Is there Sawx Magic this year?

Anyone who knows me knows me as a card carrying nutjob of Red Sox Nation - and proud of it mind you! So where do I stand w.r.t. Sox' playoff chances, especially in light of that juggernaut whose name I won't say?

Well, my answer is that I am not without hope. But a lot of things have got to come together at just the right time. The Sox have shown the capacity, at times, to be deservedly called an elite team. Lately they have been playing very well (perhaps in streaks). Theo made some fantastic deadline deals, they have a great homefield advantage, and some players who have not contributed are now contributing (hello Dice-K, Bucholz, and yes Big Papi).

Of course there are reasons to doubt them as well. Can Alex Gonzalez hit like he has the past 2 months? Will Ortiz go back into a funk when the spotlight turns back to the steroid allegations (which they undoubtedly will once they are on primetime TV night after night)? Are Lester and Beckett healthy going into the playoffs? And what do you do with Wake?

But these are all sideplots. To me the playoffs will boil down to a few simple deciding factors:

1. We believe we have the best starting pitching, a near-best bullpen. Do we? These are our hole cards without question, and we need it to come up aces.
2. Nobody wants to say it, but boy do we miss Manny's bat in the lineup. Not one word from me about wishing he was here, I don't. But Ortiz-Ramirez struck fear into every opponent, and could change any game when their turn came up. Every Sox fan in the last 5 years, in a close game, would count batters before these guys got up again. Youk and Bay are wonderful players, but we won't see the likes of that duo again for a long time to come.
3. Let's face it, these playoffs are more about those damn Yankees than it they are about us. If they play the way they have been playing, who is going to stop them? Nobody. Especially in that bandbox BS little park they play in (another post on that later). A-Fraud, CC, Burnett, Texiera all have to show they can do it on the big stage under the bright lights. Does CC remember 2007? You bet the Fenway Faithful will remind him.

In the end, these playoffs are the Yankees vs. the Yankees.

p.s. Am I overlooking the Angels. you betcha