Defining Fan(atic)

Everyone saw the culmination of the ginormous collapse by the Boston Red Sox in highly improbable circumstances this week. If I had jotted down the most dramatic scenario I could think of, prior to the games being played, I could not have matched what actually happened. Three of the four games being played that had consequences for the playoff races, (NL as well as AL) were within an out or less of completion when the course of that game turned completely around. The Tampa Bay Rays were down to their last strike against the Yankees, with a .108 hitter at the plate no less, when they managed to snatch the proverbial victory. We all know what followed and what the result was for the Red Sox. After all the smoke cleared in Baltimore and St. Petersburg, Fla., Boston was on the outside looking in wondering what the heck had happened.

As improbable as the circumstances on Wednesday were, the result was predicable considering how the month of September played out. The Red Sox were just a very bad team and it wasn’t likely they were going to reverse that the last night or two of the season. Boston fell short of the playoffs for 3 reasons: 1) Their hitting became inconsistent; 2) injuries were a constant drag on the team; and 3) their pitching became historically awful. Even their best starters ended up worn out and unable to pitch more than a few strong innings before their performances went south. When both Jon Lester and your ace, Josh Beckett, can’t give you a strong outing, you know you’re in trouble. It really was just that simple.

Of course, Red Sox fan had to look for other reasons. You never want to believe that you just weren’t good enough. The choke explanation of course made the rounds. Yes, they choked in the sense that they didn’t play well enough when it counted, but does anyone think that David Ortiz, Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett or Jonathan Papalbon couldn’t take the pressure. Please, they’d been in those situations countless times before. People have been raising the spectre of a resurgence of the Curse of the Bambino, whatever that means. The funniest I’ve heard was that Bill Buckner was responsible because he made an appearance on ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ because the Red Sox went to pot around when the episode aired. Really, Red Sox fan? That’s called a coincidence. Look it up. It wasn’t enough you had to hate the guy for 25 years because of one play in the ’86 World Series (never mind his play all year was one reason you even got there) but now you’ve got to drag him outta the excuse closet because he’s convenient? Unbelievable. It would be entirely understandable (and hilarious) if Buckner rented a giant billboard that just said ‘Hey Boston’ underneath a gargantuan middle finger. That’s as ridiculous as blaming a loss by your favourite team on the fact you forgot to wear your team shirt at home in your living room. Hear this, Red Sox nation: your team just didn’t perform. It wasn’t good enough at the time of year it needed to be.

Even though they didn’t have anything to do with the collapse, I hope Bill Buckner and the Babe are having a good laugh.