By Craig P. Dixon, southcoast247.com correspondent Social Commentary 73
August 30, 2006
Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to this week’s edition of Craig Cares. I’m
Craig Dixon.
Like most Red Sox fans, I had extremely high hopes for this season. The team
looked solid. The pitching staff was one of the best in the league. We’d
strengthened defensively and got rid of one or two weak links (though I’ll
admit I was surprised we’d held on to pitcher Matt Clement after his 2005
mental breakdown). Then we picked up young slugger Willy Mo Pena. Everything
was looking up.
And we came out of the gates like champions. Even in the worst of
situations, the team found a way to win. We couldn’t lose. The Yankees were
suffering through injuries and we were coasting. I was gloating over our
victories and their losses, making fun of Yankees fans, dancing around the
bar like a damned lunatic over every Sox victory and screaming at every once
in awhile loss.
Then they started to drop like flies. Clement out. Wells out. Wakefield out.
Varitek. Nixon. Now Ramirez and Ortiz. The list of injured players reads
almost exactly like the Bo’ Sox opening day roster. Last night’s game
featured only three players from the original starting lineup, and two of
them, Loretta and Lowell, are fighting off injuries.
Now the Yankees are way on top. Their players are coming back from the DL
and it’s painfully obvious that unless something catastrophic happens,
they’re going to take the AL East. They did what we could not: Survived
their losses and kept in contention.
This has to be one of the most depressing turns of events I’ve ever
witnessed. I’m now working the bar, suffering the excitement and laughter of
Yankees fans as they continue to win while we get continuously swept by
innocuous teams like the Royals and Mariners. I’ve become so dulled by the
situation that I really don’t care either way anymore. I’m over this Sox
season.
We were on top. We were winners. And now it seems like we can’t even buy a
win. We’re playing with a mostly third rate squad, put together piecemeal
from a few promising Triple A prospects, a decent player in former Bluejay
Eric Hinske, and once great offensive catcher Javy Lopez.
Watching this team is witnessing the downward spiral of a loved one falling
quickly into the arms of hard drug abuse. You try to help, but you can’t.
You can only sit and wait for the terrible conclusion that we all foresee
coming.
The season’s over.
We Red Sox fans have only two things to console us.
One: There’s always next year.
And Two:
The Patriots’ regular season starts in a couple weeks.
Like most Red Sox fans, I had extremely high hopes for this season. The team
looked solid. The pitching staff was one of the best in the league. We’d
strengthened defensively and got rid of one or two weak links (though I’ll
admit I was surprised we’d held on to pitcher Matt Clement after his 2005
mental breakdown). Then we picked up young slugger Willy Mo Pena. Everything
was looking up.
