Playing nine innings while starting to think the Red Sox aren’t going to go 64-14 the rest of the way to match last season’s record . . .
1. Sentimentality and nostalgia are part of the appeal of being a sports fan, at least for a creaky old sap like me. That red No. 4 among the retired numbers on the right field façade at Fenway? I know it’s there in homage to Joe Cronin. But I like that it always reminds me of the favorite player of my youth, ol’ No. 4, Butch Hobson. But sentimentality and nostalgia cannot be factors for those in charge of putting together the teams we care about.