WE WIN!

I want this! I am a Wheaties box collector, but this one holds some special allure. ;-)

Well, with the Red Sox World Series victory last night still blearing my tired eyes, and due to the pervasiveness of the World-Wide Red Sox Nation, there's not much to say that hasn't been said, but here's my 2 cents.

1st penny: The 2007 team is better than the 2004 team, but of course the sweetness of their victory isn't as intense. It's just not comparable. The World Series itself was eerily familiar in the sweeping of an inferior National League team. (Who's the "Junior Circuit" now, eh?) But while we did have a stirring comeback in the ALCS (AKA "Where Champions are Made"), we didn't go through New York, and I never really had the sense that the Angels, Indians, or Rockies were real threats. I was fully confident in this team's ability (if not destiny) to win it all, even down 3 games to 1 to Cleveland. Whereas 2004 was about exorcising 86 years of heartache and demons, 2007 is more of a feeling of deep satisfaction and pride of accomplishment. We were the best team, and we proved it on the field. Good. Well done.

And it's hard not to think that we're officially getting spoiled here now, with 2 World Series championships in 4 years. (And the Patriots winning 3 out of 5 -- soon to be 4 out of 6!) Like the self-made millionaire father who rose up from homelessness and destitution, I worry about my children. Do they truly appreciate what they have today and how special this is? Or are we just happy that they have it better than we did when we were little? Where my youth is scarred by Yaz's pop-up and the Bill Buckner Tunnel, my daughter's formative years are all about Manny Being Manny and Big Papi. Wow. Nation, we have achieved cultural shift.

2nd penny: Papelbon should've been the MVP of the Series. Lowell had a great series, a great post-season, a great regular season, and he's a great guy, but almost anybody on the team could've been MVP. It truly was a team effort. My argument for Papelbon is simply thus: What's the value of knowing that when we to get to the ninth, or the middle of the 8th, that the game is over? That's HUGE. Papelbon's dominance as closer effectively shortens the games. He was clearly gassed at the end, either from the long season or the thin air, but he gutted it out. There was nobody behind him if he failed. It was all up to him, and he delivered the goods. In the World Series, he uncharacteristically entered games in the 8th. That alone is enough to throw some closers completely off their games. But not J-Pap! He earned saves in the last 3 games of the series. He mowed down their best hitters when the games were on the line. He walked nobody. His ERA in the postseason was a tidy 0.00. He even picked a guy off for the first time all season! I don't know what more he could've done to deserve the honor. But oh well, it's not like HE cares...

Dance Dance Papelbon!

Andre Tippett

Was walking out of the Portsmouth Shaw's the other day, laden with groceries and beer, when a sign on the window on the way out caught the corner of my eye. "What did I just see?" I stopped, took a step backward, and did the standard cartoon double-take. The sign said Andre Tippett... THE Andre Tippett... Superstar Patriots linebacker from the 80s... Was going to be at Shaw's... THIS Shaw's... On Friday!

How wonderfully random!

I mean, it's not totally random. Shaw's has done a major renovation in our "Durgin Square" shopping center. And it's not unheard of for major corporations to enlist sports stars as added attractions. But it's one of those deals where normally, I would've heard about Tippett being in Portsmouth after the fact, had I not happened to have amazing peripheral vision [;-)] and that would've bummed me out. But I did see the sign, so my brother and I were able to meet one of our childhood football heroes! See?

Squirrels Deal Lynch in 1st Major Trade of Season

When I made Buffalo's rookie running back Marshawn Lynch my 1st pick (after 13 keepers, mind you), I knew I was adding depth at a position where I was already strong. With Shaun Alexander and Willis McGahee filling my 2 RB slots, Lynch (and DeAngelo Williams) were mere bench-warmers on the Super Squirrels roster. So when I received an unsolicited offer of WR Steve Smith for Lynch the other day at 9:25AM, I accepted immediately. Smith is, quite simply, a stud. And he's a stud at a position that's not exactly full of studs.

The interesting thing about Smith is his production so far this season:

Week 1: 24
Week 2: 40
Week 3: 1
Week 4: 3

Clearly, he's suffering since Jake Delhomme went down. But that shouldn't last long. Smith is a virtual lock for 1000+ yards receiving, year in and year out. He and new QB David Carr will work it out. And it should start this week against New Orleans. Last year, Smith had 17 catches (most against any team) for 172 yards and 3 TDs vs. the Saints.

With Boldin and Smith, I now have 2 Pro-Bowl caliber wide-outs, and 2 Pro-Bowl backs. I also added sleeper WR Donte Stallworth off waivers this week, something I would recommend you do BEFORE he breaks out. Now Jerricho Cotchery becomes trade fodder for a QB if Eli Manning or Chad Pennington don't get consistent, which, let's face it, is a distinct possibility.

League-wide, the Super Squirrels are sitting pretty at 3-1, surprising the league that has seen my brother's team fall to 0-4.

Siamese Flyin' Squirrels Year in Review

The Final Standings:

2nd place! I'm very proud of myself. I was in the middle of the pack for much of the year, and then I put the hammer down. Way to go Squirrels!

The Awards:

Most Valuable Player: Magglio! Right-handed clean-up batting champion at .363?! 216 hits?! 139 RBI? Yow, no wonder Theo wanted him to replace Manny. He's even got the hair for the job!

Most Disappointing Player: Well, considering he was my #1 pick, I guess it has to be Manny. 20/88/.296 isn't exactly first round production. Also, Stephen Drew. I waited and held and waited and uh, he never really happened. But I still think he'll be a good player. And really, shortstop was a tough position to fill this year anyway, although the Kahlil Greene (14 hrs!) and Jack Wilson (.346!) combo turned out better than OK in the end.

Best Trade: Lowell for Berkman. I got 26/65/.295 from him in a little more than half a season. How many trades happen where both sides think they got the better of the deal?! But I also loved my deadline-beating deal getting Brandon Phillips for King Felix and Embree. I could've used those 4 Ws Felix got after the trade, but Phillips netted me 4 more homers, 7 more steals, and picked up my BA.

Unsung Hero: Tie: Nick Markakis and Placido Polanco: I kept thinking my OF depth could net me something in a trade, but nobody took Markakis, so I kept his quietly impressive 96/22/111/18/.300 to myself! As for Polanco, I ended up with him at the end of the draft, and with no speed and no power, he was always a slump away from getting dropped, except for one thing: He never slumped! Every time I looked up he was 3-5! Honorable mention: Manny Corpas: 1.42 ERA, 19 saves, & 2 wins.

Most Regretful Drop: Kaz Matsui in the first week? And damn Tick would never trade him back to me! Or Saltalamacchia the day before his 2 hr 7 RBI game. D'oh! Or Wakefield after only 2 of his 17 wins? He was KILLING my WHIP though.

Best Drop: Pat Neshek, just before he got tired and started to suck. Timing is everything! Did the same thing with Taylor Tankersley; dropped him the day before he blew a save on a grand salami to Zimmerman! Whew! See also: Jim Edmonds, dropped in week 1. I love him as the current player who most reminds me of Uber Binky Freddy Lynn, but I knew he was done before he even got started this year.

Best Non Drop: Corey Patterson. He sucked again early on, but I didn't let him go THIS season. See, I learned from last year!

Best Waiver Pick-up: Jared Weaver. I remember being SHOCKED to see his name on the waiver wire. I don't know who dropped him, but thank you for the 12 Ws! Runner-Up: Alan Embree's 14 saves. For those couple months, he was lights out. Ditto for Oki Doki.
Most Injurious Injury: Jason Schmidt. Where would I have been if he had been even HALF of the Cy Young candidate I expected him to be? The thing I lacked most of the year was a stud starter, aside from...

Most Vindicated Binky: Scott Kazmir. (Cue the Whitney Houston song.) When he put it all together in the 2nd half, I was pleased but not surprised. 239 Ks (take that Johan!), 13 Ws, and a 3.48? Yah, I'll take it.

Now it's on to fantasy football season, full-time. Let's go Super Squirrels!