The Random Musings and Writings of Brandon

On April 24th, the Red Sox lost to the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards by a score of 10-3. It was the fourth loss in succession by the Red Sox, and their sixth loss in seven games. The Red Sox record stood at a miserable 9-17, after having lost eight of their first ten games of the season as well. That night, the upper management of the Red Sox (in particular President/CEO Sam Kennedy and Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow - with go ahead from ownership (John Henry and Tom Werner in particular) and Brian O'Halloran (Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations). However, it was not until the next day - after the Red Sox crushed the Orioles by a score of 17-1 and after Breslow and Kennedy had made their way down to Baltimore - that the axe actually fell. Alex Cora - who won the World Series in his first season with the Red Sox in 2018 - was dismissed for a second time (he was dismissed before the 2020 season due to his association with the 2017 Houston Astros sign stealing sc...

Last Saturday, I traveled the long, lonely road up to a T-Station outside of Boston and commuted into Fenway Station. Where I commenced a shortish walk (along the Fenway Trail, a walking path that did not exist the last time I departed from Fenway Station) to Fenway Park. Passing along the way a series of sculptures of numbers, commemorating all of the Red Sox players who have had their numbers retired by the Boston Red Sox - each with a little explanation of the player and their time with the Bosox. I was there to participate in a long tradition, the annual SOSH Bash, a tradition that began in 2003. Organized by one of the great women of Red Sox fandom, Cheri Giffin (aka BoSoxLady), who has organized every Red Sox Bash during this time. But this one was different. It was the final one she would be organizing. It was, as the title says, the end of an era. SOSH - an acronym for the Sons of Sam Horn (which itself is a portmanteau of Son of Sam and former Red Sox great Sam Horn) - was (an...

As we enter a new month and say goodbye to April - a dastardly month - I finished the novel Norwegian Wood by Japanese author Haruki Murakami - a novel which first appeared in Japan in 1987, but whose official English translation by Jay Rubin was released in 2000.  However, before I give a review of the book, I suppose I should elucidate on why I said April is a dastardly month. Now, for some readers of this weird little blog I have going will know, my father-in-law passed away in the middle of April. However, eleven years ago, my mother also passed away in the beginning of April. And, not to be forgotten, 2 years and 3 days ago, my lovely wife Dawn passed into the great beyond. As it is often said - although whether or not this has actually been tested and verified to be true is unknown to me - things do tend to come in threes. Now, there was something I was going to do to celebrate my mother during April - but which has failed to come out in a timely manner. Please be on the look...