Tertiary
Game 157: September 25, 2006
Red Sox (83-74), 0
Blue Jays (82-74), 5
L: Tim Wakefield (7-11)
W: Shaun Marcum (3-4)
One excellent thing about this season is the lack of truly atrocious commercials. To bring back some dreadful memories, recall that McDonald’s had two abominations in consecutive seasons: the baby shower jingle of 2004 and the pseudo-poetry jam in 2005. The Jimmy Fallon/Parker Posey Pepsi spot threatened to ruin the summer but was eventually pulled. The Southwest Airlines Philly commercial briefly made a Schilling-like resurgence.
As I ponder it, perhaps the reason why these advertisements are no longer annoying is because we’re less interested in the on-field happenings. In fact, taking a break from some of the mediocre play is a relief rather than a vexation.
Something I had meant to comment on in August is the Chevy Triple Play promotion. During the month of August, if the Red Sox turned a triple play during a game in which you are the selected contestant, you would win a Cobalt SS Turbo Coupe, Equinox LS FWD, or a Silverado 1500 4x4. The last time the Red Sox turned a triple play was July 8, 1994, and it was John Valentin’s unassisted triplet killing. This season there were five triple plays total, none in the month of August, but still up from just one last year. Suffice to say, Chevrolet didn’t give away any cars this season. If triple plays are something that fascinate you as they do me, be sure to visit the Records Committee of the Society for American Baseball Research’s Triple Play site.
Jerry Remy as a homer in the fourth inning was amusing. It seemed to be a composite impersonation of Ken Harrelson and Ron Jackson. The latter was gifted with the bat that hit the franchise-breaking home run on September 21st by a grateful David Ortiz.
As far as Ortiz and I are concerned, he holds the record for roundtrippers on the road. Were it not for a speaker in the Metrodome, the designated hitter would have had 33 homers as a visitor.
I’m going to see the third-place Red Sox with the losing road record tonight. Ortiz will be honored in a pre-game ceremony for his record. Even if it weren’t for the celebration, I’d still be happy to go. It’s baseball. That’s reason enough.
