Like a 3 a.m. bug

The Red Sox take 2-3 from the Phillies over the weekend …

Bill:
So two out of three ain't bad?

 

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Doug:
Could be worse, but I wouldn't set the Tivo to record October baseball just yet. [Laughs]

 

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Bill:
As Bob Ryan says, "This is a team that needs to start playing like a true contender, not some blustery pretender."

 

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Doug:
Pinto bean thinks the Sox' problems lie in a tremendous fall off in power from the 4th slot to the fifth. The five, six and seven hitters combined have a slugging percentage in the low .400's.

 

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Bill:
Six behind the Yankees in the loss column, four ahead of the Devil Rays … Sadness drips like water beads in a half-poisoned well.

 

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Doug:
My fucking hopes are narrowing down, narrowing down toward almost nothing …

 

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Bill:
I'm like a bug in the bathroom when you flick on the lightswitch at 3 a.m.

 

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Author's Notes
The final 3 speeches (beginning with "Sadness drips" are from the Charles Bukowski poem "Straight on Through." In particular I love the "half-poisoned well" line from Bukowski as it mirrors the whole glass half-full, glass half-empty bit comparing optimists and pessimists which is such a major part of being a Red Sox fan, i.e., what are you, optimist or pessimist, on any given day?

Comments

[Joe]

The 5-6-7 hitters have a "combined" SLG in the .400s? Maybe "average", but not "combined".

[h.b.]

Re "combined" I got that directly from Pinto's site.

http://www.baseballmusings.com/archives/006986.php

Not saying it's correct, just passing the buck.

[Jennifer]

An optimist or pessimist on any given day? Is there really a distinction between the two when you're a Red Sox fan?