Day 190: Patriots Lost So Watch this Funny Video

Imagine my surprise when I turned on the television while sitting at an Inn in Pennsylvania and found the Patriots-Bengals game was actually ON!! I knew I wouldn't be able to watch the entire game because the wedding started at 4pm and after watching the first three quarters, I'm pretty glad that I missed the end. That 13-6 loss to the Bengals was nothing short of painful.

So now I can't even bring myself to write about the game because it basically stunk. The Bengals' defense pressured the Patriots' offense to the point of Tom Brady having a pretty crappy performance. Brady completed just 18 of 38 pass attempts for 197 yards, no touchdown passes and an interception. The Pats scored just six points.

More importantly, Tom Brady's consecutive touchdown streak is over. For 52 straight weeks, Brady completed at least one touchdown pass in each regular season game played. The Patriots also had more punts (eight) than they did points (six) and didn't score a touchdown for the first time since September of 2009.

Could it have been the driving rain and wind that forced such a horrific performance from Brady? You might think so, but on the other side of the ball, Bengals QB Andy Dalton went 20-for-27 for 212 yards. The huge difference was that the Bengals were able to mount a strong rushing attack led by former Pats standout, Benjarvus Green-Ellis and Giovani Bernard who combined for 129 yards and the game's lone touchdown.

If you're as depressed as I am that the Pats suffered their first loss of the season, then watch the video below of a three-year-old kid who could give Tiger Woods a run for his money... way more interesting than any recap of that football game.

Patriots take on the 5-0 New Orleans Saints this Sunday at Gillette Stadium so they better get their shit together fast! The big question is... will this be the week that Rob Gronkowski returns to the field?

Day 189: ALDS: Red Sox Up 2-0!

This weekend I'm in the Poconos for a wedding. I'm wickedly happy to be here, catching up with friends I haven't seen in a year or more. There's been lots of hugging... lots of laughs... lots of drinks and the wedding hasn't even happened yet! I think tonight's going to be crazy and I can't wait. Thankfully, the Sox and Rays don't play today.

So because of my reminiscing, I sadly missed the game yesterday. That's not to say I wasn't checking my phone every five seconds for a scoring update, possibly earning a glare or two from the bride-to-be... good thing she knows I'm a crazy sports fan!

If you were off and gallivanting on Saturday like me, you missed another great performance by the Sox offense. Not as great as the first game, but equally as entertaining and with the same positive outcome.

And here's what I missed:

• Jacoby Ellsbury got the offense started with a bloop single in the first, a stolen base advancing to third on an errant throw, and then scoring on a sac fly. 
• Ellsbury also went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and an RBI.
• David Ortiz bashed two home runs. Ortiz will turn 38 next month and he claims he feels like he's 20!
• Koji Uehara threw 11 pitches in the top of the ninth and all 11 were strikes. He struck out two for his first postseason save with the Sox. Ok, that gives me chills.
• John Lackey wasn't as awesome as he has been, but held the Rays to just four runs over 5.1 innings and struck out six. I'll take that.
• David Ross, Dustin Pedroia and Ellsbury all had doubles, and Pedey drove in three runs. Stephen Drew legged out a triple.

Saturday's game didn't have the same craziness that Friday's did. The Rays were more defensively sound than the day before, but the Sox took advantage of scoring situations with timely hits to take game two 7-4.

Game three of the ALDS is Monday at 6pm down in Tampa. Clay Buchholz, who might have been a Cy Young candidate had it not been for the three missed months with a neck injury, takes on Alex Cobb who is 2-2 with a 4.19 ERA in seven career starts against the Red Sox.

Day 188: It's Been 77 Years Since This Has Happened

The Boston Red Sox accomplished a feat Friday afternoon in the first game of the American League Divisional Series that hasn't been done since 1936. And it was quite impressive—especially coming against such a strong pitcher in Matt Moore that the Sox lineup clearly had problems with in their previous two meetings.

In their first game back in May, only three batters managed to get hits: Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz and Stephen Drew. Of course, Ortiz's hit was a three-run home run, but they still lost to the Rays that day. Their second meeting in July was a different story. Just Ortiz and Mike Napoli managed to squeak out a hit on a day where Moore stymied the normally lively bats and pitched an impressive complete game, two-hit shut out.

Friday was different. Sure, Moore may have started off looking like the same ol' tough lefty from earlier in the season. But when your defense doesn't get the memo that they're playing in a postseason game, it makes things tough for a pitcher who is only as good as the fielding behind him.

So... a Boston Red Sox line up that had just five hits in two games before Friday, did something no team has done in 77 years. Every starter notched a hit and a run in a postseason game. It's a fun box score to look at—12 runs on 14 hits:

• Jacoby Ellsbury:  2-for-5, one run scored, one RBI
• Shane Victorino:  3-for-4, two runs scored, two RBIs
• Dustin Pedroia:  2-for-5, two runs scored
• David Ortiz:  1-for-4, a walk, two runs scored
• Mike Napoli:  1-for-4, a walk, one run scored, one RBI
• Jonny Gomes:  1-for-4, a walk, two runs scored, two RBIs
• Jarrod Saltalamacchia:  2-for-4, a walk, one run scored, three RBIs
• Stephen Drew:  1-for-5, one run scored, one RBI 

Saturday's game features another great matchup with John Lackey toeing the rubber against David Price. Last year's Cy Young winner went 2-3 against the Red Sox this season, but those two wins were unforgettable when he beat Boston twice within a five day window at the end of July. But I don't want to think about those two games... I'd rather dwell on the three that the Sox won. And I'm sure that's just what John Farrell and the Boston lineup are doing today!

GO SOX!!

Day 187: ALDS Game One... I Like What I'm Seeing, Red Sox!

The Red Sox haven't had much luck this season against the Tampa Bay Rays' pitcher, Matt Moore. They lost both games he started during the regular season, including a two-hit, 3-0 shutout in July. And through the first three innings of game one of the ALDS on Friday, I figured we were in for more of the same. The first trip through the Red Sox lineup was dismal with not a single hit.

Jon Lester struck out the first four batters he faced, with some pitches hitting 97 mph—by far some of his best of the season. He gave up just two hits in the first four innings, but unfortunately, those two hits were both home runs, giving Moore and the Rays an early 2-0 lead. With Moore's strong pitching, two runs might be all the support he would need.

And then the fourth inning happened. If you missed it, I'm sorry. Some crazy shit transpired...and it was awesome!

• Dustin Pedroia singles to center for the first hit of the day.
• Big Papi hits a ground-rule double to right field, Pedroia moves to third. But the best part about this play was that Will Myers had a chance to catch this ball but he stopped, the ball went over his head and bounced into stands.
• Crowd begins "MY-ers... MY-ers... MY-ers" chant that lasts most of the inning.
• Mike Napoli pops out to second. (Booo-hiss)
• Jonny Gomes, Mr. Clutch, doubles to center. Desmond Jennings misplays the ball off the wall and both Pedroia and Ortiz score. 
• Ball game is tied!
• Jarrod Saltalamacchia strikes out. (D'oh!)
• Stephen Drew singles on a ground ball to first base. James Loney fields the ball but Matt Moore lollydgags his way over to cover first and Gomes scores from second on an infield single.  Drew is safe at first.
• Will Middlebrooks doubles to left. Drew scores from first.
• Jacoby Ellsbury strikes out but Jose Lobaton misses the damn thing and Ellsbury makes it to first. Middlebrooks to third.
• Shane Victorino singles to right. Middlebrooks scores. Ellsbury to second.
• Pedroia grounds out.

Inning over... a very long, MY-ers-chant-filled inning. This was one of the craziest innings I've ever witnessed. The Rays' defense was horrible, but they were never charged with an error... just a lot of misplays. And the Red Sox took advantage of all of them! Sox go up 5-2.

I could go play-by-play through each inning, but we'd be here all night. Let's just say the fourth inning set the tone for the rest of the game. The Red Sox scored three more runs in the fifth inning, and then four more in the eighth. Jon Lester settled down and allowed just two runs on three hits over 7.2 innings.

The Red Sox win game one of the ALDS 12-2.

Day 186: ALDS: Red Sox - Rays Preview

It's not the matchup I had hoped for, but I guess it'll do. I hoped it would be Terry Francona and the Indians visiting Fenway Park, but alas... we're stuck with the dreaded Tampa Bay Rays. Those pesky Rays. Don't we see these guys enough over the course of a season? Well... here we go again. Game one is Friday at 3pm.

The Sox and Rays faced off 19 times (as is usual with a division rival) and walked away with 12 hard fought wins. Of those 12 wins, half were decided in the ninth inning or later and the Red Sox only outscored the Rays by 14 runs over those 19 games. This series is going to be tight. And nerve wracking, I'm sure. What makes this ALDS even more frightening is what the Rays have done to get here. They won 10 of their last 12 including three straight must-win games.

These teams are pretty evenly matched, but the Rays have a superior pitching staff who collectively had a 3.54 ERA against the Red Sox this season. Last year's Cy Young winner, David Price, didn't have a stellar year, going 10-8, but he certainly had Boston's number. He beat them twice in a span of five days back in July. Matt Moore went 17-4 and he's scheduled to pitch game one. At least they won't see Price twice.

If you're looking at offensive numbers, the Red Sox have a pretty lopsided advantage here. Actually, they have a pretty big advantage over everyone—the Sox led the majors in runs scored with 853—an average of over five runs per game. They were second in hits, first in RBIs, second in team average and first in OBP, slugging and OPS. And their bench guys are amazing. Let's just hope the bats don't fail us now!

The first three games will look a little something like this:

Game 1: Fenway Park, Friday, October 4th @ 3:00pm
Jon Lester (15-8) vs. Matt Moore (17-4)

Game 2: Fenway Park, Saturday, October 5th @ 5:30pm
John Lackey (10-13) vs. TBD

Game 3: Tropicana Field, Monday, October 7th @ TBD
Clay Buchholz (12-1) vs. TBD

I'm going to be scratching and clawing for TV time this weekend since I'll be in the Poconos for a wedding. Maybe it's better that I don't watch... I'm nervous. It's been a while since I've experienced the post season jitters. I can't concentrate.

Day 185: Pirates' Fans Rattle Reds Pitcher

I don't know about you, but I love Major League Baseball's new Wild Card format. There just isn't much that's more exciting than a one-game playoff. At least in baseball. And this year, the AL wild card needed two one-game playoffs to decide who would move on. On the NL side, the Pittsburgh Pirates hosted the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday and things got quite intense.

The Pittsburgh Pirates haven't seen post season play in a long time—21 years to be exact. The last time they made any type of respectable showing was the early 90's when they had a young MVP named Barry Bonds leading the charge. The Pirates won the NL East three years in a row (1990-1992) but lost in the NLCS each year. And then they spent a very long time, when Bonds left after the '92 season, being not very good.

So imagine being a Pirates fan. Imagine the disappointment year in and year out. I mean Sox fans had to wait 86 years for a World Series victory, but at least they won some pennants along the way. But for the Pirates... just nothing. I can imagine that those fans had some serious pent up team spirit that needed to be released.

Those fans unleashed their years of frustration on the poor, unsuspecting Cincinnati Reds' starting pitcher, Johnny Cueto. In the second inning, with the Pirates up 1-0, the fans started chanting Cueto... KWAY-toe... KWAY-toe... KWAY-toe... who knows if it was a coincidence or not but Johnny Cueto just dropped the ball. Not a huge deal, but then he left the next pitch, a 95 mph fastball, down the middle of the plate and Russell Martin lost it over the fence.

Cueto didn't last much longer after the name chanting began. He hung on for just 3.1 innings, giving up eight hits and four runs. The Pirates ended up winning the game 6-2, ending Cincinnati's season.

Once something like this has happened, the fans can't help but continue with the jeering. If you ask them, they'll say it worked. And since the Bucs are moving on to St. Louis for the Divisional Series, maybe it really did.

Too bad they won't get the opportunity to test that theory with chants of WAIN-wright... WAIN-wright on Thursday.

Day 184: Patriots Suffer Huge Loss in Win over Atlanta

I'm not going to lie, I was scared for the Patriots going into the game this past Sunday night in Atlanta. The Falcons might have only been 1-2, but they lost close games to New Orleans (4-0) and Miami (3-1) and with the Patriots still missing some key players, it could've gotten ugly. The Pats teased us all week with the possibility that Rob Gronkowski and Danny Amendola might be back on the field, but then whipped the rug out from under us just moments before game time.

But mostly I was scared for my chances in the football pool. You see, after two ugly weeks where I finished near the bottom of the pack, I really needed a good showing. And heading into the Pats-Falcons game, I was tied with three other players for the lead... three other players who all picked the Falcons. All I needed was a Pats win and I was most surely in the money!

I managed to make it through the first half and just into the third quarter of the game before my heavy eyelids forced me to bed. I'm almost glad I didn't last until the end—from what I heard, it was quite a stressful final few minutes. The Falcons made a surge late in the fourth and nearly tied it up with time expiring. Thank you, Aqib Talib for your quick hands. I really don't need that kind of anxiety as the clock nears midnight.

Tom Brady had his best game of the season so far, finally starting to connect with all those new receivers. He went 20-for-31 for 316 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Kenbrell Thompkins also had a breakout game with six catches for 127 yards and a touchdown. One of those catches was an acrobatic number where he came back over the defensive back to grab the ball.

All great news, right? Well...something not so great happened too.

In the win, the Patriots suffered a pretty huge loss. Big Vince Wilfork went down in the first quarter with what appeared to be an ankle injury. He limped off the field and looked as if he might just need to sit out a play or two, but then the next thing I know, he's being driven off the field on that damn cart. Not a good sign.

The report was very bad for the Patriots' defense. Big Vince has torn his right achilles tendon and will most likely miss the rest of the season. It's going to be difficult for the Pats to find someone of his caliber (and size) to fill that gaping hole. Bill Belichick, on WEEI with Salk and Holley on Monday, was more forthcoming that usual with the status of Vince.

"It doesn't look too good for Vince," Belichick said during his weekly interview. "I think he's got a pretty serious injury, and it's probably unlikely that he'll be able to play again this year."

You know things are bleak when Belichick gives up information like that. He's the type of guy that will tell you a player in a full body cast is questionable for the following week. But Vince's injury is obviously a concern for everyone. Just when things are starting to look up with a couple of major players set to make their return in the next week or two, the Pats get hit with this sucky blow.

"Clearly, there are no Vince Wilforks just standing around out there on the corner waiting to sign with the Patriots or some other NFL team," Belichick said on WEEI. "He is a special player, one of the very best at his position. There's no way that you would replace him with one guy -- that's totally unrealistic. But we'll try to do what we can to make our team as competitive as possible with the 46 guys we put out there against Cincinnati this Sunday."

Ugh... Well, in case you didn't hear, the Patriots won 30-23. Oh, and I did win the football pool this week. *moonwalks*