Julio Lugo is what’s wrong with people.
Sure, I could blame Jonathan Papelbon for serving up a grand slam in the 8th. I could blame numerous Sox bats for not getting it done. I could blame Clay Buchholz for making a few rookie fielding errors.
But why would I do any of those things, when I can blame last night’s pathetic loss on Julio Lugo and his treasonous lack of hustle?
Bases loaded, two out, bottom of the seventh, Toronto up 2-1. Lugo at bat. Grounds weakly to the left side, as has been his wont lo these many months, and starts jogging half-assedly down the first baseline. After a few leaden steps, Lugo sees that shortstop Ray Olmedo is juggling the ball and he has a chance to be safe at first—hence driving in the tying run. But of course, by then it’s too late. Lugo’s out, the inning is over, and in the next inning, and the Red Sox go quietly into the night.
September 12th, 2007 at 1:02 am
I would have gone with “Beckett and Schilling, and then, God willing”…
Much more of a ring to it!
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September 12th, 2007 at 8:55 am
I’m not too surprised about Schill actually. The BFD lost my attention as soon as they kicked in the falsetto.
That was a poor performance.
(Am I ripping on the Fire Department? I feel like a Phillie’s fan!)
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September 12th, 2007 at 10:28 am
I think there was a problem with one of their microphones. The falsetto guy and the harmony guy were way louder than the two main guys, which seemed like a sound problem to me. But still. People died. We’re in a war. Show some respect, you doofy Republican!
I’m talking about Curt, Rich, not you. :)
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September 12th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
Green, I can\’t believe you didn\’t link to the flip flops. I don\’t even know what shearling is.
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September 12th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
I can’t believe I didn’t link to them either! I have rectified the situation.
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September 12th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
Don’t lose faith in Tim Wakefield quite yet. He’s still the same guy that went 22 IP with no runs last month as he is this month. There is no way he doesn’t make a start if the Sox do decide Daisuke isn’t starting.
That being said, Daisuke will probably get the start anyway – half the reason they like him so much is that he is a “big game” pitcher with a lot of experience. Look for him to be on a short leash in his start with Wake waiting in the pen. If neither get it done, then yes, you probably go to Lester or Clay assuming they hadn’t pitched in the previous games.
Don’t panic yet! You can predict how a knuckleball with move on any given night about as well as you can predict who the Orioles 5th starter will be next year
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September 12th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
Greg these are valid points, except for one concern: Tim Wakefield’s back. He was lights-out almost all year long, then missed a start with a back issue, and in his two starts since he has been lit up like the proverbial Christmas tree (or Manorah, if you prefer). If it were just a couple of rough outings with no hint of an injury, I wouldn’t be so worried.
Nonetheless, I think you are right about Daisuke getting the start with Wake possibly in the pen. At this point, it’s not like the Red Sox have that much choice in the matter.
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September 12th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
Update: I just bought the shearling flip flops. God bless you, llbean.com!
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September 13th, 2007 at 2:06 am
So, did you go with the “Cobalt Stone,” the “Kelp Green,” or the “Light Taupe Bobcat”?
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September 13th, 2007 at 9:01 am
Kelp Green, naturally!
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September 17th, 2007 at 3:48 am
Hi, i am very much interested in wearing the shearling flip flops..
cheers
suma
————————————————
http://www.withcrystalsandstones.net/
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September 20th, 2007 at 2:11 am
If Tony LaRussa yanks a guy for swinging 3-0, imagine what he would have done if he was Lugo’s manager.
Probably would have had another sip from his flask.
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September 20th, 2007 at 2:22 am
Yeah, these are the kind of little things that Lugo always does which never show up in the box score.
I love Sabermetrics and all the fancy new stats it has given us, but Julio Lugo is Exhibit A for why the Baseball Prospectus approach *alone* will never be enough to totally understand the game of baseball (not that the BP people ever claimed it is).
Sometimes you just have to watch the games to fully realize that a certain player is a moron.
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September 20th, 2007 at 9:10 am
Where’s Carlton Fisk when you need him?
“Let me tell you something, you little shit. There’s a right way and a wrong way to play this game. You’re playing it the wrong way, and the rest of us don’t like it. Someday, you’re going to get this game shoved right down your throat.”
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September 20th, 2007 at 10:14 am
We need players who want to win. Lugo and Drew are guys that the front office likes becuase they are so “even” and don’t get too high or too low, blah blah blah.
All that means to me is that the Red Sox are basically paying a premium for guys who replace hustle with apathy. We are paying extra money so the players who are on our team don’t care if they win or lose.
But hey, its all about how you play the game anyway, right???
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September 20th, 2007 at 11:01 am
Panic Panic Panic, it’s everywhere!
Manny does this all the time – he’s “just being Manny” and people joke about it.
Julio Lugo does it and people are ready to throw him in the harbor. The Sox blew it last night, just like they’ve blown it for the last two months.
Don’t blame Lugo for your team’s woes. Just blame him for being a shithead and hitting his wife with a telephone.
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September 20th, 2007 at 11:43 am
Zvee, to echo Nick’s “sometimes you just have to watch the games,” the fact that Manny has these “Manny moments” does not mean that they are akin to Lugo’s screw ups, does not mean that Manny’s contribution to the team is akin to Lugo’s, and it does not follow that Manny gets a free pass.
If you follow the Red Sox at all, you know that Manny’s occasional base running mistakes to not usually include a lack of hustle down the first base line in close games, with the bases loaded, in the second half of September (in fact, “Manny Moments” are usually not about hustle and more about taking a leak inside the Red Sox outfield wall). If you follow baseball at all, you know that despite limited defensive capabilities and occasional mental gaffes, there are vast differences between Julio Lugo and Manny Ramirez. These differences are so obvious I trust I do not need to surface them here. And finally, if you have ever followed the “Manny being Manny” storyline, then you know that a) fans and press alike have in fact expressed plenty of outrage when one of Manny’s gaffes has proved costly to the club and b) said storyline has nothing to do with the fact that, this season, Julio Lugo’s only real contribution to this ballclub has been his ability to run and last night he couldn’t even do that.
Manny has nothing to do with it. Manny has been out with an injury. As I mentioned in the post, there’s plenty of blame to go around for what went wrong last night, but if there is one person you cannot blame, it’s Manny Ramirez.
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September 20th, 2007 at 1:26 pm
We can argue all day which is worse, Manny being Manny (ie., one good sneeze away from a coma), or Lugo being lazy. But the reality is the most important difference between Manny Ramirez and Julio Lugo is that Manny hits about 100 points higher.
It’s a lot easier to get away with being a space cadet when you’re pounding the crap out of the ball.
Same thing with J.D. Drew. Sure, he looks apathetic now. But if he were hitting .310, he’d look cool under pressure.
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September 20th, 2007 at 2:02 pm
Lugo at least had the good grace to bounce his helmet in fury after dicking himself out of an RBI and the team out of a game-tying run. It may be a slim straw, but I will grasp at it all the same.
As for Manny, I’m not going to argue about “which is worse” because frankly, I still fail to see why Manny and Lugo should even be compared in this context.
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September 20th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Needless to say, Ward, you are of course right about the perception of “apathetic” vs “cool under pressure.”
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September 20th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
Gabe Kapler wants back in! Put him at short. That man is made of heart and hustle.
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September 20th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
Yes, Zvee, your comment is a bit off the mark, methinks. Red Sox fans don’t love Manny *because* he fucks up from time to time; they love him *despite* his fuckups. The whole idea of “Manny being Manny” is more or less an explicit acknowledgement of precisely the point you just made – Red Sox fans realize that they put up with more from Manny because he is one of the best hitters of all time. But Lugo just sucks all around.
Also, I can’t agree with the idea that if J.D. Drew were hitting .310, people would say he was “cool under pressure.” Even when Drew had his career year with the Braves in 2004, hitting .305 and 31 homers, I don’t remember anyone complimenting his on-field demeanor. He was still known for his apathetic approach, such that when the Dodgers signed him that very offseason, there was much concern among LA fans and media about Drew’s reputation as an apathetic player, despite the numbers he had just put up.
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