because for the most part it was a good weekend for Boston sports teams

FRIDAY
1. Papi fake-running rounding third top 3rd. ranks right up there with last Sunday, i believe, with the fans bearing signs spelling out Ortiz, bowing in unison in "we're not worthy" fashion.

2. the interview with Julia Ruth Stevens was a pleasure. what a classy lady. finally a good in-game interview, actually worth listening to.

3. and then there was mayhem & madness: obvious balk. Coco scores. almost hit Pedroia Pocket, looked intentional. benches clear. Hernandez starts mouthing off. bullpens clear, with relievers scaling the outfield wall like the beaches of Normandy. Cabrera drops his glove, untucks his shirt, and yells "let's go" to someone. Julian was playing peacemaker. Cabrera gets ejected. Trembley is ticked off because the only Boston player ejected was Cash. warnings issued. craziness.

4. speaking of Trembley. the man looks like eerily like William Shatner.

SATURDAY
Hundred Million Dollar Pitcher is a Hundred Million Dollar Nightmare. walking in two runs & then giving up a grand slam. i think i'm going to just give the nod to the Orioles on this one & forget it happened. unfortunately, i seem to be forgetting a lot of Matsuzaka's starts these days. we've only won one game out of his last six starts. i think i am chalking this up to the JD Drew learning curve & pray they both make the same improvements Joshy did from his first year in Boston to his second.

SUNDAY
i have to admit, i was only half watching the Sox game, because my other eye was on the Packers game. i know that Commander Kick Ass earned win number eighteen. and that Jonathan Papelbon continues to shut 'em down -- all hail The Cheerio Mouth. but truly, the highlight of the game for me was hearing Drew introduced as Drool. completely cracked me up.

Schill and Kaz square off at Fenway tonight. i'd be worried about it but all my baseball energy right now is focused on Friday's match-up & there's no room for more worry: Matsuzaka & Pettitte. ::gulp:: what i want to know is by what heartless twist of fate the Sox play the Yankees on Sunday night -- and the Patriots are slated for primetime at the same.exact.time. how am i going to watch both?! i can't miss a Sox-Yanks game... but it's my first chance(and likely one of only a few i'll get this season) to actually see the Patriots play...



my local CBS coverage brought me the Miami-Washington game yesterday, so i didn't get to see anything Patriots other than the score scrolling by, and a few game break highlights. i am as impressed as i can be after one game. Randy Moss came out & shushed the people questioning his lack of preseason appearances. (now if he can just keep his mouth shut & act like a New England Patriot, i'll be thrilled to welcome him to the team!) Wes Welker was exactly what i thought he'd be: Brady's secret weapon. you can't cover all Tom's targets *and* put pressure on him. you're not allowed to have that many guys on the field for that! so you cover the big names, like Moss and Stallworth, leaving Welker wide open -- touchdown! and then there was Ellis Hobbs and his NFL-record-breaking 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. exciting stuff. i hope they bring the same game next week when they play the Chargers Sunday night, hosted by New England.

now if i can just figure out how to watch both games at once...