The Big Story – September Baseball Arrives: The best month in sports got off badly for the Sox. In their last shot at the Yanks this year they lost three of four over the weekend, with the last two being 9-2 and 16-1 demolitions. It dropped them four games behind New York for the top wild card spot and 8.5 behind division-leading Tampa.
The good news is their next 17 games are/were all against teams under .500, including all three of the last-place teams in the AL. First up are the Mariners at Fenway followed by Baltimore this weekend. If they take care of business, then the playoffs will be dead ahead. Enjoy.
Sports 101: Who holds the career records for most TDs scored and TD passes thrown on opening day in NFL history?
News Item – Patriots Update: They opened Wednesday in Seattle vs. the Seahawks — ready or not. Given that no player of consequence played a down in preseason, when the D has been awful, they haven’t looked like they are ready so far. Exhibit A was being brutalized 37- 13 by Cleveland Thursday night.
Kyle Williams – I’m Just Saying: I know he’s played against bench players so far. But after another deep strike TD, this time for 45 yards, the yards per catch average on his four pre-season catches was 32.7. And when added to last year’s three TDs on 10 catches, it’s five TDs on just 14 catches for a yards per catch average of 24.1. That’s nearly two yards better than all-time record holder Homer Jones’ 22.3.
News Item – Red Sox Update:
The bad guys are hitting just .218 vs. Payton Tolle while he’s struck out 141 in a career high 125.1 innings with a 3.09 ERA.
How much credit does Pitching Coach Andrew Bailey deserve for all the career years guys on the pitching staff are having?
Even Aroldis Chapman had consecutive ERAs in the high 3s just before getting here. Here it’s been 1.17 and 1.81 with 143 Ks in 106 innings over two Boston seasons.
As we enter the final month, has anybody got any idea who the Sox MVP is so far?
The Numbers:
227 – homers hit by Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber since the Sox let him walk after 2021, to close in on the Babe’s record 235 for most homers in the first five seasons with a new team.
16 – after exceeding the second luxury tax threshold, MLB teams whose entire payrolls are less than what the L.A. Dodgers luxury tax payments will be.
25 – starts Milwaukee hurler Jacob Misiorowski has allowed three earned runs or less to begin the season, to be the first to do that since Dwight Gooden in 1985.
… Of the Week
Thumbs Up – Sox (Interim) Manager Chad Tracy: For turning around the Sox after taking over from Alex Cora to make it a more enjoyable sports summer.
Alumni News – Bill Belichick: A good start for Coach B in Year 2 at UNC, as the Tar Heels upset TCU 15-10.
Alumni News – Ryan Day: The local lad’s Ohio State Buckeyes start the season as college football’s top ranked team.
What A Stupid I Yam Award – Me. Reader Harvey Silverman emailed to say it was Anthony Seigler (sent back to AAA on Sunday) who came in the spring trade with Milwaukee, not Nick Sogard as I said last week.
Sports 101 Answer: Hall of Famers Marcus Allen and Tom Brady hold the records for most TDs scored and TD passes thrown on opening day with 14 and 44 respectively.
Final Thought – A Little History For Bob Kraft: As the Christian Gonzalez contract saga meanders along the Patriots owner apparently needs a little history reminder. So OK.
Yes, Brady won those six Super Bowls, but never without having an A-list cornerback on the team.
The first three came with Hall of Famer Ty Law aboard. But after Coach B made one of his biggest mistakes letting Law walk after 2004 they didn’t win again for 10 long years.
That streak stopped when Darrelle Revis came in 2014 when they beat Seattle. DR left after one year and the Pats lost in 2015. They won in 2016 as Malcolm Butler, he of the greatest play in NFL history, had developed into a solid player. Then won in 2018 as Stephon Gilmore was the Defensive Player of the Year.
Since then, bupkis.
So it seems the Pats’ math for winning a SB goes like this: great QB + A-list CB = SB win. Not a guarantee of course, but it is the common denominator for their six SB wins. Which they now also have. So while you have two huge cash layouts coming up for the Gonzalez and Drake Maye contracts, that’s part of winning, Bob. If you want to win, suck it up and get the deals done.
And if not willing to do that, fine. It’s your money. But then it’s time to sell the team.
Prediction: Seattle 27 – NE 20.
Email Dave Long at dlong@hippopress.com.