I’m the rare Dodgers/Celtics fan. The Celtics have been in the NBA Finals six times during my lifetime. I only remember two of them, but five of the six have been against the Lakers. The two that I remember were against the Lakers. I love Boston (as in the city, not just the Celtics) and I hate the Lakers. When the Celtics beat the Lakers in 2008, it was one of the greatest days of my life. When they lost to the Lakers in 2010, it was one of the toughest losses I’ve ever had as a fan. If we compare it to other games where my favorite teams had a chance to win a championship, I’m pretty sure it’s the worst loss I’ve ever dealt with as a fan. The Celtics had a chance to win that game. And it was a loss to the Celtics’ biggest rival, but at least they had won it two years before. Notre Dame football is the team I care most about. When we lost to Alabama, it was over early. It didn’t hurt nearly as much as Celtics-Lakers in 2008. Game 7 last year of the World Series hurt a lot too. I’d rank that in between Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals and the BCS Championship Game. The Astros jumped on the Dodgers early and it was never really competitive. But the Dodgers and Astros were evenly matched for the series (total runs were 34-34 for the series). And it had been 29 years since they had won the World Series. But still Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals is my worst loss as a sports fan. A Dodgers-Red Sox World Series is pretty weird for me. I’m not conflicted in any way, but it’s still weird to be rooting for the Los Angeles team against the Boston team.
Besides sports, I love beer. I own one share of stock in the Boston Beer Company. Sam Adams Summer Ale is my favorite beverage. Clayton Kershaw is my favorite baseball player ever. I try to drink a Summer Ale whenever he pitches. But much like I won’t drink Sam Adams when the Patriots are in the Super Bowl, I can’t drink Sam Adams when the Dodgers are playing the Red Sox in the World Series. So I went to get some World Series beer yesterday. Blue Bell had some California beers, but most were from Northern California. There was one from a brewery about halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, but the beer was called Union Jack IPA. That definitely didn’t seem appropriate for watching the World Series. So I went back to the Dodgers’ roots and picked up some Brooklyn Lager. The Brooklyn brewery used to make a Pennant Ale 55 in honor of the 1955 World Series Champions, but they don’t brew that one anymore. So I will be drinking Brooklyn Lager during the World Series.
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| I've had Brooklyn Lager before, but I hope this six pack tastes like a World Series Championship. |
Dave Roberts vs. Alex Cora. They were teammates in Los Angeles. Dave Roberts drove in 71 runs as a Dodger and 23 of them were Alex Cora. I liked Alex Cora when he was a Dodger. Of course he had the 18-pitch at bat that ended with a home run. And of course, Dave Roberts had the most important stolen base in baseball history with the Red Sox. I was mad that the Dodgers traded Dave Roberts that year because they totally could have used him as a pinch runner when they got to the playoffs (they lost to the Cardinals in the first round). But Red Sox fans can’t be mad if Dave Roberts beats them in the World Series, right?
The Dodgers and Red Sox haven’t played in the World Series since 1916. That was before the Star Spangled Banner was played at baseball games (the first time that happened was the 1918 World Series, which was before the Star Spangled Banner was the national anthem). The Red Sox won in five. The Dodgers were known as the Robins then. Babe Ruth pitched a 14-inning complete game in Game 2 (that game was 2 hours and 32 minutes). Will any pitcher pitch 14 innings in this year’s World Series? Even if it goes seven games, it’s possible that nobody pitches 14 innings. In the 1916 World Series, the Red Sox played their home games at Braves Field because it had a bigger capacity than Fenway Park. And I’m a traditionalist. I know interleague play isn’t going away, but how cool would it be if these games were going to be the first between the Dodgers and Red Sox in 102 years (which would then also be the Dodgers' first ever games in Fenway Park)? But the Red Sox are one of the three teams other than the Dodgers that Clayton Kershaw has never faced (the Twins and the Orioles are the other two).
I’ve seen the Dodgers play at 12 different stadiums (that includes Fenway Park). I’ve spent plenty of money going to Dodger games around the country. If the Dodgers had played the Red Sox in the World Series last year, the Dodgers would have had home field advantage. That would have meant that the games in Boston would have been on the weekend. I think I would have tried to go to Game 4 if that had happened. Of course the Yankees were one win away from playing the Dodgers last year. I would have definitely tried to go to a game if that had happened. But it looks like I’ll be watching from home again this year.
Speaking of stadiums, Fenway Park and Dodger Stadium in the World Series. I've been to 31 stadiums. Other than the Dodgers, I root for teams to make the playoffs based on what stadium they play in because I want to see good stadiums on TV in the playoffs. Based on my stadium rankings, here are the teams that I'd want to see in the playoffs:
NL West: Dodgers
NL Central: Pirates
NL East: Nationals
NL Wild Cards: Padres and Cubs
AL West: Mariners
AL Central: Royals
AL East: Red Sox
AL Wild Cards: Twins and Yankees
And here's how I'd want the playoffs to go:
NLCS: Dodgers over Pirates
ALCS: Red Sox over Royals
World Series: Dodgers over Red Sox (I do have Fenway ranked number 1 and Dodger Stadium ranked number 2, but there's no more baseball after the World Series so it's totally cool if Fenway is eliminated in the World Series)
Unfortunately Notre Dame has a night game against Navy in San Diego next Saturday, which is Game 4 of the World Series. The World Series will be on TV and Notre Dame will be on the iPad. The good news is I can go to the vigil mass and pray for wins before the games (I don’t know much about St. Vibiana, but I do know that she’s the patron saint of Los Angeles). The last time the Dodgers won the World Series was 1988. The last time Notre Dame won the National Championship in football was 1988. Maybe the 30th anniversary is going to be a good one.
Anything can happen. Nothing will surprise me. Either team could win in a sweep and it could go seven games. I’ve seen the Celtics win a championship. I need to see the Dodgers win one. And I really hope they win one with Clayton Kershaw on the team. If they lost this year and then won one in a few years when Kershaw wasn’t on the team anymore, I’d still be excited, but it wouldn’t mean quite as much. This can be the year. My one prediction is that Matt Kemp will get the biggest hit of the World Series. Because that makes no sense. So why wouldn’t it happen?
Let’s Go Dodgers!
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