On to The Playoffs!--Peter

Well, after the Sox had beaten the Tribe for the final time on Thursday night, I'd put together a rather long combination reportage/diatribe about the game, Bud Selig's idiocy on the 'tie-breaker' as opposed to a playoff for the division title, if the Sox and Rays were tied at season's end; how cool it was to see Joe Torre in the playoffs with 'Red Sox Lite'(Dodgers) after Mr. Hankie's Yankees had forced him out after the 2007 season; and the fact that with Dusty's 20th steal of the year, it was the first Sox team since 1914 to have at least three base stealers each with at least twenty steals for the season. The three: Ellsbury, Crisp and Pedroia.
Unfortunately, when I posted it, the computer erased the WHOLE DAMN THING--except for the title. So, sorry, you won't see it; just the highlights just mentioned above.

Now, for the Friday night game against same Yankees. Yuck!! The announced starter, Dice-K didn't start or pitch at all; got someone named Pauley. Due to the torrential downpour that caused rain delays of over two hours, Papi was scratched,Pedroia didn't play and, after a single at-bat, Lowell headed for the bench, which is probably where he should have stayed from before the game's start. After one grounder, he limped off the field, literally, not even running out the grounder. Tito later said he'd be 'day-to-day'.

Oh, yes--the game. The Yanks inserted a new guy at short for Jeter after the latter'd had an at-bat, and the sub promptly led a Yankee massacre of the Sox, getting two homers and a ringing double. Abreu, and Damon also accounted for a good deal of carnage, quickly changing the score from an end of 1st 3-1, Sox to a final of 19-8, Stripes. That score is correct--this is not a rerun of playoff game three in the 2004 Laegue Championships. It might have been worse, but the Sox staged a mini ralley in the 9th, getting three runs and a few doubles. Of course, the last time the Stripes beat up on the Sox by this score, it was the setup for the most incredible comeback in baseball history--the four game sweep of the Yankees by the Sox on the way to the 2004 World Championship. Perhaps this portends something similar for this year's edition of the Sox.

On the good side, in the Sox 1st, Ellsbury, followed by Yoooouk, each hit a homer, staking the Sox to that aforementioned 3-1 lead. Also, along the way, Speedracer stole his 50th base.