Misery Loves Company: Two Guys Watch Baseball

Game 37 - Red Sox

Twins 9, Red Sox 8
Record: 23-14

Not only are the Twins a group of limp-wristed cowards, their ballpark is a glorified pinball machine. Derek Lowe came out of this game with a horrible line - 4 IP, 10H, 8R, 6 ER - but he really pitched pretty well. He had great stuff in the first two innings, but Twin after Twin pounded the ball on the ground and scooted worm-burners across the Metrodome hardpan and through the infield. Lowe left with the Sox down, 8-1, but he deserved better. Unfortunately, his fragile psyche is right well bruised at the moment, and Lowe is notorious for curling into a ball when things don't go his way. Plain and simple, he must pitch well for the Sox to make the postseason.

On the whole, though, this was not a bad loss. The 2002 Sox would have rolled over and died after going down by 8 runs. Not this club. The Sox scrapped back, battering a series of Minny relievers until they got to 9-8 with two outs in the 9th. I was laying in bed with my eyes closed during the rally, so I dared not open them, even though I was wide awake as Bill Mueller batted with Damien Jackson on second. Mueller's groundball was nearly thrown away by Cristian Guzman, but Doug Minkalphabet kept his toe on the bag to save the game for the Twinks. Still, the Sox showed a great deal of heart, and a ton of offense, and, though they lost, I keep liking this team more and more.