Schadenfreude 353 (A Continuing Series)

Guardians Rally For Improbable Comeback To Sink Yankees In Game 3 Crusher
Greg Joyce, Post

The first two games of the ALCS lacked for drama.

So the Yankees and Guardians filled the final three innings of Game 3 with more than enough to make up for it, which ultimately left the Yankees needing to get back up off the mat from the gut punch they took when they were one strike away from a 3-0 series lead.

After the teams traded haymakers in the form of stunning home runs in the eighth and ninth innings, David Fry delivered the knockout punch with a two-run homer off Clay Holmes in the 10th inning to lift the Guardians to a 7-5 win on Thursday night at Progressive Field. . . .

After being one strike away from being one win away [Seriously?!?] from advancing to their first World Series since 2009, the Yankees head into Friday's Game 4 with a 2-1 series lead. . . .

Weaver . . . has given up home runs in back-to-back games. . . . Weaver and Holmes . . . faltered while pitching for the seventh time in the Yankees' seventh playoff game, though both insisted they were OK physically. . . .

Weaver came on to record the final out of the eighth and got ahead 0-2 to Lane Thomas with two outs in the ninth. Thomas battled back to a full count and doubled before Weaver left a changeup down the middle — he said it slipped out of his hand — and Noel clobbered it for a game-tying shot.

Then with two outs and a runner on third in the bottom of the 10th, Holmes then left a sinker up to Fry that he clobbered, sending the crowd into a frenzy. . . .

Luke Weaver, Clay Holmes Implode As Yankees' Bullpen Falters In Playoff Rarity
Ryan Dunleavy, Post

The Yankees trotted out their Bizarro Bullpen in a heartbreaking loss. 

Seldom-used Tim Hill and Tim Mayza got big outs with runners on base. 

Workhorses Luke Weaver and Clay Holmes gave up big home runs with runners on base. 

And the Yankees went from one strike away from celebrating a comeback win to the shock of a 7-5 walk-off loss Thursday to the Guardians in the 10th inning of Game 3 . . .

The Yankees seemed to be in a great spot after back-to-back home runs by Judge and Giancarlo Stanton claimed a 4-3 lead — and they were until Weaver's first blown save since assuming the closer's role in early September. 

Lane Thomas doubled off the top of the wall after working out of an 0-2 count with two outs in the ninth. Johnsky Noel followed with a pinch-hit, game-tying, two-run home run. . . .

Holmes — the demoted closer . . . — allowed a leadoff single in the 10th and two-out walk-off home run to David Fry. . . .

"I probably got a little quick there with the sinker and threw it the one spot I couldn't throw it," Holmes said. "If it's a good sinker down and way below the zone, it's probably a more favorable outcome."

Guardians Have A New Energy After All-Time Thriller
Mike Vaccaro, Post

. . . It was 4-3, Yankees. By the bottom of the ninth, it was 5-3. . . . [T]he Yankees have been doing this kind of thing since Calvin Coolidge was president. 

Now they'd done it again. 

The Guardians were deflated. They were dead. Their dugout was a morgue, their ballpark a library. [Maybe they read some books about how the Yankees often choke when thinking of being up 3-0] Luke Weaver — the Yankees' version of Clase — had two outs, none on, bottom of the ninth. Lane Thomas hit one off the wall in left, and it felt like the worst kind of tease for the locals. 

Then Jhonkensy Noel stepped to the plate. His nickname is Big Christmas. And there won't be a more welcome present under any tree in northeast Ohio than the one he delivered in the bleak darkness of this Cleveland night. 

And if you listened close enough, you could hear the ruckus on the Jersey Turnpike. It was 5-5. It seemed impossible. It felt unreal. But soon it was the 10th inning. Soon an ex-Met named Andres Gimenez was making one of the most breathtaking plays you'll ever see, robbing Jazz Chisholm of a hit, robbing the Yankees of first-and-third, one out. 

And soon, David Fry was stepping to the plate. 

Fry, whose late-inning home run last week helped ensure that the Yankees were in Cleveland on this night, and not Detroit. Fry, kept out of the lineup by Vogt in favor of Kyle Manzardo at the start, but who now stared at Clay Holmes, man on third, two outs, bottom of the 10th, looking for a ball he could drive. 

"And I got a ball I could drive," he said. 

When it landed, Progressive Field rattled to its girders and struts. When it landed, the Guardians had a 7-5 victory, had sliced the Yankees' lead to 2-1 in this best-of-seven American League Championship Series, and had performed CPR on an entire city and its baseball season. 

"That," Fry said, "was fun." . . .

It's less so if you're a team in a stunned loser's clubhouse, listening to a jamboree bleed through the walls, a celebration you'd have bet your life was going to take place inside these walls. . . .

Yankees Must Prove They Can Get Off The Mat After Gut-Wrenching Game 3 Loss
Joel Sherman, Post

It wasn't three-games-to-none. But it was just about as close as you can get. . . .

Luke Weaver was ahead of Lane Thomas 0-2 with two outs in the ninth and the Yankees up two runs.  . . .

[I]t was going to be as stirring a victory as existed in the Aaron Era — Judge and Boone. One strike to three-and-oh in this fashion. The doorstep of the World Series.

Then Luke Weaver gave up a two-run homer to Jhonkensy Noel after allowing a full-count Thomas double. Tie score. Then Clay Holmes surrendered a two-out, two-run walkoff shot to David Fry in the 10th. And if you want, close your eyes Yankees fans, this all occurred on the 20th anniversary of the Yanks on the precipice of sweeping the Red Sox in the ALCS and then Dave Roberts stole a base and triggered what was the greatest comeback in MLB history as Boston won four straight, ended The Curse and won its first championship since 1918.

Yeah, these Guardians are not those Red Sox. But these Yankees are not those tough-minded champion Yankees. And now it is not three-nothing. It is two games to one, Yankees still ahead, but both teams having bullpens on fumes, which potentially opens the door to funky stuff. . . .

[W]hat Weaver failed to close opened what the Yankees did not want to see open . . . — an underdog suddenly with more of a fighting chance. An underdog who might not have The Curse, but has gone the longest of any franchise (since 1948) of last winning a title. . . .

The Yankees did not play well . . . They botched four balls at first base, two by Jon Berti contributed to runs and two were by Anthony Rizzo, who was put in for defensive reasons. Jose Trevino started at catcher for the first time this postseason and Cleveland went 3-for-3 in steals off him. And Trevino . . . continued the Yankees' unpardonable baserunning blunders by getting picked off. . . .

Weaver and Holmes have pitched in every playoff game. And Weaver was facing Thomas for the third time in three games. He bemoaned not putting Thomas away as the key at-bat, not the tying homer from Noel that followed. An inning later, Holmes left a sinker up to Fry and it was the Guardians who won with the power of three two-run homers. . . .

[T]he Yankees were so tantalizingly close to being up three-oh.

One strike away from one win [Jesus, this is so pathetic.] to their first World Series appearance in 15 years.

And now?

Yankees' First-Base Weakness Cost Them As Anthony Rizzo, Jon Berti Struggle
Dan Martin, Post

The Yankees entered the postseason with a problem at first base, thanks to Anthony Rizzo's fractured fingers on his right hand and the inexperience of his replacements at the position. . . .

With lefty Matt Boyd on the mound for Cleveland, Aaron Boone went with righty-hitting Jon Berti at first after the veteran infielder performed well there in the ALDS despite never having played the position before. 

And though Berti didn't make any errors before being replaced by Rizzo . . . in the bottom of the eighth, he botched several plays, including one in the third inning that led to a run. 

Rizzo, too, had a rough couple of innings after he came into the game, including on a Will Brennan double that got by him and into right field with one out in the eighth and an error on a Jose Ramirez grounder to open the ninth. . . .

Boone also started Jose Trevino behind the plate for the first time since the regular season, again going with Trevino's right-handed bat — and keeping the slumping Austin Wells' lefty bat out of the starting lineup. 

Trevino . . . got picked off first and allowed Cleveland to steal a pair of bases. . . .

[Wells] is hitless in his past 20 at-bats in the playoffs, but he and Rizzo figure to be back in the lineup for Friday's Game 4 . . .

Yankees' Catching Shakeup Provided Spark Before Burning Out Just As Quickly
Dan Martin, Post

The Yankees haven't gotten much out of their catchers this postseason — because Austin Wells has seen his late-season slump extend into the playoffs. . . .

Wells pinch-hit for Trevino [1-for-22 in prior postseasons] to lead off the [eighth] inning and whiffed twice in what turned into a devastating 7-5, 10-inning loss. . . .

Despite Wells' lengthy offensive downturn — which includes a current 0-for-19 stretch with nine strikeouts — Boone remains high on the catcher . . .

[T]he slump goes back to Wells' last 14 games of the regular season, when he went 3-for-45 . . .

NLCS: Dodgers / MetsALCS: Guardians / Yankees

Baseball Gods . . . if you're listening . . . please arrange a Dodgers/Guardians World Series.

MLB.com offers its picks, from 45 "experts":

NLCS: Mets 26, Dodgers 19

Mets in 5: 5 votes
Mets in 6: 17 votes
Mets in 7: 4 votes

Dodgers in 5: 1 vote
Dodgers in 6: 14 votes
Dodgers in 7: 4 votes

ALCS: Yankees 33, Guardians 12

Yankees in 5: 15 votes
Yankees in 6: 11 votes
Yankees in 7: 7 votes

Guardians in 5: 1 vote
Guardians in 6: 3 votes
Guardians in 7: 8 votes

Picks from ESPN:

NLCS: Dodgers 8, Mets 6

Dodgers in 5: 2 votes
Dodgers in 6: 4 votes
Dodgers in 7: 2 votes

Mets in 6: 2 votes
Mets in 7: 4 votes

ALCS: Yankees 12, Guardians 1 

Yankees in 5: 1 vote
Yankees in 6: 6 votes
Yankees in 7: 5 votes

Guardians in 7: 1 vote*

*: For the record, David Schoenfield picked the Spiders.

I don't know why ESPN has 14 NLCS votes but only 13 ALCS votes.

According to Will Leitch's ranking, my World Series wish is (alas) the least "fascinating", after Dodgers/Yankees (11 previous WS battles), Mets/Yankees, and Guardians/Mets.

A few Shohei Ohtani late-season factoids, courtesy of OptaSTATS:

Since RBI became official in 1920, only one MLB player has had, over the course of his entire career (same game or not), a game with 10+ RBI, a game with 6+ hits, a game with 5+ XBH, a game with 3+ HR, a game with 2+ SB. That one player is Shohei Ohtani. He did all of it today [September 29].

Last 4 games for the @Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani [September 19-22]:

14 hits, 13 RBI, 6 SB, 5 HR

If every MLB player since 1920 (when RBI became an official stat) took the best 4-game span of his career in each category separately and put them together, still no one could match that stat line.

Shohei Ohtani of the @Dodgers ha[d] 10 home runs and 16 stolen bases in September after having 12 homers and 15 stolen bases in August. All other players in MLB history have had one month with at least 10 HR & 14 SB – Carlos Beltran in August 2004.

Shohei Ohtani finished the 2024 regular season in the top 5 in MLB in runs (1st), hits (4th), home runs (2nd), RBI (2nd), walks (4th) & stolen bases (2nd). No one else has ever finished a season in the top 5 in MLB in all of those categories (since RBI became official in 1920).

Take any single league (AL, NL, etc.) in any season in the past. Take any player's HR total, any player's SB total & any player's TB total from that league that season. You still could not build a stat line to match what Shohei Ohtani did this year (54 HR, 59 SB, 411 TB).

Also: Ohtani finished second in MLB in both home runs (Judge, 58) and stolen bases (Elly De La Cruz, 67). The only other players to finish in the top-2 in MLB in both categories: 1908 Honus Wagner and 1909 Ty Cobb.

RIP Luis Tiant (1940-2024)

Luis Tiant, the Cuban-born pitcher, and beloved cigar-chomping Red Sox personality, whose unique windup was imitated by every New England kid with a whiffle ball in the late 1970s, died yesterday. He was 83.

El Tiante's delivery was described as "begin[ning] with an exaggerated mid-windup pivot, during which he turns his back on the batter and seems to examine the infield directly behind the mound for signs of crab grass", by Roger Angell of The New Yorker. With men on base, "his stretch consists of a succession of minute downward waggles and pauses of the glove, and a menacing sidewise, slit-eyed, Valentino-like gaze over his shoulder at the base runner."

John Powers, Boston Globe:

Luis Tiant, a Cuban emigré whose pitching heroics spurred the Red Sox to the 1975 World Series and made him the city's first Latino sports superstar, died Tuesday at his home in Maine.  He was 83.

"El Tiante," as he was known by fans who relished his bewildering swivel-hitch-nod-and-fire delivery, his outsize personality, and his bravura performances under pressure, played for six major league teams during his 19-year career from 1964-82.

But his glory days were his eight seasons in Boston, where he won 122 games and was the centerpiece of several pennant races with a bewitching style that Globe writer Peter Gammons called his "marionette abracadabra." . . .

Mr. Tiant's chiropractic motion — "wheeling and rotating on the mound like a figure in a Bavarian clock tower," observed New Yorker writer Roger Angell — baffled batters who had no idea when and where the ball would be coming at them. . . .

[Tiant was a free agent after going 1-7 in 1971 and] the Red Sox picked him up to bridge a gap in their rotation . . .

"I never gave up," he said. "I kept telling myself as long as I could get the ball to home plate, I was going to stay in baseball." . . .

Mr. Tiant, who sported a desperado mustache and smoked cigars in the clubhouse shower and whirlpool, was a beloved teammate with a knack for amusing his colleagues, to whom he assigned nicknames such as "Polaco" (Carl Yastrzemski), "Frankenstein" (Carlton Fisk), and "Pinocchio" (Rico Petrocelli).

"Luis knew exactly when to turn a bus ride into something out of 'Saturday Night Live,' " said former Red Sox right fielder Dwight Evans.

But on the mound, Mr. Tiant was a relentless and riveting competitor whose virtuoso renditions fellow Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee likened to a symphony: "Hard at the start, a little sweet, slow stuff in the middle, and then the big explosion at the end." . . .

"We haven't got anybody in the National League like that," observed Reds captain Pete Rose [during the 1975 World Series]. "Nobody who throws those high-spinning curveballs that take two minutes to come down."

Though Mr. Tiant won 21 games for a third-place club in 1976 and another 25 during the two subsequent seasons — including a shutout of the Toronto Blue Jays that guaranteed the Red Sox  a divisional  playoff with the New York Yankees in 1978 — management offered him only a one-year contract for 1979, when he would be 38.

"They never took me seriously in their negotiations," said Mr. Tiant. "They treated me like some old fool."

So Mr. Tiant decamped as a free agent to the Yankees . . . "When they let Luis Tiant go to New York, they tore out our heart and soul," said Yastrzemski.

[Tiant finished his career with the Pirates and Angels.] "It's always nice to have someone on the club uglier than yourself," joked Angels teammate Fred Lynn, who'd played with Mr. Tiant in Boston. . . .

In 2001, he signed on with the Red Sox as pitching coach for their Lowell affiliate and as a special assignment adviser. "When I'm in Boston, I always feel like I'm home," said Mr. Tiant. "I almost cry, I feel so good."

Bruce Weber, New York Times:

Luis Tiant, a Cuban-born right-hander who was one of baseball’s most entertaining and charismatic pitchers, and whose personal story was among the game’s most poignant . . . won 229 games over 19 big-league seasons, playing for teams in six cities, notably Cleveland and Boston, where he led the Red Sox to a World Series and became one of the most beloved players in the team's storied history.

In a career that necessitated a long separation from his family and from Cuba, his homeland, and that was bifurcated by a serious shoulder injury, Tiant won 20 or more games four times and threw 187 complete games (more than Don Sutton, Don Drysdale, Lefty Gomez or Dizzy Dean) and 49 shutouts (more than Roger Clemens, Whitey Ford, Catfish Hunter, Sandy Koufax or Bob Feller).

But beyond his achievements, he was one of the game's memorable showmen, distinctive in almost every way — from his Fu Manchu mustache, barrel-shaped torso and ever-present mammoth cigar (ever-present, that is, except on the field, including in the locker room shower) to his dizzying repertoire of breaking balls and delivery angles, as well as perhaps the most elastic, twisty-turny windup in history. . . .

Tiant debuted with Cleveland in 1964. Six seasons later, a shoulder injury nearly ended his career, but he found a second life after landing in Boston before the 1972 season.

No longer the consistent flamethrower he was before his injury, he now deployed a full quiver of windup and delivery tricks and velocity variations, baffling hitters with hard sliders and fastballs mixed with tantalizing, off-speed stuff — looping curves, palm balls and knuckle balls. . . .

Tiant thrived in relief and in spot starts, and by late August he was again in the starting rotation and beginning a remarkable comeback. In a string of 10 starts during a tight pennant race — the Sox finished second to Detroit — he was 9-1 with six shutouts, allowing less than one earned run every nine innings, clearly the team's most valuable player.

In spite of being mostly a reliever for more than half the season, he won 15 games and lost only six, and his earned run average of 1.91 was the best in the American League. He was voted Comeback Player of the Year, and the Boston fans had found a new hero. . . .

Over the next six years, Tiant won 106 games for the Red Sox, recording at least 20 wins in each of three seasons. In 1975, he helped the Red Sox to the American League pennant, winning 18 games during the regular season and Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against the Oakland A’s, a complete game in Boston in which he gave up only an unearned run.

"He is a joy to watch, this swarthy, ample gentleman of 34 going on 44," the sports columnist Red Smith wrote in The New York Times after the game. "Black-bearded and sinister, he looks like Pancho Villa after a tough week of looting and burning. He works without waste of time or motion, glowering briefly into the sun to take the catcher's sign, pivoting on one leg to face center field, then wheeling back to deliver over the top. He is a master of every legal pitch and he never throws two consecutive pitches at the same speed."

In the 1975 World Series, one of the greatest in baseball history, which the Cincinnati Reds won in seven games, Tiant pitched a shutout in Game 1 and a complete game 5-4 victory in Game 4, in which he threw an astonishing 163 pitches and held on to a one-run lead for five innings.

He started again in the memorable Game 6, pitching seven innings in what turned out to be a 12-inning 7-6 Red Sox win that ended with a dramatic Carlton Fisk home run.

I remember watching Game 1 of the 1975 World Series, five days before my 12th birthday. Boston won 6-0, scoring all their runs in the bottom of the seventh. Tiant began the rally by smacking a high curve into left – his first hit since 1972. He slid hard into second, beating a low force attempt, and eventually scored, before setting down the next six Reds to finish the shutout.

The never-dull Bill Lee shared a few Looie stories with some Canadian friends: "He was the heart and soul of our ball club."

Cards: Topps, 1972-1979.

Schadenfreude 352 (A Continuing Series)

Yankees' Money For Nothing Stars Disappear At Worst Possible Time
Joel Sherman, Post:

The advantages the Yankees have over the Royals are plentiful . . .

[But] if their most moneyed men are not going to rise in October, then they are playing on a more even field with the Royals. . . .

In Game 1, the Yankees overcame that their highest-paid pitcher, Gerrit Cole, and highest-paid player, Aaron Judge, were not good. The Royals, though, walked enough batters, the Yankee chorus members rose up and the instant replay review system really helped the home team. 

In Game 2, the Yankees asked Carlos Rodon to pitch like the best-paid No. 2 starter in the sport and he was not up to his salary or the moment. Judge struggled more, and so did Juan Soto this time. 

And in this morass of money for nothing, the Yankees fell meekly 4-2 to open a door they certainly did not want to even nudge ajar — of failed Octobers past. They have lost the home-field edge and the starting advantage for Game 3 shifts strongly to Seth Lugo [and the Royals] . . .

On Sept. 10, Lugo had the best start in 2024 against the Yankees by Baseball Reference's game score: seven shutout innings on three hits with no walks and 10 strikeouts. That was in The Bronx. Wednesday will be at Kauffman Stadium, where the Yankees will feel . . . the weight of their own short-circuited postseasons since last winning it all in 2009. 

That postseason A.J. Burnett started five times and had two clunkers . . .

I mention Burnett because Rodon from the moment he was signed to a six-year, $162 million free-agent deal conjured a lefty Burnett — great stuff, but real questions if he was overly emotional and could he handle New York. Burnett was the type who could be overpowering, yet you looked at the scoreboard and somehow he had allowed five runs in five innings. 

Rodon had that kind of Game 2. He came out breathing fire — with his fastball and emotions. He struck out the side on 10 pitches in the first inning and whooped it up like he was auditioning for the WWE. 

He threw a first-pitch strike to the first 10 batters he faced and got ahead 0-2 on half of them. And then he threw Ball 1 to six of the final eight hitters he faced — and was behind every one at some points.  . . .

[H]e was a marathoner who went out too fast — his energy and concentration sapped. In the next five batters, he was classic Rodon — three hits, two strikeouts and a stolen base. He was done after 3.2 innings and four runs — seven hits and seven strikeouts. . . .

And, remember, if it gets there, Rodon is scheduled to start a decisive Game 5. 

Rodon was a culprit — but not alone. . . .Judge came up with two on and no outs in a scoreless first inning for the second straight game and, thus, with a chance to instantly nudge the Royals toward thinking they did not belong in the same ballpark as the Yankees. Instead, he struck out both times. He has whiffed in 33.8 percent of his postseason plate appearances — the second most for anyone with 200 plate appearances. 

Soto walked, but struck out twice. Giancarlo Stanton . . . continues to run as if he is carrying the weight of recent Yankee playoff failures on his back. . . .

[T]he Yanks made the least from the most — going 2-for-20 with men on base. Showing again that when one of their big guys does not park a homer or two that their offense is hardly menacing. 

Now, this Division Series moves to the Midwest. Will the Yankees' big-star, big-salaried players show up to save their season?

Aaron Judge's Playoff Demons Are Inescapable
Larry Brooks, Post:

Aaron Judge walks with franchise immortals . . . when it comes to the regular season. . . .

But when it comes to the postseason, the greatest natural offensive force in the game . . . walks with the likes of Martin Maldonado and Cody Bellinger. . . .

Judge has the second highest strikeout rate in postseason history among batters with at least 200 plate appearances at 33.4 percent, second to Maldonado's 34.2 and just ahead of Bellinger's 32.6. 

Judge is 1-for-7 in this series with four strikeouts in nine times at the plate. Cole Ragans struck him out with runners on first and second and none out in the first inning of this one after Michael Wacha struck him out with two on in the first in Game 1. The Yankees did not score in either opening inning. . . .

The Yankees' fate is not tied exclusively to Judge. The club is 3-for-19 with runners in scoring position while leaving 19 men on. . . .

If there are postseason moments for Judge, they are few and far between. The ring display remains barren and one of the reasons, at least in 2022 when the Yankees were swept by the Astros in the ALCS was Judge going 1-for-22 in the series. 

Entering Game 2, Judge was slashing .206/.307/.451 with a .758 OPS and 13 home runs and 25 RBI in 45 games over seven post-season series. In 18 games this decade, it has been a fun-house mirror, the preeminent hitter in the game slashing .135/.207/.338 with a .545 OPS, five homers and eight RBI while striking out 28 times in 82 plate appearances before this one. . . .

The sample size is not insignificant . . . [T]ime is of the essence and time won't wait forever.

Royals' Maikel Garcia Shades Carlos Rodon After Game 2 Meltdown: 'Celebrate Too Early'
Will Zimmerman, Post:

Here comes the… shade.

"Don't celebrate too early," Kansas City's leadoff man, Maikel Garcia, wrote on X Monday night, hours after his Royals defeated the Yankees in Game 2 of the ALDS.

The celebration(s) in question belonged to Carlos Rodón, the Yankees $162 million man and starting pitcher on Monday night.

Rodón came out of the gates excited, to put it mildly. In the top of the first he struck out the side — Garcia, Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino — on 12 pitches. 

With each successive strikeout, the celebration grew a little more emphatic: there was a bit of jumping around on the mound, some "did you see that" shaking of the head, and a whole lot of what looked like screaming — through an uproarious Bronx crowd drowned much of that out.

By game's end, there was little left to celebrate. 

The Royals chased Rodón from the game in the fourth inning.

After surrendering a leadoff home run to Salvador Pérez in the fourth, the Yankees starter was tagged for two more runs on three singles. 

Ian Hamilton came on in relief, facing Garcia with one on and two outs; the Royal jumped on the first pitch he saw, knocking a slider into right field to score Kansas City's fourth and final run of the evening.

Garcia finished the game 4-for-5, with an RBI and a stolen base. 

Rodón's stat-line was less flattering: 3.2 innings pitched, seven hits, four earned runs. 

Jazz Chisholm Guarantees Yankees Will Still Win ALDS: Royals 'Just Got Lucky'
Matt Ehalt, Post:

Jazz Chisholm's unwavering confidence may have provided the Royals with bulletin-board material for the 48 hours leading into Game 3.

Chisholm said the Royals "got lucky" in their 4-2 Game 2 win in the ALDS on Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium . . .

"Still feels the same like we're gonna win it," Chisholm said . . . "[T]hey just got lucky." . . .

[T]he Royals actually had more at-bats with men in scoring position and went 3-for-11. They scored all four of their runs in the fourth inning to chase an underwhelming Carlos Rodon. . . .

Chisholm . . . played a role in the Royals scoring an extra run in the fourth by being out of position on a relay throw and also made a throwing error. . . .

[T]he Royals have reason to be confident knowing they have Seth Lugo, who dominated the Yankees in September in The Bronx, going in Game 3.

Yankees Paying For Raw Jazz Chisholm's Defensive Miscues: 'Something I Worry About'
Ethan Sears, Post:

Jazz Chisholm Jr. . . . made a pair of defensive miscues during the Yankees' 4-2 Game 2 loss to the Royals . . .

The first, and more costly, of those came in the four-run fourth inning that flipped the momentum in the game.

With Tommy Pham on second and one out, Chisholm failed to cut off Alex Verdugo's throw from left field after Garrett Hampson singled. As a result, there was no play at the plate on Pham and Hampson easily took second, later coming in to score on Maikel Garcia's base hit. . . .

Chisholm's error one inning later was less costly on the scoreboard, though unlike the earlier mistake, it was actually scored an error as he misfired on a throw from third to first, allowing Yuli Gurriel to reach safely.

2024 Postseason

Here is the 2024 postseason bracket, free of advertising.

The reporters at The Athletic overwhelmingly pick the Phillies to end up with Manfred's Piece of Metal™ at the end of it all: Phillies (47.4%), Padres (21.1%), Dodgers (10.5%), Astros (10.5%), Guardians (10.5%).

How ESPN's 27 "experts" are predicting things will go:

ALWC
Astros 22, Tigers 5
Orioles 18, Royals 9

NLWC
Padres 27, Atlanta 0
Brewers 23, Mets 4

ALDS
Yankees 24, Orioles 3
Astros 13, Guardians 11, Tigers 3

NLDS
Phillies 26, Brewers 1
Padres 22, Dodgers 5

ALCS: Yankees, 13, Astros 7, Guardians 5, Orioles 2

NLCS: Phillies 15, Padres 9, Dodgers 3

World Series: Phillies 13, Padres 7, Yankees 3, Orioles 2, Dodgers, 1, Astros 1

Jayson Stark is doing what he does best: watch baseball all day (1,240 pitches over 8 horns and 13 minutes) and tell you the weird, wild, and improbability of what is happening. . . . Jeff Passan (ESPN) reports why each team could win the World Series. His WS pick? Phillies over Astros.

Other News: Brett H. (who resides a scant 13 miles from my last NYC address) won the Joy of Sox W-L contest and Pete Rose died. 

Most fans over a certain age know Rose's famous and classic quote: "I would walk through hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball". However, my favourite Rose utterance came in 1970, right after the publication of Jim Bouton's Ball Four, the pitcher's brutally honest (and hilarious) account of his 1969 season. Unlike every single baseball book published up to that time, Ball Four presented players as they actually were, doing things they didn't want anyone to know they were doing and speaking as professional athletes actually spoke (numerous players were not pleased). Commissioner Bowie Kuhn demanded (in vain) that Bouton confess the entire book was fiction, all lies.

Anyway, Bouton was with Astros in 1970 and before one of their first games against Cincinnati, Rose looked out of the Reds dugout, saw Bouton across the infield, and yelled: "Fuck you, Shakespeare!"

Alex Cora's Contract Extended Through 2027

The Red Sox and manager Alex Cora have agreed on a three-year contract extension ($21.75M), which will last through the 2027 season.

If Cora is still around at that time, he will have managed the Red Sox for nine seasons, the second-most in franchise history, behind only Joe Cronin (13 seasons, 1935-47) and just ahead of Terry Francona (8 seasons, 2004-11).

Jarren Duran – who leads MLB with 12 triples, tops the AL with 30 doubles, and is 14th in the AL in OPS+ – liked the news.

He's pulled me aside a couple times and we've talked about stuff. He's willing to learn. He's played this game for a long time and he's been a manager for a good amount of time, and he's willing to adjust, especially being patient with us young guys running around with our heads cut off sometimes. He reels us in and keeps us calm. He's one of the best managers out there, I think.

The Red Sox are currently 54-47, third in the AL East, and in the thick of the Wild Card race.

Craig Calcaterra (Cup of Coffee) relates an embarrassing moment for Boston catcher Reese McGuire during last night's 20-7 loss to the Rockies:

Despite the fact that this game was in no way close, Rockies pitcher Cal Quantrill was all jacked up after retiring Sox catcher Reese McGuire on a fly out to end the fourth inning. Quantrill, who has always been a bit more demonstrative than your average pitcher, pumped his fist when he recorded the out. McGuire said something to him and then Quantrill shouted "you jacked off in a fucking parking lot, you dumb fuck" at him, which led to the benches clearing.

Which is not a lie[*]! Back in February 2020, McGuire was indeed charged with a misdemeanor count of indecent exposure after he was found masturbating in his car in a shopping center parking lot in Dunedin, Florida, near the Blue Jays spring training complex. He pleaded no contest to a charge of disorderly conduct and was fined $500.

*: It's also not a misquote. That's obvious from the video.

The best course of action for McGuire, Calcaterra muses, would be to "keep [his] head down and play out the rest of [his] career as inconspicuously as [he] can". He also noted:

And this is fun: since June 15, the Mets have the best record in baseball. Since June 15 the Yankees have the second-worst, ahead of only the Chicago White Sox. Yikes.

He's right. That is fun. (I may have to gather some back pages from the last five or six weeks . . .)

NHL: Oilers Hope To Win Stanley Cup After Being Down 0-3

The 2024 NHL Stanley Cup Finals

June  8: Florida Panthers 3, Edmonton Oilers 0
June 10: Florida Panthers 4, Edmonton Oilers 1
June 13: Florida Panthers 4, Edmonton Oilers 3
June 15: Edmonton Oilers 8, Florida Panthers 1
June 18: Edmonton Oilers 5, Florida Panthers 3
June 21: Edmonton Oilers 5, Florida Panthers 1
June 24: EDM @ FLA

With a win tonight in Florida, the Oilers would become the fifth NHL team to win a best-of-7 playoff series after losing the first three games.

1942 Stanley Cup Finals:             Toronto Maple Leafs defeated Detroit Red Wings
1975 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals:      New York Islanders defeated Pittsburgh Penguins
2010 Eastern Conference Semifinals:  Philadelphia Flyers defeated Boston Bruins
2014 Western Conference First Round: Los Angeles Kings defeated San Jose Sharks

Any time a professional sports team loses the first three games of a seven-game series, sportswriters must tell the story of the 2004 Red Sox and their still-hard-to-believe-even-after-twenty-years-that-it-really-happened comeback against the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series. (Several books were written about that glorious 2004 postseason, including this one.) It's both the only time in major league history a team turned 0-3 to 4-3 and a team choked 3-0 to 3-4.

The Oilers are the 211th NHL team to lose the first three games of a seven-game series. Only four of the previous 210 teams then won four consecutive games (1.9%). Five other NHL teams won three games and tied the series, but then lost Game 7.

None of the 157 NBA teams facing an 0-3 deficit has rallied and won the series, and only four teams (2.5%) got to a seventh game, the last being the 2023 Celtics.

0-3 to 4-3

MLB:    1 of  39 teams (2.6%)
NHL:    4 of 210 teams (1.9%)
NBA:    0 of 157 teams (0.0%)
Total:  5 of 406 teams (1.2%)

Schadenfreude 351 (A Continuing Series)

Orioles - 161 031 221 - 17 19  0
Yankees - 012 020 000 -  5  6  3

Greg Joyce, Post:

Entering Thursday in the midst of a dream season, Luis Gil turned in a nightmare of a start. . . .

The Orioles ambushed Gil for seven runs on eight hits, knocking him out of the game before he could record a fifth out and setting the tone for a brutal 17-5 drubbing of the Yankees.

When the bloodbath was finally over . . . Baltimore [had] taken both series between the top two teams in the American League this season. . . .

The Orioles did what no other team has done this year by clobbering Gil, raising his ERA from 2.03 to 2.77 over the course of his 47-pitch outing.

The runs and hits surrendered were both career-highs, while Gil also walked a pair and hit a batter on a day when he simply did not have it.

The seven runs Gil allowed were the same amount he gave up across his previous nine starts combined. . . .

By the time Aaron Boone finally put Gil out of his misery with one out in the second inning, the Orioles led 7-0 and still had the bases loaded. . . . [T]he Orioles went on to rack up 19 hits overall.

The Yankees' day also included three errors, Gleyber Torres exiting early with groin tightness and the bullpen continuing to show some more cracks.

Before catcher Jose Trevino had to pitch the ninth, five of their six relievers gave up at least one run as the Orioles continued to pile on. . . .

[Gil's] first pitch of the day was roped for a double by Gunnar Henderson over the head of Juan Soto, and it only got worse from there. After limiting the damage to one run in the first inning, he could not stop the bleeding in the second, when the big blow was Ryan Mountcastle's three-run double down the left-field line.

Gary Phillips, Daily News:

With the Yankees searching for a series win over a division rival on Thursday, Luis Gil delivered the worst and shortest start of his career. . . .

Gil, who blanked the Orioles in May, lasted just 1.1 innings and 47 pitches as Baltimore's battering lineup recorded eight hits and two walks against him.

"It's baseball," Aaron Boone said. . . .

Baltimore started bashing Gil in the first inning when Gunnar Henderson smoked a leadoff double, which Juan Soto misjudged. Henderson ripped the ball 110.4 mph over Soto's head, but it had a catch probability of 80%. . . .

[T]he floodgates opened in the second. Cedric Mullins put two runs on the board with a home run before Ryan Mountcastle doubled with three men on. He cleared the bases.

With the bases juiced again later in the inning, Gil forced another run in when he plunked Jordan Westburg. That ended the right-hander's day after just four outs. . . .

There has been a lot of talk about the Yankees watching Gil's workload, as he's nearing his season-high for innings pitched as a pro and is coming off of Tommy John surgery. However, Boone didn't see signs of fatigue on Thursday . . .

With Thursday's blowout, the Yankees lost their second series of the season to Baltimore. Earlier this year, the Orioles took 3-of-4 games at Camden Yards. . . . [The yankees] go back to Baltimore before next month's All-Star break.

Joel Sherman, Post:

The Orioles are in second place and yet the Yankees are chasing them. 

The standings tell one story, with Baltimore trailing the Yankees by one-half game. Their head-to-head matchups are more revealing. The Orioles have won five of the seven while clearly looking like the superior team. 

They took three of four at Camden Yards seven weeks ago. . . . The defending AL East champs have now gone 22 straight series against division foes without losing one — the longest such streak since division play began in 1969. The Yankees are 10-12 within the AL East this year. 

Like in Camden, the more athletic Orioles made the Yankees look plodding and unsettled in winning this rubber match 17-5 — the most runs the Yankees have permitted since surrendering 19 to Cleveland on Aug. 15, 2019. 

The Yankees have not won any of their last five series against Baltimore dating to last year. And this was their worst defensive series of 2024 . . .with the continuing freeway when Jose Trevino catches only growing more troubling. 

Trevino actually ended up pitching the ninth Thursday for a bullpen that is both a midseason tryout camp and worsening calamity. . . .

[It] was a disaster, making the Summer Solstice longest day in the Northern Hemisphere all the longer for the Yankees. . . .

Baltimore hunted fastballs early Thursday, with 11 of 15 hitters swinging at the first strike they saw on a day when Gil had his velocity, but nothing close to command. . . .

In all, Baltimore was 4-for-6 with runners in scoring position against Gil, who had held hitters to 5-for-48 in that situation all year. . . .

Gleyber Torres . . . committed his 11th error (second most in the majors) and left the game with what the Yankees termed right groin tightness. . . .

The Yankees (51-26), Orioles (49-25) and Phillies (49-25) are tied for the majors' best winning percentage at .662. But Baltimore arrived in The Bronx having taken two of three from Philadelphia. And its mastery of the Yankees persisted. The Orioles have outplayed the Yankees in every way when sharing a field in 2024.

Gary Phillips, Daily News:

Jose Trevino's lacking arm strength has been an issue lately.

The Red Sox stole a franchise record nine bases with him catching on Sunday. The Orioles swiped four more bags with him catching on Wednesday. The Yankees lost both of those games, and Trevino also made a throwing error in each.

On Wednesday, he sailed a throw into left field when Cedric Mullins stole third in the 10th inning. Mullins scored the decisive run on the play, as the Orioles won, 7-6. . . .

While not every stolen base was Trevino's fault in those two games – Yankees pitchers need to hold runners on better – it feels like the receiver is being targeted. That would make sense, as Trevino ranks 65th out of 67 catchers in pop time to second base (2.08 seconds) and 62nd out 62 catchers in arm strength (71.6 mph).

Trevino has never had a rocket, but he's throwing 3.4 mph slower than he did last season. Asked if that concerned him on Wednesday night, the Platinum Glove winner simply said "no."

RIP: Willie Mays (1931-2024)

Willie Mays, a perennial candidate in any serious discussion of the greatest players in baseball history, died on Tuesday at the age of 93.

Mays began his career in 1948, at age 17, with the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro American League. Both the Red Sox and Yankees were among the teams scouting Mays in the late 40s, but the deep-seated racism of both organizations -- even though a small number of Black players had been permitted into the major leagues a few years earlier -- meant they had no intention of signing him.

Imagine Mays and Ted Williams playing in the same outfield (and lineup) for more than a decade . . . Boston's poor treatment of one of Mays's teammates, signing him in an attempt to get greater access to Mays and cutting him when that ploy failed, also soured Birmingham's willingness to deal with the Red Sox. 

Mays joined the Giants organization in 1950. After missing the 1953 season because of military service, Mays returned to the Giants and lit up the National League, leading the Giants to a World Series title and winning the MVP award at age 23. Mays led both leagues in batting (.345) and slugging (.667), while also topping the NL in triples (13), OPS (1.078) and OPS+ (175, which he surprassed only once in his career (185 in 1965)).

From 1957 to 1966, Mays never finished lower than sixth in the NL MVP voting: 4th, 2nd, 6th, 3rd, 6th, 2nd, 5th, 6th, 1st, 3rd.

A few factoids from the mlb.com link above:

Mays was the first player to hit 20 or more home runs for 17 consecutive seasons (1954-70).

Mays remains the major league leader for putouts by an outfielder (7,095) and extra-inning home runs (22).

He played in two dozen All-Star Games, and holds or shares records for appearances (24), at-bats (75), runs (20), hits (23), triples (three), extra-base hits (eight) and total bases (40). (Stan Musial also played in 24 ASG and Hank Aaron played in 25. All three guys were helped by the fact that two All-Star Games were played in 1959, 1960, 1961, and 1962.)

Mays was elected to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 1979, but 23 of the 432 voters (5.3%) left him off their ballots.

Schadenfreude 350 (A Continuing Series)

Greg Joyce, Post:

The Red Sox ran the Yankees out of the building on Sunday night at Fenway Park.

Wreaking havoc on the bases with nine steals against [catcher] Jose Trevino and his pitchers, the Red Sox manufactured their way to a 9-3 win to take the series in front of a sellout crowd of 36,718. . . .

With their team speed on display throughout the night, which continually set them up with runners in scoring position, the Red Sox's nine stolen bases broke a single-game franchise record.

They were also the most steals the Yankees have allowed since 1915, when they also let up nine, which is tied for the second-most in franchise history.

The Red Sox took advantage of Trevino, who entered the night with the weakest throwing arm among 60 qualified catchers this season, according to Statcast.

Opponents were 19-for-28 stealing bases against him coming into Sunday before the Red Sox went 9-for-10 (with Marcus Stroman catching one before he delivered to the plate). . . .

Trevino and Stroman were the battery for the first six steals before the Red Sox swiped three more against the Yankees' bullpen. . . .

[T]he Yankees blew a key chance to tie the game or take the lead in the seventh, when they had the bases loaded with no outs and could not score against reliever Zack Kelly.

Gleyber Torres went from a 3-0 count to chasing a pitch in the dirt for strike three before Trevino struck out on three pitches and DJ LeMahieu lined out to center field.

To make matters worse, the Yankees lost Anthony Rizzo to a right lower-arm injury after a collision at first base in the top of the seventh. Rizzo . . . left the game in visible pain.

The Red Sox then blew the game open by scoring three runs in the bottom of the seventh and two more in the eighth, all while continuing to run wild and create scoring chances at will.

Gary Phillips, Daily News:

The Red Sox showed off their wheels on Sunday, stealing a franchise-record nine bases and a series from the Yankees with a 9-3 win at Fenway Park.

Boston took full advantage of Yankees catcher Jose Trevino, who ranks second-to-last in pop time to second base (2.07 seconds) and dead last in arm strength (71.3 mph) among catchers. . . . [F]our of their runs followed stolen bases.

"Gotta make better throws," said Trevino . . .

David Hamilton led the way for the Red Sox, swiping four bags and scoring three runs. Two of his steals came in the fifth inning, when he took second and third. Jarren Duran had two steals, while Dominic Smith, Ceddanne Rafaela and Bobby Dalbec each added one.

Marcus Stroman . . . did nab one would-be base-stealer by stepping off the mound, [but] the righty surrendered seven hits and four walks over five innings.

Boston first scored in the second inning when Ceddanne Rafaela plated two with a single. A double play led to another run in the third, while Rafael Devers brought a run in with a sac fly in the fifth.

With Luke Weaver on the mound in the seventh, Devers knocked an RBI single before Connor Wong lined a two-run triple, which Alex Verdugo took a poor route to in right field. . . .

Hamilton added an RBI single to his impressive night in the eighth. Wong then singled him home.

The Yankees had a chance to tack on in the seventh, as they had the bases loaded with nobody out.

However, Gleyber Torres turned a 3-0 count into a strikeout. Trevino then fanned on three pitches before DJ LeMahieu lined out to center, which sparked a animated scream from Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly.

The Red Sox's previous record for stolen bases in a game was eight, in Game 2 of a September 29, 1940, doubleheader against the Philadelphia Athletics. And they did it in only seven innings!

Way back on June 28, 1907, the Yankees (then known as the Highlanders) allowed 13 stolen bases in a 16-5 loss to Washington. The Highlanders' catcher on that afternoon was Branch Rickey. (Yes, that Branch Rickey).

Devers Hits Home Run In Sixth Consecutive Game, Setting New Red Sox Record

Rafael Devers homered for the sixth consecutive game, setting a new Red Sox record in a 5-0 win over the Rays.

Tanner Houck allowed only two hits in seven shutout innings and Ceddanne Rafaela also hit a two-run homer. Neat and tidy in only 2:08.

Red Sox Players With Home Runs In 6 Consecutive Games (Team Record)

Rafael Devers  2024  (5/15-20)

MLB Players With Home Runs In 8 Consecutive Games

Dale Long, Pirates, May 19-28, 1956
Don Mattingly, Yankees, July 8-18, 1987
Ken Griffey, Jr., Mariners, July 20-28, 1993

MLB Players With Home Runs In 7 Consecutive Games

Jim Thome, Cleveland, June 25-July 3, 2002
Barry Bonds, Giants, April 12-20, 2004
Kevin Mench, Texas, April 21-28, 2006
Kendrys Morales, Blue Jays, August 19-26, 2018
Joey Votto, Reds, July 24-30, 2021
Mike Trout, Angels, September 4-12, 2022

Rafael Devers is one of seven Red Sox players to hit a home run in five consecutive games.

Devers stroked his ninth dong of the season in Boston's 11-3 win over the Cardinals on Sunday. Tyler O'Neill hit his team-leading 11th.

Devers will have a chance to set a new franchise record Monday evening in Tampa Bay.

Red Sox Players With Home Runs In 5 Consecutive Games (Team Record)

Jimmie Foxx    1940  (8/13-17)
Ted Williams   1957  (7/12-16)
Dick Stuart    1963  (6/11-16)
George Scott   1977  (6/14-19)
Jose Canseco   1995  (8/21-25)
Bobby Dalbec   2020  (9/05-10)
Rafael Devers  2024  (5/15-19)

Devers has hit safely in his last nine games and 21 of his last 23 games, slashing .337/.416/.652/1.068 in that time (since April 24).

RIP Larry Lucchino (1945-2024)

Larry Lucchino, John Henry, and Tom Werner, with three Red Sox World Series trophies

Larry Lucchino, Red Sox president and CEO from 2002-2015, has died at the age of 78. Lucchino celebrated three World Series championships as a Red Sox executive, including the astonishing 2004 title that ended the franchise's 86-year title drought. Lucchino was also instrumental in saving Fenway Park, roughly a decade after he helped create a new standard for ballpark construction.

There was a lot of talk about replacing the venerable park in the late 1990s (in truth, threats or promises to get rid of Fenway went back decades before that). It was assumed that when the new ownership group took control of the team from the Yawkey Trust, a modern park would be built. But as Lucchino later said, "You can't destroy the Mona Lisa. You preserve the Mona Lisa."

He hired architect Janet Marie Smith – who helped design Camden Yards during Lucchino's time as Orioles president (1988-93) – and the team made more than $300 million in renovations over a ten-year period, including the construction of the Monster Seats atop the left field wall.

Lucchino was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2016. He is also a member of the Padres Hall of Fame; before coming to Boston, Lucchino served as the Padres' president/CEO from 1995-2001.

John Henry, Red Sox principal owner:

Larry's career unfolded like a playbook of triumphs, marked by transformative moments that reshaped ballpark design, enhanced the fan experience, and engineered the ideal conditions for championships wherever his path led him, and especially in Boston. Yet, perhaps his most enduring legacy lies in the remarkable people he helped assemble at the Red Sox, all of whom are a testament to his training, wisdom, and mentorship.

Many of them continue to shape the organization today, carrying forward the same vigor, vitality, and cherished sayings that were hallmarks of Larry's personality. Larry was a formidable opponent in any arena, and while he battled hard, he always maintained the utmost respect for a worthy adversary and found genuine joy in sparring with people. I was lucky enough to have had him in my corner for 14 years and to have called him a close friend for even longer. He was truly irreplaceable and will be missed by all of us at the Red Sox.

Tom Werner, Red Sox chairman:

When John and I joined forces with Larry in 2001, we dreamed not only of breaking an 86-year curse and winning multiple championships, but also about how a baseball team could transform and uplift a region. Larry was more decorated in sports than any of us, coming to the group with a Super Bowl ring, a World Series ring, and even a Final Four watch from his days playing basketball at Princeton. He added to that impressive collection with us in Boston because he was the kind of man who would find a path to success no matter the obstacles. He was bold and had the audacity to dare, challenge, and even taunt our rivals in ways that made the game of baseball better.

In a sport defined by statistics and standings, he was accomplished in every way, and while his career is a masterclass in leadership and innovation, he will be equally remembered for his unwavering commitment to community engagement and his hands-on role with the Red Sox Foundation and The Jimmy Fund. We are devastated by the loss of a great man, a great leader, and a great friend.

In late 2002, as the Red Sox were close to signing Cuban pitcher Jose Contreras, the Yankees unexpectedly grabbed him at the last minute. Lucchino's reaction became famous: "The evil empire extends its tentacles, even into Latin America." Contreras ended up being a below-average pitcher for the EE before he was traded to the White Sox in July 2004. The Red Sox recovered.

Theo Epstein worked with Lucchino in Baltimore and San Diego before becoming, at age 28, the youngest general manager in baseball history (at the time):

Larry leaves behind a giant baseball legacy full of historic accomplishments with three different organizations. For me and for so many of my best friends in baseball, Larry gave us our start, believing in us and setting an enduring example with his work ethic, vision, competitiveness and fearlessness. He made a profound impact on many in baseball – and on the game itself – and will be missed.

Sam Kennedy, another Lucchino protege and the Red Sox's current president and CEO:

There are so many of us who were given our start in baseball by Larry. He loved a good slogan and his campaign to 'free the Brookline two' liberated Theo and I from the San Diego Padres, allowing us to work for our hometown team and changing the trajectory of our lives forever. He instilled in us, and so many others, a work ethic, passion, competitive fire that we will carry forever. His legacy is one that all of us who were taught by him feel a deep responsibility to uphold. When those he mentored moved on from the Red Sox, he would always say, 'We'll leave a light on for you.' The lights will always be on for you at Fenway Park, Larry. May you rest in peace.

David Ortiz:

Larry Lucchino was someone who really cared about the Red Sox doing well. When I first joined the organization, he was just the business guy who dealt with the agent. As a player, it was sometimes hard to understand where he was coming from, but he made everything about winning and the organization doing well. Once we got to know each other better, we became really good friends. I loved Larry. He supported me and always gave me really good advice. Our relationship kept getting better and better. It is so sad to see him go, and I send my condolences to his family and all who loved him. He knew how to put the pieces together. When you talked to Larry and understood what the Red Sox meant to him, you got the memo: Win.

The Red Sox were able to bring the Large Father to Boston because of a phone call Pedro Martinez  made to Lucchino after the Twins had released Ortiz.

My heart goes out to the Lucchino family. They lost not only a great man, but a visionary with the biggest heart, even though he tried to cover it playing shy and trying to hide away from people's eyes. … But not me; he didn't fool me. We just lost a dear friend and we're all sad about it. I will miss you my dear friend. R.I.P. Larry.

Dustin Pedroia:

Larry was a winner. Didn't matter if it was a contract negotiation, saving Fenway, asking players what we need to compete. Larry was going to work until the job was finished. He had a presence and an attitude that wouldn't be denied. He was a tone setter for our organization.

Alex Cora, Red Sox manager:

Larry was a visionary. He saw things before they happened, taking the fan experience to the next level in every city he worked. And he won. He was a relentless winner. Larry led a great life and impacted so many of us. I'm thankful to have had him as a part of my life.

Mike Lupica, long-time New York sportswriter:

He was one of the great baseball men of this time or any time, and when you add up everything that has happened to the Red Sox since he became a part of their management team over two decades ago, he is without question the best and most important baseball man the club has ever had. Sadly, he dies without being in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, where he belongs.

John Henry and Tom Werner became the owners of the team back in 2002. But it was Lucchino, as president of the Red Sox the way he had been president of the Orioles and the Padres before that, who set the tone for everything that happened after he got to Boston. It was Lucchino who did the most to create a culture that changed everything for a team that hadn't won a World Series since 1918.

Mike Barnicle, MSNBC commentator and former Boston Globe columnist:

His legacy is the management teams that he assembled in [Baltimore] and San Diego and in Boston. His legacy is being a driving force behind the building of Camden Yards and Petco Park and bringing Fenway into the 21st century. His legacy is hiring young men like Theo Epstein and Sam Kennedy. But more than anything else, it was Larry's vision that finally put the Red Sox into the 'yes' business. 'Yes, we can win the World Series again. Yes, we can put together a winning team not just on the field but in the front office, as well.' Greatest yes man we ever had in Boston, in all the best ways.

From the Red Sox:

We are heartbroken to share that our beloved brother and uncle, Lawrence Lucchino, passed away on April 2 surrounded by his family. The Lucchino family wishes to thank his friends and caregivers who, over the past few months, have surrounded him with love, laughter, and happy memories.

To us, Larry was an exceptional person who combined a Hall of Fame life as a Major League Baseball executive with his passion for helping those people most in need. . . . Equally important to Larry was the establishment of a first-of-its-kind in professional sports "San Diego Padres Scholars" college scholarship program, co-founding the Boston Red Sox Foundation, and being Chairman of the Jimmy Fund, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's grassroots effort to help save lives and give hope to cancer patients everywhere. He brought the same passion, tenacity, and probing intelligence to all his endeavors, and his achievements speak for themselves.