A few quick thoughts about last night’s debacle of a game:

• I feel really bad for Jason Bay. He looked like a little kid rounding first when he hit the go-ahead home run with two down in the 8th and the Sox down by one. Then somebody broke the news to him that there really is no Santa Claus.
• Paps for three straight days is not a good idea. Even his outs were well hit.
• From now on, I want Paps to just throw a 97mph heater in Navarro’s ribs. Forget the go-ahead double last night, Navarro forced an unearned, go-ahead run on Paps with his terrible throw in the All-Star game. That deserves a few broken ribs, don’t you think?
• What the hell was Tito thinking in the 9th last night? Kotsay walks, and you’ve got THREE more catchers on the bench…why not pinch hit one of them for somebody who can actually get the bunt down? Tito’s man-love for Tek is really getting disgusting.
• OK, so Tek can’t get the bunt down and you’ve got Kotsay on 1st with one down. Shouldn’t this be a good time to pinch-run Jacoby? If you’re worried about them pitching around Papi, WHO CARES? Let them. Here’s the run expectancy matrix for the three most possible situations:
  • Runner on first, one out: 0.526
  • Runner on first, two outs: 0.228
  • Runners on first and second, one out: 0.908
  • Runner on second, one out: 0.688
  • Runner on second, two outs: 0.335

  So if Jacoby steals and they walk Papi, there’s an almost 20% better chance of a run scoring. But if you leave Kotsay in and Papi makes an out, suddenly your chance of scoring a run drops almost 30%. Do the math Tito.

• First place was THIS close.