Tag: World Series

Five Thoughts From the Red Sox Five-Game Gentleman’s Sweep of the Dodgers

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1. It’s better to be lucky than good, but Alex Cora was both in October and during the World Series. From starting Nathan Eovaldi in Game 3 of the ALDS in Yankee Stadium, to sticking with David Price in the ALCS and pinch hitting Eduardo Nunez in Game 1 of the World Series, Cora could do no wrong. There was, however, a brief break to Cora’s heater when the World Series shifted to LA.

The first 24 innings in LA weren’t great for Cora. There was no way that Cora could have predicted that Game 3 would go 18 innings, but it felt like he seriously mismanaged the pitching staff that night. The team went to sleep without naming a starter for Game 4 and it felt like the use of the “rover” had finally caught up with them.

Eduardo Rodriguez pitched well in Game 4, but it seemed that Cora got greedy and left him too long. The Red Sox found themselves down 4-0, and it looked like the series was going to have to go back to Boston. Then Cora and the Red Sox caught some breaks. Dave Roberts made some questionable pitching moves of his own, Mitch Moreland got the offense going, Steve Pearce tied up Game 4 and the rest is history.

2. Steve Pearce is the modern day Bernie Carbo. If Game 3 of the 2018 World Series evoked memories of Game 6 in 1986, Game 4 evoked memories Game 6 in 1975. I watched the Red Sox Home Run Heroes video enough times as a kid to belt out Joe Garagiola’s call of Carbo’s home run as soon as Pearce hit his.

3. Nathan Eovaldi was Boston’s most reliable pitcher all month. In his seventh big-league season, he was spectacular in his first postseason. It’s a shame he had to take the loss in Game 3 of the World Series. Had the Red Sox found a way to win that game, a serious case could have been made for Eovaldi to be the series MVP. Still, Eovaldi will get his ring and a hopefully a nine-figure deal this winter. The Red Sox don’t hoist the commissioner’s trophy without him this month.

4. It was very interesting to see Chris Sale close out Game 5 instead of closer Craig Kimbrel. It’s entirely possible that Kimbrel was simply out of gas, having thrown 56 pitches over the last two nights. However, it could also be possible that Cora had seen enough of the high-wire act.

Kimbrel recorded six postseason saves and finished eight of Boston’s 11 postseason victories. He didn’t blow a save or lose a game but he looked very shaky at times, allowing at least a run in his first four postseason appearances. After that, he did settle down to retire 13 of the next 16 batters he faced without allowing a run. But with a five-run lead in Game 4 of the World Series, he gave up a two-run bomb before shutting the door on the Dodgers.

The only Red Sox victories Kimbrel didn’t finish were non-save situations, but he still finished out two World Series games that weren’t save situations. Of course Cora could have just been trying to slam the door in Game 5, but it’s noteworthy that he didn’t think his closer was the man for that job. I don’t think we’ll seeing Kimbrel in a Red Sox uniform next season.

5. The 2018 Boston Red Sox team is the best Red Sox team of all time and the 2018 World Series was the most exciting World Series they’ve played this century.

The 2004 World Series was akin to the 1980 US Olympic hockey team beating Finland in the gold medal game. They did not trail for a single inning that entire series and there was not much drama. The 2007 team was a well-oiled machine, but it was impossible to top the ride from 2004. The 2013 World Series went six games and that team meant a ton to the city, but there weren’t too many guys on that team that stuck around in Boston for much longer.

The 2018 team was loaded with homegrown talent and guys that should be in Boston for years to come. The 2007 team came the closest to repeating, getting to Game 7 of the 2008 ALCS, but the 2018 team has the best chance of repeating of any Red Sox champion this century.

The Red Sox Are Boom Roasting Everyone on Twitter Who Doubted Them

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**checks my Twitter mentions with one eye closed**

I am a huge proponent of being petty. Holding a grudge is what makes winning all that sweeter, rubbing it in the faces of Yankees fans and haters alike. So I can respect this from the Red Sox. Hall of Fame petty move by the team here, just smoking fools on Twitter who doubted the team after one game.

And I have to admit, I was certainly one of those guys.

Welp, thats why they play for seven months. From Opening Day disaster to World Series Champions!

These Are the Best Red Sox World Series Videos (So Far)

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These videos will be rolling in for awhile, and thats before we even get to Wednesday’s Duckboats parade, but as of right now these are the best Red Sox World Series videos (so far).

Is Dave Dombrowski the Smartest Man Alive or Did He Kinda Sorta Get Lucky?

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This will be one of the most fiercely debated questions when we look back at the 2018 World Series. Is Dave Dombrowski the smartest man alive for the way he built this team or is he just lucky?

Before the playoffs started everyone, myself included, ripped Dombrowski for not making the “big name” move and getting an arm for the bullpen at the trade deadline. And it was a completely justifiable question as this team’s relievers were struggling bad down the stretch. The only guy that you could trust was essentially Craig Kimbrel, who ironically enough you could not trust in the playoffs. Then the playoffs come and they turned into the ’98 Yankees. Some real Freaky Friday shit.

Ryan Brasier, formerly of the Japanese League, became a dominant 7th/8th inning guy out of absolutely nowhere. Joe Kelly went from blowing the first game of the year to excellent to benches clearing brawl spark plug back to awful during the season and almost didn’t even make the postseason roster. Kelly morphed into a triple digit hurling shutdown setup man. And Nathan Eovaldi, who was coming off his SECOND Tommy John Surgery and who the Sox acquired for the immortal Jalen Beeks(!), became “The Rover.” The ultimate weapon out of the bullpen. I honestly don’t know if the Sox win the Series without Eovaldi. For my money (literally) he should have been World Series MVP, which he probably would have won if the Sox took the 18 inning affair in Game 3.

Now my main point is whether we’ll look back at this championship and praise Dombrowski for being a genius with moves like adding Eovaldi and World Series MVP Steve Pearce. Incredible moves. Or will we look back and say wow I can’t believe that actually worked out.

I can’t help but imagine Dealer Dave as Happy Gilmore after this championship run though. Looootta luck involved.

Dave Dombrowksi:

Plus I would argue most, if not all, of the credit should go to Alex Cora. The way he managed that bullpen was absolutely flawless, if not dangerous. I heard Cora use the phrase “All in, all the time” and it just perfectly captures what this team was doing. From the very first game in the ALDS, Cora was bringing out starters rather than trust it to a traditional bullpen guy. He had David Price starting, relieving, or warming up in just about every single World Series game, then brought in their ace in Chris Sale to close it out. You just don’t see that.

So yes ultimately Dombrowski’s moves paid off in the end, but without Alex Cora and all the shrewd managerial moves he made, I think this team falters much earlier on and Dombrowski is on the hottest of hot seats.

PS – Jon Wallach made a great point on Toucher and Rich this morning. It looks like Cora may have established the new norm for how to manage a bullpen in the playoffs. You never see this habitual usage of starters in the playoffs outside of Game 7 scenarios. Now, as Wallach said, you could very easily wreck your staff by the sheer amount of usage, but hey it worked.

The Top 5 Most Important People to This Red Sox World Series Win

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Some things really do feel pre-ordained. This championship is certainly among them. As soon as we crossed off the Yankees and, apart from an 18 inning long intermission, made fairly easy work of Houston, I just didn’t see a way we lost this. So here is my list of the 5 most important people to this championship, the five we owe it to the most.

5.) Nathan Eovaldi

I remember the first time we saw this guy get up in the pen in the fall and said aloud, “Our answer is Nathan Eovaldi, we are completely fucked.” He was a rolling stone of a pitcher who gave us a few good starts down the stretch but should  not have been anywhere near a bump come the playoffs. Well, all that rolling stone did was give us every drop of blood, sweat, and tears he could , eating inning after inning to keep the rest of our staff (somewhat) in tact.

4.) Jackie Bradley Jr.

Bradley has sort of been accepted for what he is. He covers an entire outfield on his own, has a rocket of an arm, but at times might as well head to the plate without a bat. That changed this post-season. Although he was played less in the LA series, JBJ had a number of key hits, including the game tying HR in the 18-inning  loss that will now be forgotten. We owe a huge part of this banner to the Sentinel in Center.


3.) David Price

David Price is a whiny, maddening, inconsistent weirdo. He also just won us the World Series. He got hot when he needed to get hot and because the ruthless, flame-spitting starter, the descendant of Schilling and Beckett, that we needed him to become. And not a moment too soon. Cheers, David.


2.) Steve Pearce

Think I forgot about him? Stevie Longball just refused to let his opportunity at a ring slip away, channeling all the magic his 35 year old body could and slugging his way to  eternal October glory.


1.) Everyone

This is sort of a cop out but needs to be said. The truth us the Red Sox are raising their 4th banner in 15 years because of a classic Boston sports effort. Everyone did their part, everyone had their moment. From Barnes to Nunez, from Kimbrel to Devers, from Kelly to, yes, Ian fucking Kinsler. They all came together when it mattered most.

 

The 300s Red Sox vs Dodgers World Series Preview

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It’s been a grueling five year drought, but the Red Sox are finally back in the World Series and they’re taking on the Brooklyn LA Dodgers. The last time the Red Sox won the World Series was 2013 in one of the most unlikely championship runs I’ve ever seen. With the rallying cry of Boston Strong as their mantra, a group of journeymen having career years led the way. This year was just a little bit different as the Sox set a franchise record with 108 wins in the regular season and won the division running away. Now they’re just four wins away from their 4th championship in the past 15 years.

You can also listen to Big Z and I preview the World Series on The 300s Podcast here.

Game Times:

  • Game 1 (at BOS): Tuesday, Oct. 23 at 8:09 p.m. ET on Fox
  • Game 2 (at BOS): Wednesday, Oct. 24 at 8:09 p.m. ET on Fox
  • Game 3 (at LAD): Friday, Oct. 26 at 8:09 p.m. ET on Fox
  • Game 4 (at LAD): Saturday, Oct. 27 at 8:09 p.m. ET on Fox
  • *Game 5 (at LAD): Sunday, Oct. 28 at 8:15 p.m. ET on Fox
  • *Game 6 (at BOS): Tuesday, Oct. 30 at 8:09 p.m. ET on Fox
  • *Game 7 (at BOS): Wednesday, Oct. 31 at 8:09 p.m. ET on Fox

*If necessary

Betting Lines:

  • Opening odds from the Westgate Las Vegas Superbook
    • Red Sox at -135 and the Dodgers at +115.
  • Gambling.com World Series MVP prop bets
    • Mookie Betts +550
    • Chris Sale +600
    • JD Martinez +650

Top Storylines:

ESPN noted in its preview that if the Red Sox win the World Series it may be one of the most impressive runs of all time. After winning 108 games to set a franchise record, they went through TWO other 100 win teams to reach the World Series.

Only five teams since 1961 have won at least 108 games and won the World Series:

1998 New York Yankees: 114-48
1961 New York Yankees: 109-53
1970 Baltimore Orioles: 108-54
1975 Cincinnati Reds: 108-54
1986 New York Mets: 108-54

The Red Sox, arguably, will have had the toughest trek through the postseason of any of these teams. Only the ’98 Yankees had to go through three rounds, but the Red Sox had to knock off the 100-win Yankees and 103-win Astros just to reach the World Series — and did so by winning seven of nine games.

Mookie at Second Base?

He’s actually played there more than I thought in his career with 15 games played at 2B, but only about half of one game since 2014. So besides the almost non-existant experience at the major league level, this is moronic for one reason; he is an ELITE outfielder. As Big Z said on The 300s Podcast, you literally hit the instant replay jackpot and stole an out with this play in Houston.

Mookie is such a great outfielder that Cowboy Joe West ruled, from 50 yards away, that he was definitively going to make one of the greatest catches in postseason history were it not for fan interference. Not to mention his canon of an arm that led to him hosing down Jose Altuve at second base, his other leaping catch to rob a HR etc. etc. Yea, lets not get cute boys.

Who Plays and Who Sits in Los Angeles?

With the NL stripping us of the DH, who are you sitting? JD Martinez and Mookie obviously aren’t sitting so are you benching the .185 hitter in Jackie Bradley Jr. and putting Andrew Benintendi in center or are you riding JBJ’s hot streak? I mean when that guy gets hot he gets HOT, he’ll hit .150 for 4 months then hit .500 for a month straight so maybe he’s in the middle of one of those heaters? Lets play it by ear and see how JBJ and Benintendi play at Fenway in Games 1 and 2, but I’m leaning towards benching Bradley in LA and using him as a defensive replacement late in games. 

Chris Sale’s Health

He already was dealing with the shoulder issue and now he was out with this bizarre stomach issue. The beat guys were saying that he was walking around with a bottle of pedialyte and that he even lost weight somehow. I don’t know how you can’t be concerned. We saw in his first start off the DL against the Orioles were he struck out 13 guys…before relapsing and only throwing about 15 innings the rest of the season, and then again in his first postseason start where he started off lights out against the Yankees before faltering. I think with the extended time off Chris Sale will look pretty good in Game 1, but to expect much more than that afterwards is asking a lot considering all the ailments he’s been dealing with. 

Has David Price Actually Exorcised His Playoff Demons?

I hope so. I hope whatever mechanical adjustment he figured out before his Game 5 start gives him the confidence and the momentum he needs to repeat the success of his last start. However, he is currently sporting a 5.11 ERA this postseason, which is actually even worse than his career 5.04 ERA in the postseason. Soo I think its a shaky bridge that I am cautiously optimistic about, but far from confident.

YUCK Stickers are now available just in case.

Manny Machado, Still a Dirtbag

Matt Barnes still wants Machado dead for possibly ending Dustin Pedroia’s career last year with a dirty slide.

“You’re talking about a play in which Pedey still hasn’t played since then, really,” Barnes said per The Eagle-Tribune. “When you take out a captain, a leader of a team, that’s not going to sit well with anybody. It kind of is what it is. You move on. I don’t see anything happening, I really don’t, but it doesn’t mean that we’ve forgotten about it.”

Big Z and I wondered aloud if the Sox get up big in a clinching game, do they send out Joe Kelly to just bean Machado in the ass to take care of some family business? Whether Pedroia wants it or not, justice will be served (again).

Yasiel Puig is GOOD for Baseball

In a sport full of late starts, long games, and older fans, Yasiel Puig is exactly what baseball needs. He is the anti-Mike Trout. He is fun as all hell to watch. While Peter Gammons might not exactly enjoy Puig rounding the bases after a HR telling everyone to suck it like he’s a member of DX, I sure as shit do.

Will We See Regular Season Kershaw or Postseason Kershaw?

Kershaw is essentially the west coast version of David Price. While he’s been pretty good in the playoffs this year with a 2-1 record and a 2.37 ERA , overall for his career he is 9-8 with 4.09 ERA in 141 postseason IP. His career postseason stats are about a full seasons worth with 28 starts, which is a good sample size. While a 4.09 ERA is far from disastrous, it’s definitely not the quote unquote best pitcher of our generation. Kershaw seems to be on a roll this year, but I would not be surprised if a guy from Texas who’s played his entire career in LA suddenly pitching in 30 degree weather in Fenway in October rattles him.

Lets All Just Appreciate Justin Turner

As a fellow redhead with a Wildling-esque beard, I am a huge Justin Turner guy. Really putting redheads on the map the past couple of years.

MVP

I’m going with Nathan Eovaldi because he has been an absolute saving grace for this Red Sox team and he is a guy that will pitch Game 3 and a potential Game 7, not to mention any random relief appearances Cora utilizes him for. I know only 3 pitchers have won the World Series MVP in the past 15 years, but if you win Game 3 and Game 7 it would be hard to not give that guy the award. It also doesn’t hurt that Gambling.com has Eovaldi at +2200 to win series MVP!

Unsung Hero

I’m going with Rafael Devers. Cora played the matchups with Devers in the ALCS, which had Devers on the bench to start the series before giving way to the young gun in Game 5 and he took Verlander deep. So I know Cora has been leaning on the analytics but Devers has looked great in his limited playing time. Granted he only has 20 AB’s, Devers is actually second on the team in Batting Avg at .350 so I think he’s a pretty good bet to make an impact in this series.

 

Official Prediction

I’m picking the Red Sox in 7 games. They just have the IT factor this year, they have the juice, whatever you want to call it. The bullpen is cobbled together with bubble gum and duct tape, they have a guy in Ryan Brasier who was pitching in JAPAN last year holding it down as the setup man. Whatever they’re doing, it’s working AND apparently Eric Gagne has fixed Craig Kimbrel. Not to mention every decision Alex Cora makes just seems to be the right one. So if the Red Sox can get decent starts from their rotation then I think the offense carries this team the rest of the way. 

Sox in 7.

The 300s Podcast: Red Sox vs Dodgers World Series Mega Preview

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It’s a very special episode of The 300s Podcast because after FIVE looong years the Boston Red Sox are back in the World Series.

-With 108 wins, and beating two other 100+ win teams along the way, this would be one of the most impressive World Series runs in MLB history.

-Mookie Betts at second base?

-Do Chris Sale’s on again, off again health concerns worry you?

-Has David Price exorcised his playoff demons?

-Manny Machado, still a dirtbag

-Puig, Kershaw and the rest of the LA Dodgers

-MVP Picks

-Red and Big Z make their official predictions

Did Eric Gagne Save the Red Sox Season?

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WEEI – Eleven years after leaving town, Gagne finally got his save for the Sox. It was locked up while sitting in the living room of his Arizona home, but it was a save nonetheless. A big one.  The story started just about 18 years ago when the kid from Montreal befriended an infielder who came from Puerto Rico. Gagne was a relief pitcher. Alex Cora was a utility player. Both had plenty of time on their hands while living life as Dodgers. They started a hobby: Identifying pitchers who were tipping their pitches…

The pitcher he witnessed Tuesday night, Craig Kimbrel, wasn’t one of the more difficult ones. For Gagne, it was pretty clear what was going on. As far as the former pitcher was concerned, the Red Sox closer’s high-wire act against the Astros in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series was no accident.

It was enough evidence that Gagne felt obligated to reach out to his old friend, and the new manager of the Red Sox…“Nowadays you don’t even need to talk to people, it’s perfect,” he said. “I just sent him a message saying, ‘Hey Craig, I’m not sure if you care about these things but I’m friends with Alex and I’ve been seeing this or that. I think you should sit down to look at it. It’s an easy fix. It’s not that difficult. You might change your set-up, but that’s not that big of a deal.’ It was a pretty easy fix once he knew what he was doing.”

What a wild story from an unlikely source. Remember our old friend Eric Gagne? The guy who at one point in time was the most dominant closer in all of baseball. The guy who once converted 84 save opportunities straight. The guy who Theo Epstein and the Boston Red Sox traded for as a “luxury, not a necessity” on a stacked 2007 team. As we all know, Gagne was absolutely abysmal for the Sox, finishing with a 6.75 ERA in 20 games. He fell so far that the Sox big trade deadline acquisition only pitched 4.1 innings in the 07 playoffs. Well, THAT guy might have just saved the 2018 Red Sox season.

Gagne spoke with Rob Bradford and told him how, from his couch, he was able to pick up that Craig Kimbrel was apparently tipping his pitches. Does that explain Kimbrel’s complete inability to find the plate in the playoffs thus far? No, but it does explain how basically everyone he’s faced has had more plate discipline than a monk and was pretty much ready for whatever he did get over the plate.

This is why you never burn any bridges. Gagne and Cora were two guys that came up together in the Dodgers minor league system and bonded over watching film and figuring out who was tipping pitches. Pretty obscure hobby for a super utility player and a 30th Round Draft pick turned stud closer. Moral of the story, ya just never know who’s going to come out of left field and throw you a bone. If Gagne doesn’t reach out to his old friend with some advice on why his all-star closer is suddenly a disaster on the mound, then maybe they don’t fix anything and we’re looking at another disappointing Red Sox postseason performance.

Kudos to Cora for accepting and welcoming the constructive criticism from an old teammate. How many managers would have just scoffed at a player that is “out of baseball” offering up criticism of his All-Star closer while watching at home on TV?

Was Gagne a bum for the Sox? Absolutely. But any time a guy with 187 career saves wants to throw out some advice for a struggling Boston bullpen then I am all ears. If Kimbrel is back to his 1-2-3 ways in the 9th inning then I think we all owe Gagne a beer, preferably one brewed by his 2007 Red Sox teammate Kevin Youkilis.

2018 World Series vs 2013, An Excerpt from “Washed: Memoirs of a Millennial”

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When the Red Sox last made the World Series in 2013, Papa Giorgio and I were liquored up every night and hungover every morning. Our third roommate, god bless his heart, was a bartender right outside of Fenway so we would show up, throw down a $20 and just drink until the cows came home.

Now? I’m on the doorstep of 30 and guzzling coffees at night just to stay awake for the game. And I’m pretty jazzed to head up north for a little wine tasting at a vineyard tomorrow afternoon  I don’t know how and I don’t know when, but I have become Will Ferrell in Old School.

#WellActuallyPrettyNiceLittleSaturday