The Kids Are Alright

(Nearly titled Jackie Bradley Jr.'s $100,000 Jackpot Wad after the old SNL skit)

Quite the start to the season, some much needed optimism and a welcome change from how the past couple years started (and ended).

What a great debut for Jackie Bradley Jr. Drawing that first walk against CC Sabathia was impressive, as well as key to the rally. But the other two walks and the groundout RBI may have been even more impressive. Through spring training, I kept reading that nothing seems to phase him. Bradley swung and missed at a tough inside pitch in his first plate appearance. In his second plate appearance, Sabathia got him to bite at two similar pitches to get a strikeout. At that point, Rick Sutcliffe noted that AL scouts were making note of the hole in Bradley's swing/judgement. Maybe that strikeout gave the Yankees confidence that they could get Bradley again in the fifth inning. They intentionally walked Gomes with second base open to get to Bradley but Bradley managed to lay off a couple pitches in off the plate in that plate appearance to draw another walk, and didn't bite on similar pitches later in the game. Most impressive.

I loved seeing Saltalamacchia battle Sabathia in a tough at bat in the fifth inning. Lester had been shaky in the fourth and the first two Sox went down quickly in the sixth but Saltalamacchia smartly took the at bat deep into the count, to give Lester a little more rest and to put a little more pressure on Sabathia. Getting the double may have been a bonus, and even though it didn't lead to a run the extra pitches Sabathia threw to Gomes, Bradley and Iglesias forced the Yankees to go to their pen to start the sixth.

Lester pitched well and it was great to see him strike out seven but the two walks were frustrating and unnecessary. If I remember, he had each of those hitters down 0-2 and kept nibbling. When you have just been given a four run lead in the second inning and you have a hitter with an OPS for the last few years under .700 down 0-2, that man should not be on first base four pitches later, courtesy of a walk. And yet, Lester walked both Ben Francisco and Vernon Wells that way. Bloop singles like Ichiro's or doubles down the line bother me a lot less than completely unnecessary walks.

Rick Sutcliffe made a comment about Lester not attacking, as if his goal was to keep the Yankees scoreless when the goal should have been to get outs and pitch deeper into the game. Sutcliffe also pointed out that Lester fell back to his very slow pace at the first sign of trouble. I'd love to know John Farrell and Juan Nieves' take on it.

I know it's a small sample size but while Francisco Cervelli's lifetime OPS is .693, his OPS against the Red Sox is .989.  He's like Curt Suzuki in pinstripes.

It looks like John Farrell will have the Red Sox more aggressive on the basepaths.  Jonny Gomes scored from second on an infield single in the ninth inning, but Jacoby Ellsbury was cut down at home running on contact on Dustin Pedroia's ground ball to third base earlier in the game.  There will be times when that pays off and times when that costs the Red Sox runs, and possibly games.  It will be interesting to see how that aggressiveness is perceived in the instances where it hurts the team.

I loved seeing the team's enthusiasm, especially Uehara's excitement upon reaching the dugout after retiring the Yankees in the bottom of the sixth inning.  Uehara might have taxed his arm more on those high fives than his actual pitches since he needed only five pitches to induce three popups.  Jonny Gomes and Shane Victorino were both fired up and contributed.

The bullpen looked great, though Andrew Miller walking the first two batters made me cringe.  Maybe the fact that he settled down and struck out the next two batters after Juan Nieves visited the mound should be considered even more encouraging because he made the proper adjustments.  Everyone did their job and it was probably smart of Farrell to make liberal use of the bullpen with the off day Tuesday, but I generally assume that if you use five relievers over four innings that at least one of them will struggle.  Here's hoping Lester will be more economical going forward.  Using 96 pitches to get through five innings against this version of the Yankees lineup is more than a little Dice-K-esque.

I was also thrilled to see Iglesias pick up three hits in the opener.  Granted, they were all infield hits, but "ground balls with eyes" still count as hits and help build confidence.  I'm sure there will be plenty of at bats (and possibly entire games) where Iglesias looks overmatched but his bunt for a base hit in the fourth inning was a thing of beauty.  Here's hoping Iglesias holds his own well enough while Drew recovers from his concussion that he's in the lineup more often than not once Drew comes back.

Saltalamacchia had three walks?  That may have been the most surprising outcome.  I'm a little upset at myself for not noticing this during the game.  One of the ESPN commentators (probably Dave O'Brien) pointed out that the Red Sox acquisition of David Ross will likely help keep Saltalamacchia fresher late in the season.  I'm hopeful that will be the case and I'm even more encouraged by Saltalamacchia's strike zone judgement in the opener.  All players have their strengths and weaknesses.  Scouts of all forms are constantly looking for ways to take advantage of a player's weaknesses.  I just find it encouraging when a player seems to be making adjustments to address critical weaknesses, especially in baseball where constant adjustments seem necessary.

It's so much easier to root for a player who is trying to make adjustments rather than for someone who refuses to acknowledge that anything might require adjustments.  That's why it was easier for me to root for Carl Crawford than Adrian Gonzalez or Josh Beckett.  When all three struggled, Crawford seemed more open to adjusting than Gonzalez or Beckett.  Saltalamacchia is working on his plate discipline and Bradley is working on adapting to major league pitching in the middle of his first major league game?  That speaks well to those players and to the coaching staff as a whole.  What a welcome change from last season, on so many levels.

Will they make the playoffs?  Who knows?  A lot could go right, a lot could go wrong.  They could win 90 games.  They could finish below .500.  They could win the division.  They could finish last.  Again.  But that's not the point.  The point is that they're a far more likable team, there's already more passion being shown than all of last year (except for Pedroia's response to the prior manager's ill-advised comments about Youkilis) and there's a lot more hope.  Not everything will break the way Sox fans will like.  But there's a lot more hope that, to quote Dick Williams, they'll win more than they'll lose.  And in 2013, that means you're in the hunt for a wild card and entrance into the playoffs where anything can happen.

So hell yeah, I'm excited about this team.

Checking In

Patriots

Expectations are so high for the Patriots that any season that doesn't end with a Super Bowl win is seen as a disappointment on some level.  Unfortunately, the season ended against a team that matches up well against them.  But it's worth remembering that the Patriots put together yet another amazing and enjoyable season.  It sure beats being a Jets fan.

Congratulations to the Ravens on beating the Patriots.  The Ravens definitely outplayed the Patriots, dominating the line of scrimmage on both offense and defense.  Flacco had far more time and space to operate in than Brady did.  Combine that with the fact that the Ravens played mistake-free football while the Patriots left far too many points on the board, and the game didn't feel as close as the score indicated.

With that said, I loathe the Ravens defense.  Don't get me wrong, their defense is incredibly effective.  They're a talented group that has played much better in the playoffs.  But there should be no need for them to focus on headhunting to the extent they do.  I'm all for hard hitting defenses, but I don't like seeing defenders launching themselves, aiming their helmets at receivers' heads.  It happens now and then as part of the game, but the Ravens sure seem to go out of their way to hit that way.  The play that stands out for me was one where a Patriots receiver (Welker?) had caught the ball at about the ten and was on the turf.  Pollard takes two steps and dives helmet first at the receiver.

After Goodell's penalties from Bountygate were challenged, overturned, whatever, it was comical to see that the NFL's focus after the game was what to do about Brady lifting a foot while sliding.  Remember that Reed had been suspended one game for repeated shots at prone receivers' heads and that the suspension was overturned.  Given how Goodell's suspensions had been neutered all season, you knew there was no way Reed or Pollard could be suspended for the Super Bowl because of their head shots in the AFC Championship.

Another Ravens/Patriots game, another week of the Ravens yapping in the press pre and post-game about how the Patriots disrespect them before, during and after the game.  Where this comes from, I have no idea, since the Ravens are the ones who do all the talking.  Well, unless the wife of a Patriot saying something stupid after a loss.  Nice of Ray Lewis to forgive Welker's wife for her silly Twitter post, though.  Forgiveness is very important to Lewis, for obvious reasons.

The Patriots offense has major struggles with defenses that can generate pressure without blitzing and whose defensive backs employ tight, physical coverage.  It makes it harder for the Patriots to get down the field effectively.  The quick hitting passes are still fairly effective, but a greater percentage of those  passes are broken up and the receivers who come up with catches are hit hard, likely leading to more drops later in the game.  If the defense can also keep the Patriots from picking up two yards on the ground when they show run, the Patriots are in real trouble.

I had hoped that Lloyd would help open up the offense more.  During the regular season, Lloyd did well catching mid range passes down the sideline.  It seemed like that type of play would be open against the Ravens defense.

On the Patriots fake punt, I'd love to know what Zoltan Mesko's responsibilities were if they'd run the fake.

I've never seen an offensive lineman do the weird leg kick thing that the Ravens' Oher does.

Not having Gronkowski was a huge deal against the Ravens, not only because the Patriots passing offense broke down inside the Ravens 40 but because Gronkowski also made the running game much more effective.  Not having Edelman was a big loss as well.  I love Deion Branch and I believe that he runs routes effectively but Edelman is much more of a weapon.

Where do the Patriots go from here?  I'd love to see the Patriots keep Welker, Talib, Edelman and Woodhead.  We'll see who they prioritize and what needs they address via the draft.  I think their top needs are receiver, cornerback and safety.  A tall receiver who can stretch the field and would Brady to throw ball over cornerbacks' heads keep the defense from being able to overplay the short pass.  (A healthy Gronk would help, too.)  Boldin and Smith allow Flacco to throw balls high to both receivers in traffic and know that if he's on target, the worst that can happen is an incompletion.  The Patriots haven't had that type of threat since Randy Moss checked out.

(I imagine a press conference where Woodhead and Edelman announce they're hopping in an old VW van to sign with the Broncos and pursue opportunities they'd rather not discuss.)

Celtics

I'm really curious to see what the Celtics do the rest of the season.  Losing Rondo for the season is a major blow because he's the only true point guard on the roster.  However, I think their offense will open up more going forward.  I don't get to watch many Celtics games but I loved hearing that the Celtics moved the ball much better in their first couple games after Rondo's injury.

Rondo amazes and frustrates me.  Point guards who are a threat to score (not a ball hog, just a threat) can open up the offensive end far more than point guards who are not.  Especially in the fourth quarter or when the other team's defense tightens up, Rondo becomes a liability in the halfcourt offense.  In transition, he can be an absolute wizard.  But if he decides that he's not going to drive and doesn't trust his shot, he doesn't help the Celtics offense.  Late in the game, the Celtics offense relies more and more on on jump shots because of Rondo's offensive limitations.

I love seeing a point guard help facilitate more on offense.  Pick and rolls, penetration, forcing the defense to respect the open shot all help open up the offense.  It's fun to see a point guard who penetrates to make the defense help and switch, leading to other offensive players cutting and moving to open space.  Point guards who do this to the Celtics cause huge problems.  Even if the first shot doesn't fall, the offense is more likely than normal to get an offensive rebound because of the defense is in constant movement and is not set to box out.

Here's hoping Rondo comes back next season fully healed.  In the meantime, I hope he watches some games and decides what he wants to add to his game to be more effective once he's back.  Rondo is a valuable player but he'd be far more valuable if he was comfortable sticking the open jump shot and going to the free throw line in a tight game.

Quick thoughts as I try to relax before the Patriots / Ravens game

Bruins

I'm glad hockey's back.  It was fun listening to the game over the radio yesterday.  It's good to see that most of the team from the Cup run is in tact.

Red Sox

The Red Sox had a truckload of money to spend this offseason and they've spent most of it.  We'll see if they spent it wisely or not.  It's easy to say that they overpaid the free agents they signed and yet didn't get a "sexy" signing.  Yet all of the big names in free agency also expected to sign top dollar long term contracts while presenting major risks, exactly the kind of contracts they'd just gotten out from under on.  I'm hoping they offered Hamilton big money on a short-term contract.  I love the Uehara signing.  While the hold up on Napoli's contract makes me wonder about whether or not he'll make it through the season in once piece, it also shows that the Red Sox are doing due diligence and that they're doing so in an intelligent way.  They're not negotiating in the press and they're still working to get the contract done.  That's still a refreshing change to me as I think back to the Lou Gorman and Dan Duquette eras.  Imagine either of those GMs re-working Napoli's contract without causing Napoli or his agent to explode publicly.  Now that I think about it, that speaks well of Napoli and his agent.  I think.

I'm interested to see how the team does.  Hopefully, they'll be exciting enough to make me want to pick up tickets to all of their games in Seattle.

Oh, and it was good to see Dan Duquette get another shot with the Orioles.  While the way he handled players late in his Red Sox tenure was awful, he still did a lot to improve the ballclub and I'm surprised it took this long for him to get another shot in the big leagues.  I hope he does well for the Orioles, but that the O's go 0-16 or whatever against the Red Sox.

NFL Playoffs

The Return of Tecmo Bowl Randall Cunningham

Kaepernick scares the hell out of me.  In other words: Go, Falcons.  The Patriots played the 49ers earlier in the season, but they didn't see the offense that the 49ers unleashed last week against the Packers.  I don't remember which article made the comparison, but someone pointed out that last week Kaepernick played like Tecmo Bowl Randall Cunningham.

Speaking of which, what a season for Russell Wilson.  The Seahawks future looks bright with him leading the team.

Here's hoping Robert Griffin III recovers quickly.  For me, he was even more fun to watch than Kaepernick or Wilson because of the way the offense ran through him and Morris.  In their second game against the Cowbows I was bug eyed watching the Redskins leave DeMarcus Ware unblocked at the line of scrimmage.  Once the ball was snapped, Griffin would move to hand off to Morris.  If Ware flinched to the outside, Griffin let Morris take the ball to the inside of Ware.  If Ware flinched to the inside, Griffin pulled the ball back and ran to the outside.  I don't watch much college football, so maybe this type of matchup happens more at that level.  But I don't remember seeing it at the pro level, especially not when focused on someone as good as DeMarcus Ware.  The poor guy looked gassed and frustrated late in the game.  With that said, the way the Redskins used RGIII may lead to him not having as long or as successful a career.  We'll see.

I heard rumors on ESPN Radio that Chip Kelly will put most of the Browns' money into the defense and bring in multiple effective but low budget college quarterbacks who can run the read option, knowing that those players may have short term success and he can just replace them as they get injured.  Somewhere, Billy Beane nods in agreement.

One last running quarterback note.  Last year, Cam Newton broke my favorite NFL record - rushing touchdowns in a season by a quarterback.  I asked a few people about who previously held that record.  They guessed Randall Cunningham.  The rest of the discussion went..."Wait, Randall Cunningham doesn't hold record?  Did Vick break his record without me knowing about it?  Steve Grogan holds that record?  Seriously?!?  That guy who had the enormous neck roll in the 80's?"

Back to the Seahawks for a moment.  I'm no Pete Carroll fan.  I didn't like him as the Patriots coach and really dislike how he takes credit for USC's dominance while completely distancing himself from the fallout there.  On some level, I chuckled at how his decisions in the first half of the Seahawks/Falcons game affected the outcome.  Two trips into the red zone in the first half for zero points?  Maybe I'm just conservative but as the game was being played, I thought he should have kicked field goals in both spots.  The Seahawks have been a great forth quarter team this year and I thought that taking the points there to keep it close was key.  Even though the Seahawks were scoreless in the first half, it's not like the Falcons' defense was stopping them.  That was a good sign for the second half.

Flacco v. Ryan - The Search for a Pulse

I watched the fourth quarters (and overtime, where applicable) of the Ravens/Broncos and Falcons/Seahawks games and I've been amazed at how much credit the winning quarterbacks of those games have received for inspiring their teams with their supreme confidence.   Granted, both of those quarterbacks deserve a lot of credit for leading last minute drives to save their seasons.  And yet...they both seemed incredibly detached leading up to and during those drives.

When the Seahawks took the lead with less than a minute left, the cameras showed Matt Ryan hanging his head on the sidelines.  A couple days later on sports radio (with the reception fading in and out), a host was talking about how as the Seahawks were driving for their go ahead touchdown, Matt Ryan was pumping up his entire offense, reminding them that they'd been in this type of situation before in the season, with less than a minute left to go and needing a field goal to win, that they knew how to do this because they'd done it before and would do it again.  I figured maybe that was something the Fox broadcast didn't show.  It turns out, the sports radio host wasn't talking about Ryan, he was talking about the Falcons' kicker - Matt Bryant.  So it's the kicker who's revving up the offense just before they take the field to try to keep their season alive?  Too much ice in Matty Ice?

Meanwhile in the Ravens/Broncos game, Cool Joe is so cool that the play cock doesn't phase him.  In the fourth quarter, John Harbaugh had to burn a timeout late in the game because Flacco wasn't going to get the play off and didn't seem to realize it.  It's a road playoff game.  It happens now and then, even to quarterbacks with road playoff experience.  As if to prove that point, Flacco was called for delay of game in the first overtime period.  Again, Flacco seemed completely unaware, but at least it was a cool unawareness.

Speaking of Flacco, his five road playoff victories is an interesting stat.  Flacco's road record in the playoffs is just over .500 (for now) at 5-4.  Compare those numbers to Brady's, who has played in five road playoff games in his career and he's 3-2.   Brady hasn't played in a road playoff game since the 2006 season.  By the end of the day, Flacco will have played in ten road playoff games in five seasons.  By my math, he and the Ravens are averaging two road playoff games every season.  That's the stat that's truly amazing to me.  In order for a team to do that, they have to be good enough to make the playoffs and do well, but struggle just enough to have a low playoff seed to have road playoff games.  Crazy.

Ray Lewis' Last Pre-Game Speech?

It's about heart, who wants it most, putting blood, sweat and tears on the field, fighting for every last inch, not letting up, playing to the whistle and beyond, fighting for your life, not letting anyone take anything from you, and not giving up anything, not your season, not your career, not even that white suit, even if they have a warrant.