Boston Red Sox Manager Terry Francona - his team just bounced from the baseball playoffs on Sunday by an Angels team that mounted a ninth-inning comeback for the ages - summed up the harsh reality of post-season elimination with one of the best baseball quotes I've ever heard:

"The season doesn't wind down. It just comes to a crashing halt."

Poignant, painful and perfect - especially from a man who still was reeling from a loss, just moments earlier, that he surely didn't see coming.