Okay, Manny! All is forgiven!

[Phillycat]

How much do I love this guy??

Sox fans, I don't get it. I thought I was supposed to be beating my head against a wall by now, bemoaning my fate as a Red Sox fan. Where's the pain, the anguish? I WAS PROMISED ANGUISH, DAMMIT! :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

[StopTheMorans]

1. not commenting on any supposed Red Sox WS victory

until it happens :) that said, i'll be at the cask'n'flagon tonight; hope they can pull it off!

[Phillycat]

7. Cask'n'flagon? Is that a real place?

:)

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

2. LOL, haven't you received enough anguish yet?

Are you a new fan or something? Shit, I'm only 24, but I've seen enough to kill me!

[sniffa]

3. bah

you were bareLy oLd enogh to acknowLedge '86.

in fact, you probabLy don't even know that biLL buckner tried to kiLL himseLf afterwards.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

18. Actually, I did know it.

And I also remember my dad throwing shit at the TV when the ball went through his legs. That sucked.

[sniffa]

19. yeah, buckner ran out in front of the mets' team bus

but it went through his Legs.

ba dum bum.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

21. I was hoping you weren't going to finish that.

Anyway, no more Buckner mentions. ONLY POSITIVE THINGS TODAY!

[Phillycat]

23. Yes! BELIEVE!!

[Phillycat]

5. New fan.

Apparently I'm a bandwagoner! I was never much for baseball, but my BF is a huge Sox fan and I just like sports in general, so I started watching the games with him. And oh! my! god! The reason I didn't like baseball before was that it's not an instant gratification sport like football or basketball. There isn't constant movement, constant action. But once you start getting into the backstory, the players' histories, the rivalries, the superstitions, the DRAMA, it's FUCKING GREAT!!!! I LOVE THIS GAME!!!

And I fell hard in love with the Sox and I've been posting on here about how fun it is and how exciting it is, etc. And everyone kept saying the only way to be a true Red Sox fan is to have them break your heart over and over. So apparently I'm not going to become a Red Sox fan this season! Which is pretty okay with me. :)

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

20. My girlfriend is in your shoes.

She's been forced to watch the Sox for all of October, and she's enjoying it, but fortunately for her, she'll never be a "true" Sox fan. And I wouldn't have it any other way!

[Phillycat]

22. Maybe next year.

:)

[MallRat]

4. SHHHHHH!!!! We haven't won YET.

Heard our Boston sportsradio morning show guys, lamenting the fact that the World Series isn't suspenseful enough for them. They want the series to go 6 or 7 games.

I nearly drove off the road. I found myself screaming at the radio, "WHAT THE FUCK?!?! IS 86 YEARS NOT LONG ENOUGH FOR YOU ASSHOLES? HOW ABOUT LOSING THE NEXT FOUR GAMES IN HEARTBREAKING, SOUL-CRUSHING FASHION? WOULD YOU LIKE THAT?!?!"

Derek Lowe vs. Jason Marquis tonight. Close it out, guys. Hang a 5-spot on Marquis in the 1st inning. Don't leave me in suspense. I want a coronation, not a heart attack.

-MR

[Phillycat]

6. I love Lowe and I don't understand why he's not the go-to guy

more often. Is there some history between him and the manager? And why the hell did they take him out and put Pedro in in game 7 of the ALCS?

[sniffa]

8. yeah he's a choker

not as bad as the yankees, but he's been known to bLow up.

[Phillycat]

9. Huh.

Well, I haven't seen that in this post-season.

[sniffa]

10. i can teLL your a new fan then

you haven't seen his break downs. yes, he's been great this post season.

[Phillycat]

11. See post #5.

:)

[kick-ass-bob]

12. he has to have his defense behind him.

The first problem behind him, and Lowe can lose (and has lost) it. Remember how Schilling pumped up everyone in Game 2 after the errors?

Lowe easily could have given up about 5 runs in that same situation.

[Phillycat]

13. Good to know.

Yeah, Schilling definitely held that game together. Either of the first two games could have been a disaster, but the pitching was the saving grace.

[MallRat]

14. Lowe is... well, how can I put this delicately...

...not mentally tough under adverse conditions.

When his sinker is working, and he's getting lots of groundball outs, he's unstoppable. Give him a lead to protect, and he'll really put on a show.

But all it takes is a walk here, a 2-run homer there, and he starts to come unhinged. He had an abysmal September, which is why he was relegated to the bullpen in the ALDS against Anaheim.

As long as he's in a groove, he's great. But if he loads the bases and the Sox are trailing by 1, it's almost a guarantee that he'll give up a 3-run double off the wall.

Nevertheless, the guy has been outstanding in this post-season. I feel good about him taking the mound tonight.

-MR

[Phillycat]

15. Thanks for the info,

My very limited experience with him has been so positive, I wasn't aware of this tendency.

Who's relief tonight if he blows up?

[MallRat]

16. Probably some mixture of Arroyo, Leskanic, Embree, and Myers.

Arroyo is the longest of the relief guys, since he's really a starter. If Lowe gets knocked out early, Arroyo could go 4+ innings.

-MR

[Phillycat]

17. And he probably won't have anyone karate-chopping at his arm.

So he should be fine. :)