Projo Sox Blog

Click the play button below to hear Sean McAdam's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: the Red Sox' accomplishment in clinching a playoff berth; relief pitchers Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon stepping up in bases-loaded situations; Terry Francona's lineups in the games going forward; and the honor that is coming to Red Sox legend Johnny Pesky.

Here's what Sean said about clinching the wild card"
"It is a long season, and merely gettig into the postseason is an accomplishment in itself. And let's not forget that the wild card was the path to the Red Sox' championship back in 2004, and wild-card teams have been pretty successful over the last decade or so. Three wild-card teams won the World Series in a row in that stretch, and since the Red Sox won in 2004, there have been three other wild-card teams making it to the World Series and ultimately losing. So it's not the impediment that it once was, or people thought it was, and it does at the very least give the Red Sox a chance to defend their championship from last fall."

And on retiring Pesky's number:
"He's synonymous with the Red Sox and has served them in virtually every way possible -- from player, coach, manager, broadcaster, and really for the last 20 years or so, sort of goodwill ambassador -- and people love him, and I think it's terrific that he's getting the opportunity to be recognized and go up on that right-field front there with a lot of people he played with. ... He certainly played with Doerr and Williams and Cronin, and I think for him to join his contemporaries, particularly on the eve of his 89th birthday, is pretty fitting."

 Tags  Johnny Pesky Sean McAdam SoxTalk

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