Sox: 1 Rays: 3
The 2008 Boston Red Sox ended their season tonight at Tropicana Field, after falling 3-1 to the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 7. It's disappointing to fall short of the World Series berth, that's for sure, but when all is said and done, they had a great season and battled impressively through the adversity that dogged them from the very beginning, with the trip across the world that shortened their Spring Training and lengthened their season by a week. They battled illnesses, lots of injuries, a certain petulant former left-fielder who disrupted the team's chemistry when he didn't get his way with his contract. They had trouble winning on the road, especially in the first half. Coming into Game 7, they had a starter with an enormous innings load, an exhausted closer, an injured gold-glove first baseman, and hitters who ran hot and cold. They had an amazing comeback in Game 5, hung on in Game 6, but just didn't have enough gas to maintain their early hold on Game 7.
So the season had its share of disappointments and adversity, but there were some good stories as well. The emergence of Jon Lester as a force to be reckoned with on the mound. He may have ran into a little trouble in the middle innings tonight and in Game 3 (and didn't get much help from the offense in either game), but overall his 2008 was a dramatic improvement over his 2006 and 2007. He has come into his own and took on a monster workload, with well over 200 innings pitched. He became the first Red Sox lefty to throw a no-hitter in over 50 years.
Another great story for the Sox this season has been Justin Masterson. He started the year in AA Portland and was called up for a spot start in April. He pitched very well, though he didn't get the win due to the bullpen surrendering the lead. With various illnesses and injuries to the pitching staff, Masterson became a fill-in starter during the first half. Once he was no longer needed as a starter, he was sent to Pawtucket to learn how to pitch out of the 'pen. His success as a reliever has solidified a shaky bullpen and he's earned the trust of Tito in important game situations.
Jed Lowrie, although he has struggled at times offensively, has also been a good story for the Red Sox. He took over for the error-prone Lugo, who went down with a quad injury just before the All-Star Break, and his play at short has been solid and steady. He's been a major improvement over Lugo defensively and he's also able to play well at third. When he first came on, he racked up the ribbies at an astonishing rate, pounding hit after hit with runners in scoring position. As the league caught up to him, however, he struggled to make adjustments and started accumulating the K's instead. He has been able to break out of his late season slump somewhat in the post-season, with some key hits (see ALDS Game 4 9th inning) and, with a little more work on his hitting, will be a fine shortstop for the Sox in the coming years.
I have to tip my hat to the Rays. This season, they were the better team. They had an amazing, worst-to-first season and they're full of young talent due to high draft picks. They will be competition for the Red Sox and the Yankees next year and for a few more years to come, until their young talent seeks big free agent $$ and their success keeps them out of the first draft picks. But they've earned their World Series berth this year with consistent, high level play. They have a young, very talented starting rotation and a very solid bullpen. They have some power bats in the lineup and a lot of speed. They've gotten the timely hits necessary to win games. Since they, like the Red Sox, represent the American League, I will root for them to win the World Series. Of course I wish it were the Red Sox playing in the Fall Classic, but it wasn't meant to be this year.
LET'S GO RED SOX 2009! CONGRATULATIONS, RAYS!
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