Okay, so right now Okaji is the only pirate off the hook.
One of those things I really can't stand is a bullpen implosion. You see, growing up in a Mets family, I had to deal with Armando Benitez and the heart attacks he gave my family, and much later, in 2007, Eric Gagne gave me many flashbacks of those horror days.
So whenever a starter gets let down by a reliever or a group of relievers, it crushes me, because all the starter's hard work goes right down the drain. Daisuke wasn't perfect tonight, but he settled down after a while and started throwing strikes, and although he gave up a leadoff hit Okaji performed pretty well himself.
And then in came Manny Delcarmen. Clearly, Manny Del does not have his confidence up right now, because he decided to put a bunch of people on base. And that was the start of the implosion. As I type this, Javy Lopez is in, and he's dealing with the bases loaded and only one out. He's the fourth pitcher this inning. Okay, make that two outs. Either way, this is still painful. The Sox were up 4-1 at the start of this inning.
And Javy can't close it out either. Now it's 7-4 in the bottom of the seventh.
I'm not particularly trying to live-blog this, but I'm just venting a little bit. After putting those first two people on, I would have pulled Manny Delcarmen - if he's throwing like that, I know he's not trusting in himself enough to pitch tonight. He needs to feel confident for his stuff to work. And honestly, I probably would have started this inning off with Aardsma or Hansen anyway, considering that the 4-1 lead would have been enough for Paps to convert into a save had it made its way into the ninth. I would've gone with somebody who could handle the pressure, and right now Manny Del just doesn't have the confidence to be that guy.
I'll end this entry with the end of the inning (Javy finally fanned the last batter), I guess, because that's really where the story ends tonight. Unless the offense decides to show some heart and come back tonight - they looked great in the early innings, particularly one Dustin Luis Pedroia - this one could be over.
I'm beginning to get more stressed out about playing the Rays than I do about playing the Yankees. The Rays are the better team right now, and with the blood currently boiling between them and the Sox it's just horrible for my health. It's ridiculous.
(In lighter news, I made a 4th of July cake today. It says 'Happy 7/4' on it. That makes me feel slightly better, at least - I actually did something today.)
So whenever a starter gets let down by a reliever or a group of relievers, it crushes me, because all the starter's hard work goes right down the drain. Daisuke wasn't perfect tonight, but he settled down after a while and started throwing strikes, and although he gave up a leadoff hit Okaji performed pretty well himself.
And then in came Manny Delcarmen. Clearly, Manny Del does not have his confidence up right now, because he decided to put a bunch of people on base. And that was the start of the implosion. As I type this, Javy Lopez is in, and he's dealing with the bases loaded and only one out. He's the fourth pitcher this inning. Okay, make that two outs. Either way, this is still painful. The Sox were up 4-1 at the start of this inning.
And Javy can't close it out either. Now it's 7-4 in the bottom of the seventh.
I'm not particularly trying to live-blog this, but I'm just venting a little bit. After putting those first two people on, I would have pulled Manny Delcarmen - if he's throwing like that, I know he's not trusting in himself enough to pitch tonight. He needs to feel confident for his stuff to work. And honestly, I probably would have started this inning off with Aardsma or Hansen anyway, considering that the 4-1 lead would have been enough for Paps to convert into a save had it made its way into the ninth. I would've gone with somebody who could handle the pressure, and right now Manny Del just doesn't have the confidence to be that guy.
I'll end this entry with the end of the inning (Javy finally fanned the last batter), I guess, because that's really where the story ends tonight. Unless the offense decides to show some heart and come back tonight - they looked great in the early innings, particularly one Dustin Luis Pedroia - this one could be over.
I'm beginning to get more stressed out about playing the Rays than I do about playing the Yankees. The Rays are the better team right now, and with the blood currently boiling between them and the Sox it's just horrible for my health. It's ridiculous.
(In lighter news, I made a 4th of July cake today. It says 'Happy 7/4' on it. That makes me feel slightly better, at least - I actually did something today.)