If there was any doubt the Red Sox were finished after dropping 2 of 3 to the Tampa Bay Rays in their must-sweep series last weekend, today’s loss to the lowly Orioles, plus the trade of reliever Manny Delcarmen to the Rockies and the release of under-performing outfielder Jeremy Hermida sealed the deal today. It’s pretty sad - it’s not even September yet, and the Sox are playing out the string. For the next four 1/2 weeks expect to see a lot of young guys being tossed into the fray so they can be adequately assessed by the Sox front office who knows they have a busy off-season ahead of them.

It would be easy, far too much in my mind, to blame all the injuries suffered by the Sox starters as the sole reason for missing the playoffs for only the second time in the last (what will be) seven years. True, between centerfielder Jacoby Ellsbury’s fractured ribs and Mike Cameron’s abdominal tear, the Sox played most of the season without a major weapon on the base paths, and the outfield defense was nowhere near what it needed to be. And true, that rash of injuries that put catchers Victor Martinez and Jason Variek, first baseman Kevin Youkilis, and second baseman Dustin Pedroia out of action for extended periods in July and August didn’t help, but all that did was mask the fact that the Sox have got some serious issues that need to be addressed this winter if they even hope to compete with the Yankees and Rays going forward.

Consider: high-priced outfielder J.D. Drew’s numbers have decreased every year he’s been with the Sox, and this year, he didn’t even come close to living up to his $14 million annual salary. And, what to do with David Ortiz? Certainly “Big Papi” has had a pretty commendable year, but there’s no way the Sox bring him back anywhere near the $12 million he received in the last year of his contract. Of far greater concern (at least in my view) are the big bucks doled out for starters Daisuke Matsuzaka, John Lackey, and Josh Beckett - neither of which, with the exception of occasional flashes of brilliance, showed they could dominate good teams for seven innings or more. All three, when you come right down to it, have been huge wastes of money.

The Sox have a big decision to make with Victor Martinez. Do you re-sign him with an extended contract at big bucks? If so, do you play him as a catcher? Or play him at first base, moving Kevin Youkilis back to third? This is a difficult question - my guess is the Sox let him go and explore other options.

The bullpen also has a lot of questions that will need to be answered. Do you keep Jonathan Papelbon as your closer? Or, do you move Daniel Bard into that role and find someone else to set up for him? Hideki Okajima is undoubtedly gone, so middle-innings help will also be on the agenda. Speaking of which: what to do about veteran knuckleballer Tim Wakefield? He didn’t pitch particularly well this year either. Do the Sox keep him? If so, for what role?

Finally, do you bring manager Terry Francona back?

2007 and that wonderful World Series championship sweep against the Colorado Rockies sure seems a long time ago. Having the Sox already out of it this early also makes it seem as if Fall is already here, with February spring training not even a speck on the distant horizon. In between, it promises to be quite the intriguing offseason for the Red Sox and their front office. There are big changes to be made - hopefully, at the very least, they’ll find a way to put a product on the field in 2011 that’s at least entertaining and somewhat interesting to watch. Because this year has been pretty damned boring.

Wait ’til next year.

—

Pool temp: 87 degrees

So, what to make of the fact that, his divorce being final, Tiger Woods goes out and shoots his best round of the year? All I can say is, nice work today, Tiger, let’s see if you can put three more rounds together like that.

…and the same thing holds true for you, Michelle - one round does not a tournament make. Let’s see where both Tiger and Michelle stand come Sunday night.

Jim Furyk gets disqualified from this week’s Barclays because he overslept and missed his pro-am tee time by a few minutes? How ridiculous is that? Sure, rules are rules, but in this age of cell phones there’s nothing wrong with giving the guy a break if he makes a quick call, explains the situation, and tells his foursome to hold on, grab a brewskie or two on him, and let a couple of other foursomes go on out ahead until he gets there. It’s good for everyone, and is the most common sense solution.

…of course, in this Age of Obama, when you read things like this and this, common sense is the least common thing to be found.

How else to describe: European pro golfers try to skim a golf ball 200 yards across a lake and hit a 9-inch gong. Really. (Hat tip: National Review Online’s Corner Blog)

…and speaking of great golf shots, here’s a shot not even fellow Goodboy Ron “Cubby” Myerow would dare to attempt. I would, though…no shot is to difficult for The Great White Shank to at least want to give it a try.

—

Pool temp: 88 degrees (that’s -7 in 48 hours!)

…and it’s a big bright white one as I loll in the pool tonight. All around me the A/C units of the neighbors houses hiss and whoosh, turning off and on to the tune of their own varying thermostat settings. There are a few crickets out too, but frankly, with the temperature still at 94 at nearly 11 PM it’s too hot for them. So, it’s just me, the moon, the night, and the A/C units. With the pool temp at 93 there’s virtually no sense of temperature difference in my nighttime dip, the water is just wet.

But looking up at that moon, all I can think of (at least for this moment - otherwise, there’s a helluva lot more going on in my mind and life right now) is that wonderful doo-wop tune by the fabulous Capris - “There’s A Moon Out Tonight”. The end of the song (in bolds) features probably my absolute very favorite harmonic moment in all of pop music:

There’s a (moon out tonight) whoa-oh-oh ooh
Let’s go strollin’
There’s a (girl in my heart) whoa-oh-oh ooh
Whose heart I’ve stolen
There’s a moon out tonight (whoa-oh-oh ooh)
Let’s go strollin’ through the park (ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh)

There’s a (glow in my heart) whoa-oh-oh ooh
I never felt before
There’s a (girl at my side) whoa-oh-oh ooh
That I adore
There’s a glow in my heart I never felt before (ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh)

Oh darlin’
Where have you been?
I’ve been longin’ for you all my life

Whoa-uh-oh baby I never felt this way before
I guess it’s because there’s a moon out tonight

There’s a (glow in my heart) whoa-oh-oh ooh
I never felt before
There’s a (girl at my side) whoa-oh-oh ooh
That I adore
There’s glow in my heart
I guess it’s because

There’s a moon out tonight
Moon out tonight
Moon out tonight
Moon out tonight
There’s a moon out tonight

Really priceless to me. Reinforces my view that if I had to choose between being blind or deaf I’d choose blind any day.

There’s something both precious and timeless about watching baseball played at Fenway Park when late August and September come around that I’ve always loved. Whether it be from Massachusetts, Kentucky, or Arizona, you can always count on afternoon baseball being played amidst ever-lengthening shadows that encroach the field, first enveloping the right field stands, then the infield, then the pitcher’s mound, then finally the batter’s box area as the sun’s angle tells you that neither the baseball season nor you are as young and fresh and full of promise as you were just six short months ago. The season is coming down to the last month, the days and the number of games dwindling to dozens, and the marathon slowly becomes a sprint to the finish.

It’s during this time of year - if you’re a Red Sox fan, that is - that as much attention must be paid to the out-of-town scoreboard (isn’t that a lovely baseball phrase?) as to the game being played in front of you, for the last full week of August finds the Red Sox in a rather precarious position: 6 1/2 games behind the New York Yankees, and 5 1/2 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays and that precious wild card slot. It’s especially precarious because right the Sox have little margin for error - time is not on their side - and, while neither the Yankees nor the Rays are showing any kind of dominance, the standings have pretty much been the same for a while now.

While Nick Carfardo is right - you can’t count the Sox out yet, especially in a year where there are no dominant teams, in either league - the fact of the matter is, the Sox simply cannot lose any more ground; in fact, they need to start making up some ground by putting a meaningful winning streak together, if only to get the Yankees and Rays to start paying attention to their rear-view mirrors. For better or for worse, if the Sox are to accomplish this, they’re going to have to do it with the odd mix of replacements and youngsters they’ve gone with all year - infielder Bill Hall, outfielder Darnell McDonald, and, since mid-July, veteran Mike Lowell and youngsters like pitcher Felix Doubront and outfielder Ryan Kalish, both of which have provided more than a few sparks of promise. There’s no way the Sox can replace the loss of on-field leaders Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia, and Jacoby Ellsbury - all of which are lost for the rest of the year - they’re just going to have to make do.

I’ve been pretty hard on the Sox this year for the lack of excitement the product they’ve put out, both on the field and off (is it just me, or has long-time fan favorite Jerry Remy really lost it as an informative and entertaining color analyst beside Don Orsillo?), but the fact is, they haven’t warranted the attention they have in past years. The games drone on, sometimes interminably, without any real passion or excitement anywhere. Nevertheless, if you look beneath the surface, getting the Kalishes, Dubronts, (infielder Jeff) Lowries, and (pitcher Michael) Bowdens big-league experience in a pennant race like this is going to pay dividends down the line (if not this off-season), so all a fan can do is watch and see how close they can get.

The important thing this year, more than any other year in recent memory, is to get to the playoffs any which way you can. Without any dominant teams, the team that can get in and get hot at the same time has a damned good chance at becoming World Series champion. In these next five weeks, we’ll see if the Sox can bring some excitement to, what has been at least to this point, a rather dull and colorless season.

—

Pool temp: 92 gegrees

News item: TV and radio ratings fall for Red Sox.

I can’t say that’s surprising, because even though I spent good money on my MLB Extra Innings DirecTV package a couple of months back I haven’t felt a whole lot of interest, let alone passion, for this year’s edition of the Boston Red Sox. Talk about a waste of money - I’ve only watched a handful of games from start to finish, many not at all.

Y’know in show biz, it’s great if you’re really really good, even OK if you’re really really bad. The worst thing you can be is boring, and that’s what the 2010 edition of the Red Sox have been. Oh sure, there have been some nice human interest stories along the way in the replacement players the Sox have had to throw into the fray with the major injuries to Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Victor Martinez, Clay Buchholz, Josh Beckett, Jason Varitek, and Jeremy Hermida, and the day-to-day ailments of Mike Cameron and J.D. Drew, but let’s be honest: people don’t want to watch the likes of Kevin Cash, Darnell McDonald and Daniel Nava. Worse, in a town that’s gotten pretty cozy with winning, these guys ain’t gonna bring you to the Promised Land.

In a division with the Yankees and the Rays, not even close.

But there’s something else going on that maybe people don’t want to admit: sure, the Sox have had a damned good run with two World Series championships in 2004 and 2007, but now the cast of characters that brought those championships has gotten a little stale to interest people on a day-to-day basis. Think about it: David “Big Papi” Ortiz, while putting up decent enough numbers, is still a shadow of his former self. Pitcher Josh Beckett may be in the same category. Terry Francona has been a great manager - perhaps the best ever to have ever been at the Sox helm - but haven’t we seen his full act after seven years? The grand old core of Pedro Martinez, Curt Schilling, Varitek, Ramirez, Jonathan Papelbon, Hidecki Okajima, Drew, and Ortiz belong to the ages. It’s time for new management - and new blood - to surround the core of Pedroia, Buchholz, Kevin Youkilis, and Daniel Bard, especially with up-and-comers like outfielders Josh Reddick and Ryan Kalish, and shortstop Jose Iglesias just a year or two year away from bringing youthful enthusiasm and a sense of real excitement and passion back to the old ballyard.

Until then, watching the 2010 Sox is akin to watching the Rolling Stones or the Eagles play out the string. They was great times, to be sure, and they can still put on a hell of a show on occasion. But it’s time to move on.

All one has to do is contrast the play of the Rays and Yankees to realize the 2010 Red Sox are done like dinner. Right now, they’re not pitching well or defending well. And don’t even get me started on shortstop Marco Scutaro or Daisuke Matsuzaka. I can’t watch either of them.

I’m not jumping off the bandwagon; heck, I was never on it. I just find it hard to watch a caliber of baseball that simply doesn’t match up in excitement or intrigue to what I’ve - we’ve - been used to seeing. Obviously, I’m not alone in that assessment.

Time to start thinking New England Patriots football.

—

Pool temp: 92 degrees

A brief interruption from all things Goodboys…

Congrats to the “Pink Panther”, Paula Creamer, for toughing out a thumb injury and winning the U.S. Women’s Open at Oakmont last weekend. Not only does this get the monkey off of Creamer’s back, but hopefully this will refocus the media’ attention to women golfers who truly deserve attention based on their actual accomplishments instead of on Michelle Wie, who while supposedly (”supposedly” being the operative word) has all the talent in the world, but really hasn’t done anything to warrant the amount of media attention she has received other than being attractive.

Who will win this weekend’s big golf tournament? No, silly, not the British Open Championship, the Goodboys Invitational! Having watched Ben “The Funny Guy” Andrusaitis hit one perfect or near-perfect shot after another at Green Meadow’s World Cup Driving Range yesterday, I’m going with Sir Nick Faldo and predict a repeat championship with partner “Crusher” Spielberg. I’m sure they hope I’m proven wrong…

As for the British Open (as if that matters), I’m going with a return to excellence by Tiger Woods. Not only because he’s changed his putter, but, frankly, he knows he needs this one because: a) he loves playing at St. Andrews, b) he knows he’s not getting any younger, and c) he knows the playing field has equalized to the extent that he’ll never have a better chance to win his next major.

Now, I’m off to find a driving range where I can fix the “death move” - no, that’s not like a Obamacare “death panel”, but a basic swing flaw identified and finally isolated by “The Funny Guy” yesterday that I hope puts the final nail in the coffin of the reason behind my “Great White Shank” nickname. With the opening round less than two days away, it would be a good time to get that behind me.

—

Pool temp: 95 degrees! (the result of several broiling days back in AZ)

There are so many (or at least seemingly so) colorless golfers out there on the PGA Tour. Well, Bubba Watson is not one of them. After he tapped in on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff at the Travelers Championship to garner his first PGA Tour victory, to hear him speak honestly of its relative importance in his career and life (his father is battling cancer) was both poignant and refreshing. He’s definitely someone who knows not just how good he has it, but how to keep it all in perspective.

I haven’t followed his career much, but he’s such a likeable and offbeat character that I’ll be sure to root for him the next time he’s in contention. With his length and his overall game, my guess is I’ll have plenty of opportunities to do so in the future.

Contrast Watson with the “pouting prima dona” Sergio Garcia, who, as talented as he is, has yet to win a major tournament and is now struggling with a rather inferior game. Early on he too seemed like a likeable guy with his devil-may-care, Ballesteros-esque ability to pull off great shots from just about anywhere. Lately, he seems to be battling some inner demons and never appears to be enjoying himself - ever - when he’s playing golf.

…or, the troubled and increasingly surly Tiger Woods, whose true colors are coming out now that he knows he longer has to put up that “aw shucks, I’m just an everyday kind of guy” facade of his. After all the post-Thanksgiving revelations there’s nothing, or nowhere, left to hide. Me? I bet he dumps Steve Williams as his caddie sometime this year; after ditching his swing coach earlier this year, that will make his self-imposed isolation complete.

But enough about those clowns. If the PGA Tour truly wants to connect with the next generation of fans, they’d do well to promote the likes of players who appear to have it all together like the inherently likeable Bubba Watson.

Congratulations to Graeme McDowell for his “last man standing” triumph at the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.

The tournament as a whole was a fairly entertaining affair, but I think over the next few days you’ll see a Shinnecock Hills-esque backlash against the USGA for the setup at Pebble Beach, at least on the final day of play. Good people might disagree one way or another about a tournament where even par is good enough to win you a major championship, but it all comes down to that great U.S. Open question - would you rather have the golfers or the golf course as the star of the show?

Me, I would have liked to see a setup where someone could shoot, say, a 65 or a 66 to make a charge from behind or create some head-to-head drama like the folks at Augusta National are able to do come Masters Sunday. Today, it wasn’t just that neither Phil, Ernie, or Tiger were able to put a low round together to generate some edge-of-your-seat drama, it was that no one in the field could. It was all defensive golf out there today, and, let’s face it, defensive golf just isn’t that exciting or compelling to watch.

Nevertheless, Pebble Beach remains an awesome place to watch competitive golf played at, and you have to tip your hat to McDowell for his play in winning his first major championship. He played steady all weekend along, and steady was the key to victory at this year’s U.S. Open. I just wish the USGA had created a setup - at least for Sunday’s final round - that allowed for a less restrictive style of play where the penalties for taking chances weren’t so severe; it would have made for a much more entertaining tournament.

I think that’s why the Masters and the British Open remain my favorite majors to watch: both tournaments are held at venues that reward imaginative play and accommodate different styles of play. At Pebble Beach this weekend, there was only one way to skin a cat, and credit Graeme McDowell for figuring out the best way to do just that.

—

Pool temp: 90 degrees

Study: Using Sunscreen May Actually Accelerate Skin Cancer. Now they tell us. Me, I’m still going to goop up when I play golf with the Goodboys this July.

Russia plans big naval exercise off North Korea. I have a feeling that both Russia and China eliminate the source of this latest crisis before he’s allowed to go mustang on South Korea. Having dealth with this clown for the better part of three decades, they know he’s unstable and what he’s capable of.

Obama on BP oil spill: “I’m fully engaged.” And yet, when asked about the departure of Elizabeth Birnbaum, the head of the Minerals Management Service - the agency that oversees offshore oil drilling, the President replied that he didn’t know whether she had resigned or was fired. Doesn’t sound very “fully engaged” to me.

Ban on chicken suits at polls still stands. Um, I think I’ll let the article speak for itself, but I think Nevada has bigger eggs to fry than worrying about how people present themselves when voting.

State Department: US troops won’t be used to stop illegal immigration. OK, so doesn’t that beg the question of what the#@!$ they’re being sent to the border to begin with? It is truly sad that this administration knows only how to play politics, if they ever figured out how to govern and lead maybe they’d be doing better in the polls. All I can say is, I can’t wait for November.

Tony Romo’s golf game continues to impress at Open qualifier. A pretty incredible story, whenj you think about it. There are pros and some excellent collegiate golfers just a sneeze away from the Nationwide Tour that failed to make their local qualifiers. Compare Romo to the more likely kind of scenario experienced by Jerry Rice, and you’ll know what I mean.

Yahoo! News headline (really): Recent wet weather could mean more summer mosquitos. Well, no sh*t, Sherlock. I’d love to know what genius came up with that one. And, how much taxpayer money funded that study. This country really is going down the tubes…

—

Pool temp: 83 degrees

AAAAARRRGGGHHHHH! What kind of an idiot would dream of calling for Red Sox manager Terry Francona’s dismissal before the 2010 baseball season even got slightly halfway through May? I mean, what the $#@! is up with that?

The problem with bloggers like The Great White Shank is that they give bloggers and blogging a bad name - always reactionary, impatient, impertinent, impossible to live with, and impotent - oops, at least not yet. Now take Rob, or Dave, for instance. Those are nice boys and even nicer bloggers - they never shoot before they ask questions, their blog posts are always measured and on target, and they’re never, ever wrong. This Great White Shank is a virtual (and actual) idiot, and I’m amazed anyone would give a tinker’s cuss about anything he has to say.

Look at how quickly the Sox have turned their season around: they took 1 of 3 from the Yankees when it could have easily - easily - been two. They took 2 of 2 from the Twins. They took 2 of out 3 from the Phillies. They freakin’ swept the Rays, including long-time nemesis Matt Garza (he of the incessant spitting and ugly facial hair), whom they sent to the showers early. David “Big Papi” Ortiz has once again become a force to be reckoned with, the Red Sox starters - even Daisuke Matsuzaka - have picked it up big time, and Adrian Beltre finally looks like the real deal.

Of course, The Great White Shank in his oh-so-infinite wisdom had the entire team on the trading block and Terry Francona out to pasture like a broken-down war horse just 10 days ago, but you’ll never hear him apologize or admit what a jerk he was. But does Chicken Little care? No, he’s far more interested in what his pool temperature is, or raving about the Bambi Molesters’ bitchin’ new release, or lamenting how Barack Obama has that magical combination of inexperience and arrogance that makes him unqualified to be Lindsay Lohan’s own personal bartender, let alone the President of the United States.

Do me a favor: the next time you see a post from The Great White Shank having anything at all to do with baseball, run away from it quicker than Connecticut Attorney General and U.S. Senate candidate Richard Blumenthal has from his bloviating about his service in Vietnam. You’ll be the better for it, believe me.

—

Pool temp: 81 degrees