I don't know why I keep picking against the Red Sox. As good as their pitching is, as solid as their line up is, their number one asset is they know how to win. A professional operation through and through.
Now last night was just one game, and the Rays demonstrated amazing comeback power in regular head-to-head match ups against the BoSox. Down the stretch Tampa Bay played well in Fenway. But winning last night in the Trop - a stadium I campaigned against, by the way, when I lived in St. Pete primarily due to the fact that they built it on a small toxic waste site, a former transfer station for dry cleaning fluids or something like that - is big for Boston.
Lost in all the talk of Lester and Beckett was the fact that Matsuzaka had a great season in his own right, winning more games than any other Red Sox starter. He was a dominant, shut down starter last night, the kind of clutch performance you want from a starter on the road.
Tonight's game is big for two reasons: to see if the Rays, especially their offense, can bounce back; and to see how healthy Beckett is. Should be another good game.
I'm also being proven wrong by the Phillies-Dodgers series, though the Phillies are being patient before they unleash their offense. The first six hitters in that line up are impressive, but I didn't expect them to overwhelm Billingsley like they did last night.
Game one was a tense play off classic, the kind of game where one mistake can do a lot of damage. On Thursday it did, and it cost Lowe and the Dodgers. That said, I still love Rafael Furcal. Why the Braves let him walk is beyond me.
Carolina Football Update
Brand image still goes a long way, which explains why I am so focused on Carolina's game today against Notre Dame. Carolina is the higher ranked team, and is playing at home, but still feels like the underdog against a team with Notre Dame's reputation and history.
That said, I hope we beat them badly. Doing so would go a long way in cementing the notion that Carolina football is legit, which in turn should really help with recruiting especially in state with NC State being kind of down but also regionally.
Conversely, a win over the Fighting Irish may give fans and alumni the false impression that the rehabilitation of the football program is complete, an assertion that I imagine Butch Davis would reject. Realistically, I doubt that will happen; it's my impression that alumni like it when the football team is decent and respectable but don't get that invested in the program.
Election Update
Interesting to see how the mean-spirited crowds at Palin rallies became a story this week. Sadly, it's explainable when you look at the right-wing echo chamber in this country, namely Fox News, talk radio and certain blogs and websites. You just don't see that kind of anger on the left, for better or worse (obviously for the better, though it would have been nice to see so left-wing anger over invading the wrong country in response to the attacks of September 11th).
Their anger reminds me, again, that right-wingers are less patriotic than left-wingers in my book. They are much more ideological than the left, and certainly more angry then left is too. This vitriol reminds me of Duke and Carolina fans. Dookies seem to hate us much more than we hate them.
As exhibit A, look at how the right treated John Kerry's military service. Kerry volunteered for Vietnam - unlike President Bush - and unlike John McCain - who flew a bomber - Kerry was on a boat and on the ground fighting his war. Again unlike McCain, he was responsible for a squad of men, saw those men die, and perhaps more importantly saw the people he killed. In short, all the attributes Republicans laud about McCain that Kerry displayed were mocked and challenged.
One reason liberals stayed quiet in the run up to the war in Iraq five years ago was the consensus that as a nation we have to support our troops (of course, the other reason is the President lied, etc). The hypocrites on the right did not afford John Kerry the same respect or courtesy four years ago.
