SOX DOMINATE COAST -TO-COAST CONTEST
Boston brings talent to La La Land
In a colossal clash of coastal cultures, the World Series arrives in La La Land tonight after the Red Sox dominated the Dodgers in America’s Most Beloved Ballpark. It’s sunny Tinseltown vs. a chilly, cloudy, gruff, bluecollar-yet-high-tech Boston. L.A. is a warm, esoteric, superficial, focused-in-themoment, effervescent, multicultural melting pot that reinvents itself on a weekly basis. We’re tied to our past and damn proud of it. Swipe right, America. Fenway Park’s cold shoulder turned the Dodgers a paler shade of blue. The National League champions were treated like obnoxious tourists looking for “Cheers.” Alex Cora’s turf — where David Price came to life and Joe Kelly was re-tooled into an ace — is giving way to Dodger Stadium for Games 3, 4 and 5 (if necessary). It’s always sunny in La La, even during smog alerts. The crowd in Los Angeles is noteworthy for arriving late and leaving early. The Red Sox can send them home for good with two wins in the next three nights. The Dodgers are two-time National League Champs, but millions upon millions of eyes in Los Angeles remain fixated upon basketball. New England has Tom Brady. Los Angeles has the Lakers. From West, to Wilt, to Kareem, to Magic, to Kobe, to LeBron James. Everything and everyone fights for second place on Hollywood’s sports page. If this goes to a Game 5, Sunday will see the Dodgers, Lakers, Clippers and Rams all playing in L.A. (Dodgers fall to Red Sox in World Series — See Story, Page 23) Boston and L.A. were engaged in this food fight decades before politicians wagered Dodger Dogs against clam chowder. The combative sports lineage here goes back to Bill Russell and Bob Cousy facing off against Elgin Baylor and Jerry West in the 1962 NBA Finals. (The Lakers held court in Minneapolis prior.) In 2018, Bill Russell is tweeting his support of the Red Sox and Magic Johnson is part owner of the Dodgers. The 2018 Boston Red Sox have had a spring in their step since Day 1 in Fort Myers. The moribund John Farrell was replaced by Alex Cora and his take-no-prisoners-but-steal-every-base style of relentless baseball. These immensely talented Red Sox seem to genuinely like each other. That affection has spread to the fan base. Not only is this the most athletic team of my Red Sox lifetime, it is packed with players you’d love to
have as your next-door neighbor. Gone are those 25 cabs. Now, you’d probably stuff the whole roster into three or four Uber XLs. This shift to L.A. means no designated hitter, the possibility of Mookie Betts playing second base and Anybody’s Guess as Boston’s Game 4 starter. Cora is ready for it all, having helped the Astros navigate past these same Dodgers in seven games during last year’s Fall Classic. The Red Sox won the A.L. East and ALDS in the Bronx. They won the pennant in Houston. It may be undeniable destiny that they ice the World Series in Los Angeles. Coast-to-coast domination. Boston would have it no other way.
Bill Speros (aka Obnoxious Boston Fan) tweets at @RealOBF and can be reached at bsperos1@Gmail.com.