Remember the Curse of the Bambino?

Within the past 10 World Series, the Boston Red Sox have won 3 of them. Before their 2004 victory over the Cardinals, the Red Sox had not won in 86 years. The Red Sox continued after to win the World Series in 2007, and now, 2013.

The Curse of the Bambino was said to have begun after the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth, you've probably heard of him, sometimes called The Bambino, to the New York Yankees in the off-season of 1919-1920. Before that year, the Boston Red Sox had been one of the most successful professional baseball franchises, winning the first World Series in 1903 and amassing five World Series titles. After the sale, the once-lackluster Yankees became one of the most successful franchises in North American professional sports. The Yankees won 26 World Series after that to the Red Sox's zero.

"I remember my grandfather yelling at the TV to beat the curse of the Bambino," said one female Sox fan. "It hasn't happened yet."

Some people had lived and died a Red Sox fan, and they didn't see them win a World Series once.

"There's a curse, no question about it," fan Kris Schneider said. "The Sox always come up short."

The Curse of the Bambino, the movie from 2003, has a quote that says, "If the Red Sox win the World Series, first of all the death toll in New England will be catastrophic. There are so many old people who say "I can't die until they win the World Series!" They're all going to die. It's going to be worse than the black plague."

Nowadays, it is getting harder and harder to remember that curse. The Boston Red Sox have become a dominant team in the difficult AL East.  It certainly has been a pretty good decade for the Red Sox fans in Boston.
In 2004, the Red Sox finished second in the AL East and won the AL Wild Card. They finished 98-64 behind the 101-61 New York Yankees. They swept the Anaheim Angels to advance to the ALCS. In the ALCS, they faced the New York Yankees. The Red Sox came back from a 3 Games to none series to advance to the World Series to then sweep the Cardinals.
In 2007, the Boston Red Sox finished first at 96-66. Once again, in the ALDS, they swept the Angels. They then won against the Cleveland Indians in 7 games. Finally, they swept the Colorado Rockies to win the World Series again.
After coming back from an awful 2012 season under Bobby Valentine, the Red Sox hired a new manager, John Farrell finished with the best record in the MLB at 97-65 in 2013. They beat the Tampa Bay Rays in 4 games in the ALDS. They then defeated the Tigers in a well fought 6 game series in the ALCS. And, on October 30th, the Red Sox won the World Series, for the third time in the past decade, against the St. Louis Cardinals.

It is now safe to say that the Curse of the Bambino is broken. The Red Sox have won 3 out of the last 10 World Series. Also, they won in Boston for the first time in 95 years. It looks like Babe Ruth has finally forgiven the Red Sox for selling him to the Yankees.
Thanks for these 3 recent World Series, Babe! Or should I say, Bambino?

The End of an Era?: The New York Yankees moving forward

The New York Yankees have been a superior team for the past few years. In the past 20 years, they have won the World Series in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2009. In the past 100 years, they have had 51 playoff appearances and 40 pennant wins and a total of 27 World Series Titles. However, this trend could be coming to a close.

Throughout this 2013 year, the Yankees have seen nothing but trouble. Their 13 time All-star, Derek Jeter, missed most of the 2013 season due to an injury. Their 14 time All-Star 3rd Baseman, Alex Rodriguez missed most of this season due to injuries and steroid suspension.

Girardi said, "I think I'm tired of steroids. I'm tired of that. Just do things the right way, bottom line. Everyone should do things the right way, but that's not the world we live in. You get tired of talking about it. There's a lot of guys that are doing it the right way and I respect those guys."
"Jeter, 39, has only played in 17 games this season, batting just .190. The Yankees began noticing earlier this week that Jeter did not appear to be running right, but Jeter never said a word." said Andrew Marchand ESPN New York writer.

Trying to keep the faith, "I don't think you will ever get him to concede," said manager Joe Girardi, who lifted Jeter after watching him run awkwardly down to first base. "I believe that one of the things that have made him great for so long is his ability to fight through things and to find a way to get it done even when it has looked like he might be too nicked up."

"This [year] is probably his worst one ever for him -- to have to live through this," Girardi said. "You could probably go back to when he was 6 years old because he loves to be out there and he loves to compete. And this is the time where he probably likes being out there more than any, and it has been difficult."

Jeter finally returned just before the All-Star Break in July, but lasted just one game with a quad injury. He returned from that injury for a short period, only to go back on the DL with a calf strain.

"I know he is frustrated," Girardi said. "He wants to be out there. It is tearing him up inside. But as much as he doesn't like it and wants to be out there, I think he understands. We are trying to give it a couple of days to calm down."

That's not all that has happened to this club.

The Yankees finished 85-77 and 2nd to last in the AL East, a now difficult division. The AL East consists of the Boston Red Sox, the American League Champions in 2013, the Tampa Bay Rays, an AL Wild Card winner, and the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays, both good teams. The Yankees are falling behind.

Two top tier pitchers of the New York Yankees, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettite retires following the 2013 season. These are both big losses for the Yankees. Without them, their rotation and bullpen become  much weaker and much less intimidating. Mariano Rivera could be considered the best Closing Pitcher in MLB. He set the MLB record for saves. Andy Pettite is the Yankees' all time leader in strikeouts.

The Jeter-less and A-Rod-less Yankees are not an impressive team. This year is their worst season since 1995, Jeter and Rivera's rookie season, where they went 79-65.

Yankees Manager, Joe Girardi says, "I don't see any reason why he couldn't do it next year, I don't. He's made it pretty clear that he doesn't want to [return], but I always say, you know, January rolls around and sometimes you have a different feel about what you want to do." Girardi wants Rivera to return again because who wouldn't? "I'm sure I'll talk to him at some point in the offseason," Girardi said, "and ... I'll tell him when the season's over, 'Take a month. Take a month and a half, two months, and make sure this is really what you want to do. Because once you do go, it's hard to come back.'"

"I told you guys already. I don't know why we're talking about this. I've already made my decision [to retire at the end of the season]," Rivera said after earning his 40th save of the season by pitching a 1-2-3 ninth inning in the Yankees' dramatic 6-4 victory over the White Sox.

The other players that the Yankees have accumulated in the past few years are also getting older. Ichiro Suzuki, 40, is reaching the end of his career soon. C.C. Sabathia and Mark Texeira, two accumulations of the Yankees' dominant 2009 offseason, are both 33 and dealing with injuries. Curtis Granderson, 32, also dealt with an injury starting the 2013 season.

It might be safe to say that the Yankees are going to need some successful offseason soon. If they don't, I don't see them going anywhere but downhill. Their players are getting older. Their coaches are getting older. Their division is getting better and stronger. Hopefully the Yankees might be able to get some players to replace their old ones, but good luck to them.

Road to the World Series

This October has yet to disappoint us baseball fans. Unless you are not a fan of one of the four remaining teams. There are some tight matchups going on between the Red Sox and Tigers and also the Dodgers and Cardinals.
All four teams might have a long road ahead of them if they wish to make it to the World Series.

For the Red Sox, they are going up against the Detroit Tigers.
This series has been close so far. All games have just about been a "Pitcher's Battle" where there was very few runs scored. The Red Sox are going into Game 5 after a 7-3 loss due to a 5-Run 2nd Inning by pitcher Jake Peavy. This game 5, however, between Jon Lester and Anibal Sanchez is important for both teams. It would give them a nice 1 game cushion over the other team. The pitching for both of these teams have been very good, however. Forgetting Peavy's outing last night, the other games have been very close. Though, I think the Red Sox's bullpen is stronger.
“They’ve been very good. and the focus is going to be on three guys primarily, but still, the other guys that have come into games – what Doubront did the other night – with 15 days off or whatever it might have been, or Workman, they’ve all come in and executed extremely well,” said Sox manager John Farrell. “I know there was a lot made about their uncertainty before the postseason and particularly in Taz’s case, where we had to rebuild a little bit of confidence at times and the more he’s come in and shut off an inning, in shorter stints, that has gradually built to the point where right now, I think he feels pretty good about himself.”
John Farrell, Red Sox Manager, seems to think that their bullpen and rotation is working hard and hard enough to overcome the Tigers' team.
The problem with the Red Sox is that their offense has started to slack. If they don't step up, their season could be coming to a close.
"Hey, I want this offense to get going," right fielder Shane Victorino said. "I'm a big part of it, so I have to figure it out."

For the Tigers, they are currently 2-2 with the Boston Red Sox who had the best regular season record in the MLB this year. However, it has not seemed that way. Detroit has been playing well, but given up some clutch hits that resulted in the Red Sox winning two games. Going into game 4, the 7-3 blowout, Tigers Manager, Jim Leyland, changed around the Tigers' lineup.
“We scored one run and no runs in two of the games,” Leyland said. “We’re going to take a shot. If nothing else, when guys look at the lineup card they kind of look at it a little bit. And maybe it wakes you up a little bit. Not that they’ve been sleeping, they’ve been great games. Just a little something to, you know, churn up the butter a little bit.”
Leyland had hoped to improve his lineup by moving Austin Jackson to 8th and moved everyone else up one spot. This crazy idea actually worked as the Tigers scored 5 runs in the 2nd inning against Jake Peavy. So, I'm guessing that the Tigers will stick to this lineup going into Game 6.
The first few games in this series were a Pitcher's Battle, but I believe the Tigers are trying to make sure it doesn't end like that again.
Us fans should be expecting some good games out of these two teams.


For the National League:
The Dodgers are currently trailing the Cardinals 3-2 in the series. Last night, they won in order to keep the series going. The final score was 6-4 Dodgers. Today, both teams have the day off in order to travel back to St. Louis so the Cardinals can be home for Game 6, (and 7 if necessary).
Last night, Zack Greinke pitched for the Dodgers which keeps them alive for another game. Clayton Kershaw will be pitching for Las Angeles in Game 6. The Dodgers have had to overcome some injuries this postseason. Hanley Ramirez and Andre Ethier were hurt, but they have been cleared and are playing Game 6. Positive for the Dodgers. And also, their All-star center fielder, Matt Kemp, required surgery, so he is unable to play. If the Dodgers were at full strength all NLCS, I bet they would have won already. Now that Ramirez and Ethier are back, I bet this series will go into a Game 7.

The St. Louis Cardinals also had the best record in the MLB, so they, too, get home field advantage for games 1, 2, 6 and 7. This could be one advantage the Cardinals will have against the Dodgers. After last night, anything can happen in this series. The Cardinals need to win one of the next two games in order to make it to the World Series and represent the National League.
For Game 6, the Cardinals are having Michael Wacha start.
Adam Wells, Bleacher Report article writer states, "No matter how hard you try o slice it, Game 6 is going to be an incredible pitching matchup. We have already gotten a taste of what Kershaw and Wacha can do against each other, but the intensity of that previous game will pale in comparison to the atmosphere on display Frieday night."
Both teams have great pitching, which is why they have made it this far, because a good playoff team requires good pitching. This series, like the ALCS series, should have great games. I can't wait to watch both of them.

Norton High School Cross Country Season So Far

The Norton High School Cross Country team has had an amazing year so far. The Boys Team stands in first place at 8-0 remaining undefeated all season. They hope to remain undefeated for the rest of the season and claim the TVL Championship. Their top 5 Varsity Runners, (The Fierce Five), which consists of Billy Sullivan, Max Marcotte, Mike Tierney, Eric Sanford, and Chris Wrenn have performed phenomenal this cross country season. Often times, they have finished in 1st through 5th place in meets.

Out of these Five boys, 2 are seniors, Billy Sullivan and Max Marcotte, 2 are Juniors, Mike Tierney and Eric Sanford, and Chris Wrenn is a Sophomore. Even though the two seniors won't be on the team much longer with the season winding down with only 2 meets left, the team seems to have enough depth to keep going.

The Boys had a meet October 9th against Millis, Senior Night. Norton stays perfect and move on to 8-0. Norton won with the top 8 boys were under 6:00 minute pace with senior Nate DiOrio leading the pack with a 5:52 pace.

These Boys have proven themselves to be a ridiculous group of runners and their 8-0 record shows it.

On the Girls team, their record is 5-2 in the TVL, the best the team has ever done. Even though they do not have an undefeated record, they are still performing well. The are currently in third place in the TVL behind Hopkinton and Dover-Sherborn. The team's best runner, Sophomore Anya DiLorenzo has been consistently winning races for the Girls Team. Other top performers on the Girls Team consists of Senior Captain Corina Jurczyk, Caroline Weber, and Sarah Anderson. The Girls have had a promising season and with a young team full of depth, they look to perform better in years to come.

On October 9th when the Girls faced Millis, they also won. Anya DiLorenzo placed first and shortly behind her was Corina Jurczyk coming in second. Caroline Weber and Sarah Anderson took fifth and sixth in their 24-33 victory.

I asked Norton High School's Cross Country Coach, Mr. Taylor, how he felt about the remainder of the team'a season. He replied, "The boys are flying under the radar. They are exceeding everyone's expectations and are about to make Norton Cross Country history. They are also going to make some big waves at the state level after the dual meet season."

It looks like these teams have a promising future moving on in this 2013 Cross Country season. 

CURRENT TVL STANDINGS

BOYS

7-0 NORTON
6-1 MEDFIELD

5-2 HOPKINTON

4-3 DOVER-SHERBORN
4-3 HOLLISTON3-4 WESTWOOD
3-4 BELLINGHAM
2-5 MEDWAY
1-6 ASHLAND
0-7 MILLIS

GIRLS:

7-0 DOVER-SHERBORN

6-1 HOPKINTON

5-2 NORTON

5-2 WESTWOOD

4-3 HOLLISTON
3-4 MEDFIELD

2-5 MEDWAY
2-5 ASHLAND
1-6 MILLIS
0-7 BELLINGHAM

There's Only One October

Since today is October 1st, that means the MLB Postseason is starting. Last night, the play-in game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers finished a 5-2 Tampa Bay coming out on top.
So, for the Wild Card match ups, we have:

National League:

Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh

Tomorrow, the American League:

Tampa Bay @ Cleveland

After the Wild Card match ups, the Division Series start.

NL Wild Card V.S. St. Louis

LA Dodgers V.S. Atlanta

American League Division Series.

AL Wild Card V.S. Boston

Detroit V.S. Oakland

 

These teams are all very good and consist of many good players. Therefore, this should be an exciting postseason.

I think the Reds are going to beat the Pirates in the NL Wild Card game tonight. They have been good most of the year, aside from some injuries. Anyway, the Reds look like the better team and I see them facing the Cardinals in the NLDS.
For the AL Wild Card, I think the Indians are going to overcome the Rays. They Rays and Rangers play-in game resulted in the Rays winning, but the Indians had already clinched one of the Wild Card spots. So, I think the Indians will face the Red Sox in the ALDS.

For the NLDS series, I think they will be close, potentially game 6 or 7 close. However, I think the Dodgers and Cardinals will make it to the NLCS. The Dodgers have the best Pitching Rotation in the MLB, so I don't think they will be stopped easily.
For the ALDS series, I think the Red Sox will beat either Wild Card Winner. They have the best lineup in the MLB by far. As for the other ALDS series, I think Detroit will beat Oakland in a long series. Both teams are very good, but I think Detroit will be able pull it off.

Projected NLCS matchup: Dodgers v.s. Cardinals
Projected ALCS matchup: Red Sox v.s. Tigers

These matchups will most likely be even closer than the division series. NL: I think the Dodgers and their pitching will once again get them the victory in this series. AL: The Red Sox's offense has been great lately and they will be looking to continue to excel in that category.

Projected World Series: Red Sox v.s. Dodgers

This will be a fight. The Dodgers's pitching v.s. the Red Sox's hitting.
Who knows what will happen?
No one.

As close as it will be, I think the Red Sox will pull it off. They don't have the best record in the MLB for no reason. Clearly they are a superb team, and that's why I think the Red Sox will be taking home rings this October.