Here are some thoughts while trying to grab my wits about me:
1. The Rays were better.
Not by much, but their starting pitching was able to stabilize the Red Sox offense. Matt Garza basically said he wasn’t going to lose. And he didn’t. It was a good lesson for the “kids” to see, including and especially Jon Lester, who took the loss. But it wasnt’ just Garza. All of their starters were good pitchers. Every one of them could win a game in a pinch.
2. Manny Ramirez wouldn’t have mattered.
We must understand the Red Sox won two World Series when Manny was there, not seven. If he was the guy the Dodgers had the last two monts, sure, the Sox probably beat everybody to a pulp. But that was a guy obsessed with doing well. The Manny we had here was obessed with money for some reason. Remember, Manny’s ex-teammates wanted him gone. Not Sox management.
3. Jason Bay was most consistent Sox performer.
Oh yes, on the Manny matter, Jason Bay had a nice playoffs. He was a better base-runner and a better fielder. And remember, Bay’s two-run blast in the sixth inning of Game 1 versus the Angels, putting the Sox ahead, 2-1, basically killed the Angels. Bay tied or led the team in hits (14), HRs (3), RBI (9) and total bases (26). He is the Sox left-fielder for 2009. In fact, I would n’t be surprised if the Sox signed him to a three or four-year deal within two months.
4. Great pitchers must go seven innings.
That is at the very least. I’m not sure I’d put Matt Garza in the “great” level just yet, in fact he isn’t there unless he continues it again in the World Series, but he out-gutted the gutty Red Sox in Game 7. When he needed a big out he struck the guy out. Josh Beckett was good in Game 6, going as far as he could. Next year, injury-free, the Sox are still the team to beat if he comes back at 90 percent of the 2007 Beckett.
5. Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis are key players going forward.
As of now, this is their team. They are both entering the primes of their careers and both come to play every single game. In every big game, either or both did something bordering on special. Pedroia’s first inning homer was exactly what the Red Sox needed.
6. Jacoby Ellsbury got a wakeup call.
It was the right thing to sit Ellsbury over Coco Crisp. When you can’t get on base, with Pedroia, Ortiz and Youkilis coming up next, in order, you sit. He is still young and is the future of the leadoff position. He plays a mean centerfield, too. But he has to be more consistent, around .300. We can expect an offseason in which he comes back in 2009 ready for bear.
7. Justin Masterson stays in the bullpen.
Count me among the guys that hate to put potentially very good starters in the bullpen, but he appears to be made for the late innings work. He is unflappable at such a young age. He got a little wild and paid for it a few times, but in the end he came through much more often than not With Hideki Okajima appearing to be ready to return (Sox have an option for only $1.75 million in ‘09), it allows flexibility in late innings.
8. I pick Rays to win World Series.
The Red Sox never could get past this team. I still don’t know how they were able to overcome the Game 5 debacle at Fenway Park last Thursday. Other than the error to Jason Bartlett, this team played flawlessly in Game 7. They outlasted a good Jon Lester, which is what very good teams do. Remember how those great Yankees teams in the late 1990s would fight Pedro Martinez to a draw and then beat the Sox bullpen? Well, the Rays did the same thing. The hard part isn’t always winning the World Series, it’s getting there. The Phillies are formidable, but the Rays are better. I will have more on this series later.
9. Joe Maddon is more than a manager.
I hate to repeat myself, but this was a three-year process, slower than it appears. I have a story in tomorrow’s Eagle-Tribune about how Maddon basically turned Carlos Pena into a star. But it’s not just him. Garza was a problem with the Twins, but Maddon calmed him down and got him to be a team guy. If you look at their lineups from as far back as 2007, when B.J. Upton batted ninth, you understand how he molded this team on and off the field. By pitching Scott Kazmir, against conventional wisdom, in Game 5 in Boston, he may have gotten his star pitcher back.
10. Don’t blame Rays fans.
Everyone I’ve run into since returning home says the Rays fans don’t deserve this result. I don’t buy it. Remember, the Red Sox have been around for 100 years. This recent string of sellouts, spanning five seasons, is a new thing. The problem is Tampa is a football-raging region. The University of South Florida football team is bigger than the Rays. Of course, the Buccanneers are too. I’d give this area more time before I start dumping on their rookie fans. I will say they were a lot louder in The Trop than Sox fans were at Fenway.
10a. Sox had a great season … everything considered.
Our standards have changed, obviously. Winning teams are a given these days. But considering all of the injuries to key players, including Beckett and Ortiz, it shows how much depth they have. Of course, a $140 million payroll helps, but Theo Espstein did an admirable job in drafting (Pedroia, Youkilis, Lester, Masterson, etc.), trading (Bay and Mark Kotsay) and building for the future. The Manny Ramirez problems didn’t kill this team like a lot of experts predicted. They simply lost to a team that was a little bit better and mentally tougher than any of us imagined.
