World Series Game Two just ended minutes ago with the Rockies falling short of getting the split at Fenway they so badly wanted. This game was a polar opposite of last night's: low-scoring and tense. A couple of observations from a guy who hasn't seen very much of the Colorado Rockies.
1) Matt Holliday must be very conflicted right now.
He had four of the five hits the Rox were able to muster, but getting picked off first base in the eighth inning was a true rally-killer for Colorado and took what little wind they had left completely out of their sails. After nearly drilling Jonathan Papelbon with a line drive for his fourth hit of the game (I'm still not convinced that ball didn't go right through Papelbon), he wandered a bit too far off the bag and stumbled and bumbled his way back, too late, for the third out of the inning when the Sox closer threw over.
Where on earth did he think he was going? With eleven steals on the season, and representing the tying run with Todd Helton at the plate, he wasn't likely to be running and if he was, blame Clint Hurdle for a serious managing blunder. Bad move on someone's part to end an inning like that.
2) With Garret Atkins and Troy Tulowitzki, the left side of the Colorado infield should be set for a long time.
Atkins seems as steady as they come at third base and has shown great range and soft hands thus far in the series, and Tulowitzki possesses a cannon for an arm. Very impressive, especially for two such young players.
3) The way Brian Fuentes short-arms the ball up to the plate, it wouldn't surprise me if he had better success against righthanded batters than lefties.
It seems to me lefthanded hitters should be able to get a good look at the ball, as he pulls it out away from his body toward right field in his delivery. For righties, on the other hand, it must be hard to pick up the ball as he seems to use his body to block righthanded batters from seeing it until it is leaving his hand. My highly unscientific theory got a boost when J.D. Drew, who has a tendency to struggle aginst lefthanded pitching, lined a solid single to right in the eighth off Fuentes.
4) I like how Yorvit Torrealba handles the Colorado pitching staff.
It was obvious young Ubaldo Jimenez was high-strung and jumpy during his start at Fenway. He looked like a guy who was maybe not ready to face the intensity of a road start in the World Series. I would have thought about starting Josh Fogg in Game Two and saving Jimenez for Denver if I was in Clint Hurdle's shoes, but in any event, you could see Torrealba numerous times going to the mound to calm the young pitcher down and keep him focused, as well as gesturing from behind the plate with his hands, telling Jimenez to slow down and take it easy. With five walks on the night, Jimenez lived on the edge virtually his entire time on the mound, and it's a credit to Torrealba as well as Jimenez that he got the results he did.
5) Where is that field-level camera located?
You know the camera that looks black and white and shows the batter through what looks like a fish-eye lens? It looks like it's placed about twenty feet down the third base line. Is it imbedded in third base? Does anybody know? Does anybody besides me care?
Hey everyone, I know it must seem like I've dropped off the face of the earth, but it's nothing like that.
I've been busy writing - two full-length novels so far, plus over a dozen short stories - and working hard to try to get an agent. If you are curious and have a few minutes, check out my website, www.allanleve rone.com.
If you're a literary agent or if you know one, by all means contact me! In the meantime, I'll be here when I can - love this forum - and as always, thank you for checking out my blog, especially considering how many great ones you could be reading instead....
