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Rays No Longer Fearful Of Fenway Mystique
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Published: October 13, 2008
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BOSTON - Walking back into the cramped visitors' clubhouse at Fenway Park early Sunday evening, month-old memories came rushing back to Carlos Pena.
The last time he stood before his locker in that room addressing the media throngs, he had cracked a three-run homer in the 14th inning to give the Rays an improbable series win in Boston. A night earlier, on Sept. 9, Dan Johnson's off-the-plane ninth-inning homer had dealt the Red Sox another staggering blow.
"I was actually thinking about that today," Pena said. "Man, Dan Johnson, what a home run that was. It was huge. It was like that big knockout punch from the Cinderella Man. He landed a punch on the unbeatable Ivan Drago."
No longer do the Rays view the Red Sox - and Fenway Park in particular - as an insurmountable obstacle. As they begin a three-game set today, they can turn to their triumphs here in September and Saturday night's breathtaking 11-inning victory at Tropicana Field as proof that they can handle the defending world champions under just about any circumstances.
"I think everybody in here recognizes that if you combine those two, we believe anything is possible," B.J. Upton said Sunday. "Having done it, I think, seals it for us. We believe we can win in here and we're going to expect ourselves to win here. We're not going to be happy with anything less."
With the American League Championship Series locked up at a game apiece, the Rays need at least one win here to ensure a return visit to the more comfortable environs of the Trop. They'll face Red Sox tormentors present and past in the first two games, with Jon Lester on the mound today and Tim Wakefield getting the call for Game 4.
But their days of assuming the worst at the mere sight of the Green Monster or sound of "Sweet Caroline" are over, they believe.
"I think there's going to be an initial 'Whoa!' but I think we're going to get rid of it quickly," Manager Joe Maddon said. "I really believe when our guys walk in this clubhouse now, they walk in and they see it different."
Reporter Marc Lancaster can be reached at (813) 259-7227.
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