"Jealousy, turning saints into the sea; Swimming through sick lullabies; Choking on your alibis; But it's just the price I pay; Destiny is calling me; Open up my eager eyes; 'Cause I'm Mr. Brightside."
The words and music had helped define the Fenway Park crowd as Jose Altuve stepped into the batter's box in the eighth inning Tuesday night. All was right with the world for those in attendance.
Singing. Dancing. And a 2-1 Red Sox lead over the Astros in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series.
But then, literally seconds after the last chorus of The Killer's classic shut off, destiny did start calling on the Red Sox and their fans. Eager eyes were opened, and most in attendance didn't like what they saw - a game-tying, crowd-silencing home run from Altuve on the first pitch he saw from Red Sox reliever Garrett Whitlock.
It was seemingly at that exact moment that the tune changed. Suddenly, it was clear that the overconfidence that had permeated throughout much of New England had turned into a reality many chose not to see.
This American League Championship Series was never going to be easy, as the Astros' 9-2 win reminded the baseball-following world.
It is hard to blame those who believed the shock-and-awe of Games 2 and 3 were going to carry over. When the Fenway Park crowd started in on Houston starter Zack Greinke with chants of his last name, and the instantaneous result was a two-run, first-inning homer from Xander Bogaerts, the stars certainly seemed aligned for Alex Cora's club.
And even though the Red Sox were squandering one chance after another against the Houston relievers whose job it was to make up for Greinke only managing four outs, they were still leading with six outs to go.
Other than the offense taking the night off, it was working just as the Red Sox had hoped. Nick Pivetta for five dominant innings, with Josh Taylor and Adam Ottavino teaming to bridge the gap to two innings of Whitlock. And to top it all off, the Red Sox best pitcher - Nathan Eovaldi - would use his side session day to pitch the ninth.
Almost. Not quite.
Even with their pitching plans relying on the murkiest of blueprints, the Astros are still a really good team with a lot of really good players. And eight runs in the final two innings later, that was something they reminded everyone in attendance -- including themselves.
Jason Castro's two-out, two-run, ninth inning single officially made all that eighth inning jocularity a distant memory for those planning Jersey St. celebrations.
"I mean, this is enjoying baseball as if you are a child," said 72-year-old Houston manager Dusty Baker. "You know, this is one of the great things about baseball. You know, when you're dead in the water and things aren't going good, and then all of a sudden, boom, boom, boom, and you got seven runs, and that's what they've been doing to us this whole series, and we're capable of doing that as well."
Sure, there was some controversy thanks to a key perceived missed call in the ninth inning by home plate umpire Laz Diaz. But what's done is done. And now the Red Sox are forced to dust off the reset button they thought they had left behind after Game 1.
We are back to remember those moments on Minute Maid Field after Game 1, staring into Chris Sale's eyes and remembering his self-confident optimism. He had those in attendance convinced that his next time out was going to be far superior to the eight-out, Game 1 outing turned in Friday night.
Now, we're about to find out what is exactly what.
"He'll be fine," Cora said of Sale. "The way he threw the ball at the end of that outing in Houston, it was good. The way he worked in between starts, it was good. He will be ready."
"Chris I think is he going to do great," Eovaldi added. "We can't ask for anybody else we would rather have on the mound than Chris tomorrow, and he has been working hard in between each start. He is feeling good. His mechanics are feeling better. I think we're going to have a great game tomorrow, and he is going to come out. He lives up to the pressure. I mean, he enjoys it. He likes it. He likes going out there and being that guy for us, and he is going to be ready to go."
Oh, and there is one other line from that song we left behind just before Altuve re-introduced himself to the Red Sox: "Now they're going to bed, and my stomach is sick."
Yup.
Welcome to the real ALCS, the series most didn't see coming, but certainly should have.
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