I do miss the days when Gabe Kapler, the scrappy, little guy, played for the Sox. He was just a hell of a player and fun to watch. It was great when he returned..until he blew out his knee and all was lost. But now after retiring and managing for a year, he is back with a vengeance...and he's taking a lot of it out on the Mets of all teams!
Gabe Kapler, the newest Milwaukee Brewer, is off to a great start and I'm thrilled for him...just not for the fact that he's destroying Los Mets. Here's what he's done in this series alone:
Game 2: 1 Big 2 run HR...basically the reason while the Brewers won...and he hit it off Johan Santana! That's a major oy vey.
Game 3: 3 for 4, another HR, and 3 important RBI.
Thank goodness he didn't play Game 1....
Seriously, on the season alone Kapler is 11/26 with 4 HR and 11 RBI. To put that in perspective, David Ortiz is 3/43 with 1 HR and 3 RBI. That's right...Kapler has more HR than Ortiz has hits. Who'd think I'd ever utter that sentence, even though we're only 12 games in or so.
Mark my words, Kapler for MVP! OK, maybe not, but I'm thrilled to see him doing so well for the Brew Crew. He will be a great manager one day.
Not a shocker here...The defending World Champions, after a 3-1 start are on top of the first 2008 Power Rankings of the year. The Mets are still in the top 5, despite the potentially devastating injury to Pedro. The Skanks unfortunately come in at 4th, after taking 2 out of 3 from the #12 Blue Jays. The Braves and Phils are 8th and 9th respectively, and the Orioles are the first goat of the year, ranked as last.
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The Tigers are now 0-4 to start the season and are already dealing with injury problems. Desptie the hype over the offense, I don't think they will be able to outlast the Indians for the AL Central. Hopefully the injury to Martinez will not affect the team too negatively. Santana, Perez, and Maine still are a very good 1-2-3. Only time will tell how it affects them.
The Sox started off the playoffs with a bang. Josh Beckett was phenominal in his first playoff start with Boston. Beckett threw a complete game shutout, allowing just 4 hits and striking out 8. YOOOUK got the offense started, with a HR in the bottom of the 1st. Ortiz added a 2 run HR later on, and Lowell added in another RBI, which was plenty of enough for Beckett. Sox were dominant and headed into Game 2 with a fully rested bullpen and a 1-0 lead.
Game 2 was arguably the most exciting game of the postseason. A back and forth affair came down to one swing from one of Red Sox finest. The two teams traded runs and after 5 the game was tied @ 3. The game stayed that way till Manny Ramirez stepped to the plate against star Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez with 2 runners on. Manny Ramirez scorched a fastball off Rodriguez, that flew way over the monster. After a thrilling victory, the Sox carried their momentum and excitement to Los Angeles where they comfortably had a 2-0 lead.
It would take a lot more than the rally monkey to get the Angels back in the series, but they were home and still very confident heading into the elimination game. Schilling was dominant in his first playoff start of 07, lowering his career postseason ERA to 1.93. Back to back home runs by Ortiz and Manny got the Sox offense going in the 4th. Schilling held the lead down, and ultimately the Sox put the game and series out of reach with 7 more runs in the 9th. Gagne closed the door, and the Sox won 9-1, advancing to their first ALCS since 2004.
The Sox opponents for the ALCS would be the Indians, who beat the Yankees in 4 games. It was set up to be a heavyweight battle, between the 2 best teams in baseball. It was going to be a fight, and the Sox were definitely ready for the task.
Stay tuned for a game by game recap of the intense ALCS against the Indians.
Some of the national telecasts (some are TBD) have been announced for FOX, ESPN, and TBS. Here are all the nationally televised games for the Mets.
FOX SATURDAY (3:30 EST)
@ Braves April 5
@ Phillies April 19
@ Arizona May 3
@ Rockies May 24
LA DODGERS May 31
NY YANKEES June 28
ROCKIES July 12
PHILLIES September 6
BRAVES September 13
The Mets currently have the most national games for FOX, with 9 games. Remember all 9 of these Met games will only be shown to a certain amount of people, as 2 other games will be available based on region that same day.
ESPN SUNDAY NIGHT (8:30 EST)
@ Phillies April 20
@ NY Yankees May 18
ROCKIES July 13
June 1-July 6 & July 27-End of Season: TBD
TBS SUNDAY AFTERNOON
@ Diamondbacks May 4 4:00 EST
Only the 1st 2 months have been released, so plenty more games throughout the year will be shown on TBS.
As we move deeper into the offseason, I will be recalling month by month the 2007 season of the World Champion Boston Red Sox.
SEPTEMBER
After losing 4 in a row to end August, Red Sox Nation was very nervous for the start of baseball's final month. But the Sox gave exactly what the fans ordered, a fast start-one included with unexpected history...
Some young minor league dude named Clay Buchholz was set to pitch his 2nd career major league start and certainly no one expected to see history on that night. Buchholz went on to throw the 17th no-hitter in Red Sox history. It was an unbelievable night and a great moment that will never be forgotten. This kid instantly rose to fame and the Sox got 10 times the energy boost they needed.
The Sox went on to win 5 of 6, and 8 out of 11 as Beckett increased his win total to 18 wins. Ortiz, finally...yes, finally had his trademark walk off HR on September 12 in a come from behind victory over the Devil Rays. The Sox then welcomed the Yanks into town, and proceeded to lose yet another series to them. However, Beckett was able to salvage the series with another win, getting his phenominal total up to 19, as the Sox reached the 90 win mark.
But the Sox gave Fenway Faithful another scare, as they got swept by the Toronto Blue Jays. Luckily, the D-rays were next on the schedule, and the Sox took care of business, winning 2 out of 3. A tough 8-6 victory in the middle of the series gave Sox fans a major sense of relief, as the Sox clinched the playoffs.
As the Sox won 2 straight against the A's, it was time for their final series of the year-against the Minnesota Twins. The Sox still had a stranglehold on the division and tried to avoid the epic collapse to the Yanks. After losing the opener, Matsuzaka helped lead the Sox to a 5-2 victory in the 2nd game, getting the Sox to the 95 win mark. With some help from the Orioles, Red Sox Nation was ready to celebrate an American League East Championship.
What a thrill it was to finally know the Sox had won the AL East title. They had lead the division all year and finally had the title to show for it. After splitting their final 2 games of the season, the Sox with a record of 96-66, clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. After all the jubilation of the Sox first AL East title in seemingly forever, it was time to get ready for a difficult October. First up was a difficult, but beatable Angels team. The Sox knew they had to take care of business, while the surging Yanks were set to take on a solid Indians squad.
Stay tuned for a complete playoff recap as the Sox complete their World Championship season.
After hours of testimony, a few things were clear. The Republicans love Clemens, and Clemens is a big fat liar. Here's some more thoughts of mine:
McNamee: Why is it so damn hard for the Republicans to understand that McNamee lied a few times? Everyone involved in the Steroid Era lied...the owners, managers, coaches, players...EVERYONE! Is it any shock that he didn't want to put himself in trouble @ the time? Is it any shock he protected his good friend Roger Clemens? Give me a break. The lying in the past has nothing to do with his current testimony. He didn't want to hurt Clemens, but Clemens started a war and he had no other choice. McNamee appeared honest and I believe he told the truth, and yet the Republicans attacked him. Ridiculous...what a terrible job they did. Great job by Democrat Henry Waxman to apologize for some of his fellow committee members. This should have not turned into a party war, but it did. Luckily, most Americans didn't take to the Republicans and agreed that McNamee appeared honest...or at least more honest than Clemens.
Clemens: Nothing was funnier than his opening testimony, about how he was only guilty of being such a nice and great person. That one cracked me up. Clemens appeared arrogant, but nervous, as he constantly licked his lips and answered his way around questions. Including the fact that he had no idea what a vegan was, Clemens appeared as a complete and utter idiot. He can't explain the fact that Pettite admitted they had conversations about HGH. Give me a break...Pettite must have "misremembered." Yea, Pettite and his wife "misrembered," a conversation about HGH and both talked about it in depositions under oath to Congress. That makes a hell of a lot of sense. If that doesn't prove he's guilty, then how about the whole thing with Clemens's wife. So Roger didn't know @ the time that McNamee injected his wife with HGH. Well, that makes sense. Are you telling me, Roger, that you let this happen and then didn't fire him! That's the most absurd thing I've ever heard. Clemens and his temper would've beat the crap out of little McNamee and fired him if he found out later on he injected her with an illegal drug. Please...I don't understand how anyone...anyone could think he's innocent. Please...there's no reasonable doubt. He's Guilty...there's no doubt about it. I'm sick of Clemens, I hope he gets indicted for perjury, and I really hope and expect him not to be voted into the Hall of Fame. Anyone who votes for him, has to vote for Bonds, who then in return has to vote for every steroid user. Clemens did a terrible job @ the hearing and most of the country feels he's guilty. When will athletes understand it's better to tell the truth than lie for years first? He's dug himself so deep and he'll regret it eventually.
I hope people can stop seeing Clemens as a "hero," and start seeing him as the lying, arrogant, piece of crap that he is.
As we move deeper into the offseason, I will be recalling month by month the 2007 season of the World Champion Boston Red Sox.
JULY
Although the Sox were coming off their worst month of the year in June (13-14), they were still well in control of the AL East entering July. But, the Sox continued to play sub-par as they reached the "dog days of Summer."
After losing the first game in July to Texas, the Sox bounced back with 4 in a row, including a sweep over Tampa Bay, in their first meeting of the year. However, they were swept in a 3 game set @ Detroit to end the 1st half of the year. The Sox entered the all star break with a solid 9.5 game lead in the AL East, but the Yanks were back @ .500 and that was not a good sign.
After starting the second half with a 3-5 record, the Sox pulled off a big 5 game winning streak and won 8 of 9. They lost 2 more to end the month, and the Yanks were suddenly closing in. The Sox finished July 15-12.
AL EAST STANDINGS (AFTER JULY 31)
BOSTON 64-42
NY YANKEES 57-49 7 GB
TORONTO 53-53 11 GB
BALTIMORE 50-55 13.5 GB
TAMPA BAY 40-66 24 GB
AUGUST
The Sox won 4 out of 5 to start August, but then lost 2 out of 3 in back to back series, against the Angels and Orioles. After that, the Sox began to get on a roll. They won 4 out of 6 against Tampa Bay and split a 4 game sit against the Angels in between. They followed that all up with a 4 game sweep over the White Sox. Things were looking good until they traveled to Yankee Stadium. With their 3 best pitchers on the hill against New York, they were swept. They followed up the disastrous series with a loss to Baltimore to end the month. The Sox finished August with a 16-13 record, but the Yanks were on fire and the pressure was on.
AL EAST STANDINGS (AFTER AUGUST 31)
BOSTON 80-55
NY YANKEES 75-60 5 GB
TORONTO 68-66 11.5 GB
BALTIMORE 59-74 20 GB
TAMPA BAY 55-80 25 GB
With The Yanks closing in on the Sox, Red Sox Nation was in a near sense of panic. Could the Sox really blow a huge lead, that once was as high as 14.5 GB? It was too scary to even think about. But, it allowed the Sox to focus and get ready for the final month of the season and ultimately October.
Please vote in my new poll in the top left corner of this site, for your favorite Anti-Yankee Moment of all-time. All choices are great. The one that jumps out to me, is obviously the 04 Collapse. But 2001 was great as well, ending a dynastry. The brawls were fun, and who could forget the wimpy slap in Game 6 of the ALCS by the biggest and richest baby in baseball.
If you have any more moments not mentioned, feel free to post them in the comments section. I may have forgotten a few great moments and if so, I apologize. Enjoy remembering these great moments in Anti-Yankee history.
After the aquisition of some guy named Johan Santana, the Mets have become NL favorites. Why? Because they have an AL lineup and now one of the best rotations in baseball. Here's a preview of what should be a hell of an '08 squad. Met fans...please enjoy:
POTENTIAL LINEUP
Reyes
Castillo
Beltran
Wright
Delgado
Alou
Church
Schneider
This may be editied obviously, but it looks pretty damn good. Reyes and Wright are statistically 2 of the best players in the game. And Beltran aint bad himself. Don't forget Santana loves to hit...so watch out in the 9 spot every 5th day.
POTENTIAL STARTING ROTATION
Johan Santana
Pedro Martinez
Oliver Perez
John Maine
Orlando Hernandez/Mike Pelfrey
I'd say this looks pretty damn good. A 2-time cy young winner at the top. A proven veteran behind him. 2 15 game winners with ERAs under 4 last season follow and then a decent 5th spot.
Combine the lineup and the starting rotation with an above average bullpen, and the Mets should be able to roll through the NL like they did in 06...before the NLCS of course. This time, it's World Series or Bust.
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