Conference Championship Predictions

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

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:

1. Home Crowd


2. Saints were on their 8th string running back


3. 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?

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.

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)

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

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?

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...

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

An instant classic

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!

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

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

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)

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 LakerCeltic-themed avatar for exactly one week following the final game of the series.

• Jim Storer
• Kyle Flaherty
• Jaime Punishill
• Adam Cohen
• Aaron (that's me)

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?

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?

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?

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

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?

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

Red Sox Announce Plans To Return Fenway To Original 1912 Conditions

Boston Area Red Sox Tweetups

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?