SteveSilver.net

Red Sox: The Day After

I should say first, that I was on business conference calls and at a tech trade show today, and the very first thing mentioned on every call and in every panel was “the Sox” and the “Curse.” But I give Yankee fans credit- they’ve taken the loss in stride, with generally good sportsmanship. The day after the presidential election, I don’t expect the backers of the side that loses to behave nearly as cooperatively.

FYI, I'll be posting a lengthy exegesis on the future on the Yankees, probably tomorrow night or sometime over the weekend.

Meanwhile, in Boston, the death toll from the series thus far stands at two: the Emerson student who was killed in the riot, and that guy in Lawrence, Mass. who shot his friend after Game 5. Don't worry, mom- whenever I get up there- hopefully soon- I promise to be careful.

In the NL, the Cardinals won Game 7 tonight to set up a rematch of the 1946 and 1967 Series- giving the Sox yet another curse to try to break. And no, we won’t get the Red Sox/Astros matchup and its attendant presidential-candidates-home-state angle, and even though I predicted it in April, I’m glad it didn’t happen. I’m sick to death of the election, and watching these baseball games has been and will continue to be a welcome, much needed respite from political news.

And how exciting- another “Last Game of Roger Clemens’ Career.” I enjoyed it almost as much as the other five.

A certain reader who happens to have the same first and last name as myself points out that should Jason Marquis of the Cardinals pitch to Gabe Kapler of the Sox, it would be the first batter-pitcher matchup between Jews in a World Series in 25 years.

At any rate, it should be a great, great series, shared by the two best baseball towns in America. And while I respect the Cards a whole lot- sorry, C!- this just isn’t their year. Sox in Six.

And finally, despite an incredibly busy day today, I swore the first thing I’d do when I got to the office was read the Bill Simmons column. It’s titled “The Nation’s Independence Day,” and honestly, I was nearly moved to tears. It’s the best column ever by Sports Guy, and I’ve read just about all of 'em.

Compare this to what he wrote the day after last year’s Game 7:

If the Red Sox were a girl, you would probably just break up with them. You would call them on the phone, explain to them calmly that you can't take it anymore, let them down as gently as possible, then move on with your life.

Sure is a good thing Bill kept the Olde Towne Girl around, huh?

UPDATE: The girl killed was an attractive young white woman, so the New York Post naturally puts her on the front page. The Sox fan shot by his friend was a dark-skinned Dominican-American- the Post didn't see fit to cover that story at all.

Posted by Stephen Silver at October 22, 2004 12:53 AM