i wouldn't trade being a Sox fan for the world

the Sox are out of it. they're 3 games back from first place in the AL East & their season is over now. pack it up. might as well go home. right? RIGHT??

HA!! my boys. back they come. one game at a time. they sure are scrappy. i like that about them. they go out there, bruised, bleeding, criticized & beaten down...and they keep on playing. they know that there will be slumps & that the only way out of it is to keep playing through it. i would rather have them "slump" (and by "slump", i mean take a 5 game losing streak while plagued with a heap of key injuries) & get it out of the way than to have to worry about it the closer we inch to the post season. because it always comes...

i know it's "just" the Orioles, the lowly 4th place AL East rival, who have struggled for something like their last 17 games against the Red Sox, winning only one. but Boston just swept them & got their game on at home. what better way to go into a series against the Tigers, right?! high off a hard-earned victory & a beautiful comeback at that. (for anyone wondering right now, these two teams faced each other one other time in 2006, in Detroit, and the Sox took 2 of 3.) after that comes the 5-game home stand against the Yanks. and remember, no matter what happens between now & then, all bets are off when those two teams square off. (wondering now who has the edge for 2006? well both teams are 2-2 at Fenway & 3-3 in New York. yep. dead even.)

but all that is looking ahead & we know that isn't possible right now, i am going to bask in the glow of a sweep. and a game yesterday that showed the character of the 2006 Red Sox: don't count 'em out till the last out is called because they are notorious for clawing their way back out of a hole to leave you standing there with your mouth hanging wide open, wondering what just hit you.

speaking of hits? how better to enjoy a win than on a Lowell grand slam, a 3-run Youk long ball & Dougie's third solo shot in 3 consecutive starts (over 4 games though because he didn't play on Friday; Javy did).

and after a nail-biter of a 9th inning, Mike Lowell (whose performance, i believe, some people were worried about?!) grabbed a game-ending Melvin Mora hit. i love Papelbon's appreciation for his infield getting him out of a huge jam. i love the way this team appreciates each other & works like a perfectly tuned machine (as long as you don't bring in JJ or a bullpen EZ!)

ahhhhh...there is very little more exciting than being a Sox fan. i wouldn'