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Red Sox-Yankees London adventure is silly

By Alan Greenwood - Staff Writer | Jun 30, 2019

Alan Greenwood

One inning of baseball at London Stadium conjured two thoughts:

The pitchers will do plenty of whining about the mound’s imperfections.

The seats between the foul poles make the Oakland Coliseum look cozy.

Before Rick Porcello tossed potentially the worst “third-of-an-inning” in his career to open the Red Sox-Yankees two-game set across the pond, just one thought endured in the year since MLB announced this journey:

This is stupid.

Having teams fly to London for a two-game series in the middle of the season is, if not stupid, an absurd way to sell more caps and T-shirts.

And that is truly the driving force behind the London series. It is not as if there will ever be a club will be stationed there. Can anyone imagine the Players Association going all-in on that?

“The Los Angeles/Anaheim/California Angels will return home after after their three-week road trip to Baltimore, New York, Boston and London.”

Ah, but marketing all sorts of souvenirs and clothing is easy enough. And the Brits will gobble it up. As always, MLB thought it could mimic the NFL with a trip to London. Once again, the copy-cats were silly.

TIME TRAVEL: June 30, 1959 – “Nashua’s two youthful golfers, Dick Dion and Kenny Rice, teamed up to post a low score of 66 and emerge champions of the NHGA state four-ball tournament played at Laconia Country Club yesterday.

“Despite the heavy rains, the caddie scholarship benefit attracted 77 teams from throughout the state.”

PLENTY OF BLAME: One of the best basketball scribes you’ll find, Jackie MacMullan, authored a column for

espn.com on the Celtics’ season from hell that should be required reading for anyone laying all the C’s woes at Kyrie Irving’s feet.

Coach Brad Stevens gallantly falls on his sword. “I don’t think it’s anyone’s fault. If you blame anyone it’s me. I’m the guy who couldn’t fit the pieces.”

Everyone associated with the 2018-2019 Celtics could claim at least a silver of responsibility. But the young stars who everyone is counting on to produce banner No. 18 need to lose their attitude between now and the opening of training camp.

Jayson Tatum and Jalen Brown swaggered their way into the season. Boston’s unexpected playoff run, without Irving and Gordon Hayward, empowered them to think they could show the world that they are, and should be treated as, championship-caliber stars.

In reality, they have won nothing. They should be made to find a healthy dose of humility before next season dawns.

Contact Alan Greenwood at 594-1248 or agreenwood@nashuatelegraph.com.

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