Best picture ever?

I have no idea what I plugged into Google Images when this photo came up, but I liked it so much I had to save it for our readers. Enjoy!




 

Say bye-bye to the Red Sox home run little Yankee outfielders.

Quote of the day

“Did anyone watch the Super Bowl?’’

Alex Rodriguez opened his first news conference of the spring with that line. In case you're not into football, he was referring to cameras catching Cameron Diaz feeding him popcorn at the Superbowl.

Seth Lasko of NESN hits the nail right on the head of A-Rod

Seth Lasko of NESN writes about A-Rod and his admiration of Jose Iglesias. His 1st paragraph of his post today:

New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez took a few minutes away from admiring himself in the mirror this offseason to take note of Red Sox shortstop prospect Jose Iglesias.

 

It's a short post, but I just had to share that paragraph with all of you.

HankWatch- Monday, February 21, 2011

Hank Steinbrenner continues to make my job easier. Today we get this post from Nick Cafardo of Boston.com:

TAMPA, Fla. - Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner shares Red Sox owner John Henry's view that something needs to be done about revenue sharing in baseball.

Steinbrenner revealed the team contributed about $130 million between revenue sharing and luxury tax, the most of any team in the league and the most, according to Steinbrenner that the team has ever had to contribute. A few days ago, Sox CEO Larry Lucchino indicated the team contributed $86 million. This is obviously a sore subject for the Yankees and Red Sox.

"We've got to do a little something about that and I know Bud (Selig) wants to. There's a way. Obviously we're very much allied with the Red Sox, and Mets and Dodgers and Cubs, in that area. At some point if you don't want to worry about teams in minor markets, don't put teams in minor markets or don't leave teams in minor markets. Socialism, communism is never the answer."

When asked about Boston's spiraling payroll and spending spree this offseason, Steinbrenner said, "John (Henry) is committed to winning as we are. He'll do what he has to do."

He added, "The Red Sox are always gonna be there with the Yankees along with five or six other teams who can win the World Series. This year it's the Phillies. The AL East is an SOB."

Concerning his own team, Steinbrenner said that he sees a hunger returning to the team, the same hunger he saw in 2009.

"In 09 I saw it. Sometimes they celebrated a little too much last year. Some of the players too busy building mansions and concentrating on other things and not concentrating on winning. I have no problems saying that. They've come into this spring with a new hunger and that's what it takes to win."

The one player who built a "mansion" was Derek Jeter.

"I'm not singling anybody out. This year, from what I've seen by our coaches they've come in with a real new drive and determination, the kind they had in '09. I think they felt embarrassed last year. It bothers them."

Concerning the team's inability to acquire a starting pitcher:

"We did. We got Soriano. Everybody's missing the point. We didn't get Lee, but we got the second-best relief pitcher in the American League and now he's the set-up guy."

I tell ya, these Hank posts just seem to write themselves.

Box score from the past (10.15.46)

Poor Johnny Pesky. Last week I posted about how the Pole came to bear his name, and the tale of him hitting a walk off home run around his pole to give Mel Parnell the victory. But he has a more dubious claim to Red Sox history. In game #7 of the 1946 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Red Sox went up 1-0 in the top of the 1st inning, but fell behind 3-1 by the end of the 5th. They stormed back with 2 runs in the top of the 8th to tie the game. In the bottom of the 8th inning, the Cardinals' Enos Slaughter led off with a single. The next 2 batters were retired, and their manager called for the hit and run. Walker then hits a line drive to Leon Culberson, who had replaced Dom Dimaggio who left the game with an injury. Culberson throws to Pesky for the relay. Pesky either checked Walker at first before firing home, or he was so shocked to see Slaughter dashing for home that he hesitated long enough for Slaughter to make it into home safe. The play has been dubbed 'Slaughter's Mad Dash.' It would be 21 years before the Red Sox made it back to the World Series, and another 37 years after that before a World Series trophy would land in Boston.

Slaughter's Mad Dash

Quote of the Day

Terry Francona responding to Mark Teixeira's claim that the Yankees are the underdogs in the AL East:

"I don't care. They have a $200 million payroll. They’re not gonna be too underdoggish."

Thanks, and a tip of the cap to Peter Abraham, Boston.com

'Best Red Sox Blog Award'

The 'Best Red Sox Blog Award' goes to Jared Carrabis and Sox Space for the 2nd year in a row and also won the 'Best New England Sports Blog' as well. The Awards were presented by Comcast SportsNet New England. Carrabis is the Massachusetts Governor of Red Sox Nation. Rafe Anderson of TruFan put the awards night together which was held at Remy's.

Being 3k miles away from the mother ship, I don't think I or Matt or any of us at Fenway West saw this nomination coming. We are honored to have been nominated for 'Best Red Sox Blog,' and mentioned in the same breath as other noteworthy and esteemed Red Sox blogs such as Sox Space, Surviving Grady, and Sox & Dawgs.

Many thanks go to all our readers, too! Thank you all very much for coming back. I can't really say where Fenway West fits in the grand scheme of all things Red Sox, but for me personally, this is strong motivation to continue to write intelligent posts whether they are human interest stories that may fly under the radar elsewhere (or above), Horatian satire, or the daily line-ups and box scores.

I would also like to thank Alex Rodriguez and Hank Steinbrenner for providing Red Sox pundits from the major media all the way down to the last blog with an endless supply of fodder. Gotta give credit where it’s due, eh Hank?