COVERITLIVE.COM

11:53

Boston.com - Good afternoon, Boston.com chatters. Chad will be here in a few minutes to talk Sox, Pats, Pedro, and whatever else is on your minds. In the meantime, feel free to start submitting questions now . . .

12:04

Chad Finn - Hey guys -- Thanks for stopping by. Can't get last night's Series game off my mind. Reminded me of how much I loved watching Pedro, and how frustrating it used to be to have the offense let him down in the Bronx. That's about as compelling as it gets, though.

12:04

[Comment From This Guy]
How cool was it to see Pedro pitch like that last night? Were it not for Charlie Manuel's Grady Little impersonation the game might have ended a little more favorably (unlike Mazz I refuse to root for the Yankees).

12:07

Chad Finn - Maybe, though at least Manuel was wise enough to get Pedro out of there before he faced Posada. (Posada says all the right things, but c'mon -- you know he HATES Pedro.) But if it had stayed a one-run game and they eighth inning somehow played out in a similar fashion, Manuel would be getting killed for not starting the runners -- or protesting the blown call at first base -- on Utley's DP. You have to get Howard a shot in that situation.

12:07

[Comment From GreasyWindow]
So seeing Toni Braxton do the anthem last week got me thinking about Curtis Martin. He quietly had an incredibly productive career. How much HOF consideration do you think he'll get? Do you think he regrets not sticking with the Pats and getting a ring or two?

12:10

Chad Finn - You know, after all of the success the Pats have had this decade, Curtis still may be my all-time favorite Pats player. (And I suspect you know this when you submitted the question.) Total class act, incredibly fun to watch (remember the spin move against the Packers in the Super Bowl?), and a lock for the Hall of Fame -- he's fourth on the all-time rushing list. But I don't think he regrets leaving the Pats -- he doesn't strike me as someone who wastes time on regret. The Patriots probably should regret calling him an injury risk and paying the likes of Todd Rucci instead, however.

12:10

[Comment From Guest]
Are you in Mazz's camp and rooting for the Yankees to win because that will be better for the Red Sox?

12:11

Chad Finn - Noooooooooope. I'm rooting for a couple of people things: 1) Pedro. 2) Ryan Howard (just a likeable dude). 3) A memorable World Series (so far, so good). 4) And a soul-crushing seventh-game loss for the Yankees.

12:11

[Comment From Josh]
any chance the rivalry between Mazz and Felger is just contrived to drive up ratings? I feel like they make ridiculous claims and arguments just to be contrarian to each other, but seem to almost like each other at other times... it's a little annoying and I'd prefer they just talk sports straight... like Tanguay and Zolak do.

12:12

Chad Finn - It's genuine.

12:13

Chad Finn - For the record, I don't understand how people would dislike Toucher and Rich. Some of their stuff is hit or miss, I suppose, but they're genuinely funny, can admit when they screw something up, and hassle Tanguay to great effect. My commute feels a lot shorter than it used to.

12:14

[Comment From Guest]
Are you sticking to your Yankees in 6 prediction?

12:16

Chad Finn - Yeah, still feel like they'll win the series, unless Hamels can get his act together, and he's had a inconsistent year at best. He's lost velocity, which has obviously affected the effectiveness of his changeup. And I still feel like Lidge will cough one up Pujols-style at some point -- I mean, his stats are so awful it's ridiculous (0-8, 11 blown saves, ERA over 7). But I'd sure like to be wrong, and it's not meant as disrespect to the Phillies. That's damn talented and likable team.

12:17

[Comment From Jake]
Ronda plays against 2 of the best PGs in the game: Rose tonight and CP3 on sunday? Who plays better in those games Rondo or the other guy?

12:19

Chad Finn - Rondo outplays Rose, holds his own against Paul. He always brings his best against the elite guys, which is an attribute as well as a flaw, if you think about it. It's going to be really interesting to see what kind of season Rondo has, whether he gets the extension or not. Sometimes it looks like he can do anything he wants at will, and other times, he looks like he couldn't score if he was alone in the gym. But there's no doubt he's perhaps the most fun player to watch in years, and he's only, what, 23? Gotta figure he takes another step forward this year.

12:19

[Comment From Josh]
Seems to me that the media is overcovering Burnett's outing last night, and more or less ignoring a rather masterful performance by Petey against an extremely prolific offense... Yankee favoritism?

12:22

Chad Finn - Nah. Burnett was awesome, and he deserves credit. I don't know how anyone hits that guy when he's on. He's got a Wiffle Ball slider, and that 97 mph fastball that cuts back over the plate against lefties is absolutely unhittable. I'll say this, though -- he'll never be the pitcher at age 38 that Pedro is. He's all stuff. Pedro at this point is all guile, but he's so smart that he gets the job done. It was a treat to watch both of them pitch last night, even if the outcome we were rooting for didn't happen.

12:22

[Comment From Sully]
Hey Chad...What do you think of Mazz's assertion that a Yankee championship will knock Sox management out of it's complacency? I seem to recall that when this group took control of the team, the plan was to spend whatever they had to to win it all. Then essentially become the Patriots of baseball. Field a competetive and economically pheasable team good enough to make the playoffs every year and hopefully get hot. Seems like they're were they want to be.

12:26

Chad Finn - Yeah, that's the approach they take, and I seem to recall that it worked fairly well in 2007. I stand by the assertion that they didn't go higher on Teixeira because they caught on to the fact that he was ticketed for New York, and I'm pretty sure I was the only one writing as the negotiations were going on that what happened would happen. And I think the 95-wins-and-see-what-happens approach is a little exaggerated around here. I mean, the Sox strive to make the playoffs, but they are wise enough to realize that getting there is no guarantee they'll win it all; look at all the money the Yankees spent since, oh, 2001, with no championships as a result. This is just reactionary stuff to the Yankees getting to the series after spending $423 million on three players. I like the Sox approach better -- pay for elite players, build a deep farm system, and have a prolonged run of success. It's been better than the Yankees' approach until this year.

12:27

[Comment From Koi Pond]
"The Office" last night, one of the top 3 worst episodes, not this season but in the 6 season's it has been on. I am still not sure what the plot was? Michale falls into a Koi Pond? Pam and Andy role play? Stupid fish zings aimed towards Michale?

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