Redemption Sox

Boston is always rife with sports news and now is no different. Whether of the facts surrounding Tim Tebow, the Stanley Cup craze, Tim Tebow, rumors of a big trade involving the Celtics, and Tim Tebow, everything big has happened in Boston for the last decade and right now (Don’t forget about Tebow). Yet here’s a fact that many people did not expect at the beginning of the year: baseball is well and alive again in Boston.

Nearly halfway through the year, the Red Sox are near the top of their conference, sitting at a pretty record with the league’s No. 1 ranked offense, with the league’s ERA leader in Clay Buchholz, and on pace to win 95 games. Yet, no one is talking about this. Why?

For the last few years, being a Red Sox fan hasn’t been easy. This may sound petty for most baseball fans; Boston has won two World Series in the last ten years, but as Red Sox fans, we do not hold our teams to the same standards as other fans. There is a proud culture surrounding our team and the message given by the fans to the team is clear: we do not accept failure. Yet, ever since the last championship, the Red Sox have been defined by humiliating chokes.

The last time the Sox even won a playoff game was Game 6 of the 2008 ALCS - the “Steve Harvey” game, which had it’s first inning partially cut off broadcast in favor of The Steve Harvey Show. The following Game 7, Boston, as the league’s No. 3 scoring offense, only managed to get three hits the entire game and eventually lost 3-1. I

In 2009, Boston seemed to strike back with a vengeance. The Red Sox capped off another 95-67 finish before getting swept in the divisional round by the LA Angels of Anaheim. Though the series may have been marked in the first two games by Boston’s lack of batting - having only scored one run in 18 innings - the last game was possibly the worst loss. Up 5-1, after 7 innings of excellent baseball, the Red Sox’s bullpen became the forefathers of future bullpen incompetence for Boston baseball. The Angels came back to win the game and ultimately sweep the Red Sox.

The next three years were years that no Red Sox fan would like to remember - all years of missing the playoffs. In 2010, despite a good record, the Red Sox had a bottom 10 pitching staff in the league, finished third in the AL East, and missed the playoffs. The 2011 Red Sox dropped 18 of their last 24 games to lose a playoff spot of which they previously held by nine games. While the 2011 Red Sox were definitely the godfathers of tearing an entire fanbase’s collective heart out, 2012’s team seemed determined to outdo them - having the franchise’s worst record in 47 years and ensuring the Bobby Valentine never coaches for any smart MLB team again.

We enjoy our Patriots, Celtics, and Bruins too. Boston isn’t just a baseball city: it is a sports city where greatness is to be achieved and dynasties to be remembered. Yet just as we remember our home runs, we remember the choked leads. Public opinion changes drastically in Boston. We called Manny Ramirez a winner in 2007, only to call him a loser when he left us. Josh Beckett turned from a playoff hero to a lazy slob and locker room cancer. Terry Francona went from champion to goat to the ex-girlfriend that we wanted back. Right now, our Red Sox are back to looking like hard workers and not lazy bums.


Maybe we’ve had our hearts broken by our Sox for the last few years. But it looks like they’re on the rise. And even if the team starts to crash, we’ll be with them on the ride the whole way.  Just know that, as of now, there’s hope and that through all the hard times, it truly is always sunny in Fenway Park.

A Possible Resurrection for Tim Tebow ?

I thought my dad was joking when he texted me that the Patriots had signed Tim Tebow. How could a guy that believes in God, is so self righteous about his Christian beliefs, and generates a media circus play for a coach that thinks of himself as God, is willing to do anything to win, and shows apathy towards the press?

The Patriots already have a star quarterback in Tom Brady and a pretty good backup, if not future successor, in Ryan Mallett. Tebow probably will not be getting any snaps at quarterback other than acting as the holder for extra point conversions and field goal attempts. He could also help the Patriots prepare for “read-option” teams - a rising trend within a league filled with more mobile quarterbacks than any time in league history.

Tebow’s calling card could be in special teams, where blue-collar plays can drastically turn the tide of how a game goes. Tebow could make a few significant plays on that end that could boost the morale of a team and help the Patriots win the starting position game.

Or what if Tebow were able to move to the fullback position? The Patriots were able to play out of the backfield extremely well last year and they ran the ball more effectively than they were able to since their last Super Bowl championship. Even their use of running backs as wide receivers in the flat zones, especially during 3rd downs, when Danny Woodhead played a crucial role, was exceptional. Tim Tebow acting as a lead blocker, and possibly even another rusher, would help strengthen a strong running game as well as giving them multiple options. Short yardage situations, especially on fourth downs, could work extremely well in the Patriots’ favor with Tebow out on the field as a wild card. How do you prepare for this as an opposing coach?

Tebow was a winner all of college - having won Heisman trophies and a national championship - and had even made people think he was an effective quarterback at the professional level. Having gone through a humiliating and bad season with the Jets last year, he has been discarded by nearly every NFL team and looked at as a joke. A man that was once king of the college game fell to the ground and laughed at. He is clearly willing to do whatever it takes to redeem himself and the Patriots have given him that chance.

Of course, this is assuming that Tebow even makes the 53 man roster by the end of preseason. If he fails to impress Belichick or his offensive protege, Josh McDaniels, then this signing will be for naught and Tebow’s NFL career will be effectively over. Having the potential to play multiple positions and actually doing it are two different things.

But, for a team that claims its calling card is versatility and preparation, Tebow could potentially be the perfect fit. If Belichick could make the most out of another former quarterback, Julian Edelman, it’ll be exciting and interesting to see how New England utilizes their newest addition.

The Power of Adversity

The Board of Control for Cricket in India is a shark-tank.  From the president, N. Srinivasan, down to most office-bearers – they all stink of malpractice, malevolence and/or misdemeanor. BCCI’s favorite child, the IPL, carries the DNA with pride, and some more. As a league filled with celebrity owners and larger than life athletes, it is bound to be rife with small scandals - as any professional sports league would be. However, the IPL is in a league of its own for the pattern of lying, cheating, and unethical conduct.

Despite this chaos, the Indian cricket team has put up a dominating performance in the Champions’ Trophy, in England. After the first round, they have become the team to beat.

Their batting has been led by a fantastic new opening duo of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan. They beat South Africa, the pre-tournament favorites, and then rolled over the West Indies. By now India had qualified for the semi-finals.

On the other side, Pakistan had lost both its games and was eliminated. Yet the last “dead rubber” match between these two teams was the most watched, cheered, and talked about game. For what it’s worth, India won this game, making sure that Pakistan had no redemption for their awful showing.

No one expected India to transform their fielding so dramatically. M.S. Dhoni, as always, has kept up his stellar play and been a fantastic wicket keeper: despite controversy surrounding his team’s activities in the IPL. Players like Kohli, Sharma, Raina, and and Karthik have turned a formerly sloppy fielding unit into the best one in the world.

Even though their bowling remains a weak spot, they haven’t played that badly either. Ravindra Jadeja, a good all around player and India’s version of Tim Tebow, has come into form lately as a great fielder on the pitch and an exception wicket-taker when his team needs it. India also continues to utilize their spinners to an effect.

Throughout all the organizational madness, crowds keep turning up to watch Indian games, even if they don’t matter (see the game against Pakistan). Maybe there is greatness in organized chaos.

EDITORS NOTE: If India loses after this is published, please don’t ever let me make statements about cricket during a tournament again.

The Rise of Rask

Boston Bruins fans before the season were shocked to know that Tim Thomas was not going to be playing the 2012-2013 season. The same man who had been such an integral piece to their championship victory in 2011 - arguably their most important player - was going to replaced by a guy that many fans thought was just a pretty good backup.

Tuukka Rask wasn’t always beloved in Boston. He was part of the team in 2010 that choked away a 3-0 series lead to the Philadelphia Flyers - a series that showcased a lot of Rask’s weaknesses as an inexperienced goalkeeper. Perhaps he wasn’t up to the pressure of playoff hockey when it counted. But now he has flipped the switch and changed his legacy.

Tuuka Rask has been on fire for all of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He has helped the Bruins not just beat favored opponents, but embarrass them - as shown through their shocking sweep of the highly favored Pittsburgh Penguins. Before the series, people talked about how wonderful the dynamic duo of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Even after the sweep, many wondered what was wrong with the pair and if there was internal drama within the Penguins’ clubhouse. Yet Rask has played amazingly these whole playoffs.

Perhaps Rask’s biggest display of dominance was in the first Stanley Cup Finals game: a Game 1 loss, where he recorded 59 stopped shots - the most stopped shots by any goalie since the legendary Patrick Roy stopped 63 shots in the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals. Not too bad company, right?

In Game 2, Rask kept the Bruins in the game, despite having their team outshot in the first period, 19-4. The Bruins would end up stunning their opponent, the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-1 in an overtime game that saw Rask stop 33 of 34 shots at the net: another amazing performance that helped Boston beat another elite team.

As of the end of Game 3, the Bruins have taken a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup Finals (EDITORS NOTE: Update if necessary) and have ridden the hot hand of Rask to defeat teams that many thought were going to beat the shocking No. 4 seeded Bruins. He has performed just as well, if not better, than Thomas two years ago, having an even higher save percentage these Finals than Thomas.

The Bruins defense deserves a lot of credit as well. They are a highly physical team that blocks shots and helps stops opposing offenses from putting the pressure at the net. But from blowing a 3 game series lead to being two games away from winning the Stanley Cup, it has been a remarkable ride for Tuukka Rask and a story of redemption.

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