Dan Gould

Let's not all assume that the kid is going to just grow up with issues. Depending on how effective her indoctrination is, he just might grow up to be a racist too. Change the races around and maybe move the conversation to the dinner table, and this is how a lot of white racists are taught what to believe.

He's also doing it because Kazmir hasn't pitched so bad at Fenway, while Shields has (ERA of 12). So he figures Shields is a better bet to pitch great at home, if needed, regardless of what Kazmir does. But as I said, there's a risk that the bats wake up because, as curious as it may be, I suspect they like the idea of facing Kazmir. So if Dice-K manages to quiet the bats (I doubt he will) and our bats come alive, we might go into Tampa believing that it can happen again. In the meantime, I am absolutely thrilled to see that Florida State is playing NC State Thursday night. That will give me something to switch over to when the results at Fenway are annoying. FSU may be my alma mater but I hold no illusions about their chances this season, so watching them screw up against NC State won't be nearly as disappointing as watching the Sox fall. In fact, it will take my mind off of it. Oh who am I kidding? This is shaping up to be an awful hot stove season. All the teams I follow in college and the pros suck (Pats, Bears, FSU) or are coming back to Earth with a thud (Vandy). I could easily foresee that from this weekend until the Super Bowl, I won't give a shit who is playing whom or who wins or anything. I'll be looking for alternative activities Saturdays and Sundays (when do those chat sessions start anyway? )

Al, I think it would be great if you could handle what Mike has been doing to help keep this thing going. I can say that I avoided Thom's BFT based on the sound clips of his music on his site. NMCOT, to use a shorthand I hope doesn't fall into disuse. The number one thing that needs to be done it to reorganize the list of upcoming BFTs. A new thread should be started, plus PMs should be sent to all people currently on the list. They should be asked to state whether or not they are still interested, and what month they intend to offer their comps. I think we should reorganize everything to start with Sidewinder in December, and use the next six weeks to determine how everyone shakes out for 2009, with anyone who does not respond being dropped from the list or placed at the end, with some sort of "missing in action" or "not confirmed" note added. If the Mods can "pin" this thread, all the better. Thanks for stepping up, Al. I have been jotting down track ideas for my BFT and fully intend to participate. I just haven't had a chance to do anything more to be fully prepared to step in.

The Rays have switched to Kazmir for Game 5. And you know what? All of a sudden I have a tiny bit larger hope they can send it back to Tampa. I mean, Kazmir is the one guy we pounded. He hasn't pitched well against the Sox in almost all of his starts against Boston. Jason Bay has pounded him from the moment he came to the league, and Bay is one of the few guys that is hitting. Papi might even hammer one of his fastballs. Pedroia punished him. The Rays could be giving the sleeping giant a wake up call here. Shields has been the better pitcher, why bring back the guy who nearly lost Game 2? It won't matter in the end but I am going to change my prediction and say that the Sox will win, 8-3. I don't expect different results from Beckett at the Trop, but I do think they'll send it back there.

:party:

at the very least provide a link. i'm sick of seeing the commercial for some such up here where a fat gal gets a Sox logo on her shoulder. http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/speci...spirit_the.html I found another article in which the person offering the service said she won't dye the results but according to her website, she will die it "Rays Blue".

Point taken Al but isn't it easier to deal with when your pathetic team of embarrassing incompetents settles into where it belongs long before the playoff participants are decided? Instead of, say, making you believe they can win it all until a couple of lame-brained decisions a few days ago changed everything?

You cling to that dream. (and who the fuck was Francona going to bring in? I-let-all-inherited-runners-score Okajima? In the meantime, the Master Prognosticator is now predicting an equally embarrassing defeat on Thursday. Dice will walk the ballpark and as his first hit allowed with the bases loaded, Longoria will crank one over the Monster and the rout will be on. By the end of the game, it will sound like the Trop USED to sound like when the Red Sox visited, that is, it will sound like a home game for the visitors. For the first time since '86, league championship champagne will be spilled in Fenway, except it will flow in the visitor's clubhouse. And it is only appropriate that this pathetic team of embarrassing incompetents will sit and watch the party start.

Anyone want to question my prognostication skills now? Thank God for House (excellent episode, but I still managed to switch back to catch each ball rocket out of the park) but what I am going to distract myself with now? As to the arrogance of Rays fans, I direct you to this page at the Hardball Times site. The guy is a motherfucking asshole, and he's supposed to be giving logical reasons why the Rays should win. Instead the piece drips with arrogance and condescension (and for you Phils fans, he's looking forward to keeping your city in its place). Can you believe the arrogance of this a-hole? Oh, and last thing I have to mention - did anyone see the article about women getting bikini-wax "rayhawks" to "support the team"? First of all, how can anyone tell you are supporting the team, and secondly, isn't this what's been known as the "landing strip" for about 15 years?

Correct. What could we possibly have had to be arrogant about? "Close but no cigar" more times than anyone else?

Sorry but I don't recall any arrogance prior to 2004.

:party:

Well once again I forgot about it, though I had a good excuse - no rain so I decided to surprise my wife by cutting the overgrown yard.

Who says irony is dead? Any arrogance from the side of Red Sox fans had a basis in reality, that reality being the most successful team of the decade. The arrogance coming from Rays fans is based on a single season in which they've, by way of a couple of fluke victories, won anything only once. And yeah, Keith, I guess there's a chance they win tonight, on the theory of the same "reverse lock" that made the Rays whip Lester last night. But really, Wakefield off of two weeks rest against a team that no longer has any doubts whatsoever, and facing a piece of shit pitcher who the noodle bats couldn't touch when they were going good? I need some of the shit you're smoking.

My prediction: by 9:45 PM tomorrow, it will be all over but the shouting. 9-3 final. 3-1 deficit. 5-4 loss by Dice-K on Thursday. Or maybe a 5-4 win, followed by an embarrassing loss at Tampa in Game 6. It is OV-AH! And my new motto is : ANYONE BUT THE RAYS they think they are hot shit and their fans are arrogant fuckers (Paps excluded). I'll even cheer if Manny its who gets to be the turd in their punch bowl.

Hard to say for sure but I think it is new.

Not that it fucking matters. They're done.

And right off the motherfucking bat, TWO MORE GODDAMN BULLSHIT CALLS BY A POS UMPIRE.

Interesting episode coming up tomorrow morning on Air Emergency. The listing didn't trigger any memory so I googled "British Airways 009" and it turns out that is the flight that flew through an ash cloud from a volcanic eruption and lost all four engines. I liked this from the Wikipedia entry: Eventually they got an engine started and made an emergency landing, though the engines and windscreen were pretty severely damaged.

It was sudden and unexpected, but Farrell was definitely run before he came out there. The big sign Patrick was that there was no big theatrical "you're outta here!" toss while he was on the field! He came out, got in his face, and left with Tito trailing.

Interesting scenario just raised my Mazzarati. There's an extra off-day between games 4 and 5. That means that Lester could come back for Game 6 on regular rest, and Wakefield could pitch game 7 in the dome, if necessary, if they are convinced that Beckett can't or shouldn't go. I know Wakefield hasn't dominated the Rays like he used to but in a Game 7 its "all hands on deck" so if it gets that far, Tito better be ready to start pulling guys before games out of hand. If Beckett is hurt, they need to skip him. Maybe a few extra days helps, if we make the Series. He's not going to help us get there anyway. Ideally we win three straight but I'd be perfectly happy if it takes Lester in game 6 to nail it down. I haven't looked at the calendar but I bet that would still allow Lester to pitch Game 2 anyway.

You saw how brutal his strike zone was - mostly for the Rays, like a Lowery K and a couple of others, and against the Sox, like the pitch that triggered the ejection - but you will always have chirping from the dugout. He lost it after the third pitch and got tossed, I think he should have come out with double barrel birds in the umps face. And he came out after he was tossed, do you expect him to come out after the pitch before that was so obviously a strike? No one comes out to argue balls and strikes, they run their mouth from the dugout. And just as an aside, when they put up the graphic of umpires and their post-season experience, I said to my wife that starting with the second game, you are going to see shitty balls/strike calls. Yeah, the guys who have eight or ten years experience had to start out with zero or one years experience. But I'll bet they were pretty inconsistent then too. Prepare for more crappy calls ...

That '67 photo looks like a head shot for a hyper-serious TV news anchor.

The fact is we had our boot across the throats of these fuckers and now they are right back in "we can't lose" mode. All because of one fucking idiotic move by Grady Little (was he that certain that he couldn't get five shutout innings from his bullpen? He got SIX.) It just makes no sense at all - and the decision is made even more stupefying by sticking with that big ugly fuckin Texan asshole with Longoria coming up. ANY other fucking starting pitcher and this series is two zip. And as Paps said, just win one and it comes back to Tampa. What he didn't say is that it comes back to Tampa for another Beckett SUCKFEST.

There's a tiny hope they can pull this out, simply because the Rays have already burned two of their best bullpen arms and there are still 9 outs to go. And Masterson didn't throw many pitches last night, he should be fine for two innings if necessary, and with the day off you could see Papelbon for 1+ if they can get the lead.