Red Sox Diary
Saturday, October 9, 2004: Wow. Wow! That was a hell of a game for the Red Sox. They took a 6-1 lead, squandered it when Vladdy Guerrero bashed a grand slam off of previously imperturbable playoff pitcher Mike Timlin, and then in dramatic fashion won it when Big Papi David Ortiz hit a home run into the Boston skyline and into history in the 10th inning to give us a dramatic 8-6 extra innings win in Fenway.
I think it is safe to say that I went a little batty throughout the whole game, which I watched at Vette’s sports bar in Odessa. I nearly got thrown out of the bar after Vladdy’s MVP-affirming Grand Slam when I let out an explosive F-Bomb in the bar. One of the customers took umbrage, he’s a regular, and a bit of an ass, and he went to the owner. I offered to leave, reminding them that my rather sizeable bill would remain open if I did, and they asked me to settle down a bit. They were ready to throwq me out after Ortiz’s home run when I went nuts, which strikes me as the dumbest attitude ever. This is a sports bar. They claimed that they don’t advertise that way, which is bizarre, since the sign out front says rather clearly “Sports Bar and Grill.”
No matter. This was one of the all-time great Sox wins to cap our second postseason series sweep ever (in 1975 they swept the defending World Champion Oakland A’s to get to the Series.) Dlowe came in to relieve Foulke, who struggled a bit but did not give up any runs. He ended up getting the win, something that I would suspect is gratifying for him but also for those of us who remember the cajones he showed in the postseason last year. Damon was simply an on-base machine and Millar and Manny did what we’ve come to expect from them in big games. Arroyo was outstanding. And the whole lineup just scratched and clawed, making great plays in the field (Cabrera), getting timely hits (Trot) and never giving up (Ortiz!!!!).
Schill had “Why Not Us?” T-shirts made up and some of the guys were wearing them in the locker room where champagne and beer doused victory cigars. Fenway was alive, with “Dlowe” chants and general merriment. He Sox are rolling. We do not care which team we play, Twins or Yankees (The Yanks took a 2-1 lead in their series last night by bashing the twins 8-4 bur even with that lead their bullpen is so ravaged they actually had to bring in Rivera for the save – a very good omen.)
I do not know how I will survive the next three days, but we’re returning to the ALCS, and I am exuberant, if a bit hungover from celebrating in the appropriate excess. Hope continues to push dread into the recesses of our consciousness, one Ortiz bomb at a time. If it takes me getting thrown out of every bar in West Texas, I'll make those sacrifices.