Game 7, What it's all about......

Cleveland at Boston. Game 7. This is playoff baseball at its finest......finally!!!!!

The entire National League playoffs have been a joke with sweeps coming in every round. The closest series in the A.L. had been the Indians win over New York in Game 4. But finally there's a little drama....


Josh Beckett and Kenny Lofton gave things a small spark in Game 5 when they exchanged words. It was probably much ado about nothing, but it's the closest thing to real emotion the playoffs have delivered thus far. Manny Ramirez posing at the plate after his home run in Game .......wait EVERY game........ticked off Cleveland a little and so catcher Victor Martinez proceeded to take even longer to round the bases after his shot last night. And there's also this........the Paul Byrd saga. (I may be the first writer to EVER type that.) Last night it came out that the Cleveland pitcher had received shipments of HGH in the past. Will this affect anything tonight? I highly doubt it. But if the Indians prevail it will certainly be a major topic in the World Series against Colorado and will be interesting to see how he responds in his start.

So who will win tonight's game? I have no idea, but I do know a few things that will go a long way in determining the outcome. For Cleveland, Westbrook needs to continue to get ground ball outs. If he's letting up too many pop ups, he may not be around for long. Also, the Indians need to jump on top early for two reasons. One, it would help silence what may otherwise be a very raucous home-field crowd. Two, it would give them much needed confidence after getting blown out the last two games. Also, in what may be a very tight game they will need to continue to have good outings from Jensen Lewis and Rafael Betancourt and need Joe Borowski to shake off any lingering effects from last night's game in which he gave up two earned runs in one inning. Borowski struggled all year long in non-save situations, so you would figure he would be just fine in a possible save situation. But you never know. If I were Cleveland, I'd make sure to throw Betancourt for two innings. He's given up all of one hit in 6 1/3 innings.

For Boston, the Sox need the entire lineup to step up as it did last night. When Papi and Manny have help the Sox are potent. Boston also needs to be patient and work the count. Laying off the low, ground ball inducing pitches from Westbrook is important. A major question is how Dice-K will pitch. Much was made about his sulking after Game 3 in which he stared silently at his locker long after teammates had left Jacobs Field. Maybe the home crowd will help him out, but make no mistake about it. After this game a lot will be written about rather Boston's investment in the Japanese pitcher was worth it. So far, Matsuzaka hasn't shown the same ability to deliver in the clutch with the Sawx as he did overseas and in the World Baseball Classic. Lastly, the Sox need to continue to play Jacoby Ellsbury over Coco Crisp in center. Ellsbury only had one hit last night, be made solid contact several other times. And at no time should Eric Gagne even get up off the bench if the Sox are interested in winning.


Around the League

Good for Joe Torre. That man has done so much for the Yankees that in no way does he deserve to have a one-year deal in which incentives are placed before him in order to manage year two. Hank Steinbrenner (George's son) came out belittling Torre's decission to decline the meager offer. "Let's not forget what my dad did in giving him that opportunity -- and the great team he was handed," Steinbrenner reportedly said. I don't really care how Torre got the job. He delivered once he got there, and he deserves better than he got. I wonder if Terry Francona would think about having him on as a bench coach next year in Beantown?


The Colorado Rockies. Remember those National League champions? They will have had eight days off by the time Game 1 of the World Series rolls around. How will that affect them?