Well At Least Jerry Remy's Sports Bar is Awesome

Pretty depressing loss for the Sox tonight. Lackey was studly, the Yanks did what they could to increase his pitch count, but he deserved to get the W in his first Boston start.

I've promised myself not to freak out as much this year when it comes to the Sox. With that in mind, I'll turn towards a great night at Jerry Remy's Sports Bar. For those of you who don't know where it is, it's behind Fenway Park at 1265 Bolyston street. It has a great beer selection, more TV's than you can look at, an open air feel with a commanding view of Fenway Park, decent food options, and great service. The opinion was shared by all of my buddies in attendance. It's safe to say we'll be headed back there multiple times this season.

Other quick takeaways before I crash....

-Lackey has never been a strike out pitcher, but, in my opinion, he could stand to attack the strike zone a bit more (this after one start's worth of review...)

-No matter what he says, it's likely that Lackey will never come off as an intelligent person (see George Bush's Southern Syndrome).

-I still don't understand how Andy Pettitte's arm is still attached to his shoulder, especially when you consider the amount of HGH he was using (people like to forget that fact...much like Ortiz).

-Ortiz got a RBI single tonight....in his mind, I'm sure that buys him 3 more weeks of mediocre stats.

-I hate that Curtis Granderson is on my fantasy team right now.

-I'm not worried about Papelbon. I swear.

....I think.

-Anyone else think that timely hitting is going to be more important than ever this year?

-Did Chan Ho Park really just limit the Sox to one hit over three innings? Chan Ho Park? Too bad we didn't have Cal Ripken Jr at the plate tonight.

-D Bard is filthy..how long before the nut bags start calling for him to close games?

-The Sox may be 1-2 after starts by Beckett, Lester and Lackey, but I somehow feel better about them now than I did at the beginning of the season.

Another off day tomorrow? What's this about?? Don't they know I need consistency in my life?

Strengths Sink Sox Against Yanks

Starting pitching, defense and the bullpen. All are viewed as strengths for the upcoming season for the Red Sox.

Tonight however, not so much. Lester, who looked electric at times, struggled with his control and only got through five innings. The bullpen didn't fare much better as Oki surrendered a bases loaded walk as well as the lead in the 8th inning. Although it wasn't all his fault....

Marco Scutaro's two out throwing error allowed for the inning to continue. While the Yanks committed three errors to the Sox one, Boston's late miscue proved more significant.

Neither team can feel great about their respective wins....but it's game two, we can't rush to any judgements.

Some additional thoughts:

-David Ortiz is going to drive me absolutely nuts. Don't give me the "we need to wait until the weather gets warm" crap...it's been 75 degrees all week. Tomorrow is headed for 85. Sure, he needs to earn a seat on the bench, but also needs to earn his secured spot in the lineup. Time will tell.

-I continue to hate Jorge Posada with a passion. For me, he's baseball's version of Karl Malone.....and man do I always have some choice words when his name comes up.

-Jeter may be limited in his range, but his timing and baseball IQ remains second to none at short. Gotta respect that.

-It's nice to see Beltre is off to solid start. Hopefully he doesn't put too much pressure on himself and lets the game (and production numbers) come to him.

-I can't wait to see what V-Mart 's full season numbers look like. It should be an interesting season of contract talks.

-Did JD Drew play tonight? I don't remember seeing him at all.

-D Bard's breaking stuff is nasty when it follows a hundy spot fastball. Ask A-rod

-Marcus Thames? Really?

Myself and some college buddies are headed right to Remy's Sports Bar after work tomorrow. If we can get in, I'll report back with some thoughts. If I'm smart, I won't blog from the b-berry after the 5th inning, it could be messy.

Please Tell Me This is Fake...

This video has to be doctored right? I'm sure the Boston FBI has dropped everything and are investigating it, but if it's real, someone needs to be held accountable. I'm talking door to door searches for anyone with ties to NY.

Until it's confirmed, I'm going to believe it's fake....mostly because it makes me feel better.

Big Jon Stud Lester on the mound tonight. Go Sox.

(ITM note: Videos and Blogger do not like each other, I'm working on the HTML format so bear with me) - Thanks to Barstoolsports-Boston for the find.

Pedroia: Peforming Well On and Off the Diamond

(According to Pedey, Tito's guns can only bench fives...)

It's a new day tomorrow and we've got a long season ahead of us. It's a marathon, not a sprint....one game answers nothing, we have the same questions tonight as we did on Saturday night.....all that good stuff....


But Dustin Pedroia again went beyond just entertaining us on the diamond last night. After being the catalyst in Boston's comeback victory last night, he also managed to zing his head coach yet again....

Courtesy of the Globe....

......Francona was less pleased by how early he had arrived at the ballpark yesterday morning, in advance of the 8:10 p.m. start. “It was a mistake,’’ he said. “I was going to exercise. I just ate twice.’’ Said Pedroia, “Tito was in full uni, bench pressing fives. He was ready to go at 10:30 in the morning.’’


Gotta love Pedroia. It's a fitting way to end the day. Go Sox.

And The Emotional Roller Coaster Begins...

What an amazing opening night. Here are some quick game one take aways (drafted on the subway, via blackberry):

-The emotional roller coaster started right out the gate, at least the Sox didn't delay the inevitable?

-Pedro throwing out the first pitch made me miss him. Diva-ness aside,1999 remains the best season I've ever seen from a pitcher.

-Beckett left pitches up in the zone and looked shaky at best. That said, I'm not worried. He had no feel for his curve ball, and was essentially limited to two pitches. He'll be fine.

-Neither team should be too happy about the game, potent lineups, but sloppy middle relief.

-For one game at least, the offense silenced the critics.

-The new guys at the bottom of the order had a nice opening act,consistency will be key.

-Pedroia and Youk are still undervalued. They're the heart and soul of this team.

-If any of my neighbors have just moved in over the past 4 or 5months, they're about to realize a major change in the building. I hope they don't try to fall asleep early.

-I love having Peter Gammons on NESN. (Trick question, Gammons is god). Although he may dive across the table and strangle Jim Rice by game 14.

-Heidi brought her A game for opening night. Boom.

-How classic was JD's called strike three in the 2nd inning? Vintage stuff. He battled hard over 8 pitches but took a called strike 3 right over the plate. He showed no emotion and was making himself a sandwich on the bench by the time the ball made it around the horn.

-In the 5th inning my brother texted me that he was too mad to watch anymore and was going to bed. 2 innings later, when the Sox tied it,he calls me screaming in excitement. Yep, it's officially Red Sox season.

-I'm amazingly happy the Sox got the W last night. If not this Monday off day would be terrible for everyone near me. The words Monday and off day (in regards to the Sox) are a terrible combination. Couple that with a opening night loss to the Yankees and I would've lost it.

Hate the fact that today's an off day already. Such a tease. Go Sox.

Happy Opening Day....Night...Whatever, Get Pumped

It's Opening Day (night), at Fenway.....against the Yankees....and 70 degrees out. Get pumped.

We considered doing a live blog for tonight's game, but in the end figured we all need to really let this sink in.

So finish up your Easter celebrations, run around in circles outside to shake off the butterflies, grab a beer, your Red Sox shirt and hat.....and settle in for a 4 hour season opener.

Go Sox!

Spring Training in Italia? Sì Per Favore

This story actually ran in the Globe yesterday, but letting it go without mention would be like being in the batter's box with a three and one count, only to watch a 87 mph meatball go right down the middle.

Now I know some people see playing spring training baseball games in Southern Italy as "unamerican" and even, "unitalian", but that's certainly not my take.

We already make a big deal about going to Ft Myers for spring training in March now, imagine going to Sicily in March, warm weather, the Italian culture, Mediterranean women, amazing food, and Red Sox baseball. "Ma, per me, come un Vicino, è una bella cosa" (but, for me, as a Vicino, it's a beautiful thing).

...Perhaps we should also consider the idea of expanding the game's appeal, yadda yadda yadda.

After reading the article I immediately called ITMgal, who informed me that if I'm taking her to Italy it's not to watch baseball. No matter, I know that other Vicino's along with T and Joe Murph (Irishness aside) will be joining should my utopia world should it occur.

Also, can you imagine Pedroia in Sicily? There would be no middle ground. He'd either get himself killed, or be an immediate icon on the island.

Who can I call to support this? Obama? Let's get this done. Maybe I'll draft up a memo of ITM's support.

What are your thoughts on this? Unamerican and taking away from the smaller southern cities in the US? Or a complete utopia?

(ITM note: keep in mind, it's not for all of spring training, just a few games...i'm not trying too hard to sway your opinion with that statement)