Call him selfish if you must. But you might want to think twice before begrudging Kevin Millar the right to lobby to have his name on the lineup card, especially when he's swinging the bat like this.
Millar, who has had a bull's-eye on his back since he publicly protested his omission from the Sox lineup Saturday in Detroit, went 4 for 4 last night, including a three-run home run in the first inning that propelled the Sox to a 14-4 rout of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at Fenway Park.
"Sometimes you need that stuff," Millar said of the flak he has taken. "If I've got to wear it, I'll wear it. If I've got to take that land mine, I will.
"But everybody in this clubhouse knows I'm 100 percent opposite of selfish. My teammates have always been No. 1 with me. I'm not selfish. I'm about winning ballgames.
"I said some things, I apologized, and [manager Terry Francona] has been great about it. He said turn the page, and we have."
The Sox matched their season high in runs, scoring 14 for the third time this season. David Ortiz, with an RBI double in the seventh, reached the 100-RBI mark for the second consecutive season, while Jason Varitek drove home four runs with two doubles.
Varitek's four RBIs matched his career high. In his last dozen games, he's batting .400 (14 for 35), with 3 home runs, 9 RBIs, and 10 runs scored. Millar said Varitek took a cue from him and opened his stance, a la Miguel Olivo, the Seattle Mariners catcher who inspired Millar to make the adjustments that have made him lethal of late.
"Pretty soon we'll all be open," Millar said.
Millar, who has been widely panned for being a me-first guy for his outburst, says his critics have it all wrong: Sure, he admits, he should have aired his complaints behind closed doors to Francona, but his annoyance had nothing to do with what was best for him. Simply put, in his view the Sox had a better chance of winning with him occupied anywhere but on the bench.
Skeptics may roll their eyes -- the Cowboy Up inspiration was being cast as the Cowboy Shut Up irritant -- but Millar has made a compelling case at the plate. Since the team returned home Monday night, Millar has seven hits in three games. In addition to his home run last night, he contributed singles in the second and third innings, and a double in the fifth, when he was replaced by pinch runner Gabe Kapler.
In his last 19 games, dating to his explosive weekend against the Yankees, Millar is batting .477 (31 for 65), with 7 home runs, 20 RBIs, and 18 runs scored. With the addition of newcomer Doug Mientkiewicz, the plan may be to severely curtail Millar's time at first base, but Francona may be compelled to find a place for his bat.
