The season, as far as the pennant race is concerned, is over. Dunzo. Finito. Kaput. You get the picture. Five games remain and the Sox have an 87-70 record. They will finish third place in the division and miss the big dance for the first time since 2006. We can't say we didn't see this coming for a long time. The injuries, the bullpen, the inconsistent pitching of 60% of the rotation, the instability of the lineup, the defense, the mediocre record against sub .500 teams, the rough April, it was just too much to overcome. They hung in for a lot longer than it looked like they would, but it was not meant to be this year.
What did Red Sox Nation learn from this very strange season? Let's make a list.
1. Darnell McDonald can give Zippy Chippy a run for his money in a man vs. horse, foot vs. hoof race.
2. The existence and location of the navicular bone. Thanks, Pedey!
3. Jon Lester and Hanley Ramirez: So not BFF's.
4. $1 could buy you a Daniel Nava. Turns out he was worth quite a bit more.
5. Rumors of Jed Lowrie's demise were greatly exaggerated.
6. Adrian Beltre should come with a warning label. Something depicting some broken ribs and a strongly-worded recommendation to not touch his head.
7. Little Vic Martinez takes after his dad and the Red Sox should strongly consider him for the 2022 draft. Heck, sign him now! I hear Pedey's looking for someone to call "shorty".
8. Ryan Kalish deftly combines the team sport of baseball with the individual sport of gymnastics.
9. San Francisco is one dangerous place for the Red Sox to play. Three games, three significant injuries.
10. Tito's coming out with a book called 101 Ways To Write Out A Lineup Card
Well, there you have it. It was a very...educational season indeed.
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