deja vu
n.

1. The illusion of having already experienced something actually being experienced for the first time.
2. An impression of having seen or experienced something before.

Last night we found ourselves huddled in front of the TV, our eyes glowing the reds and greens of the flickering screen, waiting for the inevitable. As we began to invent ways to keep our nervous hands busy, we realized that this time, it wasn't necessary.

This time, we already knew how it would end; it was just matter of when. All the signs were there. Tim Wakefield had just done what Tim Wakefield does best: he pitched as much as he could, and then he kept going. In nine innings he gave up eight hits, three walks (two intentional), and two runs. He struck out seven and threw 111 pitches in what will end up being remembered as just another typical Tim Wakefield type of game. Yet, despite his terrific effort, the Sox found themself in the bottom of the ninth with the score tied at two.

As David Ortiz made his way to the plate, baseball fans in New England sat up a little bit straighter while remote controls in California were picked up and index fingers placed on power buttons, ready, waiting.

Ball. Ball. Ball. Strike. Foul.

And then, Ortiz launched the ball into the dark Boston sky above Fenway, as he has done so many times before, and made his way around the bases before being met by a jubilant crowd at home plate.

As August becomes September and October creeps closer, Red Sox fans are learning how to watch a pennant race in a new way. This time, we're not the underdog. This time, we're not chasing the Yankees. This time, we're not buying Maalox in bulk and crying ourselves to sleep.

After last year's amazing playoff run, being a Red Sox fan now means being confident in your team's ability to win any game, no matter how many runs they've given up or how many errors they may have made. The Red Sox were once the team that left their fans wondering how many new ways the team would find to lose. Now, Red Sox fans wonder not when they'll win, but how. Who will be the hero this time? And just when you start to think that you've gone to the well too many times and that one player can't surprise you any more than he already has, David Ortiz finds a way.

The man known across New England simply as "Papi" is quickly becoming the most popular player to ever wear a Boston Red Sox uniform. He's not the best player, he doesn't have the best stats, and his name still isn't as flashy as a Manny or a Schilling, but with the game on the line, there's no one you'd rather have at the plate than him. John Henry knows it. The Yankees know it. The Angels most certainly know it.

And, of course, we Red Sox fans know it, too. But if David Ortiz wants to remind us every once in a while, we won't object.