Sox vs Devil Rays, Sept 21st

We get the Devil Rays' broadcast tonight, which should be fairly painful because Dewayne Staats might have the most annoying play-by-play voice in all of baseball, not to mention a wicked perm. But he lost his wife earlier this season, so I better not say anything else bad about him or I'll go to hell.

Top 1st - Billy Mueller leading off for the first time all season because Johnny Damon had his third cortisone shot earlier today. We also have our first incorrect comment by the announcing team, which is apparently unaware of Damon's medical situation. They think he's just ducking Scott Kazmir which probably has some truth to it, but to ignore his bum shoulders entirely is just bad reporting...

No joy, but we got a lead-off walk and two hard hit balls, so maybe Kazmir isn't lights out tonight...

Bottom 1st - Tiimmy Wake, crafty veteran, just picked off Carl Crawford, then got a ground out two pitches later to make it a one-two-three inning. Nice...

Between Innings - Searching, in vain so far, for an interesting local Tampa commercial. So far it's all national ads from the Fox conglomo. I'll keep you posted...

Top 2nd - Millar has hammered the last two pitches, but both foul. Is it a matter of time?...

He popped out, but on the eleventh pitch of the at-bat. Nice work...

Sure enough, double for 'Belli. He can thank Millar for that one...

Infield single for Trot, would have been into right field if not for Travis Lee making a good play to keep it in the infield and almost get the out. Good at-bat for Trot against a tought lefty...

Now it's first and third for Hyzdu...Walked on four pitches, bases loaded for Alex Cora. The kid isn't too sharp tonight. With the exception of some nasty stuff to Papi in the first, he hasn't thrown his breaking ball effectively tonight. Sit on the fastball Alex...

Ball one on the breaking ball..
Same with ball two...
Here comes the heat...

Yup, deep fly ball, the run scores, 1-0 Sox. Good job Alex...

Followed by Billy Mueller's RBI single, 2-0 Sox. Always nice to jump ahead of a tough pitcher, especially with a bit of a makeshift lineup...

Edgar sat on another 2-0 fastball and looped it into right for another RBI single, 3-0 Sox. Surely he's not dumb enough to throw a fastball to Papi here, is he?...

Nope, walked him on a breaking ball, bringing Manny up with the bases loaded, knowing he's going to get nothing but fastballs. This could get ugly fast...

Give Kazmir credit. He's down to one pitch, his fastball, but he located three of them really well to Manny. One painted the outside corner, followed by a letter high heater that Manny couldn't catch up with, then he busted him in on his hands to get out of the inning on a pop-up.

Bottom 2nd - Wake gave one back immediately on a bomb by Travis Lee, 3-1 Sox. And he has followed that up with a single and a hit batter. Suddenly the go-ahead run is at the plate and we're only a half-dozen pitches into the inning with no one out. What the hell?...

Wake got the perfect double play ball, but Alex Cora blew the relay throw, skipped it past Millar and the second run scored, 3-2 Sox. Crap...

The crappy luck continues, as Toby Hall hit a 100-foot floater through hole left by Cora as he covered second base. I'm getting bad vibes. First and third, still just one out...

Now the double play ball comes, Edgar to Millar, so Wake got out of it. That might make the second run unearned. We'll see...

Top 3rd - The Sox are all getting good, long at-bats against Kazmir, even the lefties. We're just one out into the third, runners on first and second, and already he's thrown 70 pitches...

I just realized that Adam Hyzdu looks like the bad guy from "Kindergarten Cop". Compare and contrast...

He hits like him too. He just whiffed on a slider that was never in the strike zone, a pitch that hasn't been a strike all night long. That's what you're a career minor leaguer Adam...

Well, the Sox came up empty, but Kazmir has thrown 81 pitches through three innings...

Bottom 3rd - In contrast, Wake has thrown 36. Just another dink, luck hit, but no damage...

Between Innings - Finally, an interesting local ad, for Firehouse Subs, a restaurant chain that started in Florida and is now apparently all over the South. Real firemen, real food. Kinda cool. Looks tasty too...

Top 4th - Kazmir continues to bounce his slider. I'm calling it now - the Sox will score in this inning...

This is how you know Edgar Renteria is struggling...He knew a fastball was coming, he got one right down the middle of the plate, and couldn't even touch it...

One man on, one man out for Papi...

Well, I officially jinxed them. Papi hit a laser, but right at Cantu, who doubled off Mueller at first base. Toby Hall is utterly fooled by a knuckler and hits the softest single in history, while Papi hits a tracer and is out. Life isn't fair...

Bottom 4th - Except for the Travis Lee homer earlier, Wake appears to have the goods tonight...1-2-3 on just seven pitches...

Top 5th - It was just a matter of time. First pitch fastball to Manny, boom, 4-2 Sox. That one was the most predictable homer ever...

Kazmir's next pitch will be number 100, in just four and a third innings. Only 56 strikes in that hundred, not good. For the Devil Rays anyway...

You know the attendance stinks when you can hear the center fielder calling for a fly ball, like Joey Gathright just did...

Middle 5th - Chevy Malibu ad, phone company ad, Fox Sports Net ad, Sun Sports Network ad. That's it. Really, really boring advertising. It makes you long for the little leprechaun-looking guy who does the Sullivan Tire ads, or that bozo who rides a horse and sings about Marty's USRV. Now that's advertising...

Bottom 5th - One-two-three again, for the new ace of the staff...

Top 6th - Kazmir is still in the game, maybe because he settled down a bit after Manny's bomb. Whether that's wise or not remains to be seen...

Lead-off walk to the #8 hitter, so I'm going to say "not"...

Good Lord, I hate sacrifice bunts. I understand Cora hasn't had a lot of good swings tonight, but giving away outs to a struggling 21-year old pitcher just doesn't make much sense to me...

The D-Rays announcers are raving about Bill Mueller as the consummate ballplayer, as they should. He hit a seed to third base, in yet another example of how life isn't fair, but it was enough to convince the Rays to pull Kazmir finally, after 117 pitches, about 80% of them fastballs...

On comes Travis Harper...

Another seed, another catch. This game should be about 8-2...

Middle 6th - If I ever meet Tony Little in real life, I'm going to be hard-pressed not to shoot him. He may be the most annoying human being alive...

Bottom 6th - Lead-off HBP, a knuckler straight to Carl Crawford's behind. Maybe it will keep him from running...

Another double play ball to get him out of that trouble. The HBP might have affected Crawford after all. He just peeled off at second base, making no attempt to break up the turn...

Pop-up to end the inning, so Wake has now thrown just 60 pitches through six innings. Needless to say, the D-Rays area an awfully young, impatient team...

Between Innings - Just saw an ad for a car dealership, AutoWay Toyota, that used the old "Ghostbusters" theme song. It's always nice to know that Ray Parker Jr. is still getting royalty income...

Top 7th - No one can give Manny grief about his hustle tonight, because he just took third base on a lazy play by Joey Gathright. And, by doing so, drew a throw and let Millar take second base. Second and third, one out. Come on 'Belli...

Whiff. Damn...

Come on Trot...

Walk, bases loaded for the Kindergarten Cop guy...

Whiff. Damn. I guess there's a reason he has only 350 big league at-bats at nearly 34-years old...

Bottom 7th - Wake might be losing his feel. He got the first hitter, but walked the next guy on four pitches...

Alex Gonzalez just bailed him out a bit by chasing nearly everything he threw up there. Even their announcers are calling the Rays impatient now...

Followed by Toby Hall watching strike three...Very nice...

Top 8th - I tell ya, Bill Mueller really rose to the occasion with all other lead-off options out tonight. He's plastered the ball in every at-bat but his first, when he walked. Prototype lead-off performance...

ANOTHER LINE DRIVE DOUBLE PLAY. AND, YES, I'M TYPING IN ALL CAPS BECAUSE I WANT TO SCREAM...

Bottom 8th - And here's why I'm screaming - the Sox have been hitting bee-bees all night long but only have four runs. Meanwhile, the D-Rays have been mystified by Wakefield, and Joey Gathright has looked like a child against Sox pitching the entire series. So who leads off with a single on the first pitch of the inning? Gathright of course, who promptly took second base on a bounced pitch...

Followed by another HBP. The tying run is now on first with no one out. I'm fondly remembering last night's game, when I didn't have to sweat every single pitch...

DOUBLE PLAY!!!!! And on a bee-bee too, so it was some sweet revenge. Okay, hopefully I'm done screaming now...

Nope, another dink single, 4-3 Sox, and that's it for Wakefield. AARARGHREGHGH!!!

On comes Timlin, who gives up another single, putting runners on first and third...

There's no need to be nervous...there's no need to be nervous...there's no need to be nervous...

Triple, 5-4 Devil Rays. I'm going to shoot someone...

Double, 6-4 Rays. Oh yeah, the Yankees just won too, so now we're on the brink of losing first place because we let the godforsaken Devil Rays hang around all night until our bullpen had a chance to explode. Perfect...

RBI single for the hapless Alex Gonzalez, who looked like a fool one inning ago, but now puts the Rays up three, 7-4...

Hey, an out. What a novel concept...

Top 9th - Papi coming up, but since we're down three, a homer here doesn't help all that much...

Another hard shot, another freakin' diving play, another out that should have been a hit. This is going to end badly...

Yup, ended on another seed from Olerud right at someone. First place is gone, my streak of wins with running diaries is gone, and my nerves are shot to hell. This was the most maddening games of the year. We completely outclassed the D-Rays, but they lucked into nearly every hard hit ball being right at someone, letting them hang around long enough for Francona to pull Wakefield too early, just in time for Timlin to have his worst night of the season.

Sometimes luck is great. And sometimes luck sucks.