At Least Toronto is Still on Our Side

Just a quick drive-by today. From the storm, we've had a power outage until just recently. By know you know all about the drubbing the Rangers put on the Sox yesterday. Wakefield just could not find the plate. The newspapers have railed about how the bullpen did nothing to help. Well, that's true, and it would worry you to hear that, until you see who we are talking about.

The culprits were Chris Smith, Mike Timlin, and Dave Pauley. This year, non of those 3 is likely to even be on the playoff roster. So, no need to panic too much that the bullpen is falling apart. Manny Delcarmen, Justin Masterson, Hideki Okajima, and Jonathan Papelbon (and soon they'll add David Aardsma) were not part of the debacle, and they'll all be on the playoff roster. So will Javier Lopez, who only joined the game for 1/3 of an inning yesterday. Terry Francona most likely knew this was not the game to waste the elite crew, and let the new guys give it a shot.

Toronto still is pulling for the Sox as they beat Tampa Bay yesterday to prevent the Rays from extending their 2 1/2 game lead. Thank you brothers from the north! Of course, they had beaten the Rays prior to the Sox game, and the Sox completely lost a chance at stepping a game closer.

Never mind, we'll see what they can do this afternoon. Paul Byrd should be able to give the Sox a good outing and maybe the bats can continue to jump on Rangers pitching! Even though the Sox lost yesterday, they did score 8 runs! Most days, that translates into a win.