Maybe 'Frank from Gloucester' is right afterall.
Who knew? New England's most visible Yankees fan a bona fide truth-teller.
Frank (Iacono) said this week that Red Sox fans (can we please do away with the phrase 'Red Sox Nation?') around here go into hiding when things go south. And this was before Thursday's 1-0 debacle, a third consecutive loss to the dreadful Cleveland Indians which dropped the Sox to 0-6 on this suddenly week-old season.
Trying to track down Sox diehards in this lost week was one tough task, even in Gloucester, which by all accounts is one of the world capitals of the Olde Towne Team. I ducked my head into Cape Ann Brewery Tuesday night as the Red Sox lineup continued their ineptitude (a 3-1 loss to Cleveland) and saw more people concentrating on their microbrews than the travesty that was unfolding on NESN. The Celtics-Sixers tilt was a little more interesting to the folks at Latitude 43.
House of Mitch offered up some hope, as I asked the bartender who was the regular that was the most loyal Sox fan? His choice was one fisherman/Sox diehard that was likely sleeping after a long day on the sea but I was eventually able to track him down. Go figure, he didn't want to talk, saying he "wasn't one for interviews."
Then again, who can blame him? I wanted to talk about the 2011 Red Sox.
There was a sizable group at House of Mitch playing darts that same night, checking in on Josh Beckett's so-so performance every couple of minutes.
"These guys planning on winning a game this season?!" one patron shouted out. It was quite obvious that the fan base was getting a tad restless.
Fast forward to today, as the 2011 season is officially on the brink and panic has indeed infiltrated Lansdowne Street. Oh ya, and the Yankees are in town this afternoon (2:05 p.m.) with John Lackey (gulp) playing the role of Sox savior.
Not overly worried is Manchester Essex Assistant Principal Paul Murphy, who will be attending Sunday night's Red Sox-Yankees game.
"I was listening to sports radio Thursday and people were complaining about the ownership and how they didn't have the best interest of the team with them owning the soccer team (Liverpool)," Murphy said. "But there's too much talent on this team for them not to turn things around. The start is disheartening but there's still plenty of time."
Murphy's Cape Ann counterpart in Iacono actually agrees with Murphy that it's far too early to call the race. But one can bet that while Iacono waltzes around Fenway wearing his decrepit Yankees jacket this afternoon, he will be letting people know what the standings read just one week in.
"When Red Sox fans see me at the park and in Gloucester they're always beeping the horn at me and yelling at me when the Red Sox win," Iacono said. "When the Yankees win and the Red Sox lose, they go away and don't make any noise. When I go to Jim's Bagels in the morning they all hide when they see me."
Typically, opening weekend at Fenway is a celebration of the Red Sox and the advent of Summer. But these three Red Sox-Yankees showdowns are more meaningful than they should be for this time of year. Red Sox fans hope they'll have reason to blare horns at Frank come Monday. Stay tuned.
