On watching the ALCS

I'm a firm believer that any fan who blogs, or even posts on a message board, should do so to express his or her own thoughts.  And as a result, I'm sometimes hesitant to comment even on the thoughts of people I know personally when I think they're out and out wrong.  I find that October, in addition to bringing pumpkins, bats (the flying kind) and the scent of burning leaves in the air, seems to find me spending a lot of time biting my tongue.

Allow me, then, to use my own blog for the purpose for which it was intended.

I really respect the Rays.  And I'm sick of Boston fans bashing them.

First of all, I'm tired of Boston fans complaining about Rays fans.  You know what?  The vast majority of Red Sox fans I know were born into it.  They've been following the Sox for as long as they can remember; they had family members and friends to nurture that commitment all along.  Even latecomers to Red Sox Nation had history to draw on, so much to know and appreciate about the team before pledging undying devotion.  Rays fans have never had that.  They're a relatively new franchise, and they started under the cloud of an owner whom Jerry Remy just called, if I heard correctly, "a despicable human being."  You want to call Rays fans "bandwagon" fans, Red Sox Nation?  You're looking at a fan base pulling themselves up by their bootstraps when you started off two thirds of the way up the ladder.

And I don't see how Sox fans, beneficiaries of two rings in the preceding four seasons, can be so surprised that the rest of public sentiment falls to the underdog Rays.  If you've ever spoken of the Yankees' payroll, don't be surprised that Tampa's vs. Boston's comes up in the discussion!

The fight with Coco?  Coco had a point, believe me--but if you don't think the Red Sox don't have passionate enforcers who would have taken some shots at another team's hothead (I say that endearingly) who charged one of our pitchers, then you're crazy.

Yeah, I don't like the cowbells any more than you do; but in the context of what's done at parks across the nation to get the fans to make noise, I'm not sure it's as horrific as it seems.

I love Joe Maddon.  I believe in managers for teams.  I think Terry Francona is perfectly placed with his front office and his team.  I think Joe Girardi may never find a better match than his team of baby Marlins.  And I think Maddon is both a fascinating and delightful guy and an unsurpassed motivator for a team that had to find a way to put it together to achieve.

And I really like the Rays themselves, which has been evident in my shooting!

Carlos Pena, of course

Aki Iwamura










After losing an argument--Pedie was safe, to Aki's chagrin!






Playing Twister with J.D. Drew

Dioner Navarro

Andy Sonnanstine

Jonny Gomes

Scott Kazmir

Matt Garza

Cliff Floyd

Evan Longoria

After years in which facing the Yankees brought bad blood from all sides, it's refreshing to me that this year we have two talented teams vying for the right to represent the American League in the World Series.  Whoever wins will have earned it.  I hope it's my beloved Red Sox.  But if the Rays should triumph, I'll support them wholeheartedly, and I'll hope they take home the biggest October prize of them all.