With just under three weeks left in the regular season, the field is almost done filling out, with just five teams holding real hopes of reaching the post season: Boston, New York, Detroit, Minnesota, and Los Angeles.
Anaheim is up 6 in the West, Detroit is up 4 on Minnesota in the Central, the Red Sox are up 6 ½ in the Wild Card and the Yanks are about to clinch the East, up 6.5 games.
So, how do these teams stack up?
It's not everyday that Red Sox fans get to see Alex Gonzalez at the bottom of a walk-off pig-pile. It's even more rare to see him take a walk. But last night, he did both, leading the Red Sox past the Los Angeles Angels, 9-8.
Both Paul Byrd and Angels' starter Joe Saunders pitched some uninspired baseball, but it was the quick feet and quick thinking of the Red Sox that brought home the seventh win in eight days for Boston.
The playoffs are right around the corner aren't they? Cause if they aren't then we might be a little bit ahead of ourselves. At least were not too conceded to think we still have a chance to catch the Yankees, even if my Daisuke-fueled bravado may have called the Red Sox the favorites to win the World Series. Ok...maybe we did include a "glimmer" of hope at the division still.
We talk rotation, Daisuke's return, Buchholz' emergence, the confidence in the offense and do some advanced scouting of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
All that and more on Episode #60 of Fireside Chats on MVN!
In his first game back since June 19, Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched a surprisingly decent an unagitating outing, as the Red Sox beat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of California of the United States of North America, 4-1. The multi-million dollar man notched over six shutout innings, giving up only three hits. Unfortunately, he walked just as many batters, but the five strikeouts on 93 pitches were certainly a step in the right direction.
Damn Alex Gonzalez for giving us hope. OK. Maybe that was overdoing it, but A-Gon is not nearly the batter he has shown since being traded to Boston from Cincinnati.
For the type of hitter fans expected to get in the trade, there's no doubt Alex Gonzalez has endeared himself to fans with his recent performance. With all the shortstop troubles the team has had since Nomar and Orlando Cabrera left, a competent stopgap is exactly what the doctor ordered.
The Red Sox got the two out of three wins in Tampa that we talked about last episode, and proceeded to meet doom in Chicago at the hands of "the Revenge of Kotsay". Net/net, the Rangers are still in the wild card hunt and aren't going anywhere. Paul and I break down the Red Sox castoffs and in season additions and give Theo and team a positive in season grade with this team built for the post-season (should they get there). All that just primes us for the big finish, where Paul nearly convinces me that trading Jonathan Papelbon in the offseason is the right thing for the franchise in a "Seymour-esque" way.
All that and more on Episode #59 of Fireside Chats on MVN!
