 Wake and Bronson. Photo taken by Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.net in 2008 and used with permission. |
So delighted with the way Wake pitched last night. He gets his ninth win; the Sox notch another win and keep their 2-game lead in the AL East and even Big Papi continues to come back with another home run and going 2-3 with 3 RBI. Hell, we even got a Hanley Ramirez ERROR (Nick Green laughs at you!).
And now, a mini-rant:
I’m really, really getting tired of seeing the “Picnic in the Park” commercial (and now they have the wives on during the game to hawk it as well). Memo to the Red Sox and the Red Sox Foundation: the average Red Sox fan (to whom you keep gearing the advertising for these events) can’t afford $350 a person for something like this. Stop rubbing it into the faces of the good fans who don’t have $1500 to spare to bring their family to a unique experience at Fenway. It’s lousy that the bottom line is making the most money while limiting the time the players have to give instead of bringing in more people with a more affordable ticket price.
Yes, I rant every year about the Red Sox Foundation. I have a huge problem with the team claiming they’re so fan-friendly and then having so many events that shut out the average fan. So, every year around this time, expect a “Please get the Red Sox wives off my tv because they’re selling something too many people can’t buy” rant. I chuckled last night when I realized two out of the three Sox wives on during the game probably wouldn’t have been able to afford the $350 per person price tag a couple of years ago. I’m all for donating to charity and don’t think you need a “gift” to entice you to do so. But don’t promise a wonderful fan/player experience (the commercial with Wake at the picnic table is amusing but also frustrating since it reflects something that isn’t even close to the actual experience and gives folks who don’t know better the idea that they might be able to bring their family to this) and then cut out the majority of the fans. It’s lousy and it seems to be the Red Sox Foundation’s M.O. Yes, I understand that the main directive is to make money but it wouldn’t kill them (nor cost them) to make even just SOME of these events more affordable for the average fan. I’ll be with a group at the game the day of the Picnic. It’ll be interesting to see how many people at the game actually stay for the picnic. (This endeth the rant)
But back to last night. Wake pitches another game that encourages those who feel he should be in the ASG this year. I’m on the fence. Every sentimental bone in my body wants Tim Wakefield to pitch in St. Louis on July 14th. I’m not convinced, though, that his win record is the only thing he should be judged on. Sure he has those 9 wins but what about his other stats? I’ll admit, though, that the idea of suddenly throwing a knuckleballer in the middle of an All Star game is very appealing. I love Wake; I’ll always love Wake; if Joe Maddon decides that Wake is worthy of being on the All Star team I’ll be delighted.
Positive vibes for Brad Penny tonight. Make me hope the Sox don’t trade you, Brad! Looking forward to the live blog since Brad Penny and I seem to be a good combo!
I leave you with this…in a moment of silliness it occurred to me that Wake reminds me of the main character in the cartoon below (and I don’t mean the goat!).