How about that? We've grown accustomed to World Series championship events.
Yet there is something to be said for appreciating the comfort level of a second go-around. You need look no further than Boston's starting pitcher, Daisuke Matsuzaka, for proof.
Dice-K is no longer a major league rookie experiencing every facet of the American version of his lifelong pursuit for the first time. While the expectations from the mother country are still significant, he is clearly better equipped to handle the pressure, the attention, and the culture of his baseball home simply because he did it last season.
"I do think he'll be able to pitch more without handling things on the periphery, or things for the first time," said manager Terry Francona. "He doesn't have to answer questions about a place he's never been, or a baseball he's never used. So when he doesn't throw the ball the way he wants, it won't be because of a new culture."
For the second time in as many starts, Dice-K was in command. He threw 6 2/3 innings of shutout baseball and struck out seven in a 5-0 win. The closest thing to a blip was an anxious sixth inning when Placido Polanco looped a single to center field that a diving Coco Crisp nearly pocketed, and Gary Sheffield followed with what can only be characterized as an accidental infield hit.
That put two on with one out and set up the most significant sequence of the day: Matsuzaka against Magglio Ordonez. Dice-K worked Ordonez into a 1-and-2 hole by mixing his pitches and catching him with a check-swing foul ball. He then served up a fastball that Ordonez swung at and missed with a fair amount of gusto.
Strike three.
Asked to assess the pitcher, Ordonez offered, "He threw strikes."
When pressed to expound on Matsuzaka's improved command, Ordonez said, "I don't know about that, and I don't care. We have our own things to deal with."
Indeed they do. The Tigers, picked by many to be the next World Series champions, are off to an abysmal 0-7 start lowlighted by anemic hitting and atrocious fielding.
