Bobby Blows The Game: Sox Drop Last Game of Series

I'm not complaining about my team here. Sharky was on his game, and they could not get much going against him. Also, the home plate umpire gave Tampa almost another whole strike zone worth of strike zone. For reference, the last at bat of the game... Cody Ross saw, I  believe, five pitches outside of the strike zone. Three of them were called strikes, and he ended the game. Should he have swung, knowing that the umpire had a strike zone the size of Iceland? Sure. It doesn't make the umpire right though.

Daniel Bard was excellent. This was heads and shoulders above his last performance. Unfortunately, it was hot out, and Bard still isn't, in my opinion, as stretched out as other starters. What I mean is that he hasn't really had the chance to throw this many pitches as often as our other starters. In the seventh, after about 100 pitches and two outs, Bard lost it. A blind man could see that he lost it. The kid was clearly done. With relievers ready to go in the bullpen after a base  hit and a walk, Bobby V. did what any extremely knowledgeable baseball person would do.... he left the struggling starter in the game to walk two more consecutive batters, walking in the winning run.

Bobby screwed Daniel Bard on that. Bard should have been out of the game. Now, I'm all for letting your starters work themselves out of trouble on most occasions, but Bard had nothing left. He's still a converted bullpen guy, and the manager, the self proclaimed smartest guy in the room, should have been paying attention. In my eyes, this loss is on Valentine. And it's not just because I don't like him any more.

Still, the boys have nothing to be ashamed of. They won three pretty damn convincing games, and only lost by one run in their only loss. That, dear friends, is a successful series, if I do say so myself. Tonight, Jon Lester opens up a series with the Texas Rangers. In his first two starts this season, Lester has gotten just about no support. Let's see if the bats can give him a hand this time around.

Also, Washington Capitals? Milan Lucic is going to destroy you. It takes a really tough guy to attack someone from behind and then call him a crybaby. And I will reiterate the sentiments of Jack Edwards.... Lucic would make the crybaby gesture back to you, but he'd end up scratching his corneas with his championship ring. So.... there's that. Congratulations on win #2, Bruins! Two more to go....