The Red Sox come up with a new formula

If you can’t field a winning team that everybody likes, field a losing team that everybody hates and then blow it up.

This worked for me this weekend. I had pretty much plowed under my hopes for the team about a month ago. But then came the news of the epic trade and the possibility of more to come (Ellsbury and Lester are on trade waivers) (and there are rumors that publicist Duby McDowell will be packaged with NESN’s Tom Caron and world’s least interesting mascot Wally for some minor league pitching help).

I felt a primitive need to keep an eye on last night’s game which was lost in 12 innings after a series of substitutions filled the line-up with more banjo hitters than the back lot of “Deliverance.”

The team is still a mess, and I don’t know how I feel about trading Elllsbury, maybe the most the exciting Red Sox prospect since Tony Congiliaro. The L.A. trade is just fine, though, even if Gonzo goes on to tear the N.L. apart for a couple of years, which is a real possibility. The trade to watch is one that happened long time ago. Josh Reddick to the Oakland Moneyballs for two players each of whom have hurt their hands. Andrew Bailey is now, at last, finally hurling the spheroid. Ryan Sweeney, who actually looked pretty good for a while, smashed his hand against a door in a fit of pique which is why somebody like him was not available deep into last night’s game when, with a chance to draw blood, a hopelessly overmatched person named Che-Hsuan Lin struck out against a pitcher adverbially named Francisely Bueno. Lineptitutde! Reddick has cooled off for the ‘balls. For a while he looked the second coming of Roy Hobbs, and that was depressing.

Anyway, I would rather watch a bunch of nobodies like Ciriaco and Gomez win 80 games than watch a bunch of overpaid soreheads win 83 games. I love Cody Ross. He must be retained. Papi? If he continues like this, the Vatican may want to investigate. If he had more at bats he’d be leading the league in slugging right now (.611!!!!).  The guy who lost the game last night, Tazawa, actually had really good stuff.

And how can we not be excited about Rubby de la Rosa?  Rubby de la Rosa! Say it soft, and it’s almost like praying. I’ll never stop saying Rubby de la Rosa.