This one hurts: Sox lose 4th straight to KC

Playoff hopes are fading fast after Sox stage 6-run comeback in the 8th only to lose in the 9th.

Gathright is making a bid for the Sox Killers Club

Words can't really describe the pain of the gut-punch the Sox took tonight thanks to the lethal combo of pesky Royals and a washed-up closer.

After falling behind the lowly Royals, current owners of THE WORST RECORD IN BASEBALL, by a score of 8-3, the Boston boys staged a furious 8th inning rally to charge back in front. The 6-run outburst was started by the Captain, who knocked a 2-run shot off Scott Dohmann to close the gap to 8-5. That ignited the spark, and next thing you know players were circling the bases like a Ringling Bros. routine, capped by a clutch (of course) 2-run, 2-out single by Big Papi to put Boston ahead, 9-6. Bedlam in Beantown. Papi's heart seemed just as large and giving as ever tonight as he went 3-5 w/ a double, triple & 4 RBI.

Ah but these are not the feel-good days of September 2004, when miraculous comebacks like this were capped off by clutch saves, dancing & dousing. But then again, Mike "Spaghetti Arm" Timlin wasn't the closer then;unfortunately due to Papelbon's shoulder injury, Ole Rubber Arm is the closer now. In crunch time. Of a playoff race. At age 76. With 45,000 innings on his arm.

Before you can say Steamer Stanley the Royals got the first 2 men on in the 9th, via a single and HBP; that's how you want your closer to start the 9th! After a sacrifice moved the runners to 2nd & 3rd, Timlin did get a huge strikeout of Shane Costa, and Boston was 1 out away from a huge, morale-boosting win.Then speedy Joey Gathright stepped up; he almost had to come out of the game after twisting his ankle on Papi's triple and had collected 2 hits already.

The Devil Ray castoff battled Timlin before squeezing a ball down the rightfield line that fell inside the chalk for a demoralizing, humiliating, crippling 2-run double, and when Ryan Shealy crossed the plate with the 10th run it took the entire oxygen supply out of the Greater Boston Area.

And so the Sox Magical Misery Tour of 2006 chugs towards the finish line. It seems that no matter how hard they try, there are forces working against this team that will not allow them to enjoy any kind of semi-success at this important time of the season. Call it boomerang karma from the WS celebration, a voodoo curse from Judas Demon, or just plain old back luck.

But on this dreary evening you can call it the fault of an over-the-hill pitcher who has nothing left to give this team except heartache and pain.

PATS/BILLS, SUNDAY @ 1.