, I am usually happy to go along with most of their new promo ideas and I guess the mascot is fun for kids. Our mascot, Wally the Green Monster, like the Tar Heel's mascot, Ramses, has nothing to do with the name of the team it represents. I guess like the Tar Heels, it would probably be pretty silly seeing a person dressed up as a Red Sock. Instead of being connected to a red sock, Wally the Green Monster, is supposed to somehow represent the "green monster", which is the famous big green wall in left field. I personally think it is a big stretch.

I find the history of Fenway Park and the Green Monster much more interesting than our mascot, Wally the Green Monster. Fenway park opened on April 20, 1912. The original wall in left field was a 37-foot wooden left field wall. In 1934, the wall was replaced by a more durable, 37-foot sheet metal structure. The wall was covered in advertisements. In 1947, the wall was painted green and the Green Monster was born. In 2003, 247 seats were added atop the Green Monster. What a cool place that must be to watch a game. For more detailed history about Fenway Park, check out this link and this link.

The Green Monster (the big green wall):

3 days, 8 hours, 5 minutes til opening day...GO SOX!!!!

The baseball season has begun! And the Sox are in first place!! They have the best record in the league and are a half-game up on the Yankees!! Yeah I know, no one else has played yet (except the A's) but still I am always happy when we are in first place and especially when we are ahead of the Yankees.

The first game of the season started at 12:11 am this morning my time. I only lasted an hour and then fell asleep. I watched the rest of the game this morning. Final score: 6-5 Red Sox with the game going into extra innings. There were a few blunders on both sides, but in the end, luck was on our side. A win is a win and we will take it.

I love the way the post "It Feels Like Christmas Eve" on the blog Center Field describes the excitement of the beginning of a new baseball season. It is the same excitement I feel each year. The post also has a great video I loved, which I thought you might also enjoy.

Ok...enough about my boys and the beginning of a new baseball season. Have I mentioned I love baseball?? and I love the Red Sox??

Both Annie and Sandra asked about my favorite baseball movie. I don't think there has been a baseball movie I have not liked, even a Yankees baseball movie. I love the game and enjoy any movie about baseball. A few movies that I would rank as my favorites include Field of Dreams, The Natural, A League of Their Own, and Bull Durham, but my all time favorite would have to be Fever Pitch.

Fever Pitch is about a die hard Red Sox fan, Ben (played by Jimmy Fallon), who is torn between the woman he loves, Lindsey (played by Drew Barrymore), and the baseball team he worships. Yes, I know it is a sappy love story, but what makes this movie my favorite is the way they portray the life of Ben as a passionate out of control Red Sox fan. Ben lives in apartment, which is decorated in a Red Sox gift shop theme. He even has a green monster wall in his living room. I love how Ben reacts when his season tickets are delivered, how he decides which friends get which tickets, and how he gives Lindsey a little black ring box with a ticket for opening day inside.

There are so many classic lines in this movie, including when Ben tells Lindsey that he attends spring training every year to figure out which players they should keep and which players they should get rid of and Lindsey asks, "And the Red Sox ask your opinion?". Another one of my favorite scenes is when Ben is depressed after Lindsey breaks up with him and his friends find him sitting in front of the TV watching the moment in the 86 World Series when the ball goes through Buckner's legs over and over again and one of his friends says, "Oh, my God. The Buckner game? I thought you took that away from him!"

But the best part is the end of the movie. When the Farrelly brothers, life long Red Sox fans, wrote this movie, they did not want to jinx the Red Sox. They wrote an ending where the Red Sox lost, figuring they would do just that. Once the Red Sox came back to beat the Yankees, and the thought that the Red Sox could actually win this time after 86 years, they had to scramble to write a new ending.

My favorite line in the entire movie, the actual WEEI radio announcement of the final out of the game, which gives me goose bumps and brings me to tears every time I watch this movie, is: "Back to Foulke. Red Sox fans have longed to hear it. The Boston Red Sox are world champions."

And that is why Fever Pitch is my all time favorite movie. Of course if you are talking real life, my Boston Red Sox 2004 World Series Collector's Edition DVD box set which includes the all 7 ALCS games and the 4 World Series games ranks right up there.

Fever Pitch (preview):

Today is Opening Day at Fenway Park. Sadly, I have never attended an opening day game. It is something I would love to do one day.

Today is a very special opening day. The ring ceremony will take place to honor the 2007 World Championship Red Sox Team. Boy would I love to be at Fenway Park today. Since it is only being broadcast locally, I can't even tape it to watch when I get home from work. Hopefully there will be some good video clips posted on the internet to watch tonight.

So to get you in the baseball mood...

If you haven't seen it yet, check out this very funny one minute video of a play-by-play done by John Mayer during one of the two Red Sox/A's games played in Japan. I have no idea how or why he was was asked to do a play-by-play announcement and why he was even at this game since he obviously knows nothing about baseball.

I am not a huge John Mayer fan, but I would definitely say that he is quite an improvement over Joe Buck as well as a few other irritating announcers at Fox, ESPN, and TBS.

The ring ceremony took place yesterday at Fenway Park to honor the
2007 World Series Championship Red Sox Team.

Although the ceremony was only broadcasted locally, I was able to find video clips of the ceremony on NESN when I got home from work. It was almost as good as watching it on TV. Thank goodness for the internet!! As a Red Sox fan, the ceremony was pretty exciting to watch.

Photos and descriptions of some of events of the day:

The ceremony started off with a parade of flags from 62 Red Sox Nations, lining the outfield. The nations represented by the 62 flags (Afghanistan, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, The Bahamas, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cuba, The Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guam, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Venezuela, and Vietnam) were either Red Sox Nation member residents or were nations with citizens who have been in touch with the Red Sox organization via letters and e-mails professing their love for the team. (see the end of this post for the significance of the flags)

Once the flags were all lined up, the banners for the five previous championships, 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918 dropped in sequence. Then the large 2004 banner unrolled covering the entire Green Monster. Finally, the new 2007 World Series Championship banner was unrolled on top of the 2004 banner. The Boston Symphony Orchestra (otherwise known as the Boston Pops) accompanied many of the events during the ceremony.

Photo (from the Boston Globe) of the 2007 World Series Championship banner and flags from some of the Red Sox Nations:

Annie recently wrote a post titled, "What's a Tar Heel?". She talked about how the University of North Carolina's mascot was a ram and not a tar heel even though the nickname for their teams was Tar Heels. She wondered if it was because it was just too hard to make a furry suit that looked like a foot.

Annie asked me about the Red Sox mascot, wondering if it could be a sock. I wrote a post, titled "the Green Monster and the mascot" which talked about the Red Sox mascot, Wally the Green Monster. I made the comment: "I guess like the Tar Heels, it would probably be pretty silly seeing a person dressed up as a Red Sock."

I guess I was wrong! I found this photo yesterday on the Boston Globe site while looking at all the ring ceremony photos:

The caption for the photo read: Mascots Lefty and Righty did not head to Los Angeles with Dr. Charles Steinberg. They were out and about at Fenway Park on Opening Day. No word as to how Wally feels about these two.

Saturday morning, while nursing the end of a bad Friday night migraine, I curled up on my couch to watch the Red Sox play the Yankees on FOX.

I have mixed feelings when watching a baseball game on FOX. The FOX announcers are always so annoying but yet I am always grateful that the game is being broadcast on TV. Usually by the 5th or 6th inning, I mute my TV and turn on MLB Gameday Audio on the computer to listen to the local radio broadcast. The only problem with that is that the audio broadcast is delayed about 30 seconds.

Saturday's game was one of those close finger-crossing, holding your breath type of games. With two outs and two men on in the top of the eighth, Alex Rodriguez is up. Just as the Sox bring in Papelbon to try to get out of the jam, it begins to rain and the game is delayed for about 2 1/2 hours.

Finally the game resumes. Papelbon strikes out A-Rod with three straight pitches. The crowd goes wild. The Sox are then quickly retired in order 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 8th.

Now, here is where the déjà vu Heidi Game happens.

It’s the top of the ninth, the Sox have a one run lead, and it is the last chance for the Yankees to come back. I am sure both Yankees and Red Sox fans everywhere are glued to the tube. With two outs and Cano batting with a 3-2 count on him, BAM, the game disappears and race cars appear on the TV screen!!! With no warning, in the middle of an at-bat, the game is gone and race cars are racing around in circles!

Proof of the FOX blunder - 17 seconds til the cars appear...

After a minor freak out, and a few swears, I suddenly remember that games have sometimes been broadcast on FX in the past. I grabbed my remote and turn to channel 41 just as the game ended. Cano grounded out, Sox won 4-3.

I switched channels before FOX finally announced what happened to the baseball game. Obviously it was too late to see the ending of the game by the time the new channel was announced.

Not only did baseball fans miss the end of the game, FOX did not even start the NASCAR race at the beginning, so what was the urgency to switch sports? And worse yet, I am sure everyone watching FX freaked out because all of a sudden in the middle of their movie, baseball appeared.

Congratulations to Jon Lester, who became the first pitcher this season in the Major Leagues to throw a no-hitter. I am in awe of anyone who throws a no-hitter. For this 24-year old lefty pitcher, it was something extra special. Jon Lester was diagnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in August 2006. He stopped playing baseball and started treatment. He returned to the Red Sox, pitching and winning his first game since being diagnosed on July 23, 2007. I remember how emotional that game was. He then went on to pitch the 4th game of the World Series on October 28, 2007 to clinch the 2007 World Series. And now today, to pitch a "no no", what a special accomplishment he has achieved.

(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

For those wondering, a "no-no" or a "no-hitter" means that no one on the other team gets a hit during the entire game. The scoreboard will reflect this by a 0 under the H (R H E - Runs, Hits, Errors) on the right side of the scoreboard.

Last year, I wrote about the "no no" Clay Buchholz threw on September 1, 2007. Throwing a no-hitter is not an easy feat. Before Clay Bucholz, the last "no no" or no-hitter thrown by a Red Sox pitcher occurred on April 27, 2002 (Derek Lowe threw this one). In recent MLB history, there have only been 3 no-hitters in 2007, 1 in 2006, 1 in 2004, 2 in 2003, 1 in 2002, and 3 in 2001.

For a little more trivia:
*This was the first no-hitter thrown by a Red Sox left-hander since Mel Parnell threw one against the White Sox on July 14, 1956.
*Jason Varitek was the first catcher to be behind the plate catching 4 no-hitters (4 different pitchers/4 no-hitters).

I am so glad for once I left work on time. I checked the Red Sox score (as I always do) when I got home. Because of the time difference, night games start at 1pm here so the game was well underway. Once I saw that Jon Lester was working on a no-hitter, I signed into the MLB audio (Red Sox radio broadcast) and caught the end of the game. After the last pitch, ESPN showed the final strike as well as all the hugs on the field after the game was over. I got pretty choked up watching everyone congratulate him. It was a definite "tear jerker". What a great inspiration and an amazing accomplishment!

GO SOX!!

Ok, warning...baseball talk here.

Chien-Ming Wang, a pitcher on the Yankees team, was hurt (foot injury) on Sunday while running the bases.

I guess I should give you a little background on this first. There are two leagues in Major League Baseball; the National League and the American League. In the National League, pitchers get up to bat, hit, and run bases. They even score runs on occasion. In the American League, pitchers only pitch. A designated hitter gets up to bat instead of the pitcher. During interleague play (when teams of different leagues play each other), American League pitchers bat if the game is played in the National League's park. Following me?

On Sunday, the Yankees (an American League team) played the Houston Astros (a National League team) in Houston. Chien-Ming Wang, who was pitching for the Yankess, slipped and injured his foot while running the bases. Naturally, Hank Steinbrenner had something "scholarly" to say about the incident and is blaming the entire National League for this injury:

"My only message is simple: The National League needs to join the 21st century. They need to grow up and join the 21st century. I've got my pitchers running the bases, and one of them gets hurt. He's going to be out. I don't like that, and it's about time they address it. That was a rule from the 1800s.

This is always a concern of American League teams when their pitchers have to run the bases and they're not used to doing it. It's not just us. It's everybody. It probably should be a concern for National League owners, general managers and managers when their pitchers run the bases. Pitchers have enough to do without having to do that."

First, pitchers batted in both leagues until the DH was added to the American League lineup in 1973. Second, no one ran into Wang, no one knocked him down, he was only running! Isn't baseball a sport? Shouldn't athletes, being paid billions of dollars, have enough athletic skill to at least be able to run the bases? Again, National League pitchers run the bases every day! High school kids run bases. I understand that you are upset that your pitcher was hurt, but to blame the entire National League?? I just don't get it Hank...

Being the huge Red Sox fan that I am, I just had to put in my two cents on the Manny deal.

I know most of you are probably thinking, here she goes talking about baseball again, but this is HUGE. It has been the main story in Boston as well all on all the blogs, radio stations, and TV stations that talk about sports.

The questions you probably have if you are not a baseball fan are, “Who are you talking about?” “What are you talking about?” and “So what. “Why is this such big news?”

The "who" would be Manny, Manny being Manny, Manny Ramirez, Manuel Aristides Ramirez, he goes by many names.

The "what" would be that today the Red Sox have traded Manny to the L.A. Dodgers. It went right down to the wire. So, all you fans of the boys in blue are getting a fantastic player.

I am sure many of you are still saying, “So what. “Why is this such big news?” Well, Manny Ramirez is probably one of the most talented hitters playing baseball today. He was an integral part of both of Red Sox World Series wins. He was the MVP during the 2004 World Series. As of today, he has hit 510 home runs. Only 22 players in history have hit more home runs than Manny has. You would think that we (the Red Sox) would be crazy to give up such a talented player.

Well, when push came to shove, the Red Sox really did not have much of a choice. Manny started pulling his antics once again. I have lost count on how many times he has stopped playing and has demanded to be traded, and this is a guy that has been playing with an eight-year, $160 million contract.

This time, though as many have said, it was the straw that broke the camel's back. We have been playing like crap since the All Star Break. It is apparent that this "problem” has been a major distraction in the Red Sox clubhouse. Even the fans, those who have always stuck up for Manny, started to boo him this week.

Yesterday, Manny continued to sound off, egging the Red Sox on to trade him. Here is what he had to say:

"The Red Sox don't deserve a player like me," Ramirez said. "During my years here I've seen how they [the Red Sox] have mistreated other great players when they didn't want them to try to turn the fans against them.

"The Red Sox did the same with guys like Nomar Garciaparra and Pedro Martinez, and now they do the same with me. Their goal is to paint me as the bad guy. I love Boston fans, but the Red Sox don't deserve me. I'm not talking about money. Mental peace has no price and I don't have peace here."

And my thought on all of this...it is all about the money. Greedy Scott Boras, an agent who is disliked by baseball fans from both American League and National teams alike, the person who last year just had to announce that Alex Rodriguez was going to opt-out of his ten-year contract and become a free agent IN THE MIIDDLE of the final game of the World Series, is Manny's agent. Bottom line, if the Red Sox pick up Manny's option for another year (which is a clause in his current contract), Boras gets nada, niente, nothing. But if Manny puts up such a big stink and his option is not picked up, Manny will be a free agent and I am sure Boras has promised Manny millions. Now I am not holding Manny blameless in all of this. I believe he is also seeing the dollar signs.

Manny has been one of my favorite hitters. I always defended him and put up with all the crap he pulled because when he was motivated, he was great. I just loved to watch him when he was up at bat. He is an extremely talented player and he was a Red Sox player. But after hearing his statement, "The Red Sox don't deserve a player like me.", I knew that the Red Sox would do everything possible to trade him. Because if Manny wasn't traded, he was probably going to shut down once again and that would mean our season would be over.

I think the Dodgers came out on the better end of this deal, but we didn’t do bad ourselves. Jason Bay, by the way who is from Canada (a little tidbit for all you Canadian fans) is supposed to put up similar numbers (also hit well) and is a good outfielder. It should be interesting to see what happens.

I am sad to see Manny go, but I am also glad that the drama is over and we can now get back to playing some serious baseball. GO SOX!!!

Arrivederci Manny...Aloha Manny. I wish you all the best.

I have just one request... please stay in the National League next year.

After a 5-4 victory over the Cleveland Indians tonight, the Red Sox have clinched a playoff berth. We're in!! ~ GO SOX!!!!

Woo hoo!!! Sox win!! Sox win!!

I have to admit that I was a little nervous going in to this series with the Angels having the best record in both the American and National Leagues. This definitely was a nail biting, hold your breath, pacing back and forth kind of series. I wrote a mini-summary of the four games below. I hope you enjoy it. For more in depth detail on the games, click on any of the Red Sox blog links on my side bar...

Game 1 - Sox 4 - Angels 1 - LA scores one in the 3rd, we score two runs in the sixth and then two more runs in the ninth and seal the deal.

Game 2 - Sox 7 - Angels 5 - we score 4 in the first, the Angels slowly chip away at our lead. We are tied 5-5 in the 8th. Drew hits a 2 run home run in the ninth to win the game.

Looking good...we are leading 2 games to none and heading back to Boston for the next two (if needed). We only need one more win and seal the deal.

Game 3 - Angels 5 - Sox 4 - the game is tied up 4-4 in the fifth and ends up going extra innings with the Angels scoring and winning the game in the 12th.

We have to win the next game or we head back to LA and that will not be good. GO SOX!!!

Game 4 - Sox 3 - Angels 2 - we score two in the fifth, they tie it up in the 8th and then we get a walk off single in the bottom of the ninth...Sox Win!! Sox Win!!

Next up - Tampa Bay which will be another tough series...

Gm 1 - BOS @ TB - Fri - Oct. 10 - 8:37 PM
Gm 2 - BOS @ TB - Sat - Oct. 11 - 8:07 PM
Gm 3 - TB @ BOS - Mon - Oct. 13 - 4:37 PM
Gm 4 - TB @ BOS - Tue - Oct. 14 - 8:07 PM
Gm 5* - TB @ BOS - Thu - Oct. 16 - 8:07 PM
Gm 6* - BOS @ TB - Sat - Oct. 18 - 4:37 PM
Gm 7* - BOS @ TB - Sun - Oct. 19 - 8:07 PM
(times are EST, all games on TBS, games 5-7 if needed)

TBS! That means more of Craig Sager's electric fruit salad-flavored coats.
The first time I saw him in his orange (think it was orange) coat, I thought
TBS switched over to some singing contest. Then I thought he had to be
part of the Angels organization since his coat was sort of an Angel color.

My confusion was cleared up during the second game when he wore
a lime green coat.

During the third game, he was much more subdued a navy blue pin striped
coat, which I don't have a picture of (although he still wore a wild tie).

Alas, he did not let us down tonight, sporting a pumpkin colored plaid coat,
which should not be mistaken for his orangey-red coat that he wore during
the first game. *Edited Oct. 8th - found a photo of the pumpkin coat - and
check out the shoes!

And if you want to see him live (or it was live once), the video is 1.08 long.
You might want to turn the volume down a bit but not too much so you won't
miss the last line of the video.

Even if you are not a baseball fan, you just might want to tune in Friday night to checkout his next wardrobe choice. I don't know if I can stand the suspense.

GO SOX!!

We are down 3 games to 1 and on the verge of elimination. Tampa Bay only needs one more win and our season is over. We lost the previous two games in Fenway
9-1 and 13-4 and we are losing badly again tonight at this point in the game as
you can tell by the crowd's reaction.

The score is 7-0 in the 7th inning. I am thinking, no way. The lead is just too big, but still, I have that tiny ray of hope. We have comeback before. We lost the first 3 games to the Yankees, and then came back to win the next 4 games in a row in 2004 and we were down 3 games to 1 to the Indians, and then came back to win the next 3 in a row last year.

Bottom of the 7th, Jed Lowrie doubles to deep right. The crowd wakes up. Then both Jason Varitek and Mark Kotsay fly out to center field. Two outs! It is not looking good. Coco Crisp is up next. He singles to left field, advancing Jed Lowrie to third. With a man in scoring position, Dustin Pedrioa, our MVP is up. The crowd gets loud. He singles to right and Jed Lowrie scores!! Woo hoo!!! It is now 7-1. The crowd goes crazy! Coco Crisp is now at third base and Big Papi is up to bat! Of course TBS has to remind us that he has not hit a home run in a long long time. HOME RUN!!!!

The crowd goes wild. It's now 7-4. Is it possible? Could we actually win this game?

Bottom of the 8th. Jason Bay is up first. He walks. Next up, JD Drew. HOME RUN!!!!

It is now 7-6. The crowd goes wild again. We could actually win this game!!

As the 8th continues, Jed Lowrie flies out to left and Sean Casey strikes out. With two outs, Mark Kotsay doubles to deep center. Coco Crisp is up next. He singles to right field and Mark Kotsay scores the tying run!!!!

Meanwhile, Coco Crisp tries to stretch a single to a double is tagged out. Three outs. The score is tied 7-7!!! It is pandemonium in Fenway Park!

Papelbon (our closer) already pitched the 7th and 8th innings to stop the bleeding, so our rookie pitcher, Justin Masterson is pitching the ninth. After lots of pacing, wringing hands, and nail biting, we get out of the inning without allowing Tampa Bay to score. The score is still tied 7-7.

Bottom of the 9th. Dustin Pedroia is up first. He grounds out to third. One out. Then Big Papi strikes out. Two outs. Youk is up next. He hits the ball to the third baseman. Pretty much everyone is thinking automatic out, BUT the third baseman makes a bad throw and the ball goes into the stands. Kevin Youkilis advances to second base on the error and is now in scoring position!! Jason Bay is up next. Wouldn't that be amazing if Jason Bay, the person traded for Manny Ramirez would score the game winning run. NOPE, Tampa Bay intentionally walks him and instead faces JD Drew, the guy that hit a home run in the 8th inning.

My heart is racing. Unbelievable!! JD Drew hits a walk off single to deep right field and Kevin Youkilis scores. 8-7!!!! SOX WIN!!!! SOX WIN!!!!

It is the biggest postseason comeback since 1929 and another magical night in Fenway Park!!

*EDITED: Some added trivia ~ This was the biggest comeback ever in a playoff elimination game. The previous record was 5 runs last done by the Angels in game 6 of the 2002 World Series, and interestingly the bench coach for the Angels that day was Joe Maddon (the current manager of the Tampa Bay Rays).

Our season is still alive!! GO SOX!!!!

Game 7 (Sox vs. Rays) starts in 35 minutes on TBS, that is IF they don't lose the feed again and show Bloopers and then The Steve Harvey Show. It's do-or-die time today after staying alive and winning Game 6 yesterday. Today, we either win and go on to play in the World Series or pack up and go home. My fingers and toes are crossed, my stomach is in knots, and my heart is racing!!

I BELIEVE!!!! GO SOX!!!!

*I will post more after this game (either way)...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So...the Rays won the marbles this time around. Congratulations. They were the better team tonight.

I am still so very proud of my Red Sox. They dealt with many injuries this year and never gave up. Everyone said they would lose to the Angels and wouldn't even make it to the ALCS. They had a 1 out of 1000 chance of coming back and winning Thursday night's game when down 7-0 in the 7th inning. They made it all the way to Game 7 of the ALCS. They won 101 games this year.

The Red Sox will always always be my team, win or lose. They played their hearts out this year and gave us another magical game to remember forever.

The good news is now I can catch up on everything I have put on hold for baseball.

Oh, and I will be rooting for the Phillies in the World Series. Shane Victorino, center fielder for the Phillies is a Maui boy. Since my team is out, I am rooting local on this one. Go Phillies!

one of my favorite Red Sox players, Dustin Pedroia!!!!

The Most Valuable Player honor is awarded to one player from each league (American League and National League) at the end of the season each year. I'm really not sure exactly who votes for the awards but I did find the 5 criteria for this award:
1. Actual value of a player to his team, that is, strength of offense and defense.
2. Number of games played.
3. General character, disposition, loyalty and effort.
4. Former winners are eligible.
5. Members of the committee may vote for more than one member of a team.

Dustin Pedroia was definitely a very important and valuable member of the Red Sox team this year. I personally do not believe the Red Sox would have gone as far as they did without him. Dustin Pedroia, also known as “Dusty” and “Pedey”, displayed incredible defensive skills all year long at second base. He was one of those players that gave 120% every day. He displayed the kind of attitude and work ethic that made him a wonderful role model both on and off the field. He went out there and motivated his teammates every game. On the offensive side, Dustin Pedroia hit .326 with 17 homers and 83 RBI (Runs Batted In). He also led the American League in doubles and runs scored. He was tied for the league lead in hits and he even stole 20 bases.

Dustin Pedroia was the first second baseman to earn the MVP award in nearly a half-century. Nellie Fox was the last second baseman to become AL MVP, in 1959 with the White Sox. Along with the MVP award this year, Dustin was also awarded the 2008 Silver Slugger Award and the 2008 AL 2B Gold Glove. Last year (his first year in the Major Leagues) he won 2007 AL Rookie of the Year.

Congratulations Pedey!! Way to go!!!!

Not only is February 6th National Wear Red Day, It is also 'Truck Day', a very important day for the Red Sox. Truck day means that baseball season is almost here!! This is the day when the Red Sox moving van loads up all of the equipment at Fenway Park and then takes the 1,467-mile trek to the team's spring training complex in Fort Myers, Florida.

In honor of Wear RED day, here are my two RED photos...

(Truck Day photos from 2008 ~ both are linked to the source/the Boston Globe):

Brothers Sam, 6, and Charlie, 2, McKeown watching the action.

Wally and other Red Sox employees posing for a photo-op on Yawkey Way.

Video of Truck Day 2007

Now get your calendars out everyone so you can mark down some more very important dates coming up:

February 12th ~ reporting day for Red Sox pitchers and catchers
February 14th ~ well yes, I know it is Valentine's Day BUT it is also the first workout day for Red Sox pitchers and catchers.
February 16th ~ Red Sox position players arrive.
February 18th ~ the first full team workout.
February 25th ~ first Spring Training game for the Red Sox

AND the most important day...are your pencils ready?

drum roll.....

April 6th, 2009 ~ OPENING DAY for the RED SOX!!

GO SOX!!!!

Wear RED, post RED, eat RED, drink RED.

Eleven more hours and the Red Sox will begin a brand new season!! I am so psyched! We have a great team this year. Ahhh, baseball makes me sooooo happy!!

The Red Sox are playing their first game at home this year. Hopefully the weather will hold out. Rain and thunderstorms are in the forecast. Below are some photos from today's Boston Globe of the team working out.

Big Papi (David Ortiz) loosening up before taking batting practice.

Tim Wakefield, manager Terry Francona, Mike Lowell and Dustin Pedroia fielding
a ball.

Jason Bay in left field with Opening Day 2009 spelled out on the Green Monster.

Some of the new seats installed in Fenway.

GO SOX!!!

I also have to give a shout out for Annie's basketball team. The game for all the marbles is tomorrow night. Go Heels!!

*Edited Monday (from the Red Sox site): "Not taking any chances, the Red Sox saved fans the annoyance of sitting through excessive delays and inclement weather by announcing shortly after 10 a.m. ET on Monday that the team's first Fenway Park season opener since 2002 had been rescheduled for Tuesday at 4:05 p.m. ET. "

What a great week! Family visiting, Sox/Yankees series, my new passport, and the tree that I have been cursing and that has been home to many birds who have all crapped on my car for years and years has finally been cut down.

Family visiting - I really enjoyed spending time with my brother, sister-in-law, and my niece & nephew. The last time I saw them, my niece was about 10 months and my nephew was two (I think). It was really nice getting to know my niece and nephew a little bit better.

Jack & Lizzy on one of the rides at my school's Family Fun Fest Friday night:

Sox - As you can see, rooting for the Red Sox runs in our family. There was a big 3 game Sox/Yankees series last weekend, the first meeting of the two teams this year. Friday night, after buying food at the fair, we decided to eat in my classroom since all the tables outside were taken (a perk of working at the school). My brother has an iPhone and was checking the score on and off most of the night. When we went into my room, I turned on Gameday Audio (the radio broadcast of the game) on my computer.

The game was tied and they were in extra innings. If it was up to my brother and I, we would have stayed in my room until someone scored, but the kids, my sister, and my sister-in-law were ready to play more games and go on more rides. Just as I went over to turn off my computer, Kevin Youkilis hit a walk off home run and the Red Sox won. I started jumping up and down cheering. My nephew thought it was pretty funny, probably thought I was nuts, and was surprised at how much I love the Red Sox. I think I earned a few points with him that night :)

Click here to check out this hilarious clip of a squirrel in the outfield the other night at Comerica Park during the Red Sox/Tigers game in Detroit. Make sure to watch the entire clip. The funniest part is at the end of the clip.

Sox swept the Tigers (YAY!!). Right now we are tied for first with the Yankees.

2 1/2 days and the school year is over. Yipppeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Thanks again everyone for all of your comments and positive thoughts. The pain in my left shoulder/arm is slowly decreasing. It does not hurt at all when my arm is still and only hurts a little when I move it certain ways (except for one certain move which is still a little more painful). The pain though is nothing like the pain I am dealing with right now in my right arm. Tetnus shot! What great timing. Last night I was up half the night in pain. At least it is no longer my left arm that is keeping me awake at night.

The Yankees were in town for the second three game series at Fenway this week. The Sox were already up 5-0 after sweeping the Yankees three games at home in April and two more in the new Yankee stadium in May. I always love to see a sweep but realistically I figured we had a chance to win two out of three.

Tuesday was my last day at work (officially anyways - three more meetings to attend). Kids got out on Monday and Tuesday was a half day to close up the classroom and get all of the last minute things done. I rushed home after work to listen to the game on Game Day Audio that afternoon (games start at 1:10 pm here).

We ended up easily winning Tuesday's game thanks to Beckett's pitching. Scoring a lot of runs also helped. Big Papi (David Ortiz) has been struggling this year. Many sportswriters have already written him off. He blasted a two run homer in the 2nd, his 3rd home run of the year. The fans went wild. The stress of the end of the school year must have caught with me because I ended up falling asleep right after Big Papi's home run and then woke up just before Nick Green hit a home run.
Final: Sox 7, Yankees 0

(The K-Men keeping track of Beckett's strike outs)

Wednesday night's game was on ESPN. It ended up being a nail biter. We were ahead 6-2 but the Yankees slowly came back. With the score 6-5 after two home runs in the seventh, Okajima came in and kept the score at 6-5. Jonathan Papelbon, who was sick the night before from food poisoning, pitched the ninth inning and closed out the game for the win. Final: Sox 6, Yankees 5


(Mike Lowell being congratulated after a solo home run)

With seven wins in a row against the Yankees, could the Sox pull off another sweep? Tonight's game ended up being another close one! The game was not on TV so I listened to it on Game Day Audio again (this time not falling asleep). It ended up being a great game (for a Sox fan).

Brad Penny pitched a great game not allowing any runs six innings. Big Papi hit a solo home run, his 4th of the year and second of the series off the first pitch in the 2nd inning. The game stayed at 1-0 through the 6th. In the 7th inning, the Yankees scored 3 runs of a pitcher who usually pitches well. It wasn't looking good as it started to rain. I was worried the game might be called. Even though it was raining, the stands were still full. The Sox rallied back in the 8th to score 3 more runs and the crowd went wild. Papelbon came in and got the save in the ninth. Not only did we win, but we swept the series!!! Final: Sox 4, Yankees 3

(Big Papi hitting his 4th home run - all three photos courtesy of the Boston Globe)

Sox 8 - Yankees zilch!!

10 more games to go this year with the next Sox/Yankees game set for August 6th in the Bronx. GO SOX!!!!

Being a HUGE Red Sox fan, of course the first thing that came to my mind was Red Sox photos. I have not been to a game since July 2003. The first photo was taken outside one of the entrance gates into Fenway Park. The next two are of the same game before and after the sun went down. I took these photos with my first ever digital camera so they are not the best of photos but they bring back great memories.

Below is a YouTube clip of Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" which is being sung at Fenway Park before the bottom of the 8th inning, a tradition at every home game.

I did not take this video but wanted to include it hoping that it will help bring the Sox some luck. The Sox are down two games to the Angels right now. We have been here before. I am not giving up.

I still believe and will love my Red Sox forever win or lose.

GO SOX!!!!