Patrick Reusse: Boston's heroes lead the league in surliness

Contrary to their image, the Red Sox are grouchy and their head grouch is Josh Beckett.

By Patrick Reusse, Star Tribune

Last update: October 23, 2007 - 11:45 PM

BOSTON - It has been 40 years since Roger Angell wrote about the Boston Red Sox's "Impossible Dream." You can still hear the boats on Cape Cod sounding their horns in salute of a Bosox's RBI double, or the lobstermen calling out the score to one another through a shroud of fog.

Even as a Twins fan, those two losses on the closing weekend in Fenway Park had less sting to them when reading Angell's essays in The New Yorker.

There is no region of this country more unique than New England, and there is no bond stronger between a region and a ballclub than New England's with the Red Sox.

Throw in Fenway, the strange, little ballpark, and the decades of heartbreak for the Red Sox faithful, and there was an appreciation for any baseball success that visited New England.

And then in 1974, I started covering baseball for the St. Paul newspapers and got to meet those fellows in the red hose. Their clubhouse was the Den of Snarl.

Mark me among those that celebrated when the Yankees' Bucky Dent hit the home run that established the '78 Red Sox among the greatest chokers in the game's history.

Big-league ballplayers as a whole are much more affable than was the case 20 and 30 years ago. Maybe it's all those zeroes on the paychecks that have brought out the tolerance for tape recorders, mini-cams and autograph seekers.

This is a theory that can be refuted most any day in the Red Sox clubhouse. The Boston paychecks are second only to those of the Yankees, yet the Red Sox have maintained their heritage of surliness.

Fred Lynn was my all-timer in this area, but now a rising Red Sox star has arrived to challenge smug, miserable Fred:

Josh Beckett, star pitcher, star grouch.

Beckett, 27, already has collected hardware as the MVP of the 2003 World Series and of the 2007 ALCS. He's 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA this month and 5-2 with 1.78 ERA all-time in the postseason.

He will pitch the World Series opener for the Red Sox tonight against Colorado. There might not have been an American League pitcher you would prefer for this assignment since Jack Morris left the Twins after the 1991 season.

The Game 1 assignment meant that Beckett was brought in Tuesday for the torture of a mass interview. The first question was the predictable softball, about Beckett "kicking it up" a level at this time of year.

"I think I've been doing the same thing in October that I was doing during the season," he said. "Just comes down to executing pitches. They always says it's easy when you've got all your pitches working."

Beckett said this in such a flat-line manner that he could have passed the world's most-sophisticated polygraph test.

There was a question about facing a Rockies team that had gone a full eight days without playing a game.

"They're going to be locked in," he said. "That's the way it is in October. They're not worried about that. It was a good chance for them to rest. I don't think any of them are going to be using that as an excuse ...

"They've been hitting. They've been taking BP, whether it has been in a cage or on the field. Their guys are going to be locked in. That's the way October is."

Later, a reporter told Beckett that his teammates often salute him for being "locked in" on the mound -- and asked if that's something that starts for the pitcher on the morning of a start?

"I don't know what that means," Beckett said.

The Rockies are going to be "locked in," Beckett said. His teammates said Beckett is "locked in" on the mound, and he doesn't know what it means.

OK, how about this: You've suggested there's something different about October -- "That's the way October is" -- so is there a special emotion as you close in on this Game 1 start?

"Special emotion?" Beckett asked.

The Boston TV reporter nodded hopefully and said, "Yeah."No," Beckett said.

It's only taken two years in New England, but Josh Beckett is a Red Sox through and through -- big talent, big grouch.

Makes a fellow want to let out a cheer for Bucky Dent all over again.

Patrick Reusse can be heard weekdays on AM-1500 KSTP at 6:45 and 7:45 a.m. and 4:40 p.m. • preusse@startribune.com