Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Sox Sweep Seattle: Sox - Mariners Game 3

Leave your brooms and bring out your mops! The Sox mopped the floor with the visiting Mariners, outscoring them 33-8 over three games. (Hey, it was expected, but In this final game, Gavin Floyd and our offense added to their winning record in a 15-3 defeat.

I put my trust in Gavin today, and he did his job. Over his 6 innings, he had 6 hits, 2 walks, and earned 3 runs, but also had 7 strike-outs along the way. His only big problem was allowing a 2-run home run. Otherwise, he earned his win all the way. And I have to say, I would always have a problem with him being a wild child on the mound (his balls being balls by a mile), but I guess I’d rather having him miss out of the strike zone than have it miss right in the sweet spot. Touche, Gavin! Horacio Ramirez had a good outing today. To me, it seems as if he’s the guy you bring out when there’s no way to blow your lead, and you have an inning to kill, and you don’t want to waste a good arm (Mattie, Russell, D.J.). Maybe he’ll become a good arm over time. Maybe he’ll make us miss Nick Massett. But, the good news is that Adam Russell impresses me every time he comes out. 3 K’s over 2 innings? Not bad.

There were some big homers today. Once again, we had four. Swish launched a solo shot, his 100th over his career; A.J.’s been on a roll and hit his 3rd in the last 10 games- a 3-run homer; Ramirez had a 3-run homer, and Griffey finally had a long ball with the Sox- a 2-run shot. He was also 2-for-3 with 2 walks. Guess I can’t say anything bad about him today. The Sox scored in every one of the first 6 innings. Wise, Getz, and Quentin all went hitless, but Carlos contributed with two walks. Overall, 14 hits, 7 walks, 15 runs. There were doubles, there were singles. It was raining hits. Dickey had an oddly similar set of career stats as Floyd, but it was clearly a case of comparing apples and oranges; he only made it to the end of the 2nd inning after being pounded by the Sox offense.

Can you think of a sound that would make Brian Anderson happier than the crack of his bat against a ball that lands safely over the fence? How about someone yelling, “Ouch my leg!” Let me explain this scenario. Dye got a day off (sure, I guess he was unproductive and needed a day off) so Griffey would play RF for the day. However, Wise was a late insertion into the game because Jim Thome reported some leg soreness (meaning Griffey could play DH, Swish could play RF, and CF was open) only to leave the game on a leg injury of his own after making an inning-ending play. Not saying that he’s happy to see a teammate injured, but it would mean more playing time for B.A., starting today. Wise is reported to have a strained groin muscle. Which will most likely mean time on the DL. Which is going to make next to no difference to the team as far as I’m concerned. Through my point of view, I though they could’ve sent him down as soon as we got Griffey anyway.

Well, for some reason, I seem to have found myself on a crusade in the name of Brian Anderson lately. And it’s not that I’m doing this for B.A.; I’ve just found myself frustrated with seeing Wise on the roster after it became clear that we needed room in the ‘pen (not to mention since Griffey parked on our lawn) and I suppose my answer to everything is, “Bring out Brian.” (Griffey misses an easy-out? Bring out Brian. Wise strikes out in his first two at-bats? Bring out Brian. Crede out of the lineup at Charlotte again? Bring out Brian? If only…)

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