Nightly Notes

The Rockies long, strange layoff finally ends tomorrow with the start of the World Series. In honor of the opening of my favorite event of the year, here's a notes column:

1.) First off, I'm sad to say that I was not able to get World Series tickets. I know you're all terribly disappointed for me . . .

2.) I suppose I should give a final, definitive prediction on this series. Let me start by saying that in almost every category, and virtually every matchup, the Red Sox have the edge. The Rockies have some really fun players (Matt Holliday and Troy Tulowitzki particularly, but really there are a lot of good stories on this team), but they just don't have anything like the star power that the Red Sox will be sending onto the field. Rationally, then, I should pick the Red Sox to win in 4 or 5. I'm not going with the numbers on paper, though -- I really think that the Rockies have the confidence necessary to get the job done, so I'm going to pick the Rockies in 6. After all, it's not as if the Rockies are a bad team -- lost in the stories about the remarkable 21-1 run is the fact that this team isn't just lucky, but is actually pretty darned good.

3.) I feel for Tim Wakefield, who has been left off of the Red Sox postseason roster due to a shoulder injury that appears to possibly be career threatening. Wakefield was an integral part of this team in 2007, and it's too bad that his season is coming to a premature end. On the other hand, if I were a Red Sox fan I don't think I'd be all that upset about the baseball side of this -- I mentioned in my "Beckett v. Wakefield" rant from last week that Wakefield just hasn't been very good at all in the postseason, so Jon Lester starting Game 4 over Wakefield probably gives the Sox a better chance to win.

4.) Speaking of Game 4 starters, the Rockies will also be shaking things up a bit. Regular post-season #4 Franklin Morales has been bumped to the bullpen to make room on the roster for Aaron Cook, who hasn't pitched since early August. On the one hand, I want to rail against this move -- Morales has been reasonably good since joining the rotation, and Cook at this point is an unknown. In the end, though, I think this move probably works, for three reasons: (1) the player being left off the roster is Taylor Buchholz, who hasn't pitched in the post-season -- no big loss there; (2) Morales provides a third lefty in the bullpen, which could be very significant for Clint Hurdle as he tries to match up with the sox lineup; and (3) Hurdle wouldn't have made the move if he wasn't convinced that Cook could contribute. If the Rockies can get 4-5 innings out of him in Game 4, it would be a success.

5.) In non-World Series news, the A's seem intent on moving -- but please tell me they'll be able to come up with something better than the "Fremont Athletics" if the move takes place.

6.) Tony La Russa is back for more abuse in St. Louis. Yes, they won the Series in 2006 -- but no one is going to argue that that team was all that good. In truth, the Cardinals seem to be headed in the wrong direction, and if I were La Russa, who knows darned well that he'd be highly in demand if he left St. Louis, I probably would have checked out. Heck, sit out a year if you don't like this year's openings. I just don't think the Cardinals are going to be competitive during his new contract, and I really don't blame him for that.

7.) Did anybody notice that Mariano Rivera seems to have backtracked from his earlier defense of Joe Torre? I don't have cites for you, but I seem to recall Rivera saying in the aftermath of the loss to the Indians in the ALDS that if Torre left the team, he'd have to think seriously about whether he wanted to return. Now, his agent essentially said that Torre's departure has no effect whatsoever on Rivera's plans. I'm guessing the agent got to Rivera and pointed out that the Yankees will drastically overpay for his services, and that he'd probably only get half the dollars per year (and fewer years to boot) if he went elsewhere. The Yankees seem poised to bring back Rivera and Posada, but I would just about guarantee that they'll overpay and go too long contract-wise for both. While that may work in the short-term, neither of these guys is a young player anymore -- and by the end of their contracts, I'm guessing they'll be as welcome as Jason Giambi is now.

That's it folks -- can't wait for tomorrow! Go Rockies!