There was a flight to Chicago to catch yesterday afternoon, but surely that could wait for a few Red Sox to pause on their way out of the clubhouse for a photo with a visitor named Christie Brinkley.
''Best place to play," noted Johnny Damon, who looked on as a grinning Kevin Millar posed with the model.
Told he couldn't possibly leave a place like this come the offseason, Damon said it wasn't inconceivable that his next destination could be beyond his control.
''There's three untouchables," Damon said. ''Curt Schilling. Jason Varitek. David Ortiz. If the right deal came along, they'd trade me."
That widespread uneasiness, even in the wake of yesterday's 9-4 defeat of a Tampa Bay team that staged a woeful performance -- pitcher Mark Hendrickson became the first starter in the Devil Rays' 1,227-game history not to record an out, and Alex Gonzalez made three errors -- is the sentiment that has engulfed the Red Sox.
The team left yesterday for a week away -- four games beginning tonight on Chicago's South Side against the best team in baseball, followed by three at Tampa -- and with the trading deadline 10 days away, the Red Sox are a changing team. Witness: In the seventh inning yesterday a scan of the field showed Adam Stern in center, Adam Hyzdu in right, Alex Cora at shortstop, and Tony Graffanino at second base.
And so, as general manager Theo Epstein continues to pass his days on his BlackBerry, and individual Red Sox bear the emotional brunt of trade rumors (Bronson Arroyo keeps hearing he's going to Florida in a deal for A.J. Burnett), the Sox must play on.
Yesterday, though, that was as simple a task as it can be at the big-league level, largely thanks to Hendrickson. A former NBA player, the 6-foot-9-inch Hendrickson faced only six batters and left the game looking just as benumbed as he did in a memorable Life magazine photo in which Hendrickson was caught watching in helpless awe as Michael Jordan dunked.
Hendrickson's line: 6 batters, 4 hits, 6 runs (5 earned), 2 walks. He threw just 30 pitches, 14 for strikes. What wasn't working for him?
''He wasn't getting people out," manager Lou Piniella responded. ''You don't get people out, nothing works. I'm serious. You looked at me sort of funny. I mean, I'm simplifying it, but it's true, isn't it?"
Hendrickson's inning went like this: Damon singled to shortstop on pitch No. 5. Edgar Renteria walked on pitch No. 10. Ortiz singled to center, scoring Damon, on pitch No. 13. Manny Ramirez doubled to right, scoring Renteria, on pitch No. 20. Millar walked on pitch No. 28, loading the bases. Doug Mirabelli (2 for 17 in July before yesterday) doubled off the Wall on pitch No. 30, plating two more. And that was it for the big man.
