As the Red Sox pull in an important victory bringing them to 2-2 in the ALCS, it looks like they're still in the game. Woo hoo! The Cubbies aren't looking too bad either, pulling out a 3-1 lead in the NLCS. Though the Marlins dropped that to a 3-2 lead, no team has come back from a 3-1 slump since like the 20's.
Note in the above how I sound like a baseball afficionado? I'm not. In fact, I would be completely lost in the above dialogue, say, a month ago, because I never paid that close attention to baseball. Why? Because I'd been a Cubbies fan for years growing up, and then a Red Sox fan after moving to Boston (which sounds an awful lot like trading six dozen of one for half a dozen of the other). It's been nothing but heart break for years and years, and suddenly, both actually stand a chance. That's why I'm so into this series, but it leaves me a bit conflicted.
There have been so many games lately that have been notable that I don't want to go into each amazing game. However, I wanted to take a moment to dwell on last night's ALCS game 4. Talk about great baseball. Wakefield started off a little shaky, but quickly woke up to knuckle ball the Yanks into submission. Mussina pitched a good game, but let a few eakers from Walker and Nixon out of the park -- which turned out to make all the difference. The game had it all...drama, tension, surprise substitution (Varitek for Mirabelli)...an amazing, amazing game. It's what baseball is all about. Not like the nonsense we saw in Saturday's ALCS game 3. The bruhaha on the field made for a terrible game, and not just because the Sox went down. It just wasn't good baseball. Just look at the NLCS. Batters were beaned in that series too, but you don't see nearly the tension you do as in the ALCS. My point of view comes from outside the long running tension between New York and Boston, though; I just have two words for both sides of this drama: chill out.
The Red Sox and the Cubs are actual, serious contenders for the World Series. That's right -- the Red Sox and the Cubs. Imagine going to a bookie back in February and saying that you favor the Red Sox and the Cubs for the World Series. It's unheard of. I've never been this into watching baseball, and yet, here I am, amazed at what's transpiring. Dare I to dream, a game between the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs???
Which would leave me with the dilemma: which do I root for? The Cubbies were my bread and butter growing up, while the Red Sox are my most recent heroes. If they both made it into the World Series, which would I want to win?
I wish they would both make it in, if only for one reason: a curse would have to be broken. Be it the Billy Goat Tavern curse, or the curse of the Bambino, we'd finally get to hear the end of a long drawn out story. I'm still picking my favorite to win, and don't have any idea which it will be. Let's see who makes it in!
Posted by John at October 14, 2003 10:59 AM | TrackBack