Yaz, Youuuk, and Sweet Caroline
As I mentioned in the FREE Red Sox Insider newsletter, I’m sure I’m not the only one who breathed a sigh of relief when I heard that Yaz’s triple bypass surgery was complete success and that he is now resting comfortably. Thanks to all of you who had your thoughts and prayers with number 8 (who will be celebrating his 69th birthday on Friday!)
Now onto what what’s putting dents in the Green Monster this Week…
Here’s a question I will pose to all of you this week: If it was the bottom of the ninth in our last regular season game, with the bases loaded, with two outs, and we were down by 2 runs….and our playoff hopes all hinged on this one at bat, who would you like to see at the plate?
Would it be Youk, who’s just been smoking the ball lately? Would it be Pedroia, who’s just been drilling “lasers” off the green monster all year? Would it be Jason Bay, who’s done nothing but score and drive in runs since he arrived? How ’bout J.D. Drew, who’s been as consistent as anybody all year-round? Or then again, is it that guy Ortiz??
They’re not quite double-jointed as Phelps, as elegant as Nastia, or as timeless as Misty May and Kerri Walsh, but those 5 guys (6 if you count the injured Mike Lowell) have become quite the formidable group of hitters.
And I’m not saying this as a bad thing. We just have an incredibly well-balanced offense now. You could easily make the case for any one of those aforementioned guys to be the one you want to see in a clutch situation.
I’m interested to hear what you think and what your rationale would be. Let me know in the comments.
From the, “I can’t believe what I just saw” column…try this one: And yes, I actually did see this with my own eyes. The other day, American Idol’s Melinda Doolittle sang the National Anthem. As she was exiting the field (minding her own business), Dustin Pedroia ran up to the top step of the dugout (like an 8 year old hearing the sweet sound of the ice cream truck), screaming, “Melinda! Melinda! I voted for you!!” He stuck his hand out hoping she would stop by to shake it (which she, very graciously did). It was by far one of the funniest things I’ve seen all year. The best part…he was completely serious.
Also, it should be known that everyone who met Melinda said she was one of the nicest celebrities they’ve ever met. Turns out she really is as sweet as she seemed on TV.
Ok, outside of baseball, there is a bedazzled jacket wearing rock star coming into town this Saturday, and I’ll admit, I’m not sure if I’ll laugh or cheer when I see the outfits he sports when he comes on stage.
I’m also quite intriuged to hear how loud the crowd is for “Sweet Caroline.” I think I might get the chills for that one. And yes, I do realize how embarrassing that is. I just don’t care.
“Sweet Caroline,” of course, was written about Caroline Kennedy (daughter of JFK), and has been played in Fenway Park since 2001. Ironically enough, the first year “Sweet Caroline” was played at every single Red Sox home game was 2004. Coincidence??
Also, while we’re on the subject of concerts, I want to pass along our condolences to the family and friends of the very talented LeRoi Moore, the saxophonist for the Dave Matthews Band. As I’m sure many of you know, the Dave Matthews Band played Fenway Park in the summer of 2006. Moore passed away from sudden complications following an ATV accident.
And after somewhat of a hiatus, I’m happy to bring the return of the fan photo of the week! This week, I’m highlighting a great photo of Dan, formerly of Hampden, Maine. This was taken while Dan was in the Chilean Andes, near Santiago, Chile. I feel like this is one of those Leonardo DiCaprio “I’m the kind of the world!” type moments. If you’d like to send your Sox photo in, please email it to me at insider@redsox.com.
All is pretty quiet in the Front Office today. We just read a few more Laffy Taffy jokes (none of them worth sharing). And while we’re on the subject of not worth sharing…let’s talk about the performance of the Front Office employees at our weekly (when the team is not in town) Front Office basketball league…a little rusty ladies and gents…I expect better next time around. Embarrassing pictures will be spared this time…
All the best from inside the Front Office!
“The Voice of the Nation”
PS – I should mention that not everybody was rusty at basketball. Really, it was just me.
Red Sox Insider Blog 
This really has something to do with Beckett’s numbness in his fingers… I had a similar thing happen to me when I would swim a few years ago and went to a physical therapist who said I was pinching a nerve in my neck that gave my fingers the numb feeling. He gave me some neck stretching exercises to do before swimming and it never happened again…. Something to consider…
In the last gasp scenario you pose (2 runs down, 2 outs, bases loaded), I’m going to go with fan favorite David Ortiz. But that’s not just popular appeal speaking. The stats also support this selection.
Baseball Prospectus (and probably other SABRmetric sources as well) have a very insightful table called “RBI Opportunties” which records how often a batter converts men on base into runs. (You could be RBI champion and have a low OBI% [% of Opportunities Batted In] if you’ve got teammates batting ahead of you who are always getting on base; conversely, the best OBI player in the world will not produce many RBIs if no one’s getting on base.)
Since we need to get at least two runs (and preferably three) the person I want up is the player who most often delivers with a runner on second. By this measure, David is clearly the best of the Red Sox (delivering 28% of the time); he’s also by far the best in getting a runner on first in (10% versus #2 Youkilis). Ortiz is not only the best of the Sox but he’s also #3 in the AL, trailing overall leader Brian Buscher by a miniscule 0.3%.
Interesting sidenote: the overall best OBI% on the Sox is Lowrie at 22.7%. He’s also #3 in the league and matches up with David for delivering runners from second. By way of contrast, the absolutely worse player in the AL (among hitters with more than 150 plate appearances) is the man Lowrie replaced, Julio Lugo, who trails even Andy Marte!
Glad to hear Yaz came out of surgery OK. My thoughts go out to LeRoi Moore’s family and DMB. Will miss his magical sax! On to the Sox! Looks like they are back in the offensive groove. Bats are connecting and Lester and Dice-K put in some good games. Lets hope we can ride this into our next few series when we head back to Toronto for some payback and then to the Evil Empire. For the question posed to us readers for the guy I would want in that particular situation….two words, BIG PAPI. GO SOX!
Hmm. Two outs, bottom of the ninth, two strikes….I’d have to go with Youk. I’d say Papi, but sometimes he gets anxious and swings big and hard; Youk’s got a tad more patience to watch for the right pitch.
Just my humble opinion… 🙂
http://supergoddessgirl.blogspot.com
I would put in Pedroia. One nice single ties the game. Then you follow up with Youk to win it. Sorry I couldn’t say “Big Papi” because he is my sentimental favorite.
PS. Loved the anecdote about Dustin “Pedroyer” (that’s RemDawg speak) voting for Melinda. Who’s his pick for “Dancing with the Stars?” LOL
Definitely would want Pedroia in that situation. He would be the most level headed in that situation.
I’m not commenting on any article. I just wanted Red Sox Nation to know there’s a reall hard fight going on to get the Red Sox to Sarasota, Fl for spring training. It used to be the training complex where Ted Williams practiced in 1959, the year I was born in Boston. Please pass this on. We need your help down here.
Florida Fan
I think right now and the way he is swinging the bat it would be Pedroia. He is one of most fiesty ball players I’ve seen in awhile. He goes to bat everytime to shut up all the people that said he was too small for the game. Okay you guessed it I’m the same size as him…..got to go with my boy
IM IN A QUANDERY – WHY CANT THEY EVER WIN A GAME AGAINST THE WORST TEAMS IN THE LEAGUE. THEY SHOULD BE WAY OUT IN FRONT . THEY SURE DO PLAY HELL WITH THE BEST ,BUT WHEN IT COMES TO TEAMS LIKE SEATTLE THEY GET THEIR A_ _ KICKED
WHY?
I love all My Red Sox’s Dustin is on fire. Youkie is My all time favorite. He wakes ups the bats when we meed him. Ellisbury is so great. Bay, Has been a great investment. Manny who???? He wants to go to the Yankees. Just like Johnny Damon before him. Sell yourself to the devil. Good luck. Every Red Sox’s player gives their all. I cheern on all of them.
I am one supporter of Melinda Doolittle a backups (fan) she is a amazing singer. Melinda Doolittle the talented vocalist with a heart of gold. The album’s first single, “It’s Your Love,” was released to radio stations nationwide in September. If you want more update about her album come join her supporter at http://www.melindasbackups.com You are all very welcome!
Good news for you Melinda Doolittle fans! She’s set to release her debut album titled, Coming Back to You on Hi-Fi Recordings in January 09. Produced by Grammy-nominated producer Mike Mangini (Joss Stone, Run DMC, The Jonas Brothers), Coming Back to You was recorded with a team of live musicians in Nashville and New York City.
The first single, “It’s Your Love” will be released to radio in October.
“Keep yourself updated with Melinda’s career at http://www.melindasbackups.com“
melindasbackups.com is a web site owned by Melinda Doolittle. Melinda’s Backups™ is a non-profit supportive association inspired by Melinda and authorized by her to operate this web site on behalf of her fans.