Kylee Kurto Visits Section 36!

Section 36 has another visitor! Kylee Kurto is a talented blogger, a Red Sox fan, and the current Miss Merrimack. As we enter the final

few months of her reign, she was nice enough to visit with us to discuss those topics, and more. I’m sure you’ll be glad she did.

So, let’s see what happens when Kylee Kurto visits Section 36!

What made you decide to compete for the Miss Merrimack title?

Last August was the first time I ever competed with the Miss America Organization and actually my first pageant ever. After placing in three out of four competitions I began to feel defeated. The girls I had met through the program encouraged me to keep participating. Two in particular, Katie Masso-Glidden (Miss Captial Area) and Brooke Gatchell (Miss Souhegan Valley) worked with me one-on-one in every phase of competition. In November I finally felt prepared enough to compete and that is how I ended up winning Miss Merrimack! It was also a funny coincidence that I attended Merrimack College at the time, it was a perfect fit for my first title. 

What has been the most surprising part of being Miss Merrimack?

The amount of work and time that goes into being a title holder. Since it was my first year people told me what to expect but you don't really know until you experience it. Trying to graduate college and prepare for Miss New Hampshire was not an easy task. I have to thank my family and my director who helped me get through several mental break downs in the weeks leading up to the competition. But I wouldn't take it back in a heartbeat. Miss New Hampshire exceeded all my expectations and I made Top 12! Hard work always pays off.

For the upcoming Miss America season, you changed your platform to the "National Eating Disorder Association: Feeding Hope". What pushed you to make that change?

When I was told I needed a platform I didn't have a clue what I should do. My mom suggested a rare disease our family friend was battling with and I ran with it. But by the end of last competition season I felt like I really couldn't connect to it and be the advocate I needed to be. So I decided it was time to choose a different platform, one I was truly passionate about and that was my battle with my weight a few years ago. I have received tremendous support from everyone and even have connected with another competitor who has a similar platform. We are planning to do fundraisers, walks and campaigns together.

You’re a fellow blogger. What is “Fun, Fit & Flirty” all about?

Fun, Fit & Flirty just had its first Birthday this past March! It is a blog I initially created to publicize my eating disorder and it has turned into a full-blown blogging site. I wanted to make it a safe place where anyone can go to read or privately share their thoughts with me. A section of my blog features a campaign I created titled "Love Your Lines". This campaign ties along with my platform and means to love all your beauty scars no matter how big or small. I love writing. I don't do it for other people and I certainly do not have perfect grammar but writing has sparked many ideas for me and that includes writing my own book.

If you can’t sit in Section 36, where do you (or where would you) like to sit to watch a Red Sox game?

If I couldn't sit in Section 36 I would love to be right behind home plate. That's where a lot of the action happens and I might get a little TV time, I am not camera shy!

Who was your favorite player growing up? Why?

As a kid I was head over heels for Jacoby Ellsbury. At ten years old I was less concerned about the game and more concerned about the serious crush I had on him.

Which young Red Sox player are you most excited about?

The young player I am most excited about is Andrew Benintendi. He is definitely a player everyone should keep their eyes on!

This is the first Red Sox season in a while without David Ortiz. What’s your favorite Ortiz memory?

Big Papi, what a legend. I don't think I can pinpoint one memory but every time I watched a game with my dad he was hitting home run after home run. What I really love about David Ortiz is his commitment to charity. The David Ortiz Children fund was created to help children in New England and in the Dominican access pediatric care. 

How do you think the Red Sox will finish the 2017 season?

So far the Red Sox are looking great! While still holding down the 1st place spot I am hoping we can win ourselves the 2017 World Series Championship!

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Hard to argue with that analysis!

As always, I want to give huge thanks to Kylee for doing this interview. She did a fantastic job. I also want to thank her for providing the pictures to go along with the interview. They add a lot to the post, and make it much more fun to read.

As Kylee continues her time as Miss Merrimack, I encourage you to follow her on the official Facebook page. Of course, you should also check out her blog Fun, Fit & Flirty as often as you can!

And, I want to wish Kylee luck as she enters the next Miss America season. Especially as she takes aim at the Miss Liberty title on Aug 12! 

Thanks again Kylee, and good luck!

I Scored!

August 6, 2011

Here’s a great game from not exactly the greatest time period in Red Sox history.

It’s an August game during the great collapse of 2011. Of course, it wasn’t so much a collapse as it was an underestimation of injuries. But, that’s a story for another time.

In this game we see the Red Sox are hosting the New York Yankees. As they might say, you can throw out the standings when these two teams meet. The game was started by John Lackey, as he was struggling through the worst season any starter has ever had. Of course, we all found out later he was battling through a significant arm injury at the time. I bet some people regret booing him. But, in this game, he did OK. He ended up with a quality start, even if it was just barely. With the runs the Sox offense was putting up, he gave the team all it needed. Heck, the game was so well in hand, that the Sox tossed Wheeler out there for an inning!

So, how about that offense? It took them a couple innings to get going. After all, they were facing C.C. Sabathia…when he was good. But, once they got going they exploded. Amazingly, Sabathia stayed in the game for six innings. That’s one of the reasons I always dislike the term “innings eater.” While I can grasp the value of a guy who can save the bullpen in a blowout, is pitching six innings while giving up seven runs something to celebrate?

Take a look at that line-up, will you? Some blasts from the past in there. Not sure which is weirder to me, a line-up with Crawford and Gonzalez in it, or one where Ortiz is batting fifth.

So, who was the player of the game? I really really really want to give it to Carl Crawford. Basically, just so I can say the player of the game was Carl Crawford. And, he actually deserves it. 4-4 with three runs scored. On most days that would be an easy choice. But, at the top of the order, Jacoby Ellsbury went 2-4 with six RBI. Yup, this was Ellsbury’s lone MVP-type season. But, even for him that year, this was a special game.

The goat? Speaking of things I didn’t think I’d ever say…I have to hang the horns on David Ortiz. Yup. You heard me. Ortiz was the only person on the Sox not to reach base, and the only starter without a hit. Maybe it’s because Aviles was protecting him.

But, of course, none of that mattered. Lackey stepped up to the challenge, the offense piled up the runs, and the Red Sox cruised their way to victory.

And the scorecard shows how it happened.

Lots on Losing Lester

I have to admit, I’m a little surprised.

Not so much that Lester went to the Cubs. It was all sort of up in the air there for a while. But, that the Sox didn’t spend the extra money.

I know. They’ve said all along that they have this thing with signing older pitchers to long deals. I get that. But, I also remember that John Henry hated the Josh Beckett trade. His theory was, when they traded for Beckett, they had to give up prospects, and then sign him to a long-term deal. He would have rather kept the prospects and just spent money on AJ Burnett. (I know the Sox won the World Series thanks to the trade, but you have to wonder what kind of trade-off Beckett/Lowell was vs Burnett/Hanley.) This was the same situation. So, I was a little surprised they didn’t just throw a ton of money at Lester rather than have to give Philly (say) prospects in order to pay Hamels almost as much. Now, if that’s what they end up doing, I’d probably agree with the move. I’m just surprised that they made it.

I’m also surprised that so many people are upset about the Spring Training Offer. Buster Olney even got in on the action by pointing out that the Sox offer was well below the $100+ million deals signed by pitchers Matt Cain, Cole Hamels, and Homer Bailey. Oddly, Olney makes the Red Sox’s argument better than they ever could. The other three pitchers he mentioned? All signed six year deals when they were 28. The Red Sox were offering Lester a four year deal when he was 30. The Cain contract? Well I don’t remember him being a hero in the World Series this season. Or, you know, in the rotation at all. Maybe that’s because the last two seasons he’s been a combined 10-17 , 4.09 ERA, 84 ERA+. Hamels? Better. A combined 17-25, 3.00, 125 or so. Bailey? The pitcher Olney refers to as a much less accomplished pitcher? He was coming off an 11-12, 3.49, 108 season when he signed his deal for a 17.5 AAV to carry him until he’s 34. So, the Sox offered Lester coming off a 15-8 3.75 110 season a contract with…wait for it…an AAV of 17.5 to carry him until he’s 34. It’s not their fault that Lester was older as he entered free agency. (Well, it is, but you get the idea.) I would certainly argue that Cain and Hamels were better pitchers than Lester when they signed their deals, not to mention younger, while he was the same pitcher as Bailey. It looks like the 4/70 was perfectly in line, especially considering he said he would be willing to take a discount. Lester turned it down. It could have bit him. After all, his 2012 ERA+ was a career low 87. If he did that again, he’d be begging the Sox for their 4/70. But, he didn’t. He went out, and his 155 ERA+ was a career high. As such, he got higher offers…including a higher offer from the Sox to reflect his new stature. The Sox didn’t blow it. They offered a fair deal, and got burned when Lester had a career walk year. Good for him.

I’m especially surprised that a self-proclaimed “grown-ass man” would voluntarily go to a team where he’d have to dress up like a nerd, or a Frozen character, or whatever other ridiculously demeaning outfit Maddon chooses that month.

Now the Sox just need a next move. I’ve always said that the problem with not overpaying for players is that you don’t get the players. Everyone will agree that the Yankees gave Jacoby Ellsbury a terrible contract last offseason. They’ll regret it tenfold in a few years. The Sox were right to not overpay for him. But…he sure would have been handy last year. He might even be useful next year. So, it’s great that the Sox didn’t overpay for him. But, they needed to replace him. They face the same thing with Lester. No, he’s not worth the contract the Cubs gave him. In six years, they’ll be paying the equivalent of Jake Peavy $25 million. But, next year they have their ace. The Sox don’t.

Your move, Ben.

Ellsbury, Youkilis, and Some Randomness

Kevin Youkilis went on the DL yesterday. Really, there has to be some sort of rule against that, right? Once a team loses 5 or 6 all-stars to the DL in one season, they should be able to select a player from another team to fill his spot. Like an expansion draft. Start with the teams in the basement, and start going up until you find a good player. But, really, has any team ever dealt with this kind of talent being lost in a year? Check out this all-DL team for the 2010 Red Sox.

Pitchers: Josh Beckett, Clay Buchholz, Manny Delcarmen (yeah, I know)
Catcher: Jason Varitek
First Base: Kevin Youkilis
Second Base: Dustin Pedroia
Third Base: Mike Lowell
Shortstop: Wait…nobody? If I were Marco Scutaro, I’d watch out
Outfield: Jacoby Ellsbury, Mike Cameron, Jeremy Hermida
DH: Victor Martinez

Let’s see, that’s eight former all-stars and a former MVP? Any other team able to match that? It’s even worse to think that they’ve practically all overlapped. In fact, other than Youk, I think there may have been a point where everyone else was on the DL at the same time. Yikes!

I finally figured out the Ellsbury hubbub. I finally realized why he’s been slammed constantly in the paper and on the radio for healing. Theo wants to trade him. That’s basically Theo’s MO when he wants to trade a popular and talented player. Get the media to say he’s soft and doesn’t want to play. Nomar? You can’t trade him. He’s a Boston icon. So, the media went to work saying he actually threatened not to play. The team owned TV station was sure to zoom in on him every time he was on the bench when the Sox were losing. Therefore, it was easier to trade him. Manny? Same thing. He was too talented to trade. (Even John Henry thought so.) So, you have to slander him first. Start leaking every time there’s a minor incident. Have the team owned TV station zoom in on the dugout during a scuffle. Have the radio stations claim that he, too, threatened not to play. That made it easier to trade him. So, now we have Ellsbury. He’s talented, and a fan favorite. (Remember the uproar over including him in a Santana deal?) So, Theo got to work. Get the radio stations to say he’s soft, and taking too long to play. Have the team owned TV station show him in the dugout as the Sox are losing a game he’s not playing it. It’s like they have the script printed and ready whenever Theo wants to do something stupid.

The difference this time? Two things really. First, a lot of Jacoby’s fans are women who think he’s cute. They don’t care if he plays hard, or not. (And, no, not all his women fans are only fans because he’s cute) So, the usual slander won’t work. Second? Unlike the other two moves, trading Ellsbury makes sense. How’s this for an off-season? Call San Diego. Give them the Ellsbury and Buchholz package they wanted for Adrian Gonzalez. (Obviously, try to get them to take Casey Kelly or Daisuke Matsuzaka instead of Clay. Seriously…Dice-K in Petco could work.) Let Victor Martinez and Beltre walk. They’ll want more money than Theo will want to give. Sign Ortiz to a contract just like he has now. Use the money they saved not paying Beltre, Lowell, and Martinez to make the hard push for Carl Crawford. Not just hard. Blow him away. Can’t refuse, kind of offer. Then sit back with this line-up:

Pedroia
Crawford
Youkilis
Ortiz
Gonzalez
Drew
Cameron
Scutaro
Saltalamacchia

And a rotation of:

Beckett
Lester
Lackey
Matsuzaka
Wakefield

Not a bad idea, if you ask me. See? Theo doesn’t need to slander players.

He just needs to make sense when he trades them away.