Beards, Chains, and Bad Plays

Day 2 of the 2009 MLB playoffs. We are sitting in a bar in East Somerville watching the tail end of Game 2 of the National League Division Series of the LA Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals. Now mind you, I am not a ‘true’ baseball fan. Pre-season, forget it, but living here in Boston, sports junkie capital of the United States, I feel I need to ‘get in the zone’ and pay attention come October. So we sit through the moment when Cardinal’s outfielder Matt Holliday makes a major error - or shall we say major brain fart in the 9^th inning. The bobble, the stumble on the knees...it was painful, one of those plays that makes you ponder, “Are you Bill Buckner’s younger brother twice removed!?” These guys stand around for 100 plus games in the pre-season and yet, when a clutch game comes along in post-season, ouch….…they must be human!

Now let’s examine St Louis pitcher Ryan Franklin, where did he come from and how did he grow that bristle on his chin? Are we staring at a Civil War Reenactor stuck in a time warp out on the mound or one the best pitchers of the season? Then we have Brendan Ryan, nice ‘stache man. Did you know that Ryan is a finalist for the  2009 "Robert Goulet Memorial Mustached American of the Year," which (I kid you not) recognizes the person best contributing to the Mustached American way of life over the past year. Even with the style points, St Louis loses the game 4-3.

Thank goodness the first game is over. We are now back at the ranch watching the “home” town team, Game 1 of the Boston Red Sox vs Anaheim Angels in the American League, or shall we say, the ‘Big Chain’ league. Do these players stop by the heavy chain & rope department at Home Depot before heading to the ballpark? Red Sox second baseman, Dustin Pedroia sports a double chain, one with a charm, Sox Kevin Youkilis and  Angels Bobby Abreu chose their bling by sticking to the standard thick chain. But then that leaves us with Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester. Is that a green rope braid around his neck, macramé from Grandma, some weird California hemp product or maybe some lentils on steroids strung on a string for Christmas? We do know that it is not a good luck charm after watching Tory Hunter hit a 3 run homer in the top of the 5^th. Sox lose 5-0

Bad plays, Civil War beards and alternative neckwear? Looking forward to Day 3 of the post season!