It's the MOST WONDERFUL time of the Year!!!!

Study Break!

So I am going crazy studying for my last final and I needed a break! This was just the ticket. I hope you enjoy as much as we do!

Watch Grace Grow!

I am now obsessed with making movies! This one is longer than the last one, but it is videos and pics of Grace since she turned 1! She is such a great little girl! Hope you enjoy! Here I come Oscars!

Saving Children's Health Care

So, I made this video for a contest that some of my fellow classmates are having. Don't you think that I am the next Steven Spielberg? Me too!

Curt Schilling and Mike Lowell....Welcome Back!

I know have use already used this already when Manny came back from injury, but it still works! It is great to have both Schill and Lowell back with the Sox. Both great contracts and both are winners. Is it April yet?

Visit Saving Health Care

I know it has been a long time since I have posted...and this one is not very exciting! As I have mentioned before, in one of my classes a few of us have started a blog about health care in our country. It is called, savinghealthcare.blogspot.com. It follows that health care plans of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards. We use their websites and youtube clips to help them tell their stories with the hope educating others to find out who will help us save our failing health care system. Please, please, please visit and makes comments about what you read. This will help advance what we are trying to accomplish and ALSO it will help us get a better grade! So, go visit and help save health care!

Return of Stat of the Day...

World Series RBI Career...Dice-K-2!....AROD-0!!!!

That makes me very happy and I must agree with all the fans that were chanting,"DON'T SIGN AROD!"

Are you World Serious????

I am still in shock about how things ended for the Boston Red Sox! 2 World Series Titles in 4 years! You have got to the kidding me??? This is the Boston Red Sox...the team that FOUND ways to lose! Now they are not just winning the World Series, but in dominating fashion! I am not sure how many times I said that there was NO way this team would win the World Series...too many to even go back and look for in this blog. But I am VERY happy to say I could not have been more wrong. This was a great team. During the season they never won more than 5 games in row and then when it mattered most they won 7 in a row! That is amazing. This team was built for the post season and built well. Another person that I must apologize publicly to is Theo Epstein. I questioned him all year and I could not have been more wrong. This was his team...he put this team together even more so than the 2004 team. Some of his moves were questionable, but they worked when it mattered most. Congrats to Theo...you have done it again!

So, there we go! The Sox are the Champs! Now I have nothing to write about....but I am sure that ESPN will give me plenty to rant about...they already have. I will get to that later. This never gets old.

WORLD SERIES CHAMPS!!!!!!

Amazing

I am not goint to lie. When the Sox went down 3-1 to the Indians I thought they would most likely not come back. I thought they would win game 5 with Beckett on the mound...but after that I was not so sure. But of course we all know the Sox came back and are American League Champions for the 2nd time in 4 years! It was a fanctastic comeback for the Sox in which the out scored the Indians 30-5 in the last 3 games. It was awesome and I am excited for the World Series. The Rockies are a very good team...so we shall see!

I am going to post some pictures of our trip to the beach in the next day for so. You will love the pics of Grace. This I can promise.

Gagne to Lopez...

BRILLIANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why would I post this video??

Because sometimes it is just fun to remember your childhood. Enjoy.

Greatest Sports Weekend Ever

Because today was Columbus Day and thus National Holiday, I have decided that last weekend was from Friday Night to Monday Night. And because of this it was the Greatest Sports Weekend Ever.

Let's Start with Friday...
Friday nights sports started at 8 with college football. My alma mater, The University of Utah, went to Louisville to play the Big East powerhouse. Well, they were a powerhouse last year...but that does not matter. The U has been up and down this year and their was NO reason to believe the U would win. BUT, after 3 hours of hard fought football the Utes gave Louisville on the road 44-35! Amazing!
BUT, Friday still had much more to it. At 8:37 the Boston Red Sox started game two ALDS with the Los Angeles Angles of Anaheim. This game was about as exciting as it can get. After about 14 hours of baseball the Sox finally finished off the Angles with a walk-off home run by Manny Ramirez. What a Friday.

Now let us move on to Saturday...
Saturday was all about college football when it came to sports. At 12 my current school, UNC, faced long time powerhouse Miami. There was absolutely NO way the Heels could come out with this win. BUT, in the end they did. A fantastic 33-27 upset.
This had very little to do with me, BUT my mom attended Stanford...so their upset of USC was sweet for her and added to this great weekend.

How about Sunday...
First, the New England Patriots continued their absolute dominance of the rest of the NFL. They did what they do and handled the awful Cleveland Browns 34-17. This was never in doubt and they rolled to 5-0.
Sunday sports belong to my Boston Red Sox. On this day they went for the sweep of the Angels and for most of the game it was close. But the bats woke up in the 7th and the Sox scored 7 runs to put the game away. After Gagne recorded the final out the celebration commenced and the Sox just had to sit a wait to see who their opponent in the ALCS would be.

Monday, oh blessed sports, Monday....
Just a few minutes ago the greatest sports weekend EVER was completed as the New York Yankees were officially knocked out of the FIRST round of the playoffs by the Cleveland Indians. Just knowing that they are out is the perfect ending to a perfect sports weekend.

Saving Health Care

As you all I know I am currently attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and am working on my Masters in Health Care Administration. For my class, Policy and Politics, we are working on a project that has to with the upcoming Presidential Election and the issue of health care. My group has created a blog named savinghealthcare.blogspot.com. On this blog we are discussing the health care views of the 3 main Presidential Candidates from the Democratic Party, Barak Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards. The purpose of this project is to get the attention of the public when it comes to the issue of health care reform in the United States and that is were we need you all to get involved. Please visit this site and make comments about the issues that we raise. No matter your political ideology this site is for everyone to use so that we can find the best way to save the current health care system here in the United Sates.

WOW!!

Wow! That is all I got...wow! Once again, Laura and Sean were there...amazing! And if you have not seen it here is the walk-off by MANNY!!!

AL EAST CHAMPS!!!!

After 160 games the Sox clinched the AL East for the first time since 1995! After an impressive 8 innings by Dice-K and some fantastic clutch hitting by the whole team, the Sox had won 5-2. Now they just had to wait to see if the Yanks would lose the O's. It was not looking good as the Yanks were up 9-6 with 2 outs in the 9th. But the O's would rally to tie in the 9th and win it on a bunt in the 10th! You can only imagine how crazy I went...quietly though, Grace was sleeping! After the Yanks loss, the team ran on to the field to celebrate with the thousands of fans that stuck around in the stands to see if the Sox would clinch. Only in Boston! It has been an up and down year for the Sox. They spent from April 18th on in first and had a 12 game lead at one point and it got widdle down to 1 just few days ago. Celebrate and then get back to business. As many Sox players fans said last night...11 more wins to go.

Check out player interviews here.

And the highlight of the clinch here.

And if you get a chance check out the great pictures of Grace from her birthday on the post before.

She is 1!!

Yup, yesterday Grace turned the big 1!! That's right...for one whole year she has managed to put up with her Crazy father. Amazing, huh? I think so too. Yesterday was a fantastic day for her. Of course she had no idea, but it was filled with cupcakes, presents, friends and then more cake. What a perfect day for her. I am not complaining...I mean I got a whole lot of cake!

Grace is wonderful little girl. She spends her day laughing, crawling, clapping, telling us what she wants by using sign language and then laughing some more. We could not be happier or more blessed to have her in our lives. Amy and I spent a lot of yesterday talking about what the day was like when she was born and all the things that have happened over the past year. As you can imagine, we do not remember what life was like before she was here and we wouldn't change it for the world. We love you!!!

Welcome Back Manny

This afternoon when I checked to see the Red Sox lineups, I was very surprised to see Manny back! I am not going to lie, just the idea of having him back in the lineup and on the field is music to Red Sox fans heart. And not lame music... when I say music I mean Sweet, Caroline. And then to top it off he singled in his first at bat and walked in his 3rd. A solid 1-2, 1 BB and 1 run scored game. And the Sox won 7-3. It is good to have you back, Manny. Welcome Back, Welcome Back...Welcome Back!

An open letter to Mr. Lugo

Mr. Lugo,
For the past few months I have been known to call you "the worst everyday player in baseball". After tonights performance I must publicly apologize for my oversight. While your numbers are not stellar, they are improving and tonight your big home run clinched a playoff spot for the Boston Red Sox. You are no longer the "the worst everyday player in baseball". I hope that you can expect my apology and because I am certain you truly are reading this...Lo Siento. Oh, and let me be the first to offically say, "Welcome to the Red Sox."

Sam Carter

p.s. Just so you can watch it again and again, here is your HOMERUN.

Dusty Baker, Mistake Maker

Where does ESPN find these guys? On baseball tonight they just asked Dusty Baker about whether or not it is important for the Yankees to win the divison. He went on to say that it was more important for the Red Sox to win because, "They have not won the AL East since 1998". First that is just flawed logic. Second, it was 1995! I wish it was 1998, but that year the Yankees won 114 games and finished 22 games ahead the Sox! AND NOBODY CORRECTED HIM!!!!

Literally while I was writing this about Baker, Eduardo Perez, yup the former Devil Ray great, said that Josh Beckett would not win the Cy Young because, "He threw 113 pitches over 6 innings and that will not cut it. He only has 19 wins, he needs more." Once again, flawed very stupid logic, but he has 20 wins now. AND NOBODY CORRECTED HIM!!!! The four letter network strikes again.

On a happy side note...Eric Gagne came in when the Sox were winning and did not allow a run. His stats now when entering the game and Sox are winning... 8 games, 14 runs, ERA 15.75. Much better.

An a Amazing Stat

I have just taken a quick break from studying, it is nice to have one everyone once in a while, to prove a theory about Eric Gagne. Usually I am wrong when it comes to this stuff, but sadly I am right about this one. What I am about to tell you is painfully true and should NOT be the case for a closer. Are you ready? This is not for the faint of heart...

Gagne pitching in games when he enters and the Red Sox are losing...

7 innings pitched, 0 runs allowed, ERA of 0.00

Gagne pitching in games when he enters are the Red Sox are winning...

7 innings pitched, 14 runs allowed, ERA of 18.00

This guy is a closer...A CLOSER! He is supposed to be able to hold leads and this stat helps us to know that he is worse when he enters with a lead. That is amazing.

FRANCOMA...if a graduate student with a child, who has NO free time, can figure this out so can you! Please STOP using him. I beg off you.

I am done

That is right. I am done. The Red Sox are awful. I mean it. I do not care that they will most likely make the playoffs. They are awful. The have blown a great pitching performance by John Lester, because Terry Francona does not seem to KNOW what everyone, and I mean everyone, else knows. Gagne is pathetic. NEVER use him again. EVER. He cannot be on the playoff roster and he can not ever wear any Red Sox apparel again. I give up on these guys and move on. They are awful, Francona is awful and everything associated with this team is awful. I am done.

Now, How do I feel...

Somewhere between....


















This has been the most up and down sports weekend I have ever had. I wish the Sox could have put the Yanks away, but they did not. But I am glad they won on Saturday. I am really excited about the Utes blowout of UCLA. That was just the what the doctor ordered after such a slow start. And I glad that the Pats did a number of lDt and the Chargers. Tomlison needed to be shut up after his, "If you are not cheating you are not trying" routine. Their best defensive player was busted for steroid use, which among other worse things, is CHEATING! I guess that is the Charger way. Anyway, glad the weekend is over. It was just too much for one guy too handle. At least this little girl keeps me smiling....

How I feel today....

and a whole lot of...

How I feel....

and very

My final comments of CameraGate

First off, I will let Bill Simmons tell you all how I fell,

"That reminds me, everyone's talking about the other teams and implying they were the victims. What about Pats fans? How did we deserve this? Our favorite team cheated, we lost a No. 1 pick, our coach pulled the football version of the Watergate break-in, our entire mini-dynasty has been tainted according to the outside world. ... Seriously, what did we ever do other than support a perpetually crappy franchise with a bad stadium for years and years and years? Do you think we wanted any of this to happen? All week, I almost felt like I did something wrong just because I rooted for these guys. Well, no more. Call them cheaters, call them villains, call them the evil empire, but it's still my team. You can't disown your team just because it does something sleazy, just like you can't disown a close family member for doing something sleazy. Your team is your team. I hate what happened, I think it has been terribly overblown, we paid the price, and we're moving on."

I love how people hated the Pats before and would say things like, "They have always been good. It is time for someone else." These people do not know much about football history. The Pats record during the time I lived in New Hampshire was 47-80! Does that sound good to you? They were awful, awful, awful. I realize that now they are cheaters and I hate it. I am glad that got caught and I glad they have been punished, but do not give the fans a hard time for this. We suffered through an awful team for years. We do not deserve this. Do not hate us...hate Belichick, but not us.

As for the punishment, I think it was a bit light. But not for the same reason others might think. I am not sure that suspending Belichick would have done any good. He would still be able to coach the team all week and could still draft up the teams plays. The fine for him was just right, because it was the most he could give. BUT, the light part is taking away a first round draft pick. The Pats never really use their first rounders. They always get their big names later. They even trade their first rounders away. This does not hurt them. I would have taken away all of their 2nd day picks. Seriously, that would have hurt them more. And those are my final thoughts.

Just some thoughts...

With school starting I have not had a lot time to write because I spend all my time reading and when I do have free time I like to play with Grace and spend time with Amy. So, I thought I would write some of things that I have been thinking...

• I am completly disappointed in the New England Patriots. They cheated, that is the bottom line. They did not need to and there is no excuse. I hope that they get punished and I hope it fits the crime. BUT, this is NOT worse that Steriods. Steriods is cheating, but the serious issue with steriods is that the health risks. It causes rage and causes death! It killed Ken Caminiti and Lyle Alzado and it will continue kill others. Please do not compare steriods to CameraGate. They are not the same. But, I still am disappointed in my Pats.
• School is hard, but I really like it. We have had some great guest lectureres that love what they do and they makes me very excited.
• Laura and Sean went to the Red Sox game last night. I would have loved to have been there, but I am glad that if anyone got to be at such an exciting game it could be them. When I got home from serving as a missionary, Laura would tell me all the time that I would love Big Papi. She is right and so she deserved to see this big hit.
• Finally, my Dad announced his retirement yesterday. He is great example and I really proud of him for all he accomplished. Last night I googled Gary Carter NJHA, and the 3rd article down was about this retirement. The thing that makes me most proud of is that he talks about being most excited to spend time with my mom and serve in the Church. Thank you Dad. Thank you for always making sure we know what is important in life. We love you very much.

I will be more positive

GO SOX!!! And Dice-K too! Since I know you read my blog, I apologize for saying you are reason #1 the Red Sox will not win the World Series. You are not reason #1. You just make me mad sometimes. So, I am sorry. And because I am completly certain you read my blog....私は残念である.

Reason #1 the Red Sox Will NOT Win the World Series...

This is not a good picture, but that is Dice-Homerun, I mean Dice-K. Look, I am not giving up on this guy for the long haul, but he cannot be trusted down the stretch and in the postseason. He has hit a rookie wall, or what we saw last year...the Beckett Wall. He has to adjust to league, with better hitters, who make adjustments and are not is aw of him. He has hurt this team lately and he will continue to do so. I would much rather see Buchholz get some innings starting games and let Dice-K rest. But that won't happen and he will reason #1 the Sox will not win the World Series this year.

Clay has a Day!

I had to wait a whole day before I blogged on this, because I had to let it sink in. Red Sox Rookie pitcher, Clay Buchholz, threw a no-hitter in just his second major league start and it was amazing. I wish I could have watched it (but we are in the area that gets blocked out of Baltimore games on MLB.com...STUPID!!) but I followed every pitch in aw of what he was doing. This young 23 year old kid mixed his pitches in a way that most veteran pitchers have not figured out yet how to do. He was brilliant and it was exactly what ever Sox fan needed. After a tough week of baseball, Clay literally helped every Sox fan feel better. He did that for me at least and that is saying a lot. He summed it up best during his interview on NESN after the game. After being asked a question the sold out crowd starting cheering and he loooked around and said, "Wow!" Wow is right Clay, wow is right! So thank you very much Clay Buchholz and Welcome to the Sox!

(Here is the highlight of all 27 outs of his no-hitter! It is chicken soup for the Red Sox fan soul.)

Appalachian is HOT HOT HOT!!!

With what many are calling the biggest upset in college football history, Appalachian State University (A Division 1AA school) is officially HOT HOT HOT!!!! Congrats on the defeat on the previously #5 ranked Michigan Wolverines.

Offensive....

This song and the Boston Red Sox are offensive. The problem is that the Sox have no offense...NONE!!! Once again Theo has dropped the ball again. Last year he made no trades even though many players were banged up. He proved he had no plan at all. This year he has done the same thing. As mentioned on this Blog, he strengthened the Sox strength and let its weaknesses remain weak. The bench is awful and the offense is OFFENSIVE. For more than a few weeks Manny's back has been hurting him and we all know about Papi's various injuries this year. Most of the logical thinkers out there thought that the Sox needed a back up plan for when they would have to miss games. And now Manny is out for atleast 10 days and ERIC HINSKE(Thats right THE Eric Hinske) is out in left. I am glad that the Sox are still up 5. I still feel confident about winning the division, but this team WILL NOT win the World Series. They just won't. And the fact the Sox have great pitching, Papi and Manny and they still have no chance...is just as offensive white guys rapping about girls who wear Abercrombie and Fitch.

She's Got the Right Stuff...

Happy Birthday to Amy! I have wanted to post something all day about Amy, but it turns out that her birthday happened to be on my busiest day of school. So after a long 9-5 day hitting the books, I have gotten to spend some time celebrating my favorite holiday with my best friend!!! I love her so much and I am so grateful for all that she does for me and Grace. We could not be luckier or more blessed to have her. Thank you for everything Amy! You do have the RIGHT STUFF...oh oh oh oh oh!

Today I am the "Greatest American Hero"...

Why you ask? Well after surviving my first week of graduate school I had to go a pay the rest of my tuition bill. The other day I found out that for some reason I still owed UNC $.04! 4 lousy cents!! So, I walked over to the cashiers office with a friend of mine so that I could give them our last little bit of money! When we got there I told them that apparently I still owed 4 CENTS of my tuition. They all laughed and then looked it up and they could not believe that I actually owed 4 CENTS!! I then commented that I did not think we had to the money to pay this much and my family would have to go without food and maybe they could take out a collection. They laughed and then one of the cashiers took out a book and paid the rest of my extremely large tuition bill. I believe that pulling off that small miracle makes me today's "Greatest American Hero!"

Stat of the Century

This Stat blows my mind. On Tuesday David "Big Papi" Ortiz had a triple and an infield single! IN THE SAME GAME! As you can see they don't call him Big Papi for nothing. While I cannot prove it, I believe this has to be a first for him and I am going to guess it will be the last too. Congrats, Big Papi, Congrats.

Perfect...

The other night Amy and I stayed up looking up TV shows on youtube. One of us would look for the a show and the other would have to guess what the show was by the intro. Let me tell you, this was good times. And because I know all of my readers will enjoy it, here is the the Intro to the Classic show...PERFECT STRANGERS!!! (there will be more shows to come in the future!)

Whenever Baseball makes me mad...

this girl reminds me what is important! This last week has been orientation for my masters program and it has been fantastic! The professors and my fellow classmates are great and I am really looking forward to school starting. The highlights of this week have to do with Grace though. On Wednesday we had a potluck dinner at the director of my programs home and of course we brought Grace a long with us. At one point she got a little frustrated because no one was paying attention to her. So, naturally she screamed at the top of her lungs. Everyone, and I mean everyone, turned around looked at her, which was quite embarrassing for Amy. As soon as Grace noticed she had their attention, she smiled, laughed and screamed a little bit more. Later on that night one of the professors came up to talk to Grace. As she said hello, Grace immediately reached out and grabbed her glasses right off of her face! This was Classic Grace! As you can see in the picture she had a great time eating blueberries for breakfast this morning and felt that the it would be fun to put them all over her body! Thank goodness for our little Grace, who reminds me what is important everyday!

Designate Him for Assignment

On this very blog I wrote that I felt that the Sox had to go get something at the trade deadline. I felt that getting Eric Gagne would completely change every game and after the 6th inning every game would be over. This has not been the case. I have now watched Gagne lose 3 games for the Red Sox all by himself. The Sox offense has given him EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO HELP THEM WIN GAMES, but he has blown them all. 3, not 1, not 2, but 3 games he has blown. He is personally the reason the Red Sox are NOT 8 games up right now. Even though the trade made sense at the time, it is the single worst trade in hind sight that I have ever seen. When I said that they should trade for him, I had obviously not done any research. During the Month of July Gagne posted a 4.35 ERA. He had not pitched since July 24th, because they used him in both ends of a doubleheader. I did now know this, but Theo had to have know this. For that he should lose his job. And if the Computer Geek did not know this, then he should lose his job. 3 GAMES! I just got off the phone with Sean and we talked about how they need to use him in mop up duties ONLY. But I have changed my mind. Get him off the team and call someone who wants to help a team win up. Let Buchholz do this or Pauley or anyone else. This guy has got to go. He is hurting the team in every way you can. Designate him for assignment now and let's move on.

I do NOT condone drinking...

BUT I do condone laughter!! Here is some real men of genius ads for your to laugh at from Mike and Mike. Trust me, you will think this is awesome.

Seriously, I give up...

I am done. The season is over. I know I know...4 games. The Sox have an easier schedule, blah, blah, blah. This team is awful.

When Amy and I got back to Carolina our TV remote control was not working. We could turn on the TV from the TV itself and all that stuff, but the pleasure of sitting back and changing the channels was not there. So, what did we do? We got new batteries and the problem was gone. We fixed the problem. We did not call the cable company or a TV repair man. That would be stupid, the TV was not the problem. What does this have to do anything? Well, the Red Sox have a problem, they have had it all year. It was not their bullpen. They had this Delcarmen/Timlin, to Okjima to Papelbon working great. So, they decided to fix that. The problem was their offense. NO ONE is hitting for power...NO ONE! Only 3 guys have hit over 15 homeruns and NONE of them have over 20. No one is knocking in runs...NO ONE! They get on base a lot, they work the count a lot, but they do not score enough runs. But they decided not to fix that. Theo and his brain trust (his Gorilla suit) fixed the TV and not the remote. I give up.

i give up

I do I really do. I give up. And these idiots are why....

Seriously, WORST EVERYDAY PLAYER IN BASEBALL

The Sox took a 4-2 lead and look great. Then after some awful pitching by the always streaky and unrealable Tim Wakefield the Angels made it 4-3 and had runners on 1st and 2nd. A ROUTINE groundball gets hit to the smiling moron and he makes the an error. $9 MILLION FOR THIS! Now it is atleast 5-4 with no out. Francona, if you are a reading this....STOP PLAYING HIM!! HE IS LITERALLY THE WORST EVERYDAY PLAYER IN BASEBALL.

There's no need to fear....

This past week Amy and Grace took me to Boston for my birthday. It was a fantastic trip. We had dinner at Legal Seafood and walked the streets of my favorite city. On Thursday Amy got us tickets to go see the Sox beat the O's 7-4. It was a great game that was highlighted by Grace cheering, clapping and booing as she watched her dad go a little crazy throughout the game. It was great. The day we left we went a bought some Red Sox t-shirts with the players name a number on the back. I was having a hard time deciding whether I should get a Kevin Youkilis #20 or a Dustin Pedroia #15. These are my two favorite Red Sox, not Papi or Schill or Manny. Nope. I love those guys, but for some reason these are my guys. I have a Trot Nixon jersey hanging in my closet because the whole time he was a Red Sox he was my favorite player. I love these guys and Amy recently asked me why. I told her it is because I love the guys that come up through the Sox farm system. All of these guys were drafted and eventually made their way up to make a key contribution to my favorite team. But as I thought about it more this was not the reason at all. The reason why Youk and Pedroia are my favorite Sox is because I feel like we have something in common...we are underdogs.

Both Youk and Pedroia are fantastic players, but they are not blessed with any special physical gift. Both do not have professional athlete bodies and neither really looks the part. Youk spent most of 2004 and 2005 riding the shuttle between Pawtucket and Boston, never sure how long he would be in either place. After the Sox decided to part ways with 3rd basemen Bill Mueller in the 2005, it appeared that he would have a permanent spot on the Sox. But then they traded for Mike Lowell and Youk once again was left to wonder what would happen next. They placed him at first and during the whole off season their were still rumors that the front office was trying to find another 1st basemen to fill the spot. They signed JT Snow because the felt they would need him to fill in defensively and you have to believe that Youk once again felt if he had a place.

Dustin Pedroia is a different story. He was always a favorite of the front office in Boston. He quickly moved through the minors and hit a every level. This season he won the job in spring training and appeared ready to be the everyday 2nd basemen. There a few problems though. One, in a late season call up on 2006 he was awful. He hit just .192 and had an OPS of .561. Most people, including Bill Simmons, thought he was over matched and the Sox had made a mistake. His second obstacle was the first month of 2007. Once again the only word to describe it was awful. He hit .182 and had an OPS of .544. He was getting worse and Alex Cora was putting up Big Papi type numbers(.360/ OPS 1.007) Everyone and I mean everyone, was calling for Pedroia to be benched and Cora to be the Sox 2nd basemen.

But things changed for both of these players. Youk gained value as a lead off hitter and played everyday. He mastered the art of playing first base, not his natural position, and is key part of this 2007 team. Pedroia never lost his job and has made the Sox very happy for the decision to stick with him. In May he hit .415 and had an unbelievable OPS of 1.072 and is now permanently sitting a top the Sox lineup. Both of these guys overcame the notion that maybe they were not cut out to make in the Majors and are both proving that not only do they belong, but they are key parts to the team with the best record in baseball.

Now, this next part is going to get quite cheesy but it must be written anyway. How does this apply to me? When I started out at the University of Utah I was an awful student. When I finished my first semester my grades were high enough to keep me off academic probation, but low enough that I got put on academic warning. I spent the next almost 3 years serving as missionary in both Brasil and Washington, learning what it takes to succeed. I returned home and went right back to school needing to prove that I belong. I had no critics around me, my family all believing that I could do it, besides myself. Over the next 3 years my study habits got better and I graduated by making the dean's list 2 of my last 3 semesters. I had proven myself wrong. This fall I will be attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to obtain a Master of Health Care Administration. When I applied to UNC I did not believe I had a chance of gaining admittance. I would tell people that I did not think I would even go if I got, mostly to protect myself so when I did not get in I could just say I would not have even gone. I was surprised when I was asked to interview and then could not believe who I was interviewing with. The other students there attended schools like Harvard, Yale and Stanford and I felt intimidated, like I did not belong. How could I be in a room with students of that caliber? A few weeks passed and to my surprise I was accepted and a few weeks later we decided that would be were we would attend. Once again I am my own worst critic. I feel like I am entering a school were I do not belong and very soon others will know it. I feel like an underdog, but this time an underdog who knows he can do it.

Amy found a way for me to get both the Youk and Pedroia shirts. These guys are my reminder what underdogs can accomplish.

Congrats to Slappy McBlue Lips

Today Arod became the youngest player to ever reach the 500 homerun mark. Seriously, congratulations. That is quite the achievement. This guy will make the Hall of Fame and there is a very very good chance he will break the homerun record that Barry Bonds is about to set. He will go down as one of the greatest to ever play...so once again congrats. BUT let us not forget who AFraud really is....
This is the ARod we all know and will always remember...no matter how many records he breaks. Thank you for the memories.

worst everyday player in the Majors

Made the trade, but...

It does not matter if Julio Lugo is still playing shortstop. I am not sure what to call what he just did...some sort of half-slide/dive that allowed 2 runs to score. Then Beckett broke everything in the dugout. I guess they do not plan on having a lead to hold until after Gagne gets there. I will write more about this trade later...but I am happy about it.

Just a little update...after Wily Mo Pena actually walked Lugo hit into a double play. Loved the trade, made the team better...remember that...made the team better.

More updates...Lugo strikes out looking with the bases loaded and two out, on a low pitch. Was it borderline...yes. But with 2 strikes and you always swing at anything close. This guy is pathetic. And he just made what should be an error. $9 Million...wow. Way to go on that one Theo. Atleast you got Gagne!

This guy continues to lead off and he has a .291 On base percentage. Ya know what? I do not even blame Lugo for being so awful...I blame Francona continues to hit him lead off. If I were him I would want my first 2 hitters to get on base at a high percentage so that Papi and Manny have someone to hit in. I would suggest hitting Pedroia first, .391 OBP and Youk second, .403 OBP. More runs would score because more men would be on base for the big 2. That would make sense though and one would not want to do that.

5-3 loss and now the lead is back to 7. The Sox had runners on 1st and 2nd with one out and up came Lugo. He just barely missed grounding into a double play and the game ended on the next pitch. The Sox had 4 hits and Papi had 3 of them...2 for homeruns. Oh well. It was good to see Papi hit for some more power at Fenway today. 7 games is still the biggest lead. I believe it would be larger without the WORST EVERYDAY PLAYER IN BASEBALL...JULIO LUGO.

KG to my Celts...and what it means for my Sox

I was gone most of yesterday and had no idea what was going on in the sports world. I believed it to be a slow day because my Sox were not playing and what could possibly happen. So you have to imagine my surpise as I turned on the computer and went to boston.com/sports and saw that is slow day had really turned into what could be a huge trade for the basketball franchise I have always cheered for, but has been awful for the longest time. Kevin Garnett was coming to play in Boston? I still cannot believe it. 3 all-stars, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and KG, on one team? I was not sure how to feel about this at first, but then I thought about it some more and came to this conclusion...bring on the NBA season. I am not sure if I have even thought that since the early 90's. My next thought was very simple...Kevin McHale was always my favorite player on the Celtics when I was growing up. I loved the way he played and I loved the size of his heart. Now, he is my favorite GM. I cannot believe he would give up such a talented player for nothing...but I won't go into this because Bill Simmons already has. Instead I will link this is some way, as I probably always will, to my beloved Red Sox and what this means as the trade deadline fast approaches.
This next sentence is going to sound completley and utterly ridiculous...Theo Epstien could learn from Danny Ainge right now. Before you stop reading because you think I have lost my mind let me make my argument and then you can tell me how stupid I am. Trading for KG will do one of two things, make the Celts a Contender or do absolutely nothing and they will continue to be medicore. I believe this will make them a contender, but mostly because the East, especially the Atlantic Division, is awful. BUT no matter what happens to the Celts in the end, this was a trade that Ainge needed to complete and he knew it. Most of the players he gave up were awful, but he did give up a future star in Al Jefferson. Most people, especially baseball people, are very much against the idea of giving up young, promising stars for known commidities. This why the Mets never got Manny because they were afraid to give up players that MIGHT become all-stars. This has never made any sense to me. I am not saying that one should mortage their future for an aging star, but does it not make sense to trade for something you know will work and all you are giving up is something that could possibly work? Danny Ainge has done this. For better or for worse he has put his job in the line and my respect for him as GM increased. In 2004 my respect for Theo Epstein as a GM was at the highest point it could possibly be and this is not because that was the year the Red Sox pulled off the greatest comeback in the history sports and went in the win the World Series. It is because he put his job on the line and made one of the toughest trades you could possibly make. I remember driving in the car with Amy as it was announced the Sox had traded Nomar, the face of the franchise. I was so angry I turned off the radio before we even heard who the Sox had gotten back. Eventually I heard about the 3 players the Red Sox had gotten, OC, Mienkvetasdaz and Dave Roberts. None of them were all-stars, but as I looked at the 3 players I felt a little better about what had happened. Theo did not know these 3 players would help the Sox win, but he did not feel they could win with type of team they currently had. The facts are the facts, the Sox did went on to win the World Series and they would not have without these 3 players. Theo took a chance, put his job on the line and helped the Sox twin the Series. Now he sits back in his cushy office, on his chair made of money, wearing that ridiculous Gorilla suit and makes lots of phone calls with little action. The Sox have been liked to both Jermaine Dye and Eric Gagne, but nothing has actually happened. I think he needs to sit down and look at the options and pull the trigger. Dye would give the Sox a righthanded hitting outfielder, who is a pull hitter-perfect for Fenway, that can spell Drew, Crisp, Youk, Lowell, Manny and Papi. He would help them not miss a beat when he is in the game and give the Red Sox a much better bench. Gagne would help turn every Red Sox game into a 6 inning game. Whether or not he is the closer the Red Sox could pitch Okijima, Paps and Gagne at the end of the games. This would be mean that almost every lead would be safe. Theo has to do this, he just has to. Make guys like Ellsbury and Buchholz untouchable, but after that do not be afraid to give up unknowns for knowns. Go get the guys that have done it in the past and WILL do it for you in the future. Take a page on out Ainges brand new play book and take a chance. And if you does not work, you can take your chair made of money and gorilla suit with you to another team.