Day 270: A First-Hand Look at Winning the World Series

Not many of us will ever have that first hand feeling of winning something as big as the World Series. But in this day and age of social media and video cameras on phones, we can get the next best thing to that first hand feeling—we can get a look at what those who were there experienced. And even better, how the athletes themselves saw it.

When the Red Sox won the World Series, Shane Victorino had his GoPro video camera ready to capture every piece of it. From that last strike to clinch the Championship... to the celebration in the locker room (does anyone else wonder how much all that booze on the floor was worth?)... back onto the field and then on to the Duck Boat Parade sharing that special win with the city of Boston.

It's fun to get a glimpse into the happiness of a Championship celebration that meant so much to so many. Thanks, Shane for allowing us that peek.

Day 222: Lots of Accolades for the 2013 Red Sox

The World Series Champion Boston Red Sox have some more awards headed their way and rightfully so. It would've been odd if no one on this team won any type of individual honors because these guys were just awesome this past season. So in addition to the big shiny World Series trophy and David Ortiz's flashy MVP award, here are some others:

• Dustin Pedroia and Shane Victorino each won Gold Gloves. But I already wrote about that here.

• David Ortiz won a Silver Slugger Award. This is the sixth time Big Papi has collected this honor. The Silver Slugger is an offensive award that goes to the best player at each position and Ortiz took home the prize for designated hitter. He hit .309 with 30 home runs and 109 RBIs during the remarkable 2013 season. And that doesn't even include his postseason numbers. His stats surprised many after an achilles injury kept him sidelined for the first couple weeks of the season. No one knew just what Papi would be capable of once he returned to the lineup. Needless to say, I think both the organization and fans were pleased with his performance!

• Dustin Pedroia gained recognition for his outstanding defense on Thursday as he was named American League's Defensive Player of the Year by Wilson. This coming just a week after he collected his third Gold Glove. Pedroia had his best year yet in the field with a .993 fielding percentage in 159 games. His power numbers were down at the plate, but he still hit .301 for the season—and all this with a bum thumb which he'll be having surgery on next week to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Just proves how nails tough this little guy is!!

• David Ortiz finishes third in Boston's mayoral race. No really, he did. Reports have Ortiz receiving enough write-in votes to place him in third place. He was quite far behind both the winner and runner up, but at this point in his career with the Red Sox, and his insane play in the World Series, it's no wonder the people of Boston would pick him to lead them. It makes sense... wasn't it Ortiz that proclaimed: "This is our f#%king city!"

John Farrell is a finalist for AL Manager of the Year, but that award has not been given out yet. If he doesn't win, I'll be shocked! He almost has to win after what he did with this bunch of guys. Plus, Sporting News already named him their Manager of the Year.

Day 220: More Talk Shows...Gomes Says, "Everyone in Boston Deserves a Ring!"

If there's one talk show host I just can't stomach, it's Conan O'Brien. I'm not sure what it is about that guy, but he just makes me want to throw things at the television. But when I heard Jonny Gomes and Shane Victorino visited Conan, I knew I had to bite the bullet and watch. Conan was annoying as usual... but it was Gomes that stole the show.

Once again, Jonny was sporting his brand new World Series LL Bean boots and he even took one off so the camera could get a better view. Seriously, these boots are one of my most favorite thing that came from this World Series win... and I just love that Jonny can't seem to stop wearing his.

They talked about the usual: beard tugging, team chemistry, Boston Strong, parades and duck boats. They talked about how special the season was to them after the Boston Marathon tragedy... and what it meant to put the World Series trophy at the finish line. They talked about what it was like to play for the city in a time when people were looking for something positive after a brutal act of terrorism.

Even if you can't stand Conan, this interview is totally worth the pain. Gomes is very entertaining and such a natural in front of the camera. Victorino is a little awkward, but so genuine and maybe just a little nervous to be on a talk show. But in the end, they come across like a couple of regular guys... a couple of regular guys that just won the World freaking Series!!

 

Be sure to click on the link at the end of the video to see parts two and three... I promise it's worth it.

Day 213: Red Sox Collect Two Gold Gloves

It's going to be a short post tonight... I'm too excited for the game to focus on anything for very long! I can make short jokes because I'm short. I know the feeling of being in a crowd and smelling only a sea of armpits. It's not fun. So I had to laugh when the Gold Glove Awards were handed out today and the Red Sox collected two—both going to a couple of the more vertically challenged members of the team. GO SHORTIES!

Dustin Pedroia (5'8") picked up his third fielding award for second base. To watch Pedroia patrol the right side of the infield is a thing of beauty...if you find a ridiculously dirty uniform beautiful...which I do. To me, a dirty uniform says I played hard and that's really what it's all about.

Pedey previously won in 2008 and 2011. This season, he played 1,398 innings (career high) with 688 chances and just five errors. His .993 fielding percentage was also the highest of his career. Before Pedroia won in 2008, the last Red Sox second baseman to win was Doug Griffin in 1972—you know it's a loooong time ago when I don't even remember the guy!

Shane Victorino (5'9") collected his fourth Gold Glove—this time for his stellar work in right field. His first three were won with the Philadelphia Phillies. Normally a center fielder, Victorino showed real versatility moving over to the tricky right field of Fenway Park and has played it almost flawlessly. He became the first right fielder to win since Dwight Evans in 1985—pretty big shoes to fill.

Victorino finished with 913.1 innings played and 276 chances. He made nine outfield assists and only three errors for a .989 fielding percentage. He also turned three double plays. Shane's quick hustle on hits to right field keeps most base runners at first base.

Congratulations to Pedroia and Victorino! Short people got all kinds of reasons to live!