Your Guesses, Your Prize - The Details

Before I list your guesses and give you the details on your possible prize, I have to tell you about MY WIFE.

MY WIFE is a very funny woman. You know the song "Centerfield" by John Fogerty? The one with the following lyrics?

Oh, put me in, coach
I’m ready to play today
Look at me, I can be centerfield.

This morning, they played it on the radio as we were getting ready for work. When it finished, MY WIFE sang me her version of the song, which went as follows:

Oh, put me in coach
I can't afford first class

Well, the Sox can afford first class and they got off to a wonderful start last night, winning 13 - 1. The amazingly reliable Josh Beckett threw 7 good innings. Dustin Pedroia hit a home run to lead off the game, and all was right with the world. Boston scored three runs in the first and that gave Beckett as much cushion as was needed. The Sox cruised from there, setting or tying a number of World Series records.

The totals:

ROCKIES - 1 run, 6 hits, 0 errors
RED SOX - 13 runs, 17 hits, 0 errors

Total for the first game = 37

If this were the total for all of the games, it would work out to...

148 for a 4 game series
185 for a 5 game series
222 for a 6 game series
259 for a 7 game series

Here are all of the entries I received prior to 6am this morning. First, however, a few notes concerning some of the guesses.

CONNIE/MOM said that my stepfather, BILL MacDONALD, wanted a total of 123. I did the math and what he wants is actually 133. That's what I gave him.

REBECCA only gave me a total for the Red Sox, and it was 89. Since there was actually a guess lower than that, I'm afraid that's what I'm going to have to put down. I hate to say it, but I think you were right when you said you sucked at math :-)

Both BRIAN IN OXFORD and ANALI gave answers of 146. MAGAZINE MAN had given 146 as his answer, the first one to claim that number. Rather than summarily dismiss them - since I said the earliest guess would win a tiebreaker, and MAGAZINE MAN took tht guess first - I'm going to give them 145 and 148, respectively.

Both SHARFA and UNCLE JIM got their entries in slightly late. My Uncle Jim sent me his via e-mail, as for some reason he couldn't post. I'm going to allow them, since I know they're both good folks and not actually trying to cheat in some way.

BOSOX FAN IN WICHITA  -  83
REBECCA               -  89
MICHAEL LEGGETT       - 100
SHRINK WRAPPED SCREAM - 105
MICHAL                - 112
DAVID SULLIVAN        - 120
MELINDA               - 123
UNCLE JIM             - 128
BILL MacDONALD        - 133
MERISI                - 134
KARL C                - 142
BRIAN IN OXFORD       - 145
MAGAZINE MAN          - 146
PETE MITTELL          - 147
ANALI                 - 148
TARA                  - 151
CONNIE/MOM            - 153
PIERCE                - 155
THE OMNIPOTENT Q      - 159
DAVE                  - 162
JASON ATTON           - 165
BARBARA               - 167
TYLER                 - 173
CHARLIE WHITE         - 180
SHARFA                - 195

If you posted a guess, but I didn't get you on the list, let me know ASAP.

And now, what you've all been waiting for with bated breath - THE PRIZE!

Do you see Mr. Potato Head over there on the left?

(Since originally writing this, it seems to have morphed into a red Red Sox cap. Oh, well.)

Well, if you were to click onto him - or it - which I suggest you do, right after reading this, you would be transported to a wonderland of Red Sox clothing, collectibles, books, and more. And one of you - The Winner - will get to choose a prize from among those fine items. And it might be anything valued at up to $50!

(Here's the fine print, so pay attention.)

If your guess is perfect - that is, if your guess exactly matches the total of runs, hits, and errors, for the entire series - I'll pay $50 towards your choice of merchandise. The $50 is for the prize and shipping, so the total cost of the merchandise and shipping must be equal to (or less than) $50. You must purchase something - you can't just ask me to send you a $50 check. These people are sponsors of this blog and they deserve a taste. Also, if you're a (*shudder*) Yankees fan or something, I'm not letting you get away without having something with "Red Sox" on it shipped to your home.

If the closest guess is not exact, I will subtract $1 from the prize for every run, hit, or error you missed by. For instance, if you guessed 171 and that was the closest to the actual total of 161, you would win $40 worth of credit, since your guess was 10 off.

Everybody understand? Good!

In the event of a tie - if two non-exact guesses end up being equidistant from the actual total - the prize will go to the guess UNDER the total. I may offer a consolation for the other guy, but no guarantees on that. It all depends upon how much I like you, I suppose.

(Of course, I like all of you, so I suppose I'll give you something or other. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.)

That's about it. Good luck to everybody, and I'll be back with an update following tonight's game.