It's Time

Call it an irrational hunch, but somewhere deep down inside I feels it's true. It's time for these Red Sox.

Now is the time for this team to find its stride, build some momentum, and work their way back up the standings in the AL East.

Why? Good question, but here are some bullets laced with optimism:

- starting pitching: after throwing up all over themselves for their first few starts, collectively, the train appears to be getting back on track. Heck, even Dice-k threw a gem. Couple that with a surprisingly strong outing from Lackey (sad reality), and Buchholz remembering he's Clay Buchholz...and all of a sudden your pitching staff is on a roll with the two horses of Beckett and Lester up next to keep the ball rolling downhill against a relatively weak hitting Halos club.

- Carl Crawford: simply put, he can only get better...and he's starting to show signs of it. The pressure is off a bit, and he still owes Jed Lowrie a few steak dinners for keeping the media spotlight off of him lately. This guy will hit for us, and with any luck, it'll be a fatalist for everyone else in the lineup (looking at you Jacoby)

-Youk: don't look now, but he's coming on. He just missed a two tater game a few night la ago by inches, and he seems to be providing the Sox with the timely hitting they desperately need.

- comfort: I think we forget that this team (regardless of on paper talent) hasn't played together much. They're still getting comfortable in a new clubhouse, with new teammates, a new manager, and in a new city. The odds were somewhat stacked against them right out of the gate given the hype and expectations.

- It's a Marathon not a Sprint: 4.5 games back with about 378 to go, we'll be fine.


PS: I reserve the right to freak out on the flip side of all of the above stated items in my next list. After all, that's what we do.

PPS: typed this up at 4:30am on my iPhone while on a train to Gatwick for a long weekend away. See how much I poured?