Sox Offenders

Things have gone too far in Red Sox Nation. We have put up with the 2009 David Ortiz – the artist formally known as Big Papi – who can no longer convince the baseball to leave the park. We have tolerated losing both shortstops to injury, and we’re barely tolerating get one of them back. We have suffered through a Dice-K-less season courtesy of the WBC. We have persevered through the Youk oblique, the Pedroia groin and the various aches and bloating of J.D. Drew. But the Gods of Baseball have gone too far in taking away our Remdawg.

The announcement that Jerry Remy is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the NESN broadcast booth left The Nation stunned. It was a bittersweet moment when we head the story. We felt great relief that the Dawg was on his way to a full recovery, but we also felt…still feel…a great loss every evening. How long before we hear the next “Buenos Noches, Amigos!”? How long before DO loses the ability to speak after a Remy one-liner? How long before Remdawg plays air guitar or uses the elastrator to show us the trajectory of a slice of pizza? Too long. Already it’s been too long.

Don’t get me wrong, Dennis Eckersley has proven to be an adequate fill-in. But I fear the Eck is a dish best served in small portions. I’m reaching my quota of “piece of cheese” and “right down Broadway” comments. I’ve seen broadcasts of just about every team thanks to the magic of the Comcast “Extra Innings” package and I’ll take Eck over just about anyone else out there. But he isn’t Jerry Remy.

Don Orsillo made the somber announcement before the start of the game versus Cleveland last week: Remy is battling complication following surgery to remove a cancerous growth from his lung. He ended up with an infection that turned to pneumonia and is fighting to regain his health. Remy himself followed up with a statement on his website:

"I want to focus on completing my recovery so that I can return to work without distractions or disruptions," Remy said in his statement. "I hope that disclosing my bout with cancer will reinforce the dangers of smoking to every member of Red Sox Nation, especially children."

So, we could talk about being 5-0 against the Yankees. We could talk about taking two-out-of-three from the Rays. We could talk about The Man Called Bay and his recent heroics. But not this week. This week is all about the Remdawg for us. We won’t rest until his safe return. OK, that’s a lie, we rest a lot. But we want Remdawg back in the booth soon. Get well.

Make shit happen every day at www.survivinggrady.com