DanMargarita.com

Many people were contending before the Yankees series that if the Red Sox got the World Series, much less won the World Series without having faced the Yankees, it wouldn't have meant as much. I still maintain that this notion is poppycock, bunk and probably even bull.

There's an important distinction here. Winning the World Series wouldn't be diminished if the Sox didn't play the Yankees; it just means that much more by beating them.

Down 0-3, the Red Sox comeback against the Yankees was the most amazing rise from the dead in 2000 years.

I had the pleasure, or perhaps more accurately, the misfortune of seeing the Red Sox play against the Yankees in Game 3 of the ALCS.

I guess it should've been a bad omen when the team trotted out the 1960's bubblegum pop group The Cowsills to sing the national anthem (apparently, The Archies were booked elsewhere). The group then sang the theme song from the musical "Hair"? while changing the lyrics to include a reference to the locks of centerfielder Johnny Damon.

Sox fans hopes were diminished quickly when starter Bronson Arroyo and a spate of relief pitchers took a pounding that Charlie Brown never experienced and lost 19-8.

One interesting note for baseball fans: It seems there's also a presidential election going on. A couple of the debates took place during playoff games, but unfortunately Americans are more likely to watch people eat bugs on "Fear Factor" than watch a political debate to decide who will become the next leader of the free world.

Anyway, something remarkable then happened. Given up for dead, the Sox scrapped, clawed and fought tooth and nail (I've run out of cliche's for coming back and beat the boys from the Bronx and win the American League pennant.

I was delighted like everybody else. Yes, I clapped, cheered, hooted and ran naked up and down the street. Uh, was I alone on that one?

Of course, the Sox have gone on to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. Unfortunately, I was unable to secure tickets for the first two games. It's not such a bad thing since being in my living room doesn't require wearing winter clothing.

As is always the case with big sporting events, many of those at the games are corporate big-wigs who seldom go to regular season games while the average Joe gets squeezed out. Actually, the guy from "Average Joe" might have been there.

The Series was carried on Fox TV which means that the cast of their hit "That '70's Show" managed to get tickets instead of people who sat through games during the horrendous Ralph Houk and Butch Hobson eras.

I continued my same superstitious routine before every game like so many other people did. I called the same people before every game as though the team?s hitting and pitching somehow depended on it. This is silly, of course. If the Sox had gone on and lost the World Series, it probably wouldn't be because I forgot to call Dan Gorgone.

I had one person told me that they were wearing the same clothes and not bathing during the Sox winning streak. Needless to say, I didn't watch any games with this person.

Hopefully the Sox can hang on and fans won?t have to listen to the "Curse of the Bambino" crap anymore.

We'll undoubtedly find new ways to torture ourselves.

Originally published in The Stoneham Sun.