ALDS Game 4: Angels @ BoSox
By
The Angels lived to fight another day last night, and now they’re right back at it ready to do it again. Even though the game went 12 it should have never been that close to start with, except that Howie Kendrick/Torii Hunter’s brain fart led to the first 3 RBI single in postseason history.
The last time John Lackey pitched in Fenway, he did pretty well, but he still sports a 6.34 career ERA in the little league field. Jon Lester has been close to unbeatable at home this year, going 11-1 with a 2.49 ERA at the Fens. I dunno though, those stats are so one-sided that this game might have reserve lock written all over it.
In what must be a new rule, the Sawx dropped Mikey Lowell off their postseason roster and replaced him with some guy named Gil Velazquez. As Chip Caray has reminded us numerous times last night, Lowell has a torn labrum in his hip and has basically been useless on both sides of the ball. This has to be a brand spankin’ new rule, because the only time you were allowed to change the roster was between rounds as recent as last season. If a guy got hurt, too bad, you were stuck with him.
Anaheim
1. Don’t Call Me Sean Figgins, 3B
2. Garret Anderson, LF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Vlad Guerrero, DH
5. Torii Hunter, CF
6. Mike Napoli, C
7. Juan Rivera, RF
8. Howie KKKKKKKKendrick, 2B
9. Erick Aybar, SS
- John Lackey, P (12-5, 3.75)
Bahstin
1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. JD Drew, RF
6. Jason Bay, LF
7. Mark Kotsay, 1B
8. Jed Lowrie, SS
9. All Star Catcher Jason Varitek, C
- Jon Lester, P (16-6, 3.21)
The winner of this series will take on the Rays, who sent the ChiSox packing earlier tonight.
This has to be a brand spankin’ new rule, because the only time you were allowed to change the roster was between rounds as recent as last season. If a guy got hurt, too bad, you were stuck with him.
it’s new, but not this year. it’s a year or 2 old.
brand new last year. Remember we put Clemens on the DL during the postseason?
hoping this game is as good as last nights/this mornings and ends the same way
Fuckin devil rays..
the actor carrying the big red umbrella in these dumb traveller’s ads was the bad guy in raider’s of the lost ark
Heh, I found out today that Teixeira has been living out of Scott Boras’ guest house since the trade.
yup.
the rent is 1%/month of his next contract.
that’s like a gus van sant movie waiting to happen
Mark Texieira = Kato Kaelin
another great jacket by craig sager
Didnt the yanks use the same rule last year to replace Clemens on the postseason roster?
I think ARod was living in that same guest house last offseason – fortress of avaricious solitude
holy hell has lester always thrown 98? I didn’t think he could get it that high
that doesn’t look like 98
One of his last fastballs on TBS had him hitting 98
check on gameday. Their gun is pretty accurate. I guarantee the TBS gun is juiced.
gameday has 97,98, and 97 to Tex….f’ing A must have been the chemo
Yeah, it mutated his DNA. He’s like one of the X-Men now. Hmmm…what would Lester’s X-Man name be?
Chemomaniac
Okay, that last Frank Caliendo commercial was funny. As John Madden: “You take away the M in Mets, put in a B and a R, and you get the Brets!”
That one got me too.
playoff beard for lackey
Its actually called the Grit Beard.
Faustino.
Dustin Pedroia, 0 for October.
DUDE, SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT THAT ALREADY!!!!
For Diamond Cutters, I’m Peter Gammons, ESPN.
Pedroia now 0-14 in the playoffs. Does he get the choker label yet???
He needs to get into his inner grit.
Never!!!!!!!!! He is CLUTCH damn it!!!! Clutchity clutch clutch clutch.
is it possible to choke in gritty fashion?
Now that is a question!! I think so. I say yes. It takes big swings on strike outs, diving at every chance and bending foul poles during BP, but it can be done.
OMG Heroes tonight, almost forgot.
I don’t know about you guys, but I can’t wait for the start of AZL.
It took me a post season with out the yankees for me to realize, It really isn’t that hard to make it to the LCS. Yankees make it look so much harder than it is.
The Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, and Milwaukee Brewers would like a word with you.
Nevermind all the teams who couldn’t even make it to the LDS, who would also argue that getting to the LCS may be difficult after all.
And the Beckett sob-story continues
God Kendrick sucks.
if you’re a red sox fan in the late 90’s, is there any yankee that you hate the way i hate youkilis and papelbon? this red sox team is extremely hate-able…
O’Neill
As a Die hard Sox fan, O’Neill was the first name that came to mind…basically because he was Youkilis before Youkilis where attitude and demanor is concerned. I never wonder why you guys hate Youkilis, I’d hate him if he wasn’t a Red Sock.
Yup, I was about to say that. I’m a Yankee fan who, if you catch me on the right day could be talked into retiring Paulie’s number, and even I’d admit that he was a massively annoying douchenozzle. His nightly histrionics make Joba Chamberlain and his fistpump look like a Buckingham Palace Guard.
watching kevin youkilis strike out is one of the small joys of life
What a scoop by Tex.
Tough DP converted by the Angels.
nice turn!!!
Dice-K/Santana pitches game 5?
Yep.
Advantage Angels.
ahh the mike lowell blowfest continues
i missed game 2. how did dice-k look?
Handsome, as usual.
“i missed game 2. how did dice-k look?”
Asian.
If the Sox lose this game, are they as good as dead?
I say no.
correct me if i’m wrong but wasn’t mike lowell a throw in player in the beckett deal? As in the redosx did not covet him at all?
diamond in the rough
basically what I’m getting as is the assertion that the bosox specifically targeted him to increase the “blue-collar joe sixpack workman” player quotient is simply not true….
I believe Buck Martinez said “they wanted more Jason Variteks.”
and we know that jason varitek is king joe six pack
But remember, 3 years ago, Jason Varitek was one of the better Catchers in the league. Just because he sucks now….well, let’s not go there, it’s too depressing to see a good guy and the Captain of your team deteriorate so quickly. You guys will know what I mean in a couple of years and I don’t mean that as a slam either, just the natural process of aging and skill loss that hits every guy eventually.
You guys are right about Lowell, they took his salary to get Beckett and he’s the type of hitter who fits well in Fenway. I’d jettison him in a minute though if it would mean Teixeira at 1st and Youkilis at 3rd next year. Bias aside, would there be a better 1B/3B tandem in baseball, both offensively and defensively? I’m asking seriously….obviously if Teixeira ends up in NY it would be the same situation….
would there be a better 1B/3B tandem in baseball, both offensively and defensively?
Off the top of my head, the only one I can think of is Longoria and Pena, but Longoria would have to keep improving and Pena would have to revert to his 2007 form.
Salary dump. Then he found the fountain of youthgh.
. . . . . located in the Green Monster for a deal pull hitter like him.
what if the angels lose this game? it’ll be tough to recover…
why? losing to the defending champs who won 95 games while playing in the (by far) best division in baseball?
was trying to make a joke. stupid internet
Come on Tex, for every big hit, you add another comma to ya check.
hes gonna look great in pinstripes
Vlad hit a Homer.
another good at-bat by texiera
He’s such a no-brainer for the Yanks (or any team that needs a 1B), its ridiculous.
Patient, switch hitter, hits for power, fields his position, runs the bases well. Perfect #3 to slot in right before A-Rod, or #5 to hit right after him.
He’s pretty much as close as you’ll ever come to a perfect ball player at his position.
and hes cute as a button
That he is…that he is.
Lets be real here, he’s in a similar situation like Beltran. And Beltran is the better all-around player albeit not as good of a pure hitter.
“And Beltran is the better all-around player albeit not as good of a pure hitter.”
Huh? We all know Beltran plays CF, which makes him a better athlete. But as you just said, he’s not a better all around Baseball player.
BTW-I dont get the ‘Beltran situation’ part at all.
free agent to be playing his ass off in the playoffs
vlads constant hacking at every pitch is pretty annoying
Hey that’s what makes Vlad, well Vlad.
Vladi being Vladi.
Vlad has swung at every pitch thrown to him, of those pitches, all of them are balls.
until now.
I don’t think Vladimir knows you’re allowed to not swing.
Geez, Vlad can’t run for shit.
we’ll be seeing that play every 5 minutes on espn for the next 10 years
Haha, I was just about to say that.
Was it just me, or was that play nothing special?
May Peter Gammons have mercy on your soul
it’s too bad, because pedroia isn’t a bad player, but the excessive media hard-on is unbearable. not to mention that if he was black, no one would care…
Because he’s an example of scrappy clutchitudeness that would make David Eckstein’s grandmother weep for joy!
FEEL THE CLUTCHITUDENESS!!!!
Nah, it makes David Eckstein weep for joy, that’s how clutch/gritty he is!
you know you”re a big timer when you get junk mail from Benjamin Kabak
Damn, and I thought I was special!
What’s that all about anyway? Is Ben trying to send me a virus???
Drat, I thought *I* was special!
i have a feeling ben has a little side project selling calendar organizers and that was a prematue e-blast requesting donations
You mean Ben is a Nigerian prime minister in exile who will soon need our help in transferring tens of millions of dollars into a secure account in Antigua? I’m in!
Oh, that’s who that was. When did I ever give him my email address?
We’ve got them all. If you’ve ever commented on RAB, we have your email, your home address, home phone, credit card numbers, social security numbers, everything. It’s part of our master plan to take over the world.
I mean, uh, we get all the comments emailed to us, so it was probably automatically saved in his address book by gmail. Yeah, that’s it.
Google says hello.
Boy that was a quick inning.
shit i completely forgot mnf is on
Shit. So did I.
Wow that inning must have been fast — didn’t even register past the 1st batter on Fox’s Gametrax…
0-15.
When does Francona decide to bat him 8th?
Great D by Figgins.
Angels have $$$ on this series.
…as do the umps.
Lets go Lackey.
another great at-bat by kendrick
Quality. Really gritted it out.
Juuuuuuuuuuuuuuuust a little outside.
beat me to it
iight lets go angels.
“Jon Lester is becoming a man” says Chip Caray. “Well, his body’s changing” replies Ron Darling.
Heh.
Puberty?
Garret Anderson sucks.
Reggie Bush’s ball control ability is teh suck.
come on tex!
Come on Tex.
Lester, you punk bitch, on the mound.
That’s a pitch Vlad would of swung at.
these boston kids are such cocky sonsofbitches runnin off the mound and shit
Okay, did he just calld that pitch a ball.
Wow, how does he get that call after practically walking to the dugout and bitching about the previous pitch in the same spot? Rapuano’s a bitch.
That he is. Both calls were correct, but come on, you are a Major League umpire, man up.
Seriously dude. He showed him up big time, and he took it.
That was a pussy move by the ump. It was basically the same pitch, and he called it strike 3.
and both pitches were balls and and yet he called one of them strike 3.
The extra two-inch break on that heater bought that strike.
Nice job, Padawan.
No, Buck. Tampa Bay didn’t come out of nowhere. Anyone who pays any attention could’ve predicted they’d be good. Maybe not WS-contender good, but good nonetheless.
oh please, do not walk varitek.
Come on Lackey, it’s Jason Varitek. Give ‘em the heat, the heeeeeeeeeeeeat!!!
Lame, Lackey. Very lame.
Why throw a breaking ball to a hitter who has a hard time hitting a good fastball.
Every time Jason Varitek gets a hit, women in their 20’s suffer early menopause.
i wouldnt mind a gf in menopause giggity giggity
alllright
What, *all* of them?! Shit.
If Howie Kendrick doesn’t stop sucking…
I thought this was supposed to be a fundamentally sound team.
I thought Pythagorean records did not mean anything. I thought they were just a bunch of useless numbers for guys living in their mother’s basements.
1-0 blosox
2-0 blosox. pedroia loves the monster again.
Those fundamentals
Geez Kendrick, it’s bad enough your not hitting but ya can’t field.
If Howie Kendrick suffers a terrible yet non-life-threatening accident in the near future, I, for one, won’t be too upset.
That’s an out in any other park. Any. Other. Fucking. Park.
Your 2008 AL MVP!!!!
Isn’t that what Yaz said about Dent’s homer? You get some, you give some.
A typical Dustin Pedroia hit.
Go Rays !!
Yes, let’s throw a party for Pedroia’s hit.
*puke*
Pedroia had twice as many doubles at home than on the road this season. But hey Fenway didn’t help all that much.
Fun Fact by the way.
Didn’t help at all, the crowd’s grit rubs off on him when he plays at home, taking him to a whole other level of gritasticalness.
Ed Houchili is having a rough, rough season. Sometimes unfairly.
If ARodIf JeterIf PosadaIf GiambiIf any Yankee ever had gone 0-14 before hitting a double in Game 4 to move the score from 1-0 to 2-0, they would have been ex-fucking-coriated for the entire winter.
But since it’s Pedroia, I fully expect those other 14 at bats to be permanently purged from the historical record, Matrix-style. Dustin Pedroia is now officially batting 1.000 for the postseason.
Absolutely. And especially ARod.
Gritty play by Kotsay.
BOOOOOOOO-URNS!
Is TBS doing LCS as well? I don’t know if I can survive any more Chip Caray.
I think TBS does one series and FOX does the other.
Sob.
Yeah, they’re doing the ALCS.
*No, Buck Martinez, Jon Lester will never be anything more than a cancer survivor. Never.
does it go to fox so we get joe buck and tim macarver?
shit, lester is a good-ass pitcher
Oh Man the Cancer thing is back.
I shouldnt be getting this pissed when the Yanks are not in the playoffs… I hate the angels so much right now
One more cancer reference and I’m going to kick my TV.
Wait, Jon Lester had cancer? Really?
I had no idea.
Any other time that would be a hit; any other friggin’ time.
Am I the only one that think the yanks are a better team than the Angels despite the record?
Yes. Their pitching is/was far superior.
Watching halftime on ESPN: Does Chris Berman have any reference to anything ever that happened after 1978?
Yeah, this is ridiculous. Does anyone think Lester wants them to constantly blather on about the cancer thing?
I must confess, though, I really like Lester, cancer and all. If this is to be the clinching game, I’d much rather he won it than, say Beckett.
tex is solid at 1st
Even my Sox fan friend is bitching about the cancer thing.
By the way, did Reggie Wayne make the greatest catch of all-time? I realize I’m only 19, so I can’t speak on it much, but that was the best catch I ever seen.
No, this is the greatest catch of all time:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-aKfTK2LiM
Two words: Prothro.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2ikUyrOhkg
haha i have to agree with that, but this one is quite possibly the most athletic catch I have seen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNfIeYtnaoo
You know what, fuck the Angels. They deserve to lose. I hope the Red Sox beat them 20-0 tonight.
OK, that’s not true. I know they weren’t nearly as good as their record suggested, but what the fuck is with the mental lapses?
Hey Mike, why you hate Buchholz?
Cuz Mike doesn’t like thieving Thief McThievingson.
“Mark Kotsay, his wife grandmother died…”
Apparently, bad things only happen to the Red Sox and not to the other 29 teams in baseball, and they should be spotted two runs in every game. It’s only fair.
Mike Lowell had his Poodle named “Scruffy” get hit by a car when he was 6. Scarred him for life.
This isn’t pressure, he’s been to Hell and back.
Jacoby Ellsbury’s not fazed by playoff pressure, he was there dodging army bullets at the Battle of Little Bighorn vs. Custer.
ouch!
Yeah, I told him I was real sorry about that. Offered to buy him a new puppy, but he refused. Bawled his eyes out, the lil’ tyke.
Now thats a ‘gamer’ right there.
This isnt pressure. Jason Varitek’s wife accidentally kicked him in the nuts while she was doing aerobics this morning. Had to get his left nut amputated. This is just a ballgame.
Awwww, Jamie Kotsay’s grandma passed away? How sad. I’ll help her get through this hard time.
http://i26.photobucket.com/alb.....y-wife.jpg
You got a great heart Mike.
For the love of God, can Chip Caray please stop acting like every defensive play a Red Sox player makes is a new entrance in the all-time top ten?
Well at least this will be Lester’s last inning.
Last? What do you mean by last????
for the game.
Oh.
Never mind.
dont get ur hopes up
The black girl from the Sprint commercial: I’d hit that.
http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dyn.....laix_l.jpg
Yo I knew that the Green Monster is benefitial, but yo that thing can turn average players in superstars.
Dustin Pedroia says hi.
Erroneus!! Erroneus!!
He did beat Ian Kinsler out of a job in college. The ballpark is certainly not a detriment to him, but he’s still better than just average. And by the way, some of his doubles off the wall could have been dingers in other parks. And he’s gritty
So is Chip Caray another product of his father’s fame/talent, a la Joe Buck?
http://planetwill.jt.org/media.....caray1.jpg
Pretty much yeah.
The entertainment of the 2008 LDS: http://failblog.files.wordpres.....s-fail.jpg
Top of the order coming, gotta score runs no?
No.
No.
maybe not.
the next angel who tries to bunt…
please pinch-hit for garret anderson
Somebody tell Tex that’s Edwar Ramirez pitching to him out there
The only Angel hitter with great a-bats in this entire series.
Don’t you mean “Yankee hitter”?
Oh, that’s right. Not yet.
Justin Masterson’s not fazed by playoff pressure. He replaced 2Pac at Death Row after the drive-by.
I can’t help wondering how the hell this Angels team has beaten us multiple times in the playoffs.
Then, I remember Jeff Weaver, David Wells, Randy Johnson, Aaron Small, and Tanyon Sturtze, and I remember…
We became one of the teams we used to beat in the post season. The ones like CLE, BALT and TEX with big lineups and so-so pitching.
Sad but true.
Did you know he has a cousin named Mastin Justerson?
Francona is smart. Taking Okajima out.
now he decides to take a strike???
Which is worse: cancer or a fractured testicle?
Oh my God, did Buck Martinez just say that Friday night starts in college prepare young pitchers for situations like this????
Dude, he has 3 hours to fill. He’s gotta say something. Not all of it will be pretty.
Did Vlad Guerrero just take a walk? This global warming shit is getting out of control.
torri is gonna k
probably.
Just a single.
A clutch passed ball by All-Star Catcher Jason Varitek. Pure grit.
come on torii
it was a fastball that he ducked outta the way of, but no thats a Wp not a passed ball
YESSSSSS!!!!!!!!
I love it when im wrong
Yes Torii.
No one’s chanting now! Bitches.
Well this wont improve race relations in Boston any time soon.
Yup. Bostonians now hate both blacks and asians. As opposed to before, when they hated both blacks and asians.
HAHAHAh
yay!!!!!!
90 Million dollar hit…
I LOVE how quiet Fenway gets at moments like this.
You could hear a pin drop in that place right now.
Never Mind – Hell yeah Hunter!
Thought Okajima was doomed but then again Matterson and the BS bullpen sucks! Yeah baby!
Melancon wouldn’t do that.
Lester cant win it.
Tragedy strikes him yet again.
I like how they cut to the manual scoreboard in LF on the pickoff attempt. Solid.
Torii didn’t bunt!!!! Yes!!!
The last thing Francona wanted tonight was another battle of the bullpens. His bullpen is much thinnner than the Angel bullpen, and both were taxed last night.
Hey look at that, Kendrick caught it. Nice contribution.
If they made a movie on Pedroia, it might be better than Rudy.
They made a documentary about the media coverage on him. It’s called “Deep Throat”.
Midget porn is more appropriate.
believe it or not, there are other players in major league baseball besides dustin pedroia
BLASPHEMY!!!
Reggie Bush is all sorts of fast.
22.67 Molinas, easy.
And his girlfriend gots all sorts of ass.
Who’s his girl?
Kim Kardashian. The new queen of ass (previously J-Lo).
Oh yeah, I still can’t believe she fucked Brandy’s brother
http://celeb.wohoo.co.uk/wp-co.....r-2007.jpg
Holy crap, yeah she does.
http://www.handbagdesigner101......_louie.jpg
That’s photoshopped. She’s got a big ass, but that’s OBVIOUSLY fake.
i hope it was a screen pass or a dumpoff from my boy drew brees
Punt return. His third in his career, new Saints record.
Yeah.
Too bad he’s not a runningback, though.
Eric Metcalf the 2nd
ah damn, oh well
now that peoples emotions have settled I can say with impunity that Im pretty psyched for our sweet ass new stadium next year
shields dealing once again
It certainly hurts Ortiz that Manny isn’t behind. Ortiz, must be saying to himself, “where all those fastballs I saw”.
Kevin Youkilis just got owned beyond belief.
Most annoying bullshit at the plate: Youkilis, Nomar Garciaparra, Craig Counsell, or Julio Franco?
Youk
Oh man, Nomar, easily. Not even close.
Yeah, but Craig Counsell’s stupid jabbing the bat towards the sky always irked the fuck out of me.
He’s retired, but Chuck Knobloch was unwatchable.
Nomar.
I say Craig Counsell. When you have a career OPS of 78, you better not do anything else to piss people off.
chuck knoblaugh
Is Knoblauch that hard to spell?
Yankee fans, say it with me:
K-N-O-B-L-A-U-C-H
A-B-R-E-U
B-E-T-E-M-I-T
Dale Cubano!
You could hear a pin drop right now in Fenway.
Dude, seriously, if they score this inning, just leave Shields in for the 9th. Don’t fuck around.
If anything, get Arredondo up as insurance. He seems to own in that fireman role.
Why?
angels are gonna win this series
I hope so, but I dont believe it. Tell me what the Wed pitching matchup is first.
Dont forget, the Sox just swept them at home to open this series. Not over yet.
You know, I didn’t mind Kendrick bunting there.
Tito is still the best and smartest manager in the game tho right ?
You know, if I didn’t know any better I’d say that Masterson sucked balls.
But as we all know the almighty Red Sox Farm system produces nothing but elite talent. Because they are not only the best team, but the best franchise in all of Baseball.
If only Masterson had cancer…
Does Aybar realize that a suicide squeeze without a bunt is simply suicide?
Cmon Aybar !!!!
Squeeze?
…
shit
OMFG
Unbelievable.
are you fucking kidding me!!!!!
OMG! What the fuck was that.
scioscia in love with himself and his gutsy style of baseball. he deserves to lose
He was out. The ground can’t cause a fumble, right?
He blew the whistle. Play’s dead.
According to rules you can’t review a non call of a fumble. Although if he were to challenge the spot of the ball for example and the discrepancy came up the call could be reversed.
Ben, I don’t know about you, but I now hate the Angels more than the Red Sox.
Yes. This team, with their smallball bullshit and overrated closer and backup $50M HGH utility outfielder deserves to lose and badly. The 2008 Angels winning a world series could set baseball back a century.
Boston is unbelievably lucky
this only happens to the redsox
One of the reasons why you don’t bunt. Fundamentally sound Angels.
The Yanks should try some more small ball, you know. More squeezes.
With Damon.
Melky bunting….no way it can’t fail