Jon Lester almost showed that lightening strikes twice. He threw five innings of no-hit ball against the Cleveland Indians. Of course, we all knew he wasn’t going to get a no-hitter, this close to the playoffs, Tito wasn’t going to let him get above 90 pitches. Still, five innings of no-hit baseball gives your team a very good chance to win.

I love this time of year for baseball. Although I do admit, I thought this series against the Yankees would mean more. Oh well.

Also, totally off topic, and if you love the Office keep reading. (Note if you haven’t seen season 5’s premier, STOP! Contains SPOILERS!)

After dropping the first game against the Indians, the Red Sox rebounded to win two close ones against the Tribe.

First after rocking Cliff Lee’s world in the 4th and 5th for 5 runs (note, on any other pitcher this would not be “rocking” but for Lee…oh yeah). Youk and Pedroia came up big with 2 RBIs each, and Bay drove in the game-winning run.Youk hit a 2-run homer in the fourth and Pedey came through with a 2-run double in the fifth. After Youk was intentionally walked in the 5th, Bay made the Indians pay with a 2-out RBI single.

After Paps notched the save, the Sox celebrated. ESPN First Take wondered if the celebration was over the top. Uh, hello, I think the Indians would kill to be where we are. So would 30 other teams, it would do the accomplishment a disservice not to celebrate. Just because they are defending champs doesn’t mean they should treat this whole thing as ho-hum. I’m sure the Yankees would love to be in this position right now (PS, enjoy October golfing, A-Rod, I hear its fantastic!) Not only is this a huge accomplishment, because very few teams have managed to return to the post-season the next year after winning the World Series but also because of how absolutely banged up the Sox have been this year.
So congratulations Red Sox, you are going to the Post-Season! (And the Yankees aren’t for the first time in 13 years! Yay!)

Now on to last night’s game. They were clearly trying to get everyone ready for the post season, having clinched and no longer worrying about the Wild Card race. Obviously, we still want to win the East and avoid the Angels in the first round, but if we can do it by resting the big guys and getting some guys a tune-up. JD Drew was back in the line-up tonight for a three-inning tune up, then both Van Every and Bailey got some playing time (with Bailey ripping a triple in his first at-bat of the night and scoring the game-winning run of Kotsay’s double). In both nights, the bull pen was put to work, but they seem to be shutting it down and getting it done, Manny D even got the save instead of Paps.

Now, the only thing left to do is have the Rays lose the next four and the Sox win the next four. Unfortunately for us, that means one more game against the Indians and three against the Yankees in a series that, surprisingly, will not matter. Although I’m sure there will be a bit of taunting about the Red Sox win ending the Yankees 13 year post-season streak.

Next game is tonight, 7:05 Sowers vs. Lester. Go Sox!

Add on: Here’s another great video from Cinco Ocho (otherwise known as Papelbon) Check out this video and many others here

http://www.blogger.com/img/videoplayer.swf?videoUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fv21.nonxt7.googlevideo.com%2Fvideoplayback%3Fid%3Dc9fb8a87bcbc99a8%26itag%3D5%26app%3Dblogger%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1278627607%26sparams%3Did%252Citag%252Cip%252Cipbits%252Cexpire%26signature%3D244DB2C5984D0CB7514B5863EEBB7DC6DFC05A63.6EF1D8CC6C399792E70CAD2392E2E794CC84DC39%26key%3Dck1&thumbnailUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.com%2FThumbnailServer2%3Fapp%3Dblogger%26contentid%3Dc9fb8a87bcbc99a8%26offsetms%3D5000%26itag%3Dw320%26sigh%3D0eyNyrMyJiTA_-z1JAg-H1mQ2rY&messagesUrl=video.google.com%2FFlashUiStrings.xlb%3Fframe%3Dflashstrings%26hl%3Den&nogvlm=1
(video courtesy of Comcast SportsNet)

James Madison University, after rallying to beat #1 ranked App State on Saturday has taken the spot on top of the coaches poll. Go Dukes!

Farewell Yankee Stadium, it’s been fun
Some games we lost, some games we won
You’ve stood strong for many, many years
Your closing brings me to tears
Not because I root for the Yanks, believe me
But because of all the things you’ve stood to see

Pedro Martinez notching 17 Ks
Most ever against the Yanks in a single day
Curt’s damaged ankle and the sock that it stained
Damon’s grand slam as the pennant they claimed
Papi’s homers gave us hope that soon,
We would have a reason to forget Aaron **** Boone
It was the place that Teddy Ballgame got his first start
And where Lou Gehrig touched all our hearts
It was here a 1-hitter and a catch by Yastrzemski
Kicked off the season of the Impossible Dream

You’ve witnessed history, both the good and the bad
Some times you were happy, sometimes you were sad
And even a Sox fan has to admit
The greats who played here are hard to forget
Names like Mantel, DiMaggio, Yogi and Maris
Gave us all memories that we could cherish

Records have been set, many have been broken
Teams have caught fire, others were caught choking
And when the Sox come to play when you are gone,
They’ll fondly remember you, but then play on

So from a Red Sox fan to the great stadium,
So long, farewell, and thanks for the fun

Okay. So all we needed was a Yankees loss after Dice, Oki and Paps combined to shut out the Jays. But it was the last game to ever be played at Yankee stadium, did you really think they were going to lose?

Nope.

Lets honor the House That Ruth Built after the Sox Traded Him For Goodness-Knows-Why with the top 5 Red Sox moments at Yankee Stadium (in no particular order)

1. 10/19/2004 ALCS Game 6: The Bloody Sock. Schill pitches great, giving up only 1 run in 7 innings.

2. 10/17/2004 ALCS Game 4: Papi’s 2-run shot in the 12th to win the game and keep the Sox alive.

3. 10/20/2004 ALCS Game 7: Sox cruise by the Yanks 10-3 and go on to win their first World Series in 86 years.

4. 4/14/1967 Rookie Billy Rohr kicks off his Major League career and the “Impossible Dream” season by coming within one out of a no-hitter. A soft grounder blew the no-hitter, but the Sox still got the shut-out.

5. 7/16/2008 All-Star Game. J.D. Drew became MVP of the game going 2-4 and hitting the game-tying home run in the 7th. The game went 15 innings, and featured 8 Red Sox players and the skipper, Terry Francona. A long game, but a great send off for the stadium. 🙂

That’s all I got. I’m going to bed. Bring on the Indians.

We lost to Miami. Miami.
The winning streak is over and I don’t even want to think about the Patriots until I am no longer angry. Good thing the Sox won, or I’d be really evil.