BOSTON (AP) -First, it was Manny’s pose. Then, it was Kenny’s drop.
Two seemingly harmless moments near home plate have raised the intensity level between the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians in the AL championship series.
In Game 4 at Jacobs Field, Manny Ramirez irritated some Indians – and angered many of their fans – for raising his arms in triumph and admiring a solo home run, a shot that only pulled his team to 7-3 in a loss.
Cleveland manager Eric Wedge shrugged it off as a “non-issue.”
“I think people know Manny well enough that there isn’t an agenda tied to it,” he said.
Maybe not. But Ramirez’s act certainly intensified the atmosphere in Game 5, which reached a boiling point when Kenny Lofton and Josh Beckett exchanged words in the fifth inning, sparking a benches- and bullpen-clearing summit.
Lofton had flipped his bat to the ground at what he thought was ball four, but umpire Gary Cederstrom called it a strike. When Beckett retired Lofton on a fly ball to left field on his next pitch, Boston’s ace screamed at the Cleveland outfielder, who returned a few profane words of his own.
The two have a history dating to 2005, and don’t like each other.
“I’ve been doing it my whole career,” Lofton said. “I guess he’s been in the game for 20 years and he can tell guys what they can and can’t do. That’s who he is, he’s that kind of guy.”
On Friday, Wedge did his best to downplay the Beckett vs. Lofton conflict.
“I don’t think there was any more to that,” he said. “I’m surprised we haven’t seen more of it when it comes to the postseason because emotions run high. There was some verbiage back and forth and they toed up a little bit, and everybody ran out and got some exercise, and everybody ran back, which is usually the way it works. But nothing really happened.”
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LEFT AT THE ALTAR: Rockies ace Jeff Francis had a good reason for skipping out on his brother Chris’ wedding in Croatia last weekend – he was helping Colorado get to the World Series.
“I got to talk to my brother on his wedding day, and he was pleased,” said Francis, who was supposed to be the best man. “I promised him some World Series tickets, so I hope that makes up for it.”
Francis, who won a franchise record 17 games during the season and is 2-0 with a 2.13 ERA in the playoffs, said his brother went with the earlier date back in the spring when it looked as though the Rockies were headed for their seventh straight losing season.
“When he first planned the wedding, which was before the season started, he had a plan A and a plan B,” Francis said. “Plan A was having it Oct. 13, and plan B was moving it to November. And when those plans got solidified in April and May, the Rockies weren’t doing so hot.
“So he solidified it to Oct. 13, and the end of September we go on an incredible run to get into the playoffs,” Francis said. “So, yeah, I missed my brother’s wedding, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and my brother wants me to be here.”
Francis will start Game 1 of the World Series on Wednesday night at Cleveland or Boston.
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CURT ON CALL: The camera zoomed in on the speaker phone on the table. No one sat behind it. A familiar voice came out of it – as strong and opinionated as ever.
Usually, Curt Schilling loves to appear before cameras. But on Friday he answered questions from another location about his start Saturday night in Game 6 of the AL championship series. Trailing 3-2 in the best-of-seven series, Schilling and the Boston Red Sox must win or the Indians will go to the World Series.
“I’m scared to death to not do well tomorrow,” he said. “But I’m also very cognizant of the fact that that fear is something that has always driven me and always pushed me.”
Schilling returned home before Thursday night’s 7-1 win in Cleveland to rest and prepare for what could be his last start in a Boston uniform. A potential free agent after this season, he’s not likely to be a top priority for the Red Sox, who have several young starters poised to play bigger roles.
Schilling said it was tough to watch Thursday’s game from afar, especially since there was a chance he’d never pitch for the Red Sox again if they had lost.
“Last night, it did dawn on me,” he said. “I don’t dwell on it. I have so much going on mentally right now to get ready for tomorrow.
“No matter how badly I want to come back here and how badly I want to be a part of this, it takes two to tango, and if it’s not in the cards on their end, then it’s not going to happen.”
Schilling wanted a contract extension during spring training, but the Red Sox declined.
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MONEY TALKS: “Rocktober!” It’s become the rallying cry for thousands of fans who’ve followed the Colorado Rockies’ improbable streak into the World Series.
It’s appeared on newspaper headlines and fans’ signs at Coors Field. Gov. Bill Ritter proclaimed October “Rocktober” in the midst of the Rockies’ surge, 21 victories in their last 22 games, with the word written in Rockies’ purple.
Now the team’s lawyers want to determine who gets to use the buzzword, at least anytime there’s money involved.
The Rockies filed applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Oct. 4 asking for exclusive nationwide rights to use of “Rocktober” – not only on T-shirts and bobblehead dolls but stuffed animals, Christmas stockings, baby booties and more.
A team spokesman didn’t immediately return telephone calls Friday seeking comment.
The Rockies also filed for trademark protection for the phrase within Colorado, though attorneys say any real protection would come with a federal trademark. That process usually takes a year or more, meaning rights to the phrase wouldn’t have much value unless the Rockies can do it again next year.
“I’m just guessing that they hope that next year the Rockies are actually good and don’t pull a Chicago White Sox,” said Scott Kannady, a Denver lawyer who specializes in trademark and franchise law.
Kannady said anyone making “Rocktober” T-shirts locally before the Rockies filed for federal protection could claim they have common law rights to continue doing so.
Major League Baseball spokeswoman Susan Goodenow said MLB pursues the same course to protect team logos and names. She said a “Rocktober” trademark would only be enforced against people using the term for commercial reasons, not fans showing their support for the Rockies.
“Certainly we want to see fans celebrate the first World Series in Denver. If they’re using Rocktober in a sign, certainly that doesn’t fall into this,” she said.
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