Manny Who?

Delcarmen, that's who! The only Manny we need here in Boston.

To recap: The Eastern Wizard (Okajima) was the first to provide relief to superstar starter Jon Lester, who pitched 8 scoreless innings. Oki faced 3 batters, had 2 outs, but left 1 man on when he turned the mound over to Masterson. The Young Gun* let the inherited runner score, gave up one more run, and Fenway fell silent with anticipation.

With 2 on and 2 outs in the top of the 9th, it was the Captain (literally, Varitek) who made the play of the game when, "Erick Aybar couldn't make contact with winning pitcher Manny Delcarmen's pitch and Varitek aggressively pinned Willits into no-man's land, chasing him down the line and ultimately tagging Willits just before he could retreat to third base." (Ian Browne / MLB.com)

If yer one of the bildgerats who's complainin' that this should've played out differently (with a lobbed toss to Youk, fer example), I suggest you be on yer way...
No one questions the Cap'n!

To finish the night (which is a blur in my mem'ry): Drew struck out; Bay blasted one back for a ground-rule double; Kotsay lined out; and rookie Jed Lowrie contributed the walk-off RBI single that sent the Angels to Davy Jones' locker.

Champagne showers ensued, and ye Black Pearl Girls were on site to experience all the excitement of the Sox clinching a spot in the upcoming AL Championship Series!

Lopez, Masterson, and Delcarmen doused Officer Dunn with champagne, but he retaliated with a hose!

xxxx

Even before any real action got underway baseball-wise, we were spotted by Boston Globe reporter Steve Silva, and want to thank him and welcome any new readers who followed the link from The Scene at Fenway page posted this mornin'.

Stay tuned for more swashbuckling tales surrounding Boston's Black Pearl...

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*As far as I know, Masterson has not officially been dubbed "The Young Gun" by any members of the Black Pearl; I simply find it a more palatable way to refer to the rookie

[Photo Credit: Boston Globe]

Shipping up to Boston

I think me first mate and I were some of the only scallywags in Massachusetts who still had something to smile about after last night's extra-inning fall to the Angels. Delcarmen, Oki-Doki, and Masterson all provided relief to the Game 3 starter and ace of '07, Josh Beckett.

As always, Wild Thing made our hearts sing by powering through 2 edge-of-your-seat-riding innings, holding the score at 4-4 after the 11th. Pap's fist pumps proved pre-emptive, however, because...

In the 12th inning, a bloop RBI single by No. 9 hitter Erick Aybar against Red Sox lefty reliever Javy Lopez snapped a 4-4 tie that had been in place since an RBI double by Kevin Youkilis in the bottom of the fifth. Mike Napoli, who belted two homers earlier in the game, set the stage with a leadoff single to left. Howie Kendrick, playing Angels baseball, sacrificed Napoli to second. Aybar got an 0-2 pitch that he liked from Lopez for what proved to be the game-winner. (Ian Browne / MLB.com)

Prior witnesses of faith rewarded, the Black Pearl Girls are confident that with Lester on the mound tonight and a full bullpen (Pap remains questionable depending on how much grog he consumes before called upon), we'll be dancing an Irish jig with our fellow Bleacher Creatures sometime before 2 am!

As cool as a gale wind

Now that I've acknowledged the crowning moment in me history as a Sox fan, and those who made it possible, it's time to move on to the heart of the matter: Today be game day. And not just any game day, but a post season game day.

With Dice-K on the mound for Game 2 tonight, we can look forward to the Eastern Wizard (Okajima) coming in for relief, and potential appearances by Javier Lopez or Manny Delcarmen.

During Game 1, rookie sinkerballer Justin Masterson came in in the eighth and did an outstanding job protecting the Sox one-run lead. The team is relying heavily this post season on five players who are 25 years or younger (and have been in the majors for 2 seasons or less), and Masterson considers this a compliment.

"It's just a testament to the organization in many respects," said rookie reliever Justin Masterson. "And to the faith of [manager Terry Francona] and the coaching staff, who continue to grind and make us who we are and help us to contribute and help us stay calm, cool and collected while we're doing it." (Ian Browne / MLB.com)

Remaining calm proves a running theme this Soxtober, as our resident Wild Thing attributes the unflappable attitude of Jason Bay to the newcomer's ability to produce under pressure.

"Because, man, he's cool as a cucumber," said Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, who nailed down the save in the ninth. "He's got ice in his veins. In this game, the coolest cat always wins. It's that simple."

And what does Pap think about tonight's game? "[We've] got to come here and keep applying the pressure as an entire ballclub. Regardless of what happened in Game 1, if we can keep doing that and take it back to Fenway [2-0], I like our chances." (Ian Browne / MLB.com)

So do I, matey, so do I...