No hard feelings? ... We'll see about that
This is not the time, Red Sox manager Terry Francona said, for old feuds to bubble up, not even for the Sox and Rays. "The bad blood, I don't think anyone has even thought of it," Francona said. "This is the playoffs, and that really doesn't enter into it."
But this is also baseball, where rancor dies hard. The brawling history of the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays extends nearly a decade, when Pedro Martínez drilled Gerald Williams with a pitch in 2000, ignited a brawl, and then nearly no-hit the (then-Devil) Rays.
Pitcher Tim Wakefield and catcher Jason Varitek are the only Red Sox remaining from that team, but the rivalry never abated, and may have intensified with the Rays' ascension in the American League East.
Now that the AL Championship Series is here, and the stakes may be too high to risk suspensions, is the potential for another fracas officially over?
"I don't know," said closer Jonathan Papelbon. "There could be something that stirs it right back up. You know how these things linger all year long. I do know one thing: We're going to go to the ALCS and play good baseball."
Coco Crisp and James Shields provided the most prominent episode this season, trading punches in the middle of the diamond June 5 as the benches cleared at Fenway Park.
The teams, while remaining in their dugouts, shared a stare-down after several batters were plunked during their mid-September series at Tropicana Field.
Crisp does not anticipate a repeat, but he didn't rule it out, either.
"Anything could happen with any team," Crisp said. "I think that any time, it just doesn't matter. But it is intense, a little more during the playoffs. If something was to happen, maybe somebody will take something wrong. I doubt it.
"I don't hold grudges at all about too many things," he added. "Nobody has directly come up to me and said they don't like me."
Battling for the AL East title this season provided an uncomfortable closeness for Tampa Bay and Boston. Francona compared the current Sox-Rays matchups with vintage Red Sox-Yankees games.
Some Red Sox dismissed the possibility of more fighting; some kept an open mind.
"You go out there and you're playing baseball," second baseman Dustin Pedroia said. "I don't buy into all that [the media] say about we hate each other. There are guys on the other team that I'm friends with and I know very well. When the games start, obviously, we're trying to win."
"I think that's all done with. Maybe it's not," shortstop Jed Lowrie said. "I don't feel any hatred toward them or ill will. If anything were to happen, that's just part of the game."
Inside story
The Red Sox went 7-17 playing in domed stadiums with artificial turf this season, including 1-8 at Tropicana Field. The poor record vexed Francona, who believes the Sox' ability to play a speed game improved this season with a roster that includes Crisp, Pedroia, and Jacoby Ellsbury, who each stole at least 20 bases."I used to think it was fairly obvious when we were slower," Francona said. "When we'd get on turf, teams that could run and we couldn't, we were at a disadvantage at times. I don't feel that way anymore. We're built differently. But our record is not that good. I'm hopeful that that's going to change."
The artificial surface will require an adjustment for the Red Sox, but in a somewhat surprising way.
"The turf there, it's not that quick," Lowrie said. "They have the natural dirt in the infield, too. It's not like a normal turf where the ball really flies through the infield. But it's still a little bit of an adjustment, because it bounces a little different than the natural ground. It's a true hop."
On edge of his seat
Mike Timlin, left off the Division Series roster, will find out today if he is on the ALCS roster. Francona last week praised Timlin, an 18-year veteran, for Timlin's reaction when he told him he had not been selected for the ALDS roster. Timlin, though, said he voiced to Francona some disagreement."You try to be as professional as you possibly can in all situations," Timlin said. "I can't say the full conversation was professional, but that's between he and I. If you don't have passion to play the game, you need to stop."
Timlin, during the Angels series, found it difficult adjusting to the unfamiliar position of watching playoff games, not having an effect on them.
"Frustrating at the beginning," Timlin said. "I had to accept my role. I got to help the team when I can. So, be positive. It's not going to do any good to be moping on the bench. So, be positive. Go get 'em. Help the guys out."
Team player
Crisp, who in spring training called for either playing time or a trade, started one of four ALDS games. Yesterday, while acknowledging he would prefer to play more, he expressed contentment with his status. "You still want to be an everyday player," Crisp said. "But besides that, it's a great group of guys. The coaching staff is amazing. So, everybody's cool. It's easy to still be here and not be in that starting role and still enjoy it." . . . The Rays' bullpen was expected to be a strength, and it was against the Chicago White Sox in the ALDS. Five relievers combined to allow one run - a home run surrendered by Dan Wheeler - in 11 2/3 innings. Lefthander J.P. Howell led the way with 4 1/3 scoreless innings . . . David Ortiz and his wife, Tiffany, will host the inaugural David Ortiz