The "Blind Loyalty to my players" era with Tito Francona is OVER!!!!!
With the save on the line, Tito made the call to the bullpen in the bottom of the ninth…and Papelbon answered it, NOT Foulke.
Pap didn’t disappoint. Two strikeouts and his first major league save!!!
Of course, Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy immediately started discussing the, not-so, hidden meaning behind the move.
I’m hoping Tito’s thinking was, "I gave this guy a shot on Monday and he practically blew the game…I’m nipping this in the bud NOW!".
Props to Josh Beckett on his five strikeouts and really stunning game!
(And mini-props to Kameron Loe…he pitched a he11 of a game until my man Trot took him out of the park!)
(Edited to add – props to Keith Foulke as well, for saying all the right things post-game, and coming across as caring only about what is good for the TEAM. Even if he didn’t mean it, he SAID it. Way to be a good sport, Keith!)
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