Josh Q. Public:Brothers front. They say the Tribe can’t flow. But we’ve been known to do the impossible like Broadway Joe, so… -Tribe Called Quest
Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! You know what the man says. The man says pitching wins championships. The man says you’re only as good as good as your next day’s starter. The man says good pitching will beat good hitting any time. The man says we need a pitcher not a belly itcher. The man says stuff like that there. If the man is right, these Indians have a helleva ballclub. One helleva ballclub. Cleveland starting pitchers have not allowed a run in 43.1 innings. How about that? How about this? It’s the longest scoreless streak by Cleveland starters since 1948. Since Bob Lemon. Since Gene Bearden. Since Sam Zoldak. Since Satchel Paige. Since all those guys threw complete-game shutouts during a 47-inning scoreless streak. Not for nothing, I miss the complete game. Not for nothing else, in 1980, Oakland Athletics pitcher Rick Langford threw 22 consecutive complete games. We’ll ver see that again. Never! The Indians steak is the longest scoreless streak by anyone since the 1974 Orioles. Since Jim Palmer. Since Mike Cuellar. Since Dave McNally. Since Ross Grimsley. Since those guy threw 54 scoreless innings. CC Sabathia won last year’s Cy. CC Sabathia got off to a rough start this year. A tough start this year. A billy goat gruff start this year. But like Jack Torrence, he’s baaaack! Like Jack Torrence, he’s again a masterpiece of modern horror. Last night, Sabathia threw a shutout for the Tribe. Last night Sabathia was living on the corners. Last night Sabathia was virtually unhittable. He’s not the only one that’s been unhittable. So has Clifton Phifor Lee. That’s Cliff to you. Lee has logged 53 2/3 innings so far. Lee has only allowed runs in three of them. Holy Cow! That’s not all. He is 6-0. 6-0 with a best-in-baseball, microscopic, miniscule, Lilliputian 0.67 ERA. He’s struck out forty-four. Forty-four big Ks compared to a paltry four walks. Lee is just in a groove. Groove is in the heart. Ah-ah-ah-ah. Groove is in the heart. Aaron Laffey goes today. Last seen, Laffey scattered six hits and walked just one in seven scoreless frames to pick up the victory in the Indians’ win over Toronto. Throw in Fausto Carmona. Throw in Paul Byrd. Throw in those guys and you have an impressive starting five. Maybe the most impressive. Maybe the most impressive five since those Jim Palmer Orioles. Like my main man Satchel Paige always says, “My pitching philosophy is simple - keep the ball way from the bat.” That’s what the Indians are doing. And if they keep it up, nobody’s touching them.
Public Acknowledgements: Casey Stengel, The Shining and Dee-Lite
Josh Q. Public:It is the spirit and not the form of law that keeps justice alive. -Earl Warren
Public Service Announcement: OK, here we go! I don’t like this. I don’t like this one bit. I do not like it in a house. I do not like it with a mouse. I do not like it here or there. I do not like it anywhere. You may say I’m a homer. You may say I’m out of order. I say, you’re out of order! You’re out of order! The whole trial is out of order! Boom Boom Beckett was robbed. He was jobbed. He was rump swabbed. Just like Pedro was robbed by I-Rod oh so many years ago. I don’t care that in the last game of the season Beckett looked more like Matt Young than he did Cy Young. I don’t care that CC pitched more innings than Boom Boom. I don’t care that he threw fifteen more strikeouts. I don’t care what they say about us anyway. I don’t care about that. I care that Josh Boom Boom Beckett was the best pitcher in the American League this year. Who would you want on the hill? King of the Hill. And just so you know, Beckett struck out (.96) per inning while Sabathia struck out even fewer, a paltry (.84) per inning. So put that in your pipe and smoke it. Boom Boom Beckett walked only forty batters all season. Boom Boom Beckett only allowed seventeen bombs. Boom Boom Beckett Beckett limited opponents to a .245 batting average. Boom Boom Beckett held opponents to .207 with runners in scoring position. He outshined Sabathia in all these categories. Outdevined Sabathia. Out walked the line Sabathia. Doesn’t that count for something? Doesn’t twenty games? I remember when twenty games meant something. I remember when that was how a pitcher was measured. Boy, the way Glenn Miller played. Songs that made the Hit Parade. Guys like us, we had it made. Those were the days. Not so much anymore. Not for Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News or Jorge Ortiz of USA Today. I guess twenty games means bupkus to them. Those Bozos each listed Sabathia, Lackey and Fausto Carmona on their ballots. No Boom Boom Beckett in sight. That just ain’t right. Makes you wanna fight. Fight for your right. To party! No partying now. Not after this travesty. Not after this mockery. This trial is a travesty. It’s a travesty of a mockery of a sham of a mockery of a travesty of two mockeries of a sham. I guess you can’t have everything.
Public Acknowledgements: Dr. Seuss, And Justice For All, Weezer, Mike Judge, The Brockton Enterprise, All In The Family, Beastie Boys and Woody Allen
Josh Q. Public:Don’t you know I’m still standing better than I ever did. Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid. -Elton John
Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! What’s crack-a-lacking sports fans? Woo doggy! Theeeeeee Red Sox win! Down 3-1. Against all odds. Take a good look at me now, ‘cos I’ll still be standing here. And you coming back to me is against all odds. It’s the chance I’ve gotta take. Take a look at me now. Take a look at the Boston Red Sox. Lookie lookie the Red Sox get the cookie. The world they shookie. I shook up the world! I shook up the world! I done wrestled with an alligator, I done tussled with a whale; handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail; only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick; I’m so mean I make medicine sick. The Red Sox made the Cleveland Indians sick. Dice-K showed his worth and helped the Red Sox reach the World Series for the second time in the past four seasons. Maybe it was redemption. Maybe it was destiny. Maybe the Red Sox are what we thought they were, if you want to crown them crown them. I’m crowning them. I’m crowning Manny. He has been much maligned. Much maligned but walked the line. Threw on a line. Threw out Kenny Lofton and scared the bejeezus out of him. Scared him so much Lofton later held at third and refused to score to tie it up. I’m crowning Dustin Pedroia. Pedroia’s first career postseason home run made him the first rookie to go yard in an ALCS Game Seven. He joined National Leaguers Andruw Jones and Miguel Cabrera as the third rookie to hit an LCS Game 7 homer. But that’s not all. He tore into a Betancourt fastball for a bases-clearing double in the eighth. That double made him the first rookie to amass five RBIs in an LCS game. He scored three runs, finishing the series with eight runs scored, a new ALCS rookie record. Goodness gracious! I’m crowning Boom Boom Beckett. The best big game pitcher I’ve ever seen. The best big game pitcher there’s ever been. The best big game pitcher from here to Abelene. I’m crowning Curt Schilling. Even without his bloody sock he gets things done. Doin’ it and doin’ it and doin’ it well. Throwing seven innings of masterful six-hit baseball. When the Saturday night was over, Schilling was 4-0 (1.37 ERA) in five starts with his team facing elimination. Yowza! I’m crowning Jonathon Papelbon. The best closer in all of baseball. Entered in the eighth. Entered in the eighth with two on. Entered in the eight with none out. Entered in the eighth and struck out Neanderthal Hafner on three pitches. Got Victor Martinez to ground out. Got Garko to fly to deep center, where Ellsbury made a fabulous running catch near the Boston bullpen. I’m crowning JD Drew. Grand Slamming JD Drew. All manning JD Drew. I’m crowning Coco Crisp. Starting centerfielder all season. Only to be sat down in games six and seven of the ALCS. Bitter? No way. No shame in his game. Made a spectacular grab. An astonishing grab. A stupendous hustle grab to end the game. Running far to make an over-the-shoulder grab before slamming into the wall. That my friends, is what a baseball player looks like. This my friends, is what a baseball team looks like. Now it’s time for the Red Sox to tap the Rockies. Roll Sox roll!
Public Acknowledgements: Phil Collins, Muhammed Ali, Dennis Green, Johnny Cash and LL Cool J
Josh Q. Public:So come on get your rocks off. I’m gonna knock your Sox off, you’ll see, oh yeah. -Steve Miller Band
Public Service Announcement: OK, here we go! Boom Boom Beckett! Goodness gracious me oh my oh. Did you see Beckett light up Ohio? I did. I got chills. They’re multiplying. And I’m losing control. ‘Cause the power you’re supplying, it’s electrifying. Boom Boom was electrifying. He’s the one that I want. Hoo hoo hoo. The one that I want in big games. Like Ned the pie maker bringing the Sox back from the dead. Pick up my bones. Erase my name from off the tombstones. I’ll rock a mausoleum, backyard or coliseum. Boom Beckett rocked a coliseum. Rocked the Jake. For the second time in this series, Beckett smashed CC Sabathia. I said C. CC Rider. Oh see, what you have done. A whole lot of nothing, that’s what. Beckett threw 109 pitches. 109 beautiful pitches. 109 dazzling pitches. 109 bewildering pitches. He dropped in knee buckling curveballs. He dropped in mind bending change ups. He threw heat. High heat. Hard heat. High hard 96 mph heat. High hard 96 mph heat well into the eighth inning. High hard 96 mph heat well into the eighth inning and proving he is the best post season pitcher of all time. Move over Reggie, there’s a new Mr. October. There’s a new Mr. October and he goes by the name of Boom Boom Beckett. Last night, Beckett went eight innings. Last night Beckett gave up one measly run. Last night Beckett gave up a paltry five hits with one meager walk. Last night, he threw eleven strikeouts. Last nite, she said, oh baby don’t feel so down. Red Sox fans don’t feel down. How could we? How could we with Boom Boom on the mound? For this postseason, he has a 1.17 ERA. In 23 innings, he has struck out 26 and walked one. Yowza! Those are Bob Gibson numbers. Those are Sandy Koufax numbers. Historic numbers. Momentous numbers. Illustrious numbers. Now it’s time for Schilling and D-Nice to follow suit. Roll Sox roll!
Public Acknowledgements: Grease, Pushing Daisies, House of Pain, Elvis and The Strokes
Josh Q. Public: I am the greatest. I said that even before I knew I was. -Muhammed Ali
Public Service Announcement: OK, here we go! Like my main man Jesse Jackson always says: Hold your head up high. Stick out you chest. You can make it. It gets dark sometimes, but morning comes. Keep Hope Alive. Things are not even that dire. Dire Straits. I want my MTV! I want a championship! We’ve come through worse than this. Haven’t we? So Daisuke Matsuzaka didn’t have his best outing Monday night? So Curt Schilling didn’t on Saturday night? So Tim Wakefield didn’t last night. So everything seems to be falling Cleveland’s way. So it appears the Boston Red Sox are up against the ropes. Right up to your face and dis you. Rope-a-dope! Red Sox bombaye! Red Sox bombaye! We got Boom Boom Beckett going tomorrow night. Twenty game winner Boom Boom Beckett. Boom Boom Beckett who beat Cleveland ace C.C. Sabathia in Game one. Boom Boom Beckett who in Game One of the AL Division Series against the Halos, opened with a complete-game shutout. Opened with a complete-game shutout and struck out eight. Struck out eight and issued zero walks. Boom Boom Beckett who was in this same position four years ago. Four years ago when the Chicago Cubs stood just one win away from reaching their first World Series since 1945. Choke the goat! Four years ago, Boom Boom Beckett stepped in and led the Marlins to an improbable comeback. An implausible comeback. An inconceivable comeback. Inconceivable! You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. Boom Boom Beckett knows what it means. This means war! Boom Boom Beckett took the ball in Game Five of the 2003 National League Championship Series and threw a masterful two-hit complete-game shutout to send the series back to the Windy City. Back to sweet home Chicago where Florida proved victorious. Proved victorious and rolled through the Bombers en route to their second ring. ‘Cause everybody knows, it don’t mean a thing if you don’t get that ring. Doo-wab-di-wab doo-wab-di-wab doo-wab-di-wab doo-wab-di-wah. The Boston Red Sox will prove victorious. This is a team of destiny. This is not your Daddy’s Red Sox. This is the never say die Red Sox. The never can say good-bye Red Sox. This is the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie Red Sox. That’s amore! So hold your head up high. Stick out you chest. Keep Hope Alive. Roll Sox Roll!
Public Acknowledgements: Mark Knopfler, Beastie Boys, Princess Bride and Cab Calloway
Josh Q. Public: When you win, nothing hurts. -Joe Namath
Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! Red Sox/Indians tonight! We’ve got tonight, who needs tomorrow? We’ve got tonight babe. Why don’t we stay? I’m staying. Staying on the Red Sox bandwagon. The Red Sox make a standwagon. The Red Sox on their way to the Promised Landwagon. The dogs on Main Street howl ’cause they understand if I could take one moment into my hands. Mister I ain’t a boy no I’m a man, and I believe in a Promised Land. Yes I do. Yes I do. And the Red ox on their way there. They’re on their way led by superior pitching. Peace through superior firepower. Red Sox pitching kept the Halos scoreless in twenty-five of twenty-seven innings. How about that? Boom BoomBeckett. Boom Boom Beckett going out to the mound pitching his heart out like a Hanson brother on crack. Boom Boom Beckett’s teams never have lost a playoff series. Never lost a playoff series because of his stellar 1.74 ERA. Boom Boom Beckett was the majors’ first 20-game winner since 2005. Boom Boom Beckett was lights out in game one. Boom Boom Beckett was the World Series MVP for the Marlins in ‘03. Boom Boom Beckett has three post-season shutouts. Second all time. Boom Boom Beckett is the best pitcher in baseball. Curt Schilling. Big game pitcher. Huge game pitcher. Elephantine game pitcher. He is 9-2 with a 1.93 ERA and 108 strikeouts in his post season career. 1993 NLCS MVP. Last Phiilies pitcher to win in the post season. 2001 World Series MVP. And you know what happened in ‘04. And you saw him in game three against the Angels. Like the 38 Pitches himself always says: I don’t think there’s anyone on the planet better than me in a game that matters. I don’t either. Sure the Tribe’s starting duo of C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona has fabulous stuff. The Tribe’s dynamic duo has ridiculous stuff. But even if by some preposterous freak of nature they both win, the Sox have been in more dire straits than that. The Sox have deeper pitching than that. D-Nice and Bake and Wakefield. C’mon. The Sox will not let Paul Byrd off the hook like the Yankees did. And know this folks: Hall of Fame-bound and World Series MVP Manny Ramirez has absolutely owned CC. Who owns the Chiefs? Hall of Fame-bound and World Series MVP Manny Ramirez has hit .571 with four homers and three doubles in his career against Sabathia. Pretty pretty good. You know what else is pretty pretty good? Huh? Do ya? The Sox bullpen is pretty pretty good. Like my main man Bob Gibson always says: The two most important things in life are good friends and a strong bullpen. The Sox have a strong bullpen. The Sox bullpen that over the last seven games has allowed only one run in 18 1/3 innings. The Sox bullpen that led the league in ERA and fewest blown saves. The Sox bullpen that held Los Angeles of Anaheim to one run on two hits. The Sox bullpen led by newly crowned Delivery Man of the Year Jonathan Papelbon. In a certain light he looked like Elvis. In a certain way he feels like Jesus. Everyone dreams of him just as they can. But he’s only the humble Delivery Man. The humble delivery man converting 37-of-40 save opportunities. The humble delivery man first among all relief pitchers in the majors with a .146 batting average against. The humble delivery man shutting down all foes. Pitching wins championships. Like my main man Sandy Koufax always says: Pitching is the art of instilling fear. The Indians should be shaking. Roll Sox roll!
Public Acknowledgements: Bob Seger,Bruce Springsteen, USMC, Slapshot and Elvis Costello
Public Spectacle: This episode of Josh Q. Public powered by Beautymist Pantyhose
Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! Ha ha ha! This is great. Like my main man Porky Pig always says: H-h-h-help! I-i-i-i-i-indians are coming! I-i-i-i-indians! B-b-b-bows and arrows! T-t-t-tomah-h-hatchets! W-w-w-wigwams! All kinds of - all kinds of stuff like that there! Yup all kinds stuff like that there. Like Grady Sizemore smashing a bomb on just the third pitch of the game. Like Mr. Wang, no offense, getting chased in the second after giving up four big runs. Four huge runs. Four titanic runs. Like Paul Byrd allowing just two runs in five-plus innings. Like Jhonny Peralta hitting .467 for the series. Like Rafael Perez retiring 12 straight Yankees in Games 1 and 2 before getting Derek Jeter to bounce into a double play in game three. Like CC Sabathia and Fausto Carmona proving why they may be the best one two punch in baseball. Like the Pride of Bayonne, NJ, Joe Borowski throwing the final strike and the Tribe running onto the field to start the celebration. Celebration. Let’s all celebrate and have a good time. Celebration. We gonna celebrate and have a good time. The Cleveland Indians are celebrating. Suzyn Waldman is not. WCBS 880 Audio Neither are the Bleacher Creatures:
Ro-ger Cle-mens. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Fat Roger. Begs out of the game after three. Begs out of the game like he did in ‘86. Begs out of the game like he did with the Astros. There’s your savior. Steadfast and true. Coming to your emotional rescue. De-rek Je-ter. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Captain Golden Boy. Captain Golden Boy couldn’t stand up for falling down. Captain Golden Boy hit .176 in these playoffs. Captain Rally Killer. Killed two rallies Sunday with double plays. Killed another one last night with a double play. Get the papers. Get the papers. Chien-Ming Wang. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Cy Young? Ha ha ha! Mr. Wang, no offense. Mr. Wang finished 0-2. Mr. Wang finished with a 19.06 ERA. Mr. Wang pitched a combined 5 2/3 innings over his two starts. Hi-deki Mat-sui. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Oh no, they say he’s got to go. Go go Godzilla, yeah! Godzilla ended up going 2-for-11. Godzilla ended up going for no extra base hits. Zero. Zilch. Nada. In the third inning last night, Hideki Matsui came up with a man on. Groundout. In the fifth, he came up with another man on. Pop-up. Go go Godzilla! Jor-ge ####-ada. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. The great last hope. Up with two out in the bottom of the ninth. Strike out. Ball game. Posada had the season of his life as the Yankees were trying to catch the Sox. Posada hit .133 in the series. Hip-hip Jorge! Fi-rst Ba-se. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Didn’t matter who played there. It did not help. A-lex Rod-riguez. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. A-Broad. A-Broad did hit .267. But know this, three of those hits were singles with nobody on base. A-Broad was 0-for-5 with four strikeouts with men on base. Mr. April-September. Nobody left this series unscathed. Box seats suck!
I think it’s safe to say the Yankees era is over. The magic is gone. The party’s over. Guess it’s over, call it a day. Sorry that it had to end this way. No reason to pretend. We knew it had to end some day, this way. See you later Joe. See you later Fat Roger. See you later A-Broad. See you later suckers! Roll Sox roll!
Public Acknowledgements: Awful Announcing, Cleveland Plain Dealer, NY Post, NY Daily News, Kool and the Gang, Rolling Stones, Good Fellas, Caddyshack, Blue Oyster Cult and Johnny Mathis
Public Spectacle: This episode of Josh Q. Public is powered by Nike
Josh Q. Public:Down…The paint is peelin’. Now…When the chips are down. Down…You gotta lose all feelin’. Now…when the chips are down. Down…Your head goes round ‘n’ round. -Terror Squad
Public Service Announcement: OK, here we go! I love baseball. I never got to bat in the major leagues. I would have liked to have had that chance. Just once. To stare down a big league pitcher. To stare him down, and just as he goes into his windup, wink. Make him think you know something he doesn’t. That’s what I wish for. Chance to squint at a sky so blue that it hurts your eyes just to look at it. To feel the tingling in your arm as you connect with the ball. To run the bases - stretch a double into a triple, and flop face-first into third, wrap your arms around the bag. That’s my wish, Ray Kinsella. That’s my wish. And is there enough magic out there in the moonlight to make this dream come true? Yes there is, Archie. Yes there is. The 200 men representing eight cities will create enough magic to make all our dreams true. MLB baseball. MLB Playoff baseball. It’s why we hung around so long. We hung around so long to hear stuff like: There’s a long drive… It’s gonna be, I believe….. The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! WAHOO! Bobby Thomson hits into the lower deck, of the left field stands! The Giants win the pennant, and they’re goin’ crazy! They’re goin’ crazy! Heeeey-oh! We hung around so long to hear stuff like: Deep to left! Yastrzemski will not get it — it’s a home run! A three-run home run for Bucky Dent and the Yankees now lead by the score of 3-2! Bucky Dent has just hit his fourth home run of the year and look at that Yankees bench out to greet him. We hung around so long to hear stuff like: Ortiz into deep right field, back is Sheffield, we’ll see you later tonight! What kind of stuff are we gonna hear this year?
Rockies Phillies: September 13. The Rockies leave the City Of Brotherly Love after a two game split. Even Steven. Kissing your sister. Yichhh! So, we meet again? Meet again three weeks and two incredible stories later. The Rockies and the Fighting Phills will attempt to prolong their epic dramas in a best-of-five National League Division Series. So what will we hear? Will we hear: Matt Holliday! That ball is going and it ain’t coming back! Matt Holliday. MVP! MVP! MVP! Matt Holliday. The hero of the play-in game. The one for everything. For all the marbles. All the starbles. All the Yougoslavian Dinarbles. All the come and get one in the yarbles, if ya have any yarbles. Matt Holliday capped his superstar season by obliterating twelve years of futility and irrelevancy. Is that what we’ll hear? Or will we hear this: Swing…and a long drive, watch this baby, outta here! Home run. Jimmy Rollins. The real MVP! MVP! MVP! The Mets had a chance to win the World Series last year. Last year is over. I think we are the team to beat in the NL East, finally. Jimmy talked the talk. Jimmy walked the walk. These cleats are made for walking, and that’s just what they’ll do. One of these days these cleats are gonna walk all over you. I say these cleats walk all over the Rockies.
Diamondbacks Cubs: The Diamondbacks posted the best record in the National League. The Cubs are the team everybody’s pulling for. The Diamondbacks won ninety games. Nobody knows how they expect to compete against the Cubs. That’s why they play the games. So what will it be? Will it be: Long drive…way back…warning track…wall…you can touch em’ all, Jeff Sazlazar. Huh? Jeff Slalazar? Yup. Jeff Salazar. Reserve outfielder Jeff Salazar. Pinch hitting Jeff Salazar. Bernie Carbo style. Jeff Salazar saved the season. Saved the season back on September 10. Scratched from the lineup because of a sore ankle, Salazar came on to deliver a pinch-hit three-run bomb in the ninth inning to give Arizona a 5-3 win at San Francisco. That pinch-hit three-run bomb solidified the season for the Baby Backs. And it’s contributions like that, from everybody, that make these guys what they are. A T-E-A-M. Nine players on the field functioning as one single unit: team, team, team - no one more important that the other. Or might we hear this: That ball is driven way back…outta here! Derrek Lee! 2006 was not a very good year for Lee. Broken wrist. Cubs go 19-40 in his absence. His three-year-old daughter was diagnosed with Leber’s congenital amaurosis, a rare genetic disease resulting in loss of vision. This year’s been a lot better. Batted over .400 for most of the first two months of the season. The heart and power of the Cubs line-up. Late season power surge. If Lee gets going, like he was two seasons ago, there’s no one on the other team that can match him. He has the ability to put this team on his back and carry them to the next round by himself. That being said, I like the D-Backs here.
Yankees Indians: Three of the four highest-payroll teams in the American League will be in the playoffs. The fourth playoff team ranks second-to-last in payroll in the AL. That fourth team is the Indians. Don’t get me wrong. I have no problems with spending. None. But What Mark Shapiro did with this team is nothing short of remarkable. Nothing. What will we hear in this one? Will it be this: Swing and a drive, deep to center, a WAAAAAAAAAAAAY back - GONE! Trot Nixon! Yup. Old friend Trot. Bo may know some things. Bo knows this. What? And Bo knows that. What? But Bo don`t know jack, cause Bo can`t rap. Bo may know this and that, but Trot knows the Yankees. For eight years of his career he played against them nineteen times a season as a member of the Red Sox. The Yankees went 6-0 against the Indians during the regular season. Nixon hit .429 against them. Something to think about. Or will we hear this: Swung on and there it goes! That ball is high! It is far! It is…Gone! An A-Bomb. From A-Broad! A-Broad’s Yankees legacy depends on it. He was the man during the regular season. A rock at third base. A nightmare in the heart of the New York order. But if he does nothing in this post-season, none of it matters. You saw what happened last fall. Last fall, Rodriguez stumbled and bumbled through the division series against Detroit. Stumbled and bumbled and got dropped in the order. I don’t see that happening this year. I don’t see the Yankees winning either.
Red Sox Angels: Saving the best for last. Last year, no soup for us! This year, I couldn’t be happier. But happy doesn’t pay the piper. Happy doesn’t feed the baby. Happy doesn’t walk the dog. The Sox went wire to wire in the division. We need them to go wire to wire in the post season. Anything else is failure. We need to hear: …swing and there it goes…light tower power for Manny Ramirez! We need Manny to be Manny. We know what Big Papi will do. What Big Papi always does. But we need Manny. He is a difference maker. An earth quaker. A pitcher shaker. We need him, and I think we’ll get him. I don’t need to hear this: And the halo shines tonight! Oh my! I don’t need to see Vladdy shine tonight or any other night. He strikes fear in the heart of men. Strikes fear in every part of men. Strikes fear in the Rene Descartes of men. I’m hoping against hope fear strikes out. I’m hoping he is as ####ed up as I hope he is. I’m picking the Sox. Anything else would be blasphemy.
Public Acknowledgements: Field of Dreams, Russ Hodges, Bill White, Joe Buck, Rocky Mountain News, Jeff Kingery, Clockwork Orange, Harry Kalas, Nancy Sinatra, Greg Schulte, Hoosiers, Len Kasper, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Tom Hamilton, Tribe Called Quest, John Sterling, Jerry Trupiano, #### Enberg and Jimmy Piersall
Josh Q. Public: I keep working my way back to you babe, with a burning love inside. I’m working my way back to you babe, with a happiness that died. I let it get away. Payin’ every day. -Frankie Vali
Public Service Announcement: OK, here we go! What’s crack-a-lacking sports fans? The 1951 Giants did it. They came back. They came back from thirteen games down. Thirteen games down to cross town rivals, Dem Bums. The hated Brooklyn Dodgers. Came back, and won the National League Pennant. The Shot Heard Round the World. The Giants win the pennant and they’re going crazy. They’re going crazy, I don’t believe it, I don’t believe it, I will not believe it! The 1964 Cardinals did it. They came back. They came all the way back from seventh place. The Redbirds were 28-31 when they acquired Lightning Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio. The immortal Ernie Broglio. The rest, they say, is history. The Redbirds acquired Lightning Lou Brock and eventually won the NL Pennant. The Redbirds acquired Lightning Lou Brock and eventually won the NL Pennant and the World Series. The heat was on back in 1964. I hate to do this but, the Bombers did it too. The Bronx Zoo Yankees of 1978 stormed back. Stormin’ Norman Scwarzkopffed back. Stormin’ Norman Scwarzkopffed from fourteen back in the standings to eventually force a heartbreaker. A heartbreaker, dream maker, love taker. Don’t you mess around with me! Heartbreaker of a tiebreaker against my beloved Red Sox. Sure it’s a little harsh…but, here. Cannonball it, cannonball! Cannonball comin’ through, cannonball! The 2004 Red Sox. They came back. Down 0-3. Cannonball Dave Roberts. Cannonball Curt Schilling. Cannonball Big Papi. Cannonball Cave Man. Cannonball the greatest comeback of all time. Those comebacks were about great teams. Those comebacks were about great memories. They were special. Orange Blossom Special, rollin’ down the seaboard line. Today we’re gonna talk about a different kind of comeback. Individual comebacks. Captain Comebacks. Jim Harbaugh style. A different kind of special. Nomah special. Big Hurt special. Rickey Henderson special. Brett Saberhagen special. Bo Jackson special. Comeback Player of the Year special. Ridin’ the range once more. Totin’ my old .44. Back in the saddle again. Whoopi-ty-aye-oh, rockin’ to and fro. Back in the saddle again. Whoopi-ty-aye-yay, I go my way. Back in the saddle again.
The Indians believe Jhonny Peralta will be back in the saddle again. Yup, Jhonny. Make sure you spell it right. The Tribe thinks he will bounce back. Bounce back in a big way. Bounce back by April Fool’s Day. Bounce back to the .886 OPS Jhonny Peralta of 2005. Back when he was glad to be alive. Back before he took a dive. Back before he was an adventure in the field. Back when he batted .292 with twenty-four bombs and seventy-eight RBIs. All Indians records for a shortstop. In the off season of ‘05-06, Jhonny grew two inches. Had a tough time adjusting. But he’s ok now. He worked hard this winter in Cleveland. Peralta also had LASIK surgery to correct his vision. I remember hearing the same thing about Greg Vaughn one season. Then he went out and hit 50 dings with the Padres. Jhonny’s back in the saddle again. Quick Jhonny Peralta fun fact: The unusual spelling of his first name is attributed to a clerical error on his birth certificate. He has refused to have it changed.
Brad Lidgewill be back in the saddle again. Teammate Brad Ausmus seems to think so: “By the end of the season, he developed confidence in his two-seamer (sinking fastball) and it will carry over. It is a very good pitch for him, because it doesn’t sink straight down; it bores in on right-handed hitters and makes his slider that much more effective. He will be fine.” I think so too. Will he be Light Out once again? Is he still reeling from the Phat Albert Pujols home run in the ‘05 NLCS? He still has the stuff. He’s still tough enough. He’s still up to snuff. If he can harness that fastball, that is. Time to play the game! Time to bring the pain! Time to get back in the saddle again! Quick Brad Lidge fun fact: Lidge is the all-time leader in strikeouts-per-nine-innings (12.98) among pitchers with at least 200 appearances in their career.
Derrek Lee, Chicago Cubs. He should be back in the saddle again. The wrist injury took this superstar from forty-six to eight jacks. From one-hundred and one to seventeen extra-base hits. Now he’s healthy. Now he has thunder around him. Now it’s time to bring the lightning. The last time Derrek Lee was healthy for a full season, he had a higher batting average than Phat Albert Pujols. He had more doubles than Pujols. He had more triples than Pujols. He had more bombs and had a higher OPS than Pujols. Can he better than Pujols this year? I dunno about all that. I don’t know if he’s all that phat. I dunno if he’s phatter than that phat cat. I do know, he’ll be back in the saddle again. Quick Derrek Lee fun fact: Derrek Lee received a full-ride scholarship offer from the University of North Carolina to play basketball.
Rich Harden has the ability to win a Cy Young. I’m not just flinging dung. Not speaking in tongues. Harden has a 30-16 career mark with overpowering stuff. Mighty stuff. Marvelous stuff. Monumental stuff. Mind blowing stuff. Magnificent stuff. But his physical problems have taken him from thirty-one to nineteen to nine starts in three years. Word has it he’s now fit as a fiddle. A Stradivarius. With Big Barry Planet Zito gone, the A’s need Rich Harden. They need his ghost pitch to be most Caspery. At this point in the spring, Harden is throwing only fastballs and changeups, and he’s dominating. He just struck out five of the last six hitters he faced and tossed two scoreless innings in his team’s 4-3 win over the San Diego Padres. A’s fans gotta love that. They gotta love the fact he’s back in the saddle again. Quick Rich Harden fun fact: Harden began the 2003 season with Midland, and in 2 games, he had a 2-0 record and pitched 13 perfect innings, striking out 17 along the way.
Coco Crisp will be riding high in the saddle again. Crisp hurt his hand the first week of the season last year. Crisp was playing with a little bit of fear. Never really got out of second gear. Never returned to to full form. Never hit fastballs the way he once could. Now he’s all healed up. Now, with Julio Lugo on board, he can bat in a more comfortable spot in the two or eight spot. Now he can get hot. Hot as the Minnesota Vikings’ yacht. Now, he can be Coco Crisp, not just Johnny Damon’s replacement. Now, he’s back in the saddle again. Quick Coco Crisp fun fact: Coco's real name is Covelli Loyce Crisp.
Eric Gagne, Texas. Eric Ggne’s back in the saddle again. I know, I know. I know he’s only thrown fifteen and a third innings the last two years. But with his gigantic heart. With his gigantic heart and giganticker changeup. With his gigantic heart, giganticker change and the gigantickest of breaking balls, he’s back in the saddle. Bigger than big, taller than tall. Quicker than quick, stronger than strong. Ready to fight for right, against wrong. Gigantor, Gigantor, Gigantor. If he can throw eighty-nine to ninety-three, he can be a young Trevor Hoffman. Deja vu all over again. Can he go fifty-five for fifty-five again? Can he go eighty-four for eighty-four for again? Can he throw for an incredible 1.20 ERA, 137 Ks and 20 walks in 82 1/3 innings pitched again? Probably not. Who could? He can ride back in the saddle again. Game over! Quick Eric Gagne fun fact: Gagne and catcher Russell Martin became the first French-Canadian-born battery in a MLB game.
Honorable Mentions: Hideki Matsui, Jason Varitek, A-Broad- if you can call it a comeback, Randy Johnson, Pedro, Bartolo Colon, Armando Benitez, Nick Johnson, Todd Helton, Barry Bonds, Zack Geinke, Bobby Crosby, Carl Pavano, Jason Isringhausen, Hank Blalock, Brad Wilkerson, Rany Wolf, Jon Lester- I hope he does it, I hope he does it!, Jason Kubel, Darin Erstad, Jeremy Hermidia, Ben Sheets, Aaron Rowand, Mike Hampton.
josh q. public. For the public, by The Public. Irreverent sports opinion from a Bostonian in New York. The one blog to read, when you’re reading more than one. Good to the last drop!
guys threw complete-game shutouts during a 47-inning scoreless streak. Not for nothing, I miss the complete game. Not for nothing else, in 1980, Oakland Athletics pitcher Rick Langford threw 22 consecutive complete games. We’ll ver see that again. Never! The Indians steak is the longest scoreless streak by anyone since the 1974 Orioles. Since Jim Palmer. Since Mike Cuellar. Since Dave McNally. Since Ross Grimsley. Since those guy threw 54 scoreless innings. CC Sabathia won last year’s Cy. CC Sabathia got off to a rough start this year. A tough start this year. A billy goat gruff start this year. But like Jack Torrence, he’s baaaack! Like Jack Torrence, he’s again a masterpiece of modern horror. Last night, Sabathia threw a shutout for the Tribe. Last night Sabathia was living on the corners. Last night Sabathia was virtually unhittable. He’s not the only one that’s been unhittable. So has Clifton Phifor Lee. That’s Cliff to you. Lee has logged 53 2/3 innings so far. Lee has only allowed runs in three of them. Holy Cow! That’s not all. He is 6-0. 6-0 with a best-in-baseball, microscopic,
miniscule, Lilliputian 0.67 ERA. He’s struck out forty-four. Forty-four big Ks compared to a paltry four walks. Lee is just in a groove. Groove is in the heart. Ah-ah-ah-ah. Groove is in the heart. Aaron Laffey goes today. Last seen, Laffey scattered six hits and walked just one in seven scoreless frames to pick up the victory in the Indians’ win over Toronto. Throw in Fausto Carmona. Throw in Paul Byrd. Throw in those guys and you have an impressive starting five. Maybe the most impressive. Maybe the most impressive five since those Jim Palmer Orioles. Like my main man Satchel Paige always says, “My pitching philosophy is simple - keep the ball way from the bat.” That’s what the Indians are doing. And if they keep it up, nobody’s touching them. 
the season Beckett looked more like Matt Young than he did Cy Young. I don’t care that CC pitched more innings than Boom Boom. I don’t care that he threw fifteen more strikeouts. I don’t care what they say about us anyway. I don’t care about that. I care that Josh Boom Boom Beckett was the best pitcher in the American League this year. Who would you want on the hill? King of the Hill. And just so you know, Beckett struck out (.96) per inning while Sabathia struck out even fewer, a paltry (.84) per inning. So put that in your pipe and smoke it. 
batting average. Boom Boom Beckett held opponents to .207 with runners in scoring position. He outshined Sabathia in all these categories. Outdevined Sabathia. Out walked the line Sabathia. Doesn’t that count for something? Doesn’t twenty games? I remember when twenty games meant something. I remember when that was how a pitcher was measured. Boy, the way Glenn Miller played. Songs that made the Hit Parade. Guys like us, we had it made. Those were the days. Not so much anymore. Not for Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News or Jorge Ortiz of USA 
Today. I guess twenty games means bupkus to them. Those Bozos each listed Sabathia, Lackey and Fausto Carmona on their ballots. No Boom Boom Beckett in sight. That just ain’t right. Makes you wanna fight. Fight for your right. To party! No partying now. Not after this travesty. Not after this mockery. This trial is a travesty. It’s a travesty of a mockery of a sham of a mockery of a travesty of two mockeries of a sham. I guess you can’t have everything.
with a whale; handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail; only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick; I’m so mean I make medicine sick. The Red Sox made the Cleveland Indians sick. Dice-K showed his worth and helped the Red Sox reach the World Series for the second time in the past four seasons. Maybe it was redemption. Maybe it was destiny. Maybe the Red Sox are what we thought they were, if you want to crown them crown them. I’m crowning them. I’m crowning Manny. He has been much maligned. Much maligned but walked the line. Threw on a line. Threw out Kenny Lofton and scared the bejeezus out of him. Scared him so much Lofton later held at third and refused to score to tie it up. I’m crowning Dustin Pedroia. Pedroia’s first career postseason home 
run made him the first rookie to go yard in an ALCS Game Seven. He joined National Leaguers Andruw Jones and Miguel Cabrera as the third rookie to hit an LCS Game 7 homer. But that’s not all. He tore into a Betancourt fastball for a bases-clearing double in the eighth. That double made him the first rookie to amass five RBIs in an LCS game. He scored three runs, finishing the series with eight runs scored, a new ALCS rookie record. Goodness gracious! I’m crowning Boom Boom Beckett. The best big game pitcher I’ve ever seen. The best big game pitcher there’s ever been. The best big game pitcher from here to Abelene. I’m crowning Curt Schilling. Even without his bloody sock he gets things done. Doin’ it and doin’ it and doin’ it well. Throwing seven innings of masterful six-hit baseball. When the Saturday night was over, Schilling was 4-0 (1.37 ERA) in five starts with his team facing elimination. Yowza! I’m crowning 
Jonathon Papelbon. The best closer in all of baseball. Entered in the eighth. Entered in the eighth with two on. Entered in the eight with none out. Entered in the eighth and struck out Neanderthal Hafner on three pitches. Got Victor Martinez to ground out. Got Garko to fly to deep center, where Ellsbury made a fabulous running catch near the Boston bullpen. I’m crowning JD Drew. Grand Slamming JD Drew. All manning JD Drew. I’m crowning Coco Crisp. Starting centerfielder all season. Only to be sat down in games six and seven of the ALCS. Bitter? No way. No shame in his game. Made a spectacular grab. An astonishing grab. A stupendous hustle grab to end the game. Running far to make an over-the-shoulder grab before slamming into the wall. That my friends, is what a baseball player looks like. This my friends, is what a baseball team looks like. Now it’s time for the Red Sox to tap the Rockies. Roll Sox roll! 
CC Sabathia. I said C. CC Rider. Oh see, what you have done. A whole lot of nothing, that’s what. Beckett threw 109 pitches. 109 beautiful pitches. 109 dazzling pitches. 109 bewildering pitches. He dropped in knee buckling curveballs. He dropped in mind bending change ups. He threw heat. High heat. Hard heat. High hard 96 mph heat. High hard 96 mph heat well into the eighth inning. High hard 96 mph heat well into the eighth inning and proving he is the best post season pitcher of all time. Move over Reggie, there’s a new Mr. October. There’s a new Mr. October and he goes by the name of Boom Boom Beckett. Last 
night, Beckett went eight innings. Last night Beckett gave up one measly run. Last night Beckett gave up a paltry five hits with one meager walk. Last night, he threw eleven strikeouts. Last nite, she said, oh baby don’t feel so down. Red Sox fans don’t feel down. How could we? How could we with Boom Boom on the mound? For this postseason, he has a 1.17 ERA. In 23 innings, he has struck out 26 and walked one. Yowza! Those are Bob Gibson numbers. Those are Sandy Koufax numbers. Historic numbers. Momentous numbers. Illustrious numbers. Now it’s time for Schilling and D-Nice to follow suit. Roll Sox roll!
So everything seems to be falling Cleveland’s way. So it appears the Boston Red Sox are up against the ropes. Right up to your face and dis you. Rope-a-dope! Red Sox bombaye! Red Sox bombaye! We got Boom Boom Beckett going tomorrow night. Twenty game winner Boom Boom Beckett. Boom Boom Beckett who beat Cleveland ace C.C. Sabathia in Game one. Boom Boom Beckett who in Game One of the AL Division Series against the Halos, opened with a complete-game shutout. Opened with a complete-game shutout and struck out eight. Struck out eight and issued zero walks. Boom Boom Beckett who was in this same position four years ago. Four years ago when the Chicago Cubs stood just one win away from reaching their first World Series since 
1945. Choke the goat! Four years ago, Boom Boom Beckett stepped in and led the Marlins to an improbable comeback. An implausible comeback. An inconceivable comeback. Inconceivable! You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. Boom Boom Beckett knows what it means. This means war! Boom Boom Beckett took the ball in Game Five of the 2003 National League Championship Series and threw a masterful two-hit complete-game shutout to send the series back to the Windy City. Back to sweet home Chicago where Florida proved victorious. Proved victorious and rolled through the Bombers en route to their second ring. ‘Cause everybody knows, it don’t mean a thing if you don’t get that ring. Doo-wab-di-wab doo-wab-di-wab doo-wab-di-wab doo-wab-di-wah. The Boston Red Sox will prove victorious. This is a team of destiny. This is not your Daddy’s Red Sox. This is the never say die Red Sox. The never can say good-bye Red Sox. This is the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie Red Sox. That’s amore! So hold your head up high. Stick out you chest. Keep Hope Alive. Roll Sox Roll! 
about that? Boom Boom Beckett. Boom Boom Beckett going out to the mound pitching his heart out like a Hanson brother on crack. Boom Boom Beckett’s teams never have lost a playoff series. Never lost a playoff series because of his stellar 1.74 ERA. Boom Boom Beckett was the majors’ first 20-game winner since 2005. Boom Boom Beckett was lights out in game one. Boom Boom Beckett was the World Series MVP for the Marlins in ‘03. Boom Boom Beckett has three post-season shutouts. Second all time. Boom Boom Beckett is the best pitcher in baseball. Curt Schilling. Big game pitcher. Huge game pitcher. Elephantine game pitcher. He is 9-2 with a 1.93 ERA and 108 strikeouts in his post season career. 1993 NLCS MVP. Last Phiilies pitcher to win in
let Paul Byrd off the hook like the Yankees did. And know this folks: Hall of Fame-bound and World Series MVP Manny Ramirez has absolutely owned CC. Who owns the Chiefs? Hall of Fame-bound and World Series MVP Manny Ramirez has hit .571 with four homers and three doubles in his career against Sabathia. Pretty pretty good. You know what else is pretty pretty good? Huh? Do ya? The Sox bullpen is pretty pretty good. Like my main man Bob Gibson always says: The two most important things in life are good friends and a strong bullpen. The Sox have a strong bullpen. The Sox bullpen that over the last seven games has allowed only one run in 18 1/3 innings. The Sox bullpen that led the league in ERA and fewest blown saves. The Sox bullpen that held Los Angeles of Anaheim to one run on two hits. The Sox bullpen led by newly crowned Delivery Man of the Year Jonathan Papelbon. In a certain light he looked like Elvis. In a certain way he feels like Jesus. Everyone dreams of 
him just as they can. But he’s only the humble Delivery Man. The humble delivery man converting 37-of-40 save opportunities. The humble delivery man first among all relief pitchers in the majors with a .146 batting average against. The humble delivery man shutting down all foes. Pitching wins championships. Like my main man Sandy Koufax always says: Pitching is the art of instilling fear. The Indians should be shaking. Roll Sox roll!
getting Derek Jeter to bounce into a double play in game three. Like CC Sabathia and Fausto Carmona proving why they may be the best one two punch in baseball. Like the Pride of Bayonne, NJ, Joe Borowski throwing the final strike and the Tribe running onto the field to start the celebration. Celebration. Let’s all celebrate and have a good time. Celebration. We gonna celebrate and have a good time. The Cleveland Indians are celebrating. Suzyn Waldman is not. 
Wang finished 0-2. Mr. Wang finished with a 19.06 ERA. Mr. Wang pitched a combined 5 2/3 innings over his two starts. Hi-deki Mat-sui. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Oh no, they say he’s got to go. Go go Godzilla, yeah! Godzilla ended up going 2-for-11. Godzilla ended up going for no extra base hits. Zero. Zilch. Nada. In the third inning last night, Hideki Matsui came up with a man on. Groundout. In the fifth, he came up with another man on. Pop-up. Go go Godzilla! Jor-ge 
Posada had the season of his life as the Yankees were trying to catch the Sox. Posada hit .133 in the series. Hip-hip Jorge! Fi-rst Ba-se. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. Didn’t matter who played there. It did not help. A-lex Rod-riguez. Clap, clap, clap clap clap. A-Broad. A-Broad did hit .267. But know this, three of those hits were singles with nobody on base. A-Broad was 0-for-5 with four strikeouts with men on base. Mr. April-September. Nobody left this series unscathed. Box seats suck! 
I think it’s safe to say the Yankees era is over. The magic is gone. The party’s over. Guess it’s over, call it a day. Sorry that it had to end this way. No reason to pretend. We knew it had to end some day, this way. See you later Joe. See you later Fat Roger. See you later A-Broad. See you later suckers! Roll Sox roll!
Kinsella. That’s my wish. And is there enough magic out there in the moonlight to make this dream come true? Yes there is, Archie. Yes there is. The 200 men representing eight cities will create enough magic to make all our dreams true. MLB baseball. MLB Playoff baseball. It’s why we hung around so long. We hung around so long to hear stuff like: There’s a long drive… It’s gonna be, I believe….. The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! WAHOO! Bobby Thomson hits into the lower deck, of the left field stands! The Giants win the pennant, and they’re goin’ crazy! They’re goin’ crazy! Heeeey-oh! We hung around so long to hear stuff like: 
Deep to left! Yastrzemski will not get it — it’s a home run! A three-run home run for Bucky Dent and the Yankees now lead by the score of 3-2! Bucky Dent has just hit his fourth home run of the year and look at that Yankees bench out to greet him. We hung around so long to hear stuff like: Ortiz into deep right field, back is Sheffield, we’ll see you later tonight! What kind of stuff are we gonna hear this year?
Rockies Phillies: September 13. The Rockies leave the City Of Brotherly Love after a two game split. Even Steven. Kissing your sister. Yichhh! So, we meet again? Meet again three weeks and two incredible stories later. The Rockies and the Fighting Phills will attempt to prolong their epic dramas in a best-of-five National League Division Series. So what will we hear? Will we hear: Matt Holliday! That ball is going and it ain’t coming back! Matt Holliday. MVP! MVP! MVP! Matt Holliday. The hero of the play-in game. The one for everything. For all the marbles. All the starbles. All the Yougoslavian Dinarbles. All the come and get one in the yarbles, if ya have any yarbles. Matt Holliday capped his superstar season by 
obliterating twelve years of futility and irrelevancy. Is that what we’ll hear? Or will we hear this: Swing…and a long drive, watch this baby, outta here! Home run. Jimmy Rollins. The real MVP! MVP! MVP! The Mets had a chance to win the World Series last year. Last year is over. I think we are the team to beat in the NL East, finally. Jimmy talked the talk. Jimmy walked the walk. These cleats are made for walking, and that’s just what they’ll do. One of these days these cleats are gonna walk all over you. I say these cleats walk all over the Rockies.
Diamondbacks Cubs: The Diamondbacks posted the best record in the National League. The Cubs are the team everybody’s pulling for. The Diamondbacks won ninety games. Nobody knows how they expect to compete against the Cubs. That’s why they play the games. So what will it be? Will it be: Long drive…way back…warning track…wall…you can touch em’ all, Jeff Sazlazar. Huh? Jeff Slalazar? Yup. Jeff Salazar. Reserve outfielder Jeff Salazar. Pinch hitting Jeff Salazar. Bernie Carbo style. Jeff Salazar saved the season. Saved the season back on September 10. Scratched from the lineup because of a sore ankle, Salazar came on to deliver a pinch-hit three-run bomb in the ninth inning to give Arizona a 5-3 win at San Francisco. That pinch-hit three-run bomb solidified the season for the Baby Backs. And it’s 
contributions like that, from everybody, that make these guys what they are. A T-E-A-M. Nine players on the field functioning as one single unit: team, team, team - no one more important that the other. Or might we hear this: That ball is driven way back…outta here! Derrek Lee! 2006 was not a very good year for Lee. Broken wrist. Cubs go 19-40 in his absence. His three-year-old daughter was diagnosed with Leber’s congenital amaurosis, a rare genetic disease resulting in loss of vision. This year’s been a lot better. Batted over .400 for most of the first two months of the season. The heart and power of the Cubs line-up. Late season power surge. If Lee gets going, like he was two seasons ago, there’s no one on the other team that can match him. He has the ability to put this team on his back and carry them to the next round by himself. That being said, I like the D-Backs here. 
Yankees Indians: Three of the four highest-payroll teams in the American League will be in the playoffs. The fourth playoff team ranks second-to-last in payroll in the AL. That fourth team is the Indians. Don’t get me wrong. I have no problems with spending. None. But What Mark Shapiro did with this team is nothing short of remarkable. Nothing. What will we hear in this one? Will it be this: Swing and a drive, deep to center, a WAAAAAAAAAAAAY back - GONE! Trot Nixon! Yup. Old friend Trot. Bo may know some things. Bo knows this. What? And Bo knows that. What? But Bo don`t know jack, cause Bo can`t rap. Bo may know this and that, but Trot knows the Yankees. For eight years of his career he played against them nineteen times a season as a member of the Red Sox. The Yankees went 6-0 
against the Indians during the regular season. Nixon hit .429 against them. Something to think about. Or will we hear this: Swung on and there it goes! That ball is high! It is far! It is…Gone! An A-Bomb. From A-Broad! A-Broad’s Yankees legacy depends on it. He was the man during the regular season. A rock at third base. A nightmare in the heart of the New York order. But if he does nothing in this post-season, none of it matters. You saw what happened last fall. Last fall, Rodriguez stumbled and bumbled through the division series against Detroit. Stumbled and bumbled and got dropped in the order. I don’t see that happening this year. I don’t see the Yankees winning either.
this: And the halo shines tonight! Oh my! I don’t need to see Vladdy shine tonight or any other night. He strikes fear in the heart of men. Strikes fear in every part of men. Strikes fear in the Rene Descartes of men. I’m hoping against hope fear strikes out. I’m hoping he is as 
don’t believe it, I don’t believe it, I will not believe it! The 1964 Cardinals did it. They came back. They came all the way back from seventh place. The Redbirds were 28-31 when they acquired Lightning Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio. The immortal Ernie Broglio. The rest, they say, is history. The Redbirds acquired Lightning Lou Brock and eventually won the NL Pennant. The Redbirds acquired 
Lightning Lou Brock and eventually won the NL Pennant and the World Series. The heat was on back in 1964. I hate to do this but, the Bombers did it too. The Bronx Zoo Yankees of 1978 stormed back. Stormin’ Norman Scwarzkopffed back. Stormin’ Norman Scwarzkopffed from fourteen back in the standings to eventually force a heartbreaker. A heartbreaker, dream maker, love taker. Don’t you mess around with me! Heartbreaker of a tiebreaker against my beloved Red Sox. Sure it’s a little harsh…but, here. Cannonball it, cannonball! Cannonball comin’ through, 
cannonball! The 2004 Red Sox. They came back. Down 0-3. Cannonball Dave Roberts. Cannonball Curt Schilling. Cannonball Big Papi. Cannonball Cave Man. Cannonball the greatest comeback of all time. Those comebacks were about great teams. Those comebacks were about great memories. They were special. Orange Blossom Special, rollin’ down the seaboard line. Today we’re gonna talk about a different kind of comeback. Individual comebacks. Captain Comebacks. Jim Harbaugh style. A different kind of special. Nomah special. Big Hurt special. Rickey Henderson special. Brett Saberhagen special. Bo Jackson special. Comeback Player of the Year special. Ridin’ the range once more. Totin’ my old .44. Back in the saddle again. Whoopi-ty-aye-oh, rockin’ to and fro. Back in the saddle again. Whoopi-ty-aye-yay, I go my way. Back in the saddle again. 
Brad Lidge will be back in the saddle again. Teammate Brad Ausmus seems to think so: “By the end of the season, he developed confidence in his two-seamer (sinking fastball) and it will carry over. It is a very good pitch for him, because it doesn’t sink straight down; it bores in on right-handed hitters and makes his slider that much more effective. He will be fine.” I think so too. Will he be Light Out once again? Is he still reeling from the Phat Albert Pujols home run in the ‘05 NLCS? He still has the stuff. He’s still tough enough. He’s still up to snuff. If he can harness that fastball, that is. Time to play the game! Time to bring the pain! Time to get back in the saddle again! Quick Brad Lidge fun fact: Lidge is the all-time leader in strikeouts-per-nine-innings (12.98) among pitchers with at least 200 appearances in their career.
wrist injury took this superstar from forty-six to eight jacks. From one-hundred and one to seventeen extra-base hits. Now he’s healthy. Now he has thunder around him. Now it’s time to bring the lightning. The last time Derrek Lee was healthy for a full season, he had a higher batting average than Phat Albert Pujols. He had more doubles than Pujols. He had more triples than Pujols. He had more bombs and had a higher OPS than Pujols. Can he better than Pujols this year? I dunno about all that. I don’t know if he’s all that phat. I dunno if he’s phatter than that phat cat. I do know, he’ll be back in the saddle again. Quick Derrek Lee fun fact: Derrek Lee received a full-ride scholarship offer from the University of North Carolina to play basketball.
Rich Harden has the ability to win a Cy Young. I’m not just flinging dung. Not speaking in tongues. Harden has a 30-16 career mark with overpowering stuff. Mighty stuff. Marvelous stuff. Monumental stuff. Mind blowing stuff. Magnificent stuff. But his physical problems have taken him from thirty-one 
to nineteen to nine starts in three years. Word has it he’s now fit as a fiddle. A Stradivarius. With Big Barry Planet Zito gone, the A’s need Rich Harden. They need his ghost pitch to be most Caspery. At this point in the spring, Harden is throwing only fastballs and changeups, and he’s dominating. He just struck out five of the last six hitters he faced and tossed two scoreless innings in his team’s 4-3 win over the San Diego Padres. A’s fans gotta love that. They gotta love the fact he’s back in the saddle again. Quick Rich Harden fun fact: Harden began the 2003 season with Midland, and in 2 games, he had a 2-0 record and pitched 13 perfect innings, striking out 17 along the way.
Coco Crisp will be riding high in the saddle again. Crisp hurt his hand the first week of the season last year. Crisp was playing with a little bit of fear. Never really got out of second gear. Never returned to to full form. Never hit fastballs the way he once could. Now he’s all healed up. Now, with Julio Lugo on board, he can bat in a more comfortable spot in the two or eight spot. Now he can get hot. Hot as the Minnesota Vikings’ yacht. Now, he can be Coco Crisp, not just Johnny Damon’s replacement. Now, he’s back in the saddle again. Quick Coco Crisp fun fact: Coco's real name is Covelli Loyce Crisp.
thrown fifteen and a third innings the last two years. But with his gigantic heart. With his gigantic heart and giganticker changeup. With his gigantic heart, giganticker change and the gigantickest of breaking balls, he’s back in the saddle. Bigger than big, taller than tall. Quicker than quick, stronger than strong. Ready to fight for right, against wrong. Gigantor, Gigantor, Gigantor. If he can throw eighty-nine to ninety-three, he can be a young Trevor Hoffman. Deja vu all over again. Can he go fifty-five for fifty-five again? Can he go eighty-four for eighty-four for again? Can he throw for an incredible 1.20 ERA, 137 Ks and 20 walks in 82 1/3 innings pitched again? Probably not. Who could? He can ride back in the saddle again. Game over! Quick Eric Gagne fun fact: Gagne and catcher Russell Martin became the first French-Canadian-born battery in a MLB game.
