Bambino's Curse

The Bob Ryan Test

In today's Globe, columnist Bob Ryan has composed a list of Red Sox related questions for potential new owners of the Red Sox in order to test their qualifications to be in such a position.

John Harrington has said all along the Red Sox must be sold to the highest qualified bidder. That's qualified bidder. He's still mostly interested in the money, but you and I have additional concerns. Oh, sure, the new owner(s) must have cavernous pockets, but he/they must also have the proper spiritual credentials before we give him/them our official okey-dokey (Ryan, The Boston Globe).

What follows are some 60 questions from multiple-choice, to essay, from the totally humorous, with no right answer, to real stumpers that go to the nitty-gritty minutia of Red Sox trivia.

I tell you, it ain't easy. I like to think of myself as a fairly knowledgeable Red Sox fan when it comes to history and trivia, but I'd be fortunate to squeak by with a gentlemen's C on this one. And even then, I'd have to hope that the answers to the discuss questions are worth more than the others.

Here is one that completely stumped me. Maybe someone can clue me in?

Why should Jess Cain have a lifetime pass to Fenway Park?

A door closes, a door opens

Whoa, things are heating up. I took yesterday off from posting, and it's probably best I did because most of that information would have been invalidated by now.

Everett didn't go to the Padres but to the Rangers, in exchange for Daren Oliver. Doesn't matter to whom, just the "to" is good enough. I'm so glad to see Carl Everett go. It will be very interesting to see how Everett does in Texas. I'm not apologizing for the guy's behavior in a Red Sox uniform, but I have to be realistic. A LOT of players have hated playing in Boston. Other players simply refuse to play in Boston. I think Dave Steward had it written into his contract that trades to Boston were negated from the get go. Sometimes a particular situation will cause a person to go nuts and act in ways they wouldn't under normal circumstances. I like to think this is what happened to Carl Everett. There is no excuse for his behavior. I'm glad to see him go. But I don't wish him ill will. I hope he doesn't act mentally ill in Texas.

The other shocker this morning is the report that the Red Sox may be unloading Urbina:

The Sox are trying to iron out a deal that would send incumbent closer Ugueth Urbina to Los Angeles. They would then attempt to sign former Dodgers closer Jeff Shaw, who they began wooing yesterday (Horrigan, The Boston Herald).

And Shaw is already ingratiating himself to Boston fans:

Shaw said that he would prefer to remain in the NL but said he always enjoyed Boston's fans.

``I'm amazed by how knowledgeable the fans are,'' he said. ``I'll never forget warming up in the bullpen there when I was with the Indians and having them yell, `Shaw, you lost 19 games in the minors (1988). How the hell did you ever make it up here?' ''

Finally, if that isn't a good enough news day, we also learned that columnist Michael Holley is returning to the Globe. I don't know what happened at the Chicago Tribune, but I'm glad he is back. When a city has a bad reputation, deserved or not, for being racist, I think it's a good think to have a very talented guy with dark skin and dreadlocks writing about your baseball team.

Warm by the stove

You've gotta love these days during MLB's winter meeting. This morning, both the Globe and Herald have multiple stories about the Red Sox, even pushing the football stories below the fold.

Like the Rogers and Hammerstein song,

I'm as restless as a willow in a windstorm
I'm as jumpy as a puppet on a string
I'd say that I had spring fever
But I know it isn't spring

Things are so good this December morning we even have a dose of Jimywocky wisdom this morning:

''Never take anything for granted,'' [former Red Sox manager Jimy Williams] said. ''And be good to your mother.''

Words to live by, indeed. I'll miss the Jimyisms this year. I know I'll be reading the Houston-Chronicle from time to time during the '02 season just to read the occasional koan from Williams.

And it seems the Red Sox are now pursuing Atlanta pitcher John Burkett. I'm not too familiar with him, but I can already see that I like the guy's attitude. When asked if he could replace Nomo in the rotation he replied,

''I'd put myself up against Nomo any time,'' he said. ''Go ahead. Check the numbers. Check 'em.

''I've pitched six Opening Days for four teams. Not many guys have done that. I don't look like a No. 2 or No. 3 pitcher because I don't throw hard and I'm not overpowering, but I give my team a chance to win'' (Edes, The Boston Globe).

What more can you ask for on a drizzly, 42° day in December?

Spin-O-Rama

I know he's the manager (for now, at least) and he is supposed to sound optimistic, but I've got to have something to cling to so this bit by Kerrigan, while not even breaking through the outer layer of my cynicism, at least gave me nothing to feel worse about:

As much as the team needs another starting pitcher, [Kerrigan] believes youngsters such as Casey Fossum, Paxton Crawford, and Juan Pena are ready to fill the additional gap. ''We have a lot of depth in our system,'' he said. ''We're not in as dire straits as people think'' (Hohler, The Boston Globe).

Juan Pena was incredible a couple years ago, '99, when he made a couple of very impressive starts before going on the DL. Since then, though, he's been a mystery to me. I had forgotten all about him. I do think Casey Fossum is for real.

Heck, maybe it isn't so bad after all? (Yeah, I know. I need to get a grip.)

The Winter Meetings

Baseball's annual winter meeting has begun, in Boston of all places, and, as most are very quick to point out, the meetings just ain't what they used to be.

Gone are the days of the blockbuster trades, now it's mostly free agent signings that spark interest and attention.

The last time I was surprised by a major Boston trade during a winter meeting, was December 8, 1977 when Lou Gorman unloaded Al Nipper and Calvin Schiraldi for Lee Smith, the big, right-handed reliever who went on to have some good seasons with the Red Sox. Remember everyone in Fenway standing up and then genuflecting to the Savior as Lee Smith would make his deliberate and always heroic walk from the bullpen to the dugout? Agamemnon departing Mycenae for Troy couldn't have looked any more epic than Smith's walk in before the 8th inning.

Of course, as Red Sox things go, Smith's relationship with the Red Sox ended acrimoniously with the whole Jeff Reardon signing and the let's use two all time great closers at the same time fiasco.

How many Red Sox deals don't end this way? Even players who remained with the club their entire careers seem to end off on a sour note. Sure, Ted Williams hit a home run on his final at bat, but he still loathed the Boston media and had a peculiar relationship with the fans, always, even in his last game, refusing to tip his hat to the fans after hitting a homer. Remember Jim Rice's dugout shoving match with Joe Morgan? Dwight Evans? On and on.

Well, Yaz did end his career on on a triumphant note and with no ill will as far as I can remember. And Fisk's tear filled number retiring ceremony at Fenway in 2000 certainly suggests that he has made amends with the club.

Good things can happen . . .