I Seem to be in a Mood to Rant

So I’m on redsox.com looking over the roster and am reminded of things that need to be said before the seasons “really” begins.

* It’s Buchholz. B-U-C-H-H-O-L-Z. For cryin’ out loud, sports writers have been spelling Mientkiewicz correctly for years but writers and fans alike keep finding new ways to spell Clay’s last name. This isn’t rocket science people.

* It’s SNyder. Kyle Snyder. Not Schneider. (Don’t let Papelbon fool you.) I hear this one more than I see it, but either way it’s annoying. Kid’s been in the major leagues for long enough now – and it’s a fairly popular name (hell, there are six Snyders in MLB right now).

* Kevin Cash is not Keith Foulke. Keith Foulke is not Kevin Cash. We get it. They look alike. Let’s move on.

* Alex Cora is the utility infielder for the Red Sox. Joey Cora is the bench coach for the Chicago White Sox (and probably the only thing keeping Ozzie Guillen from being fitted for a straight jacket). Alex has been in MLB for ten years in 2008, yet he is still called “Joey” in print, on television and on the radio by way too many people. Sometimes even Red Sox announcers. What’s a guy have to do to get out from under his brother’s (impressive) shadow?

* Mike Timlin, Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield? Old. We know this. They know this. Stories about how old the pitchers are got overused very quickly once they all turned forty. (Incidentally, I’ll be 40 at the end of the year. I’m not old. THEY aren’t old. But the stories about how old they are, in fact, ARE old.)

* Mike Lowell = NOT old. He turned 34 in February. THIRTY-FOUR. Yes, he is graying. Yes, he’s been around the league a while. Yes, he’s a team leader. He’s not friggin’ “old”. Observe:

Special thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Lowell. Excellent work.

* Manny Ramirez is going to admire his home runs. He’s also going to admire long outs, ground rule doubles, and possibly the Boston skyline while he’s up at bat. He’s Manny Ramirez. It’s what he does. If you want me to dislike him, tell me about how he tramples babies on his way out of the park or how he set someone’s house on fire. If the best that you have is “Manny being Manny” you need new material.

* And finally, because I could go on all day since I finally got a good night’s sleep, Tito is the manager. Theo is the GM. Together, they have 2 World Series championships over a course of four seasons. They know more than you do and what they know and do works. It’s tough for some of you to deal with – having to give a Red Sox skipper and GM their proper due – but it’s appropriate. Will they always make the right decisions? Probably not. But this run hasn’t been a fluke, and the most consistent part of the 2004 and 2007 seasons is this duo. Their record works for me.

I have a lazy day planned for most of the day…I’ll probably be back. 😉