The 2005 Red Sox and Beyond

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Red Sox Relinquish Lead

August was a highly disappointing month for the Boston Red Sox, posting a 9-29 record over the course of the month, as they relinquished the division lead, but not to the New York Yankees, to none other than the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Red Sox entered the month was a .606 winning percent, a 4 game lead over the Yankees, and with a solid month would've all but put the division away, however, they come out of August with a .545 winning percent and sit two games back of the division leading Devil Rays and its going to take a good month just to get into the playoffs. As has been the story of the season the offense was godly, but the pitching was terrible this month. They put up a total of 171 runs in August, 6.1 per game, but they allowed 192, an average of approximately 6.9 per game. Including allowing 32 runs in a 3 game series to the normally offensively anemic Twins, and 27 runs in a 3 game series to the 44-88 Kansas City Royals. If the Red Sox are going to make the playoffs their pitching will have to come around at least to some degree.

The Good:

• Despite the struggling of the pitching staff on a whole Curt Schilling has been quite good, including a perfect game against the Tigers August 28th, he is 4-2 with a 4.34 ERA 65 K's and 9 BB's in last 10 starts.
• The team is, for the most part, finally healthy. Only a few injuries remain, Wade Miller could return for the playoffs, if we make it that far, Arroyo will be out for the rest of the season, and Renteria and Ramon Vazquez are the only players with injuries remaining. Renteria could conceivably return for the World Series, if the Red Sox make it that far.
• Hanley Ramirez has been on fire lately. He is hitting .357 (15-42), in his last 10 games, to go along with 13 runs, 2 homers, 9 RBI's, and 7 stolen bases.

The Bad and The Ugly:

• The pitching has been downright miserable. They currently have a team ERA of 5.14, and even the normally solid bullpen has an ERA of 5.04.
• Their 9-19 slump has caused them to slip from 3rd in the Power Rankings, all the way down to 21st.
• Matt Clement has an ERA of 6.60, enough said.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

League Summary

AL Division Standings:

AL EAST

Tampa Bay Devil Rays (75-59)
Boston Red Sox (72-60) 2 GB Would have tiebreaker with loser of AL Central
New York Yankees (71-62) 3.5 GB
Toronto Blue Jays (68-64) 6 GB
Baltimore Orioles (44-89) 30. 5 GB


AL CENTRAL

Detroit Tigers (72-60)
Cleveland Indians (73-61) Would have tiebreaker with each other
Minnesota Twins (69-64) 3.5 GB
Chicago White Sox (63-69) 9 GB
Kansas City Royals (44-88) 28 GB


AL WEST

Texas Rangers (78-55)
Los Angeles Angels (70-62) 7.5 GB
Seattle Mariners (64-68) 13.5 GB
Oakland A's (64-68) 13.5 GB


NL Division Standings:

NL EAST

Philadephia Phillies (79-54)
Atlanta Braves (75-58) 4 GB
New York Mets (72-60) 6.5 GB
Washington Nationals (69-64) 10 GB
Florida Marlins (64-69) 15 GB


NL CENTRAL

St. Louis Cardinals (78-56)
Houston Astros (75-57) 2 GB
Chicago Cubs (69-64) 8.5 GB
Pittsburgh Pirates (61-73) 17 GB
Milwaukee Brewers (58-75) 19.5 GB
Cincinnati Reds (54-79) 23.5 GB


NL WEST

San Fransisco Giants (72-60)
Arizona Diamondbacks (71-64) 2.5 GB
Los Angeles Dodgers (65-68) 7.5 GB
San Diego Padres (52-80) 20 GB
Colorado Rockies (52-81) 20.5 GB

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

The Red Sox are 2005 AL East Champions!

The Red Sox posted an 18-10 mark in September, but it would all come down to the final game of the season. The Red Sox needed one win in the final series of the year against the rival New York Yankees, but they dropped the first two and appeared to be on the verge of a historical collapse. The Red Sox would send journeyman starter Geremi Gonzalez to the mound against lefty Eric Milton, with the division on the line, and Gonzalez pitched the game of his life. Gonzalez allowed 1 unearned run in 7 1/3 IP on 9 total baserunners (7 hits and 2 walks) and 5 K's, Eric Milton, in comparison, wouldn't even make it through the 4th before allowing 5 runs on 4 homers. The Red Sox bullpen almost coughed it up, though, as Fuentes and Bradford combined for 2/3 of an inning 5 runs, 4 hits, and 3 walks.The Yankees came up with two in the 9th to make it 8-6 Boston, but thats where it would end, and Foulke came in to shut the door and give the Red Sox their first AL East Crown since the 90's.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Playoff Preview

New York Yankees (90-72) @ Detroit Tigers (90-72)

Game 1: NYY Kevin Brown (15-6, 3.49) @ DET Jeremy Bonderman (14-10, 3.77)

Game 2: NYY Jaret Wright (5-12, 7.32) @ DET Nate Robertson (12-13, 5.10)

Game 3: DET Mike Maroth (9-6, 3.87) @ NYY Carl Pavano (3-2, 5.21)

Game 4 (if needed): DET Matt Ginter (2-0, 6.05) @ NYY Eric Milton (9-10, 6.36)

Game 5 (if needed): NYY Kevin Brown (15-6, 3.49) @ DET Jeremy Bonderman (14-10, 3.77)

Prediction: Tigers in 5, on the strength of their pitching

Texas Rangers (89-73) @ Boston Red Sox (91-71)

Game 1: TEX Chris Young (12-9, 4.06) @ BOS Ben Sheets (11-12, 4.88)

Game 2: TEX Chan Ho Park (13-5, 4.32) @ BOS Curt Schilling (7-3, 4.53)

Game 3: BOS Wade Miller (6-4, 3.93) @ TEX Ryan Drese (11-11, 5.43)

Game 4 (if needed): BOS Odalis Perez (11-10, 5.22) @ TEX Justin Thompson (7-12, 7.09)

Game 5 (if needed): TEX Chris Young (12-9, 4.06) @ BOS Ben Sheets (11-12, 4.88)

Prediction: Red Sox in 5, how could I pick against myself?

Atlanta Braves (91-71) @ St. Louis Cardinals (98-64)

Game 1: ATL Horacio Ramirez (16-8, 4.75) @ STL Mark Mulder (9-6, 4.18)

Game 2: ATL John Thomson (12-6, 3.19) @ STL Matt Morris (14-9, 4.03)

Game 3: STL Jeff Suppan (13-12, 4.06) @ ATL John Smoltz (8-5, 2.95)

Game 4 (if needed): STL Chris Carpenter (12-2, 3.25) @ ATL Tim Hudson (13-6, 2.75)

Game 5 (if needed): ATL Horacio Ramirez (16-8, 4.75) @ STL Mark Mulder (9-6, 4.18)

Prediction: Cardinals in 4, better all around team

San Fransisco Giants (87-75) @ Philadephia Phillies (99-63)

Game 1: SFG Jason Schmidt (13-10, 3.87) @ PHI Brett Myers (8-8, 3.83)

Game 2: SFG Noah Lowry (6-6, 5.13) @ PHI Randy Wolf (9-9, 5.44)

Game 3: PHI Cory Lidle (10-7, 4.19) @ SFG Brett Tomko (8-9, 5.62)

Game 4 (if needed): PHI Eude Brito (5-4, 4.36) @ SFG Kirk Rueter (10-5, 3.77)

Game 5 (if needed): SFG Jason Schmidt (13-10, 3.87) @ PHI Brett Myers (8-8, 3.83)

Prediction: Phillies in 3, much better offense

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

I'm doing the playoffs in PBP manager mode, btw.

[MisteroCZ]

Pretty good dynasty. Keep up the good work, and I'm wondering, who'll win it all.

[Red Sox Fan 734]

Good job getting them to win the east. What was tampa's record after september?

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Tampa's record in the month of September was 11-15, and they finished 88-74 overall. I'm expecting them to be even better next year though. I'll do my game 1 recap of the LDS in a bit.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Red Sox Crush Texas, Lose Ortiz

The Red Sox dismantled the Texas Rangers, in game one of the ALDS, scoring 8 runs on 10 hits. However, it looked like it may be a long night at first for Sox game one starter Ben Sheets, after allowing a leadoff double to Alfonso Soriano, it would be the exact opposite, Sheets allowed only 4 hits and didn't allow any runs until Rod Barajas hit a solo homer in the top of the 8th. The big bats for the Sox got it done, as the 1-6 hitter (Johnny Damon, Jay Payton, David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Kevin Millar, and Bill Mueller) combined to go 9-24 with 3 homers, 7 RBI's, and all 8 runs that were scored. The victory game at a cost, though, as DH David Ortiz will miss the rest of the ALDS and most, if not all, of the ALCS, if the Red Sox make it that far, with a pulled groin that he suffered taking a swing in his last AB of the game.

Texas Rangers at Boston Red Sox
October 4, 2005

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rangers (TEX) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0    1  4  1
       Red Sox (BOS) 1 0 2 0 5 0 0 0 x    8 10  1

TEXAS                ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
A. Soriano (2B)       4  2  0  0  0  0  0  0    .296
G. Matthews (RF)      4  0  0  0  0  0  2  0    .255
M. Young (SS)         4  0  0  0  0  0  0  0    .300
M. Teixeira (1B)      4  0  0  0  0  0  2  0    .307
A. Gonzalez (DH)      4  0  0  0  0  0  0  0    .263
H. Blalock (3B)       3  0  0  0  0  0  1  0    .297
D. Dellucci (LF)      3  0  0  0  0  0  2  0    .283
L. Nix (CF)           3  0  0  0  0  0  0  0    .258
R. Barajas (C)        3  2  0  1  1  1  0  0    .229
TOTALS               32  4  0  1  1  1  7  0

   2B:  A. Soriano
   HR:  R. Barajas

           TEXAS   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
        C. Young  4.1  5  1  2  5  5  5 100   4.06
      E. Ramirez  0.2  4  0  1  3  3  1  26   5.31
       M. Tejera  3.0  1  1  0  0  0  2  38   6.41
          TOTALS  8.0 10  2  3  8  8  8 164

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
J. Damon (CF)         5  2  0  2  0  0  0  1    .306
J. Payton (RF)        4  1  0  1  1  2  1  0    .284
M. Ramirez (LF)       3  1  1  1  0  1  2  0    .330
D. Ortiz (DH)         4  2  0  2  1  2  1  0    .296
K. Millar (1B)        4  2  0  1  1  2  1  0    .305
B. Mueller (3B)       4  1  0  1  0  0  0  0    .330
D. Mirabelli (C)      4  1  0  0  0  1  1  0    .255
M. Bellhorn (2B)      3  0  1  0  0  0  1  0    .216
D. Pedroia (SS)       4  0  0  0  0  0  1  0    .333
TOTALS               35 10  2  8  3  8  8  1

   2B:  D. Ortiz, B. Mueller, J. Damon, D. Mirabelli
   HR:  D. Ortiz, K. Millar, J. Payton

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
       B. Sheets  9.0  4  0  1  1  1  7 118   4.88
          TOTALS  9.0  4  0  1  1  1  7 118

     WP: B. Sheets
     LP: C. Young

     Temperature: 48F

Player of The Game: Ben Sheets CG 4H 1ER 7K's

[rockiesfan4ever]

Hey congrats. Good job so far just finish the job. Tough w/o Ortiz

[MisteroCZ]

Great job, you totally crush them.
Good luck without Ortiz, it will be tough, I think you gonna make ALCS by beating Texas in 4.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Hey congrats. Good job so far just finish the job. Tough w/o Ortiz

Great job, you totally crush them.
Good luck without Ortiz, it will be tough, I think you gonna make ALCS by beating Texas in 4.

Yeah, its gonna be tough without him, but I think I'm gonna DH Manny and put Kapler or Youk out in LF'. The main problem is that it makes my lineup bottom out and it makes it really shallow, I think I can do it without him though.

[rockiesfan4ever]

Hope you defense doesn't fail you then

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Hope you defense doesn't fail you then

Its not like Manny is gonna win any Gold Glove's out there either :P.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Sox Win Game 2 in a Nail-biter

There was little in common between Game 1 and Game 2, besides the outcome. Early on it looked like it was going to be a blow out, in favor of the Red Sox, as the Sox put up 4 in the bottom of the first, on a 2 run homer by Jay Payton and RBI base hits by Kevin Millar and Bill Mueller, but the Rangers would get two in the third, on a 2 run homer by Michael Young, to make it 4-2 and the Red Sox would fail to score again till the 5th. The Sox got one in the 5th, on a sac fly by Jay Payton with the bases chucked, the Rangers would get 3 in the top of the 6th, however, to tie the game at 5. The Sox got one in the 6th, on an RBI single by Manny Ramirez, and another in the 7th, on an RBI double by Dustin Pedroia, that would prove to be huge. The Rangers managed to get one more in the top of the 8th but they could not complete the comeback, as the Red Sox won 7-6 in 9 innings.

Texas Rangers at Boston Red Sox
October 5, 2005

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Rangers (TEX) 0 0 2 0 0 3 0 1 0    6 10  1
       Red Sox (BOS) 4 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 x    7 11  0

TEXAS                ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
A. Soriano (2B)       5  1  0  1  0  0  3  0    .296
G. Matthews (RF)      4  1  1  0  0  0  1  0    .255
M. Young (SS)         5  3  0  1  1  2  1  0    .300
M. Teixeira (1B)      5  1  0  0  0  0  1  0    .307
A. Gonzalez (DH)      4  0  0  0  0  0  2  0    .263
H. Blalock (3B)       3  1  1  2  0  0  1  0    .297
D. Dellucci (LF)      3  1  1  1  0  0  2  0    .283
L. Nix (CF)           4  1  0  0  0  0  1  0    .258
R. Barajas (C)        4  1  0  1  1  4  2  0    .229
TOTALS               37 10  3  6  2  6 14  0

   2B:  A. Soriano, M. Young, L. Nix
   3B:  M. Teixeira, M. Young
   HR:  R. Barajas, M. Young

           TEXAS   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
         C. Park  4.0  5  3  1  4  4  4  91   4.32
       J. Benoit  1.2  3  4  0  2  2  1  52   4.70
     C. Almanzar  1.1  2  0  0  1  0  4  27   5.28
       B. Shouse  1.0  1  0  0  0  0  1  13   4.01
          TOTALS  8.0 11  7  1  7  6 10 183

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
J. Damon (CF)         5  2  0  1  0  0  1  0    .306
K. Youkilis (LF)      3  0  2  1  0  0  1  0    .256
K. Millar (1B)        4  2  1  2  0  1  1  0    .305
M. Ramirez (DH)       3  2  2  0  0  1  0  0    .330
B. Mueller (3B)       4  1  1  1  0  1  1  0    .330
J. Payton (RF)        4  1  0  2  1  3  0  0    .284
D. Mirabelli (C)      3  1  1  0  0  0  1  0    .255
M. Bellhorn (2B)      4  1  0  0  0  0  2  0    .216
D. Pedroia (SS)       4  1  0  0  0  1  3  0    .333
TOTALS               34 11  7  7  1  7 10  0

   2B:  M. Ramirez, J. Damon, K. Millar
   HR:  J. Payton
   GIDP:  K. Millar

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
    C. Schilling  6.0  7  3  2  5  5  8 102   4.53
     C. Bradford  0.2  1  0  0  0  0  1  11   3.73
      B. Fuentes  1.1  2  0  0  1  1  3  28   5.63
       K. Foulke  1.0  0  0  0  0  0  2  13   4.95
          TOTALS  9.0 10  3  2  6  6 14 154

     WP: C. Schilling
     LP: J. Benoit
     SV: K. Foulke

     Temperature: 46F
     Wind: 2 MPH (in from center)
     Attendance: 6,736
     Time: 3:37

Player of the Game: Jay Payton 1-4 3RBI 2R 1HR