A Confession of True Love

A few weeks ago, Jane Heller of Confessions of a She-Fan sent me an advance copy of her new work, Confessions of a She-Fan.

I have just finished reading her "fan diary" as she calls it, and really liked it. It's an honest portrayal of a fan's relationship with a team, and, especially the 2007 season--one with which I am sure most of us are familiar. While fans tend to bond together and help each other any way they can, the team itself can be cold and unforgiving--but not because they want to, but because they have to, for their own security.


There's being a fan of a team, and then there's being a fan of the Yankees. It's a completely different animal...

The book is a short and fairly fast read, which, after just finishing reading heavy historical fare was a nice change of pace. Perhaps most interesting, however, is that Confessions puts into perspective how amazing the 2007 season really was, even if October left us all a bit deflated.

You can preview or purchase your own copy here

Rock Bottom (World Series Game 4 Postgame Notes)

[edit]: I need to not write these sort of posts immediately following the game...

The Red Sox do deserve to be congratulated on winning the series; I have a few close friends that are Sox fans, and I am happy that they are happy.

I'll admit it: This is a dark day to be a Yankee fan.

Any other team wins the World Series while not playing the Yankees, I can easily congratulate them for a job well done...with Boston, every bone in my body repels at the notion, even though it's the classy thing to do.

The pinstripe pride runs too deep in my veins.

Colorado tried to play today, they managed to keep it close, a one run game, but it was too little much too late.

The simple conclusion that can be drawn is that the National League simply is not on the level of the American League. At least, not this season, not this October.

Colorado had a great season, and should not despair. Winning 21 of 22 is no small feat, especially given the time they did it and the situation they were in. Just one other loss and Colorado would not even have made the playoffs.


As a Yankee fan, it won't be easy to go to sleep tonight, knowing what lies ahead, but then again, beating A-Rod and Boston in 2008 will be all that much sweeter...

Three and Out (World Series Game Three Postgame Notes)

So I did not see any of this game past the fourth inning, but then again, I'm not sure that there was any reason for me to do so.

Colorado, quite simply, has played overmatched.

When the American League team's pitcher gets a hit that drives in two runs, there's an issue, and Colorado is now as up against the wall as you can get.

Josh Fogg, the "dragonslayer" was supposed to be brilliant, but he couldn't make it out of the third inning. If you can't make it past the third inning, you probably shouldn't be starting a game in the World series, but who knows. Maybe Fogg just 'didn't have it'...it could have been the pressure of the World Series, who knows?


The nine days off seems to have been nothing but a horror story for Colorado, but again, who knows?


They weren't supposed to make the playoffs at all, six games out with twenty to play, but they had a miracle in them then.


Maybe there's another miracle in their hearts as well.

On the Rocks (World Series Game 2 Postgame Notes)

At least this is what a World Series game is supposed to look like--a close, low-scoring, one run affair...

...but it certainly did not feel that way.

I don't know about you, but I had to check my TV constantly to see that the game was still only at 2-1; the way Boston pitched and reached base, I thought it was 4-1 or 5-1.

So it seems the Colorado pitching staff woke up today, and decided to stop playing zombie...and if only the offense could do that as well!

Matt Holliday might be the National League MVP, but he did the most un-MVPish thing possible when he got picked off in the eighth inning, killing a potential rally. Sure there were two outs, but if I learned one thing this postseason, it's that you can never rest easy until the third out is made.

Curt Schilling did one of those better-as-the-game-goes-on performances, which is never any fun for the opposing team, because then you realize that you had a huge opportunity (like the first) and you missed.

Still, going back to Coor's Field will be good for Colorado. Will they win the World Series? Never say never, but they have their work cut out for them.

I wonder if a World Series game has ever been snowed out...

Boston Rocks (World Series Game 1 Postgame Notes)

Memo to the Colorado Rockies:


There is nothing wrong with dressing up and playing zombie for Halloween, but, uh, you're generally supposed to wait until October 31 to dress up in costume...


Seriously, that was an ugly affair for anyone not rooting for Boston.

World Series games are supposed to be close, nail-biter sort of affairs, with late inning heroics, the best of the best, but the game played today may have as well been played in March.

Seriously, if Eric Gagnè is on the mound in Fenway Park in a World Series game, you know something is up.

That Colorado only managed one run against Josh Beckett is not a surprise; no one seems to be doing much scoring of any sort against the Red Sox ace, but Colorado's pitching, from the lead off man, could not even attempt to compete.

Compared to the doings of Morales and co, Jeff Francis actually seemed as though he was the ace of the affair, and if you give up six runs, you're pretty much not an ace.

You have to credit Boston's offense for coming to play, and they certainly did. An obscene number of runs were scored with two out, and you can't ask for more than that from an offense.

There's no doubt the eight-day lay off has something to do with the Zombies-R-Us-ness of tonight's game; those rooting for the Rockies or against the Sox (like any true Yankee fan) have to hope that tonight was a 'shake off the rust' game and that it will not happen again.

On a completely unrelated note:

My Halloween costume is coming along as much as a costume made from bedsheets and yarn can come along. Can't wait to show you all!

Rox N' Sox (2007 World Series Preview)

Presenting Rebecca's 2007 World Series preview, written in verse to celebrate the rhyming of Sox and Rox.

Ahem:

They’re bonkers in Boston for the Sox,
Crazed in Colorado for the Rox.
To the World Series they will go,
Whether through wind, rain, sleet or snow.

The Rockies have been on an amazing run,
Of the past twenty-two, they won twenty-one.
Against the wall, Boston made an attack
Three games to one, they came all the way back.

Boston has pitchers like Beckett and Schilling,
But the Rockies’ offense can make a killing,
With hitters like Holliday and Tulowitzki
To come up against Paplebon and Hideki.

Boston has Manny, Ortiz and Youkilis,
But the Rockies have pitchers like Jeff Francis.
Josh Fogg might be the Dragon-slayer,
But Pedroia is quite the player.

The Rockies play a mile high,
Where balls sail far into the sky,
But Boston has their home at Fenway,
Where since 1912 they come to play.

So who is it going to be in the end?
On certain factors it will all depend.
Colorado has had nine days to rest
While Boston has had to play at their best.

If the Rockies can stay hot,
Beating them Boston will not.
But if the contest comes down to the bullpen,
It will be Boston in five, six or seven.



(I would love a Colorado sweep, but if Beckett and Schilling can deliver, then Boston, who has home field advantage, will probably pull out. Let's hope the Rockies remain hot.)

OMG, Kenny Killed Them! (ALCS Game 7 postgame notes)

Boston winning the ALCS is about as bad as it gets for Yankees' fans, and at least, this year, we can place the blame (on the Indians' side, anyway) squarely on the shoulders of one man: Kenny Lofton.

Had he not tried to stretch that single into a double, he probably would have scored the tying run.

Had he actually run from second to home on that odd single instead of stopping at third, he would have scored the tying run.

However, those things did not happen, and the Indians, who fell behind early and then imploded late, will be like twelve other American League teams brooding over the long, dark winter.

You knew Cleveland was destined for trouble when they couldn't close it out at Jacob's Field, but out of respect for the Yankees' fans reading this blog (which, I think, will be the majority) I won't mention that thing, that nightmare we are all thinking.

Ah, well, Boston hasn't won it all yet.

These may be dark days for Yankees fans, but we are a strong bunch, and we will get through this.


Let's Go Rockies!

Cleveland not Rocking Tonight (ALCS Game 5 Postgame Notes)

In my defense, I did call this series going six games.

Three games now, in the Postseason, that CC Sabathia has started and come up short. It's getting harder and harder to say that it's just a fluke; he seems more like he's rattled by the nerves.

Beckett was good; he didn't have to be great to win tonight.

Manny's long RBI single reminds me a bit of the Subway Series in 2000 when some dude on the Mets hit a ball that looked like it was going to be out, so he didn't run, but it wasn't a home run, and he was thrown out at first. I forget who was involved in the play; I keep thinking Jose Reyes, but he might have still been in grade school at the time.

Anyway, Manny's earlier comment, about not caring if Boston wins the World Series or not, and his home-run-but-not-home-run tonight once again confirms a simple fact: I do not want Manny in pinstripes. Ever. I'd take David Ortiz over him, and that's saying quite a bit.

That said, Cleveland really did miss a golden opportunity tonight, seeing as now they have to go to Boston.

I can't manage for dung, but I would have given serious thought to starting Carmona tonight; he's been brilliant in both of his postseason starts, and there was that off day, so he would have been going on...four days' rest, not counting today.

Obviously it's not really something you want to do, as Sabathia's supposed to be your number one starter, but October is October for a reason.

Cleveland will not have to deal with Beckett on Saturday, but they will have to deal with Fenway and it's not going to be fun. You know 2004 is on the mind of every single Boston fan right now.

It's up to Cleveland, then, to teach Boston that it does no good to live in the past.


(Says the medieval history student).



I'm off to Maryland tomorrow, for family and sword-waving, I'll try to have some good pictures when I come back.

In the meantime, play nice. If you see a troll or whatnot, just remember they're a bit like skunks. Cute in that kiddie sort of way, but you really don't want their spray all over you. It's nasty.

And if you live in South Carolina, do your part to get Colbert on the ballot!

Cleveland to Boston: Put a Sox in It! (ALCS Game Four Postgame Notes)

Okay, so when I made my ALCS predictions, I was apparently wrong...just, not about the offenses.

I thought that this series would go seven, and, you never know, it still might, but for now Cleveland's got Boston in a chokehold.

Considering his recent injury, Wakefield was impressive through the first four, but he fell apart in the fifth. I'm not sure, superstitious wise, if Wakefield's really the guy that should have been on the mound for Boston tonight, but as a Yankee fan I can't really complain.

Youkilis, Ortiz and Ramirez all went yard, but like the Yanks last round, they did it without men on base. Manny admiring his shot? Not cool. At all.

Anyway, again, Cleveland simply outplayed Boston, except for those three pitches. Paul Byrd's start against the Yanks apparently wasn't a fluke, and neither is Cleveland's bullpen.

If Boston's going to win any other game in the series, it's likely to be Game Five, with Beckett going against Sabathia. If anything, we'll know whether or not Sabathia's last two postseason starts were just flukes, or if he really isn't a big game pitcher. We all know Beckett is, so Cleveland needs to bring their A game.

It does not bode well for Cleveland (or Yankee) fans if the series goes back to Boston.

Rock Around the Clock (NLCS game 4 postgame notes)

This is short because it's late and I'm supposed to go to class tomorrow.

The Colorado Rockies are the National League Champions.

While some outside of that great state may have expected it, I certainly wasn't one of them....but the Rockies deserve it.

They played their hearts out, never gave up, never gave in, and it paid off big time.

Arizona, in a classic case of 'too little, too late' , did make it close, but close is not good enough. For all the hailing of Micah Owings, it was the Rockies, and the pitcher that they did not mention, that are playing for it all.

....and this entire time I'm thinking, Todd Helton really wants to lift the Cup right about now...

Which, I believe, is a universal signal for bedtime.

See you all later today/tomorrow depending on your time zone!

Bang that Drum a Little Bit Faster Now (ALCS Game 3 Postgame Notes)

So I'll be honest, I missed nearly the entire second half of the Red Sox/Indians game because of my failed caramel experiment (see my post below), but I did catch a lot of the game.

Jake Westbrook was entirely on form tonight, looking like a completely different pitcher than the one that faced the Yankees in Game Three of the ALDS. To be fair, Jacob's Field is a bit different than Yankee Stadium, but Westbrook was excellent, the Rafael that came in was great (again, I was busy burning caramel so I can't tell you which Rafael it was) and would you believe it, but Joe Borowski, yes, THAT one, had a one-two-three inning.

If both teams keep playing like this, Kenny Lofton might be the ALCS MVP.


I know. I don't get it, either, but as a Yankee fan, I'd take him over David Ortiz or Manny Ramirez as the MVP...

Cleveland's line up produced tonight. Boston's did not. So right now my theory of Cleveland having the better line up seem to be holding, but I'll reserve final judgment till after the Series, because, as everyone know, two games to one lead really doesn't mean anything.

I had two friends who are both big Red Sox fans tell me that Dice-K is officially not worth it.

I am now going to watch the Rockies/D-Backs, but probably won't stay up for the entire thing, so expect notes sometime tomorrow. I can't believe we're this close to a Cleveland-Rockies World Series...and the puns almost write themselves. Almost.

Rocking to the Beat of Their Own Drum (NLCS Game 3 Postgame Notes)

In today's News of the Absurd:

The Colorado Rockies are one game from the World Series.

Let me repeat.

The Colorado Rockies are one game from the World Series.

Whatever you thought, going into the 2007 baseball season, I can pretty much guarantee that it wasn't that, but that's exactly what it is.

Colorado's out pitched, out hit, out clutched and out fundamentaled so far, so unless Arizona has an '04 Sox in them, they're stuck, and judging from tonight, Coors Field isn't the driest or warmest place to play baseball in October.

The Rockies are playing so well right now they nearly turned a triple play, and it felt like the double play was a disappointment.

Livan Hernandez was good but Josh Fogg was excellent. Arizona got on base, but Colorado scored. Arizona hit into three double plays in the first three innings. Colorado didn't.

The most interesting part of the whole thing is how into it the Colorado fans are. You don't think of Colorado as a baseball place in the way that you do Boston, New York, Chicago...you think of Broncos and Avalanche...but the fans at Coors Field tonight, even in the pouring rain and chill, were as into it as fans can get.

If the question right now is who wants it more?, the answer is Colorado.

Plain, simple and rock hard.

(I promise, I'll stop the rock related puns as soon as the Rockies are eliminated...)

Extra Special (ALCS Game 2 Postgame Notes)

Sorry for this being so late; I wasn't feeling well last night and missed the end of the game and I've only just woken up.

Anyway.

Both offenses last night looked pretty balanced...but the pitching, however, did not. Neither Schilling nor Carmona could go long, and both bullpens were stretched.

That it was Eric Gagne that ended up blowing it for Boston is a cruel, hard fact for Boston fans, but not really a surprise. Gagne hasn't been trusted with a lead the entire second half; now, he's probably pitched himself out of ever reappearing in this season.

Part of you feels bad for him--it's not like he didn't try--part of your Yankee fan is going, 'oh sweet sweet schadenfreud'...

Anyway, this was the Cleveland offense that we are supposed to be seeing: not top-heavy but capable of doing damage 1-9.

This is going to be some series, and a heartbreaker for one of these two teams.

Rock(ies) and Roll (NLCS Game Two Postgame notes)

Well, if I'm going to stay up to three AM watching a baseball game, I should thank Colorado and Arizona to make it a good one!

An old-fashioned pitcher's duel is the best way to describe the game, and, well, the Rockies seem utterly immune to losing. Even when their 'pen blows a one run lead in the ninth, on the road, the Rockies shrug it off like no big deal and win in eleven.

If Arizona has any hope of beating Colorado now, they'll have to do it on the road and at Coors field...which will be anything but an easy task.

Seriously. 19-1 in the last 20 games? It's almost as if we should be asking 'why are we playing the NLCS this year?', but, of course, if we did, Arizona would just go and win four straight.


Arizona's not up against a wall yet, but in the world of baseball metaphors, they're certainly on the warning track.

Arizona pitched well last night, but Colorado pitched better, and the deeper into the series that we go, the bigger the fact looms that Colorado's got the deeper pitching staff.

I think, right now, the D-backs have got to be hoping that there's some sort of rain or snow out. Right now, it seems like their only chance to win a game...



Back later with more. Going to go eat something first.

Beatdown in Beantown (ALCS Game 1 Postgame Notes)

So, apparently, I was wrong about the whole Cleveland-has-a-better-offense thing...well, at least for tonight.


To be fair, Josh Beckett was on his game tonight, and CC Sabathia...wasn't. Boston took advantage of every mistake Sabathia made, and when he was knocked out in the fifth, it wasn't pretty. At least, not for those of us rooting against Boston!

My Red Sox fan friend thoroughly enjoyed the beat down...that is, until the game got out of hand, in which he did then tell me that he was bored.

Bored.

Yea, I know.


Anyway, given Sabathia's performance in game one of the ALDS, you have to wonder if Sabathia's just having a bad postseason this year, or if he's simply not a big game pitcher, in which case Cleveland's got to think about his place as their number one. If Carmona pitches well tomorrow, there are some rotation questions that they might need to address--and fast.

Beckett pitched a great game; Cleveland's offense was never really given much of a chance, as is what happens with good pitching. Still, they did manage to load the bases against Eric Gagne, which shows that they aren't dead in the water...though, if a team can't load the bases against Gagne circa Second Half 2007, you might want to check for a pulse.


Game Two should be a more interesting affair...and one I think Cleveland has a much better chance of winning.



NLCS game 2 has a late start, so I'll post some notes tomorrow, as I'm taking the rest of the day to be vaguely productive.

The Lesser of Two Evils? (ALCS preview)

This is one of those series where you'd rather not be a Yankee fan. You don't want Boston to win, plain and simple, but do don't really want Cleveland to be the ones to beat Boston...

Anyway.

If Boston wants to win this series, they're going to have to find a way to beat CC Sabathia or Fausto Carmona. Am I the only one that thinks of 'Faustian tragedy' when I see that guy's name?

Right then. If Cleveland wants to win, they need to beat Beckett or Schilling in Fenway.

If the series just came down to that, I'd give Cleveland the edge in a heartbeat, but the problem is, it's not a best-of-three series.

Boston's got the scarier guys in the lineup, but Cleveland's offense is much more balanced. Grady Sizemore and Asdrubel Cabrera have some serious; Travis Hafner can hit it out in a snap.

[EDIT}: According to some I've been talking to, such as Brent of the MVN network, I've got this wrong, and Boston has the more balanced line up. I've been going on my general impression--Boston's line up seems top-heavy to me, while Cleveland does not--but I've been wrong before.

We'll see what happens here.

Bullpen-wise, Boston's got the better closer, but Cleveland can get by on set up men alone.


So, players to watch: CC Sabathia, Fausto Carmona, Rafaels (2), Travis Hafner, Grady Sizemore, David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Josh Beckett, Hideki Okajima, Daisuke Matsuzaka, and, hate it or not, Curt Schilling.

As for the prediction...

This is going to be a good series. Boston's probably going to win at least one at Fenway and lose at least one at the Jake, so that's six games right there.

On the whole, I think Cleveland's got the edge, unless Schilling and Dice-K have some serious game. It's not just the pitching though; Cleveland's offense is better balanced, and they are still the more underrated team.

Cleveland in seven.


(Watch it be Boston in four...)

Rock On, Colorado! (2007 NLCS Game One postgame notes)

Okay, I'm no great fan of Colorado. Mostly, this has to do with hockey, and the Broncos in 1998, but the point remains, that for me to support a team from Colorado takes considerable effort.

However, when Arizona's fans did one of the most un-classy things possible--throwing objects such as water bottles on the field--I decided that I wanted Colorado to win the game.

After all, why not?


Brandon Webb simply just did not have it...he seemed spot on in the first, but quickly came apart.
'
Arizona had chances to get runs back on offense, but like the Yankees' LDS offense (excepting game three), they were simply anemic. They did that whole GIDP thing way too much, which is painful to watch if you're trying to support that team.

On the other hand, Colorado did everything right.

They got the big hits, pitched well enough, and ran the bases like a playoff team.


Colorado deserved this one. Rock on!



That's it from me tonight; tomorrow we've got ALCS preview, Friday's 'You Learn Something New' (YLSN) in which I will pick a baseball concept/idea/rule/term I don't understand and figure out how to explain it, and ALCS Game One recap. I'll be watching ALCS Game One with my friend who is a Red Sox fan, so I may or may not have some extra insight.

Snake bites or Mountain Lions? (NLCS preview)

Arizona Diamondbacks. Colorado Rockies. If you asked anyone on June 1st what these two teams would be doing on 11 October, chances are you would have said "golfing".

You would have been wrong. Very, very wrong.

Tonight these two teams will be squaring off in the NLCS, and even though it's anything but a purist's dream (We could have had Cubs-Phillies!), it's going to be a good series.

Both teams are young. Both teams are incredibly hot--Colorado seems to be on the verge of eliminating 'lose' from its vocabulary and a Diamondbacks team that was supposed to finish no better than third was the only 90 game winner.

So, who's going to take the series?

I have no idea. However, I will be shocked if either team wins it in five games or less. I can't see Arizona winning at Coors Field; I can't see Colorado sweeping.

Players you want to watch: Matt Holliday, Troy Tulowitzki (no, I don't know how to spell that), Brandon Webb, Micah Owings.

If I had to go and guess as to who's going to win, I'd have to go with Colorado. Arizona probably should have lost game two against Chicago, but Colorado more or less decimated the much-better Phillies.

Still, four days off for Colorado doesn't bode well for their winning streak...except that Arizona's done the same thing as well.

Again, the NLCS is not a purist's dream, but it should be entertaining to watch just the same. If you're a Yankee fan, on principle, you should probably be supporting the Rockies.


NFL picks coming shortly, but I'm hungry and want to eat something first.

Here at the End of All Things, 2007

You thought that this year, things were different.

You thought this year, surely, with everything that happened it was just destiny.

You hoped.

Even in the bottom of the ninth, when Posada's hit went sailing towards the upper deck, you hoped, before it hooked foul like a cruel dagger.

You watched. You wished. You hoped. You prayed. You thought, not in our house. Not in October.


Most of the time, it's just the end of the season, but this time it is the end of so much more.

It is the end of the Yankees under Joe Torre; I am too young to remember them under another manager.

I am crying as I write that. Not a violent hysteric, but the same type of tear that comes to my eyes any time I watch that ER episode where Carol goes to Seattle to FINALLY be with Doug, where my eyes are full, and just under them, before my cheek proper, is moist.

It could be the end of Posada and Rivera as Yankees, and I am at a loss for words. I cannot bring myself to contemplate the idea.

It could be the end of A-Rod in a Yankee uniform, but this series was not on him, and he should stay. It's that simple. He should stay.


I could talk about where the game went wrong, but by now everyone knows.

So how do you be optimistic when baseball has gone black for 2007? How do you remain optimistic when the World Series winner will be either Boston, Arizona-2001, Colorado-swept us this year, or Cleveland? Which is the least of those three evils? (I think it's Arizona, btw, there aren't many from the 2001 team still around).

You remain optimistic by thinking about this:

Spring will come again. Hell, with global warming it might not even be winter proper.

Spring will come again, and it'll bring with it Melky, Robbie, Joba, Ian, Phil, Wang, Shelley...

You think about how the last time the Yankees lost in the wild card round, the last two times, they won the World Series the very next year.

You think about how this isn't that old team of grizzled all-stars who were randomly thrown together, but a young bunch who are at the forefront of something we haven't seen in ages: a Yankees team you feel right about.


Spring will come again, and I will be there.


I hope you'll join me.

ALDS Game Four Pregame Notes (8 October 2007)

So much changes, so much stays the same.

The Yankees are still with their backs against the wall, still one more loss and it's over, still one more lost and it's bye-bye to Joe...

...but you can't deny that things have changed, even if just a wee bit.

The bats came alive last night. The Yankees showed what they can do to mediocre pitching.

The torch was passed, Rocket to Phil, and tonight it's passed to another one of those kids, the Wanger, who pitches so much better at home than on the road.

A-Rod had two hits last night, and for the most part, he had good ABs as well. The bottom of the order produced like crazy, and Posada had his first good hit of the postseason as well.

Again, it's Yankee Stadium in October.

Again, we call on the ghosts for a little aid.

Again, we will hope, again we will watch, and again we will not go quietly into that good night...


(my thanks to Dylan Thomas!)