01x08 - Episode 8

[bunniefuu]

[expectant music plays]

[McDonough] It's the Red Sox

and the Orioles, game three,

and the Sox really are in

can't-lose territory these days.

They have been searching for a way to put

pitching, hitting, and defense together.

It's been an elusive combination,

and time is running out.

Need all the Advil. All of it.

"Ibuprofen" means

"I be playing."

- How you feeling, big dawg?

- All right, you?

[Duran] Good. Grinding.

You know how it is.

- Yeah, September. That's the way it is.

- [Duran laughs]

[McDonough] Jarren Duran's ready

to go on this very pleasant night,

and so is the Hall of Fame voice

of the Red Sox, Joe Castiglione.

Thank you very much, Sean McDonough.

Great to have you with us here.

Jarren Duran will bat

first, and the pitch.

He swung, a line into

center field, a base hit.

Duran leads off the eighth

with a first pitch single,

bringing up Devers,

who's walked.

- Oh man. I'm grinding right now.

- Same.

My fingers hurt. My knees hurt.

Yeah. It's that time of year.

[Joe] Baseball's

an endurance test.

A hundred sixty-two

games. It's a daily grind.

They always say, "It's a

marathon, not a sprint."

- [crowd chants] Let's go, Red Sox!

- [clapping in unison]

[Joe] I joined the

Red Sox in 1983.

2024 is my 42nd year overall.

[poignant music plays]

Baseball's like

building a pyramid.

What happened today is built

on what happened yesterday,

the week before, the month

before, the year before,

the generation before.

Welcome to the 2005 home

opener here in Boston.

It's been an 86-year wait,

but the Red Sox are finally

getting their rings.

[Will] This is a town

that not only did they not win

a World Series for 86 years,

but they lost in epically

Greek-tragedy fashion.

And when they finally crossed

that threshold in 2004,

Joe narrated that moment and

the three titles that followed.

[Joe] Swing, and a ground ball

stabbed by Foulke. He has it.

He underhands to first,

and the Boston Red Sox

are the world champions

for the first time in 86 years.

Can you believe it?

"Can you believe it?"

At the belt, the pitch.

Swing and a miss. It's over.

The Red Sox have swept

the Colorado Rockies.

[Will] He is the soundtrack to so

many of people's best memories.

[Joe] Swing and a miss.

Strike three. It's over.

The Red Sox have won

the world championship.

[Will] But he also helped

navigate the harder times.

He's there for the

Buckner moment in '86.

[Joe] This game has

more twists and turns

than a Colorado highway

through the Rockies.

[Will] He was there in '03 when

Aaron Boone hits the home run.

[Joe] Swing and a

long drive to left.

Gone. A home run. The New York

Yankees have won the pennant.

And he holds Boston's hand

through loss and tragedy

and says, "We're gonna be okay.

There are brighter days ahead."

"There will be a new season."

We've been dancing around

it, Joe. Take it away.

Okay, well, I never

thought this day would come

and, uh… [smacks lips]

…certainly mixed emotions,

but after 42 years and some

6,500 games… [chuckles]

…I think it's time, uh,

to hang up the microphone,

at least on a regular basis,

and, uh… [smacks lips]

…announce the retirement here.

It's something I never

really thought I'd do,

because, you know, I've had

so many great thrills here.

[director] Why this year have

you decided to step away?

Well, I owe time at home,

and I just think it's time.

I wanted to go out on my own terms and

before I lost my fastball. [chuckles]

I was 23 years old when

this picture was taken.

The Washington Senators, they were managed

by "the Thumper," the great Ted Williams.

He was cussing in a most unusual way

I'd never heard before. Very creative.

When you think back, of all the things

that have happened between 1970 to today,

it just is overwhelming, really.

Forty-two great years

with the Red Sox.

[poignant music continues]

One thing I like to do

coming back from a trip…

I get into Fenway at three

o'clock in the morning.

I like to sit out there and

look at the dark Fenway Park

with just the

security lights on.

[crowd murmurs faintly]

[Joe] It's breathtaking.

- [baseball bat clacks]

- [crowd cheering faintly]

[Joe] To think about all the

things that have happened here.

- [cheering lifts]

- [rousing music plays]

This is for you, Boston.

[crowd cheers]

[Joe] I think the

fan base realized

that this team, this franchise could

win multiple championships and did.

There's nothing more

exhilarating than a pennant race.

3-2, Baltimore.

[Will] The Red Sox would

have to get some runs

to keep their

playoff hopes alive.

Here's his pitch, and he

swings and drives one to left!

High and deep.

- And this ball is long gone.

- [cheering erupts]

A walk-off home run, Tyler O'Neill,

and the Red Sox have won it.

Their first walk-off home run of

the year. The final, 5-3, Red Sox.

A high, towering drive

deep into the night,

and the Red Sox walk it off.

[raucous cheering]

[Joe] You look at the young players

and the hope for the future,

and I think it's optimistic.

[Red Sox team cheering]

[commentator 1] The Red Sox

are heading to the Bronx next.

[commentator 2] Sometimes

it's just that one series

where it can get you back on

track for this Wild Card race.

- [commentator 1] Yeah.

- [commentator 2] But they gotta get hot.

Live for another day, baby.

[Joe] This is a team that shows

a lot of hope and promise.

[music fades]

[crowd chatter fades in]

[stadium organ plays]

Come on!

Come on, WooSox!

[man 1] Come on! You got it!

[clapping continues]

[man 1] Come on, Triston!

Get a strike in there.

- [man 2] Bobby!

- [man 1] Get 'em out!

[Cooper] And here comes Triston Casas,

continuing his rehab assignment,

the big left-hand hitter.

[fans whoop, applaud]

[Casas exhales sharply]

I get nervous just

because I care, you know?

I wanna have results,

and I want production.

You know, yeah, I'm coming

back from an injury and stuff,

but I want results from the first time

that I step back in the box. That's all.

[director] Good luck today.

Uh, save it for someone who

needs it, huh? I don't need that.

- Come on, Triston!

- [expectant rock music plays]

Come on, Triston!

[Cooper] 2-2, Casas rolls one

over to the second baseman,

and it's fumbled out

there by Geraldo,

but he picks it up,

and he throws late.

- Hey!

- [fans whoop, clap]

[Casas shouts]

[Cooper] And so ends, in all

likelihood, the day for Triston Casas.

I think he'll be

ready by Monday.

- Congratulations, man.

- [Casas] Thanks, man.

[Cooper] We're not guaranteeing

he'll be in the lineup every day.

Who knows? Maybe he's ready tomorrow,

but that's just one man's prediction.

- [boy 1] Triston, please!

- [boy 2] Triston!

[kids clamor]

- [boy 3] Please will you sign my ball?

- [boy 4] Thank you.

[boy 3] Will you sign my ball?

- Yeah!

- [boy 5] Thank you.

- Thank you. I see you hit bombs.

- Thank you.

[boy 6] Triston, I can't wait

to see you with the Red Sox.

- Yo, you have your phone?

- [boy 4] A picture with my phone?

- Yeah, you have a phone?

- [boy 4] Yeah.

- Here, gimme it.

- [boy 4] Okay.

[funky, expectant music plays]

[Casas] Last night,

after my first at bat,

something just popped in my head

and told me I was ready to go.

- Thank you, sir.

- [Casas] Here.

- Bro, thank you so much.

- Oh, yo!

- [Casas] For you.

- Whoa.

[woman] Such a fan.

Thank you so much.

[Casas] It's good enough to

come out and play 100%, right?

My bat speed numbers are back

to… to what they were before.

That was what I was

worried about the most,

was, you know, whipping the bat

around at Major League speeds,

and I'm right back to it.

The pain is what it is.

You know, it's not gonna bother me

from playing the game that I need to,

and that's what I wanted most.

[Sean] Triston Casas,

just returning,

and now here it is, the

middle of September,

you're trying to catch

up in the playoff race.

The Red Sox may be having some life

left to them in their wild card chase.

They announce that Trevor Story, who's

been on the IL, will be returning.

[commentator] Been talking to

Trevor Story earlier today.

Of course, trying to

rehab his way back.

Getting closer and closer. Watched him

taking some batting practice today.

I think, as bad as it was early,

that's how good it's been lately.

We're riding that momentum

of how it's feeling good, so…

Um, obviously, this whole

thing is around the playoff run

and being able to

play in October, so…

[Cora] He's been relentless, you

know, in the rehab, in the workouts,

in everything that he needed

to do to be back at this level,

and for us to get back in this

race, you know, we need everybody.

[funky, expectant

music continues]

[music fades out]

[car horns honking]

[telephone line rings, clicks]

- [man] Hey, Raquel.

- Hey, Ry. How are you?

- [Ryan] Good.

- Good.

I'm working on getting you that

backup for, um, the budget stuff.

I can give you the stuff for, like,

baseball uniforms and equipment.

Right? 'Cause…

- Stuff that goes up every year. Baseballs…

- [Ryan] Yeah.

[Raquel] We have to provide two cases

of baseball for every visiting team.

That's mandated by MLB, so

that's like another 35,000.

- [Ryan] I got you.

- I'm still working on it. Okay.

- Okay.

- I'll get that to you today.

- Thank you.

- [Ryan] Thanks.

[Raquel] I'm so behind in

these budgets. It sucks.

To actually do them during the season

is… We've never done that before.

We usually do it

when the season ends,

which we usually

hope is late October.

Um, so having to do 'em now during

the season is… is tough to do,

especially since we don't know,

like, what's gonna happen.

Like, you know how much money we

spend on baseballs? It's ridiculous.

Just during the regular

season… 490,000.

Um, but that doesn't

include Spring Training.

[director] 400… You

spend half a million…

Almost half a million dollars.

- [director] Just on baseballs.

- On baseballs.

And that doesn't even include

the minor leagues. It's crazy.

Like, we spend

19,000 on helmets.

Bats, we spend 150,000 probably.

[director] How much

do you spend on mud?

Not a lot. Five hundred bucks.

When we're in the playoffs,

it's just electric around here.

That's when I don't mind

doing another budget,

'cause we have to do a postseason

budget, which nobody minds doing, so…

But it is always electric around here

during the postseason. It's great.

[commentator chatters on TV]

[Raquel] We are four games

behind in the wild card.

We still have a long way to go.

So I'm not counting us out yet.

[reporter] All of a sudden, Boston's

playoff chase has some life again

for that third wild card

spot before they travel

to the Bronx to

play the Yankees.

Somehow, this team

is still in it.

[expectant music plays]

[brakes squeal]

[clattering]

Like, how important is this weekend?

Like, is this a big weekend?

[Crawford] It's really, really

important. It's really crucial.

I mean, every single game from

here on out is very crucial.

This series means more to us than it does

to them, I guess, to put it that way.

- The Red Sox-Yankees makes it fun.

- [Alex] Yeah.

[Crawford] A little more

fuel on the fire, but…

[Alex] That bulldog energy?

[Crawford] Yeah.

Try to channel my inner dog.

- Yeah? Inner dog?

- [Crawford] Dawg.

That's what everyone's

probably doing right now.

[electronic music plays]

[Andrew] We talked in Baltimore about

continuing to stay in the fight,

about the opportunity that

continues to be ahead of us, right?

We don't get these opportunities

to be in a race every single year.

It is special.

Um, so continue to just make

every pitch every time, right?

Dev, you got anything?

Every meeting, you say nothing.

- f*ck these guys. Let's go.

- [Andrew chuckles]

- All right, there it is. Let's go.

- Hey, that's something.

Big game, big series at Yankee

Stadium with the Red Sox.

They're at a crucial point in their

season. There's two weeks left.

Triston Casas and

Trevor Story are back.

It's fun to be right back with the

boys, fighting for a playoff spot.

That's what it's all

about, why I came.

You feel the hostility when

you're in Yankee Stadium,

and I'm sure they feel the same

way when they're at Fenway, so…

It's special, man. One of the

biggest rivalries in sports.

Fenway gets loud. Yankee

Stadium gets louder.

They've been actually better than

us, you know, the last two years.

This year, they're tremendous,

but it's always cool to play them.

Go out, believe in yourselves,

lead with confidence.

Win the series.

Have a happy flight.

[commentator] The Red Sox clinging

on to life in the wild card hunt.

Fifteen games to go in the

regular season for the Red Sox.

[Joe] Here's Jarren

Duran. Two of his last 22.

Here's the pitch, and he swings and

grounds it weakly to the right side.

[rousing electronic music plays]

- Torres flips. He's safe.

- [Yankees fans groan]

[Sam] This is a more

difficult place to play.

2003, I'm an employee of the team.

I'm sitting at Yankee Stadium.

Aaron Boone hits that home run

to walk us off, and it's like,

"Oh my God, like, we are

cursed. We actually are cursed."

[Joe] The pitch. He

swung on it, missed it.

Here he goes on the first pitch.

- And the throw is in time. He's out.

- [crowd cheers]

1949, you know, they gotta

win one game in New York.

They lose them both, you

know. 1948, one game playoff.

And then right up to '03, the

Aaron Boone-Wakefield thing.

Just crushing… crushing losses.

So it wasn't just

they didn't win.

They came close. They

took you to the edge.

[electronic music continues]

[Will] Aaron Judge,

he's not homered 16

consecutive games.

[Joe] 3-1 pitch is up and away, ball four.

This is the longest drought of his career.

[commentator] He's overdue.

- What up, AJ? How you feeling?

- Good. You?

[Casas] Feeling all right, all

things considered. I've been worse.

[Joe] Low and inside, ball four.

Up and in, ball four.

Walked the bases loaded.

Chisholm wears the number

13 here on Friday the 13th.

[Will chuckles] It's sort of feeling

like a Friday the 13th, isn't it?

[Joe] It is.

[Sean] It used to be,

"How are they gonna

blow this one?"

But those 2004 Red Sox changed

the mindset in New England.

[Will] With the bases loaded…

Fly ball to center.

[Will] …their season

is on the line.

[Joe] Swing and a high

fly, right-center field.

To the warning track goes Duran.

He's there, and he makes the catch

in front of the Yankee bullpen.

That had about five feet to go.

It would've been a grand slam.

[Cora] Come on, JD! Attaboy!

[Sean] All of a sudden, there

was a positive example to cite,

and they had

transformed themselves

into this franchise that

offered hope and belief.

[Andrew] Right there. Let's go.

Come on. Attaboy, Fitts. Attaboy.

Now we go! Now we go! Let's

go! Vamos! Vamos! Vamos!

[music abates]

- [Hendricks] All right. What do we got?

- [Martin] We got a tie game.

[Hendricks] Is it? Who

are we playing? [chuckles]

[Martin] You're such an idiot, dude.

His pitch count's getting up there.

Close game. Um…

- [Hendricks] Big series.

- Yeah, big series. It's like…

We're gonna go…

Any signs of struggle,

you know, we're gonna deploy.

You only notice us

when sh*t goes bad.

That's a true statement.

[Hendricks] Nobody comes

to us when we do well,

but they sure as sh*t will

be out there when we suck.

Last year, when we were in

Chicago, we got janitor's outfits

because we're the guys who come in

and clean up everybody else's sh*t.

I've been on a team where we came

from behind, and we got hot at the end

and ended up winning

the World Series.

So you're never out of it

until you're out of it.

[Will] Top of the sixth,

Jarren Duran to lead it off.

Chops it on the

right side, through!

- [Hendricks] Oh.

- Hey, there we go.

[funky, upbeat music plays]

[Joe] Two down,

here comes Yoshida.

[Cora] I'm telling

you, think homer.

Home run, boys. Home run.

Home run, baby!

[Will] Yoshida

strikes one to right.

[player 1] Masataka?

[Cora] Home run, baby! Home

run, baby! Home run, baby!

[Will] That ball is gone!

[Cora] Told you so!

- [player 1] Oh my Japanese king!

- [crowd cheering]

[player 2] Come on. Give it

to us, Masa. Give it to us.

[exclaims]

[Cora] Think homer, boys!

Think homer! Attaboy!

- [clapping]

- [funky music continues]

[Faust] The scoreless tie

is broken, 2-0, Red Sox.

[Cora] Attaboy!

[Faust] Ground ball

single for Casas.

[funky music continues]

[Faust] Hard-hit ball, deep

right field from Trevor Story.

- It's gone!

- [Yankees fans groan, boo]

[Red Sox bullpen clapping]

[Faust] Opposite field

shot for Trevor Story.

His first homer of the season. His

first extra base hit of the season,

and he doubles the Red Sox lead.

Now the Red Sox trying to climb

their way back into the wild card.

- [Cora] Uh… Boos.

- Do you want him ready for Soto, though?

Uh…

["Can't Take My

Eyes Off You" plays]

- Let's see what happens with Volpe, right?

- Yeah.

I love you, baby… ♪

[Will] As tired as I get of hearing

Frank Sinatra on loop in this ballpark,

I do not feel the same way about

Frankie Valli, as Volpe digs in.

Frankie Valli, "Can't

Take My Eyes Off Of You."

[tense music plays]

[Will] Big 3-2 pitch coming.

Outside, he walked

him. This can't happen.

[Casas] God f*cking

damn it, man.

[Will] I still haven't seen Jersey

Boys. I need to change that.

- I've seen it five times.

- [Will] That right?

[Joe] Yeah. New York, Fort

Myers, Boston, Toronto.

Twice in Fort Myers, actually.

- [Will] And he walked him.

- [crowd cheers]

[Will] Low fastball, almost

a mortal sin by Kelly.

Two walks, and the Yankees

have two on with nobody out.

[tense music continues]

[line ringing]

[player] Watch!

[Andrew] Booser for Soto.

- [intriguing music plays]

- [crowd cheering]

[Will] Kelly, on the ropes.

Torres to left, a base hit!

Here comes Volpe around third,

and the Yankees are on the board.

Zack Kelly has given up the

first Yankee run of the game,

and I don't know that

they can stay with him.

[Faust] Red Sox make

a pitching change.

[commentator 1] That's a

big spot for Cam Booser.

[Cora] Come on, Boos.

Here we go. Let's go.

Attack, attack, attack.

Let's go. Vamos.

[tense, suspenseful music plays]

[Faust] Cam Booser comes

in to face Juan Soto

with two on and nobody

out in the seventh.

[Will] Tying run at

the plate in Soto.

What a menacing figure he is.

Still nobody out in the seventh.

Soto takes a ball.

1-0.

Booser delivers. Soto takes low.

Judge waiting on deck.

- [Andrew] Come on, Boos.

- [Will] Ahead 2-0.

Here it is. Soto takes a ball.

[crowd cheers]

[Will] 3-0.

[cheering continues]

[tense music continues]

[Cora] All right, ground ball

double play. Here we go. Vamos.

Get this f*cking guy. Come on.

[Will] Postseason hopes

clinging, dangling by a thread.

The Red Sox on the

ropes here. 3-0 to Soto.

Booser is ready. The pitch.

He walked him on four pitches.

- Not even close.

- [Faust] Four-pitch walk to Soto.

And they're loaded

for Aaron Judge.

[tense music continues]

- [soundscape fades]

- [muffled cheering]

[cheering intensifies]

[Will] And what do you know? Here's

Aaron Judge with the bases loaded.

Listen to Yankee Stadium.

[cheering, whistling]

[Will] He throws.

And a breaking ball in

the dirt. Not even close.

Easy take for Judge, 1-0.

This is the worst

possible scenario

because Booser does not

know where it's going,

and he may just have to

groove one to find a strike.

If that's the case,

we're in huge trouble.

- [suspenseful music builds]

- [cheering continues]

[Andrew] Come on, Cam.

[soundscape fades out]

[Faust] Judge strikes

one, deep left field!

[cheering resumes]

[Faust] A grand slam, and

the Yankees have the lead!

- [soundscape fades out]

- [glum, foreboding music plays]

[raucous cheering fading in]

[music abates]

[Ian] That was the loudest I

heard any stadium all season.

It felt like, "Okay, the

Red Sox season's over."

[Sean] It's as if the

clock struck 12:00

on a lot of those

guys in the bullpen.

[Giolito] These guys get put in

impossible situations all the time, man.

Sometimes you get put in a

situation where it's like

the failure rate is probably greatly

outweighing the success rate.

[Cora] We gotta keep going. There's

nothing we can do. Keep going.

That's all. That's all we gotta

do. We gotta keep going. f*ck it.

[Booser] Reality is, this game's

tough, and you're gonna fail.

You gotta help your team

win. You gotta be consistent.

And you gotta be a guy that

your manager can trust.

I think it might be that simple.

[Faust] The Sox with

a heartbreaking loss

fall to four and a half games

out of the wild card spot.

We're just a little over two weeks

remaining on this improbable ride

on life support.

[Gordon] The Red Sox just

finished off a four-game series

against the New York Yankees.

They lost three out of four.

The playoff odds says they are almost

dead certain to not make the playoffs.

[Jones] I mean, it's

just completely pathetic.

Pathetic isn't even a strong enough word

to describe the state of the Red Sox.

[geese honking]

[people chattering indistinctly]

[man 1] The White Sox couldn't get

the job done last night. They won.

[men laugh]

- [man 2] That's great.

- [chatter]

How are ya, tiger?

[man 3] All right, everybody.

Where is everybody? All right.

Two hundred Wednesdays in a row…

- [man 4] Amazing.

- …outside.

All right? Groton Yalta.

- [men] Groton Yalta.

- There you go. There you go, boys.

Hello, everybody. This

is Dan Shaughnessy.

Welcome to my porch

for the 200th meeting of

the, uh, Yalta Groton.

You'll see on here.

It's a long, boring story

how that name came to be,

but we are here every Wednesday at

two o'clock for 200 consecutive weeks.

Will fans ever get over

Mookie Betts being traded?

- Never! No, never!

- They shouldn't.

- I'm gonna be like

- No. No, terrible.

It's usually six,

seven, eight guys.

If we have two, it's a quorum.

So in order to have the streak

continue, it's gotta be at least two.

I go to the concert. They give

me four hits of psilocybin.

- Oh my God.

- Okay? I had like five beers.

And then they pass

a joint around…

[Dan] Since we have

good attendance today,

I'm gonna take this moment to count

the books written on the porch.

How many books have

you written, Bob Ryan?

[Bob] Fourteen.

- [Dan] d*ck Johnson?

- [d*ck] 25!

[Dan chuckles] Okay.

So the game against the

Yankees at Shea Stadium, right?

- [Bill] Mm-hmm.

- That great game.

How many pitches did you throw

in that game? Do you remember?

- In that game?

- [Bill] All of 'em.

[all laugh]

[man 3] Good answer. Because

that was a great game.

[man 5] No. You're in the

presence of a man who

Freddie Lynn made the

great running catch.

- Bob Heise caught the ball and spiked it.

- [man 3] You caught the popup.

Roger Moret went out and shut

them out in the second game.

If we use Roger Moret in the

'75 World Series in Game 2,

I'm President of

the United States.

[all laughing]

We don't go into Afghanistan. Pat

Tillman is still f*cking alive.

[man 6] Yeah, right?

You're right. Right.

[director] What is it that made you

guys care so much about baseball?

We're so old… we're

so old, we grew up,

you know, when… when… when

baseball was all there was.

You know? They hadn't

invented soccer yet, or

- [man 6] There was no NFL season.

- [man 7] There was no nothing, yeah.

[director] You coined the

phrase, "Curse of the Bambino."

It's the book. Yeah.

My book was the first time that those

words were put in that sequence.

[director] It's weird, but do you

think that book had anything to do

with John Henry buying the team?

[chuckles] They made it part

of their mission statement.

If you look at the press

guides, when they took the team,

it was one of the five goals, to

break "the curse of the Bambino," so…

And they succeeded in that

one, so it was pretty good.

And again, these guys

bought the team in '01, '02,

and they won four World

Series in this century.

So, uh, yeah, that

never goes away.

You know, things aren't swell right

now, but, hey, they had their run.

And, uh… But around here, it's,

"What have you done for me lately?"

Bob still holds up that

Red Sox fans are spoiled

and should not be bitching

about this season.

Why can't we b*tch?

Well, number one, because

if anyone told you,

Spring Training, that they would ever,

A, once actually be 11 games over 500,

which they were,

and, B, would have some exciting,

interesting young players,

some reason to keep watching, uh,

and they weren't expected to win.

They're better than we thought.

My argument back to him is

they're a big market team

behaving like a

middle market team.

But I'm not hung up on that. Duran

was worth the show all by himself.

Abreu, I had no idea how

good Abreu really was.

I lo… You've gotta love

the potential for Rafaela.

- [Dan] Yeah.

- But it's hard to win… period.

But some would say that

they're not trying.

If you read The Boston Globe this

coming Sunday, you might, uh…

- [Dan] You got something for us?

- Yeah.

- [Dan] Oh good. Very good.

- Yeah.

[laughter fading out]

[stadium organ plays]

You know, there was still kind

of, like, a glimmer of hope

going into the final week of the

season that there might be able to, um…

that they might be able to make

a push and make it exciting

going into the last weekend and

maybe sneak into a wild card.

Um… Last night ended

up being a tough loss.

But it's like now really

an extreme long shot.

[Jared] When nobody

believed in the Red Sox,

genuinely nobody believed,

that's when they played

their best baseball.

[man] Everybody had very low

expectations for this season,

and halfway through the summer,

it's a full house in here, and

everybody's buying jerseys.

When everyone started

to talk postseason,

had expectations of getting to October,

that's when they went in the shitter.

[gloomy music plays]

[Will] The Red Sox find themselves

once again one game below .500,

76-77,

and the Red Sox looking to cling

to very faint playoff hopes.

[Duran] Where is everybody?

Is it wrong of me to go

in the clubhouse right now

and try and get everybody to

come out here for the team?

- [man 1] No.

- [Duran] Come on, man.

We're fighting for

a playoff spot.

Let's just hang out with the

boys for a little bit. Come on.

You wanna hang

out with the guys?

Nothing against

you, papi. I just…

We need everybody right now.

There's Kenley, sitting

in his f*cking underwear.

That's not a winning culture.

Like, those are the guys

we f*cking need out here.

You know what I mean?

Come on, Wily!

I think when it's all said and done,

people are gonna look at this year

as a year of growth

for individual players.

They know more about what they have now

than they did back in March and April.

[gloomy music continues]

Come on, Duran.

[Joe] Well, the Red Sox have the

lead, 1-0, and here's Jarren Duran.

- [clack]

- There's a looping line drive to left.

Larnach on the go, can't

get it. It's down for a hit.

- And Duran puts on the brakes.

- Oh.

[Cora] Come on, JD!

[fans cheering]

[man 2] Don't do

it! Don't do it!

[cheering, whistling]

[Joe] Brings up Triston Casas,

who's hitting a .240 with

nine homers, 22 RBIs.

[Will] The 1-2,

swing and a miss.

And he was so late, Casas,

on the fastball there.

[Faust] Triston Casas in a long slump,

three for 32 now after his strikeout.

[commentator] Casas injured

his rib in late April,

came back in mid-August, had

a hot start upon returning,

but he's been ice-cold lately.

First base has been kind of a

revolving door for the Red Sox,

trying to find that guy.

That was the one I wanted.

[chuckles] That was the one I wanted.

[gloomy music continues]

Being in a slump

is the worst thing

'cause I come to the

field every single day,

and I feel like

I'm doing nothing.

There's 45 minutes in

between each at bat,

and… and you want it so bad that…

that it feels like an eternity,

and, yeah, it's… it's tough.

It's typically something

that's going on mentally,

uh, that… you just need to

be able to try to flush.

[Joe] The pitch, swing, and a line

drive, base hit into right field.

Everything's been the other way.

- Triston, what's up, baby?

- What up? How you doing?

- Good. You?

- Doing all right.

You swinging that thing?

[clicks tongue] I mean, I'm swinging

it. I don't know if I'm hitting it, but…

[Dan] Casas, I would

entertain trading him.

In my view, he's another

guy you could sell high on

'cause the… the

potential's so great.

But, you know, you trade him, he

hits 46 home runs, it's not so great.

[man chuckles]

As much as I wanna throw

my stuff and I wanna yell

and say bad words

and break bats,

I need to be able to keep my cool…

[chuckles] …and keep good body language.

And I always remember my

dad and him telling me,

"That's not the best way to go

about it. It's not the bat's fault."

That's his… that's his favorite

line, "It's not the bat's fault."

He's like, "Hit your head

against the wall, not the bat."

You know? So… funny.

[Joe] All right, here

we go with Casas.

And he swings it,

drives one high,

back to the wall, and

gone into the bullpen.

- A three-run homer for Triston Casas.

- [fans cheering]

And how about that?

The Red Sox lead 3-0.

His tenth home run.

He's got 25 RBIs.

Ah-ha-ha!

Let's go, five! Let's go!

[Joe] Well, Triston

Casas getting high-fived

after the three-run homer.

- Whoo!

- [player 1] Nice job, Triston.

[Cora] Attaboy! Attaboy!

[player 2] Swing that sh*t!

[mellow music plays]

[in Spanish] Outta here.

[Will in English] Swing and a high drive,

deep to left field, toward the pole.

- It's back, and it is gone!

- [fans cheering]

[Will] Second three-run

homer of the day for Casas.

[clack]

[Joe] He hits this one high and

deep, back toward the triangle.

- Long run for Buxton, and…

- [Story yells]

- [crowd cheers]

- …it's gone! Into the bullpen!

Three home runs in

three at bats for Casas.

Can you believe it?

- [Story] Holy sh*t!

- [Joe] Wow!

If you look back, there's

a lot of good stories,

a lot of good things, as far as,

like, growth and development.

You see the… the light at

the end of the tunnel now,

and I truly believe this is the

last struggle of the organization.

Uh, I think next year,

we're gonna be playing for

something bigger than a wild card.

[player] Oh, let's go.

Where is everybody?

[commentator] Red Sox need

a win tonight to stay alive

on the playoff side of things.

Keep playing well, man. Keep playing hard.

Okay? Let's f*cking go. Let's f*cking go.

Tek was down 0-3 in the playoffs,

and they won the World Series.

[players murmur]

[Cora] And he was 0-12 too.

- [players chuckle]

- [Cora] The Red Sox were down 0-3.

[low, suspenseful music plays]

[Will] They need to win this

game to avoid being eliminated

from the playoffs.

High fly into right field. Look out.

O'Neill is back at the track at the wall.

- It's gone.

- [crowd cheers]

[Will] A two-run homer

and the Red Sox officially

eliminated in 2024.

f*ck. g*dd*mn it.

[Will] Sox brought it

to the end of September,

but they come up short,

and they will miss the playoffs

for the fourth time in five years.

[melancholy music plays]

We're watching the…

One of our friends on the Tigers, they

just clinched going to the playoffs.

We're watching his live.

- Yeah, yeah.

- Yeah.

Definitely super happy for him.

Am I a little bit like, "Damn"?

Yes. Yeah, it's gotta be us.

- [Casas] Yeah.

- It sucks.

It sucks to watch other

teams celebrate, I think.

I was fortunate enough, with

the Braves, to be a part of it,

so now that I know what it's

like, what it feels like,

and, dude, it's like… I got

FOMO right now for sure.

I mean, you can't just come

this far to come this far.

I mean, we've been so far away from

our families, like, for so long.

- Right? From home, like, from everything…

- [Grissom] Yeah.

Three more weeks of ball, like, at

the most meaningful time of the year,

like, playing with your homies,

like, going for the chip, right?

[Grissom] The weather out

there too, playoff weather.

For the title of "Best

Team in the League."

- Oh yeah.

- Like…

- Not everyone can be.

- Everyone's watching.

Like I said, we're gonna be at

home, watching those guys play.

- Right. Right.

- [Grissom] Kind of sucks.

It doesn't matter to me whether the game

means anything or not. It's baseball.

Oh, it's definitely a

bad year, unfortunately.

At the beginning of the year,

if they could've picked

up a couple more starters,

they would have a chance

to end up second anyway.

But when they didn't do that, I said,

"That's it. They're going nowhere."

Not a great season, but we'd love

to get some momentum, obviously,

coming back for next year.

And just hope we're playing

October baseball again.

They'll be fine.

They'll get better.

And hopefully, next year,

we'll be in the playoffs.

They played strong till the All-Star break

and, uh, you know, kept going as a team.

But, you know, we'll

get 'em next year.

[somber music playing]

[music fades out]

[Jeremiah] I'm just looking

for the Green Monster.

Okay, yeah. You can go up this

way, or you can go up that way.

- Okay.

- Also, are you Jeremiah Poope?

- I am.

- I, like, used to…

Well, I went on a tour with you,

and, like, we're friends on Facebook.

- Are we really?

- I like your stuff.

[Jeremiah] My gosh.

Thank you so much.

- You're amazing.

- [Jeremiah] Thank you.

[muttering under breath]

Right here.

- Wow.

- [man] Hey, Poope!

[woman] Jeremiah Poope!

- Oh, hey there.

- We were on your tour yesterday.

[Jeremiah] I remember you.

Thank you again for coming.

I hope you had fun.

I keep getting recognized, but

couldn't get anybody to go to the game.

Wah, wah. Story of

my life. Oh well.

[Will] You always like to head

into the offseason on an up note.

This is basically the

battle for third place.

The winner of this game today

will finish at exactly .500,

and the loser will finish in fourth

place and two games under .500.

[mellow guitar music plays]

[Will] 2-1 to Lowe,

little dribbler.

Priester, oh, fought with it,

went long, and nobody got it.

And now Lowe's gonna

be on with a base hit.

- [Lowe] Attaboy. Swing it.

- [Casas] f*ck yeah.

[Lowe] I needed a knock to

go above .240 for the year.

No way I'm hitting .239.

[Casas laughing]

Oh sh*t.

I think I'm… I think I'm right

there. I think I'm like .230 some…

I don't know. I haven't looked

yet. I don't want to either.

[chuckles]

I know the… I know the

OPS started today at 800.

I know I got two more turns.

It was a long season. I thought

we did some great things.

We had our bumps in the road,

but all in all, I thought

we had a really good season.

You know, we had some

young guys that had to, um…

kinda learn their bumps in the

big leagues, which was good.

But they came out stronger,

and I'm just excited what they're gonna

be able to do in the years to come.

[Joe] There's a drive by Grissom

toward the wall at left-center field.

And this one's gonna

hit off the green.

And the throw coming to

the plate is way off line.

Diving in with a run is Duran,

flying around the bases.

[Duran] I've only been a part

of October baseball one time,

but as much as I hate to say it, it

feels normal to be home at this time.

[reporter] What is it

just to finish 81-81?

In the room, you know,

a lot of disappointment.

You know, like, I still believe we had

a chance to make it to the playoffs,

and we didn't play well towards the end,

and that's the reason we're going home.

[Will] Ground ball and a diving play,

throw to the plate and not in time.

- [crowd cheers]

- [Will] Grissom gets in there.

[Craig] I'm exhausted. Uh…

You know, it's been kind of an

up-and-down season in a lot of ways.

Uh, to finish at .500

kind of feels appropriate.

- [Joe] Oh.

- [Will] Oh, thrown away.

And the Red Sox butcher that.

Lowe coming around.

But also disappointing, given there were

certainly moments during this season

when our expectations were fully

set on making the postseason,

on being, uh… you know, ready

for a deep postseason run.

[Joe] Final inning

of the 2024 season.

Two ba*ls, two strikes, two out.

Here it is.

Swing and another

foul out of play.

[Will] Could you share

what you're feeling, Joe?

[poignant music plays]

Nostalgic. Sort of

numb. You know, it's…

I guess I've never been in this

position. I've never retired before.

But Roger Clemens said he

unretired three times. [chuckles]

- [Will chuckles]

- So watch out.

[both chuckle]

[Joe] Slaten is ready.

The payoff pitch. Swing, and

a line drive center field.

Rafaela going over to his right.

- He stabs it, and the ball game is over.

- [crowd cheers]

[Joe] The season is over.

All good things… [chuckles]

…must come to an end.

- [somber music plays]

- [fans cheering, whistling]

[Grissom] I got the chills right

now, and it didn't even mean nothing.

I wish I had baseball tomorrow.

- Ugh.

- [cheering continues]

[Joe] I would like to close,

as we've done every season,

reading from the great words of the

former commissioner of baseball,

A. Bartlett Giamatti.

- [soundscape fades]

- [soft, stirring music plays]

"It breaks your heart. It is

designed to break your heart."

"The game begins in the spring,

when everything else begins again…

and it blossoms in the summer,

filling the afternoons

and evenings,

and then as soon as

the chill rains come…

it stops,

and it leaves you to

face the fall alone."

"You count on it, rely on it,

to buffer the passage of time,

to keep the memory of

sunshine and high skies alive,

and just when you need it most,

it stops,

and summer is gone."

[stirring music continues]

[voice breaking] Wow. Beautiful

words by a beautiful man.

[Jen] It becomes

part of your life.

When the season's

done and it's over,

it's this very, uh,

weird… uh, finality.

[music abates]

[Sam] We play every day. This

is not a… a normal sport.

Win, lose, there's

a game the next day.

And then when it stops,

it's… it's

depressing. [chuckles]

It's like your body goes through

this rhythm, and it's like,

"Oh sh*t. The season's

over. Like, what now?"

And you think about, "Oh God. It's

gonna be a long, dark winter here."

You have to take a couple

of days, pick yourself up,

and then… and then look

forward to the next year.

[clang echoes]

[Andrew] There's a saying, "It's

the biggest offseason of my life."

Well, every offseason is the

biggest offseason in your life

because you're entering a

different chapter of your career.

[pensive music plays]

You are a minor leaguer trying to

work your way to the big leagues.

You have a guy who's trying

to fight for a roster spot.

You have a guy who's seeking free agency,

so he's going into his free-agent year.

Then when you sign the contract, now

you have to produce consistently.

Every off-season is huge.

[Duran] This year,

we were so close,

and we were not supposed

to be close at all.

[director] Are you

hopeful for next year?

I have no doubt that we're

gonna be something special.

[rousing, expectant music plays]

[Casas] I'm a work in progress

still as a human being.

Being comfortable in your own skin,

not caring what people say about you,

it's very important.

You never know when it's gonna

be your last hit, last home run.

Coming back from an

injury and stuff,

I'm taking every single at bat like

my life's on the line. Do or die.

In this game, you know, baseball,

we play 160 games in a row.

We have to decompress and

disengage from the game.

It's all about balance, right?

But we do miss Dada when

he's gone, don't we?

[Audrie squeals]

- [Stephanie] Yes.

- [O'Neill] Daddy misses his girls too.

[Bello in Spanish] For me, baseball

is the best sport in the world.

Even though there are many

bad moments, that's normal.

The biggest adjustment I

made this year was mental.

To hang in there without dwelling

on the bad things that happened,

but think about what

I did well that day.

[Booser in English] I've really

fallen in love with the journey

and the grind of the game.

Minor Leagues, Major Leagues,

I still have a uniform

and an opportunity to play the game

that I love more than anything.

I'm just thankful for the

opportunity to have been here.

[music continues]

[Cora] You can talk

about our defense,

you can talk about our offense,

you can talk about the bullpen,

but you cannot

question the effort.

These kids, this group,

they never stopped playing.

Everybody has put

this organization

in a spot that is gonna

be very successful…

[music halts]

…starting next year.

["Sweet Caroline" by

Neil Diamond plays]

- [music continues over speakers]

- Hands ♪

[fans singing along]

Touching hands ♪

Reaching out ♪

Touching me ♪

Touching you ♪

Sweet Caroline ♪

[crowd] Bah! Bah! Bah! ♪

- [music halts]

- Stop it. It's an embarrassment.

People wanna come to

sing "Sweet Caroline."

- [Dan] Should be erased…

- Not me. I sit down.

- [Dan] …from the soundtrack of life.

- I stay seated.

I deplore it. I think it's

a civic embarrassment.

It is. Embarrassment that we…

that the people of America

have to look at these

idiots at Fenway,

you know, singing a song that has nothing

to do with baseball or anything else.

They're down 8-1.

- [Bob] I love that. Thank you.

- "So good, so good."

[Bob] That's usually my

number one complaint.

At least be a little bit… You

know, don't be so tone-deaf.

[Bob] Only play it

if you're ahead.

Yeah, that'd be better, way better,

but nothing would be the best.

[fans] So good!

So good! So good!

[music continues over stadium

speakers] I've been inclined ♪

[fans] Bah! Bah! Bah! ♪

[song and fans] To believe

they never would, oh… ♪

- [soundscape fades out]

- [upbeat instrumental music plays]

[music fades out]

[earth skitters]

- [baby giggles]

- [gulls calling]

[waves crashing]

[clicking]

- [commentator] Number 23.

- [crowd cheers]

[strings stab]

[cheering fades]