Next year, draft Stults: Sox-Dodger Game 2

When the game turned into a quick 1-2-3 for each side, it was the top of the seventh, and the Sox were trailing 5-0. Matt Thorton had stopped the Dodgers from scoring when Gavin Floyd loaded the bases. Swish out, Crede still not playing, Ozuna out (not surprising, really), Alexei singles, Brian Anderson pops up once again. Is this a nightmare or a game? Thorton is up again, gets his second out, Ozzie brings out Nick Massett, he finishes the inning effortlessly. “We need five to tie,” says Harrelson. Yes, we do.

So far, everyone’s come up empty. Pierzinski got on base, but he’s not allowed to brag: he made the bad throw that started the Dodgers going in the first place. Carlos Quentin did nothing over and over again. If he keeps going that way, this new lineup discussion is over, because I’m foreseeing an open spot in left field.

Juan Uribe is pinch hitting, but fouls out, Cabrera pops out, and the pitcher has two outs quickly. Pierzinski is also out in a flash. That brings up pitcher Boone Logan trying to stop any more runs from being put on the scoreboard. Logan gets two quick outs, and DeWitt comes up to bat, Crede’s counterpart, but he strikes out after a full count, leading us to the high-pressure top of the ninth. 0-for-3 Swish is the Sox’s last hope, the crowd gives him a standing ovation, and he flies out after a full count.

You can skip all that stuff I just wrote because the bottom line is that if anyone was an MVP today, it was Stults, and he plays for the other team. (That’s what she said?) So, the Sox give me a glimmer of hope yesterday, and then do nothing? Is it lack of leadership? Is it something Ozzie did? Is it that they miss Konerko? Are they lost without Crede? Is it that Gavin Floyd had to bunt today and it affected their game enormously? (And can you honestly tell me the man couldn’t swing a bat. He’s not Bobby Jenks, I’m sure he can handle a little swing…) So… now we’re probably only .5 games ahead of Minnesota after an embarrassing game. What a great day it was to be a Sox fan…