Gronktastic

NFL Week 1: Keep Your Pants On

2011-09-13T22:15:00.002-04:00

Ah, week 1 of the NFL season is always a wonderful time of year. Sure it's still 100+ degrees in Texas and our houses are, literally, catching fire, but somehow Fall is still in the air. And it all started with a tremendous Thursday night game between the past two Super Bowl Champs that featured one of the best kickoff returns for a touchdown I have ever seen, in fact kickoffs is where it all begins.

NFL Returners to New Kickoff Rule: ROFL
Certainly it started with the Randall Cobb's sick kickoff return for a TD on Thursday night, but throughout the weekend we saw some remarkable kickoff returns. And this in the face of the new rule that should have made touchbacks as popular as John Lackey at an infielders convention. Yet there were folks running them out of the end zone like quick snapshot of average starting field position for the four teams over this past game 1:

Minnesota Vikings 37.6
Green Bay Packers 34
Detroit Lions 20
Chicago Bears 15

If you look across the league the over reaction to the kickoff rule was intense, and that might just be why kickoff teams were not as agressive as in past years. Look again at both the Harvin return and the Cobb return, in both cases they have clear daylight until at least the 20...so why not return it out of the end zone? The true test will be next week, and I expect to see the kickoff rule go into deeper effect, simply because the kickoff team will actually get down the field.

Don't Over or Under React
Driving home from work on Monday night and avoiding any mentions of the Pats game so I could watch it without knowledge on the DVR I dialed up my friend who is a Redskins season ticket holder. When he answered I asked one simple question;

"Be honest. After yesterday's win did you check the schedule on the way to the car and calculate how many wins you guys will have now?"

He admitted he did exactly that and talked to me about how the entire stadium slowly filled with optimism throughout the game. Something that has not been in FedEx field for quite some time.

Last night I headed out to the local pub to watch the second game with a friend, who is a Cowboys fan. He was still rocked by the Sunday Night loss, acting as if a family member had perished in a tragic blimp accident over the Orange Bowl. He muttered throughout the conversation about his Cowboys and how they have no chance and "we'll be lucky if we get to .500".

And therein lies the challenge of judging week 1. The winners are in pure ectasy, making plans for the Super Bowl. The losers are depressed, thinking that they will be going through another long season of, well, losing. The truth is, you can't really measure a lot from week 1. Teams are rusty, especially this year. You have rookies who are nervous and vets that are over confident. You have coaches trying to implement new systems in a matter of weeks, and teams that have been together for a while.

My advice, wait until after game 4 to make a true judgement on your team. You'll know at that point if they are a contender or pretender.

Speaking of Rust: Uglies Missed Camp
WOW did offensive lines play poorly in week 1. The biggest offender? No surprise, Philly. That offensive line is suffering, but it doesn't get revealed due to the athleticsm of Michael Vick. Rewatch that game and you'll see pockets folding nearly instantaneously and zero push against a defensive line that isn't exactly a brick wall. But Philly wasn't the only one. Overall offensive lines seemed to have been the group that missed an extended camp the most. It takes these guys a while to get into game shape, and right now they are playing their way into game shape, and it shows.

Five for the Prize
Green Bay -- Looking strong in defense of their crown, but more importantly they seem like they still want to prove something. On paper this team is better than last year, simply because they are healthy. It will be fun to watch.
Houston -- My preseason pick to make the Super Bowl looked dominant against an Indy team many thought would be at least decent without their leader. Was it a fluke blow out or a testament to the fact that Houston has finally made the leap? We'll see, but I'm still on board with this team.
New England -- As long as Tom Brady is alive and kicking this team will be in charge of their own destiny. The defense looked really bad at times, especially the d-line and the secondary, but they will gel over time. And the offense is clicking already.
Baltimore -- WOW that was an ass kicking of a conference rival, with a bit of salt thrown into the wound at the end. I loved every minute of it, even if I can't stand the Ravens and their obnoxious fan base. This team is for real and I might just put them ahead of New England if it wasn't for my homerism.
Philly -- I've been critical of their off season moves throughout, I just think they are putting together a Frankenstein rather than a team, but you cannot deny the raw talent and athleticsm of this team. They can out run, out jump, out throw, and out tough you. I'd say that is a sure recipe for a strong season.

Five for the Draft
Giants -- Injuries are not helping this franchise, in fact they are hurting them (see what I did there?). If they can get healthy on defense they might be able to win 6 or 7 games. If not, you are looking at hiring Coughlin for your next company retreat as a motivational speaker.
Kansas City -- Are we ready yet to crown Belichick as the king of the Pats and relinquish any credit from Scott Pioli? Can you imagine being a sports fan in that town right now? Painful.
Seattle -- I don't even know what to say about this team, but the fact that Pete Carroll is still running around the sidelines as a mad man and giving crazy speeches post game has to count for something. Right? Right?
Cleveland -- Granted Cincy is the next big juggernaught in the NFL...OK, even with my ongoing bet with Strout I can't even joke. Browns, how do you lose to Cincy that way at home. You are a bad team, and having watch Colt McCoy play several games in college and last year I'll tell you it's not getting any better. He'll have great weeks, and you'll get excited, but overall he'll dissapoint you.
Denver -- You lost to an Oakland team that had better odds of going winless than pulling out three games this year. A team that's owner is older than Jerry Lewis. And you were at home, and you have a proven QB and head coach. Your team is terrible.

Oh, and Jaws said shit. That was fun, huh?

THE At Bat

2011-05-03T11:40:00.002-04:00

First of all, shame on me. This blog has sat fallow since early February. A book, a new job and a Facebook Group that is easier and more fun/engaging is partially to blame. But after last night's Red Sox game, I was inspired to do a short post on my main man, Dustin Pedroia.

I said earlier this year on Twitter that as Pedroia goes, so to will the Red Sox this season. And I still stand by that in spite of Elsbury's resurgence, Lowry's return after a year of battling a horrible illness and the arrivals of messieurs Crawford and Gonzalez. It's because Pedroia is the heart and soul of this Red Sox team (with a little bit of help from Youkilis).

For anyone who watched last night's game versus the Halos, you got the feeling that this game meant more than some of the other 27 games the Sox had previously played. No, this wasn't the Yankees but this was the Angels and more importantly, it was Jered Weaver. Yes, the same Jered Weaver that was attempting to break a 120 year old record by going 7-0 by May 2. Up until the 5th inning, it looked like Weaver might just break good old Sadie McMahon's record. A combination of good pitching by two young studs in Buccholz and Weaver -- neither of whom had brought their A game but both of which whose B+ game was better than most mere mortals and some stellar defense pointed toward a low scoring game.

Then came "THE" at bat. If you watched the game, you know which one I am talking about. It was Pedroia versus Weaver in the bottom of the 5th. There were two outs with runners on second and third and the Sox were down 2-1. This felt like it could be another 2-1 disappointment that would send our boys from Boston to a 12-16 record -- 6 games behind the Bronx Bombers. But you could see the determination in Pedroia's eyes. I said to my wife, Melanie, who was watching the game with me, "this game is going to come down to this at bat." Nine pitches into the at bat, Pedroia had worked a 3-2 count and had started fouling off everything.

Four pitches and nine minutes later, Pedey sent a seeing eye single up the middle and could be seen yelling, "YEAH... F@CK YEAH!" as he raced to first. Two runs scored and the Sox took the lead for good on their way to a 9-5 romping of their favorite whipping boy. Even better, the Sox bats exploded in the 7th demonstrating some of the power we were hoping for in the offseason, punctuated with a towering home run over the Green Monster by Big Papi. All was right in the universe again.

Two other VERY important notes that I am compelled to mention:

ONe of the main reasons this at bat was so clutch was that it drove Weaver's pitch count well up over 100, a critical part of the Sox's winning the game.
Alex Gonzalez made on of the ballsiest (and arguably the second most important) plays of the game by fielding a scorcher in the top of the 6th and gunning out Torii Hunter at 3rd on a bang bang play to keep the Angels from evening up the game right after the Sox took the lead.

Does this mean the Sox have turned their season around? Of course not. But it's a long season with exactly 134 games to go. As long as Pedroia stays healthy and keeps that fire in his belly (is there any other way?), I like the Sox chances.

Props to MLB Gameday for the screenshots.

Super Bowl XLV Breakdown

2011-02-06T12:46:00.002-05:00

The grocery store was packed this morning, no surprise. Not only folks doing some Sunday morning shopping, but today is THE day in America. No sport in our country brings together people for their championship like football. "Super Sunday" the balloons yelled from the aisles, waiting to be bought with zero copyright infringements issues. Carts were filled with tortilla chips and queso makings, not to mention cans of kidney beans, ribs, wings, ground beef, and salsa...lots, and lots of salsa.

Dodging through the crowd my own basket was filled with makings for my "chocolate chorizo chili', to be served to the nearly 40+ who had said "Yes" to the Evite. Beer was already chilling outside on the deck, and the temps were about to go north of 70. Super Sunday, indeed. The mind was focused on finding some dried chilis when I nearly ran down a woman near the canned vegetables. At first her face read disdain, as if to wonder how I could possibly be so focused not to see another human. Until she glanced at my hat, and I, her shirt. Both read in bold and proud letters, New England Patriots.

Super Sunday is not simply for the fans of the two teams, it's a celebration of all things NFL and all things football. Looking around at the grocery today I saw the following NFL teams represented: Jets, Bills, Patriots, Packers, Cowboys (obviously), Texans (semi-obviously), Chargers (WTF, who moves from San Diego), Ravens, Steelers, and Titans (a now defunct VY jersey, but still). Today we all get together to watch the ending of something we started in the late days of August, frustratingly watching pre-season games. Of course it is better when your team is playing in the game. But if you love this game, today is about you as much as it is about the teams.

The look on the woman's face immediately turned when she saw my hat, "Too bad the Pats aren't playing today, huh?" she said in a heavy south shore accent. My reply could not mask my sudden deflation, knowing how amazing those six Super Bowl Sunday's when the Pats had played had been, "Yeah, always feels a bit different." As I turned to my right, having spotted those elusive chilis she said with full sincerity, "But it's still the Super Bowl, and I can't wait."

Yes, today is still the Super Bowl, and although my Pats and probably your team are not playing, I can't wait.

A few bits of housekeeping before we move on to the game analysis.

Pats/Jets...I'm Done With It

The nice thing about Super Bowl Sunday is that I finally get to put away the Pats loss. This has always been true, no matter when the Pats went out of the playoffs (or, for the majority of the years, never made it in). Today I get to start fresh and just enjoy the game. That being said, I watched the Pats/Jets tilt again yesterday, and noticed several things I hadn't before:

Matt Light was owned all game and Mankins was owned for half of the game. They looked tired, old and not excited about playing that game. Perhaps it was the long season, the week off, the freezing temps? But the offensive line simply was not what it had been during the year. Yet, they didn't even come close to costing them the game.

Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis is going to be a star in this league. I watched every run this year, more than once, and although our line was stellar, he also has that sense of where the play is going to end up in a few steps. No he's not going to run for crazy numbers, but he is going to be a Bettis like producer for the next few years. I'm excited to watch this happen.

Eugene Chung made the right call. Not because it looks like he could have made the play, even without the fumble, although I think he could have watching the tape again. But because Bill Belichick grants his players the ability to read situations and make the decision they feel is the best one to make. A second year player is already in the position to make those decisions, not to mention he had an amazing year. Eugene Chung is the kind of guy you want on this team and if you can't see that you missed the whole point of Belichick during the past decade.

The Jets had an awesome game plan. But it wasn't that awesome. Patriots made SO many mistakes.

Tom Brady stunk in that game. Go back, watch it. There was something off. He was floating balls, missing reads, and not able to move up in the pocket like in the past. That foot was obviously bothering him, but it's no excuse. The bigger surprise, and Dilfer brought this up on Simmons' pod, was the lack of emotion from Brady overall. He seemed sick or out of it. Perhaps if he doesn't throw that pick on the first possession and Crumpler makes that TD catch on the second possession he comes out in the second half with his normal passion. But we are past the 'woulda/coulda/shoulda' stage and we know if one person will come back with even more fire it's Tom Brady.

Not to give too many hints into my upcoming Draft analysis, but I do see Belichick packaging up picks for Fitzgerald...and that could be the move that really seals this team's fate.

This team really missed a Bruschi out there during that Jets game. Not from a playing standpoint, but a leadership standpoint. The good thing is that the Pats know you can't buy that leadership in free agency, instead you have to watch a Chung or a Mayo become that leader. Next year they have the experience to become those leaders.

Awesome, awesome, awesome season for the Pats. Nobody reading this gave them a shot at a #1 ranking. They over achieved in every part of the game. Sure it was frustrating to not make it further, but look at the big picture. This team is stocked for a run every year until 2017.

Packers (-3) versus Steelers

Flip flops are currently on my feet as I write this column, but it can also describe how I've felt about this game all week. One part of me loves the fact that the Steelers have all of this experience in Super Bowls. It just makes sense that if you've been here before that you'll handle all of it much better. Add to that the fact that they are underdogs and all of a sudden they also have the "no respect" card to throw around.

But what if not having any experience is exactly what you need? What if it's better to be able to take a nap in the locker room before kickoff? What if because you don't have experience you are actually looser coming into the game and can really drive the game plan to perfection? The Packers might be able to walk into JerryWorld tonite and simply dominate this game because they are going to play loose and fast, which is exactly why the '99 Rams succeed, but the '01 Rams did not (well, that and an amazing Belichick game plan, but just give me that one).

Back and forth my mind would go, always thinking about the intangibles of leadership, experience, karma, and the crowd. But slowly it dawned on me this afternoon. Certainly those things are important, but at the end of the day, who is the better team? If you can determine that, and then look at the intangibles, you can get a better sense of who is going to win the game tonite.

The Better Team

The Packers are, by a substantial margin, the better team. Their receivers are super fast and run slant routes tighter than anyone. When they catch the ball they already have gone five more yards before the camera is even onto the play. Aaron Rodgers is the new breed of quarterback in the NFL, someone who can not only make the quick read, but can also scramble and make something happen. The Green Bay defense is not as strong as Pittsburgh's, but they are damn good. Even in special teams Green Bay has the clear edge. So why only a three point favorite?

Pittsburgh too has a great quarterback in that mold, and now that he has had another extra week off to heal Ben Rothlisberger will be a foe to reckon with, whether on the ground or in the air. The Steelers have some very talented receivers, and if they are to win I would guess that Mike Wallace put up a monster game. Hines Ward, future HOFer, shows up for big games and they can still batter you on the ground. The Steelers defense is amazing. Form the front guys to the line backers to another HOFer patrolling the outfield, this is a defense I personally love to watch play and wish that the cameras would pan out so I could watch it from up high to truly appreciate their brillance.

Both teams have survived injuries throughout the year and will be missing key players tonite, so don't talk to me about Pouncey. Yes, Tomlin is the better coach, no denying that he wins that match up. The game is indoors so weather will not be a factor like during the playoffs...wait, what? The game will be indoors, on carpet. Hmmmm, which team has dominated on turf this wear, when their speedy playmakers on both sides of the ball could really grip and rip? That would be the Packers, and that is probably the reason I would favor them, in terms of talent, to win by 10.

But What About The Intangibles

OK, back to the intangibles. This isn't really that big of a deal with these two teams. Pittsburgh has the experience. Green Bay has the characters. Pittsburgh has the veteran leadership in droves. Green Bay has veteran leadership in dollops. Pittsburgh has been down in the playoffs and come back to win. Green Bay has been in control for the most part, not having to truly sweat out a game. In the intangibles department I'd give Pittsburgh a three-point edge.

Just Make a Decision

It comes down to simple math at this point. Green Bay is up by ten with talent, and then up by seven when you factor in the intangibles. Certainly we see a fairly tight game the first two quarters, but it opens up in the second half a bit, and Green Bay starts to pull away.

Green Bay 30 - Pittsburgh 20

Conference Championship Predictions

2011-01-23T09:41:00.000-05:00

I believe I'm now 7-1 in my predictions for the NFL playoffs, and what I wouldn't give to be 1-7 if it meant I could change the outcome of last Sunday's Pats/Jets game. But alas, my fluxcapacitor is in the shop. But today I'm trying to break out of the grief and look forward to some NFL games, because that is what we do as fans.

But before I turn my sites onto the games I did watch the Pats/Jets game again, finally, late last night. In the end the Pats game plan was solid, for the first two drives. But I really believe that only coming away with three points after driving the ball like they did just gave the Jets the momentum. You get 14 or even 10 points during those drives and it's a completely different ball game.

The fact that Patrick Chung has the authority to make that fake punt call if the situation calls for it is the definition of Belichick's system. He prides himself on teaching his players how to shift into situations. You can't be excited about the Pats system when they win and then slam it when they lose. You're either on the boat or off. I watched that play at least thirty times...Chung was right. It was the right call. It just didn't go his way. Again, that works out, even if they don't end up scoring on the drive, it's a four point game at the half.

Matt Light will be gone next season, unfortunately. But watch him in that game and you can see that he's lost at least a half-a-step. I love me some Matty Light, but that ride is over.

Brady played the entire second half with a stress fracture in his foot. It wasn't the reason they lost, but for those that ragged on his Bieberish looks this season and called him weak...really? Really?

Taking all that time to score that TD in the 2nd half was a killer. Reminded me of McNabb in the Super Bowl against us. They just looked beaten down and exhausted. And by that point they were.

For all the talk and obnoxiousness, the Jets had an awesome variation of the Tampa-2 defense, mixed it up well, Sanchez was not their enemy, Holmes catch was ridiculous...they played well overall, hats off.

Respect aside for their play, a coach should NEVER run into an end zone to congratulate his players after a TD unless there are all zeros on the clock. That was the most classless act by a team team that has redefined the term. The Jets have officially pushed out the Steelers as the number one disliked team by this guy.

Pats should be a clear favorite to win the Super Bowl next year...but we all know what that means.

OK, Pats/Jets 2010 is officially over.

Packers at Bears

Wow, the oldest rivalry in football meeting for all the marbles. A cold day in Chicago with some old school footballers like Rodgers, Kuhn, Peppers, Hester...I can't wait for this game to get going and see what these teams have in store. And the team that survives the mistakes of their mistake-prone coaches will surely be the one heading to Dallas in two weeks time. And in my mind McCarthy is the one to take the title of "Least Mistakes Made".

Chuck said it early on, the Pack are for real and most likely were the best all around team as the Playoffs started. I don't see that changing this week, but it will be a really tight and fun game.

Packers 24-Bears 17

Jets at Steelers

How do you root for either of these teams? The visitors are a group of classless fools who shoot off at the mouth, but also delivered when they needed it the most. The home team is led by a man whom I would never want to meet in person, but a coach who is super cool and super good. Nobody wins during this AFC Championship, especially us Pats fans.

Putting aside emotion though and just looking at these teams AND what the Jets did against the Pats o-line on Sunday I just can't imagine Pittsburgh winning this game. But then again, Sanchez turns back into himself and Pittsburgh eliminates the mistakes the Patriots had and then you might see a game. Ugh, this is worse than Sophie's Choice. So I'm going to close my eyes, hold my nose, and type the next line.

Jets 27 - Steelers 24

I feel horrible again....

Divisional Round Preview and Predictions

2011-01-15T11:52:00.003-05:00

No matter how much football you watch the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs is always the best weekend. As fans we get to see the number one and two seeds play at home after a week off. We get to see a scrappy team or two make it to the next round, and see if they are for real. Divisional rivals abound in this round, with the third game of the season between bitter rivals helping to set up something special…or brutal…or both. Nothing in sports compares to the twelve hours of football we will be privy to today and tomorrow.

A few things that we will see, no matter the game:

--Better officiating than the regular season thanks to an extra official and simply a culling of the bad officials. This not only means less interference calls, but also they let the guys in the trenches play a bit more loosely. Watch the OL dominate a bit more than in typical games, especially in Pittsburgh and Chicago.

--Some really stupid coaching moves, particularly if we get to see the new OT rules come into play. I was amazed at how poor the coaches were last weekend, particularly Payton, but now we get to see fairly new coaches under immense pressure in really tough situations. Can you say poor clock management?

--A surprise team begin to gel before our eyes and potentially use it for a run to the Super Bowl. Think about the Giants in '07 (sorry, I know, it's a horrible memory for Pats fans like myself) who came into the playoffs with some confidence in a close loss to the Patriots and really gelled during this round, especially their defense. Could we see the same thing with the Packers or the Jets?

--Two "underdogs" covering the spread.

--A lot of money heading to the public teams (Packers, Bears, Patriots)…I mean a LOT of money. This weekend is a huge gambling weekend, to the point where I promise myself one year I'll watch it in Vegas, who's with me?

Let's take a look at the games.

Ravens at Steelers (-3)

This is basically a pick-em when you are a three-point favorite at home, and it's no wonder, these teams have played so many times that there really will be no surprises. The question will be whether Mendenhall can run through a hole properly and if Ed Reed can shut down Wallace. Let's examine both of these a bit.

Watch Mendenhall play in any game and he will sometimes simply stop running in the hole, before he's been hit. He is anticipating a hit at this point, but by stopping he ends up losing yardage or simply gaining one yard. If he kept his legs he'd probably end up with 3-4 yards and keep the Steelers out of long third down scenarios. This is something to watch throughout the game and it can certainly be something the Ravens defense can use to their advantage.

Speaking of the Ravens defense we can all agree that Ed Reed is SICK. He's basically the definition of a shut-down safety. You know he is there the entire time and you must consider him no matter what. The question I have is whether Big Ben can get to Wallace, especially in the slot. Now last week the Colts threw to Wayne once, but even worse, they didn't move him around to take him off Revis, or slip him into the slot. Pittsburgh has a much better coach and I think they do some really unique things to open up those receivers. Ed Reed or not, Ben has been there before, Tomlin has been there before, they are at home.

Pittsburgh 16 - Baltimore 15

Packers at Falcons (-1.5)
Wow, as a gambler this line is crazy. It opened at -3 and has moved down throughout the week and as of this morning the money line was taken off the board. Means a lot of money is going to the Pack (going back to the "public team" definition above). But I also think that people are overlooking Atlanta and Green Bay has become THE sexy pic for these playoffs. I'm not disagreeing, Rodgers is fantastic and at the end of the day it's the quarterbacks we need to look at in this game…or that is what the folks at ESPN would say. I'd rather look at the lines when Green Bay has the ball.

The Falcons' run defense is HORRIBLE. Watch their last five games and I'd argue I could get a first down on that defense. It's a bit strange that they actually got worse later on in the season since their schedule actually got easier. I'm not really sure why this has become the case, but it seems to me that it is scheming rather than personnel. The DL is not getting the help they need from the LBs, they don't bring the corners up to help plug the run, and overall they seem either hurt or just tired. Unless they come up with an amazing new scheme I'm seeing a BIG day for James Starks running the ball.

But it's not just the Atlanta defense for the reason Starks will rumble, it's the Green Bay offensive line. Take a moment during today's game and after a run replay it, watch how they seal off the middle or the edges, depending on the play. Especially Daryn Colledge, the guard. And if the OL plays well on running plays it makes sense that they will run the ball well, but here is where I REALLY like the Green Bay offensive line…pass protection when the receivers are covered. They hold onto their blocks so well, which helps Rodgers, but also opens up the field for him to scramble. Rodgers averages 8.1 yards per attempted scramble. That's a big reason the Pack will win this game, but it's a coin toss and I say we see our first OT game.

Packers 31 - Atlanta 28 in overtime

Seahawks at Bears (-10)
Why did the Seahawks have a shot last week? Three things:

Home Crowd

Saints were on their 8th string running back

Hasselbeck is awesome when blitzed

In the game against the Bears the Seahawks will not have any of those three advantages. Obviously they aren't playing at home, but not only that, they go into a very hostile Soldier Field. The Bears have a decent running game and it has only gotten better after their bye when Roberto Garza, OG, came back from injury. This is a really solid o-line and I've always loved watching Olin Krutz play center (third most important position on the field, BTW). This is an offense that can put up some points, but also have sustained drives that gives their defense the rest they need.

The Bears defense is really, really good. Why? Julius Peppers, obviously. Brian Urlacher, obviously. And the mind of Lovie Smith, obviously. This team doesn't need to blitz. Meaning that Hasselbeck is going to have to squeeze too many throws into coverage. Perhaps Seattle goes no-huddle like they did in their first game at Chicago, but even then I see the Bears dominating up front and their healthy secondary blanketing coverage.

The more and more I think about this game the more I like the -10 line.

Bears 34 - Seahawks 17

Jets at Patriots (-9)

You know what Rex, it's not personal. Nobody in Foxboro or Foxborough thinks it's personal. In fact, they aren't even thinking about you. They are thinking about your offense and your defense. They are scheming on how to take advantage of a QB that looks hurt, is throwing the ball really high, and has trouble playing in the wind. They are figuring out how to get Branch open down the field, Welker across the middle, and Woodhead down low. It is never personal with the Patriots. It's 60 minutes of football.

All the talk aside, this game comes down to some very simple things, the most important being that the Patriots are simply a better team than the Jets. But a few things really scare me about what the Jets could do. The first being running Shonn Greene...a lot. Greene has younger and fresher legs and the Patriots defensive line is very banged up. Obviously having Brandon Spikes back helps in these situations, but overal the Pats D is pretty lousy against the run. They are really lousy when there are running plays in passing situations. I can see the Jets controlling this game for a bit if they go to Greene and if Brad Smith is healthy. The Patriots will have a tough time with a Jets team that comes into the razor ready to grind it out on the ground. If Rex decides to take the game out of Sanchez's hands that is the best way to beat the Pats this time around. But I just don't think the Jets have the talent, on the field or on the sidelines. Not this year.

I could write an entire column about what I like about this Pats team in terms of the way they have played, the personnel, the coaching, etc. I'll leave that for my season wrap up post, which hopefully you will not see until early February. But what I really love about this team is how they surprised me and how much I love watching them as a team. My favorite moment from the entire season remains when he brought the entire team around him during that first Jets game and although they had the game in hand with a quarter to go had one simple message:

"We play for 60 minutes. We play for 60 minutes."

Patriots 30 - Jets 20

Is It Just Me... Or is Logan Mankins the REAL MVP this Year?

2010-12-13T11:00:00.001-05:00

As I was reading the Boston Globe's sport page this weekend, it dawned on me. Logan Mankins is the reason that the Patriots have gone from a good to dominant team in the NFL. After sitting out for seven games, he returned (and started) during the Cleveland Browns game. It's no coincidence that that was the last game that the Patriots lost.

New England Patriots All Pro Guard, Logan Mankins

I know that Kyle Flaherty will back me up on this but just like starting pitching going an average of seven innings versus six can have a profound impact on the bullpen and the other starters, a great offensive lineman (especially a guard -- right or left) can have an equally great impact on all aspects of the game. For one, Mankins, a two time pro-bowler, provides better blocking protection for the running game which of course makes passing easier. And then there's the passing which is up about 2 yards/catch on average in games where Mankins starts. While a lot of that has to do with the receivers (and backs) continuing to have monster YAC numbers, anecdotally, I know this also has something to do with the extra 1-2 seconds Brady has in the pocket to look downfield at his 2nd and 3rd reads. And because the offense is now spending more time on the field, a well-rested defense is also looking better.

Yes, part of this has to do with the emergence of the law firm aka Green-Ellis stepping up his game. And it doesn't hurt to have a second "possession receiver" in the form of Deion Branch. The growth of tight ends Hernandez and Gronkowski as they shake off their rookie jitters also contributes. But at the end of the day, I think many of the commentators and prognosticators have overlooked the importance of having one of the best right guards in Patriots history (second only to John Hannah of course) back in the fold.

Thoughts?

Image courtesy http://www.patriotsgab.com/

Why I'm Not Thrilled about the Crawford Signing.

2010-12-11T10:49:00.003-05:00

First, let's get this out of the way: Carl Crawford is, at the very least, a good baseball player. In some ways, he's a very good baseball player. I'm not trying to take anything away from him.

But he has never been a great baseball player. Not ever. Not so far. Yet the Red Sox just signed him for great-player money and a contract that is probably two years too long, if we're only looking at performance on the field. Let me give you a few reasons why:

Item: Crawford just finished his age-28 season, which means that we've probably already seen him at his best. He may well sustain that level for several more years, which will certainly be valuable to the Sox, but it's unrealistic to expect him to raise that level, or to raise it by much. He won't get faster, he probably won't translate his speed into 70-steal seasons, and he probably won't raise his walk rate or his home run rate by enough to make a big difference. At this point, he is who he is, for better and for worse.

Item: Crawford plays left field, which means that he must -- absolutely MUST -- hit the crap out of the ball to justify great-player money. Yet he's never cracked the top 10 in the American League for either on-base percentage or slugging percentage. (Contrast this to Adrian Gonzalez, playing at another slugger position, whose career OBP is 31 points better, and whose career SLG is 63 points better.) Crawford's been in the top 10 in total bases once, and he's about 15-20 extra-base hits per year below truly elite numbers. Leading the league in steals and triples isn't enough to make up for this.

Item: Crawford is clearly well above average as a defender, with superior range, a sure glove, and enough assists to tell you that he throws pretty well. But good left fielders will never be worth as much defensively as similarly good defenders in center or right. If Crawford put up identical numbers, but as a center fielder, it would mean substantially more.

A lot of discussion among this group has centered on Crawford's personality traits: Is he a focused "grinder"? Is he misdirected? Is he a loafer or a malcontent in the locker room? To all of that I answer: Who knows? And who knows how he'll react as a newcomer to a club with a strong culture and several outspoken leaders? If pressed, my guess is that he'll be fine -- less of a clubhouse gem than, say, Victor Martinez or Kevin Millar, but also much less of a head case than Manny Ramirez.

I understand the economics of the game, and no doubt Crawford will put more butts in the seats at Fenway, and get more people to tune in on television. The financial structure of the franchise requires continual sellouts at Fenway, and lots of ad revenue from broadcast venues. So his contract might make sense from the perspective of selling more tickets. It just doesn't make sense from the standpoint of his performance on the field.

In this off-season, Adrian Gonzalez is the steak. Crawford is just the sizzle.

(Image source.)

Re-Awakening the Red Sox "Dynasty" (and this blog)

2010-09-27T17:34:00.002-04:00

Other than a somewhat promotional post about the Ultimate Fan Experience, BigP has been a pretty quiet corner of the internet for the last 45 days. We were busy. Life got in the way. It's summertime, what do you expect? No need for excuses, but it's time to get back down to business.

On the eve of the Red Sox elimination from playoff contention, I'd like to ask you all one question...

What do they need to do in the off-season to compete against the Yankees and the Rays in 2011?

The current goat is our namesake, Jonathan Papelbon. He's had eight blown saves this year and last night certainly showcased his recent struggles. But that's not enough to fix this team. What moves would YOU make if your were Theo? Take your time. I want your best work.

The Ultimate Red Sox Experience? Certainly The Ultimate Pitch

2010-08-30T21:32:00.003-04:00

Although we only took 1 out of the three in Tampa Bay I'm still holding out hope for the boys. In fact I think I'm probably enjoying this summer a bit more than the last few. Perhaps it's the influx of new faces and energy (Kalish's catch last night was truly terrific). But you also can not dismiss the fact that with all these injuries we are actually watching a Red Sox team over achieve. This was an impossibility over the past few years, when the Sox were expected to compete near the very top.

Rather than sweat out each game, I'm enjoying them a bit more and catching the nuances of baseball. It's been a joy. Then again, I'd trade it all in for a healthy team in first place...ahhh, there's the old Kyle. Nothing beats the experience of a good run in September/October. Speaking of experience, check out the great email I got today:

Hey Kyle!

How are you? I was wandering from Red Sox blog to Red Sox blog, and came across yours listed in the blogroll section of OverTheMonster. I know Red Sox fans are pretty die-hard (especially when it has to do with the Yankees), so I thought you might appreciate this contest that Overstock.com is holding, called "The Ultimate Red Sox Experience."

You get a chance to win tickets to see the Red Sox pummel the Yankees on October 2nd- including round trip air-fare,a pre-game VIP tour and the chance to turn the numbers on the Green Monster scoreboard during one inning. If you're interested in knowing more there's also a video that goes over the details.

Appreciate the contest? I LOVE the contest, especially since I live in Austin now, so it would be that much sweeter. But as a long time marketer who kind of dabbles in this "social media" stuff I also loved the pitch. Kudos to Selena Narayanasamy, the Director of Social Media Outreach at BlueGlass. Not sure if Selena knew some of the folks behind this blog like Aaron, Tim, Bryan, Adam, and Jim...but let's just say they are a bit of a big deal in the social media world.

Thanks for including us Selena! Check out why I loved this pitch so much on my personal blog, then go register for the contest as well as watch the video below:

How Much Do You Love Your Team?

2010-08-07T14:43:00.002-04:00

Last night while watching the Red Sox battle the Yankees, and with all these injuries it certainly IS a battle, my wife posed an interesting question to me:

"If one of our sons became a player in the MLB and was on the Yankees right now, what team would you root for?"

It was a no brainer for me, I would keep my loyalty for my team, the Red Sox, but hope for my son to go 4-4 each game. She then threw me another doozy:

"If one of our sons was drafted by the Colts or Steelers (my two least favorite NFL teams) in MSG would you wear a Colts hat to celebrate on ESPN?"

This one was much harder for me. On one hand what is the harm in just putting on the team hat during this great moment? On the other hand the Colts and Steelers are pure forms of evil to me. But in the end I said I could wear the hat during the draft, but would never wear one during an actual game.

Now it was my turn:

"If one of our sons was given a full ride to play for Notre Dame would you cheer for the Irish?"

I believe the look I got was enough of an answer...neither of our sons would ever set foot in South Bend, unless they were on the visiting team.

What say you?

Battah, Battah, (flash) Swing Battah...

2010-07-23T15:50:00.002-04:00

This is pretty funny. Hat tip to friend, Jerry for forwarding. Pay close attention to the gal behind the plate.

An instant classic

2010-06-14T12:49:00.002-04:00

To Tim's last post, I want this series over and done with in Game 6. I think the Celtics can do it too. For posterity's sake, here's is the NBA's mini-movie about Game 5. I love the pre-game practice and hope they share more footage of that.

Alert: Tong War in Progress!

2010-06-11T11:42:00.002-04:00

Of course I want the Celts to win.

But I'll be honest, I want it to come in the third overtime of Game 7, as both teams crank up the effort to play both harder and smarter across the last three games of this Finals.

What about you? Would you prefer a quicker kill in Game 6? Or risk a heartbreaking Game 7 loss in order to see something transcendent?

Reason #2,348 Rajon Rondo is Awesome

2010-06-07T14:25:00.002-04:00

Rondo is showing his aggressiveness and growth since 2008. Ray had an incredible game, but I think last night's game 2 vs the Lakers was arguably Rondo's best all around game as a Celtic. This video slo-mo is amazing.

Perfect SHAME

2010-06-03T20:34:00.004-04:00

Welcoming myself back to this blog. I'd say that I've been 'busy', but who hasn't? Granted that a company merger is leading to LONG hours, and my weekends are spent from soccer fields, to rushed (often unhealthy) lunches, to T-ball games, etc. I have no good excuse - most of us have the same type lives.

However, last night's Detroit Tigers game has to go down as an utter shame. Armando Galarraga's perfect game.... Well, it was still perfect. Kind of. Without rehashing the game (who hasn't read about it or seen the highlights?) - Jim Joyce blew it. He made a call that was maybe, almost close with two outs in the ninth to break up a perfect game. A PERFECT GAME. The irony of it being that Galarraga himself covered first base and caught the ball, beating the runner by about a foot and a half - but the play was called safe. Who didn't say out loud 'Wait, wait?' upon seeing in? Unreal. And the call was so confident and assertive - which I understand is part of the job. But come on - it almost felt like he made up his mind before the play that anything close was safe.

I give Jim Joyce full credit for fessing up right away. But I still question the mentality of an umpire to make a call so assertively.

Putting myself in his shoes (which I did many times last night before falling asleep), I kept coming to the conclusion that anything close has to be called an out. It just seems like human nature. Admittedly that 'conclusion' of mine is flawed. As an official of any sport, your job is to remain neutral and have no emotional attachment to the game. I wonder how possible that is though. I could never umpire a Yankees/Sox game, referee a Lakers/Celtics game, or Pats/Jets game. As much as I would like to think that if it was my job I could remain neutral in that role, any close plays aren't going to be hard calls to make. Am I right?

Regardless... there was a perfect game pitched last night. Everyone involved was graceful in handling an obviously imperfect ending. But the history books will only be marked with a perfect SHAME. And we can only wonder why.

Bring it on: Celtics vs. Lakers (round 12)

2010-06-01T17:05:00.001-04:00

Yes, this is the NBA equivalent of Red Sox / Yankees. Except in this case, it's the Celtics who are the evil empire with nine wins out of the eleven previous meetings in the finals against the Lakers. Where things become a little more balanced is when we look at the last couple of decades where the Lakers have actually won a slew of their fifteen championships. The Celtics on the other hand won all but one of theirs prior to 1987. In fairness, however, the last time the Celtics won a title in 2008, it was at the expense of the Lakers. And for any Kobe/Lakers fans out there, you likely still have the bad taste of the 39 point ass whooping in game 6 in Boston.

That bad taste was partially removed when the Lakers dominated the Magic in last years NBA finals. But just like the Red Sox needed to go through the Yankees in their epic 7 game series in 2004 before finally removing the Curse of the Bambino, so too do the Lakers need to exorcise their demons of 2008 be vanquishing the Celtics in this years battle royale. The problem is, the Lakers are facing an even hotter Celtic team this year with a healthy Big ~~Three~~ Four (including Rondo in this mix now). A team that just wiped out the number one and two regular seeds in the East -- and the top ranked teams in the NBA according to NBA.com in the last two rounds of the playoffs.

But, that's the beauty of the playoffs and the reason you don't play them on paper. On any given day, any team can win. And of course that fact has led to a little trash talk going on on Twitter between the fans of LA and the good people of Boston (former citizens included). To that end, we have all decided to put our money where our mouths are (I think) and have decided to put a little wager in place.

Here's what I'm proposing...

If the Lakers win, Team LA (members below) will pick a restaurant in LA (or somewhere convenient for the five of them) with Team Boston footing the bill (not to exceed $50/person including tax/tip). The members of Team Boston will ALSO have to don a Laker-themed avatar for exactly one week following the final game of the series.

Tom Humbarger
Liz Phillips
Bennett
Jason Kapler
TBA (unless you guys want to go unbalanced)

If the Celtics win, Team Boston (members below) will pick a restaurant in Boston (or somewhere convenient for the five of them) with Team LA footing the bill (not to exceed $50/person including tax/tip). The members of Team LA will ALSO have to don a ~~Laker~~Celtic-themed avatar for exactly one week following the final game of the series.

An acknowledgement in the comments section below will serve as validation that you have accepted this friendly little wager. You all ready to rock?!?

Finals predictions?

2010-06-01T12:00:00.003-04:00

I'm not asking what you WANT to see happen. I'm asking what you think WILL happen.

Tell us now: winning team, number of games, Finals MVP. No fence-sitting, please.

(Photo source.)

How good are the Celtics?

2010-05-14T15:50:00.002-04:00

Item: LeBron played a bad series, especially in Game 5.

Item: Mike Brown might not be able to coach his way out of a paper bag.

Item: Cleveland sports pressure -- and defeatism -- is like it was for Red Sox fans pre-2004, but multiplied across three major sports. And the Cavaliers succumbed to it (again, especially in Game 5).

Unanswered questions for you to address in the comments: Just how good is this Celtics team? And do they have a chance to hang with Orlando?

Your thoughts?

Too early?

2010-05-03T17:11:00.002-04:00

So when is it too early to give up? Have the Sox done that already? Who do you think is going to insert that shot of adrenaline that the Sox appear to so desparately need? It does not seem that the team is clicking either offensively or defensively. In any other division, this start would just be troubling or worrisome, but with the Yankees and Rays in front, it will be difficult to catch up, since both teams are so strong. (I can see one or the other stumbling, but not both, barring significant injuries of course).

Nielsen Has to Be Wrong

2010-04-29T13:05:00.002-04:00

Lots of chatter today about Nielsen's sentiment report listing the Cleveland Indians as the most hated baseball team. Here is the official list from the WSJ:

The Hatred Index

Using an algorithm designed by Nielsen Co. that measures positive and negative reactions on the Internet, here are the 10 most despised teams in baseball (scale is -5 to 5).

Team Score

1. Cleveland Indians 0.9

2. Boston Red Sox 1.1

3. Cincinnati Reds 1.5

4 Houston Astros 1.8

5. New York Yankees 1.8

6. Washington Nationals 1.9

7. Chicago White Sox 2

8. Baltimore Orioles 2

9. New York Mets 2.3

10. Los Angeles Dodgers 2.4

Well, I for one disagree. Here is my own top 5, at least (not just who I dislike, but what I think the real answer is out there in the public, based on volume of people who hate teams) - what's yours?

1. NYY
2. Phillies
3. Red Sox (Yes, I think there are many out there who dislike the Sawx - people hate winners)
4. White Sox
5. Mets

Who do you think is really at the top of the most hated? How about most loved?

Photo credit: Post406 via Flickr

So far, so neutral?

2010-04-29T11:40:00.003-04:00

We're nearly through the first month of the season, and the Sox couldn't be more mediocre: 11-11, smack in the middle of the division.

So . . . where are we headed?

Red Sox Announce New Fenway Park Design

2010-04-03T21:10:00.001-04:00

Red Sox Announce Plans To Return Fenway To Original 1912 Conditions

Boston Area Red Sox Tweetups

2010-04-02T11:44:00.002-04:00

Next Friday, April 9, will be our first official in season Tweetup for the out of town game of the Red Sox at KC. Jerry Remy's new Sports Bar & Grill will be the venue. Jerry's business partners have been very supportive and are arranging for a portion of proceeds from food/beverage sales that night to go to the Jimmy Fund. Already a great crew will be there.

We're also divising thoughts on future tweetups, involvement of philanthropy, etc. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions on ways to improve and continue events this season? If not in Boston, what have been good events in your city and what made them great?

I visited Fenway Park Today

2010-03-19T16:30:00.003-04:00

It's looking good...

Ty Warren Chooses His Degree over $250K

2010-03-19T13:53:00.000-04:00

Entertainment vs. Competition

2010-03-03T08:54:00.004-05:00

This morning on WEEI Dennis and Callahan interviewed "Not So" Big Papi. They asked him about how fans treated him last year, and whether he thought fans were down on him too soon in his early season slump. Ortiz, gracious as usual, responded something to the effect that the fans at Fenway have always been his biggest supporters, and that they understand the work ethic and enthusiasm he brings to the table. He also said the athletes have a clear understanding that they are there to entertain the fans, and that the fans expect to be entertained.

That got me thinking. Are professional athletes entertainers? Or are they here to win? If they think of themselves as entertainers, does that jeopardize their chances to win? I guarantee Belichick would never say that "do your job" = "be an entertainer." Thoughts?

Image: imdb.com

Are you Going to Blogapalooza? (ON HOLD)

2010-03-02T10:06:00.002-05:00

Posting this on behalf of a new friend, Joe Gill, who is running a cool event called Blogapalooza that brings sports bloggers together. His quick blurb on the event is below...

What is Boston Sports Blogapalooza?

Social Media Outlets for Sports (bloggers) can finally meet, trade social media tips, and talk shop in a fun, relaxed atmosphere. Then I thought why not incorporate the Boston media, local companies, and music.
Media of both types (social and traditional) can mingle and discuss all the hot topics on the Boston Sports Scene.
Local companies can network with bloggers about their products and services. Partnerships between these companies and social media outlets would be agreed upon right at the event.

NOTE: THIS EVENT IS TEMPORARILY ON HOLD. STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFO.
This event will be 18 plus. For more details, visit the Blogapalooza Facebook page or website.

Who Should Play Fenway Park This Summer?

2010-02-25T08:22:00.005-05:00

What band should play Fenway Park this summer? A simple question, but there are a few rules:

1. The band/act must be actively touring (US or elsewhere) over the summer.

2. The band/act cannot have played Fenway Park already.

3. The band/act cannot have completely destroyed their legacy by playing the halftime show at a recent Super Bowl.

Who do YOU think should play the park? Who would cause you to call in a bunch of favors to score tickets?

Note: Here's the list of bands/acts that have played Fenway in the past (h/t @twalk).

Who are the Top 10 Position Players Ever in Baseball?

2010-02-08T21:08:00.003-05:00

Enough of this "foot ball" nonsense; time to talk about a real game.

You can use any standard you want -- hitting, fielding, baserunning, well-roundedness, character, historical impact, whatever. But don't mince words: give me your all-time top 10 for baseball.

Play ball!

(Image source.)

Big P Makes Their Big Game Picks

2010-02-05T17:39:00.005-05:00

I asked some of the team at Big Papelbon their Super Bowl predictions, here they are in no particular order:

Tim Walker

This game features two very good teams with interesting flaws. To my mind, the most interesting flaw is the Colts’ lack of a running game, which ought to put to rest the old saw about how you win playoff games by running-and-stopping-the-run. They make up for it, of course, with (maybe) the most cerebral quarterback in league history and (certainly) a corps of receivers that is second to none. Plenty of teams in the league would be happy to have Garcon as a #2 receiver, or Collie as a go-to slot guy in the Welker mode; on the Colts, those two guys understand their place down the totem pole from Wayne and Clark . . . and yet Manning still seems to love throwing to all of them.

Brees is smart, scrappy, and spectacularly accurate. He has good receivers to throw to himself, and all bets are off if Bush has one of his occasional rush/receive/return monster games. But the Saints needed a goofball final play from Favre AND a lucky coin toss in overtime to beat the Vikings. If this game comes down to the wire – and I have a hunch it will – which passer+receivers group would you rather bet the farm on? I like the odds of Manning-to-Wayne, Manning-to-Clark, and Manning-to-Youngster-X about as well as I like the odds of anything in sports.

Colts by 3.

Aaron Strout

No question in my mind that the Saints win. The Colts are banged up. The city is behind the Saints in a BIG way i.e. they need this. Dwight Freeney being hurt REALLY hurts their chances against an amazing passing attack. The Saints D is just scrappy enough that they hold Peyton et al. to 28 points. Saints score 35.

Saints by 7.

Jim Storer

As much as I'd like to think otherwise, the Saints don't stand a chance. Peyton Manning and the Indy offense are going to open up the first half with two quick scores and never look back on the way to a 42 point outburst. Meanwhile, Drew Brees and the Saints are going to spend most of the first half trying to get out of their own half of the field. Reggie Bush is going to run for 250 yards (side to side) and Brees is going to spend more time looking up at the beautiful Miami sky than he will down the field at his receivers. Several late scores make it seem closer than it was.

Colts 14. "42-28"

Kyle Flaherty

Let me state for the record that my heart is rooting for the Saints, but my wallet is rooting for the Colts. Peyton Manning is playing at a level never before witnessed in professional football, and doing it with a grade-B receiving corp. The Colts defense is highly underrated and it looks like Freeney will be fine for the game, but even if he isn't that doesn't matter. The Colts are going to run away with this game and as much as I want to see a good game AND see the Saints win I'm predicting a rout.

Colts by 11. "31-20".

Bryan Person

Saints by 3. "31-28".

Jason Stoddard

Indy by 4. "35-31".

The Brett Favre Problem

2010-02-02T23:03:00.003-05:00

Thank you to Tim for making me write this post and re-evaluate my own thinking.

The debate had been raging recently on the top QBs in history and in nearly everyone's list Brett Favre was ranked below the fifth position. Interesting when you consider:

Favre is FIRST in completed passes, having nearly 1,000 more than Dan Marino and 2,000 more than Peyton Manning (closest active player).
Favre is FIRST in passing yards, having more than 8,000 more than Dan Marino and 19,000 more than Peyton Manning (closest active player).
Favre has won one Super Bowl and appeared in two (same, at this moment, as Peyton Manning).
Favre is FIRST in TD passes, having 77 more than Dan Marino and 131 more than Peyton Manning (closest active player).
Favre is FIRST in Interceptions, having 40 more than George Blanda and 200 more than Kerry Collins (closest active player).

Favre is VASTLY ahead in many of the offensive categories we consider most important for a QB and he has won the Super Bowl and MVP. Yet, people had him below Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Johnny Unitas, Warren Moon, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman and others. That is ABSURD!

Put away your annoyance of Brett Favre and his disrespect for his teammates, because that is what his retirement yo-yo actually entails. Shove that vision of Brett Favre in his wranglers to the part of your brain you reserve for bad memories. Now look at the numbers one more time and respect what the man has accomplished.

I was fortunate enough to watch Brett Favre play live on an October day in Green Bay. At the time my friend Alex Hahn was working for the Redskins and got tickets for me to go to the Frozen Tundra and watch the Skins versus the Packers. No, literally, I had field passes and actually stood on the Frozen Tundra. Does it rank as the top live sporting event of my life, even over famous ALCS games during World Series runs? You bet it does! I got to high-five with Gilbert Brown and get in a mini-shouting match with then Packer Terry Glenn (I was wearing a Deion Branch Patriot jersey to the game, yes, I can be a jerk sometimes about my football).

The game was an exciting one and midway through the Third Quarter Brett Favre was PUMMELED and down for the count. People around me acted as if the Pope had been kidnapped. At the time Favre had the most consecutive games started by a QB in the NFL, somewhere around 200. This man had played one of the most dangerous position in the NFL (even with absurd rule changes) and not missed a game in the span of 12+ seasons. After missing one series Favre came back into the game and ended up leading the Packers to victory in the fourth quarter.

After the game we tailgated for a few more hours and a young girl, probably 23 or so, said to me,

"I'm not sure I would ever watch football again if Brett Favre wasn't playing."

She was completely serious and I wish I could talk to her now and see what she has done the past two years.

The point is that Brett Favre has not only survived in a violent sport, but excelled in this violent sport at an age at which we believe he should be done. Perhaps the Brett Favre retirement saga was ultra annoying and it may become the same this offseason, but take a look at the numbers and I honestly can not see you rating Favre lower than third in your list of all-time QBs.

Has Federer surpassed Laver?

2010-01-31T17:35:00.004-05:00

"For [Federer] to come out and play as well as he did here just goes to show he has stuff to prove to himself, not to anybody else," said Pat Cash, the 1987 Wimbledon champion. "I'm flabbergasted to understand how he remains so motivated. I certainly couldn't." (via ESPN)

Because that's the question at this point.

Rod Laver won the Grand Slam -- not the career version, but the actual, all-in-one-year kind -- in 1962 and again in 1969. Besides those eight titles, he won three other majors, plus about a squillion other tournaments.

And here's the massive footnote to his record: since he was a professional, he was not eligible to play in the majors from 1963 through the beginning of the Open Era at the French Open of 1968. Two things should stand out about this:

He won 11 majors even though he was prohibited from playing in 21 consecutive majors in his prime.
How do we know it was his prime? I refer you back to the years that he won the calendar-year Grand Slam . . . on either side of the enforced five-year hiatus.

Considering Laver's tournament record during those blackout years, and speaking very conservatively, his career total of wins in major could easily have reached 20. Clearly, Federer's current record of 16 wins is staggering . . . but the idea that he would need four more to reach Laver gives it more context.

Of course, the usual caveats about comparing one era to another apply here, just as they do for baseball, basketball, etc.:

Sports medicine and conditioning programs are better today, which means that Federer faces stronger, faster, fitter opponents on the whole.
Equipment -- especially rackets and shoes -- are much better today. Light-years better. Which could make Laver's performance all the more impressive. (I love my Adidas Rod Lavers and get lots of compliments on them, but I wouldn't want to play one set of tennis in them.)
Laver traveled by the best means available in the 1960s and early 1970s; Federer travels everywhere by private jet.
. . .

So, there's some context for the debate.

More than just a note on Pete Sampras: if life were perfect, Sampras and Federer would have been in their primes at the same time. It would have made for some of the greatest displays of speed, smarts, and grit ever seen on any tennis court, and we could have expected these guys to slug it out in many Grand Slam finals.

But, great though Pete was, Federer is better. Some points of comparison:

Sampras pulled off the incredible feat of winning major titles over a span of thirteen years. So far, Federer's up to a "mere" eight years. Advantage: Sampras.
There's a common theme among the tennis cognoscenti that Sampras played against more great players (Agassi, Courier, Becker, Edberg), but that Federer plays against more good players (i.e. that the average level of play is higher, in part because of better conditioning). That said, it's clear that Federer has found his Agassi in Rafael Nadal, and it's not like Murray, del Potro, Roddick, et al. are a bunch of cupcakes. Advantage: ???
Federer has already completed the career grand slam, which Sampras never did, but it goes beyond that: Federer has been in four straight French Open finals, and in three of them he lost to the only men's clay-court player of the past thirty years worth comparing to Bjorn Borg. By contrast, Sampras reached the semifinals of the French Open once, and never reached the finals. Advantage: Federer, by a lot.
Sampras won five U.S. Open titles and played in three more finals over the span of a thirteen years (1990-2002); Federer has won five in a row (2004-2008) and played in one more final. Advantage: . . . You tell me: is it more impressive to win five times over a broad span, or in a row? Maybe a slight advantage to Sampras.
Sampras won seven Wimbledon titles in eight years. Federer has won six Wimbledon titles in seven years -- and counting. (Recall that the one loss has been called the greatest Grand Slam final ever played.) Advantage: Sampras, but not by much.
Sampras won the Australian Open twice and played in one other final. Federer just won it for the fourth time, and has played in one other final (another heart-breaking five-set loss). Advantage: Federer, by plenty.
Sampras won two majors in a year four times -- which, when you think about it, is stone-cold awesome. Federer has won three majors in a year three times, plus two majors in a year two other times -- which is more awesome. Advantage: Federer.
Sampras is ten years older than Federer, to the week. After the 2000 Australian Open, Sampras had won 12 majors; at the same age, Federer has won 16. Advantage: Federer.

In my view, the overall advantage to Federer is clear -- and it's only growing.

(Thanks to Bryan for suggesting that I write this post.)

~

(Image via Wikipedia.)

Who are the Top 10 Pro Quarterbacks Ever?

2010-01-30T09:44:00.003-05:00

First, read Kyle's post bidding a fond farewell to Kurt Warner, who rides off into retirement with his head held high.

Then, get serious with some barstool palaver and list your all-time top 10 pro QBs -- in order -- in the comments.

The list I shared with Kyle last night:

Mind you, I swapped around the order three times before I hit "send" on that tweet -- and then swapped Manning and Favre again for this post. It's a hard question to answer.

(For the record, if Manning wins next week, he goes to my top spot as the hybrid of a Montana-style winner, a Marino-style stat monster, and an Elway-style come-from-behind artist.)

By the way, I keep wondering whether I haven't slighted Warren Moon here. Hmm . . .

Anyway . . . let the arguments begin!

~

(Image source.)

Enjoy Life Kurt Warner. Enjoy the Hall of Fame.

2010-01-29T22:02:00.005-05:00

As you all know I have a huge amount of respect for Kurt Warner and hearing him retire today I thought back on the story I told just a few weeks ago. I hope that Kurt enjoys every minute of his retirement. The man won a Super Bowl, lost two Super Bowls and pulled in two MVPs. Hall of Fame? I say yes! And so do some other HOFers:

Troy Aikman: “I believe a player is a Hall of Fame player if you can’t tell the story of the history of the game without mentioning that player. In my opinion, no account of the NFL can be accurately given without discussing Kurt Warner’s impact on the game.”
Len Dawson: “I think he deserves it. I don’t know if I’ve seen a more accurate passer, and he generally didn’t make too many mistakes. The tag on him was he never got the opportunity. He was playing Arena Football and stuff like that. But once he got the opportunity, he took full advantage of it.”
Fran Tarkenton: “I think he’s deserving. To be a great quarterback, you have to understand the game, make adjustments by the second, by the minute, by the game. You have to take over the running of the game. And Kurt Warner has been able to do that.”

Will the Real Daisuke Matsuzaka Please Stand Up?

2010-01-27T08:35:00.003-05:00

One of the big question marks coming into the 2010 season is Dice-K... is he going to fade away or come back with a vengeance? Derek and I had a discussion last night on Twitter and we'd love your take. Derek's setting the over/under for regular season wins at 14.5.

Would you take the over or under and why?

NFL Playoffs Week Three Picks

2010-01-24T10:05:00.001-05:00

Since I started 0-4, then went 2-4, is there any doubt I'll go 2-2 today?

Jets 14-Indy 23

Vikings 28-Saints 29

Enjoy.

Big Papi on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

2010-01-21T17:23:00.003-05:00

Just in case you missed it...

Now the questions... Is it just me, or does Big Papi look lean/slim/fit in this video? What does it mean to the Red Sox lineup if he comes into 2010 like he played in the 2nd half of 2009? I'd love your observations.

What's your greatest personal sports triumph?

2010-01-20T18:38:00.003-05:00

Me, I was never much of an athlete, so I have to cling to a few playground memories.

Once, in a 2-on-2 pickup game in college, I went on a tear, sinking my patented (but usually terrible) running baseline hook over and over. My buddy and I beat two superior players with that shot plus hardnosed defense, and I'm still proud about it.
In high school, before I had even learned to shoot an open jumper, some friends schooled me -- in a good way -- about how to play serious man-to-man defense on the blacktop. Later that year, playing in a P.E. game, I caused problems for the best athlete in that class, who was running the point for the other team. (He was from the barrio and knew lots about fixing cars; I was an egghead on the school newspaper.) I knew I impressed him when, as he tried to set up a play from the top of the key, he smiled and said "You don't f--- around, do you?"
In fourth grade, through a combination of guile, teamwork, and simply running away, I found myself as the last surviving member of my team in flag-tag. My opponent was Billy Piper, by far the best athlete in the elementary school -- the golden boy. Though my teammates watched with dread, in the critical moment I managed a matador's subtle dodge when Billy came at me. I still remember staring at that flag in my hand. For once -- possibly for the first time in my life -- I had delivered victory for my team.

Now, surely you can do better than this. What are your greatest moments of sporting glory?

(Image source.)

NFL Playoffs Week Two Picks

2010-01-16T16:23:00.004-05:00

Because my week one picks were SO dead on it is not surprising that so many of you have been emailing, calling and faxing for my week two picks. No worries, I may be cutting it close, but here they are:

Baltimore at Indy

Baltimore is riding heavy momentum, while Indy has had a few weeks to kick back and get fat, with a rookie coach, and they haven't won a game in the playoffs after having a first round bye since...well since they were in Baltimore. Think old school Baltimore fans want to put a hurt on the Colts, you bet they do! It is all pointing to a huge Baltimore upset. Thus that is why I'm going Indy 31-Baltimore 27.

New York (A) at San Diego

You know who will have zero impact in this game? LaDanian Tomlison. You know who else? Mark Sanchez. Guess what will happen. That's right, San Diego rolls, 27-10.

Arizona at New Orleans

My sentimental pick overall is Arizona. That's right, Arizona, although the fact that they are playing my other sentimental pick almost makes me cry. I rooted for the Cardinals the entire playoffs last year and for only one reason, Kurt Warner. I'm a HUGE fan of the man. Strange, seeing that my Patriots were the team that probably gave him his first concussion. The reason is actually very personal and a story that most people probably don't know.

I interviewed for a job with the Rams at the end of May, 2004, which was a blast of a process, but as I left their office buildings located at their practice facility Kurt Warner was leaving as well. He not only held the door for me but ended up chatting with me for nearly 15 minutes in the parking lot. We talked about the day in and day out difficulty of being an NFL player, the politics involved and we even talked about the Pats Super Bowl win and the famous hit he took from Willie. I've been lucky to have been on the field for three NFL games (two in D.C and one in Green Bay, stories for another post) and talked with many players. Kurt Warner was the only one who seemed like an actual human being.

Two or three days later, he was released by the Rams. The meeting he was leaving when we met was most likely his last in St. Louis, and he knew it, but he still spent all that time talking to a football fan in the parking lot. Go Cardinals! Arizona 45, New Orleans 41.

Dallas at Minnesota

5,000 Minnesota season ticket holders said no to their option to purchase playoff tickets. Sign of the times or sign of bad fans? I'm saying 50/50, either way I could not care any less about either of these teams. Favre = ugh. Jerry Jones = argh. Tony Romo = ~~dreamy~~ annoying. Let's just say, um...Minnesota 24, Dallas 21, setting up a week of annoying Cowboys talk here in Austin.

Remember, bet against me and you WILL win. That is the Flaherty promise!

Do you have a dog in the NFL hunt?

2010-01-15T12:58:00.002-05:00

Now that the Patriots are playing golf, where does you rooting interest lie? Or have you moved on to Big East basketball and looking ahead to Spring Training?

Inquiring minds want to know.

~

(Image source.)

One and Done.

2010-01-10T16:28:00.002-05:00

Not to be too flip about it, but it's hard to win a playoff game when

The other team catches a bunch of early breaks;
You play out of rhythm from the start; and
The other team flat outplays you.

Did I miss anything?

NFL Playoffs Week One Picks

2010-01-08T18:11:00.002-05:00

Because you all were wondering:

Jets at Bengals

Classic Wild Card weekend game. Rookie QB who has been shaky all year, on the road against a team that knew they wanted this match up last week to tanked it early. We might see a decent score at the half, but the Bengals run away with this one on the legs of Cedric Benson who is still upset about Colt McCoy's injury.

Jets 17 - Bengals 31

Eagles at Cowboys

Could you think of two more inept coaches to face off against each other in the first round. Wait. What? Andy Reid has actually been making all the right moves lately and Donovan McNabb has a chip on his shoulder right now? Watch out Cowboys, Eagles will peck your eyes out. Romo fumbles the snap from center for a potentially game tying FG at the end of the game and immediately breaks into a Jessica Simpson song.

Eagles 24 - Cowboys 21

Green Bay at Arizona

Can you think of another time when three of the four playoff games in one weekend were teams that faced each other just in the last week? You can? Well then you are a downright dirty liar because it has never happened before. Shame on you for lying to me. And shame on the Arizona Cardinals for having all their good players injured for this game because it won't even be competitive without a healthy Warner, Fitzgerald and more.

Green Bay 34 - Arizona 20

Baltimore at New England

I rewatched the game from October 3rd twice this week and talked it over in depth with some folks. Most people remember that the Ravens literally dropped the chance at winning the game in the final seconds, but rewatching the game it was fairly obvious that the Patriots made several mistakes around the 7-5 minute left in the game mark that could have placed the game out of reach. Each of the mistakes were made by Tom Brady. This only a few weeks after Albert Haynesworth purportedly broke three of Tom Terrific's ribs. Does Tommy make those same mistakes this week? Not a chance. Is our defense much stronger with 16 games under their young belts? Of course. This will be the best of all four games, but the Patriots will hold on to live another week.

Baltimore 21 - New England 28

Oh, and guess what I have for you:

Another take on the Winter Classic

2010-01-06T09:05:00.004-05:00

New England's own C.C. Chapman scored a free ticket to last week's NHL Classic at Fenway Park. In a blog post this morning, he recaps the experience and posts some of photos from his Fenway visit, including the stunning panorama above.

The Classic is truly evolving as one of those events we just can't stop talking about. No doubt the NHL is thrilled.

Redsox and Yankees in 2010: Who you got?

2010-01-05T10:45:00.002-05:00

Following the announcement of the Red Sox signing Adrian Beltre last night, a discussion broke out on Twitter about whether this was a good or bad thing. We bantered a bit about whether a one year contract or a move to the friendly confines of Fenway Park might be a good thing or a bad thing. Then my good friend (and fellow Big Papelbon conspirator), Tim Walker, dropped the bomb on us...

@adamcohen @jimstorer @aaronstrout @peplau @DougH Bigger picture: the #redsox will not contend for the division this year, and that's that.

Whoa! If Tim wasn't a fellow Red Sox fan, I'd consider those fighten' words. Of course Tim has a point and that isn't that the Red Sox don't have a chance in 2010. Just that they don't stack up well against the men in pinstripes. So this got me thinking. For one, if you look at the Red Sox starting rotation, I'm pretty confident that we have an edge over the Yanks, particularly in numbers 3-5 (I'll give the Yankees a "push" on Sabathia and Burnett vs. Beckett and Lester). Yes, the Yankees did sign Javier Vazquez but he wasn't that impressive with the Yanks back in '04 (arguably one of their better years minus their ALCS performance). But the Sox have Lackey, Wakefield, Dice K, and Buchholz with up and comers Michael Bowden and Boof Bonser to boot.

Tim was willing to concede to my point about the pitching but correctly asserted that the Sox lineup wouldn't hold a candle to the "murderer's row" that the Yanks have assembled. While I don't think that there is as much of a disparity as Tim points out (Youk, Pedroia, Scutaro, Drew and VMart are all pretty decent hitters in their own right), I can't in good conscience try and argue that the Sox have a leg up on the Yanks. However, I will make the point that other than last year, the team with the best offense in the majors over the last decade has NOT been the World Series winner. In fact, teams like the '01 Arizona Cardinals, '03 Florida Marlins and '08 Philadelphia Phillies all won with a combo of good defense, great pitching and some timely hitting.

To back up my claim, I've listed the World Series winner and then the top run producer (my take on offensive dominance) in the column next to it. While I know there are a 1,000 different other stats/measurements like RBIs, OBP, OPS, etc., I think this is a fair measurment:

Year ----------------- Won WS ----------------- Best Offense (by runs)
2009 -----------------Yankees ----------------- Yankees (915)*
2008 ----------------- Phillies ----------------- Rangers (901)**
2007 ----------------- Red Sox ----------------- Yankees (968)***
2006 ----------------- Cardinals ----------------- Yankees (930)****
2005 ----------------- White Sox ----------------- Red Sox (910)*****
2004 ----------------- Red Sox ----------------- Red Sox (949)
2003 ----------------- Marlins ----------------- Red Sox (961)
2002 ----------------- Angels ----------------- Yankees (897)
2001 ----------------- DBacks ----------------- Seattle (927)*******
2000 ----------------- Yankees -----------------White Sox (978)********

*Red Sox were 3rd in runs w/ 872 in spite of losing in 1st round of playoffs

**WS winner, Philadelphia, was 8th in runs scored with 799

***WS winner, Boston, was 4th in runs scored with 867
****WS winner, St. Louis, was 14th in runs scored with 781
*****WS winner, Chicago (AL), was 13th in runs scored with 741
******WS winner, Florida, was 17th in runs scored with 751
*******WS winner, Arizona, was 7th with 818
********WS winner, NY (AL), was 10th with 871

At the end of the day, this is why we play the games, right?

Image credit: MLB

NHL Winter Classic Re-Cap

2010-01-03T13:14:00.005-05:00

NOTE: When playing each video, best to click 'play', then 'pause' and let a buffer build up before clicking 'play' again so playback isn't choppy.

Here's a fan's-eye view of the 2010 Winter Classic at Fenway in three parts. (Some of this stuff didn't make it onto the network broadcast).

Highlights:

Part 1: Madness in Twins & interviews with some interesting fans.
Part 2: A brush w/ a Red Sox front office big wig and an great fife & drum corp segment.
Part 3: The game-winning goal & crowd reaction.

And it bears mentioning that my Whalers toque got about 25-30 positive comments at the game. 20 years ago, I'd probably have been posting this from the hospital for wearing it.

My Favorite Boston Sports Moment of the Decade

2009-12-31T13:01:00.000-05:00

Ten years is a long period of time in any persons life. In best case scenarios it may be 10% of your existence, but in many it is much less. Therefore it is important when you reach the end of a year to reflect and the sense of this reflection is maximized at the end of a decade. Obviously the importance of the decade is measured in personal accomplishments, family and health. But for sports fans we also have the opportunity to look back at what happened during the past ten years.

As a Boston sports fan I've ended each decade of my life with mainly pain. Remember the end of the 70s, 80s and 90s? Not much to really celebrate. Of course the Celtics' championships in the 80s stand out and the Patriots, one of the laughable NFL franchises at the time, reaching the Super Bowl as a wild card in 85 and 96 were highlights. But when you think of the past decades you think of losing one-game playoffs, ball through the legs, locker room scandals and more negatives.

Well, we sit on the cusp of a new decade and this time we get to look back and nearly laugh with glee. Three Super Bowl Championships, a perfect regular season, two World Series Championships and a NBA Championship. Hell, you could add in the fact that the MLS team in New England has gone to three of their championship games, Boston College went to a bowl game nearly every year (and was even ranked #2 in the country at one point) and won a hockey NCAA Championship, as did BU and UCONN.

On the eve of the '10s I ask you, what was your favorite MOMENT from New England sports during the past ten years. Tell us the story of the moment, not just "when the Sox won it in '04". I'll start us out:

Climbing up into our truck parked out on Beacon Street my wife and I both looked at each other with pure amazement. The snow was coming down hard, there had to be at least five inches on the ground already. The street was completely covered, on a Saturday night, yet there was not a person around who really could be bothered to be bothered. The snow was the reason we were happy, the snow was the reason that what we just witnessed was so amazing, the snow was the reason we now have something we can call "the snow bowl".

Watching the game we had little expectations at the time, just happy that we had some playoff football to watch on this cold Saturday night in Boston. Only a small sampling of the typical Sunday crew had made their way out to my friend Mike's apartment for the game, the pending snow a deterrent. During the first quarter the snow was already starting to fall and cover the now ripped up field at the old Foxboro (Schaeffer Stadium to some of us) and the snow really made the game a spectacle. Not to mention that the New England Patriots were facing one of their long-time rivals, the Oakland Raiders.

Band-wagon jumping fans (you know who they are) of the Pats probably don't realize the enormously bad blood between these two franchises. But let's just say, when your owner gets in fist-a-cuffs with an opposing player after a game...there is some bad blood. That bad blood would not only continue after this monster game, but it would mark the end of a great franchise in Oakland and the blossoming of a new dominant NFL force in quiet little Foxborough, Massachusetts.

The game is a blur at this point, minus the tuck and the kick. But it was the snow outside after we left the celebration that is my favorite sports moment of the '00s. A fresh snow had blanketed the entire city and people were just running around high-fiving each other, realizing that what we had just witnessed after so many sports disasters was perhaps an inkling of some much needed luck. This moment, standing in the snow, I called my Dad, like I do after every game, and he immediately blurted out:

"Boston teams don't win those games!"

And if you are a fan, you know he is right. But in that moment we knew a Boston team HAD won one of those games, and it was the Patriots who had made it happen. The team that had been relegated fourth in the pantheon for decades. A few weeks later they would cement the foundation of a dynasty in New Orleans, but the shift in Boston sports started that one Saturday night in the snow when we all started to believe that our teams could start winning "those games".

Magic and Bird

2009-12-30T23:56:00.002-05:00

Is this book on your reading list?

Ready for the Winter Classic

2009-12-30T14:46:00.005-05:00

I'm not much of a hockey guy, but even I'm excited about this year's Winter's Classic.

Outdoor hockey, at Fenway Park, on New Year's Day? Absolutely brilliant (arguably one of the few brilliant marketing moves from the NHL over the years).

This will be the third annual installment of the Classic (with plans to expand to two outdoor games per season soon), and the Bruins and Flyers will have draw plenty of eyeballs this Friday starting at ~~3:00pm~~ 1:00PM Eastern. Mine will certainly be among them.

Photo courtesy of my sister, Jill Person, who had a gig shooting a family on the Fenway ice last week.

Affirmation of Tom Brady's Dominance

2009-12-23T13:52:00.000-05:00

Hat tip to Jim Storer who tweeted this post out regarding Tom Brady and the Patriots i.e. they might be a lot better than you think when you look at the pass defenses they played this year (toughest by a long shot). See the excerpted chart below for validation:

Quarterback    Passer Rating    Opp. Rating    Difference
Drew Brees             109.4             83.8           +25.6
Philip Rivers        102.8   83.4   +19.4
Tom Brady                93.7               74.6             +19.1
Brett Favre             104.1                85.6         +18.5
Matt Schaub           98.9              82.8             +16.1
Peyton Manning      101.2                85.4             +15.8
Tony Romo               97.8                83.3        +14.5
Ben Roethlisberger    100.6                86.2 +14.4
Eli Manning            96.0                82.6             +13.4
Aaron Rodgers      102.4                89.6            +12.8
Donovan McNabb      93.6                85.1            +8.5
Kurt Warner               93.0              89.0                +4.0

The author of this article, Kerry J. Byrne, goes on to explain...

The performance of New England’s opponents, its 74.6 Defensive Passer Rating, leaps screaming off the list. It’s a gauntlet far tougher than that which any other team in football has faced this year. In fact, it’s not even close.

The league-wide Defensive Passer Rating in the NFL this year is 83.7 — which means the average defense surrenders (and the average quarterback produces) an 83.7 passer rating.

Most of the game’s elite quarterbacks have faced defenses in that range. In fact, as you might expect from teams that face the game’s best quarterbacks, their opponents trend slightly below average, from the 82.6 that Eli Manning and the Giants have faced, to the cushy 89.6 defensive passer rating of Green Bay’s opponents.

Bottom line: given the cushy schedule faced by the likes of Peyton Manning or Kurt Warner, Brady’s numbers would be much, much better than they are already.

What's most comforting about this article is the reminder that assuming the Pats make it into the playoffs, their likelihood of playing a top 5 passing defense again (minus maybe the Ravens) is nil until the Superbowl where they could face a rematch vs. the Saints.

Photo Credit: NBCSports

Cow Down?

2009-12-17T16:30:00.002-05:00

Phillips said the team doesn't feel a sense of desperation going into this game [Saints vs. Cowboys].

"We have confidence in our football team. We're not going to cow down to these guys. We think we can win. Every game we've been in so far, we thought we could win. I believe we feel the same way going into this one." http://sports.espn.go.com/dallas/nfl/news/story?id=4751288

Is this a Southern version of kowtowing? Does this require something other than bowing? Perhaps it means that they won't be taking off their chaps and bending over for the Saints. Inquiring minds want to know.

Runs are runs.

2009-12-15T08:23:00.002-05:00

John Lackey isn't the sexy name you'd like to hear connected with the phrase "is finalizing a deal with the Red Sox." You'd rather it were Roy Halliday, or Albert Pujols (ha!), or . . . you know, somebody big.

But 175 innings of pitching that's 15 - 20% better than average -- which is what you can expect from Lackey -- is nothing to be sneered at, especially given the rotation the Sox started with.

If we sign Mike Cameron to play left and/or Adrian Beltre to play third, the story will be much the same. I'd hate to overpay for either of those guys (even though Cameron has been a sentimental favorite of mine for many years), but if we understand that they represent adequate bats with super gloves and pay accordingly, we'll be fine.

Here's the thing: runs are runs, and it counts just as much to keep a run off the board for the opponent as it does to tally a run for the good guys. Impact bats are few and far between -- if not completely absent -- in the current free-agent market, so there's no way the Sox can replicate the Scary Monsters lineup of 2004 - 2007. It makes sense, in that setting, to push the run differential in the right direction using the other levers available.

You think?

~

(Image source.)

Take Off The Hat Tom and LEAD

2009-12-11T18:32:00.005-05:00

This week Adalius Thomas, having been disciplined for the second time by Bill Belichick, retorted:

“Motivation is for kindergartners,’’ Thomas said, echoing what he said the last time he was punished (Thomas was inactive for the snow game against the Titans). “I’m not a kindergartner. Sending somebody home, that’s like, ‘You’re expelled until you come back and make good grades.’ Get that [expletive] out of here. It’s ridiculous.’’

One of the other players to arrive late? Randy Moss. There is no question the guy is a talent and last year he rose to the occassion. But if you saw five minutes of that Miami game and New Orleans game it is fairly obvious that he decides to pack it in when he chooses.

I expected this team to win the AFC East with 12 wins and lose in the Divisional Round. They won't get 12 wins, but it is more than likely that they will now lose to Indy in Round 2. I'm not surprised by what they accomplish this year since Belichick made it obvious in August (and I wrote) that this was a rebuilding year. That is OK and fans should be OK with it too.

What I hate to see is the fact that the locker room is apparently falling apart just a bit and rather than seeing quotes from Tom Brady demanding accountability, we get this:Perhaps the new cap for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays? Um, no...If you can't see it, the logo is his initials, "TB", but also his number "12". Just check out his new website. The last time I was so appalled by a cap the great Ted Williams was wearing it during the 1999 All-Star Game. Perhaps I'm over exaggerating because of my frustration about this team, but there is an issue in the Patriots locker room and it is because it is devoid of true leaders.

Tom Brady is an amazing player and this is NOT some Dan Shaugnessey recreation of history. The guy has done more for one organization than perhaps any football player in history. But this past week I saw his chiseled jaw on three magazine covers...the week after an embarrassing loss to Miami. The same week four players were kicked out of practice for arriving late (including the aforementioned Thomas). I don't blame the guy for being a cover model or pimping his personal brand, but I'd like to see him begin to lead this team off the field.

However, I have not seen or heard about him taking his teammates to task. Perhaps it is all happening ultra privately? I find that hard to believe as we heard constantly about how Ted Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Rodney Harrison, Richard Seymour and Troy Brown would take on leadership roles in the locker room.

But I wonder if Tom Brady has what it takes to succeed in what may be his largest challenge to date?

This Decade's World Series Winners

2009-12-11T11:01:00.001-05:00

At some point in time, I "okay-ed" some sort of sports app in Facebook and so from time to time, I remember to look at the notifications. Most of them are shit but today's asked an interesting question... "Can you name the World Series winners from this decade?" Amazingly, I not only knew everyone of them but I also remembered who they played against.

Without looking, can you name all ten winners? And as an extra bonus, the losing team? For an extra, extra bonus, name that year's MVP.

"Best Name" Red Sox Line-Up (All TIme)

2009-12-10T15:20:00.002-05:00

With the recent Red Sox acquisition of Boof Bonser, it got me thinking of the best names we've had in the history of the franchise. I'm sure I missed a bunch, so fire away in the comments and I'm sure we'll hammer out a solid All Time team.

Starting Line-up:
LF - Rip Repulski
CF - Coco Crisp
RF - Catfish Metkovich
1B - Walt Dropo
2B - Denny Doyle
SS - Pumpsie Green
3B - Rip Russell
C - Birdie Tebbets
P - Fritz Ostermueller

Bench:
Hoot Evers
Faye Throneberry
Skeeter Newsome
Ski Mellilo

Bullpen:
Boof Bonser
Dick Drago

Pinky Woods

Red Ruffing

Trading of Mike Lowell

2009-12-10T12:32:00.002-05:00

Anyone have any thoughts on this trade? http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4730311 Sad to see him go, but his defense at 3rd was about as good as a lamppost's. No range at all. Sounds like they are trading him for a catcher who can't catch, but I guess at least they are getting something for him.

Hot Stove Sox talk as Winter Meetings wind down

2009-12-10T12:25:00.006-05:00

Plenty of interesting tidbits and questions surrounding our favorite baseball team:

1) News broke late last night that the Sox had agreed on a deal to send aging third baseman Mike Lowell to the Rangers for catcher Max Ramirez.

Although the 25-year-old Ramirez looks to have some pop in his bat (here are his minor league numbers), this strikes me as more a salary dump than anything else. Lowell is scheduled to make $12 million in 2010, and Theo Epstein & Co. clearly didn't think the 2007 World Series hero had enough left to play third on a full-time basis. I understand the decision, but will certainly miss having Lowell around. He's a guy you can't help but pull for.

2) Boston.com/The Globe is having a field day with Theo's line about the upcoming season serving as a "bridge" to more prosperous 2011 and 2012 campaigns.

Step down from your ridiculous high horse, Dan Shaughnessy. Most Red Sox fans are smart enough to understand that the team won't be true World Series contenders every season. A "rebuilding" year for this club still means 85-90 wins, and not dealing away too many top prospects does set the franchise up for better long-term success. And ... hello! The team has won two titles, been to two another ALCSes, and only missed the playoffs once in the last seven seasons. Let's keep it in perspective.

3) The Red Sox won't be opening 2010 in Australia, despite a report last weekend in the Sunday Telegraph that just such a deal was in the works.

While pulling for the story to come true (I lived in Australia for two years), I was certainly skeptical. You just know that Terry Francona and his staff would like a "regular" spring training for the first time in a while. The team played in Japan in 2008, and the World Baseball Classic threw off some plans last year (right, Daisuke?), so I'm betting the mere thought of taking his team halfway around the world again had to send Tito's blood pressure rising. Now the Red Sox ownership seldom sees a marketing scheme it doesn't like, so don't rule out the possibility of the team playing Down Under in 2011 or 2012.

4) With Lowell on his way out and Jason Bay still unsigned, there are still plenty of question marks about Boston's 2010 everyday lineup.

Who plays left field if the Sox don't/can't re-sign Bay and find the asking price for Matt Holliday too steep? What about signing Adrian Beltre to replace Lowell at third, or trading for first baseman Miguel Cabrera and moving Kevin Youkilis back across the diamond? Neither option looks particularly wise to me--Beltre would cost a ton while not putting up numbers much better than Lowell's, and Cabrera is a dangerous hitter but a guy whose contract would be just as obnoxious as Manny's was (plus, Cabrera just might eat his way out of the game at his present pace). So, just how does Theo plug the gaps?

5) And just can't resist this line: If form holds, the Sox will have three Ramirezes--none of 'em named Manny--and a Boof on their 2010 Opening Day Roster.

Man, gotta love the Hot Stove chatter, huh?

Twitter Lists and the Winter Meetings

2009-12-07T18:14:00.008-05:00

Here's one way to keep up with the latest tidbits, signings, and rumors from baseball's annual Winter Meetings: Create or follow a Twitter List of plugged-in MLB reporters.

This list from user @ConorGlassey--@conorglassey/winter-meetings--is one of the first ones I stumbled on, and it's a good one. Conor's collection aggregates tweets from the likes of @GordonEdes, former longtime Globie and now Red Sox beat reporter for ESPNBoston.com; @IanMBrowne, who covers the Sox for MLB.com; @SI_JonHeyman from Sports Illustrated; and FOX's @Ken_Rosenthal.

Any tricks you're using to satisfy your Hot Stove fix? As always, informative and entertaining suggestions are encouraged in the comments section.

Liking the Bruins More and More These Days...

2009-12-05T13:56:00.000-05:00

Following up on Kyle's great post the other day about people's alliances to Boston teams, I'm starting to like the Bruins more and more. Want to know why? As they say, a picture's worth a thousand words...

Image courtesy: Boston.com & NESN.com

Boston Team Allegiances

2009-12-04T08:00:00.005-05:00

A Twitter communication (see how I did that @twalk?) last night about the Celtics made me think about the Celtics for the first team all season. I simply don't really follow the Celtics that closely, never have, even back in the 80s. Of course I root for my hometown team to win, but it is never with a bunch of passion or caring. It really is simply because they have the city name on their jersey's. Now this is not to say I don't like the NBA, I actually love pro ball. However, it is the only sport for me that I can watch all the teams play and really not care who wins/losses.

There are several reasons for this, but the real question that popped in my head when I had this realization was, "How do you rate your sports allegiances?". I take several factors into consideration:

1) Pain you feel after a loss.
2) Amount of times you'll re-watch a single game.
3) Percentage of games you'll watch during said season.
4) Amount of time you take discussing off season moves.
5) Money you spend on tickets/shirts/etc for said team.
6) Emotional pull to team unknown to common man (Dad went to UNC, Stan Musial donated a kidney to you).

Going through this list I weighed everything and put together a few lists, which I whittled down yet again after reviewing each. There were some surprises:

1) New England Patriots
2) Boston Red Sox
3) Boston College Eagles Football
4) Boston Bruins
5) St. Louis Cardinals
6) Boston College Eagles Hockey
7) U.S. Soccer
8) Boston Celtics

The first two are a no-brainer, and I've stated to many of you that I've always placed the Pats #1 and Sox a very close #2. I'm guessing most of you flip that around. But the rest of the list makes sense...but only after I thought about it a lot. Rather than dive through my reasons for the way the list is, I want to see your list in the comments.

Jason Varitek's Upcoming Charity Dinner

2009-12-03T16:02:00.001-05:00

This charity dinner, put on by none other than Mr. Varitek and his charity, sounds like a solid event. Details below:

Jason Varitek's Captain's Dinner. The proceeds for this raffle will benefit the Celebrities for Charity Foundation. The raffle includes

Winner and three (3) guests will enjoy Dinner with Jason Varitek, on December 17, 2009, in the Greater Boston Area with an intimate group of fans

Winner and each guest will recieve an autographed baseball from Jason Varitek
Winner and each guest may bring up to 2 items to be autographed by Jason Varitek
Winner and each guest will be able to take a picture with the Captain, Jason Varitek

Tickets are only $2 each (min 5) and the proceeds once again benefit the Celebrities for Charity Foundation. Find more information about the raffle or to purchase tickets here.

Photo credit: http://kylepdiddy.files.wordpress.com/

Gut check.

2009-12-01T09:31:00.004-05:00

Not that anyone needs to hear it again, but the Pats got killed last night. Whipped.

As always, Belichick and Brady took cold, hard stares at the results -- as captured in this ESPN writeup:

"There's obviously a big gap between us," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said.

Drew Brees made the Patriots' defensive backs, who had been thriving lately, look like a bunch of XFLers. He bombed them for five touchdowns, something that has never been done to a Bill Belichick-coached team.

"They were better than we were in every phase of the game," Belichick said in the postgame news conference. "I don't know any other way to put it. They were better coached. They played better on offense, defense, in the kicking game, they covered better than we did."

Belichick punctuated his response with incredulity at the questions about how his team failed to compete.

"They were obviously the better team," he said. "You guys had to see that. You were at the game."

So . . . where do the Patriots go from here?

Patriots Offensive Coordinator 2010?

2009-11-21T17:43:00.001-05:00

With Charlie Weis going away as Notre Dame's head coach is there any possibility he returns in the coordinator role in New England? If it were a possibility would you even make this move?

What's your favorite sports book?

2009-11-18T11:32:00.002-05:00

Aaron touched on this in a post back in April. Elsewhere, I've trumpeted Moneyball and The Blind Side long and loud. But it's a topic worth returning to again.

What's your favorite sports book -- or your shortlist of favorites?
What do you look for in a great sports book?
Which sports are ripest for book treatment?

Part of the reason I'm thinking about this: my eagerness to read Bill Simmons's new Book of Basketball. (Dig this A.V. Club interview with Simmons.)

Another part of the reason: one of these days, I'd like to write a great book on sports, and this crowd is a great place to start tossing around ideas for that.

So, what say you?

4th and 2

2009-11-16T10:57:00.002-05:00

The facts are clear, the Patriots had a better chance of winning the game by going for it on 4th and 2 than if they punted.

In fact it is a 78% winning probability going for it on 4th and 2 versus a 70% WP when punting.

Here is the math.

Still hurts though, huh?

Unanswered Questions Starting to be Answered?

2009-11-15T07:42:00.002-05:00

Commissioner Gammons has a great column on the Sox, hitting a bunch of topics from Varitek, to Bay to the latest in a long line of shortstop prospects:

"Perhaps the most encouraging news thus far this winter has been the play of shortstop Jose Iglesias, a 19-year-old Cuban defector whom the Red Sox signed in July, in his first American experience in the Arizona Fall League. They thought he'd defend, and one National League scout says "He may have the quickest hands I've ever seen. Get a closet for his Gold Gloves."

It is fairly obvious to me, and others smarter than myself, that the Sox are going to sit on the sidelines this year. 2010 is going live or die with the team they pretty much currently have. But 2011 and beyond seem to be really huge years in terms of the depth coming up from the farm and the free agents available. Let me be the first to say it...the '10s will be the Red Sox decade.

Hot Stove topic #2: Patriots.

2009-11-06T11:41:00.003-05:00

(Note: It's topic #1 for Kyle Flaherty.)

The Patriots, I'm sure you've noticed, are 5-2, and sit atop the AFC East. Their remaining schedule looks like this:

Miami
at Indianapolis
NY Jets
at New Orleans
at Miami
Carolina
at Buffalo
Jacksonville
at Houston

I see a lot of winnable games in there, but you tell me: which of these games do they win, and which do they lose? Where do they slot into the playoffs? And how far will they go this year?

The Hot Stove League is now in session.

2009-11-05T12:37:00.003-05:00

Some starter topics:

What's your ideal starting rotation for the Sox next year?
What kinds of free-agent acquisitions should the Sox make in the off-season? Which particular players do you have in mind?
Any Sox farmhands you're looking forward to seeing with the big club next year?
How seriously should we scheme to put together a BigP Spring Training trip?

Thoughts?

~

(Image source.)

I have the ball

2009-11-03T09:52:00.003-05:00

OK, not THE ball (we hear the dog ate it), but at least an official replica.

An early birthday gift arrived in the mail over the weekend. And it what can only be termed a so-crazy-that-it-MUST-be-true coincidence, I had been sent a 2007 World Series baseball, signed by ... Jonathan Papelbon himself. No way I could make this up.

Mom and I had a good laugh on the phone on Sunday, when I told her that I "penned" the occasional column on a blog named after the same Sox closer who had autographed my birthday present. She had had no idea.

One other funny twist that ties in here ... I was a 7-year-old in the hospital recuperating from minor surgery in the spring of 1984 when I was given a "best wishes" signed baseball from former Red Sox, Dwight Evans.

I always liked Evans' timely hitting and cannon arm in right field. Plus--and this was probably a bigger deal when I was kid--he and I share the same birthday: November 3.

So, happy birthday, Dewey! And thanks for the ball, Pap! No dogs in my house, so it's safe with me.

Three thoughts on three days' rest.

2009-11-02T15:17:00.002-05:00

1. For most of baseball history, three days of rest was the norm for starting pitchers, not some sign of super-duper-awesome-super-toughness.

2. If I had a horse like C.C. Sabathia or Cliff Lee in my rotation, you're damn right I would plan on using them in Games 1, 4, and 7 of an LCS or World Series. At a maximum, that schedule would go on for two rounds of the playoffs, i.e. three weeks, after which the pitcher is guaranteed a winter of rest.

3. Three days' rest isn't for everybody, and I certainly wouldn't force it on, say, today's Pedro Martinez. But would it really be that hard to go with your horse for Games 1, 4, and 7, then apportion the other starts for Games 2, 3, 5, and 6?

Your thoughts?

10 Things I Think I Think

2009-10-30T08:38:00.002-04:00

Anyone here read Peter King of Sports Illustrated? I'm assuming most of you have. He writes a weekly column called Monday Morning Quarterback -- a must read if you follow football at all. My main reason for mentioning him is that within his MMQB column, he has a section called "Ten Things I Think I Think." Given my lack of contribution to Big Papelbon (other than in the comments section), I felt like I needed a more substantive post with some current thoughts on the Boston sports scene. Here goes:

Missed the Celtics season opener the other night. Saw the highlights on ESPN though and I'll tell you what... the 2009 Celts are going to be a tough team this season provided they stay healthy. What a great combo of veterans (Pierce, Garnett, Allen, 'Sheed, House and Daniels) and youth (Davis, Perkins, Allen and Williams).
Following up on point number one, LeBron IS a human highlight film. However, I'm going to reiterate that if he doesn't learn to be more reliant on his teammates (Shaq might help that), championships are going to continue to be elusive.
Cliff Lee. Game 1 of the World Series. WOW. Enough said.
Sounds like the Red Sox might make a run at Ben Sheets. Yeah, I know that the last few science experiments with Mssrs. Penny and Smoltz didn't work out so well. But this one's got nothing but upside considering the fact that they've already got three legit studs in Beckett, Lester and DiceK and a stud in the making with Clay Buchholz. Sounds like the Sox interest in Adrian Gonzalez is also heating back up. The idea is that Gonzalez (40 HRs in 2009) would play first and Youk would bounce back to third.
What about them Patriots? True, they last two teams they've played are a combined 0-12 but good teams beat bad teams soundly. And the Pats have done just that winning 59-0 and 35-7 respectively -- both times in bad weather. Looks like Brady's fate will rise and fall based on the presence of his security blanket, Wes Welker. Nice to see them at 5-2 going into the break. I pity the next nine teams that have to play them.
University of Texas has two teams ranked number three in the country right now. Everyone in Austin knows that the men's football team is one of them. How many Longhorn fans/Austinites know that the men's basketball team (preseason coaches' poll) is the other?
Good to see the A-Rod we all know and love (kills it in the regular season/chokes in the post season) resurface for the World Series. He's batting a stellar 0-8 with 6 strikeouts. Even if the Yankees win, this makes me oddly happy.
If Garnett, Allen, 'Sheed and Pierce can all stay healthy this season (yes, that's a huge IF), the Celtics could win 70 games. Just sayin'.
Regarding the Bruins (5-5-1), I hope they do well this season. Beyond that, I got nothing for ya. Not the biggest NHL fan.
Best wishes to Brad Mills, former Red Sox bench coach, who was named manager of the Houston Astros. Hopefully he'll bring a little of that Boston/Philly mojo to the 'Stros. It would be nice to see them get back into the hunt.

THAT's why they say . . .

2009-10-29T12:23:00.003-04:00

. . . "Good pitching beats good hitting."

Cliff Lee: complete game, zero earned runs, 10 K's in the house of the best offensive lineup baseball has seen in years. Shades of Beckett in the 2003 World Series or the 2007 ALCS -- or, dare we say it?, Hershiser in the 1988 Series.

Even better: he did it with complete insouciance. Did you see that smile he was wearing?

One down, three to go.

Thoughts on Game One? Predictions for Game Two?

A thought on the verge of the World Series.

2009-10-28T19:05:00.002-04:00

I'll be happy for the Yankees to win their 27th World Championship . . . right after every other team wins at least one since the Yankees collected their 26th.

World Series predictions?

2009-10-26T12:12:00.001-04:00

Same approach as last time -- first you say what you WANT to see happen, then you say what you think WILL happen.

Go.

Should Gus Johnson call every important game in every sport?

2009-10-20T11:00:00.002-04:00

I'm thinking yes, and -- given his comments on the previous post and our discussion last night on Twitter -- it seems that Tyson Goodridge agrees with me.

At this point, I'm looking for two things:

1. Any persuasive argument that Joe Buck, Jim Nantz, Al Michaels, et al. should be allowed to keep blocking our enjoyment of Gus's calls for big games.

2. Examples of how Gus Johnson would have called great plays that were underserved by other sportscasters. Start with Tyree's Helmet Catch and go from there. May I suggest your extend your consideration to Y. E. Yang's victory over Woods at the PGA this year?

Playoff Predictions?

2009-10-13T13:45:00.002-04:00

Time to exercise your baseball prognostication powers . . .

In the comments, please list TWO things:

1. What you WANT to see happen in the rest of the playoffs.
2. What you PREDICT will happen in the rest of the playoffs.

Go!

We forge ahead.

2009-10-12T11:31:00.002-04:00

Pioneer spirit, my friends.

It's easy to say this now with the benefit of hindsight, but I was leery of the playoff chances for the Sox a while before the playoffs even started. When Kyle posted about Paps a month ago, I couldn't get on board. Sure, I wanted him to be great, but I'd seen a couple of outings too many where the "bend, don't break" approach went too far. Is he a great pitcher, even after yesterday? Of course. Was he the freaky, control-the-weather, out-making machine we've seen in the past? No -- and not just yesterday.

We're spoiled. Two World Series wins this decade (plus three for the Pats and one for the Celtics), and a franchise built to go to the playoffs every single year. Changes will come during the off-season, for sure, but the engine is still in place.

So, tell me what you think about these Hot Stove questions . . .

What happens to Varitek?
What happens to Lowell?
What's the everyday starting lineup next year?
What's the ideal 2010 rotation?
What are you most excited about for 2010?

Eager to have your thoughts.

Who's it gonna be: Tigers or Twins?

2009-10-06T09:36:00.001-04:00

Red Sox versus Angels: Vote Now

2009-10-05T13:29:00.002-04:00

Red Sox versus Angels
Red Sox in 3
Red Sox in 4
Red Sox in 5
Angels in 3
Angels in 4
Angels in 5

View Results

Should Varitek Sit During Playoffs?

2009-09-25T21:15:00.003-04:00

A thought sparked by Tim's Tweet.

Assuming that Mike Lowell is healthy you have to sit Varitek and have Martinez behind the dish...right?

Now I know Lowell isn't hitting all that well, but having Varitek at the bottom of the order is nearly like a NL team hitting the pitcher.

Playoff Starting Rotation?

2009-09-23T18:09:00.003-04:00

The playoffs are all but a certainty at this point and due to our lackluster play in KC it will be as the Wild Card. Let's start to look ahead at the starting rotation against the Angels and realizing that the Yankees (best record) get to choose this year the playoff schedule they will take. This means they will go with schedule A giving them a day off between Games 1/2, thus needing only three starters. Forcing the Angels and Sox to go with four starters.

Lester
Beckett
Buckholz
Wakefield

Agreed?

Sporting bookmarks

2009-09-17T12:12:00.013-04:00

Which sports blogs/websites do you have bookmarked on your mobile phone (or laptop or desktop)? Here's my iPhone 3G list, in no particular order:

(note: For usability reasons, I'm embedding the web-based links to these pages and sites.)

1) ESPN.com
The Worldwide Leader in Sports features an iPhone-friendly version of its site. The pages load quickly and navigation is a breeze. I've alternated this bookmark between the main ESPN site and the MLB landing page.

2) Boston Sports Media Watch
Bruce Allen's blog is one of the first that I ever read. And since 2002, his site has been a daily staple of my online reading (I even contributed to the site for a while back in 2005).

Bruce rounds up daily links to Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, and Bruins stories, but it's his coverage of the Boston sports media that really stands out. Bruce has called out Ron Borges and others for their plagiarism and hypocritical writing, and he blasts WEEI for some its moronic talk and antics, too. But it's certainly not all critical commentary from Bruce. He'll praise reporters and media members when they deserve it.

As an added bonus, BSMW has also added a mobile-friendly version of its site in the last week or so.

3) Cricket.org
My debut column for Big Papelbon saluted South African cricketing captain Graeme Smith, so it's no secret that I'm a cricket fan. Cricket.org offers the latest news and results from the cricketing world, and I check in to the site almost every day.

My only suggestion for Cricket.org? A mobile version of the site is sorely needed.

4) Boston.com Sports
Whether on the web or on my phone, this has been my No. 1 online destination for several years running. A recent mobile version has actually made finding articles more difficult, but I still head here without fail for the headlines.

5) Chad Finn's Touching All the Bases
Finn is my favorite Boston.com/Boston Globe reporter/columnist/blogger--and by a country mile. His generally optimistic outlook and killer sarcasm and wit are the perfect combination for this reader. Not that I'm one to throw stones, but my only complaint is that Finn doesn't blog often enough. Guess those other pesky commitments to the Globe keep him busy!

One other note: If you're into how the media covers our favorite sports teams--as I am--Finn has a weekly sports media column for the Globe that's always a good read (no direct link that I can find).

6) RedSox.com
The official site of the Boston Red Sox. Works great on the iPhone!

7) Mike Reiss' ESPNBoston blog
It's no exaggeration to say that Reiss has been a trailblazer in mainstream media sports blogging. He's been at the bleeding edge using new media in his coverage since 2004 or 2005, when he first launched "Reiss' Pieces" for the MetroWest Daily News. Reiss then brought the blog with him to the Globe, where he worked from 2005 until earlier this month. Now Reiss plies his trade at the recently launched ESPNBoston.com

Reiss' coverage of the Patriots is, without question, the best in Boston.

8) The Rap Sheet
This is the blog of Ian Rapoport, the new Boston Herald beat reporter. Longtime Herald writer Karen Guergian also chimes in on occasion.

The reporting is good, and the look-and-feel is as well. The Rap Sheet incorporates a photo or graphic into nearly every post, which is almost never a bad thing.

9) Extra Bases
This is Boston.com's Red Sox blog. It's updated frequently on game days and during the games themselves.

10) Extra Points
Boston.com's Patriots blog has lost some of its oomph--and changed its name--with the recent departure of Reiss, but Christopher L. Gasper's reporting is very good.

As a personal side note, I once successfully pitched Gasper on a Malden High School boys' soccer story back when he was writing for the twice-weekly Globe North section, and recorded a phone interview for an episode of my long-since-defunct Around Town Sports podcast. Gasper certainly has the chops to lead the Globe's football coverage now, and I'm thrilled for him!

Falling into Place

2009-09-14T13:50:00.000-04:00

No, I'm not ready to declare that the season is over yet. Nor am I ready to say that the Red Sox are a lock for the playoffs. But what I will tell you is that they went a LONG way over the past few days at solidifying their chances for a deep playoff run. Two weeks ago, I wasn't sure this would be the case with Beckett struggling mightily, Buchholz looking good but having little track record behind him and the Sox bats wavering between scoring 10+ runs a game and none.

Fast forward to Saturday night's gritty five plus inning gem by Beckett (with the Sox bats erupting in the third inning for nine runs) followed by game one of yesterday's double header where poor Matt Garza pitched his heart out, only to get kicked in the crotch by Ortiz and Pedroia in the seventh. This combined with Lester's "ice water in the veins" eight innings of shutout ball in game two was a real shot in the arm.

So why am I so jazzed all of a sudden? Well, the Sox have a four game lead on Texas and Tampa Bay is all but eliminated from the Wild Card. And the Sox still have an outside chance at catching the Yanks (I know, I know, I sound like Kyle Flaherty here). Most importantly, Boston is looking like the dangerous offensive AND defensive team that we thought they might be at the beginning of the season.

With Beckett, Lester and now Buchholz as a solid 1-2-3 punch (yes, it would be great to see two more solid starts out of Beckett), we're in good shape to match up with the "always hapless in the playoffs" Anaheim Angels of LA. And who knows, lightning may might rise up and strike Detroit who matches up pretty well with the Yanks and deliver us an ALCS party with Detroit and Boston as the lucky entrants. The bullpen is now back to form with a much needed shot in the arm from Billy Wagner and you have weapons like Martinez, Gathright, Green or Kotchman coming off the bench. Not a bad place to be. Most importantly, all the key guys are healthy (yup, just knocked on wood after saying that).

Am I being a bit cocksure? Yes I am. But hey, I've seen Francona work his magic under more adverse conditions. I like where we are and feel bullish going into October. Who knows, this could be the year where we do actually see Red Sox, Celtics and Patriots world championships in the same year.

image courtesy: http://www.maniacworld.com/

Show Your Colors

2009-09-13T11:16:00.003-04:00

As the official NFL season kicks off this week, I dug out my Patriots jersey to get ready for Monday night. I started to recall how I came upon the jersey and thought I'd see how our crew thinks.

When you decide you're going to buy a team jersey (in any sport), what's your M.O.? Do you go with a current player? Do you choose "blank"? Do you avoid it altogether given the transient nature of superstars in all sports these days?

If I'm going to shell out the clams for a real player jersey (not just a t-shirt), I like to dig out the "old school" vets that are reminiscent of what I recall as a kid. I also like to go with a little bit obscure star. In fact my first choice for a Patriots jersey was Mosi Tatupu, but I couldn't find one. Steve Grogan was a solid 2nd choice, although a more accurate representation would have been one covered in grass stains on the back. What's your jersey of choice and how'd you decide?

When Bad Things Happen to Good People

2009-09-09T07:56:00.005-04:00

Imagine the conversation.

Bill: Richard, can you please step into my office?
Richard: Sure, coach. What's up?
Bill: Have a seat. We've traded you to Oakland.
Richard: Whaa....
Bill: You've done a bang up job here with the Patriots, don't get me wrong. But the opportunity came up to fleece them again and I couldn't resist.
Richard: Wait. Please. Hold on a minute. Let's not do anything rash.
Bill: They gave us an unconditional first round pick in 2011. Thanks for the hard work but you need to go pack your things. Tom Cable should be giving you a call.
Richard: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Talk about a worst possible landing spot for a good guy - at least a year in the 9th circle of Hell, given it's the last year of his contract (due $3.7 million, by the way). Of course, lots of upside opportunity (read: no place to go but up) there but Oakland is sure to win at most 7 games? 6? ...giving the Patriots a high pick. I think Belichick has stones the size of... a football field. A quote from Belichick on day two of Seymour not yet reporting to Raiders' camp:

"There's a lot of things that Richard did well," Belichick said in his first remarks since Sunday's written statement announcing the trade for Oakland's first-round draft pick in 2011, "but that's the way it is and we're moving forward and our team's moving forward."

Wow. A smart move, in my opinion, on a big name before the last year of a big contract. Short term it hurts the Patriots, but I really like this move long term. I think very few coaches would make a move like this, yet Belichick has made these moves an art form. What say you?

photo credit: pkeleher via flickr

We Can't Let Today Go By...

2009-09-02T13:18:00.003-04:00

...without talking about the namesake of this blog and what he did last night!

Last night, Papelbon earned his first six-out save of the season in Boston’s 8-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, extricating the Sox from a bases-loaded quandary in the eighth inning and then slamming the door in a dominating ninth. He struck out three, pumping fastballs for strikes and never straying from his standard operation.

WOW!

Paps is having an unreal season, even when seemingly taking the "bend, don't break" approach to closing games. But watching last night you saw why the guy has never given up an ER in the playoffs (and let me tell you, Francona is treating this like a playoff series). Baseball is a beautiful game, especially when the majority of the cogs seemingly come together at the same time.

6.5 games back with 31 to play, 3 of them at home against the Yanks. Take a look at the schedule:

13 of the Sox games are against Cleveland, Kansas City and Baltimore;
15 of the Sox games are at home;
The Yanks still have a West Coast trip to play LAA and SEA, with a day off on September 24th in Boston;
Boston has days off on the 10th and 14th, so they will play NYY in their 11th straight game without an off day, but having been at home;

By September 25 is it conceivable that the lead is down to about 4 games? Yes. Sweep it up at the Fens and suddenly you are watching a mad dash to the AL East crown.

Which Do You Choose?

2009-08-25T10:02:00.002-04:00

Assume, if you will, that the Red Sox sweep the Sox of White during this series.

Do you root for the Rangers to sweep the Yankees and lessen our deficit in the East or for the Yankees to sweep the Rangers and increase our Wild Card lead?

Your answer will tell us all about what type of person you truly are...just kidding, I already know all about you.

So what is your answer?

David Ortiz...What to say?

2009-07-31T11:42:00.003-04:00

I'm not surprised, none of us should be, we all knew in our hearts that this was most likely true.

But I do have some questions:

Why come so strongly out against steroids when you knew you had tested positive?
Is Ortiz' entire career, and in effect his story, a lie?
Does 2004 and 2007 just come down the fact that the Red Sox simply had the better chemists, not the better team?
Does this change the way you feel about Ortiz?

I'm shuffling through all of my thoughts, but ultimately I'm more disappointed because he lied so vehemently. Ortiz took such a strong stance against the steroid users in order to prove to us that he was not only a better player, but a better person, than those caught. Ultimately though, he is just one of many who tried to get a leg up through a needle, he's no longer special.

Today, he's just David Ortiz and no longer Big Papi.

Winning = More Facial Hair

2009-07-30T08:34:00.004-04:00

Let's face it folks (pun intended), the Red Sox don't have enough facial hair to win right now. It is scientific fact:

Sports + Facial Hair = Win

Furthermore...

Sports + Retro Facial Hair = More Winning

Year after year in the NHL who wins Lord Stanley's Cup? That's right, the best playoff beard, how else can one come to grips with the Ducks winning the trophy? (Image Courtesy of SunTimes.com)

Don't believe me? OK, let's look at the NBA. The only year Lebron has made the finals what did he grow...that's right, the infamous neck beard (Image Courtesy of FanIQ.com):

Let's get to baseball and all I need to tell you is that watching the Cardinals/Dodgers game last night I saw something remarkable, well two things. First is that Julio Lugo is something like 12-18 since being traded to the Cards...I mean, that is just staggering.

Asked why the sudden turn around Lugo pointed across the locker room and said simply, "Rick Ankiel's Mustache" and thusly I saw remarkable item number two. (Image Courtesy of MLB.com...oh, and Lugo didn't actually say the above quote, but he should.)

The Cardinals just swept the best team in baseball, including a walk-off 15 inning win last night. Do you need anymore evidence that the Red Sox need to go Johnny Damon/Kevin Millar and throw out all the razors in the clubhouse?

And please note that the facial hair corollary also works in reverse when said facial hair has been on said face for too long and a slump ensues:

Red Sox are Simply Not Contenders

2009-07-29T09:08:00.004-04:00

On a night when Jim Rice was honored for his greatness and hard work, the Sox simply fell apart in spectacular fashion. Our short term memories may not let us remember, but there is much blame to be thrown around for this loss and it all comes out of the bullpen. Ramirez, Okajima and Pabelbon could not get through innings unscathed. Surely Pabelbon's 9th seems to ring as the worse, but Ramirez and Okajima have blame on their hands by even making it a close game. And Nick Green, don't think I've forgotten about your 0-4 and 2 error performance.

Ultimately it is never one player's fault, baseball has a knack of equaling itself out over 9 innings and certainly over six months. The fact is that this team has a lot of great parts, but is simply not a good machine working together. This, I think, has been apparent from the beginning when we referred to them as "boring" or "workman like". At the time, because they were feasting on bad, beat up and not settled teams it all seemed find and dandy.

It's nearly August and we have a very good team in Boston, but it's not a team that can contend for a World Series. Period.

Injuries are hitting the pitching staff hard. Some of the elder players are worn down (no surprise). Jason Bay left his bat in the first half. And it seems as if nobody wants to step up and become the team clown to help loosen this clubhouse up a bit, which is a critical ingredient they lost with Kotsay leaving. A few more losses like last night and we may see another Boston Massacre like in '06.

Is a Halladay trade the answer? I'm on the record as wanting to be rid of Bucholz from the beginning of the season, I think he has a bright future ahead of him, but that is all upside. You know what you get with Halladay. Either way, if the Sox want to win a World Series in '09, they have to do something dramatic before close of MLB business on Friday.

Agree? Disagree?

AL Stars P0wn NL's Best... Again!

2009-07-15T11:27:00.005-04:00

Growing up, I remember watching nearly every MLB All Star game and if my recollection serves me properly, the games weren't scheduled to fit Fox or ABC's "Prime Time" schedule so I was able to stay up for the entire thing. Back then, I had my heart broken nearly every year because as a fan of the Red Sox, I was an "AL" guy. Yup, you know what I'm talking about. Between 1950-1987 (I was born in 1968), the NL won 33 of 42 times with one tie. That's A LOT of dominating.

Now it seems like the AL is equally dominating having not lost since 1996. And the good news is that the game now means something since it determines home field advantage for the Fall Classic. That didn't help the Rays last year but certainly helped the Red Sox in 2007 and 2004. If the Sox can hold on and have a shot at the World Series this year, it's a HUGE advantage to them to be able to play games one and two in Fenway.

So what's the deal withe recent AL domination? Is the AL really that much better than the NL? Does good hitting actually trump good pitching and defense? Inquiring minds want to know!

So Assuming We Don't Empty the Farm for Halladay...

2009-07-08T12:02:00.005-04:00

A big THANK YOU to friend, Derek Peplau, for stepping up and asking the question, "How Badly Do You Want [Doc Halladay]." We were definitely on the verge of tumbleweeds blowing through Big Papelbon so we needed the injection of fresh content.

In the comments, Kyle Flaherty teed up the idea of the Red Sox needing a bat. Several of us agreed -- especially with Youkilis in a nasty slump (2 for 26), Lowell on the DL and Papi just starting to emerge from this spring/early summer's hibernation -- but who to go after?

While we'd all love to make a play for Pujols, he's most likely even more out of reach than Doc Halladay. Speaking of Halladays... how about Matt Holliday who has dropped off the planet for the A's. I'm guessing that a change of atmosphere could do him good and he could be had for a solid AA pitching prospect and maybe Kotsay.

What do my fellow GM-wannabe's think?

How Badly Do You Want Him?

2009-07-08T09:34:00.005-04:00

Reports indicate that J.P. Riccardi and the Blue Jays are shopping one of the premiere pitchers in the game, Roy Halladay.

A Beckett, Lester, Hallady rotation would surely make the denizens of Yawkey Way the prohibitive favorites to win the World Series. It almost seems unfair to the rest of the league.

It's still early days as the news broke only yesterday, but here's the question for the BigP cognoscenti:

What would you be willing to give up (and, by extension, what do you think it will take) to get such a premiere hurler in the prime of his career and bolster a pitching staff which is already one of the best in the major leagues?

Should we go ahead and worry about Youk?

2009-06-15T23:39:00.002-04:00

Yes, he was hitting like the maximum Ted Williams when he went on the DL.

Yes, his overall numbers are still good.

But in 3 1/2 weeks since returning from the DL, Youkilis has lost .042 in batting average, .062 in on-base percentage, and .109 in slugging. He's batting .220 for June.

Thoughts?

How good was Jim Rice?

2009-06-03T21:48:00.006-04:00

My earlier posts on all-time Sox lineups and rosters got me thinking: how good was Jim Rice really?

I don't ask out of any disrespect to #14. He was a great player. He was better than the other two guys in the picture here, which is saying something.

But he's no better than third on the all-time list of Sox left fielders, because Williams and Yastrzemski were simply better. It's no shame to come in behind those guys.

And if we include all Sox outfielders who played at least, say, five years with the team and had a big impact on its fortunes, Rice wasn't as good as Tris Speaker -- who was, in the judgment of Bill James, better than Joe DiMaggio.

And then there's the question from the current day: was Rice better than Manny?

My thumbnail guess: considering all phases of the game, Rice was the ~~sixth-best~~ fifth-best [note: I can't count] outfielder the Sox have had. (Oh, and he wouldn't crack my lineup at DH, either -- Foxx was better.)

Or am I missing something?

Most Pleasant Surprise of 2009...so far

2009-06-01T21:18:00.002-04:00

Tell me your most pleasant surprise thus far in 2009 for the following:

Red Sox Player
Non-Red Sox Player
Team other than the Red Sox

I'll start us off.

For the Sox I'm pleasantly surprised with the play of Hideki Okajima. After such an amazing 2007 we saw Oki go down a notch in 2008, but now he's made 23 appearances with 22 innings pitched and has only given up 6 ER for a 2.45 ERA. Very similar to his 2007 numbers. If the Sox are going to go deep this year he's got to be the man in the 7th/8th.

Non-Red Sox player is easy for me, Zack Greinke in Kansas City. SICK. I mean 8-1 with a 1.10 ERA...we haven't seen something like this since Pedro days.

As for the team I'm pleasantly surprised to see, maybe it's the heat but I have to go with Texas at this point. I know the Angels have been struck by bad luck and horrible tragedy, and the AL West is weak in general, but the Rangers have still won 30 games, best in the AL. Give them their due, even if all the Rangers fans I talked with this past weekend told me that there was a better chance of three days of rain than that team keeping up the pace ;)

Bonus if you can name the ex-Patriot in the picture above...the eyes certainly give it away.

A-a-and the Sox take first place.

2009-05-24T21:13:00.002-04:00

Everybody in the East except the Sox lost today. The Jays have come back to earth with a six-game losing streak. The Yankees lost deliciously, at home, to the defending World Champions.

Yet only four games separates the Sox from the fourth-place Rays, who are probably a little better than their record indicates.

Thoughts? Where do things go from here?

(Oh, and unless you're Doug, the other Tim, Warren, or Kyle, make your picks for the all-time Sox team in the comments thread for the previous post.)

Best All-Time Sox TEAM

2009-05-22T08:49:00.002-04:00

Okay, fellas, that seemed to go well, but now let's get down to it for real. This time around, you need an entire team:

* 8 starting position players
* 1 DH
* 5 starting pitchers
* 6 relievers (bonus credit: designate long relief, setup man, & closer)
* 5 bench players (preferred mix: backup C, utility IF, PH/corner IF, 4th OF/defensive sub, PR/5th OF)
* manager, bench coach, hitting coach, pitching coach, 1b coach, 3b coach

Offense counts, defense counts, baserunning counts -- everything counts.

Best All-Time Sox Batting Lineup?

2009-05-21T18:19:00.002-04:00

List them off, please -- a proper nine-man batting lineup drawn from across the entire history of the Red Sox franchise. Please put them in your preferred batting order, with position or DH noted.

Friday Trivia

2009-05-15T00:34:00.002-04:00

What Red Sox pitcher holds the record for lowest ERA for a single season?

Hint: He wasn't born in the Netherlands.

Papelbon on Manny

2009-05-07T22:13:00.004-04:00

I love Gary Tanguay's interviews. He's got a sense of wit that makes guys relax and lighten up. Here is a transcription of his pregame chat with Paps from Sports Tonight on FSN. My favorite line is highlighted.

JP: Manny's doing good, man, you know, he's got like a low 1 ERA, you know, he's throwing the ball well [smirking] and, um, he's been great in our bullpen this year.

GT: You know, you really don't need any media training, do you... You are the king of dodgeball. You can dodge questions better than anybody...

JP: I thought you talking about Manny DelCarmen [laughing]
...

GT: Let's talk about your old friend, Manny Ramirez.

JP: I don't know Manny Ramirez. No, I don't know who that guy is. You know, he quit on me, he quit on our team, and... I don't know who he is. Who is he?

GT: So is this karma? Is this karma, finally, justice being served on Manny Ramirez?

JP: Well I don't know if it's justice or karma or whatever, but I think that it's a situation where I'm glad he's not in our clubhouse or we have to deal with it. I'm glad he's over there on the west coast, and those guys, Joe Torre and his teammates and coach and staff can deal with all that...Things like this take a toll on you and I'm just glad we don't have to deal with it... Every year in spring training, they give us a long list - in Spanish and in English - what you can do and what you can't do, so to fail a test and it be presented to you what you are being tested for, there's no excuses.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I love Paps' confidence to come out and say what he thinks, that Manny still deserves to be in the HOF, no one should question the '04 or '07 series, and that everyone was doing steroids. If more folks get caught, they pay the price though - legally, publicly, whatever. I am also relieved this isn't happening in the Sox clubhouse right now though.

Team	Score
1. Cleveland Indians	0.9
2. Boston Red Sox	1.1
3. Cincinnati Reds	1.5
4 Houston Astros	1.8
5. New York Yankees	1.8
6. Washington Nationals	1.9
7. Chicago White Sox	2
8. Baltimore Orioles	2
9. New York Mets	2.3
10. Los Angeles Dodgers	2.4