The Skies Are Clearing

The skies are starting to clear out as game time approaches. The shock of seeing Dice-K go in Game two while Schilling was pushed back to Game three, plus Wakefield being left off the roster for a third catcher (is Mirabelli needed if Wakefield isn't pitching?) is still being felt here in the Bay State, but the excitement is building.

The Red Sox are clearly the favorites going into the series, but not by as much as I had hoped for at the beginning of the season. I thought the pitching would be right where it's at (given that they have been relatively healthy, although I will admit Beckett has done even better than I thought he would. You should have bet me on him winning the Cy Young!) It's the hitting that has disappointed, but not as much as it seems to have bothered others. They still have one of the top offensive teams in the League.

If they win:

• If J.D. continues his .390 pace into the playoffs, all will be forgiven and forgotten.
• No one will remember how Manny took a quarter of the season off.
• Schilling will be re-signed for next year
• Papelbon will show up on Dancing with the Stars
• Dice-K will make a special appearance on the Tele-Tubbies
• Mirabelli will be given a police escort out of Massachusetts

Have the Patriots Played Any Good Teams, Yet?

At this point, it's hard to know how good this Patriots team really is. With four games down, people are already talking about going undefeated for the season and I find that ludicrous to contemplate at this point in the season. I was always irritated by it when I saw the talk about the Colts start up in the past few years, so it really isn't surprising that I'm annoyed when it comes up with the Patriots.

We just don't know what the real mettle of this team is. Oh, there's no doubt this is a good to great team, but until they face an opponent that's shown they are also a good to great team, it's hard to judge where they are at.

I know the Chargers were supposed to be good, but it turns out they really aren't.

I know the Bengals are supposed to have a good offense, but a weak defense has kept them down. The Patriots obviously dominated them, which is a good indicator that they are in the 'haves' column, while the Bengals are not.

The Jets are nowhere, and so are the Bills. The Pats finished those games up almost as soon as they started.

The other limitation is we haven't really seen how they're going to be affected by injuries. I know Seymour and Harrison have been out, but that's nothing compared to how this team will look in Week 16 and 17. We know this, and yet we still try to predict a perfect season.

Don't misunderstand me, the Pats are obviously good to great (I lean towards great, but I tend to be biased). It's obvious at this point they will wrap up the division quickly. I'd even go so far as to say they are very likely to get home field advantage. But undefeated? Ask me again after the face the Cowboys or even better after the Colts game. It will still be early in the season, but at least we'll know they faced off against some other good to great teams.

As the Sox Season Winds Down

And we get ready for the playoffs, I can't help but wonder about all the stress and thought people put into the Yankees situation. At the beginning of the season, the Red Sox and Yankees were predicted to be together right until the end. And look, that's exactly what's happened.

Maybe it was just because the Red Sox got off to such a great start, but all the talk about how the Yankees wouldn't even make the playoffs went nowhere.

All the talk about how the Red Sox would continue to dominate throughout the entire season went nowhere.

When the Yankees came back and did so well during the second half of the season, all the talk started up on how the Red Sox and Yankees positions had completely turned completely around. Now it was the Red Sox who were going to fall out of contention and the Yankees who would take over first place.

And all that talk and angst and pressure went nowhere.

At the end of the season, both teams will be in the playoffs. Both teams still have what we expected them to have (better pitching for the Sox, better hitting for the Yankees).

And, I think, unlike most fans, I would love to face off with the Yankees in the second round. It always makes it more interesting. And for those who would rather face off with one team or another, I say you have to be the best team to win. If you're not, then what's the point?

So stop worrying so much and enjoy what's about to happen.

Can It Get Any Better?

Last night's game saw:

• the return of Manny
• Manny got a hit
• J.D. Drew continued to do better
• Schilling pitched great (only 80 some odd pitches, too)
  
• Red Sox won
• Yankees lost (Magic Number is 3)
• Yankees have not clinched a spot, yet (I expect them to)
• Clemens is hurt

Why it's good to be a Boston fan overall right now:

• 38 is the magic number for the pats
• only 4 punts so far, for the season!
• Red Sox are in the playoffs
• Celtics are favored to win again
• Beckett is favored to win the Cy Young

Bruins? Never heard of them?

One Game Difference

To me, it's amazing what a difference one game makes. Yesterday, there was still panic in the air and Yankees fans were calling in left and right to the radio shows talking about how well the Bombers were playing and how the Sox weren't.

One day later and the talk is all about Vick and nothing about the Sox.

The difference? One game. The Sox went from 4 games up to 5 games up and all of a sudden, everything has calmed down.

I don't understand it. The Yankees were on a 3 wins for every one loss and everyone knows the Sox were sitting at .500 ball for two months. But even so, the Red Sox were still 4 games up.

I mean, think about that. The Red Sox were playing mediocre and the Yankees were playing phenomenal ball (record-wise) and the Sox were still four games up and had the best record in baseball.

What more do you want from your team?