Bobby jenks and his bond with Josh Beckett and Jonathan Papelbon

Today the Red Sox took a flier on former White Sox pitcher Bobby Jenks for some bullpen depth. How could it hurt?

But as Jenks changes the color of his Sox, he has a unique bond with current Boston pitchers Josh Beckett and Jonathan Papelbon:

All three were the pitchers on the mound when their team won the World Series.

Beckett tagged out Jorge Posada on a little dribbler to end the 2003 World Series for the Marlins.

Jenks got Orlando Palmeiro to ground out to end the 2005 World Series for the White Sox.

And Papelbon struck out Seth Smith to end the 2007 World Seris for the Red Sox.

Personally, I can't think of anything cooler in all of sports than being the pitcher to end the World Series. More than a game winning home run. I used to reenact clinching a World Series as a pitcher on our front lawn... jumping up and being mobbed on the mound.

And I've written a few posts like this one and this one about my fascination with the pitcher who got the final out.

I can't help but wonder if they will talk about it amongst each other in spring training.

They MUST talk about it. Heck, that's how I would preface every sentence. "As a man who clinched the World Series... I will order the chicken salad."

Maybe that's just me.

COMPLETE GAME VICTORIES TO CLINCH DIVISION SERIES (Updated with Cliff Lee)

A few days ago I wrote a post about pitchers who threw a complete game victory to clinch the Division Series.

I felt it was such a rare occurrence that it was worth noting.

Now it has happened twice in three days and Cliff Lee has added his name to the list. It just goes to show you, I shouldn't write lists like this until the round is OVER!

Let's update it.

Complete Game Division Series Clinchers

John Smoltz
1997 ATLANTA BRAVES
Game 3
4-1 victory against Houston Astros




Bobby Jones
2000 NEW YORK METS
Game 4
4-0 victory against San Francisco Giants




Curt Schilling
2001 ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
Game 5
2-1 victory against St. Louis Cardinals



Cole Hamels
2010 PHILADELPHIA PHLLIES
Game 3
2-0 victory against Cincinnati Reds


Cliff Lee
2010 TEXAS RANGERS
Game 5
5-1 victory against Tampa Bay Rays

The 2001 Series didn’t end with Schilling on the mound getting the last out. The series ended with a walk off single by Tony Womack.

For sticklers of details, they played the Division Series in 1981 as well and two more complete games clinched series THAT year.

Steve Rogers
1981 MONTREAL EXPOS
Game 5
3-0 victory against Philadelphia Phillies


Jerry Reuss
1981 LOS ANGELES DODGERS
Game 5
4-0 victory against Houston Astros

But while relievers were being used more frequently then, the whole specialization of EVERY bullpen role (and the cheapening of the save) didn’t come around until the late 1980s.

Maybe we'll update it next year if there is any new names to add.

Little side note... Cliff Lee is the first person to throw a complete game to clinch an AMERICAN LEAGUE Division Series.

ChaChing this off season!

Complete Game Victories to Clinch the Division Series

Cole Hamels gave the Division Series a wonderful exclamation point and helped the Phillies continue to serve notice:

They intend to roll over the National League.

Last night, Hamels gave the Phillies their second complete game shutout in 3 games. (Granted, Halladay’s was more impressive.)

But a clinching complete game shutout is nonetheless pretty dang cool.
And RARE.

In this day and age of high paid closer, the clinching pitch is almost always thrown by the closer regardless of the situation. (The Yankees didn’t NEED to bring in Rivera the other day against the Twins.)

You might see the occasional World Series clinched with a complete game (a la Josh Beckett in 2003) or the LCS (a la Jose Contreras in 2005) but throwing a complete game to clinch a Division Series didn’t seem all that common.

So the staff at Sully Baseball looked it up, and since the Division Series became an annual event in 1995, there have been only three other times when a pitcher threw a complete game to clinch the first round.

Complete Game Division Series Clinchers

John Smoltz
1997 ATLANTA BRAVES
Game 3
4-1 victory against Houston Astros




Bobby Jones
2000 NEW YORK METS
Game 4
4-0 victory against San Francisco Giants




Curt Schilling
2001 ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
Game 5
2-1 victory against St. Louis Cardinals



Cole Hamels
2010 PHILADELPHIA PHLLIES
Game 3
2-0 victory against Cincinnati Reds

The 2001 Series didn’t end with Schilling on the mound getting the last out. The series ended with a walk off single by Tony Womack.

For sticklers of details, they played the Division Series in 1981 as well and two more complete games clinched series THAT year.

Steve Rogers
1981 MONTREAL EXPOS
Game 5
3-0 victory against Philadelphia Phillies


Jerry Reuss
1981 LOS ANGELES DODGERS
Game 5
4-0 victory against Houston Astros

But while relievers were being used more frequently then, the whole specialization of EVERY bullpen role (and the cheapening of the save) didn’t come around until the late 1980s.

So Cole Hamels has a complete game clincher to go along with his NLCS MVP, World Series MVP and World Series ring.

And gets to join select company.

Wasn't that better than watching the Reds clinch on an off day?

Seriously. The Reds could have clinched yesterday on their off day if the Pirates defeated the Cardinals. I am sure it would have been fine for Reds fans who have been waiting since 1995 for a trip to the post season (after falling ever so short in 1999.)

I guess when you've missed the playoffs for a decade and a half, you shouldn't get picky.

But I am guessing there isn't a Reds fan around who minds waiting an extra day to have their celebration NOT sparked by their team watching a TV but celebrating a walk off homer by Jay Bruce.

Folks... THAT is how you clinch a division!

PLEASE TELL ME THE RANGERS GAME IS BEING BROADCAST IN TEXAS

I saw a TV listings of the national Fox games and they did NOT list the A's/Rangers game today.

And it didn't list a local channel either.

If the Rangers win they will win their first Division Title since 1999.
PLEASE tell me that Rangers fans can... you know... watch their team win a championship.

You'd think that would be a big deal, even for Rangers fans.

Anticlimax at the clincher

The Minnesota Twins clinched the American League Central Division tonight. The moment it happened the crowd was... indifferent.



And the players on the field... shook hands and quietly walked off the field.



Because the Twins weren't playing when they clinched the Division. They had already come from behind against Cleveland to win their came and cut the magic number to 1.



And the A's were beating up the White Sox. So when the White Sox lost and the Twins clinched, it was in Oakland... in a stadium so empty it looked like one of those high school championship games that are played in a big league stadium and about 300 friends and families.



The A's won and the fans said "Yay" and got stuck in traffic on the 880.



I was hoping the White Sox would win. Not that I felt they had a shot... but the Twins are playing a day game tomorrow. Wouldn't that have been a sight! The Twins, now in an open air stadium, celebrating a Division Title in the sun.



Instead we had them watching the TV and cheering there.

Such an anti climax. There should be that euphoric moment on the field of "Yes! This season will be remembered!" instead of 8 guys in Oakland walking back to their car.



I remember in 1988 when the Red Sox clinched the Division, they backed into it because of a Tigers loss. Evidently they ordered pizzas. That's how we celebrated little league wins, not a Division Title.



Let's hope the other clinchers are a little more exciting.

Um... hooray?

The Red Sox clinched a playoff spot last night... so I should be celebrating, right?

Maybe that is a bad way to phrase it.

The Rangers were eliminated by the Angels.

That's more like it.

The Red Sox didn't win ANYTHING last night.

They haven't won a game in nearly a week.

I know that in the end it doesn't matter. They did what I wanted them to do. 

They have a playoff spot with nearly a week to go. They can line up their rotation anyway they want. They can have their bullpen rested and ready and give anyone in their lineup  a day to catch their breath.

But it's hard to fist pump in the middle of a 5 game losing streak.

It's hard to say "Woo Hoo!" when the team seems to be going through the motions.

I wanted a clinching game. Was that too much to ask for?

Well, I am going to call this the last teeth grinder of the year... because the rest of the games of the regular season are literally meaningless.

The Sox are the Wild Card team. 

The Yankees are the top seed in the AL but they can't play each other in the Division Series.

The Angels will have the second best record, ergo play the Red Sox for the 83rd year in a row.

If the Sox win all of their games or lose all of their games, nothing will change that scenario.

The only games that matter are the Twins and Tigers games... and figuring out which one has a better shot against the Yankees.

So here we go... the final Dodged Bullet/Teeth Grinder tally.

DODGED A BULLET GAMES - 26

April 17 - 10-8 win against Orioles. (Overcame 7-0 deficit.)

April 24 - 5-4 win against Yankees. (Bay homers off of Rivera in 9th to tie it.)

April 25 - 16-11 win against Yankees. (Overcame 6-0 deficit.)

April 29 - 6-5 win at Cleveland. (Overcame 5-0 deficit.)

May 12 - 4-3 win at Anaheim. (Down 3-1 in the 8th.)
June 11 - 4-3 win against Yankees. (Down 3-1 in the 8th. Rallied against Sabathia.)

June 12 - 5-2 win at Philadelphia. (Overcame Ryan Howard's 9th inning shot to win in 13)

June 21 - 6-5 win against Atlanta. (The wind turns Nick Green's fly ball into a walk off shot)

June 27 - 1-0 win at Atlanta. (Masterson and Papelbon wiggle out of late jams.)
July 1 - 6-5 win at Baltimore. (Sox score 4 in the 9th and Lugo wins in in the 11th)

July 8 - 5-4 win against Oakland. (Wind keeps Hairston's 9th inning go ahead homer in the ballpark)

July 10 - 1-0 win against Kansas City. (Pedroia drives in the only run with 2 outs in the 8th.)

July 30 - 8-5 win against Oakland. (Ortiz tests postive then hits a 2 out 3 run go ahead homer.)

July 31 - 6-5 win at Baltimore. (Youk's 2 run homer saves Smoltz from another bad start.)

August 10 - 6-5 win against Detroit. (Sox snap 6 game losing streak with 7th inning rally.)

August 14 - 8-4 win at Texas. (Victor Martinez hits a 2 run 2 strike 2 out double to take the lead and make up for Buchholz's baserunning mishap.)

August 18 - 10-9 win at Toronto. (Ortiz homers and the Jays defense collapses, saving Beckett from a bad start.)
August 24 - 12-8 win against White Sox. (Red Sox overcome early 4-1 lead and a bad Buchholz start.)

August 25 - 6-3 win against White Sox. (Red Sox win with 4 unanswered runs despite some sloppy defense.)

August 26 - 3-2 win against White Sox. (Wakes pitches 7 strong and Papi homers twice including a walk off)

August 28 - 6-5 win against Toronto. (Sox come back from early 3-0 hole and Paps wiggles out of a bases loaded jam in the 9th.)

August 29 - 3-2 win against Toronto. (Buchholz dominates but needs help from Paps to finish the 9th)

September 1 - 8-4 win at Tampa Bay. (Papelbon enters the game with the bases loaded, nobody out and go ahead run at the plate... and gets a 2 innings save.)

September 9 - 7-5 win against Baltimore. (Martinez's double gives the Sox the lead and Papelbon wiggles out of two jams.)

September 13 - 3-1 win against Tampa Bay. (Pedroia's 8th inning homer off of Matt Garza breaks a 1-1 tie)

September 16 - 9-8 win against the Angels. (Red Sox make three comebacks including a rally with 2 outs and nobody on in the 9th.)

TEETH GRINDER GAMES - 28

April 14 - 6-5 loss at Oakland. (Sox blow early 3-0 lead. Lose in 12)

April 28 - 9-8 loss at Cleveland. (Sox blow early 5-1 lead. Lopez drops 3rd out.)
May 14 - 5-4 loss at Anaheim. (Ortiz goes 0-7 stranding 12 runners.)
May 15 - 5-4 loss at Seattle. (Red Sox blow their second 4-0 lead in three days.)

May 17 - 3-2 loss at Seattle. (Red Sox strand two in the 9th. Lose in the bottom of the 9th.)

May 23 - 3-2 loss to the Mets. (Papelbon lets up a 2 out 2 run homer in the 9th to Omir Santos)

June 18 - 2-1 loss to the Marlins. (Rain washes out a tight game after 5+ innings.)

June 28 - 2-1 loss to the Braves. (Tying run on base in the 9th. Solid Penny outing wasted)
June 30 - 11-10 loss at Baltimore. (The Red Sox blow a late 10-1 to the lowly Orioles.)
July 3 - 7-6 loss to Seattle. (Red Sox comeback in the 8th only to lose in the 11th.)

July 4 - 3-2 loss to Seattle. (Saito walks three in the 9th as the Mariners rally to win)

July 9 - 8-6 loss to the Royals. (Bullpen blows early 4-0 lead.)

July 21 - 4-2 loss at Texas. (Beckett loses a complete game and the Yankees take over first.)

July 22 - 3-1 loss at Texas. (Sox are swept for the first time all season.)

July 28 - 9-8 loss to Oakland. (Sox blow 3 run lead in 9th. A's rally with 2 outs in 9th and 11th.)

July 29 - 8-6 loss to Oakland. (Down 5-0 in the first, Sox comeback falls short)

August 4 - 4-2 loss in Tampa Bay. (Longoria hits 13th inning walk off with first base open.)

August 5 - 6-4 loss in Tampa Bay. (Sox gets swept in a 2 game series with the tying run at the plate).

August 7 - 2-0 loss in New York. (A-Rod's walk off with 2 outs in the 15 ends a teeth grinding marathon.)

August 9 - 5-2 loss in New York. (4 outs from avoiding a sweep, Bard lets up back to back homers to Damon and Teixeira.)

August 13 - 2-0 loss to Detroit. (Verlander wiggles out of early and late jams.)

August 16 - 4-3 loss at Texas. (Red Sox can't rally and fall behind the Rangers in the Wild Card race)

Setpember 2 - 8-5 loss at Tampa Bay. (The Red Sox recover from a bad Beckett outing to tie the game in the 8th, only to give back the lead the next inning.)
September 17 - 4-3 loss to Angels. (Tek allows tying run to score on a wild third strike. Sox lose in the ninth.)

September 21 - 12-9 loss in Kansas City. (Sox blow an 8-2 lead in the rain.)

September 26 - 3-0 loss in New York. (Sox waste terrific 7 inning performance by Dice-K)

Setpember 27 - 4-2 loss in New York. (Yankees rally to clinch division and Sox fail to win the season series.)

Setpember 29 - 8-7 loss to Blue Jays. (Youk strikes out with the winning runs on base, spoiling the chance of an on field celebration.)

So it finishes up at -2.

Which means of the 91 regular season wins, 26 of them were games they pulled out of the fire and 65 of them were not exactly suspenseful.

And of the 66 losses, 28 were games they should have won and 38 of them were no brainers.

I wonder if other teams have a similar ratio.

Something to ponder in 2010.

Octoberfest... AGAIN!

It may not have been as pretty as last year... but the Red Sox are in the playoffs!

At this point, I feel that the Division would be nice, but give the veterans some rest and make sure you have Beckett, Dice-K and Lester lined up for the Division Series.

There's a World Series title to defend... I want to see my third series.
IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?

ENOUGH WITH THIS POLLYANNA STUFF!

OK, enough of jumping on board with Yankee nostalgia.

Enough Olive Branches.

My team is on the verge of a playoff spot, knocking Jeter and company to the golf course and go forward with a chance to line up the rotation to win a third World Series title in 5 seasons.

I want Beckett to crush Cleveland like, well, it was last October.
I want Tampa to be crushed by Baltimore because I'm not conceding the division just yet.
And I want the Blue Jays to smack the Yankees around. "The Fourth Place Yankees" has too nice a ring to it.

I'm excited and I'm going to get nasty.
My team is the bad guy now.
I knew that last year.

Well I'm getting pumped up for the playoffs and I want the bad guys to win.

Cub fans want a title? You've had 100 years to get one! I'm greedy I want another.

Lots of familiar faces on the Dodgers? Nice to see you, now get out of our way!

Philadelphia needs a hug, sports wise? Then rent Rocky or that Marky Mark Eagles movie!

The Mets want a title before the team gets too old? Then Beltran should have swung the bat!

Griffey and Thome are ringless but have a shot the ChiSox? If you want a ring so bad, maybe Papi give you each one of his... after he wins his third!

The Angels are the best team in baseball? Aren't they the team the Red Sox always sweep?

Tampa Bay is a nice story? So was Pollyanna... and I have no time for that!

PLAYOFFS ARE COMING!
And I'm getting nasty!

Rays of hope

I underestimated them all year... but congrats Rays.

And congrats Joe Maddon on what should be a unanimous Manager of the Year vote.

Good crowd today at the Trop... now for the Red Sox to carve 2 more off of the magic number for the Wild Card and we might see that rivalry I wanted!

It had better be standing room only at the Trop

Hey Rays fans...
when I read about today's game with Minnesota later today, I had better see the words "capacity crowd" in the article.

Not "a good size crowd" or "a nice crowd."
I'm talking standing room only.
I'm talking scalpers being able to pay a lot of bills this weekend.

If the Rays win today, they are going to the playoffs.
It's that simple.

And the Rays, a team whose previous accomplishments were a 70 win season and The Rookie, a team that was a consensus pick for contraction, can get into the playoffs... the baseball playoffs... the hardest playoffs to qualify for... with a win today.

The team with the lowest payroll in the American League can thumb their noses at all of baseball and punch the most unlikely ticket to October possibly in history if they beat the Twins today.

And they can do it at home... on a Saturday afternoon... on a day which according to Weather.com is 90 degrees and sunny... and you'll be in a dome.

And Saturday and Sunday are the last two home games of the season. The last chance to cheer on the team that will, against all the odds, bring post season baseball to Tampa Bay.

There had better not be an empty seat.
I don't want to hear about how most baseball fans in Tampa are transplanted Northeasterners.

I don't want to hear about how hard it is to get to the Trop.

I don't want to hear how people dislike the management and are taking a wait and see approach.

I don't want to hear how long it takes to build a fanbase.

Sell this game out.
Tickets are reasonably priced.

If there aren't 45,000 people in a Metropolitan area wanting to come out on a beautiful Saturday afternoon to see the hometown team pull off a feat that should be the subject of books and HBO specials for years to come... then maybe it's not a Major League town.

The post strike expansion already gave us the Diamondbacks, a team that couldn't sell out the NLCS.

A game like this had better be the hottest ticket in town.
I had better not be able to talk to the ticket window and say "two please."