After some deliberation, Cardboard Gods has decided to elect Bon Scott, shown here, as the reigning deity of my vision of the efforts of my team, the Boston Red Sox, in the 2008 American League Championship Series. Jack Kerouac hovered over the recently concluded divisional series against the Angels, and there was some thought that he would continue serving that role throughout the playoffs, but the truth is I may be running out of things to say about Jack Kerouac, at least for the time being, and anyway Jack Kerouac will forever be an angelic guy to me, and there are no longer any Angels around. This is a job for someone who is familiar with devils.
In my mind the foremost of the devils masquerading as innocuously innocent “rays” is the one from Scott’s adopted country, Australia (which his Scottish family moved to when he was a wee lad). Last night, Australian Grant Balfour sailed one of his near-100-MPH heaters in the direction of J.D. Drew’s head. It was a situation that called for Drew to be walked, either intentionally or as a result of pitching to him very carefully. From the reaction of players in the Red Sox dugout, it seems possible that Balfour decided one pitch could do just as good a job of putting Drew on base as four pitches, with the added bonus, perhaps, of letting them know you’re there, something the chirpy, hard-throwing Balfour proved capable of during the Rays’ divisional series against the White Sox.
Here’s hoping that the Red Sox can channel the great Bon Scott tonight as they provide a reply to such challenges.
Lineups, courtesy of The Boston Globe:
Red Sox
1. Jacoby Ellsbury, RF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. Jason Bay, LF
6. Jed Lowrie, SS
7. Jason Varitek, C
8. Mark Kotsay, 1B
9. Coco Crisp, CF
SP: Josh Beckett
Rays
1. Akinori Iwamura, 2B
2. B.J. Upton, CF
3. Carlos Pena, 1B
4. Evan Longoria, 3B
5. Carl Crawford, LF
6. Cliff Floyd, DH
7. Dioner Navarro, C
8. Gabe Gross, RF
9. Jason Bartlett, SS
SP: Scott Kazmir
Cardboard Gods 
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