UCONN Stuns Notre Dame IN South Bend 33-30 In Double Overtime

The University of Connecticut football team stunned Notre Dame in double overtime, probably ushering coach Charlie Weiss' exit. The final score of the nationally televised game from South Bend, Indiana (aren't they all for ND?) was 33-30 Good Guys. Click on the title of this post for more on the game but first read these words from UCONN coach Randy Edsall. This was a game dedicated to Jasper Howard, who was killed ON campus just a few short weeks ago. Coach Edsall, his eyes moist with tears of joy and sorrow for his team and for Jazz, said this...

"I'm just so proud of those kids over in the locker room and those assistant coaches," Edsall said. "We persevered today and ended up just making a couple plays at the end that we hadn't been able to make in some of our earlier games. We're just thankful that we were able to finally put together a win," Edsall said. "So now we can take a game ball and send it down to ... the Howard family because I know one thing — that little No. 6 was looking down on us today."

It was truly a touching moment when the winning points were scored shortly before 6pm EST. We all stood, looked up to Heaven at Jazz and cheered at the top of our lungs. SWEET only begins to describe it. But sweet it was.

That's it for this early AM Sunday. I wish you the best as Thanksgiving week approaches rapidly. Remember, you can click on the title of this post for the Hartford Courant's coverage of yesterday afternoon's uplifting UCONN win and BE WELL. Your comments are always welcome and always read and always answered. Thanks. Have a terrific Sunday.

Want To Buy A World Series DVD Set? UCONN Women Win Their 42nd Game IN A ROW!

Hello on Saturday morning. Finally, the weekend. I just came across this news blurb from the Associated Press and I wanted to share it with you.

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"A 20-DVD set of World Series films can be bought for $2,299, and it contains authenticated autographs of 12 Hall of Famers, including Yogi Berra, Bob Gibson, Reggie Jackson and Mike Schmidt.
A limited edition run of 100 sets was put together by Major League Baseball Productions, A&E Home Entertainment and Mounted Memories, the companies said Friday.
There are 65 films from 1943-08 that run for more than 50 hours. The package also has autographs from Johnny Bench, Gary Carter, Bob Feller, Rollie Fingers, Carlton Fisk, Whitey Ford, Brooks Robinson and Bruce Sutter.
MLB spokesman Jeff Heckelman said the set is also available without the autographs for $179.99 on MLB.com and in stores with a suggested retail price of $229."

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I think the autographed set is very overpriced (that's quite the understatement ) and the set priced at $229.00 retail (way less at Baseball Direct,,,click on the title!!!) would make a terrific holiday present. I might order it for myself at $169.99. In fact, I think I will. Remember, click on that title.

In the world of women's college basketball, the national champion University of Connecticut team still rules. Last night in Worcester, Massachusetts, they rolled past an overmatched Holy Cross team, pummeling them by a score of 87-34. The game wasn't even as close as the score indicated but Holy Cross knew what was in store for them and they relish the chance to play the number one team in the nation every single year. The last time they defeated the Huskies was 1986, so there were no surprises Friday night up in Worcester. None at all.

Well, that's it for this short Saturday pre-Thanksgiving post. You can click on this post's title for more Red Sox coverage, slim as it is, and as always, BE WELL. Have a terrific weekend.

Bay Declines Boston's Offer

Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated has reported that Boston Red Sox outfielder Jason Bay has declined the Boston Red Sox offer and will test the free agency waters. Here is part of his piece, with my thanks...

***Star free agent outfielder Jason Bay has declined Boston's initial contract offer and will head to full free agency, SI.com has learned.***

"Boston's offer to Bay was believed to be for four years and "close to $60 million,'' according to sources. Bay thus will join star outfielder Matt Holliday and ace pitcher John Lackey as the biggest free agents on this year's market. The exclusive period for incumbent teams expires Friday at 12:01 a.m., when free agents can begin negotiating with other teams.
"Nothing will happen by day's end, but we'll keep talking,'' Bay's agent Joe Urbon said.
"It's not a surprise that a player that's gone this far wants to see what's out there,'' Red Sox GM Theo Epstein said."

I agree with Theo...the Red Sox will be competitive with just about any team's offer and hopefully he'll come back to where he likes to play...Boston, Massachusetts. Certain suiters will be the Yankees (of course), the Mets and the other usual suspects. Bay is a valuable commodity, a guy who can hit the living daylights out of the ball and play defense with the best of 'em. If he picks another team, he will be missed...bigtime. Big Papi David Ortiz, who before the 2009 season began called for the team to pick up another booming bat, sounded the alarm again. Here he is, expletive included...

“I said that a year ago and everybody looked at me like I was a fucking clown,” Ortiz said yesterday at Fenway Park. “I said, ‘Yo, we need another 30 home run hitter guy.’ ‘What? You crazy?’ This and that, everyone talking crap. There you go. Now what? Everybody will always welcome a 30 home run hitter. At any time, any day, any situation. You want to compete with those guys across the street (NYY)? You better bring it. Period.”

Let's see...Jason Bay would be one thirty home run guy and someone with the last name of Gonzales, who plays first base, would be another. I, of course, mean Adrian Gonzales. If Boston can add him to their lineup AND sign Jason Bay, well, they would be very competitive with those pinstripers. If Theo has permission to spend a little MORE money, which he will, it would be great to see Mr. Lacky in the rotation and Billy Wagner in the bullpen. Wishful and delusional thinking? Not if they want to win another world championship. I certainly do.

I hope you have a terrific Friday and a tremendous weekend. I expect so much from the Sox this off season but I know from experience not to get my hopes up too high. I have a feeling, though, that Boston will abandon their low-risk low cost thinking that has been so prevalent the past couple of years to very mixed results, if not downright disastrous (think pitching).

That's it for this stormy (no snow) Friday morning. Make it a good one and as always, BE WELL. You can click on this post's title for more Sox news. See ya.

Tito On Bay, 'Tek, Lackey, Kottaras & More

Good things don't happen overnight and Red Sox baseball fans will have to wait to learn the final destination of last year's left fielder, Jason Bay. It's the nature of the game and the Red Sox manager, Terry "Tito" Francona, had this to say on that...

"You have to be patient. As fans, as the manager, you want things to happen now. We want to have our team in place now. It’s not going to happen. It’s going to take time. He has earned the right to be a free agent. This is his first time, and he wants to see it through. You know we’re going to be a major player. We always are. Do I hope it gets done? Yeah. I bet you Jason Bay hopes it gets done. But he’s going to have other options, too."

Boston has until midnight eastern standard time today (Thursday) to negotiate with Jason Bay without any other teams being involved. It is expected that Bay will "test the waters" of free agency but I'm fairly certain that, when everything pans out, he'll be back with the Red Sox for the 2010 season and beyond. He has been far too consistently excellent, at the plate and with his glove, for Boston not to make their bid up there with the best of 'em. We'll see...that I know.

Tito also said that Red Sox captain Jason Varitek has fully accepted his 2010 role as the backup to Victor Martinez. I never thought otherwise. Here's Tito again...

“If he didn’t accept that (the backup role), then it could have been a problem. I don’t see that happening,” Francona said. “I saw him the other day. He was about as fired up as I’ve seen him. That’s part of the reason he has the ‘C’ on his chest,” Francona said. “He’s lived up to that. I know he will continue to.”

Well said, Terry. Next up, Francona tried to express how much it would mean to the club he manages to have righthander John Lackey in his already crowded rotation. To me, it would put the Red Sox starting pitching rotation on a par with the world champion NY Yankees (I hate it when I have to type that). Once again, here is Mr. Tito Francona...

“John Lackey is one of the best,” Francona said. “Every year, there’s a couple guys who seem like they can sway the fortunes of an organization. He’s that type of pitcher. Now, to get that type of pitcher, you’re going to have to make quite a commitment. That’s something that makes our organization a little bit uneasy.”

Catcher George Kottaras was claimed off waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday. Here's Tito...

“We had to release George Kottaras,” Francona said. “I love George. He never played but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a good kid."

Thanks for your words of wisdom, Tito. The most important off-season matter to me is to lock up the services of Jason Bay and to find another power hitting defensive player (you know who...he plays first) from the free agent market. Getting Wagner back would help the bullpen depth immensely, too, and another starter wouldn't hurt. Time will tell. Tick-tick-tick.

You can click on this post's title for more on the Boston Red Sox and as always, BE WELL. If you'd like to leave a comment, that would be great. Thanks for popping in and I'll see you tomorrow, if not before.

Wag The Dog...AL Cy Young Award Winner...UCONN Women Win Their 41st In A Row

Billy Wagner enjoyed his playing days for the Boston Red Sox last year and it looks now that he's leaning towards changing his mind and accepting the role of setup guy for Jonathon Papelbon. You see, he was dead-set against anything but being a closer in 2010 just a month ago but it seems that Boston general manager Theo Epstein has kept in touch with Wags and his agent and he is leaning the other way. Here's Theo Epstein and then I'll be back with a few thoughts of my own...

“In an ideal world, we’d love to have Billy back if he were willing to accept a non-closer role. It seems like he is,’’ Sox general manager Theo Epstein said. “But we would have to restructure a few things with some other pieces of the club to be able to afford that luxury with what he’s likely to make next year. I think there’s a really good relationship there. If we can find a way where it fits for us and it works for him, then we’ll do it."

Thumbs-up, Theo. Having Wagner back as part of the seventh and eighth inning bridge to Papelbon AND as insurance just in case something (God forbid) happens to Paps during the season would help the ball club immensely. I now expect him back and it'll be great to have a mostly lights-out lefty in the bullpen. This is a no-lose situation for the Red Sox and I DO believe it will happen. C'mon aboard, Billy! Red Sox Nation and Red Sox International awaits.

Zack Greinke outdistanced Felix Hernandez and won the 2009 American League Cy Young award. He had a record of 16-8 and an unbelievable league low ERA of 2.16. If he played for a team that could hit better he might have gone 19-5 but no matter, the best pitcher won the award, hands down. He received 25 of 28 first place votes. Felix Hernandez, the runner up, was 19-5 with an ERA of 2.49 for the Seattle Mariners. But the clear victor was Greinke. Good for him...he was impossible to hit last year.

I've run out of baseball stuff to write about on this early (as usual) Wednesday Hump Day morning. Start your slide into the weekend, click on the title for more baseball news and as always, BE WELL. Oh...the UCONN national champion women's basketball team won its second game of the season IN Texas against number 10 Texas. The margin of victory was 25. That win makes it 41 (forty one) in a row...not bad, huh? See ya.

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Holiday Store...Read On

Hello again on Tuesday, way too early. As most of you know, the Jimmy Fund does invlauable work to help kids with cancer. My sister passed away from a blood cancer disease before I had a chance to meet her. Please read this release and do whatever you can, whatever it takes. Your heart will smile and so will I. Thank you...

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"Show your team spirit while supporting the Jimmy Fund. Red Sox holiday cards, ornaments, and candles on sale now...

BOSTON -Sox fans can root for their home team, while supporting the Jimmy Fund, making it a win-win for holiday shoppers this year.
The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute holiday cards, candles, and ornaments 2009 collection is on sale to benefit adult and pediatric cancer care and research through the Jimmy Fund. There are a total of 9 different card designs in this holiday collection. Highlights include original artwork of New England scenes, as well as New England Patriots and Boston Red Sox themed designs.New this season are e-cards and customized photo cards, which will be produced by Vistaprint. Last year’s holiday cards will be sold at special sale prices.
Sox themed card designs include; Festive Fenway and Boston Red Sox Stuffers. This year’s collection also includes a Boston Red Sox Green Monster ornament and a limited edition Jolly Wally candle in Juniper fir scent Aunt Sadie's Candle, which burns for over seventy hours.
Proceeds from sales benefit Dana-Farber through its Jimmy Fund. Visit jimmyfund.org/holidaygreetings, to view the entire 2009 holiday line and make a purchase.

Imprinting of company logos and customized messages are available for inside the cards and on envelopes for an additional fee. Call Monica Zurlinden at 617-582-7724 to place an imprinting order. Orders will be accepted until January, 2009. Starting November 1, the entire collection will be sold in the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute lobby at 44 Binney Street in Boston from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Founded in 1948, the Jimmy Fund has been an official charity of the Boston Red Sox since 1953. It supports the fight against cancer at Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, which is a leading cancer research and care center for adults and children. Unrestricted support from the Jimmy Fund is an integral part of Mission Possible: The Dana-Farber Campaign to Conquer Cancer, a $1 billion capital campaign to accelerate cancer research, speed development of life-saving therapies, and expand the Institute's signature patient- and family-centered care."

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Thanks for taking the time to read this and my holiday wishes go out to one and all. Peter, the blog guy.

More On Jeremy Hermida...

Boston Herald reporter John Tomase wrote an informative article concerning Jim Presley and his insight into future Red Sox player Jeremy Hermida. After all, Presley has played with him for the last four years. My thanks go out to John Tomase for these quotes and insight.

Jeremy Hermida, who will be the number four outfielder for the Boston Red Sox of 2010, never really lived up to his lofty early expectations. Maybe it was a series of nagging injuries that limited him to less that the full contingent of at bats. But, according to teammate Presley, the man knows how to hit and once he can have an injury-free season with 550 at bats or so, which will not be possible if the Sox resign Jason Bay or another starting outfielder, he could raise his statistics. Here are some of Presley's words...

“His bat (is) a plus, because he can swing a little bit,” Presley said yesterday. “He’s had a lot of injuries and stuff that have held him back. He can swing. He’s got some juice. He knows the strike zone. He knows how to take his walks. He doesn’t swing at balls out of the zone. That’s going to help him in that league."

Why was he traded for two middle prospects? Jim said this...

“Some guys just need to move on and get to another point in their career.

His last statement was simple but true. I'm looking forward to seeing Jeremy Hermida, who will probably bat seventh or eighth when he gets a chance to play. Every major league baseball team needs a fourth outfielder...it's a necessity, a given. Hermida is ours.

In other Boston Red Sox news, the 2012 All Star game will be played in Kansas City's renovated Kaufman Stadium instead of at Fenway Park. The date would have coincided with Friendly Fenway's 100th anniversary. Red Sox Nation will have the entire 2012 season to celebrate that unique milestone.

That's it for today, Tuesday November 17th. Time is flying by and before we know it, Turkey Day will be upon us. Nadia and I have no plans as of yet...my family's Thanksgiving celebration dinner with all the fixings and then some is usually at my sister-in-law's sister's house but she and he husband are going to the left coast to visit their new grandchild, number two for them. I wish them the best and you, my Constant Readers, the exact same thing. That'll never change. Rmember, the hot stove drama is still in front of us. After all, potential free agents cannot talk to other teams until November 20th, this very Friday. As always, take care of yourselves and BE WELL. You can leave a comment or three and I'll read and respond to every single one. That's a promise. See ya.

I'd like you to try a place with a varied collection of Boston baseball news. Their web address is bosoxnews.wordpress.com/. My blog is listed there, too! It's a great site. Just click on the title of this post and explore a little. If I were you, I'd bookmark it. My sincere thanks go out to their founders who were kind to include me in their web site. Click away!!

Boston Bay?

The Boston Red Sox still have the exclusive rights to talk turkey with Jason Bay until November 20...hey, that's the end of this week! Boston and Bay will probably finalize nothing by then because he wants to test the free agent market. After all, in four of the last five seasons he has hit more than 30 taters coupled with 100 or more RBIs, not missing more than a handful of games each and every season. It's no wonder many teams would love him in their outfield, including the Boston Red Sox. Bay had a few words about his "so-far" stay with the Red Sox...

"I’m comfortable here,” Bay said. “I’ve said before it really doesn’t come down to just dollars. It’s not all about money. The situation I was in before in Pittsburgh — we weren’t winning a lot of games. When you come here, you win ballgames and have playoff opportunities, and that’s a huge factor. It really makes baseball enjoyable again. A team that is set up to win and a place where my family is comfortable. I’m comfortable here. It’s more desirable than most places."

Jason would like a four year contract worth in the vicinity of $60 million dollars. He's worth every penny of that as he will catch anything in sight and bash the ball off the Wall or into the seats on a regular basis. I'd love to see him back. His agent, Joe Urbon, had this to say recently...

"We’ve had dialogue with Theo about Jason,” said Urbon, “and I presume we’ll continue to talk, but I really think the expectation from our side, and from what I’ve heard Theo say publicly from the Red Sox side, is we’ll probably carry this over into free agency with the expectation to continue to have dialogue. He has made that clear," said Urbon. "When you say that as often as he has said that throughout the 2009 season, which he has, even on the heels of free agency he’s said that and I don’t think it’s any surprise. We have been pleased with the type of dialogue and the things we’re hearing from other clubs."

I hope Jason decides to come back to the Red Sox. They'll be a vastly better club with him in left field.

I hope you had a great weekend and you can always click on this post's title for more Boston Red Sox news. Thanks for popping in and as always, BE WELL.

Pay The Piper, Theo Epstein, For Adrian Gonzales

Good early Sunday morning to all of you. I do hope you're reading this much later in the day than I'm writing it. It's not even 4:45am EDT and I just couldn't sleep. Too early to bed makes for very long mornings. I wanted to talk about Adrian Gonzales, a player the Boston Red Sox severely covet. I'd like to thank the Boston Globe's Chad Finn for the thoughts that fueled this post. As I said before, the subject is first baseman supreme Adrian Gonzales.

Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein and the San Diego Padres' rookie GM Jed Hoyer know each other almost too well. Any negotiations between the two involving Gonzales and a possible pool of young Boston talent going the other way will be done out of complete honesty, which could make for a very interesting situation, a set of circumstances that could greatly benefit both the Red Sox and the Padres. Think this...Teixeira who? Gonzales is due to make only $4.75 million in 2010 and a paltry $5.5 million the year after. Holy bargain, Batman! He won't be 28 years old until May of next year...another plus. Last season was a tremendous one. He hit forty taters and walked 119 times. His OPS was .958 (again, thank you Chad Finn).

The question remains and it is this...why would the Padres be willing to part with him? I think I can answer that one. Down the road, the Padres do not feel that they will be able to afford him. Right now, a deal with a viable and well-stocked club (in the minors) such as the Boston Red Sox would bring to Jed Hoyer multiple talented young players and it would bring a young and talented power hitting first baseman to the New England club, something they need. Jed Hoyer knows that and his buddy Theo Epstein knows it. Face it, all of Red Sox Nation and Red Sox International know it, too. Theo, make it happen.

The University of Connecticut national champion women's basketball team started their 2009-2010 season with a resounding
105-35 (!!) victory over Northeastern University at UCONN's home in Storrs, Connecticut. Even without two players who are temporarily on injury leave, they looked tremendous, awesome and unbeatable. A tougher test for them will come on Tuesday night when they play against Texas in Texas. You can click on the title of this post for more on yesterday afternoon's UCONN blowout. That's 40 wins in a row for that team from Connecticut. I love 'em.

I hope your Sunday will be a terrific one. It's still cloudy here with intermitent drizzle but we ( Nadia & Peter) woke up at the same time. I had breakfast, she had popcorn of the Orville Redenbacker type with movie theater butter. She always seems to surprise me. As always, BE WELL. I'll see you soon.

Lackey Looking? UCONN Women Open 2009-2010 Season. Post #2400

Good Saturday morning to you and yours. There are still a couple hours before the sun brightens the cloudy, rainy skies but I've already perused the Boston newspapers and come up with a little something from the Boston Herald. Boston is likely to be meeting with many player's agents, players who are looking to join a new team and yesterday Theo Epstein met with the agent of Angel's right hander John Lackey. Lackey doesn't exactly like the Boston Red Sox and after losing two tough decisions to Jon Lester in the 2008 postseason, he said this, among a few other choice comments. You see, he's an intense guy who absolutely hates to lose...

“ (I want to) throw somebody through a window. We lost to a team that’s not better than us,” he said. “We are a better team than they are. . . . We shouldn’t have given up anything.”

I don't agree with the guy but he sure knows how to vocally express his inner feelings. Lackey went 11-8 last year with the Halos and had a sparkling ERA of 3.83. Do the Red Sox need another starter? They have five established guys who will be ready to go in February and they have to address a long-term contract for Josh Beckett. But you know the old saying that's proven true time after time each and every year...YOU CAN NEVER HAVE TOO MUCH PITCHING.

Lackey would be a valuable addition to a great starting rotation. We all know that. We also all know that Boston will be looking for a power hitting leftfielder, another hitter along the lines of Adrian Gonzales (my fingers are crossed...toes, too), another bullpen guy and a shortstop. Not an easy task for Theo and company but the next three months will be busy ones, to say the least. I love the drama of the negotiations and the elation that ensues when a coveted free agent dons a Boston Red Sox uniform for the first time.

On a side note, this is post number 2300 for me, a nice crooked number. I started this ode to the Red Sox and their fans in November of 2005 and I think I've missed a total of three or four days. It's what I do first thing in the morning and I'd be lost in the desert with no water without the reassuring sound of fingers hitting keys. I'm sure glad there are people like you who take the few minutes to read the words that result. For that, I thank you. Here's to 2300 more, God willing.

Have a great weekend as the University of Connecticut national champion women Huskies begin their 2009-2010 season with a home game against Northeastern. Those Huskies have won 39 straight games, all by ten points or more. No team in basketball of any kind has ever done that. Game time is 2pm EST on Connecticut Public Television (CPTV...CPTV HD) or on WTIC AM 1080 radio in Hartford. The game is also available at wtic dot com the world over. You can also click on this post's title for more on the Red Sox and as always, BE WELL. Have a terrific weekend and GO HUSKIES!

Halladay Musings. That's All They Are...For Now

The Toronto Blue Jays' general manager has spoken out about his star pitcher, Roy "Doc" Halladay. He mentioned the Boston Red Sox in his comments. Alex Anthopoulos is his name and he said this. I'll be back with some thoughts of my own (once in a while, I come up with a few) after this...

"Now, if we had strictly apples and apples offers for Halladay, one from Boston, one from another team, it would not be Boston. If we made a deal we owe it to our fans to obtain the best deal possible," Anthopoulos told the Toronto Sun. "If we get the right package, we'll make the trade," Anthopoulos told the Toronto Sun. "It would be awfully narrow thinking of me to turn down the best offer because of the fact it came from within our division."

OK. I understand what he's saying...why trade one of the best pitchers in all of Major League Baseball to a team in your own division? Makes sense, doesn't it? But he DID say that if the deal was good enough, he would not rule it out. You know what I think? I going to tell you anyways. I really think that the Red Sox will focus on their outfield situation first. Clay Buchholz has been the centerpiece of any possible future deals involving young Sox pitchers. No way, Jose. The usual suspects, namely the world champion (uhh) Yankees, Phillies and Mets have been mentioned as possible bidders for the talented righty. Doc Halladay has a career record of 148-76 and a tremendous 3.43 ERA. Quite simply, he would be an asset to ANY team's rotation, even Boston's, a team that has five established starters who will be ready to go (barring injuries) next season. It all comes down to priorities...Boston must fill their void in left field first and foremost. The solutions to that are countless. And don't forget about Adrian Gonzales being a candidate for first base with Youk moving to third and one of the two Boston DH's (Mike Lowell and Big Papi David Ortiz) as possible trade material. I hate to say it but there's a chance.

Doc was the 2003 Cy Young Award winner, but that's enough about Halladay. I'd just love to see Jason Bay back in left hugging that Green Monster and hitting the round ball out of the Park, Fenway Park, MY ballpark. It was just announced that he won the 2009 Silver Slugger award, by the way.

It's another Friday. I hope you have a terrific weekend and as always, BE WELL. Click on the title of this post for more Boston Red Sox news and I thank you for stopping by yet again. See you...soon. That's it for post number 2298. 2300 is fast approaching. I can't believe it! But I love it. I love you too, my Constant Readers.