[Kneel B4 Zod]

yeah, it's been too long.

I've gone through the typical cycle where I look at the opponent and convince myself of how good they are. kind of like during the last 6 Super Bowl weeks, you convince yourself that the NFC can somehow compete with the AFC, then they get hammered.

trouble is, I really do think Cleveland/Boston is close to a coin-flip. HFA could end up being a big factor. CC did not look comfortable/good in his 1st playoff start, and hopefully that + a loud Fenway crowd can get him off his game.

that said, I think the 3rd and 4th pitchers will be the biggest factor in this series, we can debate how much better CC/Fausto is than Beckett/Schill, but I think the reality is that it will be pretty close. I expect all 4 to pitch well.

but the big edges could come in games 3, 4 and maybe 7. if July Dice-K shows up, the Indians are in trouble. if it's ALDS Dice-K, the Red Sox are in trouble. and if Wakefields knuckler is going, that's a huge weapon for the Sox. I think you largely know what you're going to get from Westbrook/Byrd - but the Sox pitchers can/should either be much better or worse than those 2. I doubt that will be the case for games 1,2,5 or 6.