World Series 2011: Non-Stop Red Sox News Overshadowing Game 6

It seems that the baseball world cannot escape from the tragedy that is the Boston Red Sox.

Even during the World Series, one of the most tightly contested ones in recent years, there appears to be more talk about the Sox than the Texas Rangers or St. Louis Cardinals.

Just looking at the headlines today on some major sports websites, including Bleacher Report, you will see that pitcher John Lackey is going to undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the 2012 season, Ben Cherington has been announced as the new Red Sox GM and the Cubs introduced former Sox GM as their new president of baseball operations.

I think the fact that the World Series is being contested between two smaller-market ball clubs with fanbases that don’t tend to extend past their regional area is a big reason for this inundation of Red Sox headline news.

The Red Sox are one of the most popular clubs in the world, only possibly behind the New York Yankees. Red Sox nation spans the entire country and is even international.

The Rangers and Cardinals ‘nations’ span perhaps the South and Midwest of the United States combined.

This has got to be annoying for fans of the game that want to read compelling news about the World Series, which is actually quite exciting this year.

It’s currently at 3-2 in favor of Texas after an insane bullpen blunder by the Cardinals in Game 5.

The series returns to St. Louis tonight and they have a chance to pull even and make this best of seven series go all the way.

What is more exciting in baseball than a seventh World Series game?

I certainly don’t think a mediocre pitcher getting Tommy John surgery or a relatively unknown being promoted to GM for the Red Sox.

I guess not everyone agrees.