Papelove

Jonathan Papelbon is really moving up in the world. Not only was he listed as the top closer to draft in MLB.com's Fantasy Preview for 2008 but yesterday he was an answer/question on Jeopardy.

The question/answer was something like: This closer for the 2007 Red Sox is famous for his celebratory jigs. (I don't know how much I agree with that but whatever.) None of the contestants knew the answer but I totally geeked-out all over the gym (where I happened to be when it was on.)

If everyone listened to me, then the world would be a better place.

I've tried to keep my chatter on here related to baseball or, at the least, tangentially related to the Red Sox. And so I apologize for this but it needs to be said.

All this talk about the Giants-Patriots being Red Sox-Yankees II is driving me nuts. I've tried to dismiss it as being media hype but people are buying into it and it just isn't true. My Dad and my Uncles are all Red Sox-Giants fans. This guy I work with, Mike, is one of the crazies of Red Sox fandom (Seriously. If there is a weekday afternoon game, he'll sit in his office wearing his Varitek jersey over his shirt and tie while listening to the game on the radio.) He's a Steelers fan. Sports loyalties are formed when we're young and the Patriots weren't around when these guys needed to pick a football team. If I cared one fig about football, then out of loyalty to my father I would be a Giants fan and would be hoping for a Giants victory tomorrow.

The Patriots don't have the same following as the Red Sox. With the exception of Connecticut, baseball fans in New England who aren't Red Sox fans are few and far between. It's not difficult, however, to find people who are fans of football teams other than the Patriots. Go to a sports memorabilia store if you need further proof. So it would be impossible to have the same acrimonious rivalry between the teams. Also, the NY Jets would be a better candidate for Red Sox-Yankees II than the NY Giants but that's beside the point.

It's like Christmas-I can't wait for tomorrow. Except what I really want is for tomorrow to be over, so that we can all move on. Spring Training starts in less than two weeks. And with the Santana deal being official ($137.5 million/6 years), when I search for interesting little news and tidbits I won't have to wade through hundreds of articles about Red Sox-Yankees II and Santana (will he or won't he) to find anything worth passing on.

Francona on Santana and Lester

Terry Francona gave an interview to the Associated Press today.

He talked about being glad Santana was in the National League, the rooks coming up, and how much he likes Lester. He had this to say about him (Lester):

"Jon's very aware of how I feel about him. I think he knows how the entire organization feels about him. He's got a pretty mature attitude about this whole thing. He's fine."

and I also liked this one:

"I don't want to rate the Yankees. I've got a tough enough time worrying about us. I don't know. I hope every team we play struggles."

Sean Casey, no.--

Pending a physical, meet the newest (and possibly the friendliest) member of the 2008 Boston Red Sox.

Birth Date: July 2, 1974 in Willingboro Township, NJ

Height/Weight: 6'4", 215 lb

College: University of Richmond (majored in Communications)

Contract: 1 year for either $700,000 (per Peter Gammons) or $800,000 (per Boston Globe)

Last year, Casey played 143 games for the Detroit Tigers. He had 453 At Bats and scored 40 Runs off 134 Hits. He had 30 Doubles, 1 Triple, and 4 Home Runs. His Batting Average was a pretty good .296. The mighty Casey (I know it's obvious but I can't resist) Struck Out 42 times. He Walked 39 times, he was Intentionally Walked 11 times. His On Base Percentage was a decent .353. His Slugging average was kind of low at .393. The two combine for a below average On base Plus Slugging of .746.

At first base last season, Casey had 992 Put Outs, he had 42 Assists, and was charged with 2 Errors. He turnd 87 Double Plays (78 more than he grounded into.) His Fielding Percentage was .998, which was slightly above the league average (.995). His Range Factor (9.41) was above the league average of 9.10.

I don't think anyone has ever said a bad thing about Sean Casey. He was overwhelmingly voted the game's friendliest player. He talks to everyone who happens to make it to his corner. He has a charity in Lawrence, MA that he supports that works to feed hungry people and to eliminate stereotyping.

Oh Dear

Alex Cora was arrested in Florida yesterday (January 30).

In 1999, he was arrested for DUI, pled no contest to the charges, and then failed to show up for a probation violation hearing. He turned himself in yesterday and was released on $20,000 bond.

Yaz and Yaz jr. jr.

It seems that Carl Yastrzemski's genes are the dominant sort. The picture below is Yastrzemski's grandson K.C. McCarthy, who plays first base for the Flagler College baseball team in St. Augustine. Yastrzemski was at the school for a fundraiser for the team (very brief video here). I think they look very similar.

You've Gotta Have Heart! All You Really Need is Heart! When the Odds are Sayin': You'll Never Win. That's When the Grin Should Start!

Wondering why you couldn't get tickets last weekend?

Probably because everybody and their uncle was buying them. Through (I guess) the end of Sunday, they had sold 2,343,204 tickets. But take heart (which is the phrase that lead to the singing earlier) through a simple calculation I have discovered that there is a quantity of tickets somewhere in the neighborhood of 627, 821 still unsold. If you want to try your luck, go here to register for the random drawing.

And more lyrics (for inspiration):

We've got hope!

We don't sit around and mope!

Not a solitary sob do we heave!

Mister, cause we've got hope!