What in the World is Wrong with Everyone?

So, I’m listening to the game last night. The Sox lost when they couldn’t quite score enough runs. Then, as the last out is made, I hear this weird sound in the background. I must have been mistaken. It almost sounded like boos. Boos? The fans couldn’t have been booing this team. That’s not the Fenway Park I know. That’s not the park I was in when we all stood and cheered after the Sox were eliminated from the playoffs for giving us a good run. No, those certainly couldn’t have been boos.

What in the name of Terry Francona would they be booing? Do the fans think the players chose to lose the game? Do the fans think they’re not trying their darndest to win the game? Do they think that boos are going to make a curveball break more than it did before? I thought Boston fans were supposed to be the smartest fans in baseball. That was embarrassing.

There are plenty of times when it is permitted to boo. If a player chooses to wear pinstripes on their uniform…boo them. If they think that Toronto is closer to Texas than Boston…boo them. If they beat their wife before the game…boo them. (assuming, of course, it’s actually true) I’ll even let you boo them if three players stand on the pitchers mound and watch a pop fly fall to the ground. Those are all choices made by the player that you can disagree with. You cannot boo a player just because he’s not as good as you wish he were. Do you think boos will make him better? This isn’t football. Giving it your all can’t change the outcome. Didn’t we always laugh at Steinbrenner for confusing the two sports? The rah-rah stuff doesn’t work in baseball. We giggled to ourselves as he took the credit for turning the team around by giving a speech. In baseball, more than any other sport, effort takes a backseat to ability. So, I ask, what are the boos supposed to accomplish?

Are you frustrated? Fine. I’m frustrated. I’m frustrated that people are being so gosh darn irrational about this whole thing. The Red Sox are two and a half games up with six games remaining. Why on earth would I be jumping off a bridge? The magic number has dropped the last three days. The Sox control their own destiny. Isn’t that exactly what you want? It’s all I look for.

I can’t help but wonder what the reaction would be around here if the roles were reversed. If the Sox were 2.5 games back with six left, would anyone think they had a shot? Let me think. When the Sox were down three games with 150 games left, nobody though they had a shot. So, if everyone would be certain the Sox couldn’t make up the ground, why is everyone so sure that the LA Rays will? Or, what if the Yankees were struggling in September. If the Yankees had a 5-15 stretch, would anyone be counting them out? No. All you’d here is about how they’ll turn it around when they need to. Why not the Sox? Shouldn’t it be telling that the national media still picks the Sox to be the wild card?

The best line I’ve heard lately came from the EEIdiots a couple days ago. They were complaining that the Sox were going to never hold off the Rays because they weren’t playing well. Someone commented that the Sox had actually pitched pretty well against the Rays. They were told that it didn’t matter because the Rays weren’t very good. You couldn’t take any credit for beating them. So, let me get this straight. The Rays are too good to be caught. But, you can’t take any relief from beating them because they’re not very good? Which is it? Why is everyone so determined to beat this team down? They’ve been doing it since Opening Day. I’m getting a little tired of it. The Red Sox Magic Number is 5.

See you in October