I know Bill Mueller believes that, because he's a competitor and he's loyal to his teammates. But for that belief to be upheld, a team must have enough pitching to get through three series. The 2004 Red Sox did. The 2005 Red Sox did not. Everyone who follows this team knows what they had and didn't have. And that includes a guy on the inside who is a bit less buttoned-down than Mueller.
''We didn't really have a No. 1 starter all year," acknowledged Johnny Damon. ''Or even a No. 2."
Thank you, Johnny. It means more if you say it. The plain truth is that the 2005 Boston Red Sox entered the postseason hoping to scrape by with a staff of third and fourth starters, and that specifically includes Curt Schilling, who brought that level of stuff to the mound against the Yankees last Sunday and survived because he was backed by 10 runs. Forget about what-ifs regarding the use of Schilling in the White Sox series. The odds are he wouldn't have lasted into the fifth.
The Offseason for the Red Sox officially begins today, and it promises to be one of unending fascination. For what we saw last night might have been the end of this particular Red Sox era. No one knows for sure, but among those players who either definitely have, or who could conceivably have, played their last games in a Red Sox uniform are Damon, Mueller, Mike Timlin, Kevin Millar, John Olerud and -- say it isn't so -- Manny Ramirez. Management hates the contract, period.
Oh, and don't forget the manager and the general manager. The former hasn't been formally endorsed yet and the latter is about to be a free agent.
Let's start with the center fielder, who played hurt for the last three months of the season, and who may or may not have reduced his market value in so doing. He would like to come back, but, well, the Red Sox have to satisfy a few of his concerns.
