You dropped a bomb on me!

(August 31)

Short take:  Cleveland rocked!

Where has this Sox team been hiding all season?  Even as silly ol' Jerry Manuel mindlessly suggests it's improved defense that holds the key to improved Sox play, the team comes out and pounds lumps on a good team in an important game.  Sox defense sucked and they still won because the Sox beat Cleveland at their own game--dropping bombs.   Sox win 11-8.

Make no mistake, the Sox won this game in the first four innings.  Gee, what a surprise, it was the table-setters at the top of the line up who were responsible for getting the Sox going.  Ray Durham started the game with a potato masher that landed in the right field bullpen.  Next inning Jose Valentin reclaimed the lead for our Pale Hose with a three-run power bomb.  It was Durham again in the fourth inning batting in a key run with an rbi triple.  Valentin stroked a frozen rope into the right field seats and the Sox broke the game open, 8-4. 

Imagine if we still had #35 hitting behind them!

Sox pitching sucked.  Starter Danny Wright was lucky Sox bats were around to pick him up.  His silly error in the second inning blew the first of Sox leads.  It wouldn't be the last one the Sox would blow!

The Sox bullpen couldn't stop the hemorrhaging of the Sox lead, finally relinquished by Jerry Manuel's favorite guy to blow games, Bob Howry.  A double, a single, and a groundout allowed the tying run to score and Sox Fans began wondering whether murder/suicide wouldn't be worth it.

Who pulled us out of this mess?  Why, Royce Clayton of course!  The Choice has just seven homeruns in 337 at-bats but he picked a great time for his eighth one!  His three-run shot gave the Sox an 11-8 lead, finally breaking the bat of the Cleveland comeback.  Keith Foulke made it hold up in the ninth and the Sox finally cut into Cleveland's lead.

Oops, it's still 7.5 games.  Thank goodness for Bud's unbalanced schedule or we would already be cooked!

One game at a time!