Game 15: Hex and Counter Hex

Final Score: Boston Red Sox 7, New York Yankees 6

I feel some deja vu coming on...something about...oh, yes: I can't believe we won this game. You know, just like yesterday. Schilling pitching like one of the many foul things I called him when he served up tasty white plate specials to A-Rod; J. C. Romero, Mr. Soft Underbelly of the Bullpen, pushing things further out of reach in the eighth and everything coming down to the placement abilities of The Machine...I would be lying if I said I hadn't written this game off as an unfortunate loss by the fifth inning. However, the ghost of Red Auerbach, conjured up by tonight's opening ceremonies, seems to have had the same psychic power over the field as filling Fenway with Red Sox legends and thus a win, no matter how fraught the contest.

Red's influence may have spread into other areas: along with the strange powers at work keeping Rivera from locating a pitch in the eighth, two events occurred that may mean new directions for two players:

1. In his last at-bat, against the afore-vilified Romero, Alex Rodriguez hit a double. Yes, he had already hit home runs in his second and third at-bats and scored on a single to right on the next pitch, thereby carrying his team to six runs in the non-A-Rodian fashion we've become accustomed to in the past few weeks - the fashion that had Michael Kaye and John Flaherty panting at his every move like cats in baseball heat - but it was a double and not a home run, despite its poor placement in his wheelhouse. If Rodriguez has finally descended from his hitter's cloud nine and is back amongst the mortal superstars tomorrow, we'll know why: the gods have him hexed.
   
   
2. The Captain went three for four, hit a two out home run off Pettitte to put the Sox back into the game in the fourth and started the scoring drive against Rivera with a single; a scoring drive that saw a triple from the hitless Coco Crisp and (again) the game winning RBI by Alex Cora. Tek hasn't had anything close to a breakout game before tonight; tonight marks the game where he turns around a year of bad numbers and questioning commentators and brings back, via counter hex, that sweet hitting groove.
   

It’s a CURSE I tell you!

I hoped everyone enjoyed the outing by our Japanese import this afternoon, because apparently that’s the last time we will see him without injury. Grab your lucky rabbit foot and juju token or Dice-K is going to get dismembered in some HORRIBLE thresher accident because of some curse that affects almost all flavor-of-the-month athletes.

No he’s not on the cover of Madden 2008. But close.

D-Mat is the cover-boy for this week's issue of Sports Illustrated. Run for the hills! Abandon all hope! Remember Nomar? Looking JACKED on the cover of SI… then boom! His wrist snaps like kindling. It must have been that cover shot. So for Matsuzaka it MUST be inevitable. For the sake of expedience, someone go and schedule the Tommy John surgery ahead of time.