The World Series
Its 6 p.m., and I've finally managed to gather some sanity after last night's glory. Johnny Damon, I love you. You're a beautiful beautiful man.
Anyways, I'm back on edge. The World Series starts in two days. This thing isn't over yet. We've made history, but there's a demon or two, a curse or three that still need to be dealt with. There's business that needs doing and whether or not that's in St. Louis or Houston, I don't much care (although I am rooting for the Cards; my buddy Choltie is having himself a heart attack and wont watch the game with me tonight for fear of a coronary. seriously. welcome to what its like being a Sox fan friend).
Nick is right: any other year the Cards-'Stros series would be front and center. Its a stunning battle, one hit wonders and two walk off homeruns. The valiant underdogs battling the much-respected winningest team in the National League (without the whole hatred part). It's great baseball. It's a great American tradition. From stickball in the fields of the midwest and in the sandlots of Flint and Brooklyn and Chicago, its our game. If you think our nation doesn't have culture, turn off your appetative MTV and narcissistic NPR and pick up two 8 dollar bleacher seat tickets.
Mesh and I are contemplating a bash every single night of the World Series. Whether its brutal heartbreak or joy, sweet joy, we're gonna do it tossing back The Champange of Beers with friends. That is, after all, what this is all about.
Consider this: for the last week a good third of our country has found escape from what has been the most obnoxious election in my young life. Here's to another week of escape!
Further: I'm gonna smack the next person who makes some lame comment about how its dumb that it's called the World Series. This usually comes from people who aren't sports fans. Cynical philistines, if you will. You are invited to the party. You can come. Toss off your ironical distance and embrace some of the best & most irrelevant stuff of life. I'm compelled to think its the Christian thing to do.
~~~
two three four
Tessie, 'Nuff Ced McGreevy shouted: "we're not here to mess around"
Josiah Q. Roe | By Josiah Roe | 06:18 PM
Comments
hey, I thought you were a tigers fan?
Posted by: bobw at October 21, 2004 10:29 PM
Boston is going down in 5. They'll take the first one then the Cards will take the next four.
Posted by: concerned at October 21, 2004 11:49 PM
I think this World Series is a total toss-up. Talk about two completely different clubs with two completely different styles of baseball. The Sox are total scrappers: power pitching with power hitting. The Cards, under LaRussa, are like professors of baseball: methodological, small ball, 5 runs or less winners.
My prediction is any game the Sox score four or less the Cards win, anytime they score more the Sox win.
I also think the Sox have far more depth in their middle releivers than the Cards do. Don't get me wrong: Tavarez and Isringhousenfrautenbraughtwurst are upper-echelon relievers, but there isn't a pitcher on the Sox staff that couldn't, and hasn't, stepped up and been a monster this series.
oh, and while I'm a fairly fanatical Sox fan, my number one love is the Detroit Tigers. Many a good game at old Tiger Stadium with my Dad on road trips back "home" to Michigan when I was a kid.
Posted by: JosiahQ at October 22, 2004 09:20 AM
I'd love to watch the series with you guys. Get ripped and heckle both teams the entire time. Damn I wish the Astros would have won. But I'm not too disappointed--they put on a helluva show, from the beginning of August until they ran out of steam in the middle of October. And they went further into the postseason than any previous Astros team.
Well, you know what they say: there's always next year.
Posted by: Nick at October 22, 2004 07:50 PM
Nice baseball post. You are obviously an AL fan that understands NL style (much better in my opinion, but I'm very biased). It will be a great series, but the Sox will have a hard time getting up for this series like they did the last. The NY series was their world series, at least emotionally.
Also, the Cards have been overlooked all year and postseason (picked to finish 3rd in the regular season and not the media favorite against Huston...that Clemens-Boston rematch was already in ink). This is good for them, bad for Boston, because they are very business-like about their baseball.
The Card relief pitching is much deeper numbers-wise than Boston though. They had the best bull-pen in the entire NL all year and faced an incredible Huston line up, with enough success to win. Don't forget, Timlin was a Card last year and he pitched so poorly, we released him. But they pitched well enough against NY.
Defense is another big aspect. The Cards got it, Boston don't. Even fans have to admit that the ALCS was sloppy, very sloppy. ManRam in left is always interesting. Ortiz fielding 1st could get ugly in St. Louis, but having Mabury as the DH in Boston could get ugly for the STL.
STL just played in Boston last year, with a good number of players still on the team (took the series 2-1). Boston didn't play in STL, so that may help some of the Cards, since it isn't a completely new environment.
I'm pumped. It may prove to be one of the better WS in the last 20 years. Two good teams, great histories, and great baseball towns! What else could you want?
Posted by: Haze at October 22, 2004 08:13 PM
Kyle, you spelled Houston wrong... silly rabbit. Yeah Josiah I think the Cardinals bullpen is deeper than you think. Kieko Calero, Danny Haren (who is a starting pitcher and is slated to be one next year, he struck out some key batters for houston and LA on three pitches), Taverez, Isringhausen (the flying dutchman), Red Sheondist, Eldred, King, and Kline.... thats a lot. All decent. And all looked decent this post season, better regular season, but I don't think the sox's bats are as on fire as Houston's were during the nlcs.
Posted by: holton at October 23, 2004 09:05 AM
Quick typing and spelling don't work for the Haze.
Posted by: Haze at October 23, 2004 09:40 AM
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