Sometime after 10pm EDT last Thursday evening, the earth must have drifted into an alternate universe. The switch or flip wasn’t immediately noticed. In Boston, a tinkling may have been felt sometime in the bottom of the seventh inning when a couple singles produced a run; for citizens of Red Sox Nation, with their team down now only 7-1, it suddenly may have dawned on them that something must have changed when David Ortiz’ quick swipe sent a baseball into the right field stands.
This is a universe where Red Sox players have a mystical upper hand and opponents turn into Little Leaguers still learning the game. The universe is familiar but comes and goes; sure-handed opponents stop catching difficult grounders; throws go off target; outfield flies become unpredictable and difficult to track; their bats become ineffective or Red Sox players show up everywhere they hit the ball.
How does one explain the lackluster and inconsistent performance of the Red Sox middle relievers during a long season and the no-hit, no-run string during this past week? How does the well-meaning, hard-working but automatic-out catcher Varitek become the game-winning hit in Game-6 last night? How does one explain sure-handed Tampa fielders Longorian and Bartlett committing crucially damaging errors in the late innings of the past two games?
For this year, one can blame Tampa’s manager for mis-steps, the inexperience of the Rays’ players, or the tough, backs-to-the-wall Red Sox team spirit; I think it’s an alternate universe called Red Sox Universe, where Red Sox Nation expands into a universal phenomena we don’t understand and I hope it stays for one more week.
