Baby Blue Bird Tastes Good
The Blue Jays rookie pitcher Brett Cecil served up meatballs at Fenway tonight — and the Red Sox were more than happy to feast on the tasty baby blue bird. To wit: five- count ‘em – FIVE home runs by the Sox… including two home runs by Jason Varitek, one of which kicked off an epic 5th inning home run derby that saw Jason Bay, Mike Lowell and Big Papi (!) pound some taters.
Let’s relive the feast, shall we?
I find it hard to narrow down what is the most awesome part of this sequence of events. Jason Varitek swinging around home plate while hurriedly high-fiving people and flat-out running to the dugout to get back into the safe confines of his catching gear. Mike Lowell closing the door on hope with the fifth homer of the game, while Josh Beckett sits at the rail seemingly talking to himself and marveling at what a shit storm the rook pitcher has rained down on himself. Orsillo and Eckersley practically bouncing around the booth with glee at each moonshot.
Nah- it’s gotta be Papi watching his first bomb of the season sail over the center field wall, taking his sweet time trotting around the bases and then throwing up that long-awaited double point to the sky. He collects a couple of mini-bear hugs from Pedroia and Youkilis before trotting back into the dugout to be met with the shortest fake freeze out ever… because not a single player on the team can contain the frenzied excitement for their buddy. Pedroia’s the first to break character – and shoves Papi into the middle of the scrum of jumping, hollering, back-pounding ballplayers. Papi gets a bear hug and butt slap from Tito, and takes a well-deserved curtain call from the fans in the stands, while Eck says, “Everybody and their brother was blowing on that ball to get out of here. GET OUT OF HERE!”
And then luckily the NESN cameras keep rolling, and capture an elated Papi as he joyfully walks up next to Tim Wakefield, who slings his arm around Papi’s shoulder, as the two elder statesmen put their heads together in quiet conversation.
I can use a sappy word like “magical” to describe a random game in May, right?
A lesson learned, hopefully, by young Cecil.
@eyebleaf: Eck said it in the clip, and I think it’s true: that’s on Cito. Cecil was visibly running out of gas at the beginning of the inning, and was on E when Papi hit his dinger. Cito really should have pulled him at that point – give the kid a break, although it means taxing the ‘pen.
Glad for the gorgeous win and the break for Papi, but I think that had to be a spirit crushing inning for Brett Cecil and I think it is an awful bit of managing by Cecil, regardless of whether they wanted to go deep into relief or not. I’m going to guess that Eck knows what he is talking about (and Beckett’s face told it too), this is an outing a young pitcher will remember his entire life. I wouldn’t think any game at this stage of the season is worth what that could do.
Obviously…I meant it was an awful bit of managing by Cito.
Yes, that is on Cito. Cecil’s so young and inexperienced….so leaving him in there, even if it means you can save the bullpen a little bit, is the wrong move. If is was some veteran pitcher who you know can hunker down and get through the “inning gone bad”….you know…as we have unfortunately seen with the likes of Lester this year. Ok. I can accept that. This kid is brand spankin’ new. You want him to be productive ALL YEAR LONG…so you tax your bullpen and get him out as the shit storm is starting to happen. You don’t wait for him to basically be on the mound in the fetal position…crying…before you take him out.
I do feel for Cecil….mainly because of my intense Clay Buchholz love, watching him have such success and then to watch his struggle like crazy. It’s hard to go through that as a young whipper snapper. I hope Cecil grows and learns from this…and gets better….just not against us.
Ah, loved rewatching that again. And Jacoby Ellsbury thanks you for editing out him getting thrown out at home. LOL. What a great moment in Red Sox 09 history. And once again Brad Penny wins the crazy run support lottery.
Beckett talking to himself. In my mind, he is muttering to the dugout, “This better happen when I am FUCKING pitching….BETTER FUCKING HAPPEN!”
I was there, sitting in the RF bleachers. It was incredible.
I sat two rows down of the fight, if it was on TV.
I’d like to interrupt your previously scheduled programming to ask, “Does anyone else think Kevin Millar is the Matthew McConaughey (shirt on version) of baseball?”
@mermaidmarian: Oh, yes – “alright, alright, alright…”
Would anyone know the last time Tek had two homers in one game and then the last time he was walked in a game?
Thx.
Also, apropos of nothing: Josh Beckett is going to be at McGreeveys today from noon to 3 today????? Any one going to go and take photos, videos???
Really shouldn’t watch this video at work. So clear to all around me from the ridiculous smile on my face that I am not, in fact, working!
@starr4: Don’t know about the IBB, but according to Full Count, his last multi-homer game was back in August 2005. (They also mention that he’s hit more homers than any other catcher so far this year.)
@starr4: Well, he was IBB-ed in a game this year, like…five or six weeks ago. I was at that one.
The nice thing about being home sick–I can watch day-time TV: Sports Center.
They just showed the HR highlights from the game. Now they are covering Jacoby’s 12 putouts last night. No errors in 500+ chances.
Cecil has a lot of potential. The kid is 22(!) and was in Single-A last year. He should’ve been on a much shorter leash.
LOL on Eck: “Dead central”
@jules: ah true, hope he bounces back.
and WOO HOO PAPI.
and anyone noticed that Jason Bay’s HR was CRUSHED ?
@Sam: I think the guy who owns the truck that ball fell on definately noticed!
That Papi and Wake picture is pretty much the most adorable thing ever. And I’m so glad someone had a shot of it.
Seriously I almost did a barrell roll out of my room to see that again (I was looking up something and heard Ortiz was up and rambled on out). But man, Eck was practically giddy with excitement over the whole thing too.
I was supposed to be out last night, but wasn’t feeling well so bagged that idea, and I got home during the third inning. That fifth inning made me SO glad that I was under the weather! Feast about describes it.
Where did the video go?
I know it’s just the odd angle, but to me it looks like Wake is sitting on Ortiz’s lap in that picture … “Thanks for the HR, Santa.”