Did I mention I love the Red Sox?

I know I have. :) You'll see more Patriots news as the season approaches. I usually report on highlights from games I thought were fantastic, or games that had noteworthy performance from my standpoint, statistics standpoint- or from a valued source. This time, its both from the game I watched last night- and realizing how important and incredible this accomplishment is- for so many reasons.

Lester has had a few lackluster performances so far this season, to say the least- but none of his teammates, or Francona ever doubted him. They always said, "he has great stuff, he just needs confidence." While I wanted to trust their word, his apparent inability to have a clean inning, and his penchant for gathering several men on base and having to pitch out of tough situations, so on and so forth has been frustrating. I wondered if he would come around,(I hoped he would) and wondered what exactly needed to happen in order for him to gain confidence. I got the answer last night. Lester blew me away with his command, and the aggressiveness he showed at the mound with EVERY hitter. It was the fourth no-hitter of the captain Jason Varitek's career with the Red Sox. No other catcher has that many. It isn't just the statistics that blow me away, its also how difficult it is to accomplish that feat. So many things go into that, from discipline, stamina, and command from the pitcher; but also stellar defense, clean plays, and a cleanly (and creative) called game from behind the plate. The rules are a bit sketchy surrounding no-hitters- I really didn't understand that until reading this article. I didn't really grasp the significance of his accomplishment... until reading that article. All this put together, pitching a no-hitter is a challenging feat that most pitchers could NEVER even dream of doing.

Usually you can tell almost RIGHT away whether a pitcher will make it or not in Boston. Many don't. (perfect example, Eric Gagne. We called him "GAG-ne" ) First, they have to be thick-skinned, strong, disciplined etc to survive the Boston fans. Talent isn't enough up here. This stretches to all New England fans in general, going in line with Belichik's "Do your job" philosophy. You don't do that, you don't survive up here. I was literally brought up learning this from day one- and my love of the game and the Red Sox has never and will never stop growing.

Anyway, that's enough for now.... Congratulations Jon Lester!