Sunday, September 03, 2006
BostonHerald.com - Boston Red Sox: The Ex-files: Red Sox refugees
BostonHerald.com - Boston Red Sox: The Ex-files: Red Sox refugees
The Los Angeles Dodgers were headed toward the 13th inning when Derek Lowe got up from his seat in the dugout on Tuesday night. The pitcher then strolled up to manager Grady Little and told him he was available to pitch if the Dodgers needed him.
Little took Lowe up on the offer.
Not much later, Lowe had given the Dodgers three full innings en route to his 12th win of the season as Los Angeles posted a critical 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds in the nip-and-tuck National League playoff race.
Unusual? Hardly. Blessed with a resilient arm during his career with the Red Sox, Lowe both started and relieved during his career in Boston. He did both during the club’s 2003 American League Division Series against the Oakland A’s, starting Game 3 and closing Game 5 as the Sox overcame a 2-0 series deficit to advance to the AL Championship Series against the New York Yankees.
This type of guts and performance is what the Sox have been lacking all season, and why they were never really serious contenders in 2006. This organization needs to get back to looking at the total player; This team overvalues statistics and severely underrates the mental aspect of the sport, the major aspect that separates champions from chumps. Matt Clement versus Derek Lowe. ARod versus Derek Jeter. Case closed.strong>
The Los Angeles Dodgers were headed toward the 13th inning when Derek Lowe got up from his seat in the dugout on Tuesday night. The pitcher then strolled up to manager Grady Little and told him he was available to pitch if the Dodgers needed him.
Little took Lowe up on the offer.
Not much later, Lowe had given the Dodgers three full innings en route to his 12th win of the season as Los Angeles posted a critical 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds in the nip-and-tuck National League playoff race.
Unusual? Hardly. Blessed with a resilient arm during his career with the Red Sox, Lowe both started and relieved during his career in Boston. He did both during the club’s 2003 American League Division Series against the Oakland A’s, starting Game 3 and closing Game 5 as the Sox overcame a 2-0 series deficit to advance to the AL Championship Series against the New York Yankees.
This type of guts and performance is what the Sox have been lacking all season, and why they were never really serious contenders in 2006. This organization needs to get back to looking at the total player; This team overvalues statistics and severely underrates the mental aspect of the sport, the major aspect that separates champions from chumps. Matt Clement versus Derek Lowe. ARod versus Derek Jeter. Case closed.strong>
