Not Our Night

Clues it wasn't the Indians' night:

• Josh Beckett was dealing.
• CC Sabathia was getting ahead and then nibbling.
• The bottom of the Sawx lineup showed up.
• Grady Sizemore made an unchargeable error in the field.
• Rafael Perez looked awful for the second straight appearance against the Sawx.
• Tom Mastny, as seems to be the case most times when he pitches with the bases loaded, threw one to the backstop. It was charged as a passed ball, but still...
• Pronk hit into a double play to let Beckett off the hook in the first inning.

Other observations:

• If the run that Manny drove in after only getting to first base while admiring his shot (which replays showed was not a home run) had been the last run the Sawx scored, and the Indians had come back to win this game, Manny would be Goat #1 in Boston. As it was, it was just Manny being Manny and he'll get off the hook again.
• I'm not sure who to side with in the Lofton-Beckett thing. They both acted like spoiled punks.
• Pronk needs you, badly. He has looked completely overmatched in the last two games. Pronk's Mojo has gone AWOL at a very bad time. Send him your positive thoughts, and keep looking for his Mojo. It's not too late.
• It will indeed be sweet if the Indians celebrate a World Series berth in Fenway Park.
• I'm not sure I trust Fox' pitch tracking thing, but they sure seemed to use it on the rare occasions that Beckett got a ball that looked close but never when he got a strike that sure looked like a ball. I'm just sayin'.
• CC should never have gone back out after he escaped the sixth inning. Either Lewis or Mastny should have started the 7th. Mastny seems to be a better pitcher when he starts an inning.
• What is that thing around Beckett's neck? As much of a big deal as people have made about Cabrera's necklace, it looks like Beckett is wearing a noose around his neck.

Schilling v Carmona at Fenway Park on Saturday. I have to believe that Carmona won't pitch two bad games in a row, especially now that he's pitched at Fenway once.