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'Rise, Fall of Red Sox Nation'

"Do you know who the Red Sox are playing tonight? Or where they're playing? Do you care?

"The date is Sept. 12 and the fiery intensity of Red Sox Nation has cooled like general manager Theo Epstein's reputation. The team with baseball's second-highest payroll has 19 games left in the 2006 season, stands a mere nine games over .500 and is limping toward the finish line.

"They are yesterday's news, an afterthought in our sports consciousness as we shift our attention to the Patriots and even the opening of Bruins training camp. They will finish second to the Yankees for the ninth consecutive year and miss the playoffs for the first time since 2002. Their stunningly rapid demise will be blamed on an unprecedented rash of injuries and health problems. But there will be no shielding the fact that this edition was severely flawed, built on a shaky foundation that collapsed at the first whiff of trouble." -- 9.12.06, Rob Duca, Cape Cod Times

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