Deadspin
How the wee ones and zeros line up concerning Cleveland's 4-2 win over Boston in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series ...
• And The Hits Just Keep On Not Coming. But nobody wins when the umpires are bad beyond belief. To paraphrase one of my favorite SNL sketches, what the f@#k game was that home plate ump watching? Did he have an iPod Nano tucked into his mask? Did he forget to wear his corrective lenses? Did he have a hot date with a steak sandwich and an east side hooker that took up most of his focus ("Do I start with the sandwich, or the boobs? Sandwich... or boobs?")? Because he sure wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to the game. One of the worst performances I've seen this year, and I'm including game two of the Walpole Penitentiary World Series, which was eventually called on account of rain and sodomy. [Surviving Grady]
• Game One Hundred Sixty Nine: Indians 4, Red Sox 2. This was my first time at a Jacobs Field playoff game, and it was different that any regular season contest. The fans didn't need much coaxing from the digital cheerleaders; they were on their feet early and often, whether it was with two strikes on a Boston player, or runners on in the bottom of an inning. When Borowski came on in the ninth, the mood was anticipatory but hesitant. Everyone was on their feet, hoping for an easy inning, but knowing that just one base runner brings the tying run to the plate. And in case you didn't notice, Borowski allows a lot of base runners. But, other than a long battle with Jason Varitek, he retired the Boston hitters rather easily. And with that, a happy stadium-full of Indians fans poured out of Jacobs Field, and blared their horns on their way out of downtown Cleveland. [Let's Go Tribe]
• No Time To Panic. You can't be in panic mode. A lot of times, it's panic mode in Boston, but we're not in panic mode. We were in a situation a lot worse than this in the 2004 ALCS, and we won that. This is easy compared to 2004, when we were down 3-0 against the Yankees. For us, we're not in panic mode. We're just excited to go out and win a ballgame tomorrow and get this series back to even. [Yooooouuuuukkkkk]
• Boston's FOX 25 Blows Off The National Anthem Before The ALCS. Friday night, Boston's FOX 25 was doing their pregame for Game One of the 2007 American League Championship Series between the Red Sox and the Cleveland Indians ... But there's something interrupting their broadcast. A drunken streaker? A F-14 flyover? Jonathan Papelbon? No, just that pesky National Anthem ... [Home Run Derby]
• Top 10 Things I'd Like To See At The Jake Tonight. Due to the fact that the Red Sox started off the season at a .700 clip, and then rather casually swept the Angels in the ALDS, there haven't been many must-win games for them this season. Really, none...until tonight, when they're staring down a 1-3 pit if they don't put up a W. The chances of taking the series get exponentially smaller otherwise, and don't be telling me it's all good because look what happened in '04, either. Part of what makes '04 legendary is that most of the time, huge comebacks don't happen. [Red Sox State Of Maine]
• ALCS Game 3: Jake Westbrook Comes Up 'ACES' Against Red Sox. Westbrook did what he does best. He forced ground balls, which in turn, got him through several innings. When it was all said and done, Jake gave up two runs on a Jason Varitek home run in the seventh inning. He did this giving up seven hits and three walks, and striking out two. In other words, it was typical Westbrook pitching when he's on. No, he doesn't blow it by you like the two Indians' aces do. He just gets it done, and helps the maintenance crew mow the infield. [Tribe Report]
Comments
When McCarver is all but calling out the ump for being a fraud, you know something isn't quite going according to plan.
Worst. Strike. Zone. Ever.
For not being in a panic mode, they say "panic mode" an awful lot.
Larry David and Michael Chiklis congratulate Westbrook on a job well done
@G Voll the Mole: Please Gregg, Eric 1997 World Series, Game 5.
@G Voll the Mole: Fox Trak agrees
My thoughts verge on dirty when I hear the term "digital cheerleaders."
The crappy umpiring was hurting Dice-K, but it wasn't helping Westbrook either.
If you have bases loaded in the second with nobody out and get NOTHING from it, you're going to lose. Period. Don't blame the umps.
@Paper Cut: Ok maybe not the worst worst, but only because Gorman was epically inconsistent for both teams instead of just one.
and I'm including game two of the Walpole Penitentiary World Series, which was eventually called on account of rain and sodomy
I heard Nuke Dufresne got hammered by Boggs, but I didn't think it was that bad.
You have to also love McCarver washing Manny's nuts as he takes pitches because of his great ability to "locate the type of pitch early" - and then the digital tracker shows an obvious strike. Awful, awful umping.
yeah, it was the umps. not your crappy pitching...
@G Voll the Mole: I think he had some sort of eye problem. Or maybe in his mind it was opposite day?
down 3-1 facing Sabathia and Carmona would not be a good thing
@Chicago Jones: Your thoughts verge on dirty when you hear the term "waffle iron".
@thedirty d: I'm pretty sure we all realize that Gorman had way less to do with the loss than Papi's baserunning or the general lack of hitting.
Chartered Flight to Cleveland: $25000
Playoff Per-Diems for the roster and staff: $7500
Daisuke's salary per postseason run allowed: $8047619
Chance to be the New Yankees: Priceless
The strike zone was totally inconsistant. Fortunately it seemed to be srewed for both teams fairly equally, still, is that the best MLB can do?
@UkraineNotWeak: You know, at a time like this, panicking is the worst thing you could do. So don't do that. Panic. That would be bad.
The home plate ump squeezed both starters early in the game. Then his strike zone suddenly expanded by several feet in the later innings. The least an ump can do is be consistent. Ultimately, I don't think it helped or harmed either team, but it was indicative of the fact that the umpiring this year has been atrocious.
"Rain and Sodomy," great Pogues album.
@LeNoceur: NOBODY PANIC! FOR CHRISSAKES, NOBODY BETTER FUCKING PANIC!
Do I start with the Sandwich or the boobs?
Boobs.
@swayzegoescrazy: unless it is the CC and Carmona from Game 1 and Game 2.
@G Voll the Mole: I hope Papi's crotch is still hurting him. How you you be that dumb on the base paths? Seven-year-olds in coaches pitch leagues know better than to run when the ball is hit in front of you.
paging Matt T
Have you figured out the workaround for no frickin arrows at the top????
@Camp Tiger Claw: make a sandwich with the boobs. they're your two slices of bread...now just add meat.
...
wtf, this isn't fleshbot!
I have to say, and this isn't a knock at him at all. But Victor Martinez is REALLY good at pulling outside pitches back into the strike zone. Watching it on tv, he had me second guessing alot of the pitches.
Yes, to the asian girl on the left.
I want to preface this with the statement that Daisuke really sucked, and he would have lost that game (likely by the same margin) even without bad umpiring.
That was some super shitty umpiring overall. There were a number of pitches that WESTBROOK threw that were called balls that made me angry. It was an inconsistent zone, and even if it is large - the inconsistent zone is Daisuke's kyptonite. Having had Westbrook on my fantasy roster at one point during the year, I can say Westbrook can fall to a similar fate.
I knew Jake Westbrook was good when I traded for him in MLB 05 and proceeded to go 32-2. The Nats have never looked better
KSK had a post about who Casey Blake looks like, and forgive me if someone else has said it, but what about Old Man Marley from Home Alone? I just think of Casey shoveling salt onto the sidewalk every time he's up.
@DannyNoonan: And no to Larry David in the middle.
@DannyNoonan: Lucy Liu is MINE, dammit!
@Camp Tiger Claw: Depends on the type of sandwich.
Gotta love the dude on the right checking out the chick's ass while she's bending over.
What was with Youkilis and all that sweat last night? Dude looked like he killed an eight ball in the clubhouse.
Celine Dion's manger (to the right of Larry David) proves that the Brown's colors can be worn with anything.
@Locker Room Guise: I think Nathan Petrelli's super power is his ability to borrow Casey Blake's beard.
On a different subject, I think the umps need to stop granting the Red Shanahans' hitters time when they step out as the pitcher goes into his motion (they did it all night Saturday to Fausto, and quite a few times last night as well, notably right before Ortiz's double off the wall).
Sure, it's within the rules, but it's totally bush league.
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