Shocker! Angels sweep Jonathan Papelbon and Red Sox!

I spent my afternoon watching the Angels-Red Sox game. What fun that was. While I was officially neutral on the Red Sox-Angels series (it would be like trying to decide to root for arsenic or cyanide!), I have to say, now that it's over, and I can't karmically jinx things, I really, really enjoyed seeing the Red Sox lose.

I also appreciated seeing Bobby Abreu being an Anaheim hero.And I especially cherished seeing Jonathan Papelbon (aka Cinco Dopo) give up three runs in the ninth, when he was literally one strike away from getting the win. So much for his 0.00 postseason ERA. So much for him being better than Mariano Rivera. His lousy outing reminded me of when Omir Santos and the Mets, in one of their few 2009 season highlights, destroyed Papelbon. Or when Baltimore beat up on him, in a game where they trailed by nine runs. Sox fans are already tired of Papelbon's mouth; wonder if they're going to be sick of him as a closer, as well.

Seeing Billy (Country Time) Wagner give up two runs was also fun as well. Wheeee!

I was very shocked Boston lost, but perhaps they have gotten a little too complacent, thanks to all their comeback wins in recent years. The Red Sox have done a 180 from their "OMG, something's going to go wrong!" attitude, to this "don't worry, we'll get 'em later" lethargy. And they didn't seem to take their opponent seriously, until it was too late. It didn't appear to occur to Boston that, much like the Sox were once sick of losing to the Yankees, that the Angels were sick of losing to the Red Sox. As friend of the Squawkers Bob Ekstrom put it last week, "When you punch an opponent in the mouth enough times, he’s eventually going to punch you back."

What also struck me is how quiet Fenway Park was throughout the game, even when the Sox were winning. It was not a raucous crowd at all. Where was the home field advantage?

Papelbon will get the blame for this loss, but he isn't the only one to blame for the sweep. The Sox's hitting was anemic - Jacoby Ellsbury had the most hits for the series, at three. David Ortiz hit .083!

Friend of the Squawkers Larry Milian asked me about this series on the radio the other day, and I told him what I've said before - ever since the 2006 Tigers killed the Yankees, I stopped trying to wish for one team as being a better matchup in the postseason. But now, that I can speak about the Angels, I will close with this prediction. Just like the Angels got the Red Sox monkey off their backs this year, the Yankees are going to finally get that Anaheim rally monkey off their own backs this year!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Billy 'Country Time' Wagner joins the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry

99 bottles of wins on the wall, and one more to go to win the division. And if the Yankees win today and don't happen to fall, they will tie the Red Sox for their season series record. Who would have expected that after the Yanks spotted the Sox an 0-8 lead in the first eight games against each other this year?

While CC Sabathia shutting down the Red Sox (he pitched a no-hitter into the fifth inning, and he only gave up one hit overall) for his 19th win was a big highlight of yesterday's game, my favorite part was seeing former Met Billy Wagner in the mix.

Wagner, who the great Mets blogger Metstradamus calls "Country Time," is somebody I've loved to hate ever since he showed up in Flushing with Mariano Rivera's song "Enter Sandman" as his own theme song. Yes, I know Wagner started using it first. But he should have ditched it then, out of respect for Mo.

Incidentally, Country Time has stopped using the song in Boston now, and has no song at all, allegedly out of respect for Jonathan Papelbon's job as closer. Huh? I've heard eighth inning guys with their own theme song all the time! What's that all about? Heck, Mike Stanton even had a theme song with the Mets - Toby Keith's "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue"! And incidentally, how is Wags getting along with that Rhodes Scholar Papelbon, anyway?

At any rate, my favorite Met memory of Billy Wagner was when he blew a 4-0 lead against the Yankees in the Subway Series, then griped about Willie Randolph pitching him in the game. Good times for Country Time!

So yes, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Wagner get knocked around  yesterday, even if it wasn't all his fault.

On the other hand, I didn't enjoy seeing the Yanks flail against Dice-K. He had one of his more effective games against the Bombers. While he did allow a bunch of hits, only Robinson Cano was able to score agains thim.

But all in all, it was a great win for the Yankees, as it always is in The Rivalry. And things got even better for the Subway Squawkers Rivalry.

Squawker Jon and I went out for pizza last night, and were listening to the Mets game on the car radio. David Wright  - also known as the guy who has fewer homers than Melky Cabrera  this year -  made a baserunning gaffe against the Marlins.  Wright slowed down while rounding the bases, and didn't score before Jeff Francoeur was thrown out at second - thus costing the Mets a run. So much for The Great Gazoo!

Squawker Jon wasn't pleased over that gaffe. But it got worse for my blogging partner. The Mets radio announcers talked about what they considered the best baserunning of the year. They said it was when Mark Teixeira motored around the bases after the Luis Castillo drop. The Mets broadcasters pointed out that Tex had no way of knowing that Castillo would do anything but catch the ball, yet he was running as soon as the ball was hit.

Think about that for a second. It's not enough that the Mets' own broadcasters compared David Wright disparagingly to a Yankee. It's that they used the worst Met moment of the year,  and arguably the play that sent the Mets on their downward spiral this season, in order to do so.

Squawker Jon wasn't very pleased at this mention. As for me, I cackled!

What do you think? Leave us a comment! 

Breaking news - we have a new nickname for Kevin Youkilis, and I actually agree with Jonathan Papelbon on something!

It was so much fun to see our ace CC Sabathia win against Josh Beckett and the Red Sox, and the Yankee offense pound out five homers to win the game and the series. All, that, and we have a new nickname for Kevin Youkilis!

When I was on Twitter during the game last night, I saw Yankee fan/Twitterer Shiney42 write that Youk "reminds me of Fred Flintstone when he bowls. Don't ask --- I have NO idea BUT he just does."

I remembered that Fred's nickname was "Twinkletoes" on the show, and wrote that back. Shiney42 responded, "That's it! Twinkletoes - cause of the way he bats on his tippy toes!!"

So I'm thinking that unless somebody else has another suggestion, we need to start calling Youk "Twinkletoes." It cracks me up to think of Youkilis as Fred Flintstone! But who's Barney Rubble in this analogy? That's the burning question!

* * *

In other news, Jonathan Papelbon (aka Cinco Dopo - and yes, I know some of our readers hate that name!) actually said something that made sense to me. In talking about the Sox possibly getting Billy Wagner, he said:

"What has he done? Has he pitched this year?" Jonathan Papelbon told WEEI.com. "Is he ready to pitch or is he not? ... I think our bullpen is good where we're at right now. Don't get me wrong. But I guess you could always make it better. It's kind of like the [Eric] Gagne thing, I guess."

Here's the thing. Wagner isn't exactly a go-with-the-flow kind of guy. I know I'm a biased Yankee fan squawking here, but I mainly remember his time with the Mets for:

1) Getting bent out of shape and blowing the game, then complaining about being in the game, when Willie Randolph had the nerve to expect him to close out a 4-0 lead against the Yankees,

2) Anonymously putting a "Know Your Place, Rook" sign on Lastings Milledge's locker,

and 3) Calling out teammates Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado for not talking enough to the press.

Do I think Wagner will check his ego at the door in Boston? Absolutely not - he's already having his agent make demands before even getting there.

So yeah, I think Papelbon is right here. (I'm shuddering and shaking over even writing that sentence!)

* * *

Speaking of drama, I think it's time for former catcher Joe Girardi to step in and do something about the Jorge Posada/A.J. Burnett drama. Oh, and by the way, I'm not buying what Girardi said to the media, about how "I have not given anyone a personal catcher." The reality is that he gave CC Sabathia a personal catcher in Jose Molina, but he's loathe to do it with Burnett.

In other news, I've written two pieces for The Faster Times site - one on Mike Schmidt's defense of Pete Rose, and another about what happened in Metland yesterday.

One other note - Squawker reader Uncle Mike shipped up to Boston this weekend - and lived to tell the tale! See, miracles do happen!

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

Billy Don't Be a Zero: Mets must get value for Wagner

There has not been much to cheer about this year in Metland, but at least Billy Wagner made his way back from Tommy John surgery. Good for you, Billy.

But will it be good for the Mets? Not if they make a waiver deal with the sole goal of saving money.

Sure, there are a lot of zeroes in the money still owed Wagner - $3.7 million - but the Mets have a rare opportunity to add a decent prospect to their barren farm system. Don't blow it!

Just the possibility of the Mets dumping Wagner just to save money inspired me to write a column for the Faster Times on whether it is ever acceptable to put your fantasy team ahead of your real team.

For the record, I said no, even when what little there is to root for with the Mets these days keeps disappearing. I even came around to rooting for Gary Sheffield before his true colors finally came out.

By the way, Lisa, Michael Bowden is one of the Red Sox' top prospects and is on Mack's Mets' wish list of players the Mets could get for Wagner. Yes, the same Michael Bowden who is getting pounded by the Yankees tonight.

He really is a good prospect - maybe the Yankees will help the Mets by lowering Bowden's value.

Though knowing the Mets, they would probably end up instead with Brad Penny.