So as some readers of BFF.com may know, I am a HUGE Boston sports fan (in addition to being a complete gym whore). The Red Sox are my favorite, followed (in order) by the Pats/Celtics/Bruins (though sometimes the Pats and Celtics flip flop). Last night, the Celtics lost Game 7 of the NBA Finals to the hated LA Lakers in pretty painful fashion – up 13 points in the 3rd quarter, they blew it. It was a series between two evenly matched teams and Game 7 was there for the taking. Neither the Celtics nor the Lakers seemed to want it though – sloppy basketball by both teams, nobody really stepping up and controlling the game.
The game was won not by Kobe Bryant, but on two huge 3-point shots by Derek Fisher and Ron Artest, and by Sasha “I’m really a girl” Vujacic making the two most high pressure free throws of his life. It was tough to watch (moreso because I hate Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant and the Lakers franchise with every fiber of my being), but it doesn’t TOUCH the awfulness of Superbowl XLII (Patriots blow the chance for a perfect season and wiping the 1972 Dolphins off our radar forever) or Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS (Aaron freakin’ Boone). So at least I have that going for me. . .which is nice.
The bottom line is this – the 2010 Celtics (to quote my friend Mike’s Facebook status) “exceeded expectations”. He’s 100% right. A lot of “insiders” picked the Miami Heat to topple them in the first round, nobody thought they were going to beat LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, and people didn’t think they had a shot against the Orlando Magic in the Conference Finals or the Lakers in the Finals. And they made it to Game 7 vs. the Lakers and had a solid chance to win it. C’est la vie. This playoff run was a great ride and I (for one) thoroughly enjoyed it.
Second sports item on the agenda is the eagerly anticipated Sox-Dodgers series at Fenway this weekend – aka, Manny Ramirez’s first game back at Fenway after he was traded to LA in 2008. A lot of Boston “fans” don’t like the fact that Manny “quit” on the team in 2008 (being sent for an MRI and not remembering which knee was hurt was my favorite anecdote brought to light). Since his departure from the Red Sox (which netted us Jason Bay for 2 seasons, the only player who could make Manny look like a gold glove left fielder in comparison), Manny has been linked to PED’s (serving a 50-game suspension for the use of a fertility drug designed to mask steroid use) and has seen a steep drop in his power numbers (just 19 HR in 104 games in 2009, 7 HR in 48 games to date in 2010 – though he did slug .531 last year and is at .514 this season).
The conundrum for a lot of Sox fans is this – to cheer or boo Mr. Ramirez when he is introduced at Fenway Park. I am definitively in the “cheer” camp. The man was an integral part of 2 World Series championships (MVP of one of them) and was the best right handed hitter I ever saw in a Sox uniform. I relished getting to watch him hit every day for 8 years, and I can’t begrudge him the fact that he has the worst agent in sports (Scott Bora$$) who likely manipulated Manny’s little stunt to get traded in 2008 because he wasn’t going to get paid if the Sox picked up the $20 million option on Manny’s old contract (negotiated by former agent Jeff Moorad).
It comes down to this – October 2004 was the best month of my life, and I could never boo someone who was such a big part of that. I have cheered for each member of “the 25″ when they have returned to Fenway in other uniforms – Pedro Martinez, Derek Lowe, Nomar Garciaparra, Trot Nixon, Dave Roberts (!!!), Kevin Millar, Orlando Cabrera and even Johnny Damon (who left the Sox for the Yankees via free agency after the 2005 season). I will not boo the 2004 World Series MVP when he returns to Fenway in Dodger blue this weekend, and I hope he gets a nice reception from all the fans at Fenway – we would still be mired in a World Series-less existence were it not for #24. But I still hope the Sox sweep this weekend!