Red Sox suffering from a curse, just not that one

I’m usually not one to believe in curses, but isn’t this getting a little ridiculous?

As I… I’m usually not one to believe in curses, but isn’t this getting a little ridiculous?

As I write this, there is still hope, but by the time this column is printed, the American League Championship Series will be over. That’s right, I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that — as of late Saturday night — the curse of the Bambino will live on for another year, and the Yankees will sweep the ALCS and make their 27th World Series appearance while the Red Sox watch it on television just like you and I.

This curse nonsense has been going on so long that it almost seems the lovable losers the BoSox have begun to look forward to blowing it every fall. It’s called the curse of the Bambino because, in 1920 — yeah, that’s not a misprint, 84 years ago — Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold the contract of George Herman Ruth, the Sultan of Swat, to the Yanks, and the Sox haven’t won since.

There isn’t enough room in this sports section for me to talk about all the close calls and losses that have happened in Bean town over the past 84 years. The biggest choke, according to ESPN’s 25th anniversary committee, is probably the most disturbing proof that the curse truly exists. The trickling ground ball that went through Bill Buckner’s legs on October 25, 1986, lost Boston game six of the World Series, and the Red Sox never recovered, as the Mets went on to win game seven and the title.

But that was 18 years ago. I was still a couple months away from celebrating my second birthday. I guess it must have been important if we are still talking about it, but it seems like nothing when you stop and think about what has gone on in recent years.

The curse seems to have reawakened, and the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry is as heated as ever.

Not only did the Yankees absolutely embarrass the Red Sox in game three by pounding 22 hits for 19 runs, but they also were celebrating the first anniversary of game seven of the 2003 ALCS. Yeah, you remember, Pedro staying in the game just a little too long, the Evil Empire rallying and then winning on Aaron Boone’s 11th-inning, walk-off homerun.

Hollywood really couldn’t have scripted it any better than that. Especially since the Yankees’ starting pitcher for that game a year ago was Roger Clemens. Granted, the “Rocket” has since retired and returned, and moved to the National League by signing with his hometown Houston Astros; but I believe he is still affecting this rivalry.

If you feel the Curse of the Bambino is a little outdated, or like me, were still in diapers when Buckner choked, you might want to consider the “Curse of the Rocket.”

You may laugh, but hear me out.

First off, Clemens broke into the league when he was 22 in 1984 with the Sox. He was thrust into the lineup so soon because Boston had traded one of its starters, leaving a spot in the rotation. That pitcher was Dennis Eckersley, and he was sent to the Cubs for Bill Buckner. Yeah, how weird is that?

Secondly, when his contract expired in 1996, Clemens wanted a five-year extension. The Sox felt he was too old and wouldn’t be the dominant power-pitcher that earned him three Cy Youngs and an American League Most Valuable Player award. Needless to say, he left Boston and signed with the Toronto Blue Jays.

He was anything but washed up while he was north of the border. In two seasons as a Blue Jay, the Rocket won 41 games with an average ERA of 2.35 and won the Cy Young both years.

To cap off his revenge of the Sox, Clemens was traded to the Yankees in 1999. In the Bronx, Clemens won two World Series titles, another Cy Young, and recorded his 300th career victory and his 4,000th career strikeout.

Speaking of caps, because of the way things went down in Boston, and the way he was embraced in the Big Apple, Clemens will probably receive a plaque from Cooperstown depicting him with a Yankee cap on his head. Not only will that twist the knife that Red Sox fans feel in their backs, but it seems very similar to some other guy named Ruth.

Dave Thomas thinks that maybe in 2080, 84 years from when the Red Sox didn’t resign Clemens, Boston will still have never won a title, and someone will write a column on the Curse of the Rocket.